mysleevemylife

Woohoo!!! Ran first lap, ran the straight-aways for 3 1/2 miles, and I walked the last. I feel great! I can't wait until I can run the full four, but I'm getting there. Drinking a recovery shake, I'm going to let that settle, then I'm hitting the weights.
#feelingPUMPED

First of all, congrats on your weight loss success!! This is MAJOR. Unfortunately when the outside improves, the inside does not always jump on board at the same time. There are things in the past that cause pain & affect us in ways that seem to scar us, BUT over time, even these scars will heal. I want to suggest a few things. First, seek counseling just to talk out the issues....as an outlet. & if not counseling, journaling, praying, a good sound church, any of these are good. Secondly, write down a list of EVERYTHING positive about yourself & place it where you can see it daily & also meditate on these things until you begin to FULLY believe them. Forgive yourself also. Forgive yourself for any time that you have let down yourself or others. No one is perfect & we all have not so pretty things "in our closet". Let the past go & propel forward. Refuse to let the past control you. Take one day at a time. Walk with you head held high & with confidence even if you dont feel that way yet. Please inbox me anytime. I know what you are going through to an extent.

I only gained weight in my time after achieving goal because I chose to get pregnant. Now, it took me 17 months to achieve goal. But the way I ate roughly 18 months out is the way I eat right now.
Had I not chosen to have a child I have no doubt that I would still be happily within my maintenance window, adhering to something much like 6:1 or 5:2, though I admit I was less careful tracking calories in actual maintenance. I used my clothes and scale as the real indicators of how I was doing, and only tracked a few days each month to be sure I was on track.
I think that if you do that work to find a way to eat and live prior to goal there's no need to shift anything in maintenance, except perhaps adding in a few more calories each day so you don't continue to lose.
My opinion, controversial though it may be, is that the real problems occur more for people that "diet" their way to goal. Meaning they restrict everything to ridiculously low levels and work out like maniacs during loss but their lifestyle isn't practical for the long haul. And so they have real problems transitioning to maintenance and a more moderate lifestyle.
It's sort of that all-or-nothing approach, and once they hit goal a number of people have issues because they feel like it's over, they're done and now that they completed their diet they can do what they want.
Not so.
Just my opinion, of course. I'm plugging along at three years out (in just eight more days!) and only have six pounds to lose before I'm back where I was prior to having a baby. Maintenance is about a thousand times easier if you do the head work beforehand. And truly, the only issues with food/hunger that I have at this point are purely emotional and not physiological at all.
~Cheri

Potatoes in any form, spaghetti and rice. All white death foods imo. I hope to stay completely away from all of them.

I clicked "like" on this, because I too like to eat pizza!Oh yeah, that's another one added to my list. I've eat pizza prob three times since my sleeve has "healed". I had no issues either, but it def didn't have the same Orgasmic, lol, affect that it used to.

pizza. At one point I was eating 3-4 whole pizzas a week.

Found this shot from my highest last may

5'8" 253lbs ( at least!)
And this is from this weekend

197lbs

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You can do specific core exercises in Water (not swimming, although this is good too). If you get a belt (looks like a weight belt, usually blue, and has a snapping seat belt type closure)-can purchase at Sports Authority or Sports Chalet.
Initiatlly you will want to start without using Water equipment on your legs since your core is weak.
1) put this belt on, lean back to float on your back.
2) have your legs extended, closed together, bring your knees to your chest (reverse crunch). Do this 15-20 reps x 3 sets
3) turn to your right or left (on your side), extend your legs then bring them to your body (butt)- side obliques 15-20 times x 3 sets on each side.
Do this for three months. Then, you can start adding water equipment such as hydrotone boots (www.hydrotone.com) I'm not sure if they are still in business or not.
I have the boots and water dumb bells (not the foam ones...these are yellow slatted plastic in the shape of an octgone.
When you can do this, I can give you advance core exercises. My fiance is a MMA fighter and has awesome exercises, but first things first.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to provide feedback to you.
Sincerely,
Jen

In 20something years of off and on working out, I haven't ventured much from treadmills and ellipticals. What are some things that I can do to work on my core?
Thanks in advance
Sent from my iPad using VST

Just to give clarity, the town that I'm from is in the marsh of south Louisiana. If I pointed to it on a map, it would be Water.

