22 Days In

Yesterday marked the beginning of week four post-op for me. Things are progressing a little more slowly than I would like; I still fatigue easily, I still struggle to get in my protein without shakes or powders, I still struggle to get in my fluids and my scale isn’t moving as quickly as I would like. So far I’ve lost 16.5 pounds since surgery. I know, I know, 16.5 pounds in three weeks is awesome, and I actually do prefer to lose slower so that my skin has an opportunity to catch up, but I know women who had surgery the same day as me who have lost 20+ pounds. I try really hard not to compare my weight loss journey with others, I was a slow loser before surgery I can’t really expect to be much different after surgery, but sometimes it’s hard not to wonder what I am doing wrong.

I continue to walk four or five times a week, though some days I only do 1.5 miles instead of 2.5. I don’t know if I will meet my goal of reaching 3 miles before I go back to work, but I will do what I can and focus on the fact that I am getting out and doing something. I am anxious to get back to the gym and plan to go back either late this week or early next week, even if it’s just for a swim or a yoga class.  Up until about two weeks before surgery, I was working out with a trainer at the gym, she was super nice, but when I told her that I was going to have bariatric surgery, and she asked me what that was, I realized that my “beginner gym” (her words, not mine), wasn’t doing me any favors. So, after my husband and I did some research, I cancelled my membership at Planet Fitness and joined the local Jewish Community Alliance (It’s basically a Jewish YMCA). With my membership, I get 4 half-hour sessions with a licensed personal trainer, access to all fitness classes, two pools, a hot tub, sauna and steam room – something I wasn’t getting at Planet Fitness. I am super excited to get going, but I have to remember that I have to start small and it’s going to take some time to build up to hard workouts. Right now, I don’t think it would be smart to take a spin class and burn 600 calories, if I can barely eat 600 calories in a day. But, patience is not my strong suit, especially when it comes to myself.

I have been very fortunate that I’ve not had any food-related issues. My stomach has tolerated everything quite well and aside from over-eating a couple of times or swallowing food that hadn’t been chewed enough, I think I am starting to understand my stomach again.  This weekend, we celebrated my youngest daughters 16th birthday. We went out to Olive Garden and I had my first real restaurant experience since surgery. I passed on the salad and breadsticks, had a few bites of soup and a few bites of my chicken and mashed potatoes. I took 90% of my meal home and ate off of it the following couple of days. Eventually, I might convince one of my family members to share a meal with me, but that might take a while! Later in the weekend, we had a small birthday party with hamburgers, hot dogs and of course, birthday cake. I ate a quarter of a burger, without the bun, a few bites of potato salad and a couple of bites of cake. Earlier in the week I started getting my cravings for sweets back, but just a few bites of cake satisfied me and I’ve been good ever since.

All-in-all, I think I am getting the hang of things, it’s going to take a while to get the calories up and I am going to have to be careful at the gym, but I am confident that I am on the right track. Hubby says he can definitely see the weight loss and even though I haven’t gone down a size, I can comfortably fit in the size I was wearing and I can wear items I haven’t worn in years, and that’s a really great feeling.