gowalking

Hey Arlene...good to hear from you. I was wondering where you were but I figured you had alot on your plate and couldn't get here that often. If I didn't know you were Jewish, I'd know it now just from that one remark about no one being alone. There's a Yiddish phrase I used to hear my beloved grandmother say that roughly translated goes sort of like this: 'Only a rock should be alone'. So what you wrote made me smile for sure. He's a really sweet man..and we talk about all kinds of things. He knew I was going to get myself a ticket to see The King And I because I love the music of Rodgers & Hammerstein and to my surprise, he knows the music as well and bought two tickets and is taking me for my birthday next week. I know how expensive they are....he had to have spent at least $250. Tomorrow we're taking the Circle Line to cruise around Manhattan. Very touristy but so what. It's going to be a hot day and it will be nice on the water. We have alot of similar interests and things in common, but not everything...and that's good too. I don't want to match up that perfectly...otherwise it's dull. We've gone bike riding in Central Park and sooner or later, we'll probably walk across the East River to Brooklyn or Queens. He's active without being a crazy gym rat and with my chronic pain issues, I have to be careful not to overdo so I think we are good for each other in that way as well. Anyway....thanks for the advice. Good to see you back on the boards, and please keep us posted on your shoulder. Surgery should always be a last option but take it from me..the lady with metal hips..I feel a thousand percent better with the diseased joints gone. Have a good day hon!

Morning ladies. I was going to post this in the general forum but thought I'd get your opinions first as I trust and know you better than the general poster out there. Let me know what you think..I'd really love some feedback. Thanks, Liz My primary care doctor and I have a relationship that goes beyond the normal interaction between the doctor and his/her patient. She is a childhood friend of my SIL and because of that relationship, we often talk more as friends than doctor/patient. So yesterday I saw her for my regular 3 month visit and spent most of the time talking about the new man I'm seeing. To my surprise, she asked to see my excess skin and I showed her my belly and upper thighs. Neither of us beats around the bush so she came straight out and said that I look like someone who has been thin my whole life...till I remove clothing. Then it's apparent that I didn't always look this way. I am well aware of it but I'm not ready at this time to go through plastic surgery...nor might I ever be ready. My thoughts have been that the man has to take the good with the bad and if I do decide to go the route of plastic surgery, it will be because I want it...not to please some guy. So of course, I'm now thinking that while not necessarily a turn off, I might look much improved with surgery. My bariatric surgeon mentioned when she said she would revise my port (as it sticks out pretty obviously) that I could have a TT at that time. I told her thanks, but no thanks...but...now I'm wondering if I'm dismissing this option without really getting some information and thinking it through. Should I make an appointment with a surgeon? I know if I do, he or she will tell me how they can make me look so much better...it's what they do for a living and I get that. I haven't been intimate with this fellow as of yet, but we're heading in that direction for sure. He knows about my surgery and he's been with another woman who had a large weight loss and he said he has no issue with it. So...do I stay the course as I planned, or do I consider this option? Oh..and it's not just the tummy. My upper legs are badly wrinkled and my boobs are hanging lumps of flesh. I'm reminded of that all the time as even when I see older women in the locker room at the Y, their breasts are much perkier than mine. Again..feedback and opinions welcome.

Joint pain sucks, doesn't it? Keeping my fingers crossed for you that you feel better for your hike.

Very pretty Julie. San Fran is one of my favorite cities. Enjoy your walk!

There are no little NSVs. They are all hugely important and I'm glad you shared this one with us..

Don't screw around with your face. I'd rather go into debt than take a chance like that. Just my opinion...

Congrats and good luck my friend! You will do great..I know it. See you on the other side!!

My whole life is one big NSV. My most recent one was this trip to London I took. Three years ago I never thought I'd get there and it's a place I've wanted to visit since I was a young woman. Everything about it was a NSV from biking through the royal parks to walking all over the city. NSVs can also be very small and/or intimate such as a throwaway comment I got from a nurse at a recent check up. She put the exam table down so my legs wouldn't dangle. I'm a short lady..always have been but as a heavy short lady, no one said what the nurse said as she put the table lower. She laughed and said, let me lower this..you really are an itty-bitty thing, aren't you?' Itty-bitty. Never though I hear anyone describe me that way but these day, yes...I'm kinda itty-bitty.

No hon, I'd never have believed it. I still pinch myself...and get angry that I let so many years pass by while I did nothing to help myself. I know...we can't cry over spilt milk but I swear I'll never put myself in that position ever again. Enjoy your hike...I'm doing an urban hike on Sunday. Going walking across The Brooklyn Bridge with the family. Another experience I wouldn't have been able to do pre-surgery. I've never walked across any NYC bridge before but we figured why not start with the most iconic bridge of all. It's just over a mile long and these days, I can do a mile without breaking a sweat. Pretty good for someone who was almost wheelchair bound. Take pictures from your hike..I'll take pictures from the bridge. I bet I'll get some good shots of Manhattan.

I posted some pics in another thread. Here are a few of them. I had a great time. It was a wonderful trip.

London was fantastic. I had a great time. Only one day of torrential rain. Otherwise, the weather was very cooperative.

