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As always, I have made my neighbors wonder how I ever got out of the mental institute. At least this time, I didn't flash some poor, unexpecting man my boobs...though he really did seem to enjoy that. No, today I did that thing that we all do sometimes when we are working out. I forgot I was in public. Not only was I in public, it was 7am and there were TONS of people out walking (their dogs or themselves). Before I went on my 2mile walk (yes, two miles...thank you...thank you...thank you...you can hold your applause now LOL) I decided to add some old CDs that I had found to my phone so that I would have something different to listen to as I walked. Great idea right? This would help motivate me, get me moving a little faster, and help keep me walking more than I have been. Well, that's all true. EXCEPT one thing....I forgot how much I enjoyed some of these tunes. So, not only was I singing along as I walked (I tried to stop when I saw someone coming), I was also doing that upper body dance thing with my arms....you know the one right? It's when you start moving your arms and bobbing up and down?! But, that wasn't the worst part, the worst was when I decided to get my legs involved. Apparently, I didn't think putting one foot in front of the other was good enough. Nope, I thought it would be neat to do a little side step ever once and a while....as well as some some back and forth foot work. This wouldn't have been too bad except I got caught BIG time. Not just by the person in front in me walking their dog, but also by the man driving behind me. I have no idea how long either one was there. The BEST part of the whole thing was watching the man walking directly toward me get the look on his face as to say, "what is wrong with her" and ever so slowly cross the road for no other reason to get away from me. And yes, I made sure to say, "Hello" as I passed. I thought about stopping and petting the dog, but I didn't want to be sprayed with mace. LOL After being caught twice in a matter of seconds, I decided that I should stop my dancing and focus on walking. That was all well and good until "Brown Eyed Girl" came on. Something took over and I was unable to control myself. The words came pouring out of my mouth and my arms and shoulders started going. That is until I noticed an older woman walking her dog and another man attempting to control his dog. It was barking and attempting to break away in an attempt to get to me...and it didn't appear that he wanted to give me lovings. Apparently dogs are not very fond of my singing ability. Damn, and I was planing on auditioning for the Voice next year....LOL. Now that I am home, safe and sound. I have decided that going for my walk in the morning is not the best idea. I think I will leave the walking to the afternoon or evening when there are less people out there to scare. I mean come on, I've got to maintain some type of normalcy....or at least pretend to. Now excuse me as I go turn up Price and dance around the house like the Dancing Queen I (think) am.

Well, I am home from the hospital, yay! (I got to leave day 2) The staff and hospital were really wonderful but like Dorothy said, "There's no place like home". I am so thankful for my family and friends being so supportive. It is so surreal now, if it wasn't for the pain I wouldn't be able to tell I had it done. I say that because I haven't had to eat anything, so I don't realize I am taking in less to eat. Towards the end of the liquid diet I was so sick of the same thing I would not eat because the thought made me depressed or nauseous. So I still am on the liquid diet and looking forward to getting off it. I abhor vomiting so I have been really cautious as far as my intake of 4oz per hour. As far as the pre-op liquid diet I did cave on day 10 and had 2oz of chicken and 6 chicken nuggets, I just couldn't take it anymore. I have no regrets because the chicken was fabulous but I did force myself to vomit some of it up because I was worried about the food being inside me so close to my surgery. I don't reccommend my behavior to any one but I wanted to be honest. I am experiencing some pain but nothing my pain meds don't take care of. What truly amazed me was right after surgery my high blood pressure was gone. I was convinenced that they were giving me iv meds for it but no they weren't. I have had high blood pressure since I was 19 or 20 years old and now it just up and left me. It's just miraculous. I think it is going to take some time to adjust to everything. I did lose 13 pounds from the liquid diet so that is a plus. The one fear that has its grip into me is that I won't lose the weight. What if I did all this and don't lose any weight? That thought alone just gives me the creeps! Well, good luck to all of you on your journey. God bless us all!

and THAT is what the journey is about! Weight loss isn't a magic wand or a magic pill. It doesn't mean all of the sudden you will feel love or be "in the club" . . . that's why sometimes weight loss is so slow. There is so much that we need to catch up with and learn from. Don't be embarrassed anymore on what you weighed because you took steps to change it. Work on those insecurities because 140 lbs lost (I think that's your goal right)... you are gonna ROCK! And obviously you are already well loved. Congratulations sweetie, u r rocking this, continue on and enjoy the journey!

