Surgery - Post Op, Day 28 (4 weeks since surgery)
Recovery continues to go very well. I no longer need my walker, canes, or walking stick. I can now walk as far as I want without pain from the surgery site. This past Thursday I walked 10 miles, and while my hips, knees, feet, and middle back started to complain, my lower back did just fine.
I see no point in pushing myself to walk further and further since I've reached a point where my other body parts start complaining long before the repaired parts do!
I have backed off to walking six miles a day using the Nordic Walking Poles. This is one mile a day more than my pre-op routine and I am comfortable with it.
I'm finding it easier to sit for prolonged periods and to stand. I'm still not supposed to twist or bend or lift heavy things any time soon. I see my surgeon on December 5th, expect another surgery update then.
-------------------------------------------------------
Weight Loss Update
I weighed 202 pounds this morning. This is 4 pounds heavier than my weight the day before surgery and 10 pounds higher than my lowest 10 day average.
Do not be alarmed by this!!! :) When I learned on October 2nd that I'd be having surgery on the 21st, I intentionally started eating more food. I wanted to go into surgery with plenty of reserves. I increased my protein and fat intake and had gained several pounds by the time of surgery.
After surgery I intentionally ate as much of EVERYTHING that I wanted to. I wanted to make sure my body had an excess of nutrients to help me heal quickly. I ate plenty of protein. And I indulged in as much of the high-calorie comfort foods that I enjoy.
I didn't eat anything bad, though I did eat far too much of things I'd normally restrict severely or not eat at all. Nuts, dried fruits, tortilla chips, crackers, and chocolate chocolate chocolate. Oh, and I ate as much chocolate as I wanted.
Many of you will no doubt think I went off the deep end, fell off the wagon, JUST as I finally got it all figured out.
Nope.
It is human nature to indulge in comfort foods during times of stress and sickness. I would dare say that my eating behavior during this time of medical recovery is.... normal.
I'm up ten pounds after 45 days of eating as much of everything as I wanted. I know how much I ate, you don't, and I gotta tell you, I'm surprised it's only ten pounds!! It reinforces in my mind the fact that your body actively seeks to burn off excess carbohydrates if at all possible, rather than store them as fat.
Today marks 4 weeks and a transition back to my normal eating patterns. I am determined more than ever to resume right where I picked up and continue on until I reach my goal of having lost 300 pounds. Even at my new "bloated" weight of 202 pounds, I still only have 16 pounds to drop to reach the magical 300 pound mark.
Can I do it? Anyone want to take bets?
-Raymond Cool aka Norm
Absolutely know you can reach that 300 goal, Norm. No doubt about it. So glad our back is doing well and you are getting so much exercise into your days. Way to go!
ReplyDelete