Tag: <span>Weight Loss</span>

Today marks the 8-month anniversary since my gastric bypass surgery, so I thought I’d give a quick update.

Since surgery I’ve lost a total of 41 kg so far – that’s nearly 6 and a half stones, or 90 lbs. I’m delighted with the progress so far, and am continuing to lose weight – albeit more slowly than in the first 6 months.

My BMI has also dropped below 35, so I’m officially not ‘morbidly’ obese any more!

Food

I’m eating normally now, and there aren’t any foods that I can’t tolerate. I’ve also not experienced dumping at all. I asked the dietician about it, and she said that I’d definitely know if I had it. So I guess I’m lucky to avoid it.

My tolerance for all foods means that I have to be careful not to slip into old habits and buy lots of sugary and fatty treats. I physically can’t consume as much food as I used to – because of my smaller stomach – but I’m sure I could do a lot of damage to my weight loss if I’m not careful.

I’m currently not tracking what I eat, which is potentially risky, but I want to see if I can make my eating more normal – without the obsessive tracking of calories and protein. I want to get used to the ‘new normal’ of eating.

Clothes

My clothing sizes have definitely dropped. My jeans have gone down from a 42 inch waist to 36 inches, and my shirts have gone from 4XL to 2XL. So I’m finally able to dip into the half of the wardrobe that previously held the ‘too small’ clothes. I have some items that have never been worn and still have the tags on them, so it’s like going on a shopping trip, but everything is free!

Exercise

As I’ve talked about before, I’m trying to exercise at least once a day. Not just for my physical fitness, but for my mental health as well. I’ve found that a walk or cycle is a great way to clear the head, and earn some Active Zone Minutes on my Fitbit!

I also had an appointment a couple of weeks ago with an Exercise Physiologist at Medfit Proactive Healthcare to get assessed for some strength training to help with my upper body strength and condition. I wanted to work with a specialist who has good experience of obese people and bariatric patients in particular, as I’ve had a bad experience with a personal trainer in the past who didn’t make any allowance for my body size and weaknesses.

Anyway, I now have an exercise plan to do at home, until the gyms open at least. Although I’m having trouble finding somewhere that sells dumb-bells, as they seem to be sold out everywhere!

My Story Surgery

My wife sent me this photo last night, that shows the huge difference in my face/head size over the last 6 months.

Face August February

On the left it’s August 2020, a couple of weeks before my gastric bypass surgery, and on the right it’s February 2021, about six months later.

I don’t particularly like either of the photos, but they do illustrate a what a 35kg weight loss has done to shrink my face!

Photos Surgery

As I reflect on the past year, it’s with mixed feelings.

For many people it’s been a horrible desperate year. The COVID-19 virus has impacted everyone, through sickness, loss of a livelihood, or impacts on physical or mental health. Many have lost loved ones and haven’t even been able to attend their funeral. Many saw their work for the whole year disappear overnight. Others have stuggled with anxiety, stress, and depression about the uncertain future.

I suppose I’ve been luckier than most. I’ve not been sick with COVID-19, and thankfully all my family are safe and well. I’ve managed to keep working and earning throughout the year, albeit from home. And although I have suffered from anxiety and sleep problems, it has been managed successfully with medication and the support of my GP.

I also feed incredibly lucky to have had my bariatric surgery this year.

The surgery was originally planned for March, but was posponed when the HSE took over the running of the private hospitals during the first wave of infections. Luckily the COVID infection rates dropped, and private hospitals were able to resume performing their elective procedures.

My gastric bypass finally took place in late August, and since then I’ve been getting used to life with my smaller stomach.

In a way it’s actually been easier to deal with everything that came after surgery during the COVID lockdown. Because I’ve been working from home and there’s been no social occasions out in restaurants, I’ve eaten almost all my meals this year at home. I’ve been able to control my portions, eat healthily foods, and track all the macro-ingredients to ensure I’ve been getting enough protein and nutrients in my diet.

I haven’t had to scan through menus desperately looking for a healthy option. I haven’t had to field questions about why I’m eating so slowly or why I haven’t finished all the food on the plate. I’ve been able to get used to the new way of eating at home, in a safe and supportive environment.

I’m also lucky and extremely grateful that extended family and friends have been so positive in their support of my weight loss surgery over the last year.

I’ve ended the year a lot lighter and healthier than how I began it, and that’s the major positive outcome for me of the year 2020!

And of course I plan to continue losing weight and focusing on my health throughout the coming year in 2021.

My Story Surgery

I weighed myself this morning, and I’m delighted that my BMI has dropped below 40. It means that I’m no longer morbidly obese!

