Parker's Dad

I see a lot of people adding vanilla flavors and syrups. I add vanilla protein powder to things that don't lend to the chocolate. You get your vanilla flavor and extra protein at the same time so win win...

I hate moobs!

I think Bean pretty much nailed this one. There are a few things that make this situation very stressful. Money issues suck and will strain even the best of relationships. A big focus would be getting out of anyones house. I could not live with my parents or my girlfriends parents. If I want to walk around my house in my underwear I can lol. Not really kidding there, everyone needs their own space. The weed and the religious parents scenario do not work at all. If you can live with the weed use then that's fine. It's just not gonna work in that situation. As far as him thinking you are gonna leave.... I think that is almost always gonna be a natural thought like it or not. I don't know anything about his past relationships but maybe that has been an issue, maybe not. It has been for me. My exwife was a "religious" person, her mom, etc. She starts a new job and starts listening to people and doing things she shouldn't have been. Needless to say one thing lead to another and that was a done deal. Now I come from that better for it. Lesson learned. Now I don't trust anyone fully and never will. Take that into consideration. Now it was not right of him to cheat. There is no real valid reason for that and it is one thing that I personally can't and won't tolerate for myself. If you can get past that, more power to you. Now the very last thing that I would even think about pushing the issue on right now is kids. With the living arrangements, money, and insecurity right now, the last thing you need to do is throw a baby into the mix. This is just my opinion but I have seen things play out with different couples several times and this is kind of how it goes. Good luck with whatever you do.

Congrats and that does make you feel pretty good. Just want to say that women do not have to be little or tiny to be beautiful. Some of the most beautiful women I have ever seen or met are not those little skinny women. I like a full figured woman who is confident and comfortable in her own skin. It really is attractive. Hard to put into words without sounding like a weirdo but there is truth to it lol!

There are several great thoughts on here for you think about and all true. I have not gotten thru to surgery yet but I have this rationalized for myself. Take this for what it's worth, it's just my thoughts on it and that's all. I know I can loose weight. I have done it before. I then get a little lazy and lax up and when I do this I gain some back. I have managed to keep the great majority of it off since I really started trying but there is going to come a day when that stops. There will be a day when my body says "no, I am done, this is where you are like it or not!" and is gonna make silly faces and dirty comments at me. I have no co morbidities at this time and I don't want any. I am however set up perfectly for a nice little dose of diabetes. I have seen what that crap can do, and I don't want anything to do with it. EVER. I also have a 15 month old little boy right now and I am gonna be around to see him grow up and pitch a few major league games lol! The point of that is that I am gonna be doing this for me and him. Noone else. I know people lose at different rates and some have more issues than others. I accept that. I also know that in my mind I can lose weight and when I have this tool that helps even more, I know I will not fail. I don't really intend on going around telling the world I had surgery but it's gonna come up. I will tell the ones that matter ahead of time and I will address the others as I see fit when that time arrises. I don't find myself accountable to anyone but me and that's kinda how I like it. My whole point is that you are doing this for you, for your reasons, and it is your decision to make. There are things that you will have to work thru and figure out for yourself. You will lose weight unless you make stupid decisions. You can do it and you will be fine and you don't worry about what others say. I know that is easiers said than done but you have to wrap your mind around why you want to do this in the first place and hold onto that regardless of whatever noise you get from others. You can do it.

That is amazing!! That just goes to show you that with a little help (the sleeve), a bit of work, and a whole lot of determination that you can drop a lot of weight. Congrats to him and good luch with your upcoming surgery as well. I am still in a holding pattern waiting now. I come here everyday to get info and read of success stories to keep motivated to get thru to get this thing done!!

I go to thinking about it and I didn't mean to jack your thread. I just didn't think it was worth starting a new one just for that post. Carry on...

I love doing things like that. When I want something sweet they are quick and easy to make and not that bad really without the crust. If you like Peanut Butter and/or chocolate try this one... Cool whip lite/fat free whatever it is Cream cheese fat free Natural peanut butter or I guess you could use the PB2 stuff if you want. Chocolate Protein powder. Make sure the cool whip is thawed. Nuke the cream cheese just long enough to soften up and be blended with mixer. Mix those two first. Mix in the pb then the Protein Powder. You can add as much of the PB or choco powder as to taste but you may have to add a touch of milk if you're adding a lot of the protein. You can just chill it in the fridge for a while or freeze it in the freezer and it makes a great ice cream or custard type thing. I don't do a whole lot of sweets and when I do eat them I much rather prefer to have something "good homemade" as opposed to store bought junk. I wouldn't give you a dollar for a truck load of Little Debbie stuff. Therefore I experiment with a few basic things that I usually keep on hand at home and try to make them as nutritious as I can. Lots of other variables you can use. If you like orange try this one. Cool whip Cream cheese. Can of mandarin oranges vanilla protein powder. Mix the cool whip and cream cheese well first of course. Add in your oranges and mix again then add the vanilla protein powder. If you don't drain the oranges first you probably won't have to add any extra liquid at all for the protein powder. You can vary this as well with other fruits and even add sugar free pudding mix or Jello mix to accomodate what fruit flavors you like. Enjoy.

