Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Some Small Changes

I have been going on longer bike rides these days. Still very unsteady around cars on the roads. We have a short bike path near my home, but it is not long enough for a real good ride. They say you can get to the Western Trail from it, but I tried to find the path this morning with no luck and had to turn around. I did see another biker and I think I found the path, but it was on my way home so did not turn around. I am going to the trail Thursday but I am doing it the easy way, I am going to put the bike in the car and drive to it.  

I have decided two things for my health without NUT or PCP approval. I have been having blood counts in the morning and evening in the low 90s or high 80s with 15 units of insulin. I sent the figures to my PCP but have not herd anything back as to what I should do, so I am cutting it back to 10 units and watch it close to see what happens. I also decided that I need to eat a little more so I upped my calorie count to 800 calories max. I am not sure I can get that many calories in a day as I have problems eating more than 2.5oz of some things but I am going to try.  

I have been having some constipation problems again lately so I went back to having two cups of hot chocolate in the morning before breakfast. That seems to keep my more regular than anything else. That is also one of the reasons I am going to have more calories as it increases my count by 120 calories. But if it makes me poop, it is worth it. Not being able to go or passing rocks is not fun.      

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Doldrums

I have been in the doldrums lately. From the time we got back from vacation, things have been kind of slow as far as what we are doing here and my weight loss in general. Only lost 3 pounds in the last two weeks. I know sometimes things slow down or stall, but it does get kind of discouraging. I look at other people and they have lost more than me in the same time I have had surgery, but in most of the cases they were much heavier than I was to start. It is silly to look at someone who is over 400lbs and think I can lose as much weight as a person like that can. Jackie has always been upset when we tried to lose weight together. As little as she is, she may lose a half a pound while I lose 4 or 5 in a week, but percentage wise, she may have lost more. I know I am getting smaller. When I started this journey, I wore a size 54 pants. Yesterday I got a pair of Wrangler Black jeans that I like that I had been saving for when I get skinny. Well I put them on and they fit just fine, not even tight. They were size 38. 38 my goodness it has been a long time since I was able to get into pants that small. That is 16 inches less than what I was when I started. I also know I am in much better health. I can walk now, and work around the house without being out of breath. I have a lot more energy and actually look for things to do. So far the surgery has been well worth the effort, but please don’t say this is the easy way out. It is very hard in many ways and still would not recommend it for anyone unless it is their last chance. It was for me. 

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

My New Exercise

Well as you may know, I do aerobic swimming every other day. I love it and have done it for going on 7 years now. We go to a special pool that has salt water in it and it is quit warm. We have an instructor that puts us through many types of exercises for our bodies. Some of the people are old, so it is not too strenuous but you can exaggerate the exercise if you want to get more out of it. I also do a few fast laps at the end of the class which is about one hour.  

Now, I wanted to do more exercise on the days I do not go swimming. I decided to get a road bike. A friend of mine after he had RNY gastric bypass surgery, got a bike and is really into it now. I don’t want to get real into it, just do enough to work off some more of my body fat. 

I put it all together and it looks real neat. I have not ridden a bike for about 16 years and hope I can do it. They say it is like a lot of things, you really never forget how to do it, you have to just start slow and easy and work your way up to speed. Time will tell and I will update you on how I am doing. 


Update Update:  Well I went out for a ride this afternoon and I was able to go down our steep hill outside my home, but I am having problems trying to master the gear system. I could not find the correct gear to get back up the hill after I went down it and had to push the bike back up again. Also my old 70 year old knees do not like to bend that much in the pumping motion. They are very stiff, but once I get them going they work, but I think tomorrow morning I am going to be in some pain. I will keep at it and I know things will get better. I am going to try a little longer ride tomorrow. Again I will keep you posted.  

Monday, July 9, 2012

Learning about my pouch



I seem to be learning more and more each day about how my new stomach (pouch) works. When I came home from the hospital, I was on pureed foods for 4 weeks. I was told I could eat 4oz at each meal, with the normal no drinking until 60 minutes after each meal. After that I was allowed to have what they call soft foods. That would be anything that could be mashed easily with my fork. I was on that style of food for about 3 weeks. I was then told I could have solid foods. This is where I started to find out what I could eat and thing that caused me problems.
I was told that I had to eat very slow, about 15 minutes for each meal. I was told to chew and chew some more. Sometimes I forget and will have pain and have to vomit to get rid of it. Of course this means I do not have anything to eat at that meal. I have been eating something soft after that so that I don't miss in protein I should have. Cottage cheese is my go to food. It never makes me sick.
Even though I was told I could have 4oz of solid food, I am finding that really I can only hold 2 to 2.5oz of solid food. Especially meat. It is all part of the learning process. I am happy really that this happens because my particular eating disorder is that I have always over eaten as an adult. Now unless I graze all day which has never been my problem, I don't think I will over eat anymore and this WLS should work for me.


Thursday, July 5, 2012

First Vacation after WLS


Well I traveled to Orem Utah to see my new great grandson Grayson. He was born on the same day I had my RNY. We had a wonderful time with my daughter and her family. My granddaughter lives there in Utah. They live in a very beautiful home there. We were put up in a bedroom that could only be described as palatial. The furniture probably would cost more than my house. Very unbelievable. Just to let you know there was an elevator for the three floors of the house.

Anyway we were there not to just enjoy the house and surroundings, but to visit and hold our new  great grandson. We went to church and after that many of the extended family and friends came over to my granddaughter's home for a party. There was enough food there to feed an army. All kinds of things that I would have eaten before the surgery. I was able to find some things I could eat without sabotaging my plan. I took some cold cuts, weighed them and ate them very slow so as not to feel too deprived. I had to pass on the cinnamon rolls, the cake, the yummy looking salads that had way to much dressing in them, and all kinds of chips and dips. I have to be honest, I did feel bad watching others who should not be eating all that stuff and remembering how I used to love eating like that as well. It is in our DNA I think.

All the rest of the time we were down there we ate pretty much as close to the plan as we could. I avoided getting sick on anything and I hope I will lose weight next Monday when I weigh. But we did have a great time and the plane trip was very uneventful.