My Vitamin D

Christie asked about my Vitamin D. In a recent post I mentioned that I was able to bring my Vitamin D levels up from the low 30's up to 104 in a month. 

Ideally for RNY'ers (and anyone, really) we want our D levels to be up over 80 to realize the most health benefits. Studies have shown that Vitamin D levels below 50 ng/ML indicates that the body is using the Vitamin D as fast as we are able to put it into our bodies. Once we hit that magic number of 50 on our labs, we know the body is finally able to store some Vitamin D for a "rainy day." However, it is also shown that levels over 80 that you see reduced risks of certain cancers (breast, prostate, colon) and a reduced risk of MS. Do a search for Vitamin D Council for more interesting research.

So my D levels have been in the low 30's for over two years now. No matter what I did my numbers just wouldn't come up. So I knew I needed to take some aggressive action to get the number into a healthy range. I let my doctor know what I was planning and had labs scheduled for 4 weeks after I started this new routine. 

DO NOT DO THIS without your doctor's full knowledge, oversight and guidance. I started taking 50,000IU dry Vitamin D3 once per day for 30 days. Now I've backed down on that dose to 3x per week for the next 30 days and will go to 1x per week after that. I'll be retested again at that point. 

When you get a Rx of Vitamin D in the 50,000IU dose, it is Vitamin D2 suspended in a gel capsule filled with oil. After RNY we malabsorb fats, so we need a dry formulation that is water soluble. My pharmacy couldn't get it for me and my PCP didn't have any drug name for the water soluble D3. I bought it from Amazon instead. 

So if you are having issues with chronic Vitamin D deficiency and traditional methods are not working. Talk to your doctor about getting aggressive with your supplementation. But remember that Vitamin D can cause toxicity to the body when taken in doses above what the body needs or can utilize. That is why it is so important that your doctor oversee this type of regimen. 

~Pam

Workout Music

Answering questions....

Someone asked what "Podrunner" is. I thought I'd include that information and some sources for other workout music, as well.

PODRUNNER -- DJ Steve puts together some amazing music mixes specifically for workouts. First you determine how fast your walk or run to calculate your "beats per minute." For instance if you walk 4 miles per hour, that's about 140 beats per minute. Here's a chart to figure out what your BPM rate is. So DJ Steve puts together these music mixes that last about 1 hour and help you keep your pace consistant with the beat of the music. It's great to use for my 5k races where I am trying to hit a certain pace or need to keep a consistant speed throughout the race. I have found that if I choose a certain BPM pace that my finish time is pretty consistantly right on target with that pace. And the music is interesting too. It's not traditional songs, it's more like a "mix" of pieces of songs, overlapping with other beats and music ... sometimes just techno music, sometimes ethnic stuff, sometimes voices and lyrics. Pretty cool, actually. YOUR FITNESS MUSIC -- this website is pretty awesome! You pick your pace - same concept as the Beats Per Minute as above -- then you pick the genre of music you enjoy (rock, country, pop, etc.) and it gives you a list of specific songs that fit your choices. The cool thing about this website is that along with the song results it gives you, there is a link to download the song of your choice. And the songs are much cheaper than you'd find at places like iTunes - most songs are prices at about 10-cents to 25-cents each (or less). It's a good way to find new artists that you might never have heard of before too!

AMAZON MUSIC -- Ok, so if you want some traditional MP3 music downloads, Amzon provides a huge selection of workout music. This link is the search results I found when doing a quick search for "workout music" within the Amazon MP3 Download department. Just on the first page I see a bunch of songs I'd love to have on my Sansa media player. Mmm... looks like I see some downloading in my future. LOL! Have fun! Happy dancing! ~Pam

Do you have questions?

Hi all -

I seem to be posting less these days. I guess there are a couple reasons for this.

First - In the past couple weeks I've work a lot of hours at the office plus just started a new quarter at school so have been reading a bunch and getting acquainted with new professors and such. But I'm facing a nice long five day mini-vacation this week for some much needed downtime.

