hugsamber

I have been off this site for almost a year! This challege is a perfect way to get back into things! I want to get down to 155 by Jan 1st. Current weight: 170 Jan 1st goal weight: 155

I had surgery when I was 28. I have lost about 120 pounds since I began, preop and after surgery. I lost all of that within about 9 months. I have some jiggly skin on my belly and upper thighs. A tiny bit on my upper arms. I have not worked out regularly and I am sure that my tummy would tone up some alond with my arms. Overall though my body looks pretty good for losing 120 pounds! I would say though if you are concerned, do toning exercises. I was jogging for awhile and could see a difference but then I "fell off" the wagon and need to get back on! Oh and I slathered cocoa butter all over myself for the first 6 months, don't know if it helped but I smelled yummy and my skin was always soft!

I completly understand where you are coming from. We get complacent after so long and the bad habits creep back in. You just have to refocus and go back to the basics, as sucky as it is! I use myfitnesspal.com and that helps me track what I am eating. Its amazing how much I was snacking; but keeping track helped me realize it. I have also done the 5 day pouch test and that helped me with my carb craving...well a little! I love my carbs, everything in moderation. Personally snacking is the worst! Good luck and don't feel alone. This happens to a lot of people!

Hello all! It has been about a year since I have checked in on this site. I will be 2 years out in december. I still would like to lose another 30 pounds. The lowest I have gotten so far was 165. I currently flucuate between 165 and 170. I have totally gotten off track! Bad! I snack, eat carbs, drink alcohol, eat sweets. All of the things I shouldn't do! I really need to get focused again! It is so hard though. I guess the first thing was just logging on, finding this thread and reading what everyone else has been dealing with. I am comitted to starting again and being healthy. I have planned my meas out for tomorrow and my boyfriend and I have an appointment for a kickboxing class! Meals: Breakfast: coffee (need the caffeine but will be working working on having less), babybell cheese and a hardboiled egg. Lunch: Vegetarian chili 1/2 cup and babybell cheese Dinner: 1/2 baked potato and 1/2 cup of veggie chili Its a start. I know its not exactly what I should be eating but I need to start somewhere! Please help me stay on track! I can do this!

A year ago today I weighed 291 pounds. I had always wanted to run a half marathon but never thought that I actually would. Yesterday, I completed the Women's Nike half marathon in San Francisco. 13.1 miles. It was amazing. The hills were intese and the views of golden gate bridge and the city and ocean were beautiful. I finished in 3 hours and 18 mins. Not bad for someone who really didn't train or prepare. There was over 20,000 participants, mostly women and it was so inspiring. I am super sore today but so thankful that I was even able to do it. It was so awesome!

Thanks everyone! I had always wanted to run a full marathon but after the half I am not sure if I could handle the full! For now I want to keep doing some more half marathons and just keep improving on my time!

All is well with me. I am losing slowly, but still losing at least! I am at 161 as of this morning. 16 pounds until goal. Though I will be super excited to get into the 150s! My hair is still falling out. Though not as much. It also could be because I just highlighted it as well. I still get tired often. I could nap daily. Anyone else? I am almost 9 months out. Time has sure flown by.

I only had a few copays and then paid for meds. I didn't have a hospital fee or anything. Plus, because I live in sacramento and surgery was in richmond, I got reiumbursed for mileage and tolls. I would say I spent less than 100 for the whole thing then I got back 180. I have insuance through the state of ca.

My starting weight was 291. I had my last splurge at lunch on the way home from orientation. I didn't exercise but I followed the preop plan the first few weeks religiously. I thought that it was going to be hard to follow the preop plan but it worked for me. I never felt hungry or deprived. After two weeks on the plan I could tell that even if I strayed and ate mexican food or something that I ate half of what I did previously before the preop plan. I think that when you start out heavier, its easier to lose weight faster. Also, I was nervous about going through with the surgery so I didn't want to wait, I wanted to be done with the preop and surgery as quick as possible. So far everything is great. I have my moments but I would do it again in a heartbeat. I started at a size 24 pants and 3x shirts...I am wearing size 10 jeans and large tops. This morning I weighed 262. I would like to get to 145 but would also be fine to stay where I am at. Its a journey but worth it!

I was sleeved by Dr. Baggs on dec 13th 2010. Everything went super fast. I had my orientation in september, met with surgeon two weeks after that. Was told to lose 20 pounds. By the time I met with the psych 3 weeks after that I had already lost almost 20 pounds. Then I had appointments two weeks apart for evrything else. The process can go super fast if you meet your goal weight. Good luck!

Well well well. It has been awhile since I have blogged. I am just trying to live life. I have lost 124 pounds (including mypre-op weight that I lost). I have another 25 pounds to go. That would put me about 145ish. Right now I am 167. I wear a size 10 and most of the time a large top. My skin is starting to sag a bit in the belly and in the upper thighs. of course my boobs are shot. They just hang there. It is still a challenge everyday to follow the program. I am bad. I eat carbs, I eat dessert. But then I also am eating small amounts. I have tried to do without carbs. My body just doesn't like it. Got to keep my body happy, you know??? I am still losing hair. Though I only wash it every 2 or 3 days. If I washed it everyday I would be afraid that I would become bald! I want to go blonde but I would like my hair to stop falling out first! I still get tired and like to take naps. Though I think that it is just me, I have always liked to nap. Oh, and I bought a bikini!!!!! I am so scattered with my thoughts right now! But I was trying to work on my tan and so I bought a bikini...I don't look great in it, but then I don't look horrible either. I look almost normal! I have been losing super slow the last couple of months. But I am kind of happy with that. I lost so much so quickly that I think my body needs some time to adjust. I am hoping that by my 1 year surgiversary, that I will be at or below my goal weight. That would be super exciting! Well just wanted to give a quick update. All is well!

