Hi Heather. Good for you on your weight loss....wonderful. I am cleared to do any exercise that I choose. I must say though, I'm a liitle wary of participating in abdominal exercises. The thought kind of gives me the creeps...as if I might pull out my ligaments or something. Take Care And Continued Success~~ Diane

Holy Mackerel! SIXTY pounds. (Excuse me while I choke on my protein drink!) You are doing incredibly great and I'm so happy for you. Your husband and family must be too. Take care~~ Diane

Hi Jenny- I've really felt tired lately so I sympathize. When I went for my one month check-up, the doctor said it was normal (but didn't offer advice). My surgery was March 13 and this week is the FIRST week that I have any energy!! I've been working out and getting in all my protein and vitamins. Good luck! IT WILL PICK UP! Just give yourself time to bounce back! Mag

You rock, Kitty Kat! Keep up the good work and stay active! It's amazing how a relatively "small" reduction in body weight can so totally affect a person's energy level and outlook on life. I am starting exercise tomorrow after "obeying" the doc's activity restrictions for 6 weeks post-op, and I hope that I am as pleasantly surprised as you were today! --Heather

Good for you, Rita! You seem to be doing pretty fine! About the vitamins--you have GOT to get them in everyday! You do NOT want your health and vitality to suffer because you aren't getting the essential nutrients required to get through this process safely. The thing is, folks like us are on a controlled starvation after RNY. You are not taking in enough food and calories to possibly fulfill your daily vitamin and energy requirements--which forces the body to burn its excess fat for energy. But you still need stuff like vitamin C for tissue regeneration and skin integrity and calcium to maintain your bone structure. I know it sucks--I make it a point to mark down everything I eat, including the vitamins, calcium and my zantac and ursodiol. My doc gave me a terrific pocket journal just for bariatric surgery patients and says I can get a new one whenever I need it. It's put out by Tyco Healthcare--their number is 1 800 722 8772. This journal is perfect--it has squares to mark off water, relaxation, exercise, and vitamins and calcium citrate. Then it has a place to write down the meal and grams of protein from the meal, and it is divided into breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner. And it has stickers to mark when your next dr's appt. is, or support group. Every other page also has a place to put the date and write about your day--frustrations, successes, etc. I found it very helpful for me. It helps me to not consume too much, and I can keep track of my protein grams. PLUS studies have shown that people who keep food journals lose more and keep it off longer! Oh, I also recommend getting a book of food counts. The one I got has a bright blue color and has all the basic nutrients broken down for thousands of food choices. Wish I could remember the name! --Heather