FYI: Calcium Supplements

Review your Calcium Citrate package labeling:

1000 mg Calcium Citrate - WRONG! Contains only 21% elemental calcium or just 210 mg of the calcium DSers need.

1000mg Calcium from Calcium Citrate - GOOD

1000 mg Calcium (as Calcium Citrate) - GOOD

1000 mg Calcium (from Calcium Citrate) - GOOD

Found here: Calcium Citrate vs. Calcium Bicarbonate

5' 11 1/2"

Somehow, I've grown a whole inch. I'm not sure when this happened or whether it happened over time, but the last time I was measured in a doctor's office was way back in 1992 and it was part of my medical evaluation in preparation for college. At the time I was 5' 10 1/2" and probably close to 300 lbs. I don't know if this is an after effect of losing 280 lbs or whether I've been this tall for years, but I think it's cool mostly because it changes my BMI, down a full point! Woo-hoo!

Back when I was an inch shorter, reaching my mini-goal of 216.6 lbs (equating to exactly 300 lbs lost) will still make me obese with a BMI of 30.6. Now that I'm taller, :), my BMI will be at that mini-goal will instead be 29.8. Freakin' awesome! In reality, it doesn't really change anything, I will still lose the weight I will lose, it just gives a better perception on BMI points lost.

I've really been trying to focus on my Calcium lately. I have this growing (irrational?) fear of breaking a bone, especially with my increased activity. I've largely ditched the Upcal-D as it's very sweet and has a lot of sugar which I do not need. I still have a few bottles of the Twinlab Calcium Citrate Chewables, which I like. They're very sweet and candy like and I usually keep them on hand when I want a piece of candy or something or if I am out and about and need to get some calcium in. My primary source is Citricals Calcium Citrate mammoth pills. They suck to take them, but I don't really want to mess around and if it's something I gotta do, well then, I'm gonna do it. The problem with Calcium Citrate is the constipation it causes...an ongoing battle for me. Right now I am following a suggestion that I think I got from Vitalady to take 500mg of Magnesium Oxide with my Calcium in order to move things along. I'm not sure it's working well, I still have a persistent overfull/uncomfortable feeling which can't be good. About once a week I'll have a huge poop and feel much better, and of course the scale will drop accordingly. I may go back to daily stool softeners to see if that helps.

Anywho, since I've left the day-to-day running of my business, I have such a restless mind. It took a little bit to decompress and clear my head of all that bad juju, but now I have a fire to do something else. Right now, at my current gig there are a couple of people who are leaving the group which means that I will be doing a bit of training over the next few weeks on some new technologies specific to the job. I am however, trying to find a learning path that is more along the lines of technologies that interest me more. I'm looking into a few things and luckily don't have to rush into anything. We'll see where that goes.

Listening to my body

A few days ago I added a night time dose of iron to supplement my morning dose and boy what a difference. I thought my sluggishness was due to the crazy hours I've been keeping, but not so much. I feel so much better, I'm even not as cold as I usually am. It's funny how while I'm working hard to make sure one thing is on point (protein), another thing (iron) needed my attention. Such is the DS life, vigilance is required for life.

A good thing about the crazy hours I keep is that I now have a solid exercise plan. Tomorrow I am joining the gym at my job. I can put in my 8 hours, go to the gym and still catch the first bus home. It just works out almost perfectly and the price is right, a mere $30/month and no initial fee. They have the usual weights & machines, plus a spa & sauna and personal trainer services. I also get a fitness assessment and have the opportunity to set goals, etc. My goal is to gain some muscle and lose some fat and end up around 216 by the end of the year. The more and more I read, the more and more I realize that building muscle and improving overall strength and conditioning is important for long term health. Like I've said before, being healthy is more important to me than a number on the scale. I know I will hit my weight loss goals, but I want to be healthy and full of vigor and vitality when I get there. I don't want to be 180 lbs and be sickly. No way.

