aroundhky

Yeah Fancy!!

"Byebye" and "Bunny"...............ummmm, are you two getting each other worked up? If not, don't tell me, let me just go with this!

I wouldn't stess about it either. If your diet/nutrition is still in check, I'm sure you're gaining muscle and your body composition has improved. Kettle bells rock!!

Must...........................refrain........from.........................crude.......comment. I hear ya Jersey.....go get your tingle on!

Geeez...I wish! So I guess we both just got that ego boost or those cute glasses of yours need to be adjusted.

Just giving credit where credit is due.....

And WITH glasses!!

Goodness!!! Congrats!

You got this "stomlin"...you can do it! This may be weird and/or mildly obsessive, but I use my lifting routine as an attempt to eat clean. I lift really intensely and bust my butt in the gym several days a week. I really like it when my performance (heavy lift max or max reps on a set hits a new high) or I'm able to move some really heavy weight, or moderate weight many times (reps). Since that is a very motivating factor for me (along with other things), I know that I cannot do these big lifts without the nutrition to back it up. And since I work really hard in the gym and want those big lifts, I don't want to sabotage it by following up a really good lifting session with crappy food like I did pre-surgery. I can now see the tremendous benefits of eating right to support my strength and muscles as opposed to before surgery when I still lifted pretty hard, but pi$$ed away those efforts by eating horribly. Or, I could also look at the lifting as an excuse to eat right and hold myself accountable because I don't want my lifting sessions to be wasted. I've learned since surgery that even though one has to put the work in exercise-wise, at least 75% of my strength and fitness is determined in the kitchen or at the table. So for me, the easy part is the one hour or so at the gym each day, the challenge is the other 23 or so hours in the day. Everytime I want to reach for some chips or a candy bar at a convenience store, I try to think back to my last workout that day or the day before. If I had a really good workout, it's easier to say no to these type foods because they are not helping me get stronger........lean meats, veggies and complex carbs do. I realize you may not lift or do a lot of resistance training, but just sharing that as an example of a way to perhaps motivate you to eat clean. Maybe try different ways to hold yourself accountable or motivate yourself to eat well. Thanks for coming back to the forum! I'm getting close to 2 years now and still learn stuff on here and also like to give back to the newbies as the older veterans did with me when I first started. Wishing you the best!!!

"Jar"......it's great that you want to do all of that! I think that just having that frame of mind will be what motivates you to succeed in all of your aspirations! I know, that sounded a little cheesy, but having confidence in yourself and getting out of your comfort zone is important. Way to go!

Well there ya go............3 kids on top of that....wow! I bet you can be Super Mom and be fit and get your nursing education without killing yourself exercise-wise. Maybe set your priorities (kids, school), then let your exercise follow when it can? To be fairly fit and healthy, there's really no need to leave the gym absolutely exhausted and no need to exercise for more than an hour a day. Some people would maybe say I don't exercise enough since I'm only in the gym about 45-50 minutes (during my lunch break), but I think I do just fine. EXERCISE SMARTER, NOT NECESSARILY LONGER OR HARDER. On the slow carbs, you need those for maximum recovery. Find a few complex carbs that you like and make sure to eat some with your lean protein. For me, I stick with oats, lots of broccoli, quinoa, spinach and just a few sweet potatoes or brown rice. Everyone has differing and variable sensitivities to carbs, just gauge yours by being in tuned with your body and see how much and which kinds help you recover better. The simple ("white") carbs are really not what you want. Not sure if you have a lot of these or not. The complex carbs digest slowly and keep insulin levels fairly steady. The simple carbs (sugar, flour, etc) can spike it and then cause you to crash and feel exhausted. So try to stick with the slow carbs and see how you do with them?? Good luck!!

"Jar".........I commend you on your attempts to do all of that......sounds like it could be quite overwhelming. Try not to underestimate what mental/emotional stress can do physically to a body....in addition to all of the physical goals you are trying to accomplish with all of the exercise. Since you're in nursing school, you probably already have a bit of an idea about this already. Do you think maybe you're doing too much? How long are your exercise sessions? If your blood work looks good and you're getting in your protein, along with some complex carbs, there may not be much you can do other than cut back on some of what you're doing. Is there any other information that we need to know? From what you've told us, it may just be a matter of doing too much......?

Congrats on the loss so far! I'm sure you'll be more than satisfied with the sleeve regardless of the rate you lose weight....just keep doing what you're supposed to.........and you'll be glad you did!

I hear ya Mike! Congrats!

You're too nice "Should".......but thanks! I just hope I'm not as repulsive as I was a few years ago.

You should be happy........that's a lot of weight lost! Congrats on your progress!

That's an impressive amount of weight to lose on pre-op.....wow! Great job!

Thanks Zen and Michigan! That late push towards hitting the goal weight this summer was a real humbling experience. My sleeve and normal eating pattern wants to keep me in the mid 220's and just getting to 215 was a bit tougher than I had expected. Being hungry seemingly all the time, especially at night and really cutting back those calories wasn't the most pleasant experience for me. But I got there, and now back to eating healthy more often and a little less hunger.

Update....Well I hit my goal weight (215) a few weeks ago, but that didn't last long. I'm already back up to 219.....but some of that is water weight since I started back on creatine. A well hydrated muscle gives me that extra rep on each set and extra set at each lift, so it's worth it to me. Also upped my cals slightly, by 300 or so a day. I felt a little weak after hitting my goal and really restricting my calories for a couple of months to get there. So I think the low 220's is my comfy place. I know years (hopefully decades) down the road as my metabolism slows further, the 220's will be hard to maintain.

Great progress, congrats!

Congrats and welcome! I think you'll be glad you took this step!

Good point about those energy or protein bars. I remember about a year ago I tried them and it just made my cravings worse as well. I could eat 3-4 of the small ones at a time. And I think it was because of the sugar in them. I've noticed the more I am able to avoid bad carbs and sugar, the easier it is to stay on the wagon and I don't crave them as much. Kind of like I did on my pre-op diet...the first couple days were tough, after that, it was pretty smooth sailing. BABE....something to think about and maybe try going cold turkey on the bad carbs for a few days and see if the cravings go away. Or the fasting like "gamergirl" mentioned.

Congrats Roffle!!

Way to go ShrinkingMama!!

This video is only mildly related to this topic and refers to the guys more than the women, but Butter's post made me laugh and inspired me to post this. I've got to admit I've been on the wrong side of a few of these exercises as well, I'm just fortunate to not have it on video. At least these people were trying, but they are still funny/painful to watch. The dude at :40 on the treadmill really cracked me up. The guy at :17......I did that pre-op.