Kathybad

Yes, I do really like it. I was nervous about being able to step back into this role having been absent from Brand management for awhile. But just a few weeks in and I'm up to my eyeballs with strategy plans, pricing, advertising, etc. It really feels good to be doing this again. However, it certainly is different being so busy all the time. I do miss being off during the day... I don't miss not having an income, but I liked being off!!! Congrats on your run. I had a 10 day absence from running that I ended last Sat, and when I ran that day it felt so good. Now that I'm kind of getting a routine down, I really feel great about it. I look forward to the run, and the accomplishment, so when I miss running, I feel like a loser!

Sugar... :drool::tt1::party::w00t: In case you missed hearing my hoot and holler of CONGRATULATIONS!!!! all the way from Canada! WTG! I'm so happy for you. Alas... my scale still alludes me! I'm still sitting at 200. Gerrrr! Maybe tomorrow. Renewed... Good for you. I bet running felt totally different without the extra flap! You have healed up so fast and so well! Now you get to kick Whosya's butt! I feel pretty good about my running this week. I've run Sat, Mon, Wed and plan to run today too. So if I can keep at it every 2nd day, I'm happy with that. I had to leave work early to pick up my sick DD, so I'm home early. Work has been great. Way busy and challenging, and good people. So it was the right door opening for me.

I've been having so many problems with this site since Sat., so hope this post works. Georgia... I don't know, it sounds sort of suspicious to me. My girlfriend had a slow leak due to her port disconnecting, and at first she'd slowly lose restriction. Then it just came completely disconnected so she had to have surgery to reconnect the port to the tubing. That was about 1 year post implant, then it happened again in year 5 or so. Does your doctor do fluroscopy? If there was a leak, that would show it. Sugar... I weighted in at exactly 200 this morning. I hate being just on the cusp. Just a little bit more! BTW, I tried to respond yesterday to you... I love your idea of rewarding our major milestone. So I mentioned it to my DH, and he agrees... So I'm planning on a pedicure when I hit 100lbs down! I ran yesterday on the treadmill for 30 min. and really enjoyed it. Plan on a short run tonight just to get rid of the day.

Mamato... YEAH!!!! Congrats! I know you really wanted this new job, so I'm really happy for you. Does this give you medical coverage? BTW, I'll certainly let you know when I figure out how to fit it all in! I tried to get up early this morning to run before work, but was way too tired. So I plan to run tonight! I'm fairly motivated right now as I'm so close to that Onderland # that I want to get there. Renewed... Ohhh new clothes. Do you even know what size you are now? It must be such a rush! Georgia... I'm usually such a late Xmas shopper, but this year I started shopping on eBay. My DS keeps mentioning gifts that are kind of hard to find, so I've found them on eBay and they are already on their way. Haven't done much else yet. Sugar... we're both 1lb away from a big goal... we can do it! Now that I had part of my fill out, my restriction is ok. Its not super tight, but tighter than it was before. I can still eat, but it catches me in time before I do any major calorie damage. Red... keep it up. Good plan to stay off the concreat when your feet hurt. although I love to run outside, I do feel it more compared to the treadmill. Hope everyone's weather is nicer than mine. We've got a blizzard happening right now with it supposed to keep blowing all week. I'll have a foot or two of snow by the weekend if the weather report is accurate. Ughh.

Welcome Red! Congrats on your progress so far! I hear ya on the favourite part. That was my feeling as well. Now, I actually enjoy the time that I'm running (or at least some of it). That didn't happen until about week 8 or 9, just before I ran my first race. Take care of your feet, and enjoy the process. Well I had a treadmill success last night. As I've mentioned, I really don't like running on the treadmill and my head usually gets in the way and I quit too soon. Last night I ran while my DS was playing video games and talked to him throughout the run (I was actually able to carry on a conversation throughout the run!!). Then I noticed that 30 min had passed and I was still running! So I did a total of 35 min, and it was almost 3 miles!!!

Sugar... like you, I started at a size 26/28 and am now a comfortable 18 in pants. I'm smaller on top, so I can wear a 16 or XL in some tops. I even can get into some XL or 16 bottoms, but those are cut larger. I carry most of my weight in my hips and legs. I have a fairly small waist compared to the rest of me, which I like. It's funny, we seem to have lots of similarities (like starting and current weight and age!), oh and I'm 5'-7". I'm not really sure what my goal weight/size is. I've never been a normal size as an adult, so don't know what to expect. I'd like to get down to a size 12 if possible or even a 10, which seems really impossible to me, but who knows. Before I started running, I didn't think below 200 was possible, but I know now that it is. Without sounding like I'm giving up, I know that at this point any further weight loss is gravy! I've already achieved the health benefits I wanted. So the rest is just bonus! Which I'll take!