Second - Sometimes I feel like I always talk about the same stuff over and over on here. If I get tired of talking abot the same stuff all the time, I imagine you guys get tired of reading it too. LOL!

So I figured I'd open things up for questions. Do you have questions that I could help out with? Is there anything you've been wondering about? Are you scared about something? Is there a topic you've been dying to learn about but you're too embarassed to bring it up?

I'm game for anything. Ask away!

~Pam

Not Planning Food

So what happens when I just wing it and don't plan my food for a few days? Any guesses?

I get carby. Really carby. 

If I don't have a specific plan for what I'm going to eat at each meal and what I'm going to have for snacks, I find that I reach for easy carbs. A rice cake with peanut butter, a 100 calorie bag of popcorn, a piece of fruit and sometimes even not such good choices like bread and pasta. I kind of always knew this about myself, but this weekend was a pretty big reminder.

 It's just too easy for me to grab the easy choice instead of taking the time to make a protein shake or fixing something like a grilled chicken breast or a steak. It's not that I don't enjoy eating dense protein - I do enjoy it! I mean, who doesn't love a juicy steak with a side of delicious veggies? It's my favorite thing. 

But sometimes I'm just lazy and don't take the time to cook. Or like this weekend, I was busy doing other stuff and didn't want to take the time to cook. I also had the kitchen torn apart doing some Spring Cleaning (yes, I know I'm late) and used that as an excuse not to eat healthy.

I tend to plan meals pretty religiously during the week when I have to pack stuff to take to work. On workdays I eat 5 of my 6 meals either on the road or at the office, so planning is required. But when I'm home things are much more lax. And now I'm about to face 5 full days at home on a mini vacation. So I need to stay on top of the meal planning thing and not let myself go carb crazy. Just some ponderings...

 ~Pam

Race Day

At 10:00 last night I remembered that I had to do a race today or else I'd miss my goal of 2 races a month. Well... I knew I needed to do it this weekend, but I hadn't bothered finding a race yet. So last night I dug through my pile of race flyers and found one in town.

So let me tell you about the pooping man...

When you do a lot of local races you tend to see the same people at most of them. There's this one man, about 60 years old, who seems to walk about the same pace that I do. He's always within site of me, but almost always up ahead. I'd guess I've walked about 4 or 5 races where he was there too. Today marks the THIRD time I caught him coming out from behind a tree along the race course. The other two times he was just tucking in his shirt and looking all innocent and continued walking. Unfortnately today I was a bit too close to the tree he'd chosen. As I was approaching his rest area I see his head pop up from behind a branch and I get a glimpse of his tighty-whiteys as they are bring pulled up from his knees. OMG! Yes, I just said that.

Ok, so this time there were a group of 3 other women up ahead of me - technically 2 teenagers and probably their mother. They saw what I saw and all three of them were dying of laughter. My reaction? I said, probably too loudly, "Seriously?!" I mean really dude, there's an outhouse just 1/4 mile up ahead and there's a playground within eyesight of your bathroom choice. I was seriously flabergasted. But... he just buttoned up his shorts and tucked in his shirt while he was walking out from behind the tree to rejoin the race. As if nothing was wrong.

So I'm really contemplating avoiding any more local races. And if I see this guy milling around the registration area of any races I'm doing -- I don't know if I can do the race. Really. It's just strange. LOL!

So, about MY race. I felt like I was dragging my butt today. It was the first race I'd done this year where it was hot and humid so early in the morning and I was sweating like a pig. I had my Podrunner music set to 140bpm which was the highest I've evern attempted and I was pretty much keeping pace. But still I felt like I was moving in slow motion. When I rounded the corner and saw the finish line I was shocked to see the time. Remember my best time so far was 49:00 ... so when I realized I was within that range it surprised me. So here's how I did:

