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Phyl - I love that you have added your Wii fitness age to your signature. You are the coolest gramma I know! So this has been a wonderful day at school! Long...but good. This is the kind of day that makes all the HELL worth it. I went to a FANTASTIC conferences yesterday and I used one of the techniques that he used and it worked miracles. I can't even tell you how it changed the whole climate of my classroom. It is too long to explain, but believe me, it is fun! So I might need a favor from all of you. Hopefully I won't need it, but I have to make sure that I don't pansy out tonight. My training calls for a 4 mile run tonight followed by a 6 mile walk. I have to get the legs conditioned to doing 13 miles at one time. So here it is...If I don't come home from the gym and post that I completed that task you all had better give me crap. You can publicly post it or you can fill my private message box to the wazooo. I know "how can I give crap to someone that runs 4 miles and then walks anything." WELL...I HAVE TO DO THIS. I am confident in my PHYSICAL ability to acheive this, but I am worried about the mental part. I am going to be on the same treadmill for about 2 hours tonight, and I have cardio ADD. While I do have faith in myself, the more people that I am accountable to the better. Well I need to finish grading the quizzes. I should post by 6:30PM PST so if you haven't heard from me by then...you should all start yelling at me!

So I am going to post here so that you all hold me accountable...I am going to run 4 miles tonight and follow that with a 6 mile walk. You had all better be YELLING at me tomorrow if I don't do that. I know you are thinking "How can I yell at someone if they run 4 miles and do ANY walking". Well that is the brutality of training. It takes blood, sweat and tears. I am hoping to not have any blood tonight but I will guarantee the sweat and tears. I expect PM up the wazooo tomorrow if I don't make it. You are my exercise family and I expect the same tough love that I would give you! Thanks for caring about me.

Congrats Janet....Welcome to the land of goal. It is an amazing feeling! I am so proud of you. I would put this in big fun letters but I am really busy at work today but I wanted to send my love quickly as soon as I read this!

I have not looked at the couch to 5K program, but my bet is that it will help BREAK the plateau. Sometimes short but high intensity workouts will "shock" your body and it will release the fat faster. I have found that even though I am not supposed to be losing any more weight that I lost another pound last week and I think it was because I changed my routine.. Your body gets used to what you are doing and it becomes more efficient and therefore less able to burn as many calories as it has in the beginning.

My original goal was 2 straight miles by my bandiversary. Then it was 5 straight miles...and even though I haven't reached that level yet (I will surpass it Sunday with a 6 mile run) my NEW goal is 13.1 miles by my bandiversary! (Well actually the goal needs to happen 1 month and 10 days before my bandiversary!) I started out small and it has now become addicting! You are doing great!

Yeah Frangi! That is great news. Becky, I am still positive that you will be just great too. Love your positive attitude.

8 more days...11 more days... I HAVE 5 WEEKS LEFT! I just wanted to chime in with that because I am thouroughly exhausted and I will write more tomorrow!

Well it certainly was not my intent to justify my indulgence or anyone elses indulgence in candy. IMHO it is only something that should be consumed when you plan for it. That is not what I did today and I am not proud of it. But I confessed my sins and I made sure that I got my workout in NO MATTER how tired I was. I actually feel AWFUL (physically) from eating the candy. My tongue is raw and my stomach is in knots. So my advice is that when you eat that candy (and hopefully it is not often) that you have planned for it in your day. ' As for the fill, I was always required to be on liquids for 2 days following a fill. I know that not all doctors require this, but I am always so swollen. As obvious from the problems that I have had with the last several fills, I don't tolerate them well. My stomach swells very easily and if I don't stay on liquids or at most thin mushies I am in a world of hurt. Alrighty everyone...I am off to bed. Another early morning tomorrow. I will not be on as I am attending a conference on how to motivate struggling learners. Oh and by the way....Congrats Steph...I totally forgot to put that in my post earlier!

