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Bariatric Fitness Training Offered at CentraState Fitness & Wellness
Posted by: In: Bariatric Fitness, Bariatric Success Program, Blog Post, gastric bypass, Gastric Sleeve 16 Jan 2023 0 comments Tags , , , , ,

The Bariatric Success Program at Prime Surgicare coordinates with the CentraState Fitness & Wellness Center to offer a Bariatric Wellness Program designed exclusively for people undergoing surgical weight loss.

 

“Prior to weight loss surgery, many people neglected regular exercise due to the stress of carrying too much weight,” explains board-certified bariatric surgeon Dr. Seun Sowemimo. ”One of the weight loss surgery benefits is rapid weight loss, making fitness and movement more comfortable and easier on the joints.” Dr. Seun says exercise is an ideal strategy to boost metabolism, increase calorie burn and improve muscle tone.

The CentraState Fitness & Wellness Center offers group and private sessions which meet 2X per week for eight weeks. Participants can choose a small group session ($299) or one-on-one training, both led by a highly-experienced certified personal trainer ($800). The program also includes one group fitness class of their choice per week. Options include yoga, strength and balance, total body, aqua sculpt or Zumba. A fitness club membership is not required. 

“Our program is also suitable for pre-op patients who are losing weight before surgery,” says Linda Ortiz, wellness coordinator, CentraState Fitness & Wellness Center. “There is a true comradery in this group class and everyone receives individualized support and encouragement.”

If you have a chronic disease, check with your doctor before beginning any fitness experience. No previous fitness experience is required. Recent post-op patients should wait a minimum of four weeks after surgery and receive clearance from Dr. Sowemimo to proceed.

READ: Learn more about the unique benefits of Prime Surgicare’s Bariatric Success Program.

Building a bariatric group fitness community

Each exercise program is individually geared to your individual needs and goals, but will target these areas:

  • Maximize weight loss
  • Increase metabolism
  • Build muscle to increase calorie burn rate
  • Manage weight after reaching goal weight
  • Increase insulin sensitivity
  • Increase endurance

To learn more or sign-up for the Bariatric Wellness Program at the CentraState Fitness & Wellness Center in Freehold Township, contact Linda Ortiz at 732-845-9400 Ext. 4412 or register for more information at https://centrastatefitness.com/bariatric-wellness-program/.

Learn more about bariatric weight loss surgery

Prime Surgicare logo faviconIf 2023 is the year you are committed to conquering your weight issue, or fighting back against weight-related chronic medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiac issues, sleep apnea, high cholesterol or chronic joint pain, call the Prime Surgicare weight loss experts at 732-414-2707 to schedule a private consultation or sign-up for our online webinar for a well-rounded introduction to the benefits of surgical weight loss.

Five Holiday Weight Management Tips that Work
Posted by: In: Blog Post 13 Dec 2022 0 comments Tags , , , , ,

By Dr. Seun Sowemimo

This month can be challenging to stay on the weight loss track and maintain your exercise schedule. You have very little downtime–you may be attending several work or social events or hosting a party or meal.  Regardless, you will probably be faced with a plethora of tempting foods and beverages at seemingly every turn. But you have worked hard in 2022–this is no time to backslide! How can you fully enjoy the holidays and still stay on track?

Here are a few tried and true tips to get you to 2023 without facing significant holiday weight gain:

1. Step-Up Your Workouts

get your exercise in during holidays and winter

Did you notice your local fitness center is a little quiet this month? That’s because everyone is busy with holiday season activities. Therefore, it’s a perfect time to add an extra class or workout to your weekly schedule before the January ‘resolutions crowd’ arrives in January. Better yet–make workouts fun–try skiing or ice skating. Run along the Shore with your kids so they can burn off excess energy. But make no mistake–what you eat counts most when it comes to weight maintenance and weight loss. No amount of exercise will make up for several nights of gorging on low-quality food and empty-calorie beverages.