Renewed... thanks for sharing. I often wondered just how difficult this surgery is. Glad you are healing up so well. Any as your cyberfriend (not mom), I'm glad you resumed your marrital relations... healthy and fun!!! LOL. Fanny... forget the bitter... some people don't know how to socialize properly. Just hang onto the sweet, and oh how sweet that must have felt. Congrats! Lyn... glad your fill went well. Sugar... Ohhhh you are so close! Glad the weight is starting to drop. We are going on a bit of a road trip today. Heading to Port Huron to do a bit of shopping and just get out of the city. Port Huron is our closest boarder city, so we often go over to the US for the afternoon for shopping. They also have this great playground that the kids love. Well now that TOM is leaving, my weight is starting to drop. I'm hoping by end of next week I'll be in Onderland.

Wow, its so great to see everyone posting! Sugar... congrats on the run... ohhh you're so close to onderland and 100 lbs! I still haven't moved mine any further, but know it will come very soon. Keep it up!!! Renewed... good for you (but don't overdo it). On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most, how would you rate your overall pain/discomfort during your healing process? Lyn... glad you had a nice trip. I missed you. I'm finding it difficult to keep the running up now that I'm working. I knew this would happen, so I shouldn't be surprised, but want to figure it out. For those who work, when do you run? Any advice?

Whosya... WTG! 10 miles is amazing! That's almost a 1/2 marathon!!! Renewed... you sound like you're healing up very well. Keep it up! Sugar... yes, my defill was successful! Thank goodness! I admit, I was fairly scared that I'd have to go to the hospital, as I was getting pretty dehydrated and had a horrible headache. But after getting 0.25 cc removed, I was able to have some soup and water (Mon) and then had soup and soft food yesterday. Today I continued with soup and added a bit of oatmeal and some crackers. All's well now. I also seem to have the right amount of restriction, so should start to notice some weight loss. I originally thought that my weight would drop with the drastic blocking, but instead it raised, which I think meant my body went into starvation protection mode. This morning my weight was back to pre-fill level, so I think I'm over it. I didn't run since Friday, as all of this was really hard on my body. Now that my headache has finally left, I'm going to run tomorrow. Leslie... congrats on running again! Mamato... how's the interviewing going?? Anyone hear from Lyn? I hope your doing well!

Hi everyone... Yeah! Relief! By the time i got up this morning I knew I was in trouble. I had thrown up everything, including water... so nothing was passing. So I decided to go back to the doctor this morning rather than go to my meetings. I called my boss to tell her I'd be late, and she was ok with it. The nurse took out .25 cc and then made me drink 4 cups of water before leaving to ensure I could. Then when I got to the meeting, it was lunch time, so I had a bowl of pumpkin soup. It all went down... first food that's stayed down since Sun at lunch. Apparently, it can take upwards of 24-36 hours for your stomach to swell after a fill, so that's why I could eat a little on Sat/Sun but nothing else after that. Now that I've gotten some liquid in, my headache is disapating! Ohh that was rough, and I must admit I was a bit scared. Sugar, my doc's rules are liquids on the day of the fill and then eat normally the next day. So I was following the rules. I was just too tight! Well... back to the meeting! Welcome to the newbies!

Luluc... thanks for the suggestion. It did help a bit at lunch today. Sugar... great NSV! I love to hear everyones NSV's. Afterall, it isn't the scale that we did this for... its the real life changes. Glad the fill is working! Whosya... thanks for popping in. Hope the training is going well! Ok, so the strange thing with my fill is that I can eat food (very small amounts) but liquid seems to back up and not pass. For example, I had chicken soup with broccoli. I ate about 1/2 cup of food, and drank some peppermint tea. It all went down, slowly, but it did pass. Dinner I had a small bowl of chili. Then I had some water, and then some tea, and it all came back up... more than an hour later... it just wouldn't pass. This is very strange. Well, I'm out of town for a few days, so will talk to you on Tues. Good luck everyone!

How does the saying go... "be careful what you wish for"... well, I wished for more restriction, and alas... I think I'm way too tight! Not sure what I should do now. I have to go to a 2-day meeting tomorrow and make a presentation, so can't go back to the doctor until at least Wed. I hope this is not a complete blockage... seems like liquid is just not going through. It is gurgling and bubbling back up, but the soup I ate yesterday went down. I also ate a cheesestring this morning, which I think has gone down, but the coffee is still there. Weird. Any advice?

