mysleevemylife

I love this. It reinforces the notion that our choices are powerful, and that the choice to be successful can be as simple as choosing not to fail.
Even when I make bad choices on this journey, I never see it as failure, quite the opposite. I see it as all part of the journey, all part of what I am learning.

For the first time in my life I actually believe that I am capable of any goal I set for myself.
I have put my body through countless WLS complications and death twice.
This time, I have no clue when or how it happened, but my VSG decision was the trigger. I started pre decision very depressed, but by the time I made the decision to get sleeved I knew this was my turning point. Never have I given myself the option of failure.
Who knows where the path will take me. I know for sure that my life is already changed and I can't contain the excitement I have for today and the future. It's a whole new world of opportunities that I never considered possible! It's amazing what a healthy, happy body and mind can do for ones life. Its absolutely beautiful!

I work out six days a week. It's important to me to preserve my lean muscle mass.
When I needed to increase my calories but had too much restriction, my NUT supported drinking calories. Healthy calories. So I drink soy milk when I can't get to 1200 with food. I also use the premier shakes to boost Protein and calories. (I don't have a hard time getting Protein, though.)
I also eat food that tend to slide, like cottage cheese and Greek yogurt. I add salsa to the cottage cheese to keep it interesting. I know cottage cheese isn't a slider for every one, but it is for me.
I also eat a lot of Beans.
Really dense protein is what keeps me full and if i eat meat at every meal, it prevents me from getting the calories I require now.
Your capacity will change. You're right on the cusp of that change. Good luck

I'm still surprised when I sit in a chair and there is space on either side of my butt. Like, "Wow, they're finally smarting up and making chairs bigger!" duhhh

Not recognize yourself? This may sound paranoid and honestly at the time it was, but here it is. I was shopping and kept noticing this person's reflection in windows and the occasional mirror out of the corner of my eye. And finally I thought myself..well I have had enough of this follow me so I whipped around and guess who was there..the reflection of myself . So I had been all freaked out because apparently I was following myself ..didn't even recognized own image...weird I know..but now when people don't recognize I get it. So remember..if you think someone is following you, just turn around it probably is your own shadow! LoL

To keep on working on myself. I want my inside to match my outside...whereas before surgery and goal I really felt that the outside was what needed changing. In fact, my problems started inside and the weight was just a sign of the problems in my life. I spent years being fat because I was hiding myself and didn't want/feel I deserved to have real relationships with other people. Slap on an extra 100 pounds and a mean look and people leave you alone, you know?
I have been told how pretty I am my whole life and I suppose that due to a myriad of totally screwed up experiences I tried to distract from that with ugly behavior. I want to be more grateful. I want to be happier just as I am...without feeling like I need something else to happen before I'll allow happiness into my life. I have come so far in my life and I have done an amazing job taking care of my family and being a mom to my kids...things that, quite frankly, have taken a lot of work and effort for me, because I grew up in such a terribly messed up home. If you learn how to parent and how to have relationships from your family as a child, who teaches you how to do things properly if they're completely backwards and harmful? Loving people or letting people close to me does not come naturally. Being nice, being friendly, being open, being unselfish...those things take effort though they are becoming more natural as I continue to work on them.
So for me, the most important thing is to make sure that who I am inside and how I'm feeling match the woman on the outside, who is pretty and smiling and looks like she has it together. I want kindness and forgiveness to be my first responses, not irritation or frustration. It's hard. I'm a work in progress and I want to keep working. I also want to remember that I always get to try again tomorrow. And every day I work on me, the REAL me, not just my body, it gets easier and I feel less like I'm acting or performing.
That's got to be progress.
~Cheri

The most important thing to me is being a well rounded person and loving each person for who we are giving back to my community. Family is not only relatives it's also people that we love and love us back. This forum is family to me and I love reading about each of our journey's.

For me, it's not wasting the "Hail Mary" I made when I decided to get weight loss surgery. It's remembering that WLS was my last, best chance to get healthy and now that I am here, I must be vigilant to keep the gift of health I have been given. That means taking care of myself by eating right, exercising, drinking enough fluids, taking my Vitamins, and getting needed medical tests and vaccinations, It also means addressing issues that affect my mental health.
Lynda

Hey everyone, I hope that your day is going well thus far. :-) Just wondering...when you think about this journey of better health, what is the most important thing/goal, etc to you? The key is to pick only one thing. I'd like to see what you all think. For me, the most important thing to me along this journey is that I NEVER GIVE UP. This is not easy & sometimes I feel weary/overwhelmed when I think about how hard I have to continue to work to accomplish my goal & maintain a healthy BMI, but I refuse to give up. I've given up too many times in the past & that's part of what got me to 303lbs to begin with. No matter how hard it is....I...Must.....Keep...Pressing....On. (Sigh) WE WILL DO THIS LADIES & GENTS!!!

