Hey Sleevers!

I do have to say, I am feeling much better than I did a few weeks ago. Was it the St. John's Wort? The Holiday Spirit? Increased Exercise? Or, it could be a combination of all of those. All I know is that I was really in a funk and it sucked big time. I'm feeling so much better and I think I've even found the motivation to get back on track with my journey.

Prior to surgery and my pre-op diet, I weighed a whopping 269/270 lbs. I NEVER in a million years thought I would actually get on a scale and see that number pop up. The reality hit that I was LESS than 50lbs away from weighing it a 300! That really depressed me and although I already had my VSG scheduled, I just felt so helpless and even a bit unbelieving that this surgery would really work.

Today 15 weeks post-op, I weigh in at around 220. I say "around" 220 because for the last couple weeks it's been jumping all over the place between 221 and 218. That's fine that it's not stationary, as long as the overall trend is a lower number. The weight loss has most definitely slowed down, but i'm trying not to let that discourage me, I am trying to have faith in this surgery as it's gotten me this far.

Of course everything is not all rainbows and lolipops, there's are so many obsticles and hurdles that you must get over...just as many hurdles as it took to be qualified by insurance. Here are some things that I am still struggling with:

1) Eating slowly - 15 weeks out and you would think that I would have learned this lesson by now. By nature I've always just been a fast eater...inhaling food. The habit of putting food on my fork before I've even had a chance to chew and swallow the last bite has just been part of my life since I was a child. During these weeks that I"ve been eating regular food, I often time dread it because I do not want to go through that tightness of my chest and heaviness in my belly. Some of the things that I've tried to combat this problem is to count how many times I chew. I try to chew at least 25 times before I swallow. In between bites I've started to put my utensil down completely while I chew and swallow, only to pick it back up once all the food is gone out of my mouth. Another trick i use (which my fiance hates)is playing with my phone while i"m eating so that I have something else to distract me and slow me down. Like I said, it's definitely a struggle, but every now and then I succeed in eating a meal that is not uncomfortable.

2). Eating Too much at one time - This kind of goes hand and hand with the last one. Bites that are too big and going in too fast is a ticking time bomb. Luckily i've only experienced the "sliming" and vomiting just a handful of times...it's definitely not a regular occurrence for me. To combat this issue, I've tried cutting my food into itty bitty little baby bits and eating those individually. I know I can do much better with measuring out my portions ahead of time, which would probably help me out a lot in the long run. In fact, I just bought a new hightech food scale to help me with this (Merry Christmas to me!)

3). Water In-take - I've really fallen off the wagon on this one. Prior to my whole VSG journey, I was actually pretty good at this. I have a 64oz mug that I would fill with ice/water at the beginning of my work day and it would be gone by 2 or 3 in the afternoon. But now, I feel so full from my meals, it's been really hard to also intake water (or any other fluids). Any suggestions on this one would be greatly appreciated. For the first 8 or 9 weeks I didn't drink any coffee at all, but gradually I started with this mornign habit again. Perhaps, for every cup of coffee I drink I could drink the same amount in water first? Or, maybe just go back to lugging around that 64oz mug lol. I guess I could....

4). Daily Exercise - Honestly, i'm not displeased at all about my exercise. I started with light walking almost immediately after being released from the hospital in Tijuana. When I got home I continued with walking around my neighborhood every night and even got in some walking during lunch break at work. At around 4 weeks, i was on the Elliptacle and stationary bikes, then around 8 or 9 weeks, i started with weight training and a boot camp class that was 3 times a week. I've enrolled in a 2nd bootcamp that's twice a week and started a yoga class. However, although I've active, I know I can do a whole lot more. Exercising 2-3 days a week isn't bad for maintaining, but I definitely want to keep losing so I know I much amp up the amount of exercise I do in the week. I hate that it gets dark so early nowadays becaus it makes me not want to do ANYTHING after work.

5). Just Saying NO - Christmas cookies, pies, cakes, candies, potato chips.....you know the deal. They get offered and I take a piece. Why can't I just say "NO"?

6). Eating the right foods at mealtime - Again, this kind of goes hand in hand with just saying NO. I'm going to blame the two men in my life for this one. LOL. The little one wants pizza rolls all the time and his dad wants Panda Express all the time... But enough excuses I know that this is one of the things that kept me from being successful in other diets that i've done. The inability to just make the choices that I need to make in order to get the job done. I have done some things to help me out when all they want is junk. I've pre-grilled some chicken breast which I keep in the fridge when I need a quick meal. Protein shakes have also been my savior. However, the more often I can eat the right foods at mealtime, the better off I will be.

7). Eating several times a day - This one is very difficult for me. I know I should be eating breakfast lunch and dinner with snacks in between. But, most often times I feel too full after my regular meal to go for a snack. Maybe I should make the meals and snacks the same size? Feedback on how to do this would be greatly appreciated!

So, as you can see, there are still some things I've got to learn and some things that I can improve on. It still amazes me that I can wear clothes that have been sitting in my closet for the past 7 years because they were too small. Now with about 45lbs left to lose until I reach my goal, conquering these things will be the key to my success. Most importantly i have to remain positive and celebrate every victory no matter how small, not to over analyze a "stall", and stick to the plan.

I wish everyone much success and I will share a before/after picture very shortly.

Happy New Year!