sarahcc

Yeah I always wondered that myself in the beginning-- but I think there's really something to be said about the progress you make when you don't stress or worry. From my perspective, I just really felt like if I would be willing to count calories, count Protein, and cut out foods that I loved even though they were bad for me... I probably could have accomplished the same weight loss without the surgery. Does that make sense? I just felt like if I was going to go through the process, and all the side effects, etc... that I wanted to live life like a normal person. And now I do. I eat what I want, but I make better choices. And I can get back on track if I gain a couple pounds. I just seized the opportunity to start over, and now I can prevent myself from making the same mistakes over again

Thank you everyone!!!! I actually posted a more recent update to my journey here: http://www.verticals...o-128-pictures/ Here is an updated before/after pic: I'm down about 10lbs more than the lowest ones in the pictures from when I started this original post! Never, ever thought I would get that low (128lbs) and I seem to be hanging there for the last month or so, so I may be close to done losing and into maintaining. As I head into Summer and spend more time outside I am hoping to get down about 5 more pounds so that I can gain and lose that without worrying about it. I appreciate the support and can't tell you how much it has helped me along the way. So much love

I'll keep it short and sweet, I promise Height: 5'1" BEFORE: (left is before, right is after losing the first 40lbs) Weight: 241 Size: 18/20 pants, XXL tops, 40DD bra AFTER: Weight: 138 (up to about 145 in these pics since they're a little outdated) Size: 6 pants, S/M tops, 34C bra I wanted to set a reasonable goal for myself, so I basically just set the goal to lost 100lbs, from 241 to 140. Now that I've gotten past that in only 8 months, I think I'm going to go for 125-130. As a frame of reference, here is a picture of me from about 8-9 years ago when I was in high school: I'm so happy and loving life again. This was truly the best gift I ever could have given myself and I feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to do it. I hope my story inspires others.

The basics Height: 5"1 Highest Weight Tracked: 241 pounds Largest Size: 18/20, XXL, 40D Surgery Date: 4/19/12 Original Goal: 140 pounds Revised Goal: 125 pounds Currently: Weight: 128 pounds Size: 4, S/M, 34C/34D Pictures! Before (left) (right was first 40 pounds gone) Current! Current! I am so excited with life right now, it's hard to believe. Part of me is always waiting for the other shoe to drop but so far it hasn't. Trust me for anyone who thinks they wouldn't be successful... if I can do it, anyone can

Thank you!! I am about 3 pounds away and I suppose I should stop watching food network while eating chicken wings if I want to get those gone

I posted a much bigger response in another reply but THANK YOU! And my biggest advice is to relax and trust the process Also, please be forgiving and allow yourself to eat what you want, when you want, sometimes. My choices consist of about 80-85% discipline and 15-20% what I want, when I want it. I eat ice cream, Cookies, pizza, etc... sometimes. I won't apologize for that. Dieting all my life got me nowhere but obese and extremely depressed and disappointed in myself. A vicious cycle of failure. I wanted a tool to help me control my portions and get me back on track so that I could maintain from a "fresh start". That's exactly what I got. I am committed to my health and my body, but I also can't deprive myself. I don't worry about the scale. Most of the time I weigh myself daily, but I travel a lot for work and will sometimes go weeks without weighing in and I don't lose a moment's sleep over it. You know what the right choices are and you've got tons of resources available for any help you need. What no one can help you with is being GOOD with who you are and what you bring to the table for yourself and others. It's really all about the mindset. I am a firm believer that the sooner you can come to peace with this whole process, the quicker you will see results. There's also a lot of uncontrollables at stake, such as age/genetics etc... but stress to me, was #1. I hope that helps in some small way

