scarlet333

Got in my day 1 of week 4 this morning. See photo for the weather this morning. I'm not allowing myself any excuses.

Absolutely agree with the other posters. It's so nice to eat a normal size portion of whatever I want, not the disgustingly huge portions I used to polish off. Also, try slowing down a bit when eating something you really want to savor. You may be able to get in an extra bight or two. The feeling of not being obese "outweighs" the other small sacrifices.

I am over joyed I made this decision. It is like a miracle to me. I have lost weight before, worked very, very hard with hard core cardio for an hour every day and watching everything I ate. I would always loose weight but at some point the weight loss would stop and I would become discouraged and eventually give up and regain. With the sleeve you can not believe that the weight keeps coming off. Sure there will be stalls but the fast weight loss keeps your motivation going. I didn't feel it was hard like the other posters. What was hard was dieting in the past with just so-so results. Now with some hard work you get great results. I am 9 months past my surgery date and 15 pounds from my wedding weight. I feel and look like a new person. The only thing I wish I knew before was how great life could be and I would have done it years ago. Good luck to you.

I know what you mean about hiding at parties. I would find a seat and not move all night until time to leave. Hopefully drawing as little attention as possible. Yesterday was at a party and I actually got up and danced!

I am 9 months out and eat about 1100 calories a day. For those of you looking to increase your calories a tablespoon of Peanut Butter alone is 100 calories. For those of you on my fitness pal and you using the calorie count before or after excercise?

I had been in a stall since Halloween. I kept gaining and loosing the same 2 pounds over and over again. Finally yesterday got on the scale and lost 2.4 pounds. So happy but if I'm honest with myself since Halloween my calorie intake and the composition of my calories had changed. I am now 9 months past my surgery date and the first 7 months or so I was almost perfect with keeping my calories to around 800 per day with carbs below 60 grams. The last 2 months I had been flirting with about 1100 calories and definitely higher fat and carbs. I tried to offset this increase with exercise but obviously didn't work. I credit getting more vigilant with my eating habits and changing up exercise every few months with breaking through my "stall". So I guess my message is sometimes a stall is really attributable to getting more lax with what we are eating. I don't mean to imply this is what you are all doing, just what I was doing.

Thanks Mr. Bean.

One of the new features on my fitness pal is the bar scan which works great -quick and easy and the database of foods is vast. Question on the map my run if anyone knows- can you use both map my run and c25k at the same time? It would be an easy way to see what your speed or how close to the actual 5k you are getting.

This happened to me early on. I was steadily loosing weight in the first month then one morning I got on the scale and was up like 4 pounds. There was no reason for the gain that I could see. I hadn't binged the day before or had something with a lot of sodium the day before. I just shook my head in disbelief and put it out of my mind. I waited about a week and was back to a steady weight loss. I think what was happening was my body was adjusting to the rapid loss (like 25 pounds in the first month) it was in shock and was trying to desperately hold on to whatever it could. My point is try not to weigh yourself everyday if you feel its going to effect your mind-set too much. Try only 1 or 2x per week and look at overall weight loss not day to day since so many other factors can effect the scale on a day by day basis. Just keep following your doctors advice about eating. Also, you don't have to run a marathon or buy a gym membership but I remember early on just walking around my living room for a few minutes during every commercial break while watching tv at night. Try to get yourself moving. Not only for burning calories but it well make you feel better about yourself.

Traditions of baking together, making a gingerbread house with my kids, a large fish feast on Christmas Eve are such an integral part of our family holiday that I would not change them. I too will just have small portions and stick with logging food into my fitness pal, keep up excercise routine, and get in enough Protein. One tradition that will be new this year that I'm really looking forward to is not making the same New Years Resolution I have made to loose weight every year for as long as I can remember. It actually brings tears to my eyes to think this will be the first New Years Eve I will be pleased with my weight.