That is the great thing about LBT... you are never alone. I don't think that having a TT is selfish at all. We should be able to LOOK like the weight that we are at. Naked I certainly don't look like 155 pounds...I still look 250 pounds. Even my DH thinks that my belly looks worse NOW than it did 9 months ago. It is mentally taxing to look down and not see the results. You should never doubt yourself. Yeah it will be an emotional roller coaster, but we can be here for each other. I was so afraid that I would be freaking out about the TT so I decided to run a half-marathon 4 days before the surgery. That way I can focus on THAT instead of the TT. We will keep in touch! We can start a July Plastics thread! What do you do for the school district?

I was so exhausted I was going to move my workout until tomorrow, but I came home, took a nap and dreamed about running. So I woke up and went out and ran 4 miles!

Welcome Babs. You certainly don't need to be banded in August to be welcomed here!

Okay so I actually am checking in again. I came home and went straight to bed. But I didn't sleep more than 2 hours. I dreamed about running, so I got up and went for a run. I haven't eaten dinner and I don't know if I am going to. I figured out that I ate 200 calories worth of licorice so I still have 250 calories to spend for the evening but I am just not hungry now. However I will probably force myself to eat something. Otherwise I will go from 1pm to 4:30am without eating anything and that is not healthy. So the after effects of the licorice are awful. That much pure sugar burned my tongue. I am not kidding you. My tongue almost feels raw! Then there is the fact that it gave me (TMI WARNING) ...the runs. Well that ought to teach me. Now DH feels like he needs to watch me. I told him that I was fine. It was stupid and next time I will have a plan. I started craving this stuff when I was putting the baggies together last night and I should have just eliminated my afternoon snack and planned to have the licorice. See even us OCD types can have slip ups! Well I need to take a shower. I stink after my 4 mile run!!!!! No records set tonight though. I don't run very fast during training but at least I ran the entire way. No stopping. I felt much better about my day now that I went. For the first time in my life I LOVE SWEATING!

Licorice is not my friend. I broke down and ate some after smelling it all day. Then I ate more. What is my problem you ask...I am exhausted. I got 2.5 hours of sleep last night and it is TOM. So I am going home and going to bed right after work. I can't do these long hours. So this is the last time I am checking in for the day. Have a good evening.

Congrats. I am having my TT on July 3... I am a teacher so you have to love the summers off for surgery purposes.

My lap band doc did not require an unfill, but my PS did. Because I was too tight to begin with I have been unfilled for the last 2 weeks. I have lost a total of 2 pounds since being unfilled. However I am in training for a half marathon so that helps keeps the pounds down. I am in maintenance phase though so I can have increased calories. Typically I consume 1500 calories a day which if you choose your foods right is actually a LOT of food! My TT is not until July 3 so I will have been unfilled for a total of 2.5 months before I even get my TT. After that we will see when I go in and get another fill. My PS said not until at least 4 weeks after so that there were no nutritional issues.

Welcome back and we did miss you! Look at that ticker!!! 70 pounds gone. That is awesome. I hear you about work. Only 5 weeks 3 days and 1 period to go in this school year...but who is counting!!!!! Check back when you can!

That is so true. I never saw myself at 250 pounds as THAT big...but holy crap I just came across a before picture and I just about crapped my pants. Yesterday I saw myself in my workout shirt and I finally thought...yep I am thin...I still can't bring myself to think that I am skinny though! I do think that PS will help us some. I don't think it will cure all of our woes, but it will give us a place to start becoming more familiar with our bodies without being disgusted by it. For me, I am going into PS with very low expectations. Nothing she can do could make me look WORSE than I do right now. I don't expect to come out looking skinny, I just don't want to have the EXACT same rolls as I did 95 pounds ago!

