We are slaves to cardio machines at the gym, when the weights are where we really should spend more time to get the biggest bang for our exercise buck. I’m just as guilty of this as anyone else–here’s my evening’s cardio. Not too terrible, but could be better.
In any attempt to lose weight and get healthy, exercise is a must. I know, biggest understatement of the year. I don’t claim to be a fitness expert but I do know that to be fit, one must reduce body fat percentage, increase lean muscle mass, increase stroke volume, and increase VO2 max. These are things the average bear doesn’t think about–hooray for having a biology background!
Posted in biology is awesome, cooking, daily bites, eating, exercise, goals, la guerra, post-op, the body is a funny thing, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery, werk!
Tagged biology is awesome, bro do you even lift?, daily bites, eating, exercise, fitness, fitness goals, I work out, omg I eat carbs!, planning for success, post-op eating, post-op life, she's got skillz, sleeve gastrectomy, strength training, VSG, vsg realness, werk!, WLS, workin' on my fitness
This week saw a slight gain. Am I disappointed? Slightly. Am I discouraged? Not a bit. Let me explain.
Posted in big things, challenges, choices, daily bites, eating, economies of the scale, fighting biology, la guerra, nutrition, oh behave!, post-op, progreso, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery
Tagged challenges, choices, cost of surgery, daily bites, eating, economies of the scale, holidays, it's how I do, oh behave!, omg I eat carbs!, post-op eating, post-op life, progreso, progress report, she's got skillz, shit is hard, sleeve gastrectomy, stupid hormones, the body is a funny thing, this is how I sleeve, VSG, vsg realness, weight gain, what's up doc?, WLS, work that head game
No, it’s not beer.
It’s not coffee, either.
I’ve had a post rattling around in my head for the past couple of weeks that I’ve wanted to write but haven’t been able to organize into something that is both coherent and cogent.
Posted in daily bites, eating, la guerra, post-op, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery, what's up doc?
Tagged daily bites, eating, la guerra, post-op eating, post-op life, sleeve gastrectomy, VSG, vsg realness, what's up doc?, WLS
What do discipline, determination, and drive look like to you?
Posted in celebrations, choices, daily bites, eating, economies of the scale, goals, post-op, reflections, success, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery, werk!
Tagged being real, benefits of wls, choices, daily bites, determination, discipline, drive, eating, keepin' it real, omg I eat carbs!, photo post, post-op eating, post-op life, reflections, she's got skillz, shit is hard, this is how I sleeve, VSG, vsg realness, WLS
So often in this post-op WLS journey, we use before and after photos to document our progress and to celebrate our losses. I know that these types of photos are important to me because they serve as motivation for days when the scale doesn’t read the way I want it to. They help me remember that one day doesn’t define the entirety of my entire path, and that my hard work is not in vain.
There is another type of before and after photo I’d like to share with you.
Posted in being thankful, celebrations, daily bites, eating, la guerra, little things, NSV's, post-op, success, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery, werk!
Tagged before and after, benefits of wls, daily bites, eating, little celebrations, NSVs, oh behave!, planning for success, plus-size fashion, post-op eating, post-op life, sleeve gastrectomy, sorry for sleeve rocking, success, things of win and awesome, VSG, vsg realness, werk!, WLS
This bird is pretty much the best bird you will ever eat. For reals. And it’s easy to make.
My Christmas gift to you, my readers: a recipe!
I decided that for our Christmas meal, we would eat something high in protein and flavor. We’d already done turkey and beef tenderloin at Thanksgiving, so those were out. Fish didn’t seem Christmasy enough, and pork just doesn’t have enough protein bang for the calorie buck, so chicken it was. I decided to buy a roasting chicken (larger than your average bird at about 5-6 pounds instead of 2-3) so that we could eat on it the rest of the week, and have the carcass left over for me to make stock/soup out of later on.