2. Pre-plan your ‘indulge’ meal

Schedule an event to indulge–perhaps it’s Christmas Day, one or two special nights of Chanukah or New Year’s Eve. Overeating one day will not cause weight regain, but overeating several days can add pounds. It is not the actual holiday eating that causes weight gain, it’s the continuous overeating for several days before, during and after the holiday.

3. Post-holiday, get rid of those treats and rich foods

If you host an event, purchase small take-away containers and send home leftovers with your guests to remove the temptation. You can also deep freeze them for future special occasions.

4.  Create a healthy food environment

Keep the right foods in your kitchen and workplace. Certainly, the special treats will be everywhere, but if you have the right foods close at hand, you can fill up on them first and foremost.

5. Think about January 2023 

All good things must pass, including the fun and festive holiday season. When January sets it, don’t look back at December and realize that you under-exercised and over-indulged, causing far more weight gain than you anticipated. Better yet, follow the tips I’ve recommended here to maintain your weight–even if you gain a few pounds–that’s fine. Hunkering down in January to lose a few pounds is easy. Starting the year with a 10-pound weight gain isn’t as easy.

Finally, remember that the holidays are not about the food–they are about family, friends and celebrating the joyous reasons for the season. Happy holidays!

Dr. Seun Sowemimo is Now In-Network Provider with Horizon BCBS of New Jersey
Posted by: In: bariatric revision, bariatric surgeon, Blog Post, Dr. Seun Weight Loss Plan, gallbladder surgery, gastric bypass, Gastric Sleeve, GI surgery, hernia surgery, Horizon BCBS in network bariatric, Horizon BCBS in network surgeon 17 Nov 2022 0 comments Tags , , , , , , , , ,

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ members to benefit from more favorable in-network pricing for bariatric, hernia and gallbladder surgery

November 15, 2022

Dr. Seun Sowemimo, a board-certified bariatric, laparoscopic and general surgeon and medical director of Prime Surgicare, a leading New Jersey surgical practice, is now an in-network provider with Horizon BCBSNJ (Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey). Practicing in Freehold, Jackson and Old Bridge, NJ, since 2009, Dr. Sowemimo has performed over 3,500 successful surgeries. Dr. Sowemimo (Dr. Seun) is the medical director of the Bariatric Surgery Program at CentraState Medical Center and on staff at Hackensack Meridian Health.

As an in-network provider with Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, members will be treated at their most cost-efficient in-network rate for the following procedures:

  • Bariatric Gastric Sleeve
  • Bariatric Revision
  • Bariatric Gastric Band Removal
  • Hernia Surgery
  • Gallbladder Surgery

To schedule a prompt surgical consultation with Dr. Seun, call 732-414-2707.

About Prime Surgicare

Prime Surgicare is a comprehensive, state-of-the-art surgical practice headed by medical director Dr. Seun Sowemimo. He and his team specialize in the latest weight loss surgery procedures and minimally-invasive GI surgeries. Dr. Sowemimo is also an obesity specialist and the founder of the online weight management course, Dr. Seun’s Weight Loss Plan. Visit primesurgicare.com or call 732-414-2707 for more information.

Signs You May Need Hernia Surgery
Posted by: In: Blog Post, hernia surgery 01 Nov 2022 0 comments Tags , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

“Today, about 70% of all hernia surgery operations can be safely and successfully performed on an outpatient basis,” says Dr. Seun Sowemimo, a board-certified laparoscopic surgeon in Freehold.

Find out if that lower belly pain or bulging lump many be a hernia.

 

Prime Surgicare Patient Review (March 2023)

“I had umbilical hernia surgery with Dr. Seun Sowemimo a week ago. It was a great experience. When I say research before you have surgery, I can’t stress enough how important that is. I’m glad I did! From the minute I walked into the office, to my follow up appointment today, everything was great. I have no complaints. Dr. Seun listens to his patients, your well-being is important. He takes his time, HE LISTENS. He’s not rude, he has great bedside manor. I think his reviews speak for themselves. Thank you to Dr. Seun and his whole team for making this easier on me. Having a good team makes the experience less stressful.”