I did get an hour workout in yesterday. For cardio I did a "random hill" program on the bike....HOLY CRAP my legs hurt. I prefer running to biking! Then I lifted weights. I guess this is more of a scale victory than anything, but I lost another pound and am down to 155.5. So when I got on the machine yesterday I didn't have to adjust the weight portion of the program entry. The default on the machines is 155 and that is right where I am at. If I lose any more I get to adjust DOWN! That was a great feeling. Tonight

YEAH! ON 2 FRONTS!:thumbup: I am excited for you on the scale and so happy that your DD is talking to you again.

You are very welcome. One thing that I have found with snacks is that I don't eat them. Now don't get me wrong I eat "small meals" between regular meals. When they first upped my calories and told me to start eating snacks I did and it set off horrible cravings. I started grazing all day. So I realized that my "snacks" had to resemble small meals. So between breakfast and lunch I have to eat a sandwich, or a very small portion of a meal. That way I can trick my brain into thinking that I am not eating "snacks". It is weird how the body responds to certain foods. I want to say that is how I tricked my body, but in reality it is how my body is made. When you listen to what your body NEEDS it makes it so much better. Before I didn't care what my body NEEDED...I cared what my taste buds wanted and what my brain WANTED. Changed my life when I did it the other way. So I don't have the 100 calorie snacks around...never have because I KNEW I would eat the whole box. I can't even have 100 calorie popcorn around. I get popcorn 1 time per week and I go and buy it from the copy room at school. It is a full bag of the low fat stuff for 240 calories. It makes me happy to eat all of it and since I can't go back in and get a 2nd or 3rd bag (our copy lady is under strict orders to only sell me ONE BAG of popcorn on Thursdays!) there is no chance for me to overdo it. So nope nothing makes me stop wanting to eat except WILL POWER. I swear those are the 2 worst words on the planet for most people, but we have to be stronger than food. We are living, breathing, intelligent human beings...food is nothing more than a bunch of atoms and chemical bonds. We are more powerful...beating out the food makes us stronger...and the stronger we get, the easier it is. By turning down food over and over and over again in the last 9 months it has made me feel like I can do anything. My will power has turned into PERSONAL STRENGTH! So think about it in the big picture...by turning down food you are not only helping your health but you are building a stronger person! It is not about saying NO to food...it is about saying YES to you! One other thing about the hunger...The next time you think you feel hungry I want you to sit someplace quiet and try and "feel" your stomach. Not with your hands but try to mentally detach yourself from your stomach and see if it is TRULY hungry...My bet is that it isn't. My bet is that your head is hungry but your stomach is not. Water does that to me all the time. If I drink my head THINKS I need food. That is why you always do much better with your water than I do. I usually only drink about 1/2 hour before I am going to eat because otherwise I start feeling hungry. I am glad this helped. I have certainly been there!

Ruby I hate to tell you this, but maintenance is the hardest thing in the world for me. I thought losing was EASY compared to maintenance. For me when I was losing I got a reward every weigh in day...a lower number. At maintenance I don't get a reward...I just get the same number. I am supposed to be happy just getting the same number over and over. As for the plateauing...are you losing size? If you are not losing size and not losing weight you might have to decrease your calories or lower carbs or lower fats. As you lose weight it takes more effort to burn the same amount of calories because you are not carrying around as much weight. Think about it this way. We all know that if you were to carry a 20 pound backpack while hiking you are going to burn more calories than if you didn't have the backpack. Well it is the same thing if you are carrying around 20 pounds of extra fat...it burns more calories. So as you have lost weight you don't have the extra "backpack" so you have to increase the intensity or add weights. As for the magic formula...it is adjusting and calculating. So that is why when you guys tell me I am OCD about all the counting and calculating I do, I nod my head in agreement, but realize that is the only way it works. Until my mind can firmly grasp EVERYTHING, I will write it down and calculate it. I figure I have been living healthy for the last 9 months...I was living unhealthy for the last 20 years. I can't expect myself to make these changes over the last few months and just have my brain realize that this is how it is going to be. 20 years of behavior are going to out weigh 9 months of behavior. So I treat myself just like I did when I started this journey. That way I stay on track and never have to worry about slipping up. I will NOT let my "fat brain" take control. I conciously chose to have pizza last night, but that was my healthy brain making that choice...not the fat brain and there is a difference. I calculated the calories and am now watching for signs or symptoms of overeating or food craving. If I would have shown signs of that today, I wouldn't allow myself pizza for a VERY long time again. There are some foods that I can eat in moderation once in a great while and NEVER have a problem with (pizza is one). There are other foods that I will never allow myself to eat again because I KNOW I will trigger NASTY food cravings (carrot cake is one). I know I can't have crackers (even the healthy kind) because it will trigger grazing problems. You have to listen to your body. If you eat something and it causes triggers, you just can't have it. No matter how much you might like it. At least for me....It just isn't worth it. Okay off my soap box and back to work. My legs are a little tired today. Good thing it is just eliptical and weights today.

