Leaderboard

so i weighted myself to see how much damage this stress has done along with me being off my game. first let me say i went to the gym and saw my personal trainer and ran a mile in a half after. then i came home took a shower got on the scale and to my surprise i had lost weight im down to 210 and i can wear a size 12 jeans. i didnt do as bad as i thought i did.

Hopefully the fact that the scale moved 2 weeks in a row means that the stall is over! It didn't move much, at least not compared to the first month but it's going down. So whatever speed it chooses to move is fine with me! I have been trying very hard to listen to my body and eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full. Right now that's about 800-900 calories a day and I'm feeling really good. I have good energy and feel healthy! And my libido is in full swing (Hubby is loving the current hormones...LOL) I am trying to bump up my intentional exercise. I have plantar facietis so when I walk too much I am in alot of pain, so I'm trying to rotate between walking and riding my bike. (Just to give you a visual, I have a super fun green cruiser bike with big flowers and and a basket!!). Monday I rode 6 miles AND took my dog on a short walk (she's a sausage dog with short legs so she doesn't walk far Gonna shoot for the same thing today. I'm trying to figure out the whole gym thing. I want to join one mainly so I can swim but haven't decided if I can justify the money. Then I could alternate between walking, swimming and biking...Hey wait, that's almost like a triathalon...right??? Whoo-hoo Go Me!!! Heaviest Weight: 281 3/6/13 Surgery: 257 (-24) 3/13/13: 251 (-6) 3/20/13: 245 (-6) 3/28/13: 238 (-7) 4/3/13: 238 (-0) FIRST MONTH -19# 4/10/13: 237 (-1) 4/17/13: 235 (-2)

Seriously??? Did that happen to ME?? Three co-workers called me skinny yesterday. I have NEVER, and I mean NEVER, EVER, EVER been called skinny in my entire life. I am still trying to process the new me. It has taken some adjustments, especially trying to shop for clothes. I don't know what size to buy anymore---I find myself gravitating naturally toward the plus sizes. I still feel like and see myself as the fat girl, and it shocks the heck out of me to see a picture of myself. This is so bizarre, but totally bizarre in a wonderful, surreal way. I decided to have the sleeve for better health, and before the surgery, being thinner was not the biggest motivation for me. I have never been thin, and I had no plans or big ideas about what I would look like after losing weight; I just wanted to be healthy. I thought I was so prepared emotionally and mentally, but I just can't comprehend this new person I see in the mirror. I am very grateful that the weight is coming off, and having met my goal of being healthy has been great. But, I don't know how to deal with all of the attention I am getting. Part of me, of course, likes to hear the compliments. But, a great part of me is kind of embarrassed, shy, and feeling a bit overwhelmed with the questions: how are you doing this, give me some pointers, show me what you are doing, etc. Until I saw a recent picture of myself and compared it to my before picture, I just didn't realize the change in my body---I look in the mirror every day, so I don't see the changes as much. I have not shared how I am losing weight with a lot of people, so the questions of how I am losing weight is a bit difficult for me to answer. My standard answer on how I am losing weight is HARD WORK! I sometimes feel deceitful when people ask me how I am losing weight, but hard work it is!! I tell them I am on a high protein, low carb diet, and that I exercise at least 4 times a week. And that is the absolute truth! Does anyone else feel bad for not sharing the whole story when people ask you how you are losing weight?

I have 5 days until my surgery!!!!! Im so anxious to have it done already...it feels as though this process has been sooo long!! I have finally realized something...I am on my liquid diet btw..yesterday I was talking to my fiancé and I asked him if I could cheat just a little on the diet...and he told me something that I now hear in my head every time I want to cheat.."You have cheated your whole life, its time to buckle down cause things are changing!!" Im blessed to have such a wonderful man in my life who supports my every move. I heard him and I thought to myself...he's so right, I have ate pizza at late hours with extra cheese, extra pepperoni, I have eaten out for days eating junk and greasy food, I drank pop whenever I wanted to and never thought about the consciences...but now is my chance to move forward to grow out of that to help myself in becoming the better ME I can be for my Fiancé and most of all for my DAUGHTER!! I don't want her to have to see me as a diabetic or with high blood pressure and have to worry about me taking pills or having to be on insulin..i want her to know me as active and healthy I want to chase her around and take her for walks and not feel out of breath because I jogged a little..These next 5 days cant come any faster!! I am so ready to start my Journey with the lapband

My surgery is officially tomorrow and I got to meet with the surgeon today. He was really nice and the only thing im worried about is if I stuck to the atkins diet well enough to shrink my liver......I had a few slips and im most stressed about that. If he gets in there and cannot get to my stomach I will be devastated! Im not gonna think about the negative though, and im gonna just enjoy the process and know that im doing the right thing for myself! I got to meet other people today getting surgery this week and that was encouraging. Wish me luck, cannot believe its tomorrow already!!!