I can't just talk the talk..I have to walk the walk. Between a new relationship and my trip to London, I've put back a few pounds. I'm not going to go crazy thinking about the weight I've gained or worry to death about taking them off...I have the tool and frame of mind to do so. But in order to be accountable, I revised my ticker to show my current weight and not my lowest weight. I wonder if Alex can provide a means of being able to show the fluctuations we in maintenance go through. I think it's important to see not just those who regain all or much of it back, but those who gain and lose throughout. I remind myself that even naturally thin folk don't maintain the same weight all the time. I'm pretty sure that if they see a gain of a few pounds, they don't panic..they just do what needs to be done to shed those pounds and go about their business. I for one am trying to do just that. I expect to revise my ticker as those extra pounds come off.

And those plus size clothes we get charged so much for are usually soooo ugly! They are either incredibly childish, with kittens, puppies and cartoon characters, or they look like something that your granny would deem too old fashioned to wear! I am convinced that while the industry knows plus size is a money making proposition, they are still very predjudiced against larger sized women and it comes out in the choices given to those who need plus sized clothing. I can't believe how much better clothes fit me now. I'm not just talking about the fact that I'm smaller, but just in general. I used to shop alot at Avenue. I thought they had the best selection in bigger sizes. But there's this presumption that a larger girl is also taller. Everything is proportioned to a woman nearer to six feet tall than five feet tall. I used to have so much material cut off from pants and sleeves just to wear the clothes. Alot of the tops never fit correctly as they all hung down to my knees. Don't the designers realize there are alot of short, fat women out there. Petite should come in all women's sizes and not just for thinner folks. And yes...flowers and animals are not acceptable after the age of five.

Here's what I've learned. I have a very disfunctional relationship with food. I eat for a ton of reasons and being hungry is only one of them...and not the most important one either. I've learned to understand and accept that and know that just like any other addict, I have to use the help of a professional along with support via this site, and not just in the virtual world. I've learned that I have to avoid certain situaltions that can put me in a dangerous place in my head where I want to turn to food for comfort, and whatever else I use food for. I learned that I must follow the rules and hold myself accountable or I will slide back into bad behaviors. I have also learned that I am stronger than I realized. I am smarter than I realized. I have always been a good person, compassionate and thoughful. I learned that I hid alot of myself behind the happy fat girl who was not really so happy. I learned that being normal sized opens the whole world back up. I learned that I wasn't living before..but just existing. I learned, and am still learning just who I am and who I want to be. I learned that life is never perfect but I also learned that it's a whole lot better now than it was 2 1/2 years ago.

Oddly enough, I made plans to walk the Brooklyn Bridge next Sunday with family before seeing this invite. It's my birthday soon along with my cousin so we decided to celebrate by strolling the bridge and then have brunch in DUMBO.

Just want to add my two cents here. I am also a food addict so I know what it's like to eat because it's there..not because one is hungry. I was not in the right frame of mind when I had this surgery. I picked the lapband because I expected it to fail so I could just have it removed and finish eating myself to death. Can anyone say depression here? Well..to my surprise, the food demon was put to rest just enough for me to find success and lose around 150 lbs. I'm not saying this is the way to approach WLS, but I just wanted to let folks know that even if you're not in the right frame of mind, you can still manage to be successful. I've told my sister this many many times as she is convinced that I lost the weight because of will power alone. Not true. I'm fortunate enough to have had the tool work and then make the good choices needed when head hunger comes into play.

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Well friends...I am back from London. I walked for miles and miles. I did the bike ride. I had leg pain and it was very discouraging but I didn't let it stop me. I saw everything I wanted to see. I found London to be better than I could have imagined. I figured out the underground fairly easily and was off. My sister got me acclimated and I was out and about with and without her. I ate too much but with all the exercise, only gained about two lbs. I told the guide who took us on the bike tour about how I was nearly wheelchair bound less than three years ago and he was truly impressed...and not because he wanted a tip either. You can tell when someone is genuine or not. He took the picture of me on the bike at the statue of Nelson. He said that I should send that picture to my surgeon and I think I will. I've attached a few pictures for your viewing pleasure.

Only have a week so just London. Can't see everything but doing as much as possible. Hampton Court and Windsor castle tomorrow.

Having a wonderful time. Just got back from Harrod's and spent a fortune. Been to tower of London, Westminster, Buckingham palace, St Paul, Kensington gardens, just to name a few. Can't post pictures thru the phone app but will upload once I'm back home. Enjoying the food as well but cosuming it in moderation. What a nice way to eat for a change....

Glad to see you here again as well. Let's do brunch or dinner sometime soon!

I never stalled so when the weight loss would slow, I'd just keep plugging along and the scale would move again. Just know that I only lost more than 3 lbs. once in the more than two years I was losing weight. Usually I lost 1-2 lbs. a week. That's it. But over time, those pounds added up. I hit the original 150 goal but never changed my eating plan and I continued to lose. Now I bounce between 112 to as much as 118. I want to stay under 120 which gives me enough of a spread to not go crazy and worry about every pound.

@Sajijoma....if you don't want the cottage cheese, toss it. I never touched the stuff. My go to for soft foods was and still is hummus. I prefer it and it's full of protein. I eat it now with torn pieces of wrap bread (very thin so it goes down well) or with baby carrots or red or yellow pepper. I'm sure there are lots of other choices out there as well. Good luck and welcome to BP!

Agree 100% with you on this. After more than two years on this site, I am also horrified by some of the ignorance I see. I blame the surgeons mostly for allowing their patients to undergo a WLS without truly understanding what it entails.

Used to wear an 8 1/2 wide shoe and now I'm in a 7 regular. And forget about rings. They all twirl on my finger now. I can't make them any smaller or they won't go past the knuckle. I pretty much stopped wearing them except when I'm looking to dress up my hand a bit when going out on a social function.