Shannon Garrabrant (Hernia Center Google Review)

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

We all get those intermittent, nagging stomach pinches now and then. They can result from a strained muscle from a hard cough or sneeze, over-exercising the core, heavy lifting or even a gastrointestinal issue. But that sensation can also be a hernia symptom, which requires prompt medical diagnosis and treatment. In other words, this condition will not go away without medical intervention. Conversely, some people worry they have a hernia when, in fact, it is just an acute muscle strain or tear. Keep in mind that hernias can occur from the abdomen, down through the torso and into the groin area.

So what are some signs to help identify your belly or groin-region pain?

Physical Lumps and Bumps

 

  • When someone experiences a pulled abdominal muscle, there can be inflammation and some swelling, but generally no physically-identifiable marker.
  • A hernia usually causes a noticeable bulge on the surface of the abdomen. This bulge can be painless but change in size with exertion.
  • Hernias are generally aggravated by exertion. Exertion may be related to one’s occupation or additional acute or chronic health factors such as chronic cough, constipation or male prostate enlargement. These exacerbating factors need to be addressed to minimize the risk of it recurring after a hernia surgical repair.

Pain or No Pain

  • A pulled abdominal muscle can cause mild or sudden sharp pain, which may be aggravated by coughing, laughing and sneezing in a consistent area.
  • Hernias don’t usually cause pain initially. But as they grow, they can cause discomfort that many people describe as ‘achy or heavy.’ The physical bulge doesn’t cause tenderness unless abdominal contents have become trapped in the hernia, which is an emergency necessitating immediate medical attention.

Location

  • Abdominal muscle strains can happen in various locations and include any of the abdominal wall muscles.
  • Abdominal hernias normally occur at specific sites, most commonly in the groin region, the belly button or around previous surgical incisions or other abdominal wounds.
  • Other types of hernias are not so easily discernible. Beyond the medical history of the individual and a physical examination by a surgeon, sophisticated imaging like CT scans may be required.

WATCH: Joseph Kacmarski describes his groin hernia diagnosis and treatment at The Hernia Center at Prime Surgicare

A pulled stomach muscle can be uncomfortable, certainly. What your trainer or high school gym teacher told you is true—before exercising or playing sports, take precautions and stretch beforehand for at least six-10 minutes.

Bend your knees deeply if you must lift heavy items and, most importantly, keep moving your body every day to stay limber and as flexible as possible.

Finally, please remember the old adage: “When in doubt, check it out.”

READ: “Female Hernias Can Be Missed or Misdiagnosed”

“I Think I May Have a Hernia”

Dr. Seun Sowemimo

Call The Hernia Center at Prime Surgicare at (732) 414-2707, where you will receive a prompt and detailed in-office appointment to confirm your need for surgical hernia repair. Medical director Dr. Seun Sowemimo, a board-certified and fellowship-trained laparoscopic and general surgeon, regularly performs hernia repair operations weekly here in central New Jersey at CentraState Medical Center, local outpatient surgery centers and hospitals affiliated with Hackensack Meridian Health.

 

Professor Builds Her Own Weight Loss Curriculum, Starting with the Gastric Sleeve
Posted by: In: bariatric revision, Bariatric Success Story, Blog Post, COVID-19, Dr. Seun Weight Loss Plan, Gastric Sleeve, intermittent fasting, whole food plant based 13 Oct 2022 0 comments Tags , , , , , , , , , ,

 

When the pandemic started, Nora Hyland used the stay-at-home order to start walking again with a friend. But soon after she started, Nora’s hips and knees began to ache from arthritis and walking one mile took nearly an hour. “I felt exhausted, sweaty and in pain after that effort,” she recalls.

