ForMyOhana

Kinda taking the summer off. I'm getting ready to ramp up again in about 2 weeks. My kids will both be off to their respective colleges and school will begin for my wife. This summer has been a lot of traveling, beer and kayaking... my new favorite sport. I'm dealing with the worst case of poison ivy in my life right now, so hopefully that will get better in the next 2 weeks as well and I can start the late summer early fall push for fitness again. I see a new 90 day challenge in my future. Weight wise, 258... so about 7 lbs from my lowest point. Not terrible given the lack of focus. See y'all again soon!

Painfully slow, but I was able to move in the right direction to a new low. Next appointment on May 16. Crossing my fingers for upper 240s.

I forgot to check in this weekend. Had a good week. Strange, I didn't change anything but I was way down from the previous week... to a new low of 252.4. I'll take it! Still struggling to break into the upper 240s. My dr appointment is in 16 days, I wonder if I'll get there.

So, I'm 2/3 of the way through my self imposed 90 day challenge to lose what I could lose before my next Dr appointment. In the first 30 days, I lost 10 lbs. In the second 30 days I gained about 4. Not great. However, here is my observation... On day 25, I began taking some supplements to try to stop muscle loss. I began taking Creatine, Carnitine and Leucine along with my protein shakes. In the last 30 days, I have gotten stronger at the gym, my workouts have been able to be more intense and my pant size is getting looser... depending on the brand and pant style cut, I'm between a 38 and even a 36!... I just bought a pair of shorts on Friday that are size 36... I have no idea when I did that last. So, in 28 days, I see my Dr again. At this point, I hope I can break into the upper 240's by then, but it's going to be tough. It's a far cry from my goal of 236, but I'm still working.

This week was Spring Break. It was also the 1/2 way point in my 90 day challenge. We had a short vacation planned and so I decided it was a good time to just take a few days off. I took from Saturday - Wednesday off... so 5 days and picked back up on Thursday. So there is a slight bump up this week, but it was probably a perfect week to take a break. Back onward and downward this week!

Took me 2 weeks to post another loss. ... -0.2 ... UGH. Working hard and hardly moving right now.

I'm going to count this as a win. 30 days in and 10 lbs down. My goa for today was 254. This morning I hit 254.1! Success! 60 days to go. Setting sights on the 240s.

Weekly check in. Down a couple more this week so the streak continues. 23 days into my 90 day push. Just ove a pound to lose in the next week to stay on track for my goal. I will be adding some supplements to my diet beginning Monday, so we'll see if they can be detected in my numbers over the next month. The goal for 1/3 the way through my challenge is 254. I'm 255.2 today. Other than clearing snow, taking it easier today. Time to make some bacon!

No regularity issues recently. However, I add the Kirkland fiber to my Gatorade (Zero with protein 50/50 water dilute) when I'm at work. I've also been eating salad kits with cabbage lately. So, that'll work too.

Just my weekly check in. Another good week, even with less activity. While I did not lose power, we had an ice storm that took out power to most of my area and closing my gym. I've done little to no walking since Wednesday and no weight lifting since then either. I also have a tendonitis strain in my left arm that's really bothering me. I can barely lift a pot of coffee. So, forced rest is probably justified. Posting a new low today. I'm happy but also concerned that it appears I'm losing muscle mass. I may need to add a new supplement to my shakes to help. But if weight were my only concern and goal... I'm still heading the right direction. See ya next week.

Welcome. It would not have been possible to indulge. In fact, a week after Thanksgiving would have been much worse because you would have been starting the all liquid (ish) pre surgery preparation diet during a feast... that would have been hard! So, most of us are Nov 2021, but even if you're 2022, we're glad to have you. There are some regulars who still hang around and post their progress. Some folks are near their goals, others, like me, still have a ways to go. I come back for motivation and accountability but also to share with others who might also be struggling, to show that not everyone has it as easy as others. I also want my story to serve as motivation for those who may be thinking about surgery... to show that while this is hard work and nothing is easy at all, the process can work.

8 days into my 90 day plan... Saturday - Normal low carb day Sunday - All Chicken and Broccoli day Monday - IF break late Tuesday - IF break early Wednesday - IF break late Thursday - IF break early Friday - All Shake Day No Alcohol 10k step goal (for reference... surgery date was 11/15/2021, start weight was 403)

This scale was from Amazon... Etekcity brand... not too expensive. Interfaces with my phone via an app. It's really helpful. I recommend it. I'm back to tracking. Using Carb Manager app for that. I have 94 days until my next dr appointment. Time to focus for 90 days. Ramping up my daily steps goal to 10k. And... no alcohol. 90 days to see where I can land.

My numbers were a little off. My fat free 0% body weight is 206.... I was forgetting bone mass. I got on the scale today and initially was bummed because I went up a pound.... only to realize that I gained a pound of lean muscle this week. Lol. This is why you can't always just trust a normal scale. I'm including a screenshot to show everything my scale measures. Have a good day!

