What's For Breakfast?

Ever since my surgery over 3 months ago (WOW!) I have had the same 3 breakfasts over and over again.

Breakfast #1

*Fried eggs (no butter)

Breakfast #2

*Egg omlet w/low sodium bacon and low fat cheddar cheese

Breakfast #3

*CarbMaster Yogurt mixed with Kashi Go Lean Crunch

Sometimes I have bacon with my fried eggs, but I always have some kind of fruit with any breakfast. But it's always the same and usually involves eggs.

My question to all of you who have had WLS, what do you eat for breakfast? I need some variation, but I'm so picky about my food. I'm used to the super carby breakfasts like the picture, lol, mmm...food porn >:) LOL.

I just bought some turkey sausage and that was pretty ok. But come on, there's got to be more out there.

Leave me comments w/ideas and/or recipes :) I'd love to hear from you!

My New Nikes!!!

I went shopping this weekend :D I was able to sweet talk my darling hubby into lifting the "deal" regarding getting my Nike shoes only if I work out on my elliptical for a month! He knows I'm motivated!

So I got the arm band for my iPod touch so that I can listen to all my "power songs" that are designed to keep me energized and keep me going even when I want to quit.

Then I got the SHOES!! While neon orange isn't really the height of fashion in my opinion, I still LOVE them! They are super light weight, and accommodate my WIDE feet very well. They have the best arch support ever AND they have extra support for the outer sides of my feet since my thighs push my feet to the side.

The iPod Nike+ transmitter goes under the cushioning of the shoe. That's what sends your work out info to the iPod and then to Nike.com.

And this is what it looks like :)

So this morning I woke up early and strapped on my new shoes and donned all my gear and hit the trails! Well, the trails in the community I live in, lol.

I was so mad because I actually did over a mile, but I forgot to hit the "start" button until I was half done! :( I can dye my hair as black as I want but I'll always be a blond. But hey, for my first time power walking for a while, a mile isn't too bad :) And I wasn't even that worn out, I was just HOT because let's face it, I live in the middle of the freaking desert and it's dang hot here!

Losing More Than Just Lbs

What's this? Totally awesome shower art? No...it's not. It's my HAIR :( And that's not including what already went down the drain or what I combed out after the shower. That is just what came out in my hands after shampooing and conditioning :( Isn't that AWFUL?! Yes, it is.

If you're reading this and you're pre-surgery, don't freak out. Hair loss after surgery is common, yes, BUT I also have PCOS, so I probably lose more than most. Also, it's only temporary (I'm told!) so hopefully this will end happily soon enough!

For those of you reading this post-op...did this happen to you? For how long? When did your hair start growing back?

I'm not sure exactly what the cause of all this hair loss is, but I've read so many things it "could" be. So I've increased my protein intake (possibility #1-lack of protein), I've started taking a Hair/Nail/Skin vitamin (possibility#2- lack of important vitamins), and I just bought the #4 Nioxin system and have started using that just today (possibility #3- body is in shock/stress from surgery and rapid weight loss and new growth has stopped).

So for now I'll just have to make more shower art until my hair decides to stop abandoning my scalp.

Chew On This...

I'm on my last full day of my liquid diet and have already had some mushies. I just can't live off liquids for that long, my body needs fuel!! So far I had a soft cheese stick, and it went down just fine, no discomfort at all. Then I had some fat free refried beans and the protein in that really made me feel more awake :)

But I'm still feeling hungry for more solid food!

One tip I've found that really works for me and helps curb my appetite is chewing gum :)

Now, MY Dr. says gum is a No-No! But the reason for that is that if I swallow it and it gets stuck, they have to fish it out because it won't go down past my band. Hmm...I personally find that a little hard to believe, but whatever. All that really tells me is not to swallow my gum :) I only chew minty sugar free kinds. I'm really not worried about the 5 calories I get from it. Because, those 5 calories save me from eating a lot more. For me, when I have something cool and minty in my mouth at all times, it makes me not want to eat anything else, because nothing tastes good after gum, lol. Maybe that's just me...but it does work for me.