I agree with these good folks. Educate yourself. Research the chances of actual death (as opposed to the cheap imitation kind) from the surgery. Honestly, the chances are very, very low. On the other hand, the chances are very, very high that you will be healthier, be able to really walk, play with your son, go to school for meetings without embarassing him (or yourself) etc, etc, etc. There's a good like waiting for you. Also, if you currently have high blood pressure or diabetes, chances are very good that those conditions will get lots better. I can tell you that my aching knees are much, much better, too. It feels so good to be able to walk like a regular person!!! That sounds silly, but you will see. I hope. Good luck! You are doing it for yourself and for your family, too.

I also felt trapped on the sofa playing games and watching t.v too tired to move after work-- and in 7 weeks I remember what it was like to live again. I actually ran up and down the steps a few times because I forgot something... SHOCKER! (You know the whole- I'll get it later or when I go up to bed) Do it-- not only will you not die-- you'll finally LIVE again!

omg love this post! sounds like I am reading about myself!! Freaks me out that skinny ppl say.."oh why don´t you just exercise and eat less"... grrrrr I cant keep anything a secret either! Good luck with your weight loss! when is your surgery? I am 10 days post op and feeling nearly normal again!

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On my way to my 1 week follow up, even though my surgery was actually last Friday. I have to say that I've got some seriously LOW energy. Since I sit on my booty all day at work, I'm glad I took most of this week off. I'm supposed to go back to work tomorrow, but think I will work from home. I just don't think I've got enough energy to get moving. I'm still not sleeping well because, wouldn't you know it, my siatic (sp?) nerve is starting to bug me when I go to sleep. Great timing for it to act up, huh? It makes for a heckuva sleepless night. I also don't think, never mind, I know I'm not getting enough protein in me. I've been feeling sooo full although I'm barely eating. I think I must be drinking too quickly. Trying to watch myself today because I start on soft foods. So far today, I've had 4 oz of a protein drink, and 1 oz of vanilla greek yogurt (with a dash of cinncamon for flavor). I'm waiting aobut 45 minutes before drinking anything again, but this schedule is tough. I planning ahead and bringing some of my snacks/meals with my 1st nutrition class & follow up apt so I don't miss out on anything (1oz of egg beaters & 1 oz of refried beans & something to drink). I know I've been losing weight because I've checked the scale. However, I try to be realistic because anyone would lose weight following a liquid diet. I don't expect miracles, but am thankful that I'm going in the right direction I still need to learn what my body is saying in the way of hunger vs the full feeling. The last few days it's always felt "full" which is insane beacuse I'm not eating much of anything. Nonetheless, today's nutrition class should be informative, and I look forward to it. Gonna go have my crystal light now. I'm thirsty.

Hello! Well, I don't blog as much as I should or would like to. Life is just super busy and super wonderful! I am finally under 200 lbs (this morning the scale said 197!!!). I know this sounds like a lot to many, but I am thrilled. I haven't weighed under 200 for my entire adult life. Starting out at my heaviest at 270...it is a HUMONGOUS change! I really feel great. I have tons of energy. I used to say I wasn't a night person, but...I just might be now. Before VSG, I could go to bed at 8pm and wanted to. Nowadays, I look at the clock and can't believe it is already 11pm and I'm still up and going! I do try to get to bed by 11-11:30pm though. I do like my sleep and need it for health and to rest, due to the great workouts I've been doing. I work out 6-7 days a week. I do something different most every day. Here is a sample of what I have planned for this week's workouts: Monday (today): 1 hr Spinning class and 1 hr Yoga class, after spinning Tuesday: 1 hr Medicine Ball workout; 1 hr power walk Wednesday: 1 hr Outdoor Bootcamp Thursday: either 1 hr Spinning class or 1 hr Bootcamp indoor Friday: 1 hr Spinning class (early morning); 90 min Yoga (lunch) Saturday: Bicycle Ride - 25miles Sunday: Hiking - 8-10 miles I've been following a really healthy plant based diet, 90% of the time, along with doing some yummy green juicing. The other 10% of my diet has included some dairy (greek yogurt and some cheese) and some seafood and a bit of chicken (I just can't turn down a few bites of my husband's amazing jerk chicken). The weight is coming off, whoop whoop, but it has slowed. Now 8 months post-op, I definitely can eat more now than I have been post-op. So, I do have to watch most everything I put in my mouth. I just eat real healthy - no or very minimal processed food, dairy, animal products. In retrospect, it is amazing how much food I used to eat. More amazing is how little food I eat now, need to survive and to loose weight. I have a follow-up appt in September with my doc. At that point I will post before and after photos. Live is GOOD! One Love.