Steady losers ;-)

[Boo Boo Kitty 3]

Nat--look at your pics girl!! I am so proud of you, you look 10 years younger and skinny! :cool: Good for you!

Bannie--I am speechless, you look HOT girl!

Kay--ok that is SO Not the scariest picture ever, I found it this weekend of me trust me. My H had no idea even who it was NO JOKE!

I am scared as hell about PS, I should get the date finalized this week...ugh...I am still so upset about the small boobs thing. I am sorry but I have never ever ever been a C so I find it scary. I may back out of that part! lol...

Brandi--girl I have never met someone who works so damn hard so damn hard on themselves too! GET OVER it! YOU ARE NOT FAT! None of us are anymore! Geez, size freaking 4! lol... If I didn't love you I would choke you!

Sweet--you are such a well traveled girl! I am so jelous as well! You deserve it! You wil turn some heads in Rome I am sure! Don't make those women too jelous there ok?

I may post the scary picture in a bit..lol...

Love to all, Happy Monday!

[StephC 0]

Hey Girlfriends! Everyone had a nice weekend?

Sweethot - girl I am as green with envy as one can be! All those trips sound wonderful!!! I think I need to SB it too - I'm still losing, slowly one small pound at a time, I think at this rate I'll hit my goal in May 08, so if could do SB for a week or so and lose 10 lbs - wow - I'd be thrilled!

Nat - I know what you're talking about with the body image. Sometimes I feel like I'm rocking it and other times I still feel morbidly obese. I don't see collar bones yet but something else, verrrrrrrrry weird. Laying in bed the other night I could feel something below my boobs and I'm thinking what is that? is it my band? Why do I feel a lump there, I kept feeling around and suddenly realized it was my ribs. How crazy is that!! Long time since I've felt bones. My dh used to count my ribs - yeah about 30 years ago! The other night in bed he was feeling all over and he kept going back to my hip bone, he was probably thinking the same thing, what the heck is that, omgoodness its a bone! HA!

Kay - where was I a year ago? I was anxiously awaiting approval of my band. My last dr appt was Oct 11, and I was approved Nov 11 and had surgery Dec 11. BUT as far as food went - I saw myself in my sil yesterday. She is in her 4th month of dr visits so looks like she'll be having surgery somewhere in Jan/Feb. Anyway we were at a baby shower and of course there was a TON of food. I won't lie, I took alittle of this a little of that. Mostly Desserts bc everything was Pasta. I felt like I had so much, a tbls of potato salad, a T of broccoli salad, a couple celery sticks, and a T of several jello/cheesecake/fattening/yummy desserts - earlier in the day I ate 3 chicken nuggets - I was kinda thinking 'Steph you're pigging out today' - And then I saw my sil's plate. She had at least a cup or more of each pasta, her plate was piled - and she ate every bite. THAT was me a year ago. I even had said to her that everything was so good and I'd really like to eat more but my band says no and she said that sounds like a bad thing but really its a good thing. I said yes it is and then of course we got onto the whole band experience. I warned her that she wasn't going to be able to eat pasta after the band, she looked at me like :omg: - have we all been there before? LOL Anyway - thats where I was. I was 57 lbs heavier, I was several pants sizes bigger, I had grown out of my 16's but was wearing sweat pants and stretch pants bc I was determined not to get any bigger - as if I fooled anyone. Today although I'm not at goal and I'm not completely happy with my body I am HAPPY, I am smaller then I ever remember being in over 10 years and I'm not done yet.

NSV - Pulled out my winter coats, they are all huge and sloppy on me, so while dd was home from college I tried on her peacoat - IT FIT - not sure if its a M or L but it looks great on me! So she gave it to me and bought herself a new one. It just blows my mind when I can fit into my daughters clothes.

[Boo Boo Kitty 3]

Ok girls, I posted this and the before and after thread, but wanted to post it here as well! This is the scariest picture ever as well as some nice ones! lol...:cool:

I need to get a new license, maybe I will do that today? What do you all think?? lol...

[StephC 0]

ok I was just looking at the yahoo pics - Annie... Nat ... you look WONDERFUL!!! So proud of you!! Nat I want to take that little guy and eat him up!!! He makes me grind my teeth, so darn cute!!!

I guess I need to post some pics. Maybe I'll take a couple tongiht.