Georgia & Leslie...:eek::ohmy: Ok, my attempt at a major celebration! Excellent time Georgia... you broke the 40 min mark, which is way better than you did on your pactice (and way better than I've done!!!) Leslie... LOL, when I read that I'm sorry, but I did laugh. Then groaned! When I ran my race there were marshalls helping at all possible turns... but I almost went the wrong way too. So it brought back memories! Congrats on finishing! I went and got my fill today!!!! Yeah... I'm restricted again. She put in 0.5 cc, which brings me up to 7.0 cc. The fill nurse was impressed with my progress since I was there last (April). I told her all about running. As it was a family trip, after the fill we went to the museum and then for lunch in chinatown... I had congee (Chinese rice soup). It was yummy. Now we're home and I'm making sweet potato soup. That will be good!

Georgia... You are going to have an amazing run tomorrow! Enjoy every minute... even the really hard ones, as you worked so hard to earn every one! Leslie... Good luck too in your run tomorrow! You guys are going to do great! I'll be thinking of you both all day! Renewed... You look awesome! You must be so thrilled! I;m so glad you can get back to light exercise. Sugar... congrats on the fill. I'm set to get mine tomorrow and then we can continue this process. Welcome Mominflorida... its a great program and you'll love it. Mamato... nice to hear from you! I'll say a prayer for you on the job! I know everyone here kept me in their thoughts while I was interviewing and it worked for me! I really hope you get the job! My job is going great! I love it! Just 2 weeks in and I'm making presentations, doing strategy plans and budgets, etc. No rest and no time to learn... just jumping in and doing it! I'm looking forward to my fill tomorrow. DH is going out to pick up some Sushi for us tonight as a last hurray for a few months... as I generally can't eat it for a few months after a fill. I figure Sushi is a really good "treat" to have pre-fill. Its full of protein and healthy!

I hear you sugar! I logged on and wondered if I was in the right place. Can't find anything! Grrrr! Ok... Go Sugar! Go Kathy! yippey!!! Well, after I posted last night, I decided that I was actually just making an excuse not to run by saying I was tired. So I went downstairs to the treadmill and ran! Yeah. I could only last 15 min and then walked 10 min, but I did it rather than give into the excuse. I felt much better for doing it. I think I might do the same tonight too. I've scheduled my fill for Sat. My DH pushed me to make the appt, as he's heard me complain about it and knows our schedules are a little crazy now with me back to work. I have to drive into Toronto (2hours) for the fill, so we are going to make a family daytrip out of it. Stop off in Chinatown (I'll have soup) and visit some friends. With the fill, my weightloss should restart and I can achieve that goal. Anyone hear from Luluc or our other MIA friends lately?

Georgia... WTG Girl!!!! I'm so happy for you! Now you are all set for Sat. Don't worry about the weight gain... it'll come off! Renewed... keep on sittin around and heal up so you can continue to kick whosya's butt! Sugar... sounds like we are both very close in our battle. Its totally emotional now for me! I so badly want to get to Onederland, but also to that 100lb mark, which comes close on the heals of Onederland. I'll cheer for you and you cheer for me! Leslie... congrats on getting back to running. I hope you're still going for the race on Sat with Georgia. It'll be a good motivator for you. Well, I didn't get my run in today. I rolled over when the alarm went off instead of getting up, and now I'm just pooched! I knew it was going to be hard to get in a routine for running once back to work... but I'll do it!

Fanny.... WTG! Excellent progress. I agree, the C25k is amazing. My fitness level is so much better than it has ever been, all thanks to the program and everyone here for supporting me through it! Georgia... Excellent time and speed. Good luck tomorrow on your outside run. I hope you love it as much as I do! Renewed... YOU... IMPATIENT! NEVER! NOT POSSIBLE! LOL, JK. I'm so glad you're healing so well, but also glad you are forced to take it easy. You have the rest of your life to run... right now its rest time! Ok, today I ate much better. I only binged a little on candy, but ate mostly good stuff. I didn't run today, but plan on getting up early to run before work. I want to get back on track with my eating so I can get to Onederland soon.

Hi Everyone... hope you all are faring better than me with the Halloween candy! I'll admit... I've been weak!!! I also need a fill so badly, that its not saving me as much as I'd hoped. I've also gained a bit of weight instead of losing . Its my own fault. I've not been as dedicated the last 2 weeks. My head has been on the job instead. But, I'll get back at it. I took a nice long run today in the beautiful sunny fall weather. I loved it. Went about 3.5 miles. I think that's my longest yet. Lynn... congrats on the house! Post pictures when you get them! Good luck also on the job opps. Georgia... Just a week away from your run! I know you'll do great. Oh, and when you're thinking about the cold... just remember your Canadian friend, who runs in 28 F weather... I know it can't possibly be that cold in Georgia!!! LOL. Just wear layers that come off easily that you can tie around your waist while running. Fanny... I agree with Lynn, any sex is better than walking. However, if you want to burn calories... "marathon" sex is probably better than anything! LOL... you go for it! You can always walk tomorrow. Now off to burn some calories!!!!