Distance: 3.1 miles

Time: 49:45

Pace: 16:04

Weather: 80's and humid

Lab Retest Results

Just got off the phone with my PCP's office. My lab results are back. I had my usual 18-month post-op labs drawn in May and the PA at the surgeon's office didn't like my levels for Prealbumin or Ferritin, so she wanted me to adjust a couple things and be retested in a month. So I had blood drawn last week. Ferritin May results = 36 June results = 23 Prealbumin (closer to 30 is better for RNY'ers) May results = 24 June results = 24 Vitamin D (ideal is 80-100 for RNY'ers) May results = 39 June results = 104 Instructions I received on each: Ferritin -- the PA told me to stop taking my iron pills because my "iron" levels were fine (iron was 94 with ideal being 80-100) and we needed to increase ferritin so her idea was to take away the iron pills because they might be masking the ferritin levels. However ... From all the research I've done, the only way to increase your ferritin levels is to take iron supplements. So when she told me to do this, I had a feeling she was coo-coo and that my numbers would fall even further. But I thought, "it's only 4 weeks, what harm can come?" Well... the harm is that instead of just having a low-ish number on the ferritin scale, now I'm deficient. Dang it! Prealbumin -- this is a meausre of how well my body is using protein and other nutrients. It's been low since surgery but the Nut never caught it. The PA was highly concerned about the low number even though I'd been able to increase it on my own by supplementing extra Vitamin A. At one year it was 21, but with the addition of Vitamin A I was able to bring it up to 24. The PA had me stop the Vitamin A four weeks ago. My Prealbumin number has remained the same even though I've gone from eating 100g protein/day to 150g. Vitamin A helps to synthesize protein in the body. I'm not happy with these results cuz it's pretty dang hard to eat 150g protein every single day! Seems like a lot of work for the past month with absolutely no benefits. Vitamin D -- nobody seemed to care that my levels were in the low 30's or high 20's over the past 18 months. So I took some drastic steps and started taking 50k IU Vitamin D every day for a month. I told the doc's, but they didn't seem overly concerned about it at all. So all on my own I've brought my Vitamin D levels up where they need to be (RNY'ers should be around 80-100). I've backed off on the 50k dose and hopefully that nice 104 number will be maintained over time now that I've been able to get it up there. SOooo..... I'll be calling the surgeon's office to see what their next brilliant suggestion is for the ferritin and prealbumin. I have some of my own research to do on the topics so when I talk to them I can have a better idea of what the right answers need to be. ~Pam

My School Goals

Well, I've done it. Completed my first quarter back at college. Well... almost. The on-campus class was done last week but my online course is just finishing up and will be done on Wednesday. Next quarter begins Thursday of next week. 

It's fun to make progress on your goals! 

I have a bit of scrambling to do before the new classes begin next week (buying books, getting paperwork submitted for tuition reimbursement from work, dealing with student loan paperwork, etc.). But it'll all get done eventually. Hopefully this coming quarter I'll feel a bit more comfortable with the schedule and time management issues. Maybe I'll even start feeling like a real college student instead of an old lady floundering in a sea of youngsters. LOL! 

I'm actually looking most forward to my Fall quarter when I'll be able to start taking some graphics related classes for my degree. Psychology, business and marketing aren't all that fun but they're required, so I'm enduring and I'll be glad when these general classes are done. 

~Pam

What's for Dinner?

Tonight was a turkey sandwich! This is only the second sandwich I've had since surgery (and the first was a couple days ago). I discovered these new Arnold Sandwich Thins and they are just the right size for my pouch. Lightly toasted with a slather of mayo and dijon mustard, 2.5 oz deli sliced turkey, some salad greens -- YUM! And a side of sliced strawberries with a sprinkle of Splenda. Looks pretty delicious dosen't it? It sure was! ~Pam

Took the weekend off

I had a million obligations and to-do list tasks that needed to get done this weekend. But I ignored about 90% of them in favor of "taking the weekend off." I spent significant time outside enjoying the sunshine. Hit the flea market, art show and the Pier. Got a manicure, did some Goodwill shopping and enjoyed a bowl of Cold Stone Creamry sorbet. I sat out on my patio with a book - which seemed like too much trouble to read so I mostly just sat and enjoyed the solitude. I ate my meals outside on the patio and enjoyed too many sugar free popsicles. I slept late and went to bed early. I didn't put make up on and didn't worry if my hair was messy. I didn't do laundry and I didn't clean the house (much). I purposefully took the weekend off and gave myself permission to do it without guilt. And because of it, I'm relaxed and refreshed this Monday morning. All those to-do lists are still waiting for me, of course. But at least I feel refreshed enough to face them without stress this coming week. Take the weekend off. I highly recommend it. It's good for the soul. ~Pam