I was trying to find the commercial for that gum where the lady is at the mall and she comes up the escalator and lands in front of a cookie shop and says something along the lines of "It's ok, I have gum!" or something like that ( I don't recall exactly). Now THAT is a bit of a stretch. One stick of gum in no way compares to fresh from the oven cookies! But, it does help me not worry so much about food not being in my mouth when I have some gum in there instead :)

Post Fill Liquid Diet Day 2

Yeah...this pic is putting it mildly. I am SOOOO hungry! :( Stupid liquid diets :( That's the only thing I hate about getting fills. On one hand, I'm so excited to get fills so that I can be properly tightened so that I can control my portions and lose weight. On the other, I go through 3 days of pure torture not being able to eat anything but Jell-O and broth. And for me it's just Jell-O because I cannot STAND broth anymore since my surgery.

Any my poor husband, I don't let him eat for 3 days either, LOL. Well, he can eat, he just can't eat anything I like. So he has to live off of pickles, rice w/salsa, and hummus while I glare at him over my Jell-O cup. I feel bad making him not eat, it's not his fault I chose to get a fill. But still, he does it because he supports me and that's how he can show it best. I'd seriously rip his head off if he TRIED to eat something super yummy around me when I can't eat it. So really this works best for both of us.

So I've lost 4 lbs from my liquid diet, and I'd be more excited about that if I weren't so dang HANGRY!!

Hangry: When you're so hungry you're angry.

Yep...that's me right now. I get really feisty when I'm this hungry. *Sigh* only 1 1/2 more days to go before I can have some real food. I'll get there!

2nd Fill Report

FINALLY I was able to get in for my second fill :) Let me tell you...I was DREADING being weighed because I know I've gained 5 1/2 lbs! I was so afraid that my Dr. was going to say "Stephanie, you are not taking this seriously and you are gaining weight! No one in our patient history has gained weight but you and we are so disappointed!" (see the psychological mess I am?)

But once again, I was proven how it is NOT the number on the scale that measures your success!!! My Dr's office has those really nice scales that send a jolt of electrons up your body and then print out a little receipt that tell you all kinds of stuff, like your BMI, your lean muscle mass, your bone density, etc. So I hopped up on the scale, she said my weight and I said "DANG IT!" because by saying the weight out loud she confirmed that I had in fact gained 5 1/2 lbs exactly. So I went back out to the waiting room and actually started crying. Yes...I started crying over 5 1/2 lbs. I know that most of you who would try and comfort me would say that 5 1/2 lbs is nothing, but when you're trying to LOSE weight, not losing anything would be frustrating enough but then GAINING is just un-acceptable.

Well, as I hinted at before, there is a happy ending. When the Dr. came in to give me my fill, I started crying again and she asked what was wrong and I said "I've gained weight and I'm so upset about it and I'm afraid I'm going to fail." She looked at me and said "Why are you gaining weight?" and I said "I don't knooowwwwww!" :( and she said, " Of course you do. Tell me why," so I went into this long explanation about how I thought maybe it was water weight from being bloated from my T.T.O.T.M. and I was rambling on and on. She stopped me and said "I highly doubt that, it's probably because you aren't filled enough yet!" and so I was excited that she wasn't trying to make me say that the real reason I gained weight was because I ate ice cream! She looked at my little receipt that the scale gave me and said that ACTUALLY, I've only gained 1.5 lbs of actual weight and then 4 lbs gained was all muscle mass!!! She told me that my overall body fat was lower than it's ever been, even with the 1.5 lbs gained :D YAY!

I got 2 more CCs in my band (for a total of 6) and am hoping that makes a big difference :) So for now I'm happy. And once again I am reminded that the numbers on the scale don't always show what's going on inside :) That'll last as long as it takes for me to start starving off of my liquid diet.

Sorry!

I'm sorry friends and family, I've been SO bad about posting lately. I'm STUCK in this rut where I'm not losing ANYTHING. It's making me want to eat things I know I shouldn't and it's making me lose all my will-power. Now I know why they say if you want to lose weight FAST, get a bypass, if you have a little time, get lap-band. I don't regret getting my band, certainly not. I'm just so beyond impatient that it's making me have a negative attitude. Bah- and humbug!

However, fear not...my fill appointment is right around the corner! I am going in on the 11th to get another fill. I'm honestly hoping she'll give me another 4! I have 4 now and it's doing nothing at all, not even the slightest bit of restriction.

I'll probably get grumpy over being on a liquid diet again, but honestly if it'll allow me to see those numbers on the scale budge again, as they haven't in SO long :(, then I'll deal w/jell-o and broth!

I haven't been commenting but I've been keeping an eye on everyone elses blogs too...you guys inspire me, even if you don't know it :)