Oh yeah... I had to share this amazing NSV... As you know I've just started my new job. No one there knows me from before... so who they see today is the new, smaller me. I can already tell there is no overweight predjudice happening. They don't see me as overweight at all. I'm basically normal. It was surreal. Its like I have no baggage from the old me. Really a great feeling!

Hi everyone. Welcome NFaith. This is a great group, although we aren't as active on the thread these days :biggrin: Georgia... You're doing great. Do you know the route for the race? If so, try a practice run this weekend outside. That will give you a bit of confidence for the race and will let you know where the hills and hard parts are. Regardless... you are going to do great! Renewed... I'm so glad you're healing up so quickly. Must be the terrific physical shape you were in before the surgery!!! Ok, I feel like a bloated pig! 2 days of conference/meetings which included gourmet meals, lots of alcohol and social time, and lots of sitting in meetings. My butt is really sore! Great meeting though, and I'm glad I went. I also know I definately need a fill. I really need to run today, but I'm way too tired. So I'm going to run in the morning before work. Tomorrow is Halloween. I love it. The kids are so excited to go trick or treating. I have to go out soon and get stuff to make treats for school for my DD. I'm also getting some sushi for DH and I to have later tonight after the kids are in bed. We like to have it while watching our TV shows (in the bedroom, kind of romantic!). This was the first trip away in awhile... so I was missed if you know what I mean!!!

Georgia... hope you get your rest tonight! I hate it when my son has nightmares... he gets so scared and there's nothing I can do to take it away! Renewed... sounds like you are doing amazingly well. It must feel weird having an incision all the way around. Do you move frequently just to find a comfortable position? I had a nice day at work today. Still meeting so many people. Tomorrow I head out of town for 2 days, so I won't be online for awhile. I'm going to run on the treadmill tonight, and then have a rest tomorrow. I won't have time to run while I'm away. It's snowing out tonight... supposed to snow 15cm (about 6 inches)... unbelievable!

Is anyone else having problems with the site? It seems to be taking a long time for every page to load. Also the home page is completely messed up?

Renewed... you sound great! Wow, out and about already. I hope you're feeling good! Sugar... great 1st season! Snow tomorrow! Well, I got you beat... it snowed here today for about 1 min... complete whiteout conditions. Unbeleivable! It was really pretty, though. So my first day was good. I got up early (6am :biggrin:) and ran on the treadmill for 30 min. I'm really glad I did... it woke me up, energized me and it meant I got my run in! My new boss has an orientation schedule set up for the next 3 weeks for me, so today I spent meeting with people (meet & greet). The marketing team had a luncheon catered in as a welcome, which was really fun. I'm not much of a centre of attention type of person, but this was good. My computer hasn't arrived yet, so I couldn't do any real work yet. Hopefully it will arrive tomorrow. I'm also getting a Blackberry... yeah! I used to have one and its a bit addicting! On Wed morning I'm heading to this beautiful country inn for a business planning meeting with one of our customers, and then in week 3 I go for another customer planning meeting at a great resort inn. Ohhh I love to be working again! So my new boss took me on a tour of the office, and they have a very small fitness room on site. Its not great, kind of old and dingy, but it does have a few weight machines and free weights, so I might use it once in awhile for strength training. They also offer fitness classes at lunch, but I've never really liked fitness classes, so not sure if I'll do that.

Lyn... you are so right... it is funny! My DH sort of understands the connection, but sometimes he just doesn't get it. We know so little of each other's lives, but then we know so much! I share so much more with you than I do with so many face to face friends. I think it starts with our common weight issues that put us instantly on the same page, and then add to that the lapband and the running... and Bingo... you have a deep connection. Whatever it is, its important! I think about all of you everyday and include you in my prayers, thoughts and conversations. My stepmother was here this weekend visiting. She lives in Ft. Wayne. My father passed away in January, so she is still adjusting to life without him. It was really nice to have her here. She stayed with my brother, but came here tonight for dinner and then went to Church with us. I know she was very touched when I asked her to come with us. Its something my dad always liked, having us worship together. Although we are different religions, we're all Christian, so found our common ground. It was also nice for my friends at church to meet her, as they had prayed for her and my dad so often while he was dying. Now off to work tomorrow... wow, I can finally say that! Hope everyone had a great weekend. Talk to you tomorrow night!

Thanks Sugar.... I'm very excited (and a bit nervous)! Tootie... Way to go! You must feel so proud! Congrats!