I seem to be more flabby lately, it's weird, maybe I am noticing it more. As I continue to lose fat, it feels more and more like I am swimming in a sack of skin. Lovely visual, I know, but that's the best description I can give. I don't hate it or any thing, but it's kinda getting in the way. What trips me out the most if my back. I can see my shoulder blades, my ribs, my vertebrae. More and more of the "fat" Tia is disappearing, even my pear shape is diminishing slowly. Craziness. I wore a pair of jeans today that I bought in early July that I will be giving away, I shouldn't really wear them, they're too big now...in truth, so are the pair of khakis I fixin' to wear tomorrow! I'm gonna try to go out this weekend and pick a couple of things up. God help me.

It'll soon be time to start shopping for cold weather clothes. I think I've done good so far with my work clothes, I don't do dressy too much, mostly nice jeans, khakis with fitted shirts or a cute blouse with nice sandals/flats or loafers. I'm thinking I need to look at sweaters and stuff now and maybe more substantial loafers or nice boots. I don't know. I'm thinking of going back to Texas so my sister can help me, everything makes much more sense when she is around.

Day 1

Today was a pretty darn good day. First and foremost, food log:

M1: Protein shake
M2: Bowl of chili
M3: Protein bar
M4: Chicken leg
M5: Chicken leg
M6: Turkey, corned beef, salami rolls
M7: Protein shake
M8: Chicken leg

Protein in the vicinity of around 200g, a little higher than I'd like, but I was starving when I got home from work. 180-200 may just have to be my range. Too little protein and I get sluggish and start retaining water, too much and I risk kidney issues so I just have to watch it. Carbs were under 50 for sure. Gonna try to work in some veggies of some kind tomorrow, maybe some green beans. Also of note, no cheese, no wheat besides what could have been in my protein bar.

For exercise, I had my two 15 min brisk walks to and from the bus to my job and then I rode my stationary bike for 35 minutes and worked up a good sweat. I was pedaling my butt off!

Water-wise, I'll end the day around a gallon and I've taken all my vitamins except for my last dose of Calcium.

Alrighty then, right on track!

Supplements!

Ok, Tiffany asked about supplements so here is my supplement routine and where I buy them from:

Early Morning:
Lisinopril 25mg (blood pressure)
Protonix 40mg (excess stomach acid)
Centrum Silver Chewable Multivitamin
Calcium Citrate Chewable Wafers (2)
- 500mg Calcium
- 400IU Vitamin D
- 500mg Magnesium
Biotin - 10mg
Vitamin K - 100mcg
Vitamin D - 50,000IU
Vitamin A - 25,000IU
Potassium - 550mg
Acidophilus - 1 Billion CFU
Iron - Polysaccharide Iron 150mg

Lunchtime:
Calcium Citrate Chewable Wafers (2)
- 500mg Calcium
- 400IU Vitamin D
- 500mg Magnesium

Dinnertime:
Centrum Silver Chewable Multivitamin
Calcium Citrate Chewable Wafers (2)
- 500mg Calcium
- 400IU Vitamin D
- 500mg Magnesium
Iron - Polysaccharide Iron 150mg

Bedtime:
Calcium Citrate Chewable Wafers (2)
- 500mg Calcium
- 400IU Vitamin D
- 500mg Magnesium

The Lisinopril and Protonix are by prescription.
I buy the Centrum and Potassium from the grocery store.
I buy the Acidophilus from GNC.
I buy the Vitamin A, D, K and Iron from Vitalady.com
I buy the Biotin from Vitacost.com

My labs, so far, have been good and my next round will be next month so we'll see if I need to tweak anything.

Month 14

I wrote quite a bit about Month 14 yesterday so I won't repeat any of my thoughts. Weighed in this morning at exactly what I weighed yesterday... 278.0 lbs. Here are the all the cumulative stats:

Highest weight: 516.6 lbs
Surgery weight: 510.0 lbs
Current weight: 278.0 lbs
Total weight loss: -238.6 lbs!

