What do you miss post surgery and what do you love now???

I do miss being able to stuff myself, to inhale a massive amount of food and revel in the intense pleasure of it all. I also miss being able to guzzle a can of soda water, and that bite at the back of my throat from the carbonation. I miss IPAs and double IPAs, although less than I miss soda water, and I have found that I can enjoy a little sip of a friend's beer and not feel deprived.

I love, however, how I feel each day about the fact that I am actually taking care of myself emotionally and physically as I continue on this WLS path. I love that I no longer have to worry about spending too much on food at the grocer's or the restaurant, while at the same time I am now able to afford smaller amounts of organic, fresh, lovely foods. I love fitting into airplane and auditorium seats effortlessly. I love being able to wear smaller sizes, and to be able to fit back into old loved clothing that I had had to put aside as I grew out of it. I love being more nimble, to realize that my body can now mirror the agility of my mind. I love that I am keeping promises to myself instead of always failing. I think I love that the most.

Like all of the others who have posted already, I have more energy than ever before in my life!  I have also found substitutions for the things I used to enjoy so much.  For example, pizza.  I buy FlatOut Light wraps and use half of it with a tbsp or two of sauce, some cheese, and some turkey pepperoni...so I get the flavors of pizza.  I don't miss pasta much but if I want a pasta-like base for my protein, I make some zero carb shirataki noodles.  If I want a sweet, I chew a calcium citrate vitamin caramel chew lol.  So honestly I can't say I "miss" anything because there are ways to enjoy the flavors you love.  And you may find that you don't want a S'more because you fit so well in that camping chair up north :)  (I am from the suburbs of Detroit so I totally get it!)

When I was super morbidly obese, I would hear people talk about exercise like "If I don't go to the gym my day isn't complete" and I thought it was bs.  I mean, who says that?  They must be insane or on drugs!  And now, I find myself LOVING the gym.  Sometimes as I am walking the .7 miles to the gym at 7 am, I think, "Who am I?".  Sometimes I don't recognize myself!  But I love who I am becoming :)

Best of luck - if you are committed you will do great with your new tool.  I wouldn't question surgery - just go forward and get ready for a life-changing experience and a really awesome journey!

I get that "who am I" feeling ALL THE TIME.  Yesterday I actually added a 2.25 mile walk to my morning because I thought I'd be slacking if I "only" did my yoga class.  (And then I paid for it with my normally scheduled run today, but whatever.)  

I love hearing everyones replies!!! I'll say goodbye to the smores and Hello to skinny jeans! I have always thought they looked great with boots!! Perhaps this upcoming winter!

This has been a fantastic thread! Thanks so much for asking the question and thank you for the replies!

I really don't miss any specific food too much, because if I do really want something I will have ONE bite of it, and really enjoy that one bite!  What I do miss is spontaneity with my meals.  I have a strict schedule (because that's just my personality) of breakfast at 6, lunch at 12, snack at 3 and dinner at 6.  

What I love is that I can share clothes with my sisters!  Never thought I'd be able to do that again!

What do I miss from before surgery?

............

What do I love now that I'm a year post-op?

• Being able to shop at Banana Republic, The Gap, Talbots, Ralph Lauren, Nordstrom, etc.  I won't lie, I'm a brand ***** and I love to shop.
• Sitting in movie theater seats with clearance on both sides.
• Not being winded climbing multiple flights of stairs.
• Being able to run again (although I'm on hiatus from running at the moment due to knee injury).
• Wearing clothes in sizes that start with a 1 instead of a 2 or 3.
• That I wear a shoe size that is a size smaller now.  I lost length in my foot but not width though, so I'm still fairly limited in my shoe choices.
• Wearing clothes that are NOT BLACK.
• Looking good in pictures.
• Having a resting heart rate of 55 bpm.
• Being able to wrap my arms all the way around my husband (he had sleeve surgery last year too).
• Being able to wrap hotel towels all the way around myself.
• Not having to take diabetes or high blood pressure medication.
• Not minding parking far from the door at places.
• Being able to cross my legs.
• Cute bras that are not matronly or utilitarian looking.
• Seeing that I actually have an hourglass shape.
• That I'm smaller than a lot of my female relatives and friends (I know that sounds catty, but I was always the biggest one).

The list could go on and on....

Don't sweat it.  You'll be able to drink r eat almost everything on your list-- you just may not want as much of it as before.   I'm also from Michigan and grew up "Up North"--  I had my sleeve June 2, 2014.  I am now about 9 weeks post-surgical (down 70lbs total) so I have graduated to "real foods".  Dr. Zeni is my doc, and they all have different rules about post-surgical foods, timing, etc., so take whatever I say with that in mind.   All  (I mean ALL) of the things you had on your list are permitted--  you can eat or drink most anything, but in very tiny quantities.   Last night I went to a restaurant and we ordered mussels, a steak sandwich and a flight of 7 craft beers. I had a very tiny sip of each and another little swig of the 2 that I preferred. You will bring home most of your meals-- your fridge runs over with white styrofoam boxes!   You can have the craft beers, just not in the quantity you might be used to.  The carbonation is part of the issue (makes pop completely undesirable for me) as well as drinking beer can be a problem with the "avoid liquids" during and around meals mantra.  That 'avoid liquids' thing is my biggest challenge and the reason why a couple times things have been uncomfortable.  You might not want to eat the sweets like smores as much--  I don't crave breads, sweets, tortillas, etc., nearly as much as before. Kind of like the feeling you get when deep into the ATkin's low-carb diet-- you just don't want them much. You might not eat much of a s'more--certainly not a whole graham-cracker's worth.  I love to cook and make beer and wine, so that has continued.  You just can't each as much-- so if the pleasure for you was mostly that "oh my god...I can't eat another bite" feeling after 4-6 pieces of pizza, you won't be getting that exact feeling--  it's more like a "I can't believe I feel that full after a quarter piece of pizza".   Makes me start to concentrate on quality.  Also, your body metabolizes alcohol first-thing, so if you were to drink a half beer and then eat a half s'more, you'd be getting all your calories, near-zero nutrients and wouldn't be burning off any body fat.  In fact, the next thing your body does is try to burn up lean body muscle and retain fat, so you might actually be getting worse.  I haven't seen the "reduced alcohol tolerance" thing, but I think the 'get a buzz' threshold might be reduced... could be because you're actually on a 500-800 calorie-per-day diet and not hungry!   Those are almost exactly my pluses and they've started to come true.   Hang in there!  I would do it again in a flash.  It's not "cheating" and it's certainly not magic. It takes work and the reduced portions are really weird, but it is truly an amazing tool to be able to eat a half cup of something for lunch and not be left hungry.