Gastric Bypass vs P90X: What works for me.

If you are obese or morbidly obese.. (BMI over 39) then you may have thought about gastric bypass or gastric banding. Now for the record the information regarding all the bariatric surgeries, there are so many more than the 2 listed but those are the most common and most popular, can be found on obesityhelp.com. It is a good source of information and connection with people both pre and post op in all forms of surgery.

I was thinking about this surgery after talking to someone who had it done. I knew a couple of others that had it done and, as a nurse, I had seen others that had it done. Now the ones I saw in the hospital setting, well lets just say they had problems. Complications do arise with this procedure.

Risks:
*Death within 30 days post op.. but on a 5 year time line.. much less risk of death vs being morbidly obese.
*Blood clots in the legs.
*Leaking at one of the staple lines in the stomach.
*Incision hernia.
*note* all of the previous risks are with any abdominal surgery and not specific to gastric bypass
*Narrowing of the opening between the stomach and small intestine.
*Dumping syndrome. This is a condition where stomach contents move too quickly through the small intestine, causing nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness and sweating. It's frequently experienced after eating sweets or high-fat foods.
* Vitamin and mineral deficiency (iron deficiency anemia, vitamin B-12 deficiency and vitamin D deficiency)
*Dehydration
*Gallstones
*Bleeding stomach ulcer
*Intolerance to certain foods
*Kidney stones
*Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) related to excessive insulin production
*Excess skin resulting in skin infections

Benifits:
*Dramatic weight loss of 50 to 60 percent of excess weight over the first 2 years post op
Improvement of...
* Type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes
* High blood pressure
* High blood cholesterol
* Obstructive sleep apnea
* Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)

The cost of this procedure is well over what most people can afford, however, if proven necessary due to bmi and comorbidity issues... insurance will most likely pay but I cant speak for all insurance companies or coverages. You would need to check on that with your current provider. You will have to also change everything you eat on your diet. Dumping syndrome is a common occurrence and from what I have been told not very pleasant.

Your diet will be considerably different for the REST OF YOUR LIFE... not for 1 or 2 years while you lose weight.. but for the rest of your life.. you will have to deal with the common problems of malabsorption issues, vitamin and mineral deficiencies... and dumping syndrome... FOR LIFE!

You can gain weight back. If you continue to overeat you will stretch that pouch that starts about the size of a golf ball to the size of a football. This will keep you from having the restrictive diet and without proper exercise and diet regulation, weight will come back and this does happen more than you might think.

Once the surgery is done, its done.. and you can not change that. Gastric Bypass surgeries can be reversed, but become more problematic than the original surgery and the risks increase with that.

You will not be able to resume normal activity for at least 4 to 6 weeks after surgery to allow the healing process to be complete.

You will have to go through a rigorous screening process to make sure you are both mentally and physically ready for the surgery and life after. You will also have to see a nutritionist. You will have to (usually required by most surgeons) lose some initial weight based on the nutritionists recommendations with your new diet plan prior to surgery.

If you stick with the diet restrictions and exercise you will lose the weight and should keep it off... its pretty much up to you. Attitude is everything. (remember this for later)

P90X

Risks:
*Muscle soreness
*Tendinitis (pick a joint)
*Back soreness (sometimes related to a prior injury)
*Fatigue from intense workouts
*Increase in laundry due to more clothing dirty from Xtreme workouts
*Increase in heart rate related to intense cardio workouts... (consult your physician prior to engaging in any exercise)

Benifits:
*Weight loss (ranges from 0 to 60 to 70lbs during the first 90 days depending on their need to lose and commitment to the program)
*Increase in lean muscle mass
*Decrease in BMI and body fat percentage
Improvement of...
* Type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes
* High blood pressure
* High blood cholesterol
* Obstructive sleep apnea
all of the above directly related to the weight loss and increase in exercise.

The cost of P90X is around 139.99 + tax and shipping. This can be broken into 3 payments when you order online and use a credit/debit card. You will also need to either purchase bands or some dumbells and a pullup bar. You can do some variation where you get one or both or all 3 as long as you have weights or bands for arms and shoulders and bands or pullup bar for back days.

If you use the msg boards provided by Beachbody while using P90X, you will have the opportunity to connect online with others that are in the same situation you are no matter if you are pretty healthy and in shape just trying to get those last 5 lbs off or you are morbidly obese, have a bmi over 40 and are trying to completely change your life. The msg boards have all kinds of people from all walks of life. Some have started where you are and achieved their goals.

You will have a complete nutrition guide for you while working out with 3 different plans and 3 different levels on each plan with 3 different phases for each plan and level. That is a lot of information and as always if you utilize the Beachbody website, you can also be a Beachbody Club member and gain more nutritional information as well. You will also be assigned your own personal coach on the website and they should be a good resource for you when you have questions or problems.

You will never need a gym membership ever again. You can have one if you want, but if you workout at home, why go to a gym?

I personally am familiar with a lot of this information on both levels. I was 385lbs and my doc had me start the preop for gastric bypass. I saw the surgeon. I had the extreme work up and blood work done. I found out I am borderline diabetic. I found out I had obstructive sleep apnea. I found out I was out of control with food(which i already knew) but between the psychiatrist and nutritionist came to grips with some of my food issues.

I was merely weeks away from have a surgery date. If it were not for a foul up in the doctors office, I might be sitting a few months post operative wondering if I did the right thing.

I didnt have the surgery. I found P90X. I found myself. I found a way to lose the weight, increase my self confidence and self esteem without going under the knife and having a life altering surgery. I found my fountain of youth.

If you stick with the diet restrictions and exercise you will lose the weight and should keep it off... its pretty much up to you. Attitude is everything. (sound familiar) You have to do almost the exact same thing to stay healthy and fit with both P90X and gastric bypass surgery. The workouts with P90X will obviously more extreme and more intense, but the results are just as amazing and more long lasting. You can lose weight with both gastric bypass or P90X. You can regain the weight. You can fail.

For me the benefits vs risks for P90X out weigh those for gastric bypass surgery and you dont have go through the hell of surgery, dumping syndrome and malabsorption. I could not bring myself to go to the medical extreme. I chose the fitness extreme and now at 303 lbs down from 385lbs... I know that 250lbs is very reachable and will not be the end. I will see my goal weight and I will be in the best shape of my life. I dont think I could have said that with gastric bypass surgery.

Any questions feel free to get in touch with me.
xchicken@hotmail.com
http://xcxtreme.blogspot.com/
http://beachbodycoach.com/000xchicken/