Since this is my first entry, I will introduce myself. My name is Diane and I am married to a wonderful man named David who is also my pastor. I have 4 gorgeous children. My oldest son is 26 and married. They have given me the greatest gifts, GRANDCHILDREN! My grandchildren are 3 years old and twins who are 9 months old. They are such a blessing. My oldest daughter is 19 and is about to begin her 2nd year of college. She is beautiful and smart and is preparing to be a teacher. My youngest son will be attending college in the fall and His plans are to also become a teacher. He is probably the funniest guy around and can melt my heart in an instant! My youngest daughter is 16 and gorgeous. She loves sports and is a sophomore in High School. My children are all very active in church as well as our community. I am blessed beyond anything I could have ever imagined! I began my Weight Loss Surgery journey in 2010. I worked for months trying to obtain a 5 year history. Like many who are overweight, I just didn't go to the Dr. It seemed that regardless of my symptoms, it was always linked to being overweight so I found it easier not to go. I do not recommend this to anyone! I began my journey with the nutritionist. I had to have a 6 month medically supervised weight loss and did this for 4 consecutive months. At my 5 month visit, my mother had an emergency with her heart and I rescheduled my visit. I wasn't able to keep the rescheduled visit either. I made an appointment for 2 weeks later than the original visit and my nutritionist informed me that I would have to begin the process all over. I can't begin to tell you how much fun that was! In the process of beginning again, my insurance changed and my new insurance would not approve WLS. I was devastated. I couldn't believe that God would bring me this far and not make a way. I tried not to give up but didn't really follow the plans set up by my nutritionist. In 2012, I got new insurance. This one would approve my surgery. My new insurance required a series of visits at the gym along with some other procedures. I worked diligently to get all of those things done. In January of 2013, I was done.. Or thought I was done! I went for my pre-op class, had a date set for Feb. Much to my dismay, I received a call from the insurance lady at my Dr and was told that I would have to do the 6 months medically supervised diet all over again because my insurance required it all be done in the same year. My faith in God really kept me from giving up through all of these hurdles! The day I received that call that I would have to begin again, I began to pray. I prayed and prayed and prayed! I don't think I slept through the night because I kept praying. At 9 am the next morning, the insurance lady called and said that my insurance's medical director had called her and said they had decided to go ahead and approve me. PRAYER CHANGES THINGS!!!! I had Gastric Sleeve surgery the morning of March 8th. I was nervous as anyone would be but had a peace about it because I knew that God had paved the way for me to receive this tool! Surgery went better than expected! I was in very minimal pain. I was up walking within a few hours of surgery. I went home at noon the next day and never had to take pain meds. I was a little sore, but nothing unbearable. I have learned so many things throughout this journey and will be blogging here to share them, in case anyone can learn from my discoveries and mistakes! I'm an open book, so I don't mind anyone asking questions!

