LL112

I'll start. Hope I won't be the only one
Don't mess with me!

I'm a total mess!

Business look.

Half a poke .... of my tongue

I travel for work about every 6 weeks to one of our facilities in another state. Due to my surgery, I haven't been here for about 12 weeks I'm down about 65lbs since the last time I was here (about 95 lbs overall).
Obviously here has been a pretty big reaction for many of my co-workers, but the best one happened yesterday.
As I was headed out for the day, the cleaning lady, who speaks only Spanish (but who I always see and exchange he occasional friendly "Hola") stopped me in the hallways rather excitedly to comment on my "mucho" weight loss, entirely in Spanish, with lots of fun gestures showing how thin she thought I had become. I thought is was very sweet.

@@VSGAnn2014 I am sure the loss of sales from my surgery alone was enough to send their board into panic mode............ but I've never felt better.

Going out with my staff for lunch soon after surgery and food got stuck. I thought a mouthful of Water would shift it! Oh dear, all it did was make me vomit all this slime that I tried to catch! It continued its way through my hands and down my clothes. Sooo embarrassing, but what a lesson.

My biggest mistake is not realizing how monumental losing weight would change my life. My life before was very basic and routine because it had to be. I couldn't function really and now, there are lots of fights and arguments because I'm not ok just sitting on the sofa starring at my husband play video games for hours and the kids run around from place to place while my life burns away. Even the best relationships will have periods where you have to renegotiate your life together. I mean, we aren't getting a divorce or anything, but I was not expecting to have to fight for the right to be allowed to go to the mall or go for a walk because it's not what he likes to do and he's still stuck in our old life cycle and I'm trying to make a new one.

Personally, I don't think weight loss surgery causes depression. Instead, I think patients already suffered from depression and after surgery have had the way they cope with it (food) removed as a comfort source. Just my opinion though.
Also, it's very common for people who have lost a great deal of weight to not be able to accurately perceive their new body. Part of it may be due to excess skin but a lot is the mental image we hold of ourselves in our head. I don't know if I would diagnose it as "body dysmorphia" because it usually is temporary and doesn't really lead to self harm.
I can see both in myself. Some days I look in the mirror and am "wowed" by my success. Other times I look in the mirror and am disgusted by how much I have left to lose.

Here is my before and after. I am a year out.

What a journey!!! I just passed my one year anniversary on 12/15. My starting weight was 377 and I'm now down to 185!!
Best. Decision. Ever.

OK, I finally uploaded a couple pictures. I still don't think I am to the "After" stage, but I am pretty damn close. Here is a picture from me that has to be at my highest weight. I didn't weigh myself back then so I am guessing that I was over 330 lbs:

It's funny, sometimes when I look in the mirror I don't recognize myself. But when I saw this picture, I literally asked who it was! I guess I am getting used to being this guy:

Quick and minor update! Went to the gym and did my weekly weigh in. 222! I don't know if the stall is broken or if my regularity has helped, but it doesn't matter. The needle has moved and I'll take the success.

Pic on the right was January 2015. The one on the left was this afternoon.

I just found and signed up for this site. I am considering the sleeve, but a bit nervous about the whole thing. Not so much the surgery, but can I do the liquid diets. After looking through this thread I want to thank you all, these pictures are incredibly inspiring. Seeing what you all have done I feel more confident that if i force myself to get started and start seeing results it will still be a difficult process but with great reward. congrats to you all..

Here's one from before....sometime around 2009

And here's one from last month.

Here is one of me lost 143 pounds since January of this year.

One thing I miss is being able to drink a lot of plain Water. Even at over a year and half post op I still can only drink about four swallows at a time. Also, sometimes plain Water can trigger my heartburn and I have to add flavor drops which I don't care for. Oh to guzzle a big bottle of water again.
What I don't miss is the fact that looking back at my obese self I was trapped in my cage of obesity and didn't even know it. It kept me from experiencing so much of life. Now I am FREE!!! I have such a zest for life now and everyday is an opportunity for me. Walking without being short of breath. Enjoying trying new things and finding new hobbies!! Love hiking, kayaking,zip lining, camping and can't wait to discover other things!!
Great post @Kindle- really makes us stop and smell the roses about our progress!!

@@MayMarie
i was almost one year PO
-105 lbs GOAL
approaching 60 years YOUNG
i got my first tattoo
i had the first letter of my 3 grand-kids on my right wrist!!
little red heart under each letter
MAE
(morgan, andrew, ethan
(everything in small italics)
how cool is this grammy?
hubby wasn't thrilled
i promised i wouldn't get another one for 60 years!!!
6 month later i got a small butterfly on my right ankle
(for my 85 year old mom) she loves them
1 month later i got the word "survivor" below that
i've been one for 17 years!!
next month I'll get....kidding, i'm done!! LOL
other treats are small compared to the above!
kathy

Erma Bombeck was a satirical newspaper columnist who shared her views on love and living. This was one of her articles:

Diet Totals 758 - Pound Loss

I have dieted continuously for the last 2 decades and lost
a total of 758 pounds. By all calculations, I should be
hanging from a charm Bracelet.< /span>

I have done a lot of kidding around with Weight Watchers,
but it is the only organization in which I ever lost a
great deal of weight. But I fought them. Every Tuesday
morning, a group of us had to " weigh in " before the
lecture. Our ritual was enough to boggle the imagination.
We got together a check list of precautions before we
actually stepped on the scale.