Just me

Just a little self-portrait from this morning. I got my new Palm Pre yesterday!!! So I was playing around with the camera on the drive to work (I was stopped at a light, not actually driving). Notice the new glasses. And the new smaller-sized shirt. Sorry I'm not smiling, but I was trying to figure out how to hold the phone backwards and still be able to touch the button on the screen on the other side. Loving my Pre so far! ~Pam

Taking Care

When life gets to hectic we have to take the time to slow down and take care of ourselves. You all know my schedule is crazy and I often forget to savor the downtime often enough. The anger from the other day was a direct result of being overly tired and busy. I don't like myself when I get cranky. So I need to take action on my own well being before I get to that point. I'm taking a close look at my calendar and backing down from a few things. I can't expect to maintain the same level of commitment on my social life and obligations now that I'm going back to college and spending so much time on school work. These past 10 weeks (the quarter ends this week!) have been draining and I know it's because I tried to just plop school on top of the heaping pile of everything else I already had going on. One of my 9 Goals for 2009 was to meditate more. I haven't been doing that. But I want to schedule it into my day and get back into the habit. It's nothing special or mysterious - it's just a small block of time that I give to myself (like a gift) where I am allowed to sit quietly and let my mind and body relax. A time to focus on my breathing and let my mind take a break from the task lists and schedules and must-do's. Even just 10 minutes does wonders for my mental well being. What bothers me about writing this post is.... I've written nearly the same thing too many times over the past several months. I keep saying I need to slow down and I'll do it for a few days, but then it's right back to the craziness again. Who knows, maybe I'll be back here in 2 months saying the same thing. But one of these days I'm going to realize I have to slow down or else I'm going to burn myself out and not be good for anything. Sometimes saying it out loud helps me be more accountable. So I'm saying it out loud... I will slow down and take care of my own well being. ~Pam

My WLS Library

Over the years I've collected a lot of books about weight loss surgery, post-op eating issues, exercise and the mental aspect of WLS. I thought I'd share my library list with ya'll and let you know which books I think are worthy of purchase or at least a trip to your local library.

BOOKS YOU MUST READ

• Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies
  by Marina S. Kurian; Barbara Thompson; Brian K. DavidsonThis is considered the "WLS Bible" by many bariatric patients. It will walk you through the process of deciding on the right surgery, picking the right surgeon and clinic and what to expect every step of the way - even what to pack for the hospital. There is also detailed instruction on what to expect after surgery with menu and recipe ideas.
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• Emotional First Aid Kit: A practical guide for life after bariatric surgeryby Cynthia AlexanderI believe this should be required reading for EVERY bariatric patient. The first part of the book walks you through the emotional decisions involved in deciding to have surgery and how to handle the psychological aspects that go along with it. Then the rest of the book deals with the emotions we deal with all along the way. Why we feel certain things and how to handle them when they come up. Its the type of book you can only read in little bits at a time -- I can deal with about 2 or 3 pages, then have to let that lesson mill around in my head for a couple days before I go back for more. Excellent resource!
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• Mindless Eating: Why we eat more than we think
  by Brian WansinkThis is not a WLS-specific book, but it deals with the science behind why we eat. It contains some very interesting information and is eye-opening in many different aspects. If you're not familar with Brian Wansink, check out this interview on YouTube for an overview.
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OTHER GOOD BOOKS IN MY LIBRARY (in no particular order)

