Almost! To Onederland

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I had my band removed 11 months ago. Was sleeved Dec 12th 2011, just over 8 months ago. I started at 308, and this morning I weighed in at 200.2 pounds! I am so close to leaving the 200s behind me forever!!! It is just so exciting!!! I am still overweight, but i now longer look or move like the huge person I used to be. This photo is from yesterday - life is good!

[Ms skinniness 3,003]

Yep! Life is really good! Look at you girl! You have done a great job losing 108 lbs! We are so proud of you! Keep it up and by the way, your horses are beautiful too.

[Sassygirl06 962]

that is so wonderful! I'm sure your horses are happy too! you look so happy in your picture. congrats, I know how wonderful it feels to be free of the weight!

[lessofmeismore 1,405]

You look great!!! Congrats on your success!!

I can't wait to feel confident enough to ride again. I haven't rode a horse since going with my family years and years and years ago!

[redmtn 0]

Hey, way to go. We both almost have the same sleeve date and starting weight. I got sleeved on Dec. 20, I haven't lost as much as you....71 pounds.....but that does feel good. I'm curious what your eating looks like now. What are your meals like? Still drinking Water? What things are helping you succeed? I would just love to be under 200. I'm just so happy for you!!

[Krismarie0605 6]

71 lbs is amazing too ! Great job all of you ! And I have not seen the 100s in 15 years ! You should be so proud of yourself ! I hope and pray all will go threw with my insurance and I can be a success story also !

[SylviaMom 83]

You look wonderful--so healthy and alive!

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

Today is not my official weigh in day, but I did get to 199.4 today! I am so incredibly excited. I haven't see the 1XX on the scale since sometime in the 1980s.

Red, So, we are all individuals, and I am not saying my path is the right one for everyone. There are lots of reasons that people's weight loss varies and I agree that you have done amazing - have you tried lifting 70+ pounds lately? It amazes me that I used to lug around more weight then I can lift! Since you ask, I will share some background and approaches I have taken - some of it may apply to you some may not.

I assume that we started with smiliar BMI or excess weight to lose based on your comments. Obviously, even if we started at the same weight - the situation is really different if you are 5'0" or 6'0". I am 5'5", and my "target" according to the charts is 144 (not sure, heard different things). The nutritionalist used that target to compute that I should lose 164 to get to a perfect weight.. My surgeon's practice uses 80% excess weight loss as the "goal" so in my case they would target me for weighing 177. Bottom line, no matter how you look at it, I had a crapload of weight to lose. The reality of it is, when you have been mordibly obese for decades, it is pretty hard to get down to the low 20s BMI. I picked 158 as my target because it is a nice round lose 150# goal. In the 1980s, I looked awesome at 140-145# range so I felt that 160 is an agressive goal, but great weight for me.

So, they gave me guidelines of the "range" of excess weight that their patients typically lose - so basically at 3 months, 6 months etc you can tell if you are "on track" for making that 80% weight loss. I don't get hung up on what I read on the boards, I keep my eye on my own "plan" that I worked out with the nutritionalist and it has been great. I was advised that as a revision from the band, it is very common to not do as well as "virgin sleevers" but I have been at the upper end of their "expected results" so far.

I share all this background so you know that I have had pretty a pretty detailed plan around what I want to accomplish. I was banded in 2001 - lost 30# in a month and then lost another 40# over the next 11 months. Then, I just stopped losing - I never got under 200#. I regained plus more after I had to have the Fluid removed from my band in 2004. I did not want to repeat my poor results so have that extra "lesson learned" - that first 1-2 years is really the time to get the weight off.

So, another thing I did is that I read this and another sleeve forum quite awhile before I was sleeved. I paid attention to people who had results I wanted to emulate, and who were close to me in excess weight, female etc. I listened to their advice as I figured they were "on to something". At first, I had the idea that a tiny bougie size is what made people most successful weight loss, but over time I realized that isn't true at all - it is the behavior post op that was the most important factor. My surgeon uses 38 bougie size - one of the bigger ones.

Another thing I do is that I follow a plan for awhile and then when results aren't what I want, I change it up. This is something the nutritonalist helped me figure out. I started out tracking everything on myfitnesspal.com and it really helped me build my confidence. I watched Protein, carbs and calories very carefully. Over time, the nutritionalist told me to take the leap of faith and start listening to my body instead of "eating by the numbers". That was hard for me to do because I didn't trust my body's signals or my ability to use them wisely.

So, I stopped tracking several months post op and my weight loss accelerated! She was right, it was time to do something different.

I have also incorporated pretty heavy duty activity and exercise. I "move" everyday and make sure I do something intense 4 days a week - it might be a tough workout at the gym or now in the summer, working hard on my mini farm. Exercise makes me feel better and it is a time when I can't snack!