Highest BMI: 72
Current BMI: 38.8

EWL% (surgeon's goal of 250 lbs): 89.5%
EWL% (personal goal of 199.8): 75.3%
EWL% (pipe dream goal of 175): 69.8%

Feeling pretty good, making good progress, could be better, but oh well. I don't feel any strong feeling of regret, I know I could have been much more compliant, but it's just something I will continue to struggle with AND for the most part overcome. I'm looking ahead to the cold is gone except for some errant coughing here and there, but more than manageable. It was really cold this morning in the Atlanta area, 39 degrees, yikes! Must. get. winter. clothes. Yes, I know...will look into getting a few things this weekend. Ugh.

Anyway, on the supplements front, I've tweaked my regimen a little. I've done away with the Citracal Petites w/ Vitamin D. I thought it would be easier to just swallow two pills 4 times a day. Well, I overestimated my desire to swallow giant pills four times a day. Not gonna happen, so I went back to the old tried and true chewable wafers from TwinLab. They make it so easy to get my Calcium in, I will never stray again. I also added Biotin back in, I am still losing hair and it's getting a bit frightening, I think a lot of it had to do with not enough protein, but I had also stopped taking Biotin some time ago and right now I can't afford to take any chances.

Supplements

Okay, got an email about what my supplement regimen is like. Here it is:

First thing in the morning:
1 Protonix 40mg (for excess stomach acid/ulcer)
1 Lisinopril 20mg (high blood pressure)

After 1st meal:
1 Potassium Chelate (99mg)
2 Citracal Calcium Citrate (400mg) w/ Vitamin D (400IU) each
1 Acidophilus (1 Billion CFU)
2 Vitamin D (5,000 IU each)
1 Vitamin A (25,000 IU)
2 Magnesium Citrate (400mg)
1 Vitamin B Complex
1 Centrum Chewables Multivitamins
1 Ferrous Fumerate (50mg)

Lunch:
2 Calcium Citrate Lozenges (400mg)

After Dinner:
1 Potassium Chelate (99mg)
2 Citracal Calcium Citrate (400mg) w/ Vitamin D (400IU) each
1 Acidophilus (1 Billion CFU)
2 Vitamin D (5,000 IU each)
1 Vitamin A (25,000 IU)
2 Magnesium Citrate (400mg)
1 Centrum Chewables Multivitamins
1 Ferrous Fumerate (50mg)

Before Bed:
2 Calcium Citrate Lozenges (400mg)

I probably need to sneak in another round of the Calcium Citrate Lozenges. I am also thinking about adding Zinc back in. But that's it in a nutshell.

Sunday Randomness

6/30 - 325.2
7/1 - 326.2
7/2 - 328.8
7/3 - 328.2
7/4 - 328.4
7/5 - 329.4
7/6 - 328.8
7/7 - 327.8
7/8 - 327.6

Obviously, not too happy about that right now. I find myself feeling like I'm really tired of all the "dieting". Been doing it for over 10 months and how I wish I could be normal and not sweat it. The non-weight loss is not helping to squash those feelings and actually are probably the root cause of them. I don't know. My appt with gastroenterologist is a good two weeks away. Lately, I've had the opposite of constipation which is a significant change for me. I'm going several times in the morning and then maybe 2-3 times the rest of the day. Things seem to be going through me pretty fast, within 12-24 hours versus 4-5 days. I think it's probably due to me stopping the probiotics. I've ordered a couple of bottles of less potent pills.

As if I haven't agonized over and over-analyzed this enough lately (and I'm sure y'all love reading all about it), I think my problem (outside of something going wrong with my internal plumbing) is twofold and therefore that presents me two opportunities to change my approach. The first is something that I know Deluzy has mentioned this to me twice and for some reason it wasn't sticking enough -- eat more. I've been through months and months of my Fitday food logs and have noticed that when I eat over 2000+ calories and over 140+ grams of protein, the weight comes off, when I eat in the 1100-1300 calorie range for a few days, inevitably the weight loss stalls out. This was during the time I started a new job back in late February through mid May. I lost 45 lbs in those 3 months BUT I wasn't exercising much at all (no extra calories burned). I abandoned walking every day because I had to be at work early in the morning and wasn't doing much of anything afterwards. In short, I am going to be consuming more.

