LilMissDiva Irene

I wish they would do this with Women's clothes too. It would make life *much* easier. Back in the Late 80's I was a size 3. I'm thinking that's probably a 0 today or less. Yes, sizes are all over the map depending on who makes them. It's kind of annoying to be honest. I've never been to Old Navy but I've heard they are the worst when it comes to this. Dr. Oz showed their size 12's being way outrageous big. Like a 38" waist or something...

I think majority of us end up adopting this persona. When someone makes such a drastic change, many relationships will suffer because of it. Whether it be parent/child/spouse/other/friends. It would be nearly impossible to go scott free without some sort of metamorphosis with the self and with others. Make no mistake this will probably be the biggest change any of us will ever make in our lives. At first it will hurt when friends (usually the overweight ones, or the insecure ones that liked us because we were non threatening) toss us to the curb because we have decided to take the bull by the horns and get right with our bodies. However, that is thier problem, no ours. Once we embark on this journey our ONLY CONCERN should be us and how we will finish out. Anything more and it's just not fitting in the cup. So with that, they can either join in the journey, or move on. Also, no this surgery is NOT an abomination. It is a gift that is saving thousands of lives every single day. God bless and I wish you well on your surgery!

According the the "BMI" scales I'm supposed to be around 135 ideally. I'm 5'6, so considered of average height. My heaviest should be no more than 154 Lbs. Right now I'm 191 Lbs and I'm wearing 8-10's (just got into 6's even...). So... that said for ME the BMI scales are baloney. I mean right now I can literally see my ribcage without even sucking in my breath and my breast plate shows. I wish I didn't even weigh as much as I do or seriously I would call this my goal and stop losing. However, fact is I *do* weigh this so I'm going to go a little bit further. I may even settle on 15 more Lbs and be done with it. I say, go for what you feel you look your best in - the BMI scales aren't the be all, end all to perfect weight. I think I'm living testament to that!! If I weighed 135 Lbs I'd look like a starving bag of bones!!

Haaa!! Thanks! I'm telling you right now, if I notice my booty starts leaving, I'm stopping this weight loss dead in its tracks. That is NOT going to happen, NO WAY!!! I've lost my boobs already in the last 15 Lbs. but that's fixable. I'll just have to say I'm at goal at that point... but for me, the booty stays!

Yep this is usually from lack of our electrolytes and/or Water. Are you getting 64 oz. or more?? Pre sleeve we would have gotten lots of water from our food. Now we simply don't even eat enough to make up for lack of it, and now 64 oz should be our bare minimum. Also, my calcium citrate also has an added Magnesium Citrate. I also take Potassium (the bananas you're eating are excellent). You may also just want to add a tiny bit more salt to your food if you are avoiding it too much. I still get cramps from time to time even with all this. It's tough... but I'm hopeful I can get back to 100% normal once I'm able to get off the "diet" train and eat more well balanced. However for me I do believe my main culprit is the calcium. I have to maintain my supplements 3X per day. I notice when I'm even only doing 2X per day I'll get the cramps. Good luck!

Well, I always say - what I don't know won't hurt me. I won't read things like that, all it will do is upset me. I don't like being upset and like to stay in my little bubble. I don't want anyone/anything in my vacinity that could rupture my pretty little bubble.

I would definitely take a look a the food diary. Are you consuming anything especially high in sodium? Chinese food will blow me up by Lbs the very next day, I'm not kidding! Of course it's all Water, it would be *impossible* for me to consumer over 7,000 calories in one day! I work at just getting in 1,000... Anyway that was the end of Chinese food for me. It was a tough break up after but it had to happen. All those bad carbs and MSG did a number on my scale... it was pretty frightening. Then there is our friend TOM (if you're a woman), that can puff me up for a few days too.. That's totally normal and I just have to wait that one out. Sucks though... LOL Get back on the saddle... lower good carbs, fresh fruits & veggies, lean meats... and lots of exercise and plenty of water. You will be getting back to your goals very soon. Good luck!

That is wonderful Bryn!!! Congratulations! I look forward to hearing all your milestones

Oh yeah you all keep these Peanut Butter recipes coming! I don't know what the heck it is but I've grown some kind of bizarre obsession with it. I wonder how these would taste with the Super Chunky type. Ohhh Myyy Goodnesssss!!!! Re: Rice Krispies... I think the rice might be the wrong kind of carb - I think RK is made with puffed "white" rice. Maybe some kind of Kashi type or multi grain Cereal might work. Nothing wrong with experimenting!!! Re: the Oats being too rough... has anyone tried to actually cook them before adding them to the PBBalls? Just a thought that it might cush them up even more...

Oh wow you are taking me way back here!! Yes, I used to have those vivid dreams where I'd be eating things I darned well shouldn't be. It's ok, these dreams will go away in time. I believe a lot has to do with coming down off anesthesia and pain medications. It stopped for me within a few weeks to a month.

