Jim1967

My Wife and I (both banded) are hosting for 13. Making the traditional meal and we will each have our little plate of what we want and be done. It is all about putting on a good spread for the family. Eating is just part of living now!!

Had my tonsils removed when I was about 6 and it was all uphill from there. LOL

Hi All, Sorry I've been MIA as well. Happy belated birthday to my friend @☠carolinagirl☠. Hope you all have a wonderful turkey day. Remember friends we're not on diets....if you want it then have it but have it in moderation. You can always have more later. 10 days away from my trip to Disney. Getting excited!!

Cold is a real problem. I am freezing and it is only in the 30's. This is going to be such a long winter and it hasn't even started....well here anyway. End of last winter I had a rough go with the cold and that was somewhere around 60lbs ago. I hate to be a complainer but I am legit cold. I rarely used to wear long sleeves until now. I wear pajamas and a sweatshirt to bed.

I weighed a 150lbs in 5th grade. I remember it well because I was teased pretty good about it in gym class when they lined us up and weighed us all. I am 15lbs shy of that weight right now. Not bad for a 47 year old guy who's spent his entire life being the fat kid to the fat guy. I would do this again in a heartbeat 10 times over.

@@Bandista @@dylanmiles23 We should plan coffee or tea one of these days. Preferably either before or after old man winter shows off his nasty attitude. We all live in proximity of one another....sorta

Nothing wrong with that Andy just as long as you don't let it ruin your day if the numbers are not what you expect or want. I learned that the hard way. I had some rough days thanks to that little contraption.

I weigh myself daily only for the sake of accountability. I don't worry so much about an official weight but more of knowing where I am at all the times and making sure I am not trending too much in the wrong direction. After losing 170lbs by dieting and then gaining back over the course of 10 years 270lbs I am doing everything in my power to make sure I never make that mistake again. I am in the scariest phase (for me) which is maintenance. I am afraid if I let my guard down for to long it will come back and bite me in butt. My goal now is to never weigh 200+lbs again.

Hi All, It is amazing how fast the time has flown this year. It is hard to believe it has almost been a year since my 4 day weekend trip to NYC. Kelli and I had so much fun and look forward to going back again soon and who knows maybe meet a few of you. I am 19 days away from the trip I promised myself 3 years ago if I were to ever make goal. Sometimes it still doesn't seem real to me. In 2011 I was nearly 500lbs and in a very dark place. I will never forget that chapter of my life and will use those memories to ensure I never go there again. I feel like I am in a dream at times and now in 19 days I am going to where dreams are made (WDW) and I am going to go on every single ride!! I hope you are all doing well and dropping/maintaining as well as enjoying life

John Pinette R.I.P. He was one funny man and so gracious to his fans.

Offends me in a sense where I don't believe what I am being told nor do I see it when I look in the mirror. I do not see the extremely obese person I once saw but I certainly do not see a skinny man. At 5'6 165lbs my BMI still says I am overweight. At times I get aggravated or maybe annoyed for a better word when I am called or told I am skinny. As someone who has been fat their entire life (even from my earliest memories) the word skinny is not an adjective that has ever been used to describe me. I have actually inadvertently offended a person who called me skinny but disputing the fact and I told them I am still plenty fat. Person said well if you're not skinny then I am obviously extremely fat! This is clearly my hang up not anyone else. I have been pondering for a long time on talking to the Bariatric Psych Counselor at my Center but I have never followed through. At least I recognize that I am having identity issues but as long as it is not affecting my health then so be it.

@@lisacaron Size of your meals are Green = GO : This is what we should be shoot for Yellow = Caution : "Large 10 to 12 inch full plate" is just way too much food and should be in the red in my opinion Red = Stop : "Small/Medium plate of soft food" I would place this in caution (yellow) because while it is soft food at least the portion size is better as opposed to a large 10 to 12 inch full plate.

Is that second row accurate? I would think the yellow and red should be reversed.

Hello Ladies!! Hope you're all having a wonderful Friday

I actually work with a relative of the owners and live local. Great store!

