Lissa

You all need to take your measurements NOW and then compare them during stalls. I walked out of my first pair of pants during my first stall. The pants fit one day and then fell off me the next day, even though the scale stayed the same. You really can't "break" a stall unless you're stalled because you're eating too much. Basically, our bodies are adjusting to the changes we've made. When we stop eating so much and start adding hydration, the body says "Whoa!" and tries to hold onto the weight because it thinks we are in a famine of some kind. Once the body metabolism resets itself, you will drop weight, and usually dramatically. Those stalls are when I lose sizes and inches, always. I'm learning not to dread stalls but to look for the NSVs (non scale victories) during them.

Great job!! You're truly rocking that sleeve!!

PDXMan, I think you may have inadvertently answered a question for me that I didn't know I had. I've changed up my workouts (again) in the last two weeks and been eating more than normal. I've been actually hungry and it has worried me. But, while I haven't dropped pounds, I'm shrinking again. I had, in passing, wondered if I was stalled, but now I think that I'm actually in a muscle building phase again and my body is needing the extra Protein for muscle building. I think I need to raise my protein goal for a bit. I have been concentrating super hard on abdominal exercises (along with the other stuff) because I have a plastic surgery consult this month and I'm trying to see what I can accomplish before then.

Good luck! I'm totally decaf now because the caffein addiction was SO hard to break pre-op!

I started doing 10 reps of arm exercises with 2 pound weights a few days after surgery. I firmly believe in low weight, high reps to reshape my body. My arms, back and thighs look great and I'm getting good waist definition and my butt has definitely reshaped itself. Now I do half the weight machines at my gym every day, plus 30 minutes of cardio. I keep changing it up, but the core muscles ALWAYS get worked at least 3 days a week. I also walk stairs and do circuit training a few days a week. So far, so good... and I'm not at my personal goal yet, although my WLS surgeon says that I've come as far as possible without surgery. I'm keeping my plastics consult later this month, but I'm also still working hard on sculpting and reshaping.

I don't do lunges or squats. I do tons of elliptical and recumbent bike because of bad knees. I think my tush and legs are shaping up well... and I even took a picture, but I don't want a butt pic on the net! LOL

You're being selfish if you DON'T have surgery. Your obesity is making it harder for you to do your job as a parent and a wife. Once that weight starts coming off, you'll feel so much better that you won't let your family's crazy comments register. It's time they all learned how to help you a little bit...and you're doing your kids a disservice if you don't make them learn how to take care of themselves. No time like the present for them to learn this lesson. BTW, your husband has the right to say something to you privately, but he does NOT have the right to express his opinion in front of your kids. HIS job is to support you, mentally and emotionally, as well as financially. He needs to support you in front of the kids whether he agrees with you or not. You guys aren't running a democracy...it's a benevolent dictatorship and the kids need to learn that now. Good luck. I'm sure you'll make the right decision, but IMO you should have the surgery now and start that journey to a new, healthier, life.

I was a hard-core cigarette smoker before surgery. Right up until I started the three week pre-op diet. I was frank with my surgeon about it and he didn't test me, but I did quit and my surgery was successful. I was probably the whiniest pre-op diet person ever because I gave up all my addictions at once: diet coke, all caffeine, smokes, food. I really feel sorry for my youngest son because he had to live with me through that!

Rootman, I noticed that recently at the BBQ place! I had to sit six inches forward from the back of the seat. Then I looked around and had to gasp at how many people filled the booth from the seat to the table! That was ME 11 months ago!!!

The only thing close to a banded sleeve that I've heard about is a banded plication. I "think" that involves folding the stomach up, then putting a band around that, but don't quote me on it. Might be a good issue to google, but I wouldn't go for a procedure like that personally.

That's an awesome NSV and an awesome picture... not to mention that those shoes are an NSV in and of themselves!!!

Wonderful!!! I'm so happy for you! It's a great feeling!! Congrats and enjoy!!

Good luck! It's tough to make these decisions, but I hope you'll update us and let us know how you're doing!

Meg, Would you elaborate on your onion jam? Do you use oil to cook the onion down? What kind of onion? I'm loving sauteed onions these days, on everything, and I think this would be delicious and moist to put on almost any kind of meat or bean! Izuri, I started cooking all of this around 6 yesterday evening and I was totally finished, including prep and cleanup by 10. So, for 4 hours of cooking while watching television and reading the board, I got 25-30 my sized meals. I think that's a terrific return on my time! I even hand washed most of my pots and pans, and I only had to have the oven on for a little over an hour for all of that. Robyn, I love your ideas, too! I buy boxes of small freezer bags when I find them on sale and keep a sharpie marker in my kitchen drawer. I love having lots of options for meals and, if the freezer bag is sealed well, I can heat it up in a small pot of boiling Water rather than using the microwave for reheating things. I'm thinking about cooking some dried Beans in the chicken broth and then dividing those up into bags as well. I'm not overly fond of canned beans, but I adore cooked dried beans. Doing things this way gives me a ton more meal options without buying those preservative laden, Pasta rich, frozen dinners. Win, win, win, IMO.

