Enhanced Malabsorbtion and No Carbs

[Larra]

Long time no see, DuodenalSwitchaRoo ! I've missed you. No jerks here, and nothing but respect for all you have accomplished and the issues you've been through.

 

[JackieOnLine]

You worked hard, made a lot of progress: I wish you could see yourself as a sucess! and we do miss you, no doubt.

 

[Munchkin]

I have an Apple watch and I hate it LOL I am totally an Apple person as well, but I miss simplicity! I am hoping for a Garmin vivosmart for my Bday.

Sorry to intrude lol. I got here from a link Liz posted and I was like Oh yeah lol, it's been a minute. It has been a minute because I have become a super duper absorber and a lot of judgemental DSers tell me it's my fault...so I just don't post much. Yup, it's my fault my labs are STELLAR with zero supplements for 3 years lol. My fault.

You aren't alone. In fact the story is very familiar, begged surgeon for a shorter CC because of my high start weight, got 75 supposedly, maybe 65, it's been so long I can't remember. I don't even feel like a DSer anymore. I don't celebrate surgiversaries or anything.

Dr K did a colorectomy on me in 2019 and refused to touch my DS because it went through the mesentery (fat layer in intestines) instead of around it. Then gave me a lecture about success is me being 315 or under. I cried. And then I gave up every getting back down to my small size. If the best can't help me, I give up.

Hugs to you for fighting through!

Actually, I have always found your story to be inspiring and motivating. It speaks volumes to me when when any of us who can't drop the weight have perfect labs for years. Seems to be a pretty clear indication that our malabsorbtion has left the building. I have long suspected I could also do without all or at least most of the supplements I take but I keep on taking them anyway. I was taking supplements in my 20's and it's a habit. Since I am very healthy overall it won't hurt me to keep on.

I miss the sleep tracking my fitbits gave me. I am learning more about my apple watch over time. Just the other day I finally figured out it does count steps. Very safe to say it does a lot of stuff I know nothing about but I am learning. And the step counter is accurate. It seems to me it is harder to get the watch to give me exercise minutes. The other day I spent exactly an hour doing what I thought was hard work. I was shoveling rocks into a bucket, carrying them to another location, lifting the bucket over my head and dumping the rocks over a fence. An hour of that only bought me 15 minutes of 'exercise'. It is very hard to close that exercise ring. And mine is only set up for moderate activity! Haven't tested it yet to see if it recognizes the rowing machine. Maybe I will try it today.

We all have to find ways to work with what we have. And I just keep on trying.

 

[southernlady]

The other day I spent exactly an hour doing what I thought was hard work. I was shoveling rocks into a bucket, carrying them to another location, lifting the bucket over my head and dumping the rocks over a fence. An hour of that only bought me 15 minutes of 'exercise'. It is very hard to close that exercise ring. And mine is only set up for moderate activity! Haven't tested it yet to see if it recognizes the rowing machine. Maybe I will try it today.

I’ve discovered you have to set the workout to get exercise minutes. It looks like a green running man. You can add one or make one of the currents fit as close as you can to what you are doing.

 

[Munchkin]

The Amazon truck pulled up yesterday carrying a box full of tiny terrors. That I ordered. New shorts. Bought because my old ones literally fell off my ass if I was wearing slippery underwear. I had to wear thongs or go commando to keep them from falling off. What a strange thing for me. I was sure the Hanes M would fit but the Chinese M looked incredibly tiny. Like doll clothes. Chinese sizes are difficult. All or at least most of their clothes are made for smaller women. Just a statement of fact. The Chinese ones are made out of legging type material and big bonus, they have pockets for cellphones. So I washed them and hung them out to dry.

My inspiration was a Nevada company called Pop Fit. They make leggings and shorts. If you get the chance, try them. They will often give you a free pair. My first pair was a size L. Too big. I could put them on like a pair of pants. They were not tight enough to be leggings. But they were well made and introduced me to cell phone pockets. I wanted to try a size M but they are just too darn expensive. Leggings should not cost $70 a pair. So I started shopping and I found a lot of 8 pairs M on ebay for under $100, so I bought them. And they fit. So armed with the idea that I could wear a medium, I got braver and ordered some on Amazon. And the Chinese M fit. So here I sit wearing blue and black leopard print shorts. And they are comfortable!

I dress like a schlep. Clothes that are way too big. One of my newer goals is to stop doing that. Yes, I still have to have some midsection camouflage for the hernia but I need to stop dressing for 2. Hence the new shorts. I forced myself to stop automatically buying whatever size was the biggest. And it worked. I now have 7 pairs of new shorts that fit. Shorts and a t are my usual summer around the house uniform. I don't want expensive outfits to do yard and house type work in and these are perfect.

New summer outfits that actually fit. Good news for me. Helps to balance out the bad news. I have to start wearing reading glasses. I made it to 66 without them so I guess it was time. Sigh.

 

[Munchkin]

I’ve discovered you have to set the workout to get exercise minutes. It looks like a green running man. You can add one or make one of the currents fit as close as you can to what you are doing.

Thanks! I have never done that. I will give it a try to see if I can figure it out.

 

[Munchkin]

Diets, especially long term ones, have to evolve over time. I am still doing extremely low carb but I am drinking more(not alcohol). And I am eating less. I have forced myself to start drinking protein shakes like Fairlife, Atkins, and Slimfast. Summers are hot here and it is no cooking, easy, and convenient. No clean up either. I have always kept a few of these in the fridge just in case but I am now really using them. I have the bars and the snacks too. A typical day for me is now a shake for breakfast and lunch and a bar for dinner. Maybe a couple pieces of jerky or a small handful of nuts during the day. I still have coffee, iced tea, diet soda, and water.

