Follow Up Appointment

I had my first followup appointment with Dr. Needleman today and down 27 lbs since I last saw him on August 4th. Down about 40 since May when I decided to pursue surgery again. The last two weeks have been purees and soft foods, but today I got the ok to progress to real food minus raw veggies, raw fruits, nuts, olives, or pickles. Never have I wanted an olive more! It has something to do with the texture and how they digest for now. Breads, rice, and pasta are still a caution because when I have my band filled those will be really hard to eat so best to stay out of the habit now. I am so excited that I can have ahi though, I probably asked the dietician three times if I could have it even though I like it raw or seared and she ok'd it. Focus is protein and liquids first then about 900-1100 calories a day. I have my first fill for the band scheduled on October 30th and then I will start to feel some restriction, right now the band is in their but not restricted or filled yet. I will then have follow-ups each month to get to the sweet spot as far as fills go. So for the next month, the weight loss will be done with will power, eating well, and exercise. We purchased a treadmill from Craig's list in June and I was too heavy for it - it would stop working after about a minute. So yesterday we were going to have Matt walk on it with several lbs of books to get a gauge for how much the weight limit was. Then I had a bright idea, I had already lost a good amount, so why didn't I just try it? Low and behold it works, so I promptly outfitted the room with my Ipod speakers, the bigger TV from the basement and AT&T will be coming to install the U-Verse box Thursday so I can watch my shows while I use the treadmill as the weather gets colder. Matt and I have been doing 30-40 minute walks around the neighborhood with Lucy each day and that burns about 300-350 calories according to my heart rate monitor so in good shape so far. I just started to get my energy back this weekend and began to sleep in my bed again instead of the recliner. I am off of work for two more weeks as I continue to get new eating habits and exercise down. Next week, I have a residency for school in Chicago (Schaumberg, actually) for a week. Luckily, my hotel has a kitchenette in my room, so I will be able to work with my food well. Woodfield Mall and Ikea are a short walk 1/2 mile away too so that is an instant 1 mile gimme walk each day! I am also cleared to drive now although still have some lifting restrictions.