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Week 24 – 6 months post op Last week’s weight – 200.8 This week’s weight – 197.2 Total weight lost this week – 3.6 Beginning weight – 246 lbs Total weight loss since surgery – 48.8 lbs Recovered from my gain last week with a nice loss. I was hoping to be down 50 lbs by my 6 month mark but…oh well…that’s the way it goes. Attached is a side by side picture of my weight loss from highest to current.

Ok, chances are I'm overreacting, and if so...ok. It's Monday, I'm in the office, and no fewer than 6 people since 8:00 a.m. (it's 12:30 now) have walked down the hall and each one has made a point to either say "hi" or stop and talk to the girl across the hall. Now, mind you, I'm not a wall flower....I'd say I'm pretty outgoing in this office, and I have worked here 13 years. I'm the "go to" when people need things. She's quiet, reserved and an engineer who isn't all that outgoing. The other difference between us is I've been overweight my entire life, so those who have worked with me have only known me as overweight (and in my opinion have a bias against that and feel uncomfortable.....so sorry), I'm 5'7, red hair, fair complexion and 254 lbs. She is 5'6, blonde hair, fair complexion and probably 130. So the question is, why do they make the effort to say hi to her, and can't be bothered to turn and say hi to me as well? Why is it I only exist and am noticable when it comes to what they need and when they need it? Well.....times, they are a changin.....and there's a reconin' coming! After I'm sleeved, and the weight starts falling off.....you can BET I won't be interested in their attention. I've known all my life who my "real" friends are and who those are that are only there for the fair weather. I won't suffer fake people. Not worthy of my time or trouble. It's amazing to me how easily it is for others to be so rude and judgmental against those overweight. I've even noticed that it's actually socially acceptable for talking heads and comedians to poke fun at overweight politicians! How DARE they? Isn't it said that you can't judge a man (or woman) until you've walked a mile in their shoes? Sometimes, I just wish the world would grow up and try to consider those around them and pre-think they're actions. Kicking the soapbox back into the corner.

Obesity is the last of the 'politically correct' prejudices. It's so true. The sad thing about having a food problem is that everyone can see your problem. Almost all other human 'problems' can be hidden from the general population, drug abuse, sex addicts, alcoholics, racists whatever...but obesity is obvious to others what your problem is and so everyone feels it is ok to comment on it or feel superior to those who struggle. Here's what I never understood...why are you superior if you are an alcoholic or a smoker or a drug abuser? No one ever has to smoke, drink alcohol or do drugs but we all HAVE to eat. Its easier to give up something completely than to 'limit' it. I have been obese all my adult life. It has held me back in soooo many ways. I hope losing this excess weight will help me to 'dare' to do some of those things I should have done a long time ago. Here's to new horizons!

After 4 days on a clear liquid diet and then 9 1/2 days on a full liquid diet (mush diet) I ate a slice of cheese today and it was YUMMY!!! Pain was much better today hardly any at all and no pain meds so far today.. Yeaaaaaaaaaa me!!

100 days out. I stepped on the scale this morning and was 258. 38 pounds from my goal. I have lost a total of 92 pounds since my surgery (112 since pre nutrition plan) . I am done to a size 40 inch waist 16 1/2 inch neck. XL shirt. Its crazy to look at pictures of me at 300 pounds and see how fat I was. I like the attention that I am getting and I really am glad I decided to go thru with this. I hope people who are newbies don't think this is just a quick fix. It takes discipline to exercise and to know when to stop. I am turning 28 in a month and a half. I am gonna be super hot. Love y'all

Today marks 7 weeks since I had my surgery. I did not weigh today because I have an appointment on Wednesday and will wait until then. I am still feeling great and have no complications to report. The first thing I want to make note of is post-exercise restriction. I have noticed that after exercise, it seems as if the sleeve constricts, as it is hard to even get a decent amount a water down within the 45 minutes (or so) following exercise. My concern is that water is so important before, during and after exercise and this issue temporarily hinders my ability to get in fluids when I need it most. I've noticed this over the past two weeks so I decided to wait until Wednesday to speak with my surgeon about it. In the meantime, the workaround that I use is to consume a sugar free Popsicle after working out simply for the sake of getting in some form of hydration until I can really drink water like I need to. I do not know why this happens to me but I can only guess that the muscle contractions that take place during and after exercise contribute to it. I do not do concentrated abdominal work but I do do work that use core muscles. I'll use that to segue into my next topic. I do not have a gym membership. I'm a very busy person and I hate traffic so at the end of the work day, I know that I will not go. I also refuse to wake up before the sun shines through my windows to work out so the gym is not an option for me. What has helped me more than anything is body weight exercises (squats, lunges, push-ups, etc), running and HIIT training. I also like using DVD's. For those of you who are like me (gym-avoidant), I thought I'd give a list of the DVD's I am currently using and that I like. They are: Lean Hot Body (Patrick Goudeau)- about an hour long and combines cardio and strength Peak 10 Cardio Strength (Michelle Dozois)- similar to Lean Hot Body but has levels that build into higher intensities Peak 10 Cardio Interval Burn (Michelle Dozois)- pure cardio Cross Fire (Cathe Friedrich)- HIIT that also uses weights Chiseled (Toby Massenburg)- strength training combined with high intensity cardio that involves a step bench I don't do these everyday. I like to mix it up, lest I get bored. However, I would highly recommend these videos because they are straightforward and non-cheesy. The next development is my use of almond milk. Let me just say that the transition to skim milk was very hard for me. I just don't believe in see-through milk. Further, the carb count of skim milk is not something that I am willing to acquiesce to at this point. This weekend, I started to miss my cappuccino so I had to try to come up with something that would do. At Whole Foods, I found some espresso and as I perused the diary section and could not find the low-carb milk I was used to so I took a chance and picked up some almond milk. I purchased the unsweetened vanilla variety that only has 40 calories for 8oz. and 2 grams of carbohydrates. Both of these figures have skim milk beat. I made a cappuccino with this milk and I must say, it was quite satisfactory. Almond milk smells wonderful and it's not see-through either. If you are lactose intolerant, this may be a viable option for you. I also used this milk when I made myself a hot chocolate using Ghirardelli's unsweetened cocoa powder (15 calories and 3 grams of carbs per serving). I know we are always told not to drink calories but the 55 calories in that cup of hot chocolate was so worth it. For the potato chip lovers, I also discovered that Whole Foods sells "chips" made only out of parmesan cheese. They come in 1 serving containers in the hot soup area. They are crispy like chips but only made out of parmesan cheese (I guess they bake them because they aren't oily). They are delicious and I ate them with my soup. Although they are only 1oz. servings, it took me a couple of days to eat them all. Anyway, that's all for now. Happy losing!

Sometimes things do just happen...no fault of anyone. I'm sorry this has happened to you and I hope your leak heals quickly. I'll be thinking of you and hoping things improve very soon.