Bathroom? Check. Water pill? Check. Have you removed
underwear, wedding rings, nail polish? Check. Set aside
shoes and earrings? Check. Are you wearing a summer
dress beneath your winter coat? Check.

The first week I stepped on the scale and my instructor
said, " You have gained. " ( Next week, I cut my hair. )

The next week, she said, " You have lost 8 ounces,but
that is not enough. " ( I had the fillings in my teeth
removed. )

The third week, I had dropped a pound, but my instructor
was still not pleased. ( I had my tonsils taken out. )

Finally, she really chewed me out. She accused me of not
sticking to the diet and not taking it seriously. That
hurt.

" I didn't want to tell you, " I said, " but I think I am
pregnant. "

" How far? " she said coldly, clicking her ballpoint pen
to make a notation on my card.

" Possibly 3 days, " I said.

She glowered. " Any other excuses? "

" Would you believe I have a cold and my head is swollen? "

" No. "

" How about I was celebrating the Buzzard's Return to
Hinkley, Ohio and had butter on my popcorn? "

She tapped her pen impatiently on the card and stared at
me silently.

" Lint in the navel? " I offered feebly.

" How about first one to the trough? " she asked dryly.

I learned quickly never to argue with a woman who had the
scales on her side.

I saw my old instructor the other day and she eyed me
carefully and said, " When are you returning to class? "

" As soon as I have my appendix removed, " I said
returning her gaze.

I'm not sure, but I think I heard her moan.
***************************************************************************
Also, clean and trim your fingernails and toenails, pluck your eyebrows, and shave your body.

i been running for about 2 years now, i still despise the idea of actually running. but then i go to these events, under the encouragement of friends, i would realize that once i start, it becomes motivating, exciting and makes me feel accomplished. and its with this mentality, i've done 3 super spartans, 2 half marathons and a number of 5 and 10k,. There have been exactly 0 times where i didn't whine and bitch from the moment i sign up to about 1mi into each race, but i have never ever regretted it after crossing the finish line. one foot in front of the other friend! you will love yourself for it.

i'm 6 months post op. have lost 157 lbs with 48 bmi. i have been doing Water aerobics 3x per week. i went to(and finished!)my first "land" zumba class of 60 mins. i have also just started on an elliptical(very hard!) i can do 10 mins on level 1/incline 1. i don't have a phone i can download apps on. i'm looking toward spring and the possibility that i will be ABLE to enter a race is mind bending. PLEASE, tips for training.

i been running for about 2 years now, i still despise the idea of actually running. but then i go to these events, under the encouragement of friends, i would realize that once i start, it becomes motivating, exciting and makes me feel accomplished. and its with this mentality, i've done 3 super spartans, 2 half marathons and a number of 5 and 10k,. There have been exactly 0 times where i didn't whine and bitch from the moment i sign up to about 1mi into each race, but i have never ever regretted it after crossing the finish line. one foot in front of the other friend! you will love yourself for it.

@@goblue9280 Like you I was mostly walking. I then switched to interval training. I always started with a 5 minute walk to warm up. Then I would jog/run for 30 seconds, walk 2 minutes and repeat. Once that starting getting easier I started decreasing the walking time, increasing the jogging and also upping the speed at which I was walking/jogging. It's the same approach a lot of the couch to 5K programs use.
I remember when I started I might have been walking at 2.8/3 MPH and jogging at 3.7/4. Now I walk at 3.7 and jog at 5MPH.
The thing I did and my wife encouraged me to do was just sign up for the race and make it a goal. When I originally signed up for the Disney 5K they stated there was a 16 min mile pace requirement (turns out there really isn't for the 5K). That was my goal. I just wanted to be at that level. Well by the time the race came around I was at a 12 min mile pace.

i been running for about 2 years now, i still despise the idea of actually running. but then i go to these events, under the encouragement of friends, i would realize that once i start, it becomes motivating, exciting and makes me feel accomplished. and its with this mentality, i've done 3 super spartans, 2 half marathons and a number of 5 and 10k,. There have been exactly 0 times where i didn't whine and bitch from the moment i sign up to about 1mi into each race, but i have never ever regretted it after crossing the finish line. one foot in front of the other friend! you will love yourself for it.

Man, here.
Guilty as charged.
We say and do impulsive stuff. At least we don't pee on fire hydrants.....unless we are walking home from a bar and we pass one of those red beacons......and seeking relief seems like a great idea......until the cops show up right when relief is being had.....
Not that I have any knowledge of said act.
Seriously, though, don't take it too seriously. They are paying you a compliment in their own way. At least they aren't beating their chests and making ape calls while doing so.
Being a fellow knuckle dragger myself.....I can honestly say that I see women make tremendous transformations here on BP....and the thought that comes to mind is...."Wow.....she is hot".
There is no malice behind the thought....just an eyebrow raising reaction to a gal who has made great progress.

Hmmm maybe you single girls with new sleeves can work that into your E-harmony ad.
Something like:
I am searching for a lumberjack that is willing to eat anything and everything I can't eat and sometimes take it out of my hand. Also want a guy that likes a little extra skin on his chicken and his women.
Come get me big boy!

i will be going for the avengers again this year. so much fun, hit a wall around mile 9,