We use the frozen shrimp bags too, Jumbo sized shrimp. They are good, and very convenient. I will typically stir fry them with tons of mixed green veggies and whatnot. Yum!!!

That will go down in your history of worlds best phone calls. Hugs and CONGRATULATIONS!!! You are but weeks away from the losers bench... ohhh yeahhh we need to make more room!!

That's right, the tape measure can be our friend when our scales wanna be poopy pants. My scale has been really ignorant lately so I pulled out mine and found I've lost another half inch on my waist and one inch each on my thighs and even my arms. I've lost 1.5" on my hips. All this in one month!! Anyway this made me feel much much better. You're doing great, and the scale WILL pick up the tab once in awhile...

Anyone will want to be very careful with taking additional Potassium supplements. I do take them, however I have to because of the low carb eating and I am also on a diuretic. My body cannot handle getting off of them since I've been on them for so long due to HBP - however someday I hope to be able to get off once I can eat more balanced meals. Anyhow, I get my supplement from Vitamin Shoppe and they come in little 3% RDA capsules. You can break them open and use them in shakes etc if you are on liquids only. My first suggestion however would be to go along with anything your Dr. prescribes. Bananas are very high in potassium and before my low carb eating I was actually instructed by my Dr. to eat one small banana every day to balance out my diuretics. Good luck!! Keep in touch with your Dr. very closely on this. Potassium is a very critical part of our nutritional needs. No gray areas, both too little or too much can kill us.

Congrats Jnee!!! Welcome to SleeveLand!!

Here's what I've found works for me. When someone gives me a compliment, I simply reply "Thank You". You will not believe how this will get them to stop talking about it. If someone is critical, I just shrug my shoulders. However, I haven't encountered much negativity really. I don't entertain it, I guess that's why. You'll be ok, try not to worry too much about negative responses. What you are doing is 100% positive and you will know better than those people. *hugs*

If you all get the chance try Walden Farms SF/FF Chocolate syrup. It is in a thin neck glass bottle and I found mine at Bel Air in the Health Food section. It's totally amazing and it's thick just like Hershey's. After trying that I never used Torani again!

Stacy!!! Great job so far!!! I can see a major difference in your tummy - you've been rocking your sleeve lady!!! Hey that's funny you mention the Cartwheels... We have long corridors at work and sometimes I feel so great I just want to do a bunch of cartwheels all through the halls... Now THAT would be sooo funny! Anyhow, keep up the great work - you're on your way!!

Yes, I'm no different to this myself. I just recently woke up the other day and it hit me like a ton of bricks... I'M NOT FAT. If you can imagine how this felt to me. It was the morning after I was able to get into my Size 6's. No one that can fit a size 6 is fat. It was the strangest feeling in the world! I still have a hard time coming to grips with how I look on the outside as opposed to how my brain thinks of me. I still have to constantly remind myself of the new me. That said, I feel great, and I just know it's probably going to take years before I can fully grasp the concept. Being patient with myself is really important right now.

Hello hello hello to all of you! It has been another week since my last check in. I guess I just don't ever have a whole lot to say... until I start typing anyway. LOL So me weighing the exact same as I have for the last two weeks really did kinda P'd me off a little bit. However, that said - I have had some really amazing developments in the last few days. I tried on my size 6 pants and yup I was able to get them on!! Hooorraayyy!!! So, that means I am but ONE SIZE AWAY FROM GOAL!!!! I always did say that once I got into those size 4 pants (same make/style as the recent 6's I fitted and former 8's) that THAT would be it for me. So what am I looking at now as far as weight? 15 Lbs?? 20 Lbs at the most? We will see!! All I know is that I am SO CLOSE!! I'm really going to do it! It feels SO DANGED GOOD!! I really just put 165 Lbs as a guesstimate. I DO NOT want to get any smaller than a 4. I would have a hard time shopping in normal stores at that point. Especially my favorite Kohl's. They don't go any smaller than a 4. In my world, Size 4 is very thin, and when I get there I'll know I'm finish. My weight on the scale is pretty meaningless to me, except that I'd really like to stop losing now. If any of you knew this already it is that my original goal was to fit the size 8's. However, I got into them at 200 Lbs!! No way was I going to stay at 200 Lbs... so my scale has had SOME say on where I end up. I didn't want to be near the 2's anymore. I just don't want to see that number again in the front of my weight. EVER!!! My routines have been going excellent. I'm staying low on my carbs (Good Carbs) and I'm getting in all my protein. I recently found out I may even be getting too much protein. My genetic makeup gathers muscle tone quite easily. Of course muscle weighs a lot, so that is actually going against the grain at this point. My original target was 100g or more of protein per day. However, I'm notching it down to 80g of protein MAX per day. I'll see if that helps. Also, my workout routines might be a little stagnant. I don't think I need to do less in any way, however - I have done circuit training and I did get good losses by doing this. I think I might get back into this and see if that helps. So tomorrow morning I think I'll start my early morning routine with 20 Minutes on my stationary bike, then do about 35 Minutes on my treadmill. I'll try that for a while. I hope my scale is kind to me on Friday! Sheesh... I've been working my tail off and eating like an Angel and it's not giving me any love!! However, like I said - I'm getting lots of love where the clothes are concerned. So... until next time folks!! Keep reaching for the stars... never give up and do NOT let that scale define you! As long as you are doing the right things, the right things will come back to you. Trust me. Source: Diva's journey to GOAL

