M2G

Darn...Iwasthisclose!!! Shoot, I almost said 29 but then went with 28...haha! Anyway, my personal opinion is that fat ages us. No matter what we look like the fat somehow distorts us and makes us older than what we are. I've seen it so many times here with before/after photos where the "after" photo shaves at least 10 years off a person. It's exciting to see! Hopefully you will get a chance to turn back that clock and people will be thinking you are 19!

Ms. S - GREAT job fasting without planning it...yay for you. Sorry about the Headache though hopefully that went away! FYE - OMG you look amazing. YES red is YOUR color for sure!!! LV - ugh don't you hate it when your kids eat crap in front of you? I have fallen into the Lucky Charms trap many many a time (I still will measure it out and log it but dam*it, why do I need to eat those evil little devil marshmallows? GAH!) Chimera - yay! you are hanging tough girl, and wtg on the ticker change! So I fasted yesterday because today was (drumroll please) a DOUBLE WORKOUT day. I started my new class called "Women and Weights" and I have to say I'm not sure exactly what I expected, but it wasn't what I got. However, the ladies were all very nice, and the instructor DID ask me what I wanted out of the class, and I said I really want to work on my form. If I take the time to put on workout clothing, pull up my hair (not to mention get my hair all sweaty) and drive to the gym, GOSH DARN IT I want to MAKE IT COUNT. So if my form is off, then I want to know. She did give me a high compliment by saying I looked really good, and she only had to correct me one time. Then straight from my WAW class I went and did an hour of spin. Boy howdy am I ready for 1. a shower 2. a nap and 3. lunch (which I already had while cruising the forum.) Anyway, I'm glad I'm not fasting today. I went to go and log everything food wise and exercise wise and so far today I've eaten 596 calories and BURNED 1,038...so as long as I'm around 1,200 today I will be happy.

Okay, *just* added up everything and I did it!!!! Today's total is: (drumroll) 104.87 miles Woo hoo! They are mostly from spin class but some are from running and some are from walking (oh and I did add in some from just an exercise bike when I was waiting for my fusion class to start, I killed 10 mins on the exercise bike right outside the door, figured I could stand around and "chat" or I could move my legs. ) Definitely a good feeling of accomplishment. I'm going to still keep track and see where I end up by the end of Sept. Thanks all for the support and thanks Butter for getting us started and keeping us encouraged.

Yes, a "tucked in" shirt ooooh, and a BELT! Big dreams, lol. I still wear my shirts on the longer side...not sure why...probably a carryover from the days of old, but I hate it when a shirt is too "short" on me (I'm 5'6" so just before the "tall" section starts at about 5'7" usually) Anyway, I am still uncomfortable with the tucked in and belt look. LOL...maybe someday... And agree with LV===>great new profile pic!

Wow, 191 lbs GONE! Congratulations!

Funny guess! Nothing like being "exact"!

28??

Looking great GG! Funny, I have a good sleever friend of mine and her ultimate favorite outfit is a pair of jeans and T...now that she has lost over 100+lbs she is so happy because she can wear her favorite type of outfit without any worries.

Okay, here are some of my blood draw results (I can't post them all, it's 4 pages long...lol) these are the ones I'm most familiar with: Test_____Mine #_____Normal Range <===sorry these columns are coming out crappy...I will use something to sort them... WBC 3.9_____3.4-10.8 RBC 4.25_____3.77-5.28 Hemoglobin 12.4 _____11.1-15.9 Hematocrit 36.6 _____34.0-46.6 Glucose, Serum 89_____65-99 BUN 10_____6-24 Creatine, Serum 0.67_____0.57-1.00 Potassium, Serum 3.8 _____3.5-5.2 Chloride, Serum 104_____ 97-108 Calcium, Serum 8.8_____8.7-10.2 Protein, Total 6.7 _____6.0-8.5 Cholesterol Total 141_____100-199 Triglycerides 58 _____0-149 HDL Cholesterol 54 _____>39 LDL Cholesterol 75_____0-99 VLDL Cholesterol 12_____5-40 Iron Bind.Cap (TIBC) 338_____250-450 UIBC 264_____150-375 Iron, Serum 74_____35-155 Iron Saturation 22%_____15-55% B12 1333_____211-946 <===I quit taking supplements in July ..I was only taking them 3x a week anyway) Folate (folic acid) 19.9_____>3.0 HA1c 5.4_____4.8-5.6 Vitamin D 45.9_____30-100 Ferritin, Serum 11_____15-150 <===only area dr. was concerned w/but stated I was NOT anemic, just to eat more "iron rich" foods.... Notes from the bottom of my 4 page document: "Labs perfect, though iron stores are somewhat low (does functionally have plenty of iron.) So I guess that is all good news. Maybe when I have some time I will look up some of the other things listed and find out what they mean. LOL. These are basically the ones I *know* and care about. Yay for the sleeve and yay for 5:2 and triple yay for "perfect" labs!