I have eaten watermelon a few times since surgery. It always makes me feel bloated and too full after one bite. Other melons I have not had a problem with.

I have lost 124 pounds so far, with about 20 more to lose. My arms have shrunk a bit. I am no longer embarassed to wear short sleeves or even sleeveless tops. I can see a bit of wrinkly skin near the armpit. I am sure that they will get a little worse with the more weight I lose. I think that doing arm weights really help.

My boyfriend and I met when I was 170 pounds. He was 230. We both gained weight as the years went on. My heaviest was 291 and his is 265. I now weigh what I weighed when we first met almost 6 years ago. He loved me at all my sizes. Just as I still love him at his heaviest. I think he is more self consious now that I have lost weight, but I reassure him and am plenty affectionate. If anything I support him when he wants to work out but never push him. I just want him to be happy and healthy and he wants the same for me. I am still attracted to him if not more than when we first met!

I am 7 months out and have lost a total of 120 pounds. I noticed that I have a red line that starts at the middle of my back and goes along my spine to the top of my butt. Does anyone else have this? I'm wondering if it is an odd stretch mark or like a skin fold from all of the lost weight. Thanks for the input!

I have had a few sips of champagne. Someone told me to stir it or just stick your finger in it to help get rid of the bubbles. I didn't have any problem but then I only took about two sips. I have tried soda with carbonation and thought I was going to die from all of the air that was trapped. So just be careful. It only took me once to say no soda!

At McDonalds I have ordered a 4 piece chicken mcnugget happy meal. I of course can't eat it all. At taco bell I have ordered the side of pintos and cheese. At wendys I have ordered a turkey sandwich to which I have eaten a piece of the turkey and then my boyfriend got the rest. Eating out at fast food restaurants is okay but I don't like spending the money for what I can eat. Its a once in awhile thing. Like maybe once a month. Btw I am 7 months out.

She was in pain for about a week and she normally does really well with pain. She still does not wear sleeveless shirts because of scarring. But she doesn't wear 3/4 either. She just wears tshirts. My arms have shrunk quite a bit already and I have really been working out. I would make sure to try and talk to mutiple people about the pros and cons of getting it done. But also make sure to wait about 2 years to see how much your skin may bounce back. You can see some before and after photos on here that show some women who had really large arms before they lost weight and what they look like now.

Ugh, I vomitted a lot during the first 3 months! Nothing wanted to stay down and evrything irriated my new tummy. I am almost 7 months out and vomit on rare occasion. Usually it is just something that doesn't sit well. Not from eating too much. I can't eat deli turkey, it makes me sick! I got really lightheaded to the point where I was close to passing out. My doc said that is common and to make sure I got up slower. I still get lightheaded but it passes much more quickly now. I'm glad to see everyone doing well. I havet been losing much in the last month or so. Guess I better step up my game!

I just asked about this at my 6 month check up. I never salted anything prior to surgery and now I am like a salt addict. The nut said that it is common for taste buds to change and that may be why I am wanting salt. She also said that people always assume when they crave salt that it means there is a deficiency. She says that is not true. She was worried about how salt can increase your blood pressure? I think that it was. But as long as my labs are good and I am not having any issues then she is not worried about it. Curious to know what others hear regarding salt though.

You follow the binder pre op program until surgery. The night before surgery they will give you instructions on what time to have you last meal by and all of that. I would have had a very hard time with a liquid diet but the kaiser pre op was good for me. I lost 36 pounds on it, never felt hungry and it helped with my carb cravings. Good luck!

Just had my 6 month post op check up in richmond. I am down a total of 119 pounds! That of course include what I lost preop! My labs were all good as well! I bought and fit nicely into my first size 10 jeans! I am now considered overweight! Yay me! I still have about 28 pounds to go in order to get into the normal bmi category. I am pretty happy with how I look right now, can't wait though to get down to normal. I am taking these next 20 plus pounds in 5 pound increment goals. The weight loss has slowed down and I know the last few pounds are going to come off slowly. I am so happy that I decided to get sleeved! The first 3 months were very dificult, but now, I am feeling almost normal! And I love it!

I had surgery at richmond kaiser on dec 13th. I did the preop diet for almost 3 months and lost 36 pounds before surgery. I always felt satisfied and never deprived.

My mom had surgery on her upper arms. She has some big scarring from it, though she gets thick scars whenever she has a surgery. I would estimate that her scar is about 1 inch thick going from armpit to elbow. She is not thrilled about the results. Though I think her surgeon could have done a better job! Her recovery was painful. I am hoping my arms will bounce back some. I had similar arms to my mom before she had surgery. Mine have gotten smaller from losing weight but I think they will tighten up enough for me to be happy. Whatever you do...make sue you research research research!

Are you going to the 6 month class? I will be there. I'm from Sacramento as well.