Butterthebean

Chemical imbalance may indeed be part of it, but self confidence that comes with improved self esteem also plays a big role in how others react to us. Plus you are probably radiating some kind of "king of the jungle" pheromone now that make women's knees quiver.

I wish it worked for the mobile app but I don't think it does. I've got 1 or 2 on my list and I can see all their posts on my iPad.

I have had one unexpected consequence that I never saw coming and that I have rarely read about here on VST.com. My wife is just a few pounds overweight, and like most people she'd like to lose 20 pounds. When I had surgery she committed herself to eating healthier and working out more...and she has done very well. Only problem is, like many of us here, she couldn't lose even a pound despite dropping calories and adding lots of exercise. I know the reasons why this happens but she had a hard time accepting that fact, and she grew increasingly frustrated. Meanwhile I'm celebrating every other day as my weight drops and people are complimenting me all the time, and I'm getting too small for my clothes left and right. One day I mentioned my shorts being too baggy and she flipped her wig. All her frustrations just came flying out. We settled it and got back to a good place....and since then she has started to see the positive results of her efforts....but after that I was more careful about celebrating in front of her. I didn't want to continue to make her feel bad about her own struggles.

Get your ass off the couch and get to stepping.

Hey all. Ran my second half marathon yesterday in Irving, TX. The Wounded Warrior half marathon. It went well, not my best day but not bad. About 15 minutes before the scheduled start we got hit with a severe thunderstorm. They delayed the start an hour while we got almost 2 inches of rain. We finally started under light rains about 8am. The majority of the run took place on the Campion Trail which is a very nice MUP hat goes on for quite a few miles. But parts of it were underwater. Several times we had to wade through shin deep Water for 100-200 feet at a time. There was no running through that, you basically had to walk. I also got hit with severe GI distress about mile 10. Luckily there were porta cans every mile. But it took a toll on me andi still haven't quite recovered. I blame my pre run carb loading. I still haven't gotten it figured out yet. Since the surgery, these carbs really don't agree with me, especially not in large quantities. I'll figure it out eventually I hope. I did eat a few energy squares during the run but because my stomach was feeling so bad I was sick of them by the end of the run. They did have pancakes and orange wedges at the end of the run. Quite an odd combination. The oranges were good but the pancakes were not appealing to me by then. All in all a great run for a great cause. My hat's off to the many soldiers who ran in full combat gear including packs and gas masks. Those guys are hardcore.

Btw....ran a half marathon yesterday in Irving, TX. Thanks to C25K. Never would have gotten this far without it.

This post seems so petty. Why do you feel the need to be so glib about the positive experiences people have had with their Mexico based surgeons? WLS provides the perfect recipe for medical tourism thanks to insurance companies being so unwilling to get on board and pay for it. I'm sure there are some quack doctors down there but obviously some very good ones have set up shop across the border and designed an entire operation targeted at U.S. clientele. I see nothing wrong with that. They provide a service that is affordable to the average person but they must overcome the huge hurdle of fear that most Americans have of going to Mexico for surgery. It's clear that most of their American patients take a huge leap of faith in going there. And when they see how well it works out, they come here to tell their story so as to assure others it's not as scary as most of us believe. Without those Mexico based surgeons, many overweight people would not be able to have WLS and would continue to suffer with their obesity.

Oh...and half size too big isn't a bad thing in running shoes. Prevents dead toe nails.

Just my opinion here.....but if shoes do not cause knee pain (which they don't) then wearing orthotics is not the answer. You had the right idea the first time....strength and conditioning and correct your form. On the strength and conditioning....think glutes and hamstrings because those are the muscles that tend to be weakest and/or not firing as they should. As for your form, have someone video tape you. You're right, we feel like a graceful swan....reality can be much different. The chi running book is great. I have a couple of the chi running DVDs if you want to borrow them.

It will get easier. It only gets better if you take joy in the accomplishment of being able to run. If not you may never love it....but it will get easier every week. Give it a month and then compare your feelings then to now. You might be surprised.

At 400 pounds I found the elliptical very forgiving on my body. I never got a chance to do any swimming but you'd be hard pressed to find a better exercise.

I would definitely use any type of foam roller available to help with this type of pain, but depending on the specifics I might wait a day or 2 for the inflammation to stop. Actual trigger point therapy is much different than using any roller, but both are very beneficial.

Man that's a bummer. Do you know any trigger point therapists or have any near you? I have one that I see whenever I get acute pain of any sort. She is like a miracle worker. I have hobbled into her office barely able to walk or stand up straight or lift my arm...whatever the case may be. And I walk out 30 minutes later like nothing was ever wrong. It's a form of myofascial release....sort of. Very effective and eliminates this sort of pain very quickly.

I think it's also from women complaining about men posting in the women's forum. Not everyone complains.... I think it was a small but vocal minority.

If you were a hot chick I'd send you one. I had it made at cafepress.com They custom make t shirts and they do single shirts.

Did someone say tire flipping?