Thank god it’s Friday

Yaaa, but it just looks nice.

A stomach content as big as an egg. Yaaa, but it just looks nice. now knows how it feels. Three days ago, he went under the knife for a so-called gastric bypass surgery. And this is the first weekend of his new life. Time for a conversation.

You had surgery on Tuesday morning. How do you feel now?

“Actually very good. So far, it has been a hundred percent better than I expected. Although I do have a lot of wound pain. It was a laparoscopic surgery where they repositioned and cut my stomach and I don't know what else. That wound will hurt for a while, but other than that, I actually feel great.”

Did you have to stay in the hospital for long?

“The surgery itself only takes 45 minutes, but with checking in and out, you might be busy with the surgery for about an hour and a half. Tuesday afternoon, I was already wandering through the hospital, and on Wednesday evening, I first had a small meal and then I was allowed to go home again.”

And speaking of that meal, what can you eat and not eat with such an egg-stomach?

“I asked the doctor: ‘What kind of egg do you mean exactly? A free-range egg, or one of those extra-large eggs from Albert Heijn?’, haha. But no, just a small, normal egg. So that's not much. But I can basically eat a lot. I just can't eat very fatty or very sweet foods anymore; your stomach can't handle that. Then you get a kind of attack for about an hour where you sit cramped and shivering on the couch. Not cool.”

Your very first weekend of your new life. What does that look like?

“Very quiet. This is one of the few weekends where I am doing absolutely nothing. I can't bend down, can't drive, and just have to keep a low profile. So that will definitely be the new season of Orange Is The New Black binge-watching on Netflix.”

Can you drink alcohol?

“Preferably not for six weeks. And after that, I can only have half a glass of wine, otherwise, I get completely drunk. Oh god, that also means no more champagne…”

What is your favorite TGIF moment?

“When I realize on Friday night that I will receive a lot fewer emails in the next two days. I never find work annoying, but putting the phone away is so nice. Just getting all the hysteria out of your life for 48 hours.”

If you could pack your bags today for a weekend away, where would you go?

“Los Angeles. Because I just think it's the perfect city. You can shop, relax, and it's just really nice on the other side of the world. Tokyo and Capri I also think are amazing.”

What do you think your new life will look like?

“I really have no idea. Everyone says, of course: you will lose an incredible amount of weight. But I can't really imagine that yet. I didn't do it initially to lose weight; I was satisfied with my body. But my blood pressure was so high, it was this or be dead in ten years.”

Are you secretly already looking at new clothes?

“Absolutely. I'm already looking at the new men's collection for next summer. And I've seriously thrown away forty garbage bags of clothes. I just had way too much.”

I need to say this, but wouldn't you also consider quitting smoking?

“Yes, you're right. But I just can't do everything at once. When I came out of surgery, I had such a hysterical craving for chips, but that wasn't possible. Out of stress, you immediately light a cigarette again because you want something back because you've suffered pain. Silly, right?”

You are now going to keep a weekly vlog for LINDA.tv, what are you going to show in it?

“Yes, every Tuesday at 9 PM, a new vlog will be online about my adventure around the stomach reduction. For example, the first glass of alcohol I drink, that will already be a funny vlog. And in September, all sorts of black-tie galas will start again, of course. That will be fun.’

Are you going to exercise a lot too?

“They recommend that I exercise at least three times a week for an hour to ‘catch’ the excess skin that may develop. Although I actually want to do a bit more. I really need to build muscle; the condition will come later.”

How much do you think you will lose in the coming time?

“On average around 30 kilos in the first three months. After that, it goes a bit slower. Next week, I have two dinners planned, no idea what to expect and how much I can eat. That will really be a social experiment.”

Finally, will the alarm go off ridiculously early on Monday or is it manageable?

“No, I think around 9 o'clock. At 12 o'clock, I have four potential buyers for my house, and I need to make sure everything is tidy, haha. I have an option for an apartment on the Singel. I've lived here for eleven years, and it was time for something new. New body, new house: this will be the year of change.”