Twelve weeks ago (on the day of my surgery) my BMI was 46.3. After entering my weight into my tracking spreadsheet (yes I have a spreadsheet!) it told me that my BMI is now 39.8. And that officially takes me out of the ‘morbidly obese’ category and instead makes me ‘severely obese’.

In terms of what that means in terms of my progress, I’ve managed to lose 22.9 kg in weight, which is over three and a half stone.

My weight loss goal is to eventually get my BMI below 30. That would take me out of all the obese categories, and puts me in the ‘overweight’ category. That might not seems like ambicious goal to some, but it’s a realistic goal because the research suggests than an average gastric bypass patient will lose around 70% of their excess body weight. And the 70% loss pretty much aligns with my ‘BMI below 30’ goal.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. I’m only 12 weeks post-surgery, and there’s a long way to go before I might reach my goal.

So for now I will celebrate my small milestone, and look to the future with hope.

Surgery Weight

When losing weight after surgery, it’s easy to become obsessed with the numbers showing on the scales. However sometimes we need to take time to celebrate and enjoy the effects of weight loss that don’t show on the scales.

These Non-Scale Victories (or NSVs) can’t often be measured and we might not even realise they’ve happened, but are vitally important improvements to our physical and mental health.

Here’s a list of 30 different non-scale victories that may apply to you:

  1. Clothes fitting better or feeling looser
  2. Fitting into clothes that were too small
  3. Having more choice in buying new clothes
  4. Jewelry fits better
  5. Better sleep
  6. More energy
  7. Improved attention and memory
  8. More physically able
  9. Better able to play with children
  10. Easier to exercise
  11. Feel healthier
  12. Feel stronger
  13. Clearer skin
  14. Reduced pain and stiffness
  15. Reduced need for mediation
  16. Improved weight related health conditions
  17. Recover from illness more easily
  18. Increased libido
  19. Increased compliments and attention from others
  20. More confidence
  21. Improved mental health
  22. Feel happier
  23. More outgoing
  24. More optimistic
  25. Less anxious or stressed
  26. Healthier relationship with food
  27. Reduced binging
  28. No longer use food for comfort / reward / punishment
  29. Fewer cravings
  30. Spending less money on food

Can you think of any more to add to the list? Let me know in the comments!

Surgery Weight

It’s around 2 months since my Gastric Bypass, and for most of the time the weight has fallen off me. However over the last week or more I’ve hit a plateau and not lost any weight!

I’ve not made any major changes to my diet or exercise. I log everything I eat in MyFitnessPal and all my activity in FitBit, and things like my daily calories intake is the same as previous weeks. My protein intake is the same. And my exercise is the same. I’m just not seeing and weight loss on the scales.

Up until now my progress has been good, and I’ve lost an average of over 2 kg a week, which has been amazing. So my recent stall or plateau was not expected.

It can be easy to feel down and frustrated when a weight loss hits a plateau – especially when you know you’ve been doing everything right. These negative emotions don’t help the weight loss process, and can often derail someone that was doing well.

However it helps that I’ve encountered this kind of thing before when losing weight. My body, for no apparent reason, just decides to retain the fat or fluid it would normally have shed. And there’s no reward shown on the scales for all the good work done.

The good news is that the plateau is almost always only temporary, and the weight loss will eventually show on the scales. The important thing it to try not to get too disheartened in the meantime, and to stick with it.

Some things I try to remember:

  • This is a marathon, not a sprint. I need to look at my progress over the longer term, rather than day by day. It’s natural for the body weight to vary from day to day, and having a very regular weigh-in, such as daily, can give a false impression of progress. Instead I need to take a long term view, and look at my progress over the last month.
  • Not all victories show on the scales. It is all too easy to fixate on the number of kilograms or pounds lost, but at the end of the day, I’m not on this weight loss journey to be a certain weight. I’m doing this to be healthier and have a better quality of life. So I should concentrate on the positive improvements that have already been made to my life. The clothes that I can now fit into, and the activities that are now much easier to do.
  • The best things worth achieving in life are not easy. Nobody becomes a concert pianist the first time they sit down at a piano. Nobody becomes a leading brain surgeon on their first day at medical school. And nobody can shift a lot of weight without hard work, sacrifice, and sometimes disappointment and pain. So I try to concentrate on the investment I’m making in myself to reach the goal of being healthier in the future.

Of course, if my current plateau continues for an extended period of time, or indeed if I start gaining weight, then it might be time to take my weight-loss journey back to first principals. I would need to consult the dietician, maybe keep a more detailed food diary, and try and pinpoint where I’m going wrong.

Surgery Weight