Since the kids are out of school for summer and I don't want to pay $4 per hour per kid ($36 per day/4 times a week) in daycare, I've been using my home gym in my garage. I have a treadmill and weights. I like to keep my workout routine short and sweet. I run for 20 mins every morning, 7 days a week. Every other day I lift weights but it's not the super heavy weights. Lifting heavy seems to stall my weight loss and I figured once I get to goal I can worry about building muscle. My morning run has my heart rate up to 160 bpm. I mentally can't handle more than 20 mins on the treadmill because I become extremely bored and it feels like a chore. I do not plan to lengthen the time but I will eventually add on more speed to the 20 mins of cardio. Once the kids are back in school, I will start spin class again but gotta save money this summer.

If you can believe it, walking is one of the best things to lose weight, and it's easy. I do a lot of walking. After speaking to my doctor, health nut wife, several friend, two seasoned personal trainer and researched it online, I learned that keeping your heart rate lower (versus running which is hard on your joints and back) is what burns the fat best. I also like walking in different neighborhoods. It's amazing what you see when you are strolling by versus driving. If you have trails in your area I would strongly recommend those. And please get good shoes, they make a big difference. I would recommend going to a local, small running shop where someone can watch you walk and take a good look at your foot to get a good fit (makes all the difference). Walking has brought me into hiking as I like nature. Winter might be a different story for you than me, I live in southern California, so weather is usually great. I also have a heart rate monitor to keep track on my progress, love it.

I will be sleeved on the 18th. Eager to move into new model for healthy living. Understand the phased approach to introducing foods to new tummy.
For those who are now not restricted, how are you able to enjoy a wide variety of fresh produce?

Cardio gets the fat off! If you’re in the early stages of this weight loss, I just want to share and point out, that the best thing you can do to see inches lost and pounds keep coming off is Cardio! And tons of it. Cardio can be boring. I’ll agree. But it’s soooo effective in getting the heart rate up and also building the endurance required to get through those intense weight training sessions when they are added into your exercise regimen.
I have been doing some tests on myself just trying to figure out my body. I am a gym rat at this point nearly 7 months post op. I do a lot of strength training and cardio. I notice some weeks I just don’t have the energy reserve to weight train, but because my endurance is so great I just go cardio crazy just to say I didn’t sit on my a** all week. This usually happens about 1-2 weeks before my menstrual comes along. I notice during this period I lose pounds (somewhere between 4-6 pounds in a week if I go consistently 5 days straight at 1 hour each day). Then when I jump back into my weight training, there is no loss, but rather a small gain (usually about .5-1 pound) but inches are loss. I’m guessing this is because muscle is replacing fat, and a pound of fat is much fluffier than a pound of muscle, thus why weight stays the same but body looks and feels smaller. Unintentionally I have been playing this game with my body, and it happens to work! Bodybuilders would call this cut and bulk phasing. Where they’d do massive weight training and eat like crazy to bulk up and gain some serious muscle, then do massive cardio and cut calories to cut some serious fat. They play this game alternating week by week sometimes longer, and this is what creates that chiseled ripped look. You bulk up for muscle, and cut to get rid of excess fat!
In spite of it all, if you’re beginning to work out, don’t overwhelm yourself trying to weight train. Leave that for later when you’ve plateaued and want to switch up your regimen and jump start your metabolism. Just get into cardio for now. Your intake is already limited. The cardio will do its job for you. Become comfortable (not bored) with it. Switch it up. Try walking 30 minutes a day. When that gets easy, try a treadmill at the same pace but with an incline. You’ve doubled calories burned that quick! When that gets easy, jump on the elliptical (low impact and easy and burns a ton of calories once you get your breathing right). When that gets easy, add the stair master. Incorporate programs like 0 to 5k to increase endurance. Just work on that heart! It is essentially what burns fat and boosts the metabolism. Once you’re good with that, start weight training. You’ll have the endurance necessary to get through the workouts, and you’ll begin to tone and build muscle.
The best thing for your body at this stage in the game is to get active. Don’t just sit around because your stomach is the size of a tennis ball and wait for the weight to fall off! Be proactive! Nothing worse than a skinny fat person! Meaning a person that is in the ideal weight range as far as BMI but has a body fat % of over 30%. Believe me, most skinny people are fat! Also don’t get bogged down with BMI charts. They are very misleading. For example, a man 5’8 at 200 pounds is considered to have a bmi of 30 which is obese. But what if he is only 8% body fat (like most bodybuilders)? Is he really obese or unhealthy? Or in vice versa, a female that is 5’5 at 130 pounds and 38% body fat. Her BMI is 21 which is in the normal range, but she is unhealthy. Build muscle, burn fat! And the best way to jumpstart that is cardio. You will look better and feel better.. hope this helps you guys, especially the beginners!

