Mind BLOWN!

Good day! I hope everyone has a good week. I'm now two weeks post-op, and today I can official start the next stage of my diet--pureed food, which is pretty much like eating baby food. I know that may sound pretty disgusting, but I'm really excited. Why? Well, when you've been on a liquid diet for 26 days, you taste buds are ready for some texture - even if it's mushy. There are many choices, and I'm ready to put my stick blender to the test. Hummus, guacamole, beans, greek yogurt, chili, soft scrambled eggs... Believe me, I'm not crying about this stage. I'll be eating pureed for three weeks.

I'll admit I advanced my diet by trying a few things early. Why? Well, I feel so good. Sometimes I don't even feel like I had surgery, and that's when I have to be careful. I can do stairs now, but I still can't carry anything heavier than a gallon of milk. I did have a hernia repair, so I'm happy my husband reminds me to sit my ass down. Love you honey!

So, last Thursday, I tried mashed potatoes. I ate about 5-6 tiny spoonfuls over 15 minutes using my diet tool spoon. Saturday, I tried pureed chicken and grits. I ate about the same amount in the same time. Sunday, I had about a tablespoon of greek yogurt, and FINISHED IT in 15 minutes. I also has about 6 small bites of scrambled egg for dinner.  Took me about 18 minutes.  So, as you can see, I must take small bites, chew and take my time. Matilda liked everything except the mashed potatoes. It made her a little uneasy so I just took my anti-nausea medicine, and I was good to go. She loved the chicken, grits, yogurt and egg. It's a bit overwhelming to think, "Is this how I'm going to have to eat for the rest of my life?" But, I'm working with a baby tummy. I will always eat slowly, but I'll be able to eat more food as Matilda heals. I'm taking it one day at a time.

I promised in my last post to explain a bit about my decision to get the gastric sleeve. Many of you know me very well, and it's not a secret that I love to read and learn. I love facts and data, and that's pretty much how I came to my decision. Facts and data. Now, I know many people feel that science can be subjective, and for those folks, you do you. For me, after I reading a few books, the writing on the wall was clear.

When my doctor put me on another medication in mid 2016, I was pretty bummed out. I had gained back all but 5 pounds of the weight I lost this last go-round, and things were a bit bleak. I couldn't wrap my head around why I felt like my body was physically and mentally working to gain weight. I constantly has mental battles when I went grocery shopping. Don't buy those chips and dip, yet I grabbed them. Don't eat those Lemon Oreos, yet I sat and eat the entire package in one sitting. Don't eat that candy, yet I'd eat a 5 lb bag of Swedish Fish with no problem. It was completely automatic, almost like I had no control...AND I KNOW I DID!!

I couldn't understand why my body was happy heavy, when I was completely miserable.

So one day, I was searching youtube to watch Weight of the Nation, which is a great documentary It

about the obesity epidemic.  I also came across another documentary called That Sugar Film and it seemed intriguing, so I watched it, and was mind blown. I knew sugar was my main problem, but I had no idea to what extent businesses will go to make a profit. That was just my naivety. So, next I came across a lecture by Robert H. Lustig on youtube that has received over 5 millions views. It's lengthy, but I was enraptured because he was able to explain what I have been struggling with my entire life. My Body Set Point - the amount of body fat (and hence body weight) most people cary is relatively stable and appears to be controlled or maintained at a level.

After the video, I went to my public library and checked out a few books to read:

• Fat Chance by Dr. Robert H. Lustig
• The Case Against Sugar by Gary Taubes
• Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes

So, yeah, the nerd in me was in full mode. Mind blown over and over again. My body is wired and likes being heavy. My body will fight me tooth and nail to get back my heaviest weight because it likes it there. It doesn't matter that I have co-mobidities that will put me in an early grave. My body likes it, and will make sure I stay there. 

And, and although I was happy to read about the science of set points and how my body worked, it was a bleak outlook because it made me think there isn't anything I can do about it. I've lost over 100 pounds twice in my life time, and gained pretty much all of it back. How can I battle against my own body and win?

I wasn't going down like that. I began to research about how to battle set points and establish a new one. Many people are successful at reaching a new set point with the diet and exercise. Sadly, I am not one of those people, but there was research stating that bariatric surgery can be a useful tool to establish a healthy body set point, and that's how I made my decision.

My sleeve is not the answer... it's a tool to get by body to a healthy set point. It will be difficult. It will take time, and I will probably have to fight to maintain it. I went through 7 months of preparation to get to this point. Matilda and I have a lot of work to do, and we're looking forward to it.

Next week, I'll go more into the steps needed to prepare my mind for surgery. Thanks for reading. 

Weight Loss Stats

• HW 361 lbs (circa 2006)
• SW 278
• CW 268
• GW 160