Since I started the new new job, my hours have been insane. Since I live in suburbia, I have to get up at 4:30 AM to catch a 6:15 bus to get me in town by 7:15 AM. I have a 15 min walk to my place of work. At 4:00 PM, I leave work and take 15-20 min walk to the bus stop and then have an hour ride to the Park & Ride lot near my house. WIth 1/2 way decent traffic, I am home by 5:30 PM and try to get to bed by 10:30 PM. Now, my first meal of the day is after I get to work around 8:00 AM. I have a mid morning snack at 10:30, lunch around 12:30, another mid-afternoon snack and I don't have dinner til round 7:00 PM. Anyway, I have noticed that since I started this job, I am eating a lot more solid food than I did before and I haven't been consistently eating more protein/calories to account for the increase in physical activity (walking to and from the bus stop). I also have been averaging like 1300-1400 calories and between 90-110 grams of protein, mostly all food and not shakes. My perception is that I am eating a lot more, but in reality I really wasn't. I used to start my day off with a 46 gram protein shake before I even left the house or within a 1/2 hour of getting to work, but now, my first meal of the day is solid food and I rarely have shakes anymore. I think the increase in solid food was a shock to my system which caused a lot of the problems I have been having with constipation, yellow poop, etc. In short, I am going to back off on eating so much solid food and go back to 1-2 protein shakes a day like I had done for months. I placed an order online for two containers of good old Nectar Roadside Lemonade. So, that is what I am going to do. I'm fairly confident that I have found the issue. We'll see. I know it seems like I am manic about this, but it drives me nuts to not know what the real issue is. I'm all about routine so if I can just nail down the right routine I need to follow, my mind will be at ease and I can't stop obsessing about this.

Yeah well, enough of that crap. I went to the bookstore (actually two) 4th of July and couldn't help myself and bought a slew of books and Moleskines. I took advantage of bargain tables and a couple "Buy X and get 1 free" promotions. You don't want to know how much I spent, but it was a good bit, not so much on the books, but on the Moleskines. I freakin' love those things. I highly, HIGHLY recommend them to anyone who is into journaling or anyone who is in search of a good notebook. They are a little pricey, but the large notebooks last me several months. I have one for notes for work, one for a personal journal, small ones for tracking to-do lists and for keeping favorite quotes, poems, favorite words, etc. I'm one of those types that are very particular about my writing materials so once I nail down something that works for me, I am all about it!

Anyway, a couple of the books I picked up I am really looking forward to reading. Unfortunately this past trip to the bookstore was unplanned so I didn't have any specific books in mind so I just browsed around and picked up a few that I had heard about in passing. I got "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy which I've already finished. Great book, very depressing (and nightmare inducing), but well worth the read. I plan on picking up McCarthy's other books as soon as I finish my current batch. I also picked up "Middlesex" by Jeffrey Eugenides who also wrote "The Virgin Suicides". I have seen the movie, but now want to read the book. I just started this book. Next in line are "The Tenth Circle" by Jodi Picoult and "The Memory of Running" by Ron McLarty. Before "The Road" I had been reading "Getting Things Done" by David Allen, a book I most certainly needed to read. I don't think I have ever mentioned this here before, but I was diagnosed with ADD back in my college years and was actually prescribed Ritalin, I stopped taking it within a couple of months, I didn't like how it made me feel (rapid heart rate) however I loved how it seemed to bring my life into focus. Ever since then, it's been a constant struggle to find strategies that I can employ in my life that help me stay focused. That's why I like writing/journaling so much and why I am a copious note-taker. My mind can wander within seconds, but if I wrote the shit down, I won't forget where I was before my mind wandered onto a totally different subject. Anyway, I think I may have found some gems in this book.