So I had a rough weekend. I got to add soft food to my diet on Friday. One would think that after three weeks of not eating any "real" food that it would be great, and it was! I got up on Saturday and I was up a pound from where I was Friday morning. Now, I know that my body is saying "Hey! I finally got some food, I need to hang on to it cause I don't know when I'll get the next round," and that is why the scales haven't been really nice this weekend. I still am bouncing around the same stupid half pound since Friday and its just frustrating. In my "previous life" I would have been irritated and just eaten something that I shouldn't have to justify the increase on the scales. Now, I didn't do anything or eat anything I shouldn't have but, boy, did I have a battle with head hunger all weekend. One of my favorite places to eat used to be Moe's, my husband has never really cared for it and I think that we have eaten there together just once in the past 5 years. Yesterday I had to run across town and what does he ask me to bring him back for supper?? MOE'S!! i couldn't believe it and it just plain made me mad when I had to go in there and order his burrito. I wanted one so bad but instead, I ordered his just like he asked (with absolutely nothing that could be considered healthy on it) and brought it home to him. I fixed my supper and was satisfied with it. My dad used to say that it didn't matter if you got full off of black eyed peas or steak and potatoes either way you were still full. That is very true, steak and potatoes just taste much better, as would have Moe's last night. Anyway, I needed something to take my mind off of the negative and I figured I'd list the NSV's that I could think of to lift my spirits a little 1. I can get my wedding rings on again, I haven't been able to wear them individually since last June and it has probably been more than a year since I have been able to get both of them on at the same time. 2. I already have a pair of pants that are too big and I can no longer wear (at least my husband refuses to be seen in public with me if I do!) 3. Its easier to shave my arm pits cause they aren't so full. 4. I can bend over to paint my own toe nails again! 5. The seatbelt in my husbands truck doesn't lock just because I'm trying to put it on and pulled it out a little too far anymore. I can actually bend down and pick my purse up from the floorboard and it doesn't lock! 6. I can put on and tie my shoes with almost no effort. 7. I have bad breath. (Okay so maybe that one isn't so exciting but apparently when you are breaking down fat you get ketosis which causes halitosis aka bad breath. I must be doing good breaking it down cause even my 5 year old tells me my breath is stinky! LOL!) I know there are more but these are all I can think of right now. I'm going to keep working at it and keep working my tool. I know that I did the right thing and I know that I'll be able to eat more normally again some day. I did this for my kids and they are going to have a more amazing mom because of it.

I called the hosp back and completed my registration. My Endoscopy is done and just awaiting biopsy results. I told 2 more people about the surgery I'm having. I guess im ready?! I've Been reading post about training yourself to chew food slowly and not guzzle water. I feel like this may be the hardest part. I'm almost 55 and am going to have to re-train myself on how to eat. I'm already looking ahead to a couple of post op events I'll be at nd trying to figure out what I'll eat and if I'll feel strange going out to dinner and not ordering anything? Well be in Seattle with our daughter nd her family when they come home from Africa as missionaries. I'll only be 5 weeks post op. there will be eating out, and a Mariners baseball game.. I've just finished 2 weeks of not writing down what I eat, or going to the gym..it's like I've had a bit of grieving or depression over my upcoming surgery and changes I'm going to have to make. I had lost 12 pounds in the past 2 months and then gained 4 pounds after eating a "normal" amount of food on Easter Sunday. The 4 pounds turned into 6 and i just gave up trying. My husband has been doing a 12 week Golds Gym challenge and as lost almost 40 pounds. He now weighs less than me for the first time in our 36 marriage. I AM very proud of him, but burning with jealous rage at the same time. He had planned on doing the sleeve also, but was in the middle of this challenge. He just needs labs, endoscopy and surgical clearance. I didn't want to wait for him to finish the challenge, so am proceeding without him. I'm back on track the past few days and have lost 2 of the 6 pounds. I'm so excited for this surgery. I have such issues with being hungry. I hope I'm not one of the few who still struggle with that post op. I'm ready for a change. I'm ready to get from Here to There....

Because that is where I am spending my day. My daughter's middle school is having a Narnia celebration and I have volunteered to be a photographer. I think I will hide some jerky in my camera bag, I hope Aslan doesn't mind. My daughter and I ready for a day in Narnia.

I think this is as good a place as any to start writing down the NSV as I notice them. I am only 3 weeks out and I have already noticed a few. 1. I flew to my sisters wedding in CO and I was perfectly comfortable in the plane seat. I have never really needed a seat belt extender but I have definitely been very uncomfortable in the seat with the seatbelt tight around me. This time I had some play in the seat belt and could comfortably sit for the whole trip not feeling like I was packed into the seat. 2. At my sisters wedding I danced! My uncle told me it was the first time he had seen me letting go and having fun in the 20 years he's known me. Now whether that's from the weight loss or my new hubby of 2 years, who knows? Doesn't really matter...what matters is I danced!! 3. Apparently I have totally stopped snoring! I meantioned to my husband that I will probably stop snoring and he said, "Oh you haven't snored the past few nights." I guess he didn't realize he was supposed to alert me to this stuff...LOL 4. On Thursday I went to my doctor appt and while we were sitting there waiting I looked down and realized I had sat down and crossed my legs....Like REALLY crossed my legs like a lady!! And I didn't even realize it! That's all I've noticed so far, but I'm really trying to pay attention since I think some of the NSV just slip past unnoticed. But I know when I hit those stall weeks that I will need to be able to look back and see all the things that have nothing to do with the scale.