I'm going to cut out the alcohol for the time being. I'm also going to figure out how to crank up my steps a notch. But it will also take cutting back calories I'm sure. If I can break 259, I'm sure more progress will follow. It took me a long time to break into the 260s too. A good hard workout at the gym tonight. I think I found that I need a pre workout snack for energy, like I did today. If I lose another 30, there won't be a lot left to lose, except maybe skin. I'm not the kind of guy who will get below 200. My lean body mass at 0% fat says I weigh 198. So 15% body fat would be about 225 to 230. My scale says I'm at 22% now.

So, here I am... 3 months into this stall. Still 265 today. I feel pretty good. I did have a couple bouts of arrhythmia earlier in the month that I can't explain, but pretty good since. Clothes fitting looser, weights getting heavier, but the weight not moving. My doctor is not going to be happy with me if I don't make some progress between now and my May 15 check up. I have not been good about my tracking lately. I need to cut out the alcohol too... week days are good, weekends get me. I'm still good about getting to the gym 4 to 5 times per week and my diet is not horrible. I just need to figure out what to do to break through.

I'm sure I just need to eat cleaner. And keep it closer to 1600. I'm sure I'm going over. But with lifting weights I'm a bit hungrier. The last time i lost much weight was after taking a week off from the gym. But i don't want to do that either. I enjoy sweating the stress out.

I am just stuck. I did get to 262 on the home scale, but I'm still hovering at around 265. I can't seem to get this moving again. Fighting cravings again. And, while I am still hitting my walking and gym 4 days per week, I just can't seem to break into 250s. It's just a wee bit frustrating. I'm going to need to change something up.

I don't know how much of this is due to weight loss vs just getting older, but according to the marks on the wall at my Mom's house, I'm almost 3/4 of an inch shorter now than in 2007. Guessing I had pretty fat feet! ... or fat on the top of my head, Lol!

Ha, yeah, I've never been so cold as I've been since surgery. It think it's getting better, but it's summer so I can't tell. Except that the heat is not bothering me... like at all.... like I barely sweat. I imagine the winter will be cold again for me. Will see soon enough.

Official one year doctor appointment over. 271 was the official weigh in at doctor's office... this translates to an overall loss of 132. Yeah right... Lol Doc was not very happy with my progress in the last couple months. My weightloss "really stagnated" since my 8 month appointment. Yeah, it was less, but to be fair, the 8 month appointment was really a 9 month appointment by the time we were able to meet. It was a zoom appointment which means the weight I provided them was from my home scale and not with clothes on in their office, and finally, I've been hitting the gym much harder in the last few months... so I know there is new muscle to be accounted for. ... BUT, no excuses right. His goal for me is another 30 pounds off in the next 6 months. He doesn't seem to buy into the idea that I have been recomping at the gym at all. His basic message to me was start tracking everything I eat don't go over 1500 calories per day and get serious for the next 6 months. He does want me to use a scale that can track body fat / lean muscle measurements, so I may need to buy one. So, the report from my doctor was sort of "good job the first 9 months... but what's going on now!?" I'm back to tracking my intake and I need to report back to my dietitian in the next week.

Congratulations on you success from all the hard work. I haven't weighed myself in a couple weeks, so I don't know If I've broken through my plateau. My 1 year is on Nov 15... I wanted to be 259 by then, but I think I'll have to be happy with anything less than 269 the way things have been. I'm concentrating on increasing my protein again and cutting out unnecessary carbs, getting more water, etc. Hoping this will help me break through. I'll report back again in a few weeks.

Looks like my last post was on July 27. Things have slowed down quite a bit. Still doing well though. I finally cracked into the two-sixties with a weigh in last Saturday of 269. That would be -134 overall. In the last 2 weeks, I've increased my walking and hitting the gym. Body comp definitely changing so I'm less concerned about the scale at the moment. I still see losses in my face and the way my clothes fit even if its a bit less off the scale. My goal is to crack the two-fifties before Nov 15... my 1 year anniversary. The last time I was that weight was high school... 30 years ago. Feeling good. Arrhythmia gone for a few months now. Getting stronger.

Ha, yeah, I've never been so cold as I've been since surgery. It think it's getting better, but it's summer so I can't tell. Except that the heat is not bothering me... like at all.... like I barely sweat. I imagine the winter will be cold again for me. Will see soon enough.

Crossing my legs when sitting in a chair. Putting on socks is easy, sitting or standing. Bought a new pair of pants 3 months ago that I can barely wear anymore because now they're too big too. Almost never sweaty. No huffing and puffing when walking or hiking. Bought a kayak and don't feel too big for it. No longer worried that camping chairs will buckle under me. Aches and pains in my hips and legs are nearly gone. All in all, all is good!