My being stomachless doesn’t enter my mind as often anymore. Every once in a while, I struggle a little bit with a food. Or I get the feeling of a little lump in my throat that reminds me about my surgery. But generally, I eat a wide array of foods now. I can eat some salad, but don’t always feel like it. I do snack a lot and get full after a good portion size now. I eat steaks in hopes of good protein and extra iron. (Need to get my levels checked.) The one item I stay away from is corn. The skins are just too much to chew down. Ironically, popcorn is still fine; and I eat that in giant portions!

For snacks..
I spoon dollops of peanut butter out of the jar at work…it’s classy. 😉
oatmeal still is my friend (add creamer and splenda)
chips (not in excess or I feel bad)
cheese
greek yogurt (eat half, wait, eat other half….still struggle with sugar content of this if I eat it too fast)
handful of peanut butter M&Ms
I can eat a small ice cream sandwich
protein shakes (muscle milk + water. go slow or feel a bit “off”)
cheese stick

Scars…
My incision is barely noticeable. Oddly enough, it was one of the incisions from the laproscopic portion of my surgery that is more noticeable. But that was my fault. I think I popped that stitch trying to walk too fast too soon after my surgery.

Running & Life…
I’m able to continue working out and running like the crazy runner that I am. My biggest constraint now is unrelated to my surgery…time. Other things seem more important. So I workout super early in the morning and sometimes get too lazy. Family, fun, work and sleep requirements are so demanding!

More Running…
So I’ve been running 5-6 miles 2x a week on weekdays and walking a few miles over lunchtime 5 days a week. I try extra hard on running days to get extra food down and focus on protein and iron. Seems to be working pretty well. I hope to get out of my laziness and force at least 3 runs per week. I am again signed up for the half marathon in January! I plan to still pass by folks with stomachs just because I can.

Weight…
Even with running, I’m holding my weight at 114-115. Gaining weight is still a bit tough though. The one thing about a gastrectomy is you can snack a lot, but you can never overeat the way everyone else can anymore.