Hi RiskyGirl, Rest assured it can be done. It does take time and you will encounter some frustrating times and maybe even self doubt along the way but the most important thing is not to get too hung up in that and make sure you keep pressing onward.

You know you've had WLS when.... ...You've listened to people b***h at you your whole life about howfat and unhealthy you are. To now about how concerned they are that you've gotten so skinny and you should be monitored by a Doctor to make sure there's not a problem. :angry: sorry I should've posted this in the rant & raves forum....

BTW Nico, You've done amazing. You lost a lot in a short amount of time. So you know how to do this. So what you had a set back. It happens. Use it as a motivator, use it as a lesson. You can do this.

Hi Nico, I agree with what the girls are saying and of course the wrong choices regardless of restriction is going to do you in but let me add this. As you lose weight your stomach will shrink. As your stomach shrinks the band can become loose or less restrictive. I found early in my journey as I lost weight I had to keep getting constant adjustments because as I was taking off weight the band was loosening hence my fatty walled stomach was shrinking. This went on for a while. So while the band will not help you make good food choices it will help you feel full on less food thus giving you a better chance of success of avoiding the crap foods. Just as long as the good food choices always come first that is. Hope that makes sense cause is it did in my head and that could be scary :-) Good Luck, Jim

Congratulations Bandista. You are doing amazing!! Cinder blocks make a great representation of shed-ed pounds. I like that. I still get trapped in the good and bad of eating and I still get a guilty feeling for eating stuff as well. I will go through the McDonald's drive thru once and a great while and get a vanilla cone and then beat myself up over it after having it. I really get bummed out and feel like I derailed myself with a single small cone. LOL Diet mentality kicking my butt still. You're doing great and I am sure you will get there in time. My Doctors never gave me a number or a goal to shoot for so I am also struggling with that. I am quite content where I am I guess but if my body wants to give up a little more then I am OK with that too. Keep up the good work neighbor!

Someone recently asked me for advice or a tip about finding the green zone and struggling with slow weight loss and here is my answer to her.

Thank you and I am very sorry for your loss. It is unfortunate your dad did not have access to the options we have available today but you can use him as your inspiration for life change to ensure you do not go down that same path. I would bet money your dad is looking down on you and is cheering you on tell you to keep going and make the most of your time. 16lbs is exceptional and you are on your way!! Congratulations!

Hi Maria, Thank you for the kind words. My best advice would be to continue working with the your bariatric team. Even if you get embarrassed about lack of weight loss or whatever it might be you need to keep communicating with them and tell them exactly what is going on. Those follow up appointments are extremely important in keeping the process moving forward. They're not there to judge but rather to help but they cannot help without you doing your part and being honest and concise. I have read a lot of posts on this forum about people skipping follow up appointments because they are embarrassed because they've lost no weight. THAT is so counter-productive and the last thing anyone should ever do. They're only digging a bigger hole for themselves. Good Luck, Jim

Thank you Cheryl and it is good to see you.

Everyone has to make up his or her own mind on this but I will say when I get asked about how I lost weight I am always quick to mention WLS. WLS no doubt saved my life and if hearing me talking about it inspires someone else to make that first step then all the better. I give WLS more credit then I give myself because of my past attempts/failures. At the same time... Do I think it is my responsibility to stand on a soapbox and sell it or preach it? Hell NO....I feel awkward enough posting pictures and flashing tickers under my name. I think I see where you are coming from now Kindle and I respect that you admit your initial post was a little "off the cuff". I agree that intentionally misleading people on how one has lost weight is just sad. It is a personal decision one must make to disclose but in my opinion if one can't be truthful then why answer at all. End of the day you're lying to yourself anyway. When I was attending mandatory preop support classes there were people in there making statements that they want the surgery, lose the weight and then move on and forget they had WLS at all. These are the ones today that make me think back and wonder if they were successful or not. Deception is not always about fooling or lying to others. Sometimes it is about coming to terms with your own demons and accepting you needed help.