[StephC 0]

Boo - WOW - it doesn't look like the same person! You look great! I know you'll miss the girls but honestly I just read that by having a breast reduction it makes you look about 10 or 20 lbs thinner. Not that you don't already look thin, you look fabulous but I don't think you'll be disappointed in a C.

[StephC 0]

I don't know if I need to resize this, its been a long time since I attached a pic

Me in the bathroom at work, taken with my phone - so its not the best quality.

[Boo Boo Kitty 3]

Hey Steph!!

LOOK AT you!! WOO HOOO!! I see your waist their girl! Looking good!

I made it a tad bigger for you!

[StephC 0]

I deleted my before pic - its so hard to look at - ugh!

[Nathalie 4]

I can't see the pictures! :cool: Darn this work server.

Just popped in for some motivation, and I see I have a ton of messages to reply to!

B'man - you made me laugh. Your body is going to respond from the high calorie day! How many calories do you usually eat? Under 1,000. So you ate 2,000 calories (those Reece's punkins are the devil!) on Sunday. Your body will not go into starvation mode cuz you upped your calories. At least that's my perspective. I am eating about 500 - 800 calories per day during the week, and one day each weekend I eat freely.

Steph - WTG on the pea coat! All of my coats are sloppy big, too, but I'm wearing them anyhow. Fuggit. I can't afford a new winter coat this year, and it will stroke my ego each time I see that size 2x coat floating around my shrinking frame. And isn't it amazing watching non-banded ppl eat?

Annie - you already know what I think about your pictures. What a dame you are now! All you hard work has paid off. I'm so so so impressed.

Sweethot - I bet you can hit that 48 lb loss by April. That's 6 months away, or about 8 lbs per month. You can do it! And I am also jealous of your travel. Especially on the cruise!

Hey Kaydoll -- Did you make it to the gym today? Did you go running? Did you do anything else for you today? LOL @ you doing the Latin/African dance thing with FitTV. That reminds me of Goldie Hawn in the movie Houseguest.

BooHooTitty - Don't worry. You'll have gorgeous, perky, full-C, round like melons, curvaceous ta-tas after your ps. And I want to see them when you're all healed. You'll LOVE it! They'll look big and healthy and delightful when you're dressed. And they will match your new body perfectly. I promise.

I think that's all for now. I really can't tell too much of a difference in my pictures, I guess. I mean, I can tell in some parts (i.e., my big golden globular azz) but in other parts (arms) I don't see a change. I'm trying not to be discouraged. I need to get some measurements to have an objective comparison.

I'm also trying to remember what I was doing at this time last year. I don't think I had been given my approval for surgery yet... I don't remember. I'll have to look. Suffice it to say I was hugely fat, miserable, lacking confidence and eating everything in sight!

Running to a meeting.

Nat

[beversman 0]

OMG momma's! just saw the yahoo photos!

Bannannie! you look amazing! great job girl! Put that hot mamma in YOUR little hot car and i can totally see why you are stopping traffic. I put the two pics from the mirror up next to each other. The change is dramatic girl! i am so impressed with what you've accomplished!

Nat! WOW :cool: I can totally see the difference in you arms... your BACK especially... look at the change in your posture! That booty is still fabulous even though it is TOTALLY shrinking... it is gonna still be a damn nice one even at goal! i am totally jealous of THAT. You are such a tinier version of the first picture!! Oh, and that baby boy of yours is just as cute as a button too! congrats girl. You are kicking asses and taking names!

Steph! WOW girl... BIG change since the last pics! You are shrinking away too! I am so impressed! I see why you are fitting into the girls clothes. you look years younger too! I can't believe the difference. You can totally see the effort you are putting in.

Booboo - my work server won't let me see your pics yet. So, i will comment on them when i get home. I am totally wanting to see what they look like though!

[VABandster 0]

Ladies!!! You all look FABULOUS!!!! I see the transformations in you....but am really having a hard time seeing it in myself, despite people commenting lately on how good I look! What is wrong w/me!? Some days I feel good about the fact that I actually have a collarbone again, but other days, I look at the wiggle under my arms and just think "GROSS...I still have so far to go!" UGH....

Sweet....I'm sooo jealous of your travels!!! What I wouldn't give to be able to plan some trips right now! But alas, I need to find a job so I can pay for that! :cool:

Steph...awesome about the peacoat! I haven't put my winter coat on yet, but I hope I'm swimming in it! You're lookin HOT girl!