YAY welcome Chimera!

Hello ladies! Fasting today, although most of my "morning" calories were from my fat-free creamer. 3 cups of coffee is quite unusual for me! Coops, that is a GREAT story, love it. And I love what your husband said to you. HAHA! Why can't we see it ourselves? FYE that is awesome...can you link us to the program so we can see it too? Finally got my blood results...will post over in the subject I started here on the 5:2 board...

Well I think we all get to this "mental place" at some point along the journey. Because in the beginning, there is the fact that you don't fit into regular size clothing, or a booth, or your knees hurt or you can't tie your shoes or you don't fit on an amusement park ride or you get winded climbing up a flight of stairs ...and while that doesn't *always* motivate people to lose weight, when it does, man that fire is intense. And once you've decided on WLS, that fire burns even brighter, because there is HOPE. Then you lose a hunk of weight, and you are eating right, and drinking Water, and measuring your food and counting your calories, or your Protein and every morning you wake up and it's a new day to jump on the scale and see "how much did we lose today?" And exercise. Wow the more you do it (for me anyway) the more you want to do it, but falling off the exercise wagon is easy. It's much easier to loaf around on the couch checking FB than it is to lace up those tennis shoes and get on the treadmill or get to the gym. So basically, I totally understand exactly where you are, because I've been there. We all have those "I don't wanna" moments or days or weeks and hopefully they don't turn into months. Because when those moments collect and gang up on us, that is when we throw in the towel and go "meh, I'm good enough right here"... And like Georgia said, it's never to late to get up, get out, and DO WHAT YOU KNOW YOU NEED TO DO. So you've had your "break" and now it's time to buckle down and refocus. I think we all *know* going into this that this is a LIFELONG STRUGGLE, but then sometimes we forget that and we think there is a finish line, when in reality, there is NEVER a finish line. We have to wake up each day and do the things we need to do to live the life we want to live. Hope that makes sense...

Well, my husband and I are both sleeved, so I'm not sure how things would have gone if we both were not on this journey together. I think we would have been fine if either of us was sleeved and the other wasn't but hard to say. Although I went first (about 5 months before my hubby) he was supportive from the beginning until now. What I always hear in regards to how WLS affects relationships is this: If you are on rocky ground to begin with, WLS won't make things any better. If you are in a good solid relationship to start, then WLS only makes things better. That seems to be true for us. Everyone is different!

Wow, just incredible! CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Great story, I love it!

Thanks for sharing that, it looks good. I'm going to spend some time reading there, seems like really good stuff!

Great job! Love the photo the medal, everything. I'm starting a new weight-lifting class next week ...2x a week 1 hour each session, called "women and weights" and my plan is to go directly from WAW (from 10am-11am) to spin (11am-12noon) Anyway, that is the plan but we shall see, my cardio might suffer by me doing more weights (noooooooo! ==clings to cardio==) Anyway, great job BTB for not only reaching your goal but obviously you are going to surpass it. YAY!

Love this but it IS (for me anyway) hard to find. I had to have my grocery story special order it (pretty easy to buy online tho...) Anyway it is like adding a bit of squeezed lime to your Water. NO SWEET at all. If you buy the shaker jar (they sell packets too the size of a sugar or Splenda packet) it's too strong IMO. But a little shake of this in my water makes me so happy!

