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I have not loss not ONE pound since the last time I was here :ph34r: Last week I actually GAINED A POUND How?!? I don't even know lol!! Yet, I look slimmer....how weird is that?! Now in the past, I would've gone off track and use this stall as an excuse to eat my face off. Thanks to my sleeve( praise the Lord), I am able to stay in the game and not over do it!!! STAY STRONG FRIENDS :wub:

Consume Adequate Protein (Minimum: Women 80 to 100 grams / Men 100 to 120 grams) Eat and Don’t Drink your calories (Except Protein Shakes) Stay Hydrated (Minimum of 64 oz of Water) Cut out Sugar, Sweet N’ Low, Aspartame, and Splenda (Stevia is good or Eat Your Fruit and Veggies Consume Small Amounts of Good Fats Frequently Choose the Right Carbohydrates and Always Eat them Last (Protein then Veggies then Good Carbs if you aren’t 80% Full) Eat 3 Small High Protein Meals and 2 High Protein Snacks Daily (2 to 4 oz. per meal every 3 to 4 hours) Eat Slowly, Chew Food Thoroughly and Stop Eating at 80% Full Take all your Required Bariatric Advantage Vitamins/Minerals Daily Bariatric Advantage Multivitamin (Either 3 Capsules twice daily or 2 Chewable per day) Bariatric Advantage Calcium Citrates Chewy Bites (1000 mg per day – Take 2 hours before or after any iron containing supplements. Can be divided into 500 mg doses) Bariatric Advantage Iron (Females 29 mg, Males 18 mg – take 2 hours before or after calcium supplements. Bariatric Advantage Sublingual B12 (Dissolve 1 tablet under the tongue daily) OR have Bariatric Dr write a prescription that you take once a week. Bariatric Advantage Vitamin D3 – 5000 units (Take 1 capsule daily) SPECIAL NOTE: They highly suggest Bariatric Advantage because they not only meet the requirements, but are one of the few companies to test that the product work correctly in your body). He also suggested that I take Krill Oil 1000 mg a day and Juice Plus if I can afford it. 1. Bariatric Advantage Vitamins/Minerals & Meal Replacements, KetogenX protein supplements (bars and crisps) and Nectar Protein Powder 2. Quest Protein Bars available at www.questnutrition.com/bariatricrd 3. Juice Plus® available at http://www.kylefjuiceplus.com/ 4. Vital Choice Krill Oil available at www.vitalchoice.com 5. Just Like Sugar™ (healthy sugar substitute) available at http://www.justlikesugarinc.com/

I was banded 6/6 and am down about 15 lbs. since( trying very hard not to weigh-in daily) I have been feeling great. I'm lucky that I have had no issues. It made my day today when a co-worker commented that I looked like I lost some weight. I carry most of my weight in my middle so my pooch is slowly melting. It just put a smile on my face on a busy Monday morning. I feel great since I gave up the diet soda. I quit cold turkey about a month go. I sleep better and feel lighter if that makes sense. I look forward to my evening walk. I'm just so happy I followed through and I hope I stay this positive & motivated in the months ahead.

I just wanted to post about my experience last week. We decided to take my 2 year old daughter to the water park that is near my house. I have never been there because I have been extremely overweight for the past 4 years of my life. I always worried about climbing and things falling out and just being totally uncomfortable. Over the past 5 months I have lost 80 pounds and boy has it made a difference. I don't think it is just the weight loss, but my strength training as well. I lift weights 4x a week at a bare minimum and I really think that it has made a world of difference. I had it planned in my head that I could only make it for 3 hours because I would be tired and I ended up staying there for 6 hours!!! I had no problem with stairs, slides, swimming, climbing, and I even carried this massive tube up the mountain! All of this really hit me when I went down the lazy river. I hopped up on the tube and laid down in it and put my daughter on my belly. I didn't even give it a second thought...I just did it. As we started flowing down the river, I noticed this very large man behind me trying to climb in the tube like I did. Well, he tried over and over and over again. He didn't make it and eventually tried to stick his body in the donut hole part of the tube, but his body was too large. It made me sad that he was struggling. He eventually gave up and just walked the tube and himself down the river until the end. It was at that point that I realized that would have been me struggling, probably feeling embarrassed. I was very appreciative of my progress. I am very proud of my 80 pound loss! I even more proud of myself that I go to the gym 6 days a week and can do 90 minutes of straight intense cardio. I used to think to myself, "why is everyone losing faster? Why are those people who don't exercise losing faster than me? or those who are older or weigh less than me losing faster?" Now, I am truly at peace with my pace of loss. The scale does not reflect the muscle I have built. The scale does not show how much strength I have gained. The scale does not measure my progress. The scale is an instrument affected by so many factors! It is affected by the slant of the floor, my sodium intake, my time of month, inflammation, water intake, water loss, female hormones. I think it is funny that I depend on an instrument that is so unreliable.