Hello hello hello to all of you! It has been another week since my last check in. I guess I just don't ever have a whole lot to say... until I start typing anyway. LOL So me weighing the exact same as I have for the last two weeks really did kinda P'd me off a little bit. However, that said - I have had some really amazing developments in the last few days. I tried on my size 6 pants and yup I was able to get them on!! Hooorraayyy!!! So, that means I am but ONE SIZE AWAY FROM GOAL!!!! I always did say that once I got into those size 4 pants (same make/style as the recent 6's I fitted and former 8's) that THAT would be it for me. So what am I looking at now as far as weight? 15 Lbs?? 20 Lbs at the most? We will see!! All I know is that I am SO CLOSE!! I'm really going to do it! It feels SO DANGED GOOD!! I really just put 165 Lbs as a guesstimate. I DO NOT want to get any smaller than a 4. I would have a hard time shopping in normal stores at that point. Especially my favorite Kohl's. They don't go any smaller than a 4. In my world, Size 4 is very thin, and when I get there I'll know I'm finish. My weight on the scale is pretty meaningless to me, except that I'd really like to stop losing now. If any of you knew this already it is that my original goal was to fit the size 8's. However, I got into them at 200 Lbs!! No way was I going to stay at 200 Lbs... so my scale has had SOME say on where I end up. I didn't want to be near the 2's anymore. I just don't want to see that number again in the front of my weight. EVER!!! My routines have been going excellent. I'm staying low on my carbs (Good Carbs) and I'm getting in all my Protein. I recently found out I may even be getting too much protein. My genetic makeup gathers muscle tone quite easily. Of course muscle weighs a lot, so that is actually going against the grain at this point. My original target was 100g or more of protein per day. However, I'm notching it down to 80g of protein MAX per day. I'll see if that helps. Also, my workout routines might be a little stagnant. I don't think I need to do less in any way, however - I have done circuit training and I did get good losses by doing this. I think I might get back into this and see if that helps. So tomorrow morning I think I'll start my early morning routine with 20 Minutes on my stationary bike, then do about 35 Minutes on my treadmill. I'll try that for a while. I hope my scale is kind to me on Friday! Sheesh... I've been working my tail off and eating like an Angel and it's not giving me any love!! However, like I said - I'm getting lots of love where the clothes are concerned. So... until next time folks!! Keep reaching for the stars... never give up and do NOT let that scale define you! As long as you are doing the right things, the right things will come back to you. Trust me.

OMG I haven't even attempted ice cream. Though I have been thinking about trying it... I love it in Summer time. However I keep reverting back to my "milk" episode and I'm immediately turned off. I never want to feel that again. Ever.

Hi Shanny welcome to your finish line! I hear you on not wanting to get to a ridiculous goal. I'm in the same boat. If I may make a suggestion: maybe you can set little mini goals for yourself regarding your eating. Like suppose you say, starting today I WILL NOT visit McD's for 7 days (one week) and see how that goes. I find that when I do these little mini goals re: my eating it gets me back into the healthy and proper eating routine. Regardless you have done phenomenally well, and I probably don't even need to be giving you any advice!! LOL Good luck on the remainder of your journey!!!

I looove to hear NSV's like this!! You have worked really hard to get to where you are now and deserve all the spilled drinks! Just a hint, I edit my photos on good ole MS Paint. I don't need any of the other expensive fancy schmancy photo shop things. When you open your picture in MS Paint, you just "Resize" or on the older versions it's called "Stretch/Skew" in Edit option. I do size 25% and it comes out nice. Good luck!

With friends like this who needs enemies? Really. IMO, we have all made an incredible and major decision to completely change our lives. Sometimes cutting the fat doesn't necessarily mean our own. Get rid of all the toxic people in your life because you are going to need a lot of love and support in this journey. It is NOT easy!! It IS all about YOU right now, and if someone can't accept that due to their own selfish and jealous reasons... oh well. Good luck to you all, and just know this, you are WORTHY of good friends and family who will treat you with respect and the way you treat them. If they cannot do this, then to heck with them.