Battling weight for most of her life, the university professor dieted off and on for decades, losing about 20 pounds and then the scale just wouldn’t budge. Eventually, having three children added more weight until Nora weighed over 300 pounds.

Dr. Seun explains why the ‘body set point’ might be derailing your weight loss

Now in her 50s with a demanding career and three teenage children, Nora began to worry her weight was jeopardizing her future mobility.

So she took action.

A chance Facebook encounter leads to Dr. Sowemimo

Fortuitously, a friend posted on Facebook about her weight loss success after bariatric surgery. Nora had a gastric band (lap band) inserted nearly 11 years ago, but it was no longer serving her needs. Her friend strongly recommended Prime Surgicare and said she would understand why after she met the group.

“The first time I met with Dr. Seun Sowemimo, I left feeling that he and his team would get to know me and support my personal journey,” Nora recalls. This was not the case with the bariatric surgeon who implanted her gastric band many years ago. “I felt like they had no idea who I was and made no effort to check on my progress. It was crickets instead.”

Nora was approved for a bariatric revision, changing from a gastric band to a gastric sleeve (VSG). Dr. Seun first removed the lap band during an outpatient procedure. Three months later, after healing was complete, Nora spent one night in the hospital after her vertical sleeve gastrectomy.

Video: Why the Gastric Sleeve is the Most Popular Bariatric Surgery in the World

“This may not be the case for everyone, but four days after surgery, I was already feeling like me again,” the Jersey Shore resident recalls. She worked through the nutrition stages with Prime Surgicare staff bariatric dietitian Lori Skurbe, and then focused 24/7 on following the prescribed nutrition plan to the letter.

For the first six months after weight loss surgery, Nora focused on retraining her body to eat less and focus on whole foods and protein. “Another benefit from weight loss surgery is that it significantly reduces your appetite, which helps so much with weight loss the first couple of years.”

Read: Ghrelin – The Hormone that Keeps You Hungry

Nora before gastric sleeve surgery (2021).

Nora after the gastric sleeve and subscribing to Dr. Seun’s Weight Loss Plan online course (2022).

Choosing Dr. Seun’s Weight Loss Plan for Additional Weight Loss

Nora needed to do some clothes shopping when her size plummeted from size 24 to size 12.As the months after surgery passed, Nora expanded her weight loss strategy and signed up for Dr. Seun’s Weight Loss Plan, an online course that teaches four simple nutrition guidelines to maximize health, lose extra weight and maintain a healthy weight for life.

 “I didn’t know what to expect from the doctor’s course, but I watched the whole program and was stunned by the simplicity of Dr. Seun’s guidance—things I probably knew about food but never thought to implement,” Nora explains.

Nora shared five essential learnings from the course:

  1. I understand the difference between micros and macros.
  2. I can eat unlimited fruits and vegetables and not gain weight.
  3. Like Dr. Seun, I add a bag of cooked frozen vegetables to most meals to dilute higher-calorie foods.
  4. Keep your kitchen well stocked with the right foods, so you’re prepared when you’re hungry.
  5. Not eating after 7 pm and waiting until late morning to eat the next day is intermittent fasting, a great tool that helped me overcome weight loss stalls.

Try Out Dr. Seun’s Weight Loss Plan Mini Courses for FREE

One year after surgical weight loss, Nora lost 127 pounds. Her pre-op clothing size 24 is now size 12. And dropping.

Lori Skurbe also recommended Nora download the LoseIt app, which simplifies food and water tracking and offers additional weight loss tools. Nora said the app is so beneficial to her strategy that she has logged her food for the past 420 of 450 days.

Today, those walks along the Jersey shoreline are far less painful. Since gastric sleeve surgery, Nora walks five miles and covers 3-4 miles in an hour. She also joined a local gym with her son with the goal of building muscle mass to boost her metabolism.