Hey everyone, I hope that your day is going well thus far. :-) Just wondering...when you think about this journey of better health, what is the most important thing/goal, etc to you? The key is to pick only one thing. I'd like to see what you all think. For me, the most important thing to me along this journey is that I NEVER GIVE UP. This is not easy & sometimes I feel weary/overwhelmed when I think about how hard I have to continue to work to accomplish my goal & maintain a healthy BMI, but I refuse to give up. I've given up too many times in the past & that's part of what got me to 303lbs to begin with. No matter how hard it is....I...Must.....Keep...Pressing....On. (Sigh) WE WILL DO THIS LADIES & GENTS!!!

Hey everyone, I hope that your day is going well thus far. :-) Just wondering...when you think about this journey of better health, what is the most important thing/goal, etc to you? The key is to pick only one thing. I'd like to see what you all think. For me, the most important thing to me along this journey is that I NEVER GIVE UP. This is not easy & sometimes I feel weary/overwhelmed when I think about how hard I have to continue to work to accomplish my goal & maintain a healthy BMI, but I refuse to give up. I've given up too many times in the past & that's part of what got me to 303lbs to begin with. No matter how hard it is....I...Must.....Keep...Pressing....On. (Sigh) WE WILL DO THIS LADIES & GENTS!!!

That's beautiful!

That's beautiful!

Hardest part of working out is showing up

Ruthie,
Do it for those that want to see you in a few years.
Do it for the person you will be next month, next year.
Do it because you deserve to feel good.
Do it because you love yourself.
Throw out the food in the house you know you should not be eating.
Put your workout clothes out the night before and set your alarm.
Buy the healthy foods you should be eating and put them in convenient locations.
Lynda

Hey!! I've worked 3, 18hour days this week and still have 36 more to do AND have to work this weekend. I still got up and ran 2 days this week.
Move your ass

Get on it! You had this surgery for a reason, it is a Blessing, don't waste it! Get up, get moving and stay on track!

congrats! beautiful "after pic". well, not after but "during". you will meet your goal! keep up the great work. :-)

My surgery was Aug 24th 2012...I am 10 months out. I have lost 94 lbs and losing has slowed down to about 5 lbs a month so I just started exercising (walking) to help SPEED IT UP...LOL I still have a LONG WAY TO GO to get to my goal of 150/160 lbs...HOPEFULLY I'LL MAKE IT!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

I'm def not suggesting this as a fun exercise, but I will tell you...the 30 day squat challenge that I found on-line has really changed my life. Sounds silly, but seriously. Before surgery I would frown at lunges & squats & ALWAYS avoided them. Well, a friend of mine is a personal trainer & my legs are def a trouble spot for me. She suggested it & one day, I picked up the 10lb dumbells & just went for it. First day was 50. My legs have changed so much. They are much stronger & I'm starting to feel that they are sexy!
Anyway, on to the fun stuff...Zumba is awesome! Walking is one of the best exercises & not hard on your body. Water aerobics is awesome & very good on your joints. THen, dancing is a blast & you burn so many cals.

Hey everyone, I hope that your day is going well thus far. :-) Just wondering...when you think about this journey of better health, what is the most important thing/goal, etc to you? The key is to pick only one thing. I'd like to see what you all think. For me, the most important thing to me along this journey is that I NEVER GIVE UP. This is not easy & sometimes I feel weary/overwhelmed when I think about how hard I have to continue to work to accomplish my goal & maintain a healthy BMI, but I refuse to give up. I've given up too many times in the past & that's part of what got me to 303lbs to begin with. No matter how hard it is....I...Must.....Keep...Pressing....On. (Sigh) WE WILL DO THIS LADIES & GENTS!!!

Initially it was about the weight loss and the health improvement. Over time though, it has become about living an authentic life, being true to myself, being in the moment and consciously choosing well. That is, choosing me. Choosing health, choosing authenticity, choosing to live a good life.
The weight loss now is a bonus to all the other gains this surgery has bought to my life.

Mine is 2 keep this weight off and get down 2 a healthy bmi I'm only 2months out