So maybe I'm a terrible role model, I'm not sure. But I don't track any of that stuff in any formal way. I go based on how I'm feeling and what I know I've eaten during the day. When I don't get enough protein, I can FEEL it. I also don't keep track of carbs, but I do try to limit myself to fruit/vegetable carbs and a small amount of "dry" carbs as I call them, or things like crackers/tortilla chips, etc... (edited to add: I don't cut out carbs such as rice/pasta/bread etc.. because of any diet plan, per se, but because I just don't like how my stomach and body feel after I eat a lot of those foods. It just doesn't sit well like it used to. Very uncomfortable as opposed to pre-surgery when it felt soooo good to eat a big bowl of pasta!!) As far as calories go, I'm at about 900-1100 per day. I work in an large call center as a supervisor so I'm not in a role people would consider "active" but I do get plenty of walking in, and when the weather permits I do at least a mile walk each day during my lunch hour. I also do regular cardio in the gym, probably 4x weekly on average. Nothing crazy though, which is probably why I haven't toned as well as I'd like to. The weight is gone but the lack of muscle and loose skin serves as a reminder My best advice is to take it easy and be forgiving. If you stress you will only delay the process of letting your body do what it wants to do. Live and learn from days when you mess up. Also, don't compare yourself to me or anyone else. That was one huge mistake I made in the beginning, having unrealistic expectations. Now, I lost 113 pounds in 10 months and I didn't start out as high as some. I think I am in the minority, though. I'm young(ish) and other than being fat, I had no other health issues. When I look at myself now, and before I had kids, it was clear to me that my body never wanted to carry the excess weight. For some, it just hangs on. Maybe due to age, genetics, other health concerns, etc... but for me, it was just the right combination of things to get the weight off SO quickly. BUT - I digress. I give most of the credit to taking a no-stress approach. There were weeks when I gained 4lbs and I was on the brink of breaking down -- how do you gain with what we've had done? In one week? But then it came back off just as quickly, and I realized that it did me no good to worry about it. I can only control so much, and if that is what I do, consistently, then there's nothing else to it. I also don't deprive myself of what I want. Some nights all I want before bed are a couple girl scout Cookies. At 10 pm. With a glass of milk. And you know what? That's exactly what I have. And I don't spend a single minute after that worrying about what the scale is going to say. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. I know that I make the right choices 80-85% of the time. I'm not going to apologize to myself or anyone else for caving every once in a while. It does me no good and only will make me resentful of the process. I went into this promising myself that I would never diet again - I always failed and ALWAYS felt awful about myself. Now I feel great and so so so much more confident in myself. I guess that's all we can really hope for! Sorry, I know that's probably not any answer you were looking for, but I hope it gives some direction and insight nonetheless

Thank you everyone!!! I will reply to the individual questions shortly, I just fell off the grid for a bit with life drama! I appreciate all the compliments and support. It's also worth mentioning that I went down an entire shoe size, from 8 to 7. Apparently even my feet were overweight

I had my surgery 4/19/12, so December 19 was 8-months post-op. I started at 241, and today I weight 138. I am only a few short pounds away from being "normal" weight for my height (5'1" tall) Here are a couple pics, but the full-body ones are about 7 pounds heavier than I weigh now.

Look how far you've already come!! Great job - one huge milestone for me was getting out of the "obese" BMI category and get into the "overweight" one, as weird as that sounds hehe. And it looks like you're almost there with that too, according to your ticker! Congrats on all the success so far

Oh THANK YOU!!! Yeah I hear that I look totally different a lot... never thought it would be such a nice compliment LOL. It probably doesn't help that I colored my hair either. About the hair loss... yeah, I definitely had it. I'll give it to you straight - I was a little freaked out at first. It first started around 4-5 months post-op but by 8 months (a couple weeks ago) I definitely noticed it was coming back in and getting thick again. NOW - full disclosure - I had a LOT of hair, and it was ok, in honesty I had plenty to lose.My hairdressers always told me I had the most hair they had ever seen. I'm really happy with the thickness it is now, actually. But, I did lose about half my total hair. I doubt that people with less hair lose that volume. Everyone I hear about losing half their hair always say that they have tons of hair to start with. I was always a shedder anyway Please feel free to ask any other questions that come up, I am always eager to help! Good luck with everything!!!

How exciting for you!! I hope it all goes quickly but look at it this way - you've waited this long, and you're on the fast track now! I feel really proud to be an inspiration to anyone - it hasn't always been easy and I've had those fleeting moments of, "Ugh, what did I get myself into?" But never regret, not even for a second. And then to have it come off as fast and consistently as it has been, I've been really lucky. I would go back and do it again without a second thought!