Getting physical

Wow, time flies, I haven't posted in awhile because I have been pretty busy preparing for my surgery this Wednesday - only 3 days away!  I saw my doctor for my pre-op physical, had my labs, EKG and Chest x-ray done last week and was cleared for my surgery.  The only glitch was that my iron is low so I am taking high potency iron daily until my surgery.  I made arrangements to have a nurse come to our house when I am in the hospital to help my husband with his dialysis.  My mom flew in town Friday and will be here for the next 2 weeks to help out, I am so thankful to have her help and support!  Today is my second day of "clear liquids only" until my surgery and let me tell you, it's not fun but it isn't as bad as I thought it would be.  Maybe it helped that my "Last Supper" as a pre-op was being treated to The Melting Pot for dinner Friday night with my hubby and my mom.  If you've never been-go!  I feel blah and tired-but it is probably better for me to deal with sugar withdrawal now instead of while I am immediately recovering from my surgery in the hospital.  The clear liquid diet helps to shrink the liver and visually and spacially makes the surgery a little easier for my doctor.  And whatever makes the surgery safer for me and easier on him, I'm gonna do wholeheartedly.  My husband cooked a yummy smelling mexican chicken crockpot soup/stew for him and my mom and I am thankful I didn't have to deal with cooking while fasting.

Now I want to post a little bit about something newer in my life: EXERCISE.  My bariatric surgeon's practice has a gym for their patients on the floor where his office is located and I usually go there 3 times a week.  There are two wonderful exercise physiologists that work there that keep me on my toes.  The are great guys and even though it is a longer drive than my other gym, I like the direction and advice I get there, the fact it is only used by bariatric patients, and getting to see the progress of others who are preparing for or have had surgery is an added bonus. Plus, making appointments for my work outs makes me more accountable. I started going to the gym back in February and I never thought I would enjoy exercise as much as I have.  For me, it is a stress reliever, mood booster and really increases my energy and stamina.  When I first started going there, I did about 20 minutes on the treadmill at about 2.5mph, and at the time, thought that was a good workout.  And really, it was a good work out, but not for me, not for a 37 year old woman.  Now I am proud to say that when I get on that treadmill, it is for warm-up or a cool down.  I do not run because of the instability of my right knee, which I had reconstructed back in 2000.  I am actually buying time for a total knee replacement because of stage 4 arthritis, caused not only by my injury but also because of the excess weight I carry around.  But, I want to get past my weight loss surgery first and think about my knee later.  When I saw my knee doctor a while back for some cortisone injections in my knees (temporary but necessary relief that makes it possible for me to exercise at all), he told me that for every 10 pounds of weight someone loses, it is like 100 pounds of pressure off your knees, wow...  If I end up losing 75 pounds or more, as I hope, it will take 750+ pounds of pressure off my knees-unbelievable!  I had my last workout as a pre-op patient on Thursday and I spent 32 minutes on the ARC trainer including intervals and 30 minutes of weight training. Typically, my exercise physiologists want to see me doing 30-40 mins of cardio with 20-30 mins of weight training. I also use the row machine, the XR bike (works arms with legs-it is recumbent), treadmill, and the elliptical when I think my knees can handle it.  I hope that during my recovery I do not lose too much stamina, but even if I do, I know I will gain it back.  I like that, lose weight & gain stamina!

Time to help my hubby with dialysis....

Grocery Shopping

So, today Michael (my husband) and I went to a drugstore in town where they sell a lot of the bariatric friendly vitamins, supplements and protein powders that will become the mainstays of my diet after my surgery.  Basically, my new grocery store.  I walked out with lighter wallet ($110.00) and 10 different items.  I'm sure I overbought, because when it comes to food, I almost always do, lol.   The products I purchased included;

Nectar protein powder in Chocolate Truffle (seemed to be the favorite flavor of everyone I have asked)
Nectar protein powder, Unflavored (I plan to add this to soups and other savory-type foods but I assume it will work well in puddings and cream of wheat and rice cereals)
Bariatric Advantage sublingual Vitamin B12 (sublingual means it dissolves under the tongue, because the part of the intestine that normally absorbs it is bypassed during the surgery)
Dry Peanut Butter powder, for adding to shakes, pudding, etc.
Bariatric Advantage Calcium Chews in Lemon
Bariatric Advantage Calcium Chews in Caramel
Pure Protein Gelatin cups-6 pack in Tropical Fruit flavor (bought on a whim, mostly for the clear liquid stage).
2 Types of gummy vitamins, my doctor okayed them for me to take because all of the different powdery type bariatric chewables I tried made me feel nauseated.

There were a lot of different flavors of the Nectar powders, from fruity to coffee and vanilla.  Fortunately, a friend at the gym gave me a huge sampling of all of the ones she has which is great because I can avoid buying big containers of unpalatable flavors. I also read that adding powdered milk to some recipes can boost the protein count without dropping as much cash as buying the unflavored protein powder.  I also think I'll be buying other supplements such as Biotin and Iron, anything to prevent or lessen dreaded hair loss stage after surgery.  I can always add them once I see how my pouch handles the main vitamins, kwim?

Are you a post-op?  What were your favorite products and flavors during the different diet phases?

Introduction

This blog is about all of the different plates in my life. There are many plates, with duties that include; being a wife, daughter, sister, caregiver, friend, nurse, and patient. They are all full in varying degrees. One of the plates, is my actual meal plate, and it has always been too full. It is time to clean it up, make the portions smaller and wiser, and let it be my ally instead of my enemy. It will be paired with a new pouch, which is the name given to "new" stomach that the doctor give me when I have gastric bypass surgery in 18 days. I first started researching weight loss surgery about 8 years ago, while living in Florida.  Several different states and health insurances later, I finally have coverage for surgery. I am excited, scared, nervous, sad, happy, hopeful, and a million other feelings all at the same time...