As far as food, these days all I keep track of (in my head only, not written down) is:

-daily Water consumption - 8-12 glasses;

-protein consumption 60-100g,

-Vitamin consumption (as per recommendations). I don't worry about calories

-portion size which I am keeping small to keep that tight feeling as long as possible

I use small dishes - a 4 oz cup for a "bowl" and a tiny plate for my dinner. If by chance I am using a normal size plate, I create a mental ring around the outside where no food should sit and food should not "touch" each other. This is how I keep portions in line, even without measuring.

I also have other rules - like I eat Protein first, veggies second and everything else is way down the list. I also eat if I am really hungry, I don't worry about the clock so much. I don't go through drive throughs. If for some crazy reason I have "fast food" we go inside and eat - it is a rare event because it isn't very good! I don't get high calorie drinks, but do treat myself to a skinny latte or mocha once a week. I cannot seem to break my habit of snacking in the evening. If I am dying for something sweet, I eat a chocolate flavored Protein Bar. I give myself permission, that if I am still hungry after that, I can have a real dessert, but I never am. I do allow myself fruit now because I am no longer restricting carbs. I do limit bread, crackers, rice, noodles etc - but that is because I won't make the protein goals if I don't.

Another rule I have is that I weigh myself frequently. Some people are driven nuts by the ups and downs, I am not. I know myself, and avoiding the scale is one of the ways that I "deny" that I am overeating or off program. The scale is like a mirror, it tells me if my behavior is what I had planned.

So, what do I eat? Alot of protein. I often have an egg for Breakfast with perhaps a bit of cheese and a small slice of ham. Sometimes I make a veggie, ham (or sausage) and egg omelette, eating half at Breakfast and the other half for a snack or for lunch. Also, cottage cheese with pineapple is a current favorite and sometimes what i have for lunch. Another lunch choice might be a bit of salad with tuna or chicken breast strips. dinner might be a hunk of protein (chicken, fish, beef) plus veggies. For Snacks I have Protein Bars, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, beef Jerky that sort of thing.

Now, I am not perfect and I do sometimes eat junky food that the family brings home - a few chips or eating a side of potato salad or something like that. I just work to keep the portions small.

I guess a final comment, and maybe this one is of use to people - if your portion sizes have gotten too big or you are eating the wrong things - do a back to basics kind of thing for a few days. Some people use the 5 day pouch test, I haven't tried that yet. What has worked is to refocus on Water, protein and avoiding snacky food - and then my desire for food automatically drops and I feel good restriction. It is amazing to me that just a few days of being "back on track" helps me get back that good sleeve feeling of not desiring food so much.

I attached a "before" photo.

[Sannah 258]

Congratulations!!

Sent from my iPhone using VST

[redmtn 0]

Thank you so much for your ideas and thoughts. I have struggled some this summer but want to get back on track. So great to hear about your success. It is kinda interesting...Im 5'6 with same goal weight and same bougie size. I like your idea of changing plan when needed and I also weigh every Thurs. I went months and months without weighing in great denial.

What exactly is the 5 day pouch test?

Thanks again for sharing....it helps!!

Congrats on being in the 1xx....what an accomplishment!!

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I have been fighting excess weight since i was 5 years old - and I am 48 now. You would think I would have learned by now, but I have still had short phases of "scale denial". It isn't the right thing for me, I need to weigh daily , or at least several times a week on the same scale/same time of day. At least since the sleeve, I have not let it go longer then 2 weeks. In my past, I would ignore the scale for MONTHS be shocked that i had gained 20+ pounds and then of course somehow manage to keep gaining. I just refuse to do that again. If I struggle with losing, or maintenance, I am committed to keep weighing anyway.

One of the things I remember about the sleeve, is it is here to help me catch myself when i am falling (failing, however you want to see it) but, I still need to catch myself. I learned that in a support group I went to pre-op and it made a big impression on me. I felt so helpless when I failed with the band, I just didn't know how to keep from regaining but I am prepared this time to make maintenance a success. Even if I never get under 199 pounds (which I will!) I am never ever ever going to let myself regain a bunch of weight and be that morbidly, hugely obese woman I don't even recognize.

Google the 5 day pouch test. The point is to go back to liquids, progress to soft food etc, but to do it in 5 days. It helps restore that feeling of restriction. I would have done it, except my own version of just drinking Water, eating Protein first and taking Vitamins worked to get me restarted. I will do the 5day pouch test in the future I am sure.

So red, it is my opinion that you can make your goals - but do remember that after X number of months post op it gets harder to lose. Those first 12-18 months is really the best window, with the first 6 months being the most weight loss (as we have both already seen). I want to lose another 40 pounds - even if that is done just a few pounds a month, I am pushing hard to get there even though I took a little summer vacation and didn't lose too much in August.

[Willow216 91]

Congrats! You story is Wonderful and I have learned a few things I didn't know, Thank you and I wish you continued success on your journey!