I love reading and it's something I picked up from my mom, she is a big reader and my youngest brother and I picked up on that a good bit, actually, I think many of my siblings have, now that I think about it. Mom reads close to a book a day. I am nowhere near that. I went to Oprah's website and printed out a list of all her Book Club books and I have read around 10 or so already. I am going to try to get through that list and then I'll try to find another to work off of. BTW, I am open to any recommendations.

It occurred to me this week that I have been writing this blog for over a year. Geez, it's hard to believe it's been that long. How times flies...

You know what my favorite days are? Grocery shopping day! Lame, I know, but I love the feeling of looking at a stocked refrigerator filled with with DS goodness, especially when there are a few new/different things. Yesterday I went grocery shopping and took my time for a change. I usually have a list that I work off of, but yesterday I went there and walked down every single aisle except for the obvious crap ones (cookies, cereal, etc.). I spent maybe $70 which is right on par for me which should last a good week and a half.

Well, today promises to be a laid back one, I picked up a couple of movies last night and am going to veg out and enjoy spending the day on my couch splitting my time between a movie or two and my books. Last couple of weeks have been crazy and I need to take it down a notch for at least a day.

Ramblings

The day after I wrote my last post, I was down at the company cafeteria buying a Diet Dr. Pepper (I know, not good) and was waiting in line to pay for it when I noticed someone I used to work with. He walked right past and didn't even recognize me. It was too funny, he was within a couple of feet of me and nothing. I had to smile.

So, as I anticipated my eating this week has not been as good and I didn't expect to be perfect. My calories were lower than normal and probably my protein as well, I hadn't been tracking as strict as I would have like, mostly eyeballing things. I've also had this potato chip ... thing. I had one of those small bags of potato chips every day last week. They are around 20g of carbs each so I still stayed below my 50 grams of carbs per day. I guess I was really missing something crunchy & salty. I am not going to beat myself over it because I realize my approach and relationship to food is changing. Night before last, I was in a bad mood and I found myself at the grocery store walking around fuming over an argument I had with my business partner. A year ago, I would have stocked up on loads of crap, ice cream, cookies, pastries, etc. That night, I got two jars of spaghetti sauce to make my meaty "chili", two packs of really good sausage for the chili, some sugar free popsicles and two 2-liter bottles of Sugar Free Tropicana OrangeAde (this stuff is like crack). I walked past aisles of all kinds of stuff, walked through the bakery section, past the cookies and chips and didn't snag any of it. I am really proud of myself for that. I don't see it as dieting or not dieting, I see it as me taking control of the relationship. Obviously, I have the DS to thank for a large part of that. This is where the tool aspect of the duodenal switch is so great. Even if I had bought all that crap and ate it, I know it would not have derailed me for weeks on end like it would have in the past. The consequences of having such a binge would have been crappy...literally and I have enough stomach issues to deal with.

Anyway, it seems like potato and corn meal based products are really the only carby foods that I can eat -- in strict moderation -- that won't cause me problems. Stuff made with wheat and/or sugar are definite no-nos. When I go home in like a week and a half, there are really only two things I really, really want to have, cheese enchiladas and my dad's barbecue and when you think about it, only the cheese enchiladas will cause problems. Those are the only things I want to eat copious amounts of or rather I could alternate between those two things for every meal for the five days I'm home, everything else, I could really care less about. I'm sure I will pay for all the cheese consumption, but cheese enchiladas are by far, my favorite food. I am going to try to enjoy them (and I may start researching stuff like Lactaid) because it'll probably be another year or so before I have them again. I'm sorry, but it's nearly impossible to get good Mexican food in Georgia.

I am really tempted to bring my scale with me on my trip, but I'm not. :) I'll just have to go five days without weighing. That'll be a first since I got back from surgery. I've heard many people talk about losing weight while on vacation, much to their surprise, well I'll go on the record and say I seriously doubt I will be losing any weight while I'm gone, not with the way I will be eating! The cheese alone will do me in. I am also concerned about gas, I haven't had to be around people when I've had bad gas. I know the probiotics help a lot, but maybe I need to start thinking about something in addition to them.