OMG...I am so with you. I have been having this problem for several months now. I am hoping that the PS will take care of some of it. When I look at my belly (and you have all seen the pictures) it truly does still look like I am 250 pounds. It was just yesterday when I was trying on my Eugene Marathon t-shirt that I looked in the mirror and though...WOW you really are thin. But then my mind said..yeah but that is only because you have a steel girdle holding all your fat in. I know I need to quit thinking like this because in all honesty I don't have a whole lot of fat left. I am not skin and bones, but besides my tummy area (which will be removed with PS) I am very defined. I think we are going to struggle with this for a while. After all if you look at my situation (and I use this because I KNOW my situation) I have been fat for pretty much my whole life. I was put on my first diet at 8 years old. I had my lap-band installed when I was 28. So for 20 years I was used to seeing myself fat. I ridiculed myself for being fat and my brain just has that picture ingrained in it. After all it saw that same picture for 20 years. I have only been "thin" for about 2 months. My brain has not caught up. It still sees myself as 250 pounds. One thing that I have done is to put a before and after picture on my desk at work so that I can see the 2 side by side and remind myself when I start having the "I need to lose weight because I am still fat" mindset to remind me that I really don't have weight to lose. I do think that PS will HELP...but I don't think it will be the answer. Our minds just haven't reprogrammed themselves. On another note...there are going to be people that tell you that they WISH they had this problem. Be prepared for that. I have gotten it a lot lately...and I just look at them and say "Well I hope you never have this problem." It can be very taxing mentally. For me, it is just one more thing that I have to find a plan to deal with. However I do think this is why maintenance is so hard and why, at least for me, I can't just rely on how I look. THis is why I still weigh all my food and count all of my calories. SInce my brain still sees me as fat, I don't think it will recognize it if I start gaining weight. I am so glad that other people are talking about this because I have been struggling for about a month with this whole situation!

Nice job...It is a ONEderful place to be. Congratulations on your sucess and best wishes on the rest of your journey.

You will be sooooo excited when you finish your first 5K. It is thrilling/exhillerating/exciting and addictive. I just ran my 2nd one today and the feeling at the finish line is indescribable. I am currently in training for a half marathon that I will run June 29...4 days before my TT and 1 month 10 days before my bandiversary. With determination, guts, and a good attitude you can accomplish ANYTHING!

LJM that is fantastic. I know you have had a couple of rough days lately but this has to put you on top of the world. Your accomplishments show just how important it is to conquer the demons. Your smile is priceless. I finished my 5K today with another personal best 31:42!! I was soooooo SUPER excited especially since I have been battling tendonitis in my foot all last week. I didn't break the the 30 minute mark that I was hoping for but I did pace a 10:14! Not to bad for a chick that was REALLY fat just a few months ago. See what you have done to inspire me! Let me know when you start training for the Chicago...so we can be virtual training partners. Believe me...by the time I need to do that dreaded 12 mile run...I am going to need to know that someone is cheering me on! Great JOB!!!!!