There seems to be a lot of that "must get to xxx___number on the scale" going around! I have to put myself back when I was earlier out and (even still to some degree today) to understand that mindset, but I think it's okay to be higher than your "goal". And pre-op I would also read that most WLS patients lose, get to a certain number then "bounce" back up (usually about 10-20lbs) and that is where they maintain. My pre-op little brain was like "oh that's not gonna be me" ha ha ha. I have to agree with Georgia though (as per usual) and while I am currently fighting off my regain (-11lbs of my +20lb regain is GONE woo hoo!) and I will continue to fight my regain, I think we all need to cut ourselves some slack in the whole "I must get to a certain number, I must be perfect, I must have a >25 BMI," type talk. Pull out some old photos. Go back in time and remember dreaming of being post-op and being HEALTHIER? I would have given my left arm (okay maybe a pinkie finger) to weigh what I do right now back in the day....I would have been SO JEALOUS of myself right now. But somehow we get "here" and then it's not good enough. WE need to remember how far we have come, and in the grand scheme of things, how much of a difference is 10, 20 more lbs going to make in your life. Celebrate your success, keep your eye on the goal (not telling you to not achieve your weight goal) but keep a positive attitude.

Awwww, just *saw* it over in SStories also...then over here and yep I looked at your beautiful dress twice. You will make a beautiful bride and what a great wedding present to yourself = being healthy!!!

Beautiful Heyher!!! You look wonderful and I'm so happy for you. Thanks for sharing...

Well welcome back and thank you for letting us know that we inspired you to come back AND get back on the losing track. It's hard chiz, no lie, but the best thing about the sleeve is that it has no expiration date! Congrats on maintaining your loss, that is to be commended and also for talking to your hubby and getting him on board. Looking forward to seeing more posts from you!

JerseyGirl hit every nail right on the head! First of all I love that you are supporting him and this forum can be a valuable resource to you both. This IS a frustrating time, and it's hard because we have to eat every day. We can't just "go without" unlike other addictions. With that being said, there will be a lot of changes that he will need to make especially during the losing phase when he is actively trying to lose weight. The high Protein, low carb is recommended by most surgeons for maximum weight loss. I would say that he will eventually be able to eat almost anything in moderation. Portion sizes will change vastly and that will be for life! He is about the same height/weight of my husband (who was sleeved 2.5 years ago) and he is currently in the 210-214 range and maintains his weight quite easily. He also can manage to eat more than I can and NOT gain weight. Pffftt men! If he is ready to do this surgery, and you are ready to support him, I think he can have some great results, BUT he needs to WANT this. And even though we all go through frustration (as all the ^^above^^ posters mentioned...anger, grief, etc.) it comes down to this being an individual journey, and everyone is different. He needs to want this for himself, and there is no sense in blaming anyone else for his current body or state of mind. We also have 2 pre-teen daughters who I worry constantly about their eating habits, body image, etc. They are both very healthy and yes we did make some changes in our family. We did NOT make the changes overnight and they are pretty simple changes. My kids know if they want something like Cheezits, they need to take out one of the tons of mini-bowls that we have, and pour themselves a small amount. No mindless hand-reaching into the box for more, more, more. We do mostly low carb but don't deprive the kids 100% from carbs/sweets. Trust me there are days that I want to eat some of the crap that my kids want, but I cannot expect them to eat like they have been sleeved and I know some people will say that if it is "there" (ie in their house, then they will eat it) and yes it does take a lot of effort to avoid eating crap it's up to us to say "no" that is not going to help my weight loss efforts. We also try to encourage exercise, etc. While the journey is individual, you, and your family will probably need to make some accommodations to help your husband reach his goals. Especially in the first couple of months post-op is when most of the biggest changes and challenges take place. I wish you all nothing but the best of luck!

LOL!!! That is so funny (and true for me also!) Flattering angle - CHECK! Good lighting - CHECK! 21 years old - UH OH, EPIC FAIL! (And for anyone who is curious my profile pic was taken on Aug. 8, 2013)

Okay the weight STUCK...been this new low weight officially since Tues. so I'm going to call it good!