Well I have broken the seal and am now down to 297. Never to see 300 again!! Thank you everyone who motivated me and commented. It helps a lot to keep me on track. I have continued walking and am working on 3 miles 5 days a week this week. I almost had it yesterday but I got down poured on and had to get a ride home. Boo!!! I am going to attempt it again today. I am having some doubts today about having surgery. I found myself thinking I can do this w/out surgery I am doing it now. But then I remember that I will do this for a few months drop weight and then BAM fall off . This is why I need this surgery!!! I need the sleeve to get over that hump and not fall. I am guessing that a lot of people have doubts before surgery. I am 27 days away from surgery and still can't believe how fast the time is going by.

I am officially six months into this journey and I couldn't be happier. I am half way to my ultimate goal. I've had a couple of ah-ha moments lately. This past weekend I went shopping and realized that just because something fits doesn't mean I have to buy it. In the past anything that fit was an automatic purchase as there were so few things that actually fit. Now I can pick and choose! That made me so amazingly happy this weekend. I am also now fully aware of how my body drops weight - this will be a losing month and next month will not. I tend to stall with every 10 lbs now - but I am moving in the right direction and that is what is important. This picture is of me the day of surgery and then at 6 months post-op! -69 lbs!!! BIG GOALS: Get rid of the "Big O" - I want to be out of the "obese" range for BMI (about 4 more points to go on that one) Have lost more weight than I have to lose - that will be in two more pounds - but it is a day I am so looking forward to... Get rid of any and all clothing with an X after the size (it's an emotional attachment - none of them fit me any more) Do a zip-line - that's been on my list for a while - gonna knock it off this summer I'll post more when I have time to think about them. Life is simply too busy right now to think straight. Oh - one interesting thing happened last weekend. We went to a party and after my boyfriend mentioned that it seemed like I really had a good time. I told him that before my surgery I dreaded these kind of events because I felt so self conscious and worried about taking up too much space in the crowded room, and I simply got tired of standing all night. Now I have none of those thoughts/worries/issues. He was surprised to hear me say this - I guess I really did suffer in silence for years!

Having planted my own little urban garden this year, I have been enjoying natures bounty. I have spaghetti squash, yellow squash, zucchini squash, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and sweet bell peppers. So I have had lots of veggies to cook. So the following are some meals I have prepared with natures goodies: Spaghetti Squash Garlic Alfredo I cook the squash in the microwave, which takes just a little bit. I make my own garlic alfredo using garlic cloves, olive oil, 2% milk and flour. It's yummy and far less calories than the store bought kind. Sprinkle a touch of parm on top- yummy. Veggie frittata Saute zucchini, cherry tomatoes, onions, peppers add beaten egg and a dash of 2% milk - sprinkle with a touch of monteray jack cheese and it's a yummy meal that reheats wonderful. Grilled Squash Sliced squash tossed in a touch of olive oil, salt and pepper and place on a grill tray and grilled till tender enjoy or sprinkle with a touch of parm cheese. Spaghetti Squash and Veggies Cook Squash in the microwave Touch of olive oil- sauté onion, peppers, cherry tomatoes, squash- salt, pepper to taste, dash of lemon juice. Toss with squash- sprinkle with parm cheese. These are just a few things I have done in the last few weeks - it's nice to eat out of my own garden. I know it's organic, I know it's fresh, and it is soooo good!