• FAT - What no one is telling you (DVD)
  Directed by Andrew Fredericks
  Ok, so this isn't a book, but it's an excellent movie that is a great resource for understanding obesity and how science and the community views it. Being obese isn't about being lazy and eating too much, it's about how our bodies are engineered and the complex nature of the disease of obesity.
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• Gut Feelings: From fear and despair to health and hope
  by Carnie WilsonSinger and songwriter Carnie Wilson tells her story of through obesity and her success and struggles with weight loss surgery.
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• I'm Still Hungry
  by Carnie WilsonAgain Carnie Wilson shares another chapter in her story about WLS. In this book she shares the exact plan she follows every day to maintain her weight loss.
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• Walking - A complete book
  by Jeff Galloway
  I reviews this book in a recent post, but wanted to include it on the master list as well. This is an outstanding resource for beginner walkers as well as those who want to increase their speed and endurance. Excellent information about walking schedules, safety and injury prevention as well as nutrition for exercise.
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• Exodus from Obesityby Paula Peck
  I just bought this book a week ago and have read part of the first chapter. So far I'm loving it since it's packed with statistics and information about the emotional journey of WLS. I'll report back when I finish reading it with a full review.
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• Winning After Losing - Keep off the weight you've lost - forever
  by Stacey Halprin
  I picked this book up at Border's in the bargain book bin a couple weeks ago. I've read the first chapter or two, so don't have a full review. Stacey's story had been an inspiration to me in the past and I'm looking forward to reading her advice on maintaining weight loss for the long term. She's been featured on Oprah and in WLS Lifestyle Magazine so she's one of those well known success stories in the WLS community.
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• Success Habits of Weight Loss Surgery Patients
  by Colleen Cook
  My support group just finished up a chapter-by-chapter review of this book over the past several months. Each chapter outlines a specific habit of WLS patients who are successful in maintaining their weight and remaining healthy after surgery. There's also an excellent "Back on Track" chapter at the end. Some information and statistics are outdated, but still an excellent resource for how to be a success long term.
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• Half-Assed: A weight-loss memoir
  by Jennette FuldaThe Pasta Queen's blog called Half of Me is a site I've been following for a couple years. Jennette has lost 186 pounds through diet and exercise and chronicled her journey on her blog and got a book deal out of it. The book is "laugh out loud" funny in spots and eye-opening and heart wrenching in other spots.
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• Weight Loss Surgery - Finding the thin person hiding inside you
  by Barbara Thompson
  This is a new book in my collection and I haven't read it yet. But I am a regular reader of Barbara Thompson's newsletter and always find her helpful and knowledgeable. I look forward to providing a review once I get a chance to read this one.
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• Before and After: Living and Eating Well after Weight Loss Surgery
  by Susan Marie Leach (founder of Bariatric Eating)
  The first 1/3 of the book is Susan Marie's story of WLS. The second 2/3 is a cookbook with myriad of recipes and shake ideas that are WLS friendly.
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• It Ain't Over til the Thin Lady Sings
  by Michelle Ritchie
  Another book that I've just purchased and haven't read yet. But with so many great reviews and recommendations by other WLS folks, I had to add it to my collection. I'll let you know how I like it once I get a chance to read it.
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• The Body Fat Solution
  by Tom Venuto
  This guy is amazing! The book has nothing to do with WLS, but where else can you find advice on how to lose fat and build muscle than from a professional bodybuilder? I just bought the book, so don't have a review of it yet. But I've read dozens of articles on the web written by Tom Venuto that I have found extremely helpful.
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• Eating Well After WLS Cookbookby Levine, Bontmpo-Saray, Urban-SkurosThis cookbook is designed to take you through early post-op eating to long-term meals. Each recipe has a guide for how much to eat and how to alter the recipe depending on which stage of food you're on (liquids, pureed, soft foods, etc.). The recipes are sort of gourmet and some are complex, but the ideas are excellent and the foods I've made have all been delicious.
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• DietMinder - Personal Food & Fitness Journal
  by F.E. Wilkins
  I don't have this journal, but a gal in my support group does. She had it with her this past week at the meeting and we got a chance to peek at it. If you're the type of person who wants to record your food intake and exercise times ... but would prefer a notebook over the computer, this looks like really great option.
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PUBLICATIONS I RECOMMEND

