Month: July 2017

We all have that someone in our lives that we see make coffee and ask them, “would they like some coffee with their sugar?” For some they absolutely live on it, it’s their fuel.  However there’s always been lots of hype about how much is too much.  In theory the idea for gastric sleeve patients is to optimize weight loss by sticking to a high-protein, low sugar/sugar free diet.  I will be the first person to tell you I need a small piece of chocolate every once in awhile or I’m a very grouchy woman!

Sugar in moderation or a sugar free diet with artificial sweeteners  is really a double edged sword.  Neither real sugar or artificial sweeteners are good for you, and I was rather disheartened by the fact that the whole post sleeve diet was based on chemical laden artificially sweetened substances.  Recently I read an article where studies have been done showing that artificial sweeteners don’t help people loose weight, and in fact may be causing them to gain weight or change the way their body processes and deals with real sugar.  In the past there have also been articles linking certain artificial sweeteners to diseases like diabetes and cancer although this current article by NPR did not really touch on that.

So what to do what to do?? For years I have drank diet soda and other diet drinks, regular soda and drinks were always too sweet for me; and although I do not do carbonation anymore everything I drink, with the exception of hot tea/coffee is diet or no sugar added.  I use a lot of crystal light, which yes is artificial, but I also use plain old lemon and lime in my water and I’m just fine with it.  As far as sugar in my foods.  I did sugar free ice pops and pudding in the beginning plus some sugar free jello, but I found I had a problem with some of them causing me to immediately want to go to the bathroom.  That being said I have started reading the labels on all my food carefully making sure there isn’t any added sugar. Yogurt is a big culprit when it comes to sugar so I look with something with under 10g in it, which with yogurt isn’t always easy and some really do have that artificial after taste.  I no longer include sugar free jello or pudding or ice pops.  I tried Halo ice cream which is artificially sweetened but did not care for it so my choice is now to incorporate sugar into my diet in moderation.  This may or may not be the best choice, but it’s what I’m going for right now.  Until next time, happy reading.

I recently read a news article about a plus sizes model on a flight to or from LA who paid extra for a seat with leg room.  She paid alright to feel like a third class citizen and less than a human being on this flight.  Unfortunately she was assigned a middle seat and was subjected to the grumblings of and older fat hating man.  Mind you this woman is a model and plus size or not she is gorgeous he should have been thanking god a woman this beautiful sat next to him.

During the course of the flight not only was this man sighing loudly and grumbling, but texting someone very nasty texts about having to sit next to her.  This man also deliberately took up extra room in this small space digging his elbows into her side.  She finally stood up for herself and by the time she was finished this man wanted to apologize by taking her out to dinner.   LOOSER!!!

Fact of the matter is that this happens on a regular basis and it’s disgusting.  A person doesn’t need to be a size 2 to be respected.  And yes I’ve noticed a larger person is treated way differently than a smaller one.  Dealing with this is especially difficult when you’re a weight loss/gain yo-yo and you’ve experienced the gambit of sizes.

This leads me to a quick blurb about NJ illustrious governor and our 4th of July weekend government shutdown.  Again while perusing Facebook Christie’s pictures on the beach were plastered all over sites like NJ.com.  Well people of course made comments regarding these photos and I’ll be the first to say in some cases yes I’m a hypocrite and my thoughts went to he looks like a beached whale, but what angered me were some comments made by a friend I went to high school with.  In the grand scheme of things the comments made were childish and only upset me for the sheer fact that not only did I know him but his best friend is a very large guy and would he call his own friend a beached whale??? I think not.

Moving on to a completely different subject is how I’m doing on this gastric sleeve journey.  Everyone asks how I’m doing or what I’m eating now?  Well I’m allowed to eat anything I can tolerate, doesn’t mean I do but I can.  Unfortunately I’m a grazer and trying to curb that habbit and stick to 3 meals a day and 2 snacks.  Lately, I haven’t had much of an appetite but I normally eat way less in the summer because of the heat I just don’t feel like eating.  I focus on getting as much protein as possible it should be between 70-80 grams a day.  I try to keep track but don’t always remember.  I haven’t lost any unusual amount of hair so I assume I’m doing alright in the protein department.

I still struggle with fluid consumption and do so much better at work than at home.  A fellow sleever told me she had a 30 fl oz water bottle she tries to drink in half a day so that by a certain time she knows she’s gotten at least half the requires amount in.  Not a bad idea and having a 32 fl oz water bottle at work it’s been helping me out a lot.  I still don’t know why this is so hard to do at home but I guess I’ll get it eventually.  I also feel like I’m not getting enough veggies.  I make sure I eat all my protein first and sometimes by the time I’ve finished that there isn’t room for anything else.  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.   Happy reading until next time!