This was seriously the best chicken I have ever made in my entire young life. It turned out so moist and flavorful that I am pretty sure I will not roast chicken any other way ever again. I mean, I’ll still make barbecue chicken legs, but this…for a whole bird? It’s a great way to make it.
The secret to the moist meat? The brine. Brining a chicken is one of the best ways to ensure that it stays moist through the roasting process. Since you’re roasting at a high temperature, the brine will help break down the muscle fibers in the meat, loosening them up so they trap water inside. This helps keep the meat moist despite the high cooking temperature.
So here’s how I did it.
Posted in cooking, daily bites, eating, meal planning, planning, post-op, recipes, vsg, weight loss surgery
Tagged cooking, cooking is NOT hard, daily bites, eating, healthy eating, meal planning, post-op eating, post-op life, protein, recipes, VSG, vsg realness, WLS
If you’ve seen the 1985 film “Real Genius,” perhaps you remember this exchange. Let me give you the context for it. In the film, Chris (Val Kilmer) has been vexed by a problem he’s encountered while building a laser for one of his professors. He has just thrown a fit in the dorm’s kitchen when he has a revelation about how to solve his problem. This epiphany causes him to celebrate, dancing and shouting, and in the midst of his celebration, he runs into his friend Lazlo (Jon Gries).
Lazlo Hollyfeld: Well, how’d you do?
Chris Knight: How’d I do? I passed! But I failed! Yeah!
Lazlo Hollyfeld: Well, then I’m happy and sad for you.
That’s how I feel about yesterday’s eating. I passed, but I failed.
Let me explain.
Posted in breaking up is hard to do, challenges, choices, daily bites, eating, family, la guerra, oh behave!, planning fail, post-op, success, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery
Tagged breaking up is hard to do, challenges, choices, getting back on track, holidays, I am NOT perfect, omg I eat carbs!, plan for success, planning fail!, post-op eating, post-op life, shit is hard, social eating, success, trigger foods, VSG, vsg realness, WLS, work that head game
You were probably expecting a post about mindful eating because I said I was going to write about that today. Well…
I was going to write about mindful eating today, but after a particularly soul-wrenching therapy session today, I decided against it. And I don’t mean soul-wrenching in a bad way; I was given an awful lot to think about and ruminate on, some of which I’ll write about eventually. So if you were expecting my insights on mindful eating, I apologize and will write about that later on this week. Promise.
What I will share with you is something my husband and I did today that has become a holiday tradition for us.
Posted in being thankful, challenges, choices, daily bites, eating, exercise, la guerra, little things, oh behave!, post-op, the sleeve, therapy, vsg, weight loss surgery
Tagged challenges, choices, daily bites, eating, exercise, giving, holidays, post-op eating, post-op life, shit is hard, sleeve gastrectomy, things of win and awesome, VSG, vsg realness, WLS, work that head game, workin' on my fitness
This week’s date with the scale ended really, really well. In fact, it was much better than I expected.
I had not expected to lose quite as much as I did, but I will definitely take a 7.2 pound loss any week, especially during the holidays! I was expecting maybe 2 or 3 pounds, but not 7!
I’d say I navigated Week One of Holiday Eating Hell pretty successfully. As we go into Week Two of said eating hell, I’ve got a game plan in place to make sure I’m just as successful come next Sunday. I’m closing in on 100 pounds gone since day of surgery. I’m really hoping I hit it before my 6-month appointment on the 2nd. That would be an awesome way to begin the New Year.
Posted in challenges, choices, daily bites, eating, goals, la guerra, meal planning, oh behave!, planning, post-op, progreso, success, the sleeve, vsg, weight loss surgery, werk!
Tagged Beck diet solution, challenges, choices, daily bites, data, exercise, goals, holidays, love thyself, meal planning, oh behave!, post-op eating, post-op life, progreso, progress report, this is how I sleeve, VSG, vsg realness, werk!, WLS, work that head game, workin' on my fitness
La Guerra de La Gorda 