I have also started trying a new routine for better hair. I doubt it will work but I will try it for a couple months and see. I have always taken biotin. Recently added lysine, silica, saw palmetto, and collagen protein. About 20 gr a day. Just my own little experiment. Time will tell. I can tell you the collagen protein tastes good. I got chocolate and I usually mix it in with my other shakes. Just like the whey, it smells weird. Sort of like beef broth. Chocolate beef broth. Odd but tolerable.

Real food. I am missing it less than I thought I would. I get something real every few days. I ate a Chef Salad on Sunday. Last Friday I had meatloaf and steamed broccoli. I will probably have another salad on Wednesday or Thursday. Overall this is much easier than doing all that low carb cooking. I had a shrimp cocktail one day last week too. So some food but not a lot. I haven't noticed any decrease in my energy level and I still feel fine.

I now have a Sam's Club membership. I prefer Costco but Sam's has more and cheaper choices for shakes and bars. Cheaper than Amazon too. And the membership was free. $45 but you get a $45 giftcard. And like Costco it is a little exercise just walking around the store. I do feel a bit guilty because I despise Walmart. Don't think I have darkened their door for 4 or 5 years.

My gummy bears are still there. In a large glass cannister on my kitchen counter. Every few days I grab a handful mostly because I like them. Tasty free food. Coming up pretty soon on 3 years dieting and I have used less than 15lbs of them. My cannister that holds exactly 5 lbs is still more than half full. My Memorial Day cheat day is right around the corner now. On the list so far is chili dogs and mac n' cheese. More to be added later.

 

[Munchkin]

Anecdotal. And maybe only specific to me. But results are results. Too soon to tell about the hair but I can say it doesn't look any worse. I have been doing the collagen thing for a month now and there are some real changes.

1. No more leg cramps at night. Even on days when I get in a lot of activity. Days when I could have told you for sure cramps would wake me up at night.
2. My knees and ankles feel better.

So...I am sticking with it for now!

 

[talitali]

Fantastic update on the collagen. I've been researching it myself and debating whether it has value or if it's 'yet another thing to try.' I really get tired of trying things sometimes and trying to jam it into an already full supplement schedule. I was actually looking at the LiquaCel Protein from the makers of the UpCalD calcium powder to see if that would be a more efficient way of ingesting the collagen instead of powder and it would have nifty flavors.

 

[JackieOnLine]

Recently added lysine, silica, saw palmetto, and collagen protein

My Memorial Day cheat day is right around the corner now. On the list so far is chili dogs and mac n' cheese.

I'm glad you are feeling better and I also need No Cramps and less joint pain. but since you started a bunch of stuff at once, how do we know which is working for you? ??

I look forward to your Memorial Day update! I have to work that day and will be cranky because it's for regular pay, not time and a half so likely will indulge in ice cream or something, lol.

I'm not having cramps regularly but any are terrible - GAH!

 

[Justme222]

So I have been taking collagen pills I got at Costco. They also have biotin. I hate that the dose is 6 pills, but I took them even before surgery and they helped with hair nails and skin. Are collagen peptides different?

 

[talitali]

So I have been taking collagen pills I got at Costco. They also have biotin. I hate that the dose is 6 pills, but I took them even before surgery and they helped with hair nails and skin. Are collagen peptides different?

Obviously this article is slanted towards their products but I do feel it’s a decent overview of collagen.

 

[southernlady]

So I have been taking collagen pills I got at Costco. They also have biotin. I hate that the dose is 6 pills, but I took them even before surgery and they helped with hair nails and skin. Are collagen peptides different?

If you only add one new item a month (other than vitamins), you should be able to pinpoint if it helps.

 

[Munchkin]

My crappy hair saga started in my 20's. Decades before my DS so I am sure my hair is not surgery related. Over the years I have tried everything on the market. Some things more than once. I have great nails and normal skin for an old bag. Just awful hair. Maybe it's genetic or hormonal. Wouldn't be surprised at all if I finally learned it was related to whatever turned me into a super-absorbing fat person. I will probably never know for sure.

My sister has crappy hair too, objectively, worse than mine. She is also a super-absorbing DSer. Her bad hair also started way before surgery. My parents had normal hair. My maternal grandfather was bald but the rest of my grands had normal hair. I haven't noticed any cousins/aunts/uncles with this problem.

Whenever something 'new' comes out I read and research it to make sure it won't hurt me. If I come to that conclusion, I will try it. A dermatologist in FL came up with the idea of collagen peptides, silica, biotin, lysine, and saw palmetto. And there is SOME science behind it. Anyway, they claim it works and nothing there that will hurt me so I am giving it a go. And southernlady is completely right. The correct way to do it would be to add one thing at a time. But of course, that is in direct conflict with my desire for instant gratification! What would I do with hair if I had some?

 

[DuodenalSwitchaRoo]

Anecdotal. And maybe only specific to me. But results are results. Too soon to tell about the hair but I can say it doesn't look any worse. I have been doing the collagen thing for a month now and there are some real changes.

1. No more leg cramps at night. Even on days when I get in a lot of activity. Days when I could have told you for sure cramps would wake me up at night.
2. My knees and ankles feel better.

So...I am sticking with it for now!

Whoa, WHAT? I'm going to have to try collagen! I am plagued with severe, debilitating cramps! Not dehydrated, all electrolytes and minerals where they should be and STILL I die. Thanks for the heads up!