Same life, different food relationship

Nora has lost 127 pounds since weight loss surgery a year ago. (2022)

Nora emphasized that having bariatric weight loss surgery doesn’t mean you can’t go out with friends for dinner, have a cocktail or an occasional piece of cake. “I learned you don’t have to be perfect in the weight loss game–just follow the roadmap most of the time and you’ll lose weight, be far healthier and enjoy life so much more.”

Check out Prime Surgicare’s exclusive Bariatric Success Program to learn more about our multi-pronged bariatric toolkit you won’t find with any other other bariatric center. Sign-up for one of our live Bariatric Info Webinars to meet Dr. Seun on Zoom and call (732) 414-2707 to set up a prompt private consultation and confirm medical insurance coverage.

NEW: Bariatric Patient-to-Patient Mentorship Offered
Posted by: In: Bariatric Success Program, Blog Post, Dr. Seun Weight Loss Plan, gastric bypass 05 Oct 2022 0 comments Tags , , , , , , , , ,

weight loss surgery support

By Dr. Seun Sowemimo

Retooling your weight management requires more than just an operation. Our exclusive Bariatric Success Program supports our weight loss surgery warriors with comprehensive tools and services to help people achieve safe, rapid and sustained weight loss. We’re proud to add a first-of-its-kind new asset for patients, our new Bariatric Ambassador Mentors.

Prime Surgicare’s Ambassadors are patient volunteers who previously navigated their own surgical weight loss journey. They worked hard and remained committed to achieving (and maintaining) their weight loss. Now, this group of specially-selected volunteers will serve as one-on-one mentors for bariatric newcomers at any stage of the surgical weight loss experience:

  • Still deciding
  • Pre-op
  • Post-op
  • Maintaining weight loss

While Prime Surgicare Ambassadors are not healthcare professionals (and cannot offer medical guidance), they offer a wealth of expertise–firsthand experience.

If you feel a bariatric mentor may be helpful to you, read on—

How a Prime Surgicare Bariatric Ambassadors Can Support Your Weight Loss Experience

  • Provides non-medical support through positivity and encouragement.
  • Understands the physical and emotional changes throughout the process.
  • Provides support during temporary weight stalls or regain.
  • Shares personal tools & resources that assisted in their weight loss success.
  • Suggests when to contact your Prime administrative or medical team.

 Bariatric/Health Topics/Questions To Refer Prime Surgicare Staff

If you have questions or issues related to the topics below, please contact the Prime Surgicare administrative and clinical team by calling (732) 414-2707:

  • Any medical issue or possible complication
  • Over-the-counter or prescription medications
  • Vitamins & mineral usage
  • Exercise/fitness programming
  • Mental health concerns
  • Financial/billing issues

 Matching You with the Right Ambassador

To make this partnership as fruitful as possible, we will match you with a volunteer who most closely meets your needs and health goals. To get started, please email our staff bariatric dietitian, Lori Skurbe, at lskurbe@centraljerseybariatrics.com to learn more and request your ambassador volunteer.

Only Prime Surgicare Offers a Comprehensive Bariatric Success Program

Your bariatric experience at Prime Surgicare includes far more than just an operation. We’ll also give you SIX carefully curated weight management tools to help improve your overall health and transform your relationship with food, so you can enjoy the quality of life you deserve. Learn more: https://primesurgicare.com/weight-loss-surgery-nj/#bariatric-success-program.

To start your weight loss surgery journey, call 732-414-2707 or register for our next live Weight Loss Surgery Webinar, hosted by Dr. Seun Sowemimo and our team of bariatric experts.

Dr. Sowemimo Says ‘Go for It!’
Posted by: In: Blog Post, Dr. Seun inspiration 19 Sep 2022 0 comments Tags
“Sometimes you need to push yourself beyond what you think you can do. You might just surprise yourself.  Every day is a chance to do something that you will never forget and possibly change the course of your life.
On a random September Saturday, I accomplished the biggest goal of my cycling career.
Sure, I’m definitely feeling the after-effects of this effort two days later.
Yes, it was absolutely worth it.”

Dr. Seun Sowemimo

 

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