It's a little different. I don't have a problem with it but you will just have to try it for yourself and decide. I have had the raspberry, orange, and apple melon and they were all pretty good. Not great but OK for what they are. The aftermath is a little odd, kinda like licking on blacktop lol! It just kinda leaves a weird feeling in your mouth. I think it's the sweetener.

Congrats! It sounds like you are doing awesome. It's good to hear of people doing well. You read the horror stories of some people and I cringe to think of what could happen when my time comes. I somehow manage to always find the turd in the punch bowl... I do have one question and I am not pointing fingers and saying you are doing anything wrong but it just caught my attention when I read your post, so please don't take offense. How are you getting that much water in that quickly?? If I read it correctly, you said 20 oz in 20 minutes?? That just sounded like a lot to me going by what I have read from others posting on their fluids. I know everyone is different so it may not be a problem. Just wandering... Congrats again and keep up the good work!

Looking good! I love to see people in the places I want to go. I am working on getting thru the process now and come here to get ideas and even more motivation. I then go home and wrestle around my own little 15 month old boy and that just makes me even more determined. Congrats on the loss and keep it up!

Some weeks I weigh three days in a row when at work. We have a really nice big digital scale. I always weigh in the same clothes and shoes etc. I only do it to see if what I am doing is working and I keep the routine the same in regards to doing this. I try to keep fluids in mind and whether or not a bm. I love seeing the pound a day drops for a couple days. To be honest, I don't even get down when I don't see it drop for a day or two because I have somehow fixed my brain to say "hey you dropped 4-5 lbs last week so the body is adjusting again, it's all good." It may sound weird but I don't think about it too much because I know I am losing and there will be days when it may not show. I don't weigh too often at home as all I have is a fairly cheap digital I got at wal mart. When I do weigh at home, it's always just in undies or the birthday suit so it's always less. I try not to change up my routine too much in regards to Water intake or diet too much but there are days here and there when it just doesn't work out like I wish but it's OK and I just go about my business and keep on doing what I am doing. The only day that I really put a good bit of thought into it is on my "official" weigh day. I do this on Wednesdays on the good scale at work and look at the whole picture over the course of the week and the weeks before. Am I still losing?? Yes. Am I on average? Yes. Am I above or below average?? Determine above/below, look at what I may have done or not done, make a mental note and try to make adjustments if needed. It may sound weird but it works for me and has made things a lot easier....

Awesome!

I just wanted to throw this tid bit of thought in on this subject. This is not directed at the OP or anything but just a thought so.... I think that a lot of us don't really like looking at old overweight pictures. I have always been overweight so I was used to it. I look at them and to me it's my "normal" but I don't really like or truly hate what I see. Make sense?? I mean I wish I had not been overweight but it is what it is. I will never ever have the normal mentality of a person that has been skinny their whole life. As I said, I have always been overweight and looking back and thinking about it now, that has made me the person that I am today. I understand how things are and how people are and I have learned that the ones that love and accept me now for for me are people that are not that shallow or whatever. I know what is important and I know what it's like to be judged and I know where I want to go now and for the right reasons. I guess what I am trying to say is that we need to realize that we should never forget where we came from and what we learned along the way. We should never forget that we for the most part are the same person we always were but just less of it in mass. I look forward to being able to go thru with surgery and getting where I need to be for myself and my boy and the future. But with that thought in mind, I also will never forget who I was and what I have learned and the people that never saw me as just some overweight person that they wanted nothing to do with. I hope that made sense. I know it was kind of rambling but just a thought that I wanted to toss out there...

Hi Gwynne, I am pre surgery at this time. It's really not that acidic. Orange juice is much worse for me honestly. I mix two teaspoons (10 ml) measured in a 20 oz bottle of Water so it's pretty diluted. A friend of mine is sleeved and I told him about it because he wanted to stop taking the omeprazole. He said it only took him about three days to fully adjust when he made the switch. Ofcourse I will give you the disclaimer "please consult your physician" lol! It's not for everyone but it's really not bad to me. The girlfriend says I'm disgusting for drinking it but oh well. It really seems to help me and I was very skeptical.