Many years ago, as a single working mother, I learned about something called "Once a Month Cooking". There are tons of websites about it if you're interested. Today I was thinking about what I'm going to eat this week. I guess I'm at goal, but next week is lining up to be crazy work-wise, so I'm going to be doing a lot of running and won't have a lot of time to think about food. I live alone, so stopping to cook a meal doesn't always happen for me and I end up eating lots of Protein bars and cheese. It's getting boring. So, here's my plan for the week. I've cooked sausage and bacon for breakfasts this week. I'll have a piece or two alongside a yogurt/cottage cheese or with an egg. I have a whole chicken cooking in the oven. Once it's done and cooled, I'll pull the meat off the bones and make broth too. The chicken will be used for snacking/meals and some of it will become chicken salad, which I've been craving. About 1/2 a cup is enough for a nice lunch or dinner. I like walnuts and grapes in my chicken salad and I use a tiny bit of ricotta in place of the mayo. I cooked up a small package of cube steak, one of my pre-surgery weaknesses. Since a six piece pkg of cube steak makes 12 servings for me, I'll be dividing this up and labeling it in single serving freezer bags. Cook once and have cube steak many times. Yummy! The servings will be the perfect size to have with a single-serving veggie for a meal. Ricotta Bake is also cooling on my counter right now. I found some loaf pans with paper lids at the store and I made a double recipe of the ricotta bake in one of them. I'll keep that in the fridge for meals and, if it turns out to be too much for one week, I can always freeze portions for later. I guess I'm actually cooking for more than one week, but I think it will be great to have some already prepped food that fits into my diet without having to deal with the preservatives in frozen Entrees. Most of those have more carbs than I like, too. I get my food custom made to MY tastes. Yummy!

I'll be watching this topic, since this appears to be my next step.

You DO look fabulous! Congrats on being able to wear it... and I'm so sorry that beautiful dress will be way too big when you're done!!

I'm sorry you're dealing with this. My best advice is to see a therapist, preferably one who is well versed in your culture. Perhaps tell mommy dearest that you want to "improve" your behavior by seeing someone who can help you deal with "your" issues. A therapist can help you find ways to cope that are acceptable within your cultural background. I grew up with an emotionally and physically abusive mother who was probably schizophrenic, but was never diagnosed. Let THAT person raise children! YIKES! I did run away AND I married very young. It did NOT help with my issues. I finally went to counseling in my 30's, and I sincerely wish I'd gone much earlier. You definitely need to deal with these issues now rather than wait until you're in your 30's. It's difficult to fully develop a sense of yourself without some help with your situation. While you aren't doing anything wrong, you're also not doing anything right as far as healing yourself emotionally. This WILL affect your future relationships, both with a man and with any children you have. Combine this with the issues from rapid weight loss and you really do need a therapist. Good luck! Please let us know that you've found some help. If you have to, lie to your mother about why you want/need therapy, but please get the therapy!

I had/have RA in my knees. Pre-op, they hurt constantly to the point that I sometimes needed a cane just to walk around. Right after surgery my knees hurt REALLY bad from just walking, but I haven't had any pain from them in months. I didn't even realize that the pain was gone until I saw this post. If you do buy a knee brace, don't spend a lot of money on it. You're not going to need it for long, I bet! I've finally quit running into walls as well. My center of balance is finally coming back!!

Thanks, ladies! I was leaning towards thinking she is immature and bi*#$y, but she's the second defector in the last few months. Isn't it strange that they get insecure and act dumb, yet I'm the one who is mean, nasty and stupid. @@ It's good to know I'm not the only one who thinks this petty stuff is just dumb. I'm seeing signs that one more "good friend" is going to follow this same pattern and I've tried to head it off at the pass. We'll see if it helps. If not, I'll be working out alone. My workout partner, who has not had WLS, is constantly making comments about how she's having to "work harder for (her) goals" because I have had WLS. As far as I can tell, I sweat just as much on the elliptical as she does and I spend as much, or more, time in the gym than she does. My only advantage is that I'm able to turn down second helpings of things much easier than she can. I need a workout partner who has had WLS!

Drinking the water, especially pre-op, is REhydrating your body. Diet coke and other caffeinated drinks act as diuretics and pull water out of our cells. Once you start drinking the water, you will gain a bit, but it's a temporary gain. Keep up on the water; that's a FANTASTIC change for yourself!!

Green veggies can affect the clot factor in your blood. Since most of us take some kind of blood thinner, at least during surgery, I think the juicing questions should be brought to one's surgeon. Also, be careful if berries are part of the juicing routine. Most berries were prohibited for me post-op until the six month mark due to tough skin and seeds that could possibly get caught in the staple line. Definitely watch the carb counts when juicing, too.

Who is rolling their eyes at you? I put lots of smiley faces in my posts. Are they coming up as eye rolls? <---should be a smiley face

Your weight loss is not slow. It's not super fast like some folks get, but a lot depends on your genetics and how old you are, along with starting BMI. 60 pounds is amazing! You are right on track for YOU! Keep up the great work!

My skin isn't as bad as I thought it would be at 110 pounds lost, although it's still pretty loose in my underarms and stomach area. I've been using Neutrogena Bio Oil generously since surgery on all my skin. It's expensive ($14 a bottle), but I still haven't used a full bottle at 11 months out, maybe half the bottle. I have used the brushing on my arms sporadically since surgery and it seems to have helped. There is a pinned thread on VST that describes the proper way to do the brushing. Whether it helps the skin or not, it feels really good when you stimulate the blood flow! I also lift weights, low weights, high reps.