So I was sleeved jan 29 an Was 322 I am 235 as of today I finished c25k but for the last month I have seriously slacked. I deprived myself of anything I liked for about 18 weeks so since a vacation I took lat month I have just been a slacker. So my game plan cut the crap out get my veggies protien and Water in also my plan to spice up my workout 3 days a week doung c2 10 k bike 3 miles then 2 days a week do a quick mile run and do some strength stuff. Anyone game to join me in restarting? Move on ya live and learn I always say!

Hey Lynda,
I am completly and utterly LOVING this... I couldn't have put it better myself... infact, you could actually be talking about a couple of my friends... they are soooo obsessed with how heavy I am and what size clothes I wear... for God's sake... JOG ON!!

She did it about a year and a half ago and she looks fabulous. I am so happy she made this decision and that she has found so much more happiness in her body, her relationships and her job (which is a bit more physical than most).
Very few people know about her procedure which I totally understand. I told my closest friends, my parents and my kids (that includes my husband). I feel no need to tell anyone else right now because I don't want people asking me questions about my journey on a daily basis. I know I will spill it eventually, but not until I am ready.
What's my problem? She has started selling some sort of Vitamin weight loss crap and she is 100% crediting her success to her new venture. She is showing her before and after pictures all over the place and has people convinced that if they buy her weight loss stuff, they will have her results. Meanwhile, she is eating 1-2 oz of real food and has lost over 150 pounds because of RNY. I know it's none of my business and I will NOT bust her out on FB as I am tempted to do, but I am so mad.
I did kindly confront her about it, and she claims that she only lost 20 pounds due to her RNY. She was over 300, she is about 145 now, a year and a few months later. She claims she hit a 6 month stall (bullsheet), started this stuff and the pounds melted away. It's a scam and she is taking people's money. ARGH!!!

I posted here a week ago about how my girl of 10 yrs left me for someone else because she felt I looked to different and felt different. I wasn't the same man she fell in love with. I have been torn apart since that day and the guilt of getting the surgery and losing weight and causing her to leave me is eating me alive. I barely eat and I just can't sleep. I work 2 jobs and I have been working triple shifts to keep my mind busy but my body is just giving up. Can anyone offer some kind of advice on what to do to put my mind at ease. I just want to find peace again. I don't know how much more I can take of this. I'm sorry for being weak but I don't know where else to go or who to talk to anymore.

Hi there! Well, I requested extra counseling after the initial psych evaluation that was required for my insurance. I'm not sure if you are spiritual or not, but what I did was I talked to God a lot & told him all of my worries, fears, anxieties. I literally said "Lord, please let me be one of those types that can tolerate just about anything after surgery". I watched a whole lot of Youtube videos & received a lot of tips, ideas, strength, and encouragement. I also utilized this forum a lot. I spent many days before/after work lying on the couch or on the bed & thinking/meditating about my feelings & the journey ahead of me. These are things that helped me. I was DETERMINED before surgery to return to as much as a normal life as possible. I knew I would follow the advise of the professionals for the most part, but I've also learned to know what my personal body wants/needs despite of. For example, I just started using a straw today with no issues. It's helping me drink my Water better/quicker (not too quick of course). I hope this helps. Oh, I've also journaled to get my emotions out.

Go to the hardware store and get a decent sized pipe (3-4 inch pipe) that is about 10-12ft long put an end cap on one end and a twist off cap on the other fill with Water. Now carry said pipe in a crooked arm carry around the yard, now lift the pipe over head an do it again. You can vary the exercise by adding more water or also try walking backwards. One of the best core work outs I've ever done...using these slush pipes seems to target your weakest muscles in the back, core, and arms so it seems to work different things each week.

Amy is probably going to have a hard time explaining to her hubby why there's a tractor tire in the middle of the living room .

Hi there! I'm 15 months out, and still haven't gotten into the habit of incorporating veggies back into my diet. I love veggies, but, as weird as it sounds, have gotten out of the habit of eating them. I would appreciate any suggestions about when to eat them and good ways to get them back into my diet. How do you incorporate them in your day?
Thanks, everyone!!!

I bought an entire new wardrobe, from underwear to jammies to workwear to casualwear to outerwear and accessoires, but it was a few weeks and pounds before goal. I even had to have new eyeglasses made and my wedding ring resized!
My BFF, who knows I had the surgery, like everyone else, asked me the other day about my coat, "Is that new?". My response was, "Of course! Everything I wear is new!"