The biggest change for me this week was that I have switched iron supplements again. I am dropping the Ferrous Sulfate (325mg twice daily) to Ferrochel (72mg twice daily). Ferrochel is chelated and allegedly 10 times more absorbable than the old stuff. The other good thing about it is that it purports to not cause stomach issues like the Ferrous Sulfate, namely constipation, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that this stuff works out for me. All I want is normal poop patterns, is that too much to ask for? My next labs are in late August with my PCP so I am hoping that the Ferrochel works just as well, if not better.

I got my labs back from the hematologist and all looks good. I'm pretty happy about that. The only thing that concerns me a tad is my blood sugar was 92. Granted, this was 1:30 in the afternoon, but still. Everything else is normal, except for my vitamin B12 was high so all I gotta do is cut down on my B12 supplementation. Not a problem.

I weighed in at 336.6 lbs this morning for a total loss of 180 lbs since August 30th of last year. I am starting to notice the veins in my hands and arms more. It is becoming much easier to cross my legs. I poked two more holes in my belt yesterday. I can pull my size 30 jeans down without unbuttoning them (which is a good and bad thing). My double chin is almost completely gone. Oh, one more thing, and this totally caught me by surprised, I actually experienced an urge to skip! WTF? Talk about unexpected...

Well, I think I am going to go take myself a nice walk and get some fresh air. I spent most of the day yesterday catching up on sleep and work. Time to go get moving.

Buh-Bye 340's

Big surprise on the scale this morning...339.0 lbs. Holy shit. Buh-bye 340's, just that quick. Yesterday, I weighed in at 343.2, so that's a 4.2 lb drop overnight...well, overnight and post several trips to the bathroom. Not to go into too much detail, but I definitely have a constipation problem. I was doing so well for awhile, but then it came back with a vengeance. I am eating pretty well, getting in plenty of protein, fat and keeping my carbs pretty low (20-50g per day). I've gotten into a rhythm however that might be shot to hell come Monday when I start my new job. Anyway, I've been getting in between 80-100 ounces of water a day and taking my vitamins. The only thing I think it might be is that I stopped taking Magnesium because I ran out and didn't bother to pick up another bottle. Funny how that works. It's just amazing how at times it seems like my body can be a well tuned machine and others, I have no idea what's going on.

I bought my plane ticket this morning to go home for my family reunion. I am so anxious about the whole thing. Just thinking about getting on a plane makes my stomach churn. I'll be totally honest, I am scared about fitting into a freaking airplane seat. It is the quintessentially most painful (figuratively and literally) nightmare for obese people. I dread it. Sigh. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the anticipation will be the worst part of it.

My mom is practically foaming at the mouth for me to come home. She is really, really anxious to take me clothes shopping. I think the experience will be cathartic as I hated shopping with my mother when I was younger, but my sister is going with us, actually she is my primary shopping companion, Mom is tagging along for part of the day, so I think I'll be fine. I just really want to see my family. Losing Monica & Kenny and my cousin Brenda just really screwed us up and going to Brazil and having this surgery, I just want to soak up all the love.

I am changing sizes at an alarming rate. This morning, for kicks, I tried on a pair of size 24 pants and I think I will be able to wear them in a couple of weeks. It's weird though because another pair of 24's I couldn't get past my hips. The size 30 pants I bought, what, like two weeks ago have saggy butt syndrome and yet again, I have to poke holes in my belt. This is all such a trip... My one year anniversary is fast approaching as is the 200-lb loss mark. I really didn't much of anything when I hit 100 lbs lost, I'm not sure that I'll do anything when this next milestone comes around.

Holy Crap!!!!

It's 6 AM and I just weighed in at 346.4 lbs! That's a total loss of 170.2 lbs. Woo-hoo!!!! Buh-bye 350's! So happy to see you go. I am now officially closer to 300 lbs than I am to 400 lbs! I stopped taking my acidophilus because it constipates me too much. I either need to get a less potent kind or just drop it completely. We'll see. Anyhoo....wow!