One of the best changes from loosing weight is actually looking forward to parties again. About a month ago a male college friend who I hadn't seen in over a decade had a death in his family. I knew there would be a lot of old friends at the wake that I had not seen since loosing over 70 pounds. Well let me tell you that was the first wake I actually looked forward to going to. Hope that's not too crass.

Wow you look so awesome. Thanks for sharing the inspirational pics.

Wow you look like a completely different person. You look so much younger and happier. You are an inspiration. Thank you for posting.

My doctor did not give me any specifics on grams of carbs, just to stay in the 800 calories per day range. Before the sleeve I have oatmeal almost every morning. Since after the surgery we really have to stress Protein I usually have the high protein (I think its about 10 grams of protein) instant quaker oats maybe 1 per week only (because its so high in carbs). On other mornings I have either a scrambled egg or 1/2 cup of 1% friendship cottage cheese with a few blueberries or a non fat plain greek yogurt sweetened with stevia. All of these are high protein options.

Hi Bea, My name is Dianne and I am 48 and have 2 sons, 14 and 12. I am happily married for 20 years to a wonderful husband and I am a CPA. I've lost 72 pounds and I have been stalled for about 2 months and think this will be the push I need to break this stall. I am an avid ebayer both a seller and buyer and I love to read. Have you noticed everything involves sitting (work and hobbies). I have become an excerciser though since the sleeve. I love the sleeve and wish I had done it sooner. I feel like I have a brand new life and actually look forward to going out and doing things now. Thank you so much for devoting so much of your time to do this thread.

Well said Lipstick Lady! Remember droopy skin can be covered with cloths -fat can't.

Not only do you look younger and amazing - your eyes look so much bigger. Great job you are an inspiration.

I thought we were supposed to avoid NSAIDS totally with the sleeve. Not good for the stomach lining. This was one of the prohibited things post surgery according to my doctor.

Week 3 day 1 is done and still feeling great. Could this app really work. It seems unbelievable to me that I could actually run for say 20 minutes in a few weeks. I always had great admiration for runners and aspired (unsucessfully) to be one. I think it is probably the single most efficient exercise to burn calories/fat from your body.

This happened to me at Halloween. I had a 3 week binge on chocolate which is like crack to me. Of course the binge was nowhere near what I would have consumed pre-sleeve but it devinitely put me on a stall and changed my cravings for more sugar. Turn it around right now. Get up off that couch and force yourself to keep putting one foot in front of the other and go for your walk. You will feel so much better after. Get rid of anything left in the house that will be a temptation to you. Also alcohol makes your body retain Water so that "gain" is really just water weight that will come off just as fast as it came on. Increase your water drinking. Now stop reading this and go for that walk.

I totally agree with Indigo. There is no way you can have lost all that weight and not look better. We are so often our own worst critics. We do not see ourselves the way others see us. You are doing so well and I know you are seeing changes in other parts of your life. Don't self sabotage by dwelling on that one photo. Instead use it as an inspiration to keep working hard and think about the photo for New Years Eve and Valentines Day and ongoing.

Are you taking B12? Maybe you can ask your doctor to have your blood tested. A lot of people feel tired due to Vitamin deficiency. Also is there anyway you can take a late afternoon nap? I know this may not be possible due to work schedules but even a 15-20 minute nap can help if you are dragging by evening. Don't be so tough on yourself your body is going through a huge change. Things will get better. Also think about how tired and aches and pains you felt when you were carrying 51 pounds extra.

First week weigh in and I lost .8. I was 152.2. Grateful for any loss but wish it was a whole pound. Good luck everyone.

Also something good for the family and you - Meatloaf. Ground turkey or chicken or beef, egg, breadcrumbs, ketchup, onion Soup mix. You can look up the Ann Landers recipe. She makes with ground beef I usually used half ground chicken and 1/2 ground beef.

Congratulations on the size medium. I think this happens to a lot of us. I think I'm a size 10 pants and medium top but every time I shop I think these can't possible fit me they are so tiny but to might delight they ususally do.