Talking about my (not so tiny) tummy - 9mth post-op

For the most part I haven't focused my blog posts specifically on my surgery because I knew going into this that the surgery could only get me so far. I knew I needed to focus on the total lifestyle change and not just my tiny tummy. Sometimes I do get the occasional person who misses that fact when just glancing through my posts and I find myself feeling really guilty. I mean besides the posts titled "Why I have decided to go through with bariatric surgery" or "Day of Surgery" I can totally see how my other references could be subtle enough to miss. I hope that everyone understands that I was in no way trying to hide that piece of information from you all. It just hasn't been my primary focus when moving towards my goals of achieving true health and fitness... vs just getting skinny.

With that being said I'm going to talk about my tummy for a bit. At this point I just need to get these fears and concerns out there because I know nothing good will come from holding them in.

My tiny tummy is not so tiny... 

I'm afraid that I have somehow either stretched out my stomach, it was made too large to start with, or I have something else going on. I know the comparison game is a dangerous one, but I can eat a whole heck of a lot more than other sleevers. Like a lot.  I brought this up with my doctor and got a lot of great advice and information. I'm going to share this information as it applies to my personal situation. My hope is that if you are also concerned about your capacity that this post can help you gain the confidence (and give you some questions) to bring up the subject with your own doctor. I am not a professional, so please make sure to consult one before making any major changes to your plan.

An interesting fact:

As many of us know the gastric sleeve is a fairly new surgery in the bariatric world and new research is coming in every day. According to my doctor (I wish I asked for the article he was citing) they are finding that even though the sleeve patient has a much smaller stomach post surgery, it can empty much faster than it used to. This doesn't happen to everybody, but can be a big problem with others and can cause increased hunger along with an apparent larger capacity.

Because it is difficult to stretch the sleeve, this could potentially be what is going on with me. Here are some things that he suggested to try for that.

• Stopping eating before feeling 'full' - This one is very difficult for me. I have almost always used full as my signal to stop eating. Now I have to learn to slow down, listen to my body, and stop eating when I no longer feel hungry. 

• Drink ice water - The cold of the ice water can cause the stomach to temporarily tighten up given you slightly more restriction 

In addition to doing the above things, I was also told to become much more consistent with eating. I am now supposed to eat 4 meals a day, around the same times each day with around the same number of calories and protein in each meal. My eating was all over the map and my NUT wants to avoid confusing my metabolism too much, which makes sense. I am also supposed to be more consistent with exercise, working out 5 days a week. Three of the days with 40 minutes cardio, and the other two days 20 minutes cardio and 20 minutes strength training. This more consistent exercise is preferred to what I was doing where I would go super hard and long for a few days then take a 4-5 days completely off. 

Hopefully you've found something useful or interesting above! I'm looking forward to taking all the above advice and continuing on in my journey. :-) As of now I have lost 62% of my excess weight. I have come SO far but still have a ways to go. Keep on keeping on!

With love,
Sarah