#baratric

[rachel-joyx]

One week post op weigh in. down 23.2 pounds from my highest weight and 11.2 pounds down since surgery. It blows my mind that I lost 11 pounds in one week and makes me really happy.

[rachel-joyx]

So this is exciting. Bye bye 270’s. Down 6 pounds since starting my pre op diet. Yas.

[rachel-joyx]

You can probably just ignore this.

Yesterday started off really horrible I just got up on the wrong side of the bed I was exhausted and had to go to work and Sunday's are the worst. I work at Dave and busters I've been here 3 years and I always feel like they don't give a crap about me here. About half way through my shift my general manager pulled me into her office just to talk about my two weeks off I'm taking for surgery. It completely blew my mind how genuinely supportive she was of me and my surgery and time off. She told me how wonderful I am and how excited she is for me and proceeded to give to an idea for what vitamins I could be taking. It just made me feel really wonderful about myself and the support from them was really nice. My other manger came up to later in the day telling me she has a friend that works at FedEx and they are looking for a graphic designer for one of there stores and there having a really hard time filling the position and SHE RECOMMENDED ME FOR IT. So after sugary I'll have an interview with fedex eeeeeep. She also told her friend that she can't have me full time tho cuz I'm great and she needs me to continue to work at Dnb. So it kinda turned into a swell day.

[rachel-joyx]

Setting goals for myself.

CW:270 UGW:155

GW1:250(preferably before surgery) GW2:230

GW3:215

GW4:199(*this will be such a milestone)

GW5:185

GW6:175

GW7:165

GW8:155

I'm gonna learn to celebrate small weight loss victories and even NSV's. Breaking it down like this gives me hope that it's possible. Getting my mind on right today and not letting the small things get me down. Time to push it and change my life.

[rachel-joyx]

So this is kinda a backwards before and after on the left is me about a year and a half ago at one of my low weights on the right is me from about a month ago at one of my top weights. Same dress, There's just about a 50 pound weight difference between the two. It just blows my mind how much happier and healthy I look last year. I remember feeling so wonderful and confident cuz I was focusing on myself and my health. Where as the picture from last month I was insecure and second guessing myself the whole time. My mind set right now is getting back to my happy place. I will do this. There is no stopping me. Fingers crossed surgery will be in about 6 weeks.

[rachel-joyx]

I meet with my surgeon tomorrow.

I'm super excited but also getting incredibly nervous because all of a sudden this is becoming so real. I'm gonna have the opportunity to take control of my body and change my entire life. Failure is not an option for me this time. I'm hoping to get my surgery date tomorrow and I just can't wait to get the ball rolling. Any advice from my post op wls friends? How did you feel before hand and what did you do to prepare?

[rachel-joyx]

Down 4 pounds at today's weigh in.

Feels good.

[ncweightloss-blog]

Ingredients for Long-Term Health and Weight-Loss Success

Life before weight-loss surgery often feels like a constant struggle.  After weight-loss surgery, diet plans, work out sessions, and multivitamins become the way of life. There are three important ingredients in the recipe for weight-loss success after surgery; blood tests, body composition vs. body weight, and exercise.  

Blood Tests for Vitamin/Mineral Deficiencies

It’s not as scary as it sounds. Due to the potential risk for, and serious health consequences of, vitamin and mineral deficiencies and the additional risk of B12, iron, folic acid, and calcium deficits, it is essential that the bariatric patient have an annual blood test for vitamin and minerals.  The test should include measurement of red blood cell and serum folic acid, vitamin B12, and ferritin.  Blood calcium levels are not reflective of calcium loss. Therefore, it is important on a regular basis to have tests performed that are indicative of calcium deficits, such as parathyroid hormone, or tests that check for metabolic bone disease, i.e. bone scan, bone density or mineralization test, or markers of bone turnover.

NOTE: Blood tests will be drawn to detect possible thiamin deficiencies if symptoms appear, the patient does not take the correct vitamin and mineral regimen, or vomits frequently.

Body Composition vs. Body Weight

Appearances can be deceiving. Look at male patients A, B, and C. They are exactly the same height.  A and B have the same weight, and C weighs considerably more.  For his height, C appears to be fat.  But after analyzing body composition, B and C have acceptable levels of fat while A is over the healthy limit. 

Even though A appears to be healthy, he is at a higher risk of developing weight related health problems because of his higher fat mass.

Fat mass (FM) is total amount of fat in the body measured in pounds. 

Fat Free Mass (FFM) is the weight of non-fat tissue in pounds.  FFM includes muscle, bone, intestines, skin and all other fat free tissue.

The fat percent for men should be no higher than 20%, and women should have no more than 30% fat.  These are percent fat values for Bariatric patients only.  Acceptable fat percent values are lower in the standard adult population.  So remember, being healthy is more than being skinny.

Exercise

Studies have found that individuals who are morbidly obese have an increased capacity to store fat and a reduced capacity to burn fat.  Even after weight-loss, your body’s ability to burn fat is not improved, increasing your risk for weight regain.  Moderate exercise performed daily cause’s changes in the ability of your muscles to burn fat.  Moderate exercises, when performed regularly and for a period of 30 minutes to an hour daily are apparently the best for increasing the burning of fat.  These exercises burn the most fat and are most effective in helping to lose or maintain weight loss if performed before breakfast or at least 6 hours after a meal. 

Besides increasing the body’s ability to burn fat, exercise reduces emotional stress and the risk for stress-associated eating abnormalities. Exercise increases levels of certain brain messengers, such as serotonin, that reduce food cravings and provide for an overall feeling of well-being.  Furthermore, exercise increases muscle mass with a resultant increase in metabolism helping to promote and maintain weight-loss long-term

Our postoperative exercise program consists of three major components:

Cardiovascular

o   Cardiovascular activities help to reduce the risk of heart disease, improve metabolism, regulate hormone levels such as insulin, and increase muscle endurance and strength with subsequent enhancement of metabolic rate.  Furthermore, cardiovascular exercises stimulate fat breakdown from fat storage depots and increase the body’s utilization of fat for fuel. 

 Muscular Strength

o   Strength exercises help to prevent muscle and bone loss following surgery and help to build muscle and maintain or even increase resting metabolic rates (calories burned) during the rapid weight loss period. 

 Flexibility

o   Flexibility exercises include those that help to stretch muscles and increase the range of motion of joints. 

By keeping these three ingredients in mind during life after surgery, you are set up for long-term health and weight-loss success. To learn more about the FirstHealth Bariatric Program you can attend a bi-weekly free weight-loss surgery information session or visit ncweightlosssurgery.org.  FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital offers treatment and support to patients in the Pinehurst, Raeford, Sanford, Lumberton, Laurinburg, Rockingham, and Troy regions of North Carolina and beyond.