• WLS Lifestyles Magazine - a quarterly publication that provides in-depth articles about obesity, exercise, bariatric surgery and healthy living. The stories are not fluff, surface pieces - they go into detail and cover every aspect of the subject matter. And outstanding resource. Their website is also an excellent resource where you can read all archived articles if you're a subscriber and keep up to date on the latest media coverage on obesity.
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• Obesity Help Magazine - a quarterly magazine that publishes stories about OH members, their stories and information from medical professionals about WLS. Although it is a good resource, I find that most of the stories in this publication can also be found in one way or another on the OH website. I wish they stories were more in-depth and developed. A fairly good resource for those who might not frequent OH as much as I do, though.
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• Bariatric Times - this publication is a small newspaper-like piece that usually just covers one or two topics in each edition. What is so great about this publication is that because they limit the individual content in each edition you get extreme depth from each issue. I devour the little paper every time it arrives in my mailbox. Their website is also packed with a ton of resources!
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BOOKS ON MY WISH-LIST

• Micronutrition for Weight Loss Surgery
  by Jacqueline Jacques
  The science-junky in me wants to devour this book. I've heard it's packed with data and statistics and medical stuff. I listened to an interview with Jacqueline Jacques a while ago and couldn't get enough of her information and knowledge. Can't wait to get my hands on this book.
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• Weight Loss Surgery - A lighter look at a heavy subject
  by Terry Simpson
  This is a humorous look at WLS that still presents a lot of useful information about how to be successful. I haven't heard anyone personally recommend it, but the reviews on Amazon look promising. And who can't use a bit of laughter, right?
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• High Protein Cookbookby Eckhardt & DefoydI've heard good things about the recipes in this cookbook. It's not specifically for WLS patients, but is geared toward people who are limiting carbohydrates in their diet.
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As you can see I love to read and I'm always on the look out for new books or information. I'll continue to add to this post as I find more valuable resources for WLS patients. As I make my way through the new books I've recently purchased, I'll also add those reviews. Keep this post bookmarked and check back often.
If you have a favorite book you'd like to recommend, please feel free to post it in the comments.
~Pam

Anger and Eating

As a general rule of thumb I'm not an emotional eater. When I'm stressed I don't eat at all. When I'm sad or happy or whatever, food isn't a comfort or celebrant. I usually have pretty good control over food and it's not an addictive thing for me. But apparently anger IS a trigger. Today started kind of rough. I was tired and a little cranky to begin with and I can feel myself getting to the edge of my limit with being on the run. I went out of town this weekend and was busy Monday and tonight and will have class until late tomorrow. Thursday can't come fast enough. So anyway, I was already cranky today and because I was tired, my fuse was shorter than normal. Then tonight's training group session didn't go well. I won't whine about the details, but essentially the attitude of the leader of our group stinks. He's insulting and condescending and puts group members down. He's an ex-runner so he doesn't really understand and embrace the difference that walking is. A few snide comments tonight put me over the edge. So I got angry. I kept my mouth shut and just did my thing, but inside I was fuming. While I was keeping my mouth shut I was thinking about food. It didn't take me long to realize that thoughts of food were my mind's way of tamping down the anger. But no matter how much I tried to push the food thought away, they kept coming back. On the drive home I wanted to stop at every fast food joint along the way and order something. Seriously, I had to force myself not to go through drive thrus. When I passed the last McD's on the way home and I was safe for the last 3 miles I started to cry because I'd been strong enough to resist the food. Then I got home and instead of cooking dinner I ate crap. Not a lot of crap, but still it wasn't the healthy option I'd planned. And now I'm angry again because I gave in to the emotional garbage. I'll have a protein shake later and that should salvage the day's calories. I hate this whole thing sometimes. The psychological struggle is tough. ~Pam

An outstanding book

I just wanted to share with you an outstanding book about walking for fitness and endurance. As part of the Crim Training Program we walkers received a book written by Jeff Galloway. He's an Olympic athlete who now designs walking and running training programs all over the United States. The Crim Training Program is designed by Jeff Galloway and I've been very happy with the program in the two years I've been a part of it. So I thought I'd pass along this resource to you. I took some time and read through much of the book this weekend and I'm thrilled with how simple, straightforward and no-nonsense it is. Jeff gives specific instruction for beginners on how to start a walking program but also gives training schedules for those who are more advanced and working toward a marathon or half marathon goal. He also goes over some basics in nutrition for walkers, what levels work best for fat burning and the physical and psychological benefits of walking.