So a year ago....i was a self pay so I think I was in the process of getting my HELOC so I could pay for it! I was also lethargic and eating up a storm. I feel so much better moving around now than I did then!

So tomorrow I have a 2nd interview for a job....keep your fingers crossed!

[StephC 0]

I don't know if I brought this up before but do you notice that now that you have lost a lot of weight that people seem to notice more now then before? For instance, when I lost the first 20 lbs no one noticed, the next 20 lbs, people were noticing but couldn't quite put their finger on it, new haircut, outfit... other then those who knew about the band. But now these last 5 lbs I have more people noticing then ever before. I wonder if maybe I've went from looking fat to looking normal and suddenly they notice. Although these last 5 lbs have been alot harder to get off I've had alot more people notice them. Then again I think its probably bc I'm wearing clothes that actually fit me instead of clothes that were hanging on me.

And speaking of clothes... I HAVE NONE!!

I'm such a tightwad - going to that shower yesterday, I ended up wearing jeans and a sweater bc nothing fits. OR I had a cute outfit on that my neice gave me and didnt' have shoes to go with it - grrrrrr its so irritating. I have a pile of clothes to hang up bc nothing fit, then I think why should I even bother, I should just throw them all in a bag and give to the goodwill. Then I'd really be SOL bc I'd really have nothing to wear. And like I said I'm such a tightwad, I don't want to buy more clothes when I KNOW I'm going to lose more weight - who woulda thunk it - Steph without a smaller size in the closet?

[Boo Boo Kitty 3]

VA--GOOD LUCK! Sending you new job vibes! ~~~~~

Steph--new eye pic?? lol...it is ok to be a tightwad, you can steal your daughter's clothes! LOL...

[Nathalie 4]

BooBooKitty!? HOLY MACKEREL! I hope this doesn't sound mean, but your old pic looks like Gweneth Paltrow in that movie Shallow Hal. You look so fricking good now! You are really really just working your band, girl?

Steph - I can totally see a huge difference in your before/after pics! You are looking GOOD woman! Nay, GREAT! No one is saying anything to me about losing weight. I'm sure enough people have noticed, but it's going to take another 20 pounds before anyone comments, I'm sure. At that point I'll be 202 and going to work in a damn bikini! (HA!) Should be in a sz 14 by then.

Kaydoll - I saw your progress pictures! You look phenomenal, too! Your posture has changed too! You almost looked like you were tooting your booty out in the "before" pics! (So do I, so I need not to giggle) Keep up the great work, girlfriend! Are you still running?

VaB - I have the same thing. Sometimes I feel super foxy, and other days I feel super dumpy. You have got to give yourself positive strokes, tell yourself how good you feel and how good you look, even if you don't believe it. Soon your mind will catch up to your mouth. You can do it!

B'man - thanks for the compliment. I really can't see it in my upper body, but I love how my hips are going in. I can definitely see the "shelf" on my booty going away, too! And you're in a M/L top - what were you in before? You look sooooo good!

I'm so proud of us all! We are doing so well! I uploaded my official "BEFORE" pic. It is sooo horrid looking. I was fatfatfat, drunk, laughing hysterically and touching 312lbs in August 2004.

I also uploaded a pic of me in the jeans from yesterday coupled with a size 16 pair of slacks today. I look about 15 pounds lighter! The black pants totally fit. It's amazing how much difference the clothes can make. Not sure if I like that blouse though.

Can I lose 22 lbs in 6 weeks? Cuz ummm, I made a bet with someone that I'd be 200 lbs by T'gvg. Lord have mercy. I'll have to put myself on the Karen Carpenter diet for the next few weeks if I want to make it. Eating egg whites and raw baby spinach and washing it down with liquid laxatives. (laughing)

I need a new winter coat. The big one is too big to even try to make it all winter. I'll try Burlington Coat Factory this weekend. Something cheaper.

I'm rambling...

Nathalie

[Nathalie 4]

Know what else I was thinking? (I know, I am totally in my own head tonight)

You know how much weight you've lost, right? I'm almost 80 (!!!) pounds down. Imagine having to carry the amount of weight you've lost in a backpack all day. I'd be walking around with an 80 pound pack on my back. Do you know how MAD I'd be? I'm mad having to carry my 35 pound kid up a flight of stairs.

How did we carry all that weight around with us for so long?

Keep rockin it, girls.