Whew! It was truly a whirlwind weekend. Since last Thursday morning, I've crammed in 4-1/2 rounds of golf, 2 parties, 1 dinner in the city and Game 5 of the Stanley Cup playoffs. From a normal guy's perspective I would say this would be in the running for the ultimate weekend competition if there was such a thing. From a fat ass dieter's eye view, this was a weekend full of challenges and temptations. The Devil and his sinister sidekick Al C. Hall were lurking around every corner waiting to pull my into a downward spiral. But this morning I find myself sober, satiated and reinvigorated. But it was no cake walk! The Good - My eating choices for this four day fun binge were spot on! I took my Muscle Milk Light to the club and drank it over ice for breakfast. Yep, I'm slowly drinking this fake chocolate milk while watching 50 other guys load up on pancakes, omelettes, a full assortment of breakfast meats, home fries, pastry and danish and all kinds of toasted breads. Challenge, yes. But I beat the odds despite the wafting smell of crisp bacon. The lunches were more of the same. A full spread of cheeseburgers, hot dogs, brats and sausages were laid out in several different places. And let's not forget the chips, cookies and other deserts. And there was a giant trailer with free draft beer. I was in fat ass paradise and couldn't enjoy the show. I sparingly ate a chicken breast, a cup full of chicken salad and some watermelon slices. During the golf, I ate a few melted protein bars to keep my stomach from growling. At the parties and dinner downtown, I slowly feasted on small bites of salmon and sashimi, a slice of turkey and a few small shrimp, while my fellow diners were scoffing down famous Chicago steaks perfectly pink on the inside and charred to perfection on the outside. The Bad - I was expecting a cordial reunion with my old friend Al C. Hall. (That's alcohol for you new readers.) It didn't take long for old Al to show up to the party. I decided it was time to have a nip during our first round of golf. Since I was determined to stay away from beer, I had to use a little ingenuity at the half way house. Of course, I would stay away from all juices, sugary drinks and carbonated beverages. But if I started drinking straight vodka at 2 in the afternoon, I was guaranteed to be blotto by the back nine. So I invented a new cocktail. Vodka and Vitamin Water Orange. BRILLIANT! Vodka over ice and add the VW as needed. This helped me nurse the one drink while others were having several more. I was imbibing with my buddies but not falling all the way off the wagon. I had a couple more at the opening dinner party but stopped early due to my ride home. All in all, a good plan for a bad vice . The Ugly - I can honestly report to you that I won the weekend food battle. I looked the Lucifer of Lard straight in the eye and he blinked first. However, his evil counter part, The Vetis of Vodka eventually got the best of me. It started with a four hour rain delay between matches on Friday and ended with tumble down a few steps while excitedly leaving the hockey game. Since I was being chauffeured to the game and back to house afterwards, I didn't pay any attention to to the number of Geese I downed. I ended up killing the whole flock. Saturday dinner consisted of a bread stick, cottage cheese and a few bites of under cooked salmon. But I washed it down with a couple of Gibsons with devilishly delicious cocktail onions. A couple more at the game with soda and I was as pickled as the onions. The final straw was my pal's idea to have one last double before the bar closed for the last period. That's probably the one that made me miss that last step and hit the floor. I had two goals for the weekend. One of which was not to fall completely off the wagon. You may disagree, but I feel I held it in check pretty good. My other goal was to weigh the same today as I did last Thursday morning. And I do. Victory is mine. So get your scorecards out and give this one to Johnny. I am now refocused on good eating and no drinking for a few more weeks. I have another holiday weekend and another golf tournament in the next month to deal with. That means more trouble from you know who. Could a surprise visit from Al C. Hall be far behind? If he does rear his ugly head, I hope there are no stairs around. I'm off to get my first fill today from Dr. X! Talk soon! jt Reprinted from my blog. Please become a follower! We would love to have you! TheDeconstructionofJohnny.blogspot.com

I had considered the lap band before but shied away because I really wanted to have my second child close in age with my darling daughter. So I spent the past 8 months trying and found out two weeks ago I am not ovulating due to my size. GREAT!! So my options are the terrible hormones that will make a raging pain or peeing on sticks everyday and tracking things and temperature readings!!! What a nightmare and the stress from that would make it even harder... JOY! So my other option is a drastic change. I've been dieting and working out for a the past 3-4 years with little victories and even bigger loses. So now I am doing the lap band I have my first appointment in July along with my first classes. I am excited and terrified. I'm hoping to make changes in my life that will help my daughter grow up strong and proud of me and that will help me to live a longer healthier life. csal,ld;k

After 2 bites, I decided it just wasn't going to work. I started dinner prep way too hungry, testing this, tasting that, drinking something else. By the time the steak came off of the grill I had already eaten my cup, and Mistress Band told me there wasn't a steak on the planet worth what she would put me through if I ate any more. Sigh...6 months is not enough time to undo 50 years of bad eating habits.