Walking - A Complete Guide by Jeff Galloway

I highly recommend this book. It's an easy read and packed full of valuable information!

~Pam

Race Day

The weekend up at Mackinac Island was beautiful and relaxing. The weather on Saturday was beautiful and sunny (but the wind was very cold). Kristy and I did the 10k race during the Lilac Festival (although we never did see anything that looked festival-like). It was rainy on Friday when we arrive in town and rained Sunday when we left. But Saturday was sunny all day and eventually warmed up to a gorgeous day. My favorite part of the trip to the Island was when we had lunch on that patio overlooking the lake -- basking in the sun for a while. The big hill in the first mile of the race was a serious killer. For those who have done the Crim and know the Bradley Hills -- yeah, the Mackinac hill was a million times worse! Oh my! The rest of the course was scenic and a lovely chance to see some of the back part of the island. My goal was to finish the race in about 1:45 to 1:55 ... which would mean the same pace as a regular 5k race with an extra 5 minutes to play with. I actually finished at 1:40!! Distance: 6.2 miles Time: 1:40:13 Pace: 16:10 Weather: 45 degrees, sunny and windy

Sometimes you just need a little cod liver oil

I know, I know, I know... we WLS'ers talk about our bathroom habits way too much. But it's an issue for us. So when we find something that makes life better, we gotta share. I've been hearing about liquid fish oil for a while now, but I've always been too chicken to try it. It's a bit expensive so experimenting with it wasn't exactly economical. 


But then I found the Spring Valley Cod Liver Oil (in orange flavor) at Walmart for about $7.50 for a 12oz bottle (slightly cheaper on Amazon). Normally I've seen other brands/flavors for around $20 for a slightly larger bottle. But since it was a bit cheaper, I took the plunge and bought a bottle.

I brought it home and it sat on the counter for a week before I was brave enough to try it. And yes, it tastes pretty nasty. Not as bad as you'd think though. The orange kind of masks the flavor a bit, but still... I gotta drink half a glass of Crystal Light after taking my morning dose. There are calories in this stuff, so make sure you're calculating that into your overall intake for the day. 


Does it work? Oh yeah! It works like a dream! 


Here's the deal. As WLS'ers we tend to be eating a pretty low-fat diet with all this health food we're consuming. But our body NEEDS good fat. Not only for good joint and heart health and organ function, but also for good digestive health. The healthy oils act as a lubricant for our digestive tract. Everything just runs smoother with a bit of fat in the system. So if you're struggling like the rest of us. 


Try this stuff out. You'll thank me later. 


~Pam

The Calorie Game

I've been using my GoWearFit for 10 days now. Over the weekend I ran my first 7-day report that averages everything out and gives me a good overview of what I've done for the past week (it also does bi-weekly or monthly reports too). So here's the low down: Calories Burned per day: 2300 Calories Eaten per day: 1240 Calorie Deficit: 1060 At the support group meeting last night I talked to the other 3 people in the group who have BodyBuggs. Mike in particular because of his amazing success. He was stalled for 6 months but when he got his BB he was at his goal weight within 3 months (I think he lost 40lbs or something like that after buying it). He confirmed what I guess I already knew. My calorie deficit is too big and I need to close the gap. He suggested a deficit of 600-700 calories - which is where he saw weight loss every single week. The other two gals agreed. I had already come to a similar conclusion on my own, but was too afraid to say it out loud. This freaks me out. Seriously. Freaking out over here. Because that means I need to eat 1500-1600 calories/day at my current rate of exercise. And my exercise is only going to get more intense as my workouts get longer and more frequent in prep for the big races coming up. From the research I did yesterday, we don't want to jump calories suddenly ... but rather gradually over a few weeks. So I guess that's my plan.

I hope I don't regret it.

~Pam