Phoenix79

Only 600 a day 7 months out plus working out? Try upping your calories to 800-900 a day and continue to work out and I bet you will see faster weight loss. So many people do this and see results- try it for 2 weeks and see what happens!

Just left Cash & Carry and they had Davinci SF caramel coffee syrup for $3.90 for a large bottle and Torani offered SF salted caramel and SF caramel syrup for $4.08 for a large bottle. Such a good deal!

Welcome Sleeveless! I know you can do it and succeed with the sleeve and your weight loss beforehand too. I started exactly where you are- 330lbs was my highest weight around October 2012 at 5'5 1/2. I was determined to lose weight on my own and did it gradually- losing about 25lbs before signing up for the sleeve surgery in Feb. 2013. July 2, 2013 Day of surgery (Swedish Hospital in Seattle) I was 289lbs, 49 bmi like your goal for surgery day! Today is my six month anniversary and I am now down to 211lbs in size 16 jeans with a total of 119lbs lost since my heaviest! You can do it too- the key is to always keep a positive mindset, exercise, follow the instructions of your surgeon and nutritionist and take one day at a time. If you haven't already, join and use My Fitness Pal- it's a great place to track calories, foods, and activities. Good luck and I look forward to seeing you around!

If you live in a place that has Cash & Carry (I live in the Seattle area), that would be a good place to find lots of SF coffee related stuff...lots of great syrups, etc- and the price is right! If you don't, look for a restaurant supply company, they may have something or know somewhere that does. Good luck!

Congrats on the recent sleeve! Don't worry, it's very typical to have a stall the third week after surgery, and you'll see more stalls as well further on. It's your body readjusting and replenishing things and then the stall will break and you'll drop again. It's sort of a stair step pattern with a lot of people, not always down. .

Thanks m2g! I love, love, love clearance shopping- prices equal or better than thrift stores in many cases and stuff is brand new! I was dreaming of clothes shopping all night after my shopping spree. Lol. Believe it or not, I've lost 1/3 to 1/2 of my hair volume over the last 2 months- every hairbrushing, every shower there is more lost. I was blessed with very thick hair which is great when I'm losing so much of it, but not so great tying to find bobby pins long and strong enough to keep my hair in a bun. here's a pic I took of a recent hair loss on my brush- one pass through my hair- I hope it will stop soon!

Here's a pic from our outing with me wearing some of my new clothes!

Wow, even with how far I've come, I don't know if I can picture myself in single digits. Never been there in my teen or adult life- smallest I've been is a size 12 (sometimes) when I was 17 at 145lbs. My whole family is very athletic, swimmer's build and the women have wide hips and big butts. I'll be happily surprised if I do break into single digits, but my main goal is to get strong, stay active and have fun doing all the things I couldn't do before. My tag size really doesn't matter- I could stop now and be happy with my results, but I'll keep going until my body says stop! Thanks so much for the encouragement Comfy Blue!

I'm staying in a hotel in Seattle with my mom and sisters for a girls night out. We've shopped, eaten out, and have had a great time! What really made me feel good we're all the NSV's one right after the other! First, I brought PJ's that didn't fit me last month, and they fit perfectly now, size xxl! Second, I bought my first pair of size 16w jeans at Macy's - all the way down from a size 26-28. Third- I went to Old Navy and I was able to fit in size Xxl or Xl depending on fit- I've never been able to shop the store before for clothes- just jewellery and dog toys. I went a little nuts in the clearance section because I needed replacement clothes for the ones I donated cleaning out my closet! Fourth- dinner at Cheesecake Factory, and I sat in the wicker chair instead of the booth- (fit easily- 1st time for that) & ate one Thai lettuce wrap for dinner. Fifth- went swimming at the hotel and used the hotel provided robe to cover up- it fit and tied up & I heard an angelic choir singing! . It was a great day and so encouraging! I had surgery July 2nd 2013, highest weight 330, surgery weight 289, current weight 219, size 16-18. Keep going newbies- you CAN do it!

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Thanks Tampa and everyone else! I'm counting from my heaviest weight, not my surgery weight...gotta give myself credit for the 40lbs I lost while considering surgery. I started in December 2012 at 330lbs, 1st pre surgery appt, 316 in Feb. 2013, surgery consent signing day 300, day of surgery 289 (July 2nd 2013), today- 228.2! It's been a lot of work, but worth it! It so helps to have a strong support system with my husband Fiddleman, my Mom and sisters and extended family. .

To Celebrate 100lbs lost so far as of today! A wonderful gift from my very enthusiastic Mom.

I will help get the photo tomorrow Butter!

Victory at Bahama Breeze tonight! We picked probably some of the most healthy things on the menu just by looking at the descriptions...and they were tasty! If you are ever there, check out the wood grilled chicken breast with citrus butter sauce, broccoli and mashed cinnamon sweet potatoes. Very flavourful, and you can order a smaller portion and still have food to take home. Another yummy option my husband (fiddleman) had was the crab stack- crab, shrimp, avocado and apple mango salsa. High in protein and delish. He also ordered steamed edamame- polished off the crab stack, the edamame and several bites of my chicken, a few spears of broccoli and bites of sweet potato. I'm four months out- he's 16 months out and does lots of crossfit workouts.

Folks, I will remind my husband (fiddleman) about his website idea...I think it's a great idea too, an would make a good project.

In the Everett area on the west side- my husband has been sleeved as well. He had his July 2, 2012 and I had mine July 2, 2013- exactly a year apart!

Thanks Gamergirl! I'm going to try these out for my husband fiddleman- I'm sadly not a seafood fan! . Oh- the next time you're in Seattle, lets us know! I'd love to meet up if you have time!

So proud of you Gamergirl! You are awesome!

Thanks! I'm not that elated yet...don't know why. I guess I'm just waiting to be elated until I get to goal...but I do celebrate the little victories along the way. I guess I was happy the way I was and I'm happy now- things are different, but not necessarily better. Things have always been good. I never let my weight define me. I think I'll do a little dance though when I can get my calf into a nice boot again.

Yes, I've noticed I am starting to lose some hair, but I have very thick hair to start out with so I'm not that stressed out about it. I've been taking biotin since before surgery, but I'm still losing hair....it just happens, but it will grow back!

That's so awesome! I love gardening! Growing your own food is such a feeling of accomplishment and it's fun watching things grow over the summer. I wish I had the heat to do peppers- here in the the Pacific Northwest it's not gonna happen without a greenhouse. But I did get 3 huge Brussel Sprout plants.

There is definitely a big difference! Keep it up, you look great!

Ok, I just found an amazing song of encouragement for sleevers (and most everyone!) by Suzie McNeil called "Believe". Some of the lyrics follow.... I'm standing before you, taking my chance on Everything I never thought that I could be 'Cause you can do almost anything If you just believe You can move mountains with dreams The higher you climb, the better it gets 'Cause you will see things, you'll never forget If you just believe It's like I'm falling through my own fears They used to haunt me, but now they're not here There's no looking back, my future is clear No giving up And I'm holding on when it gets rough 'Cause you can get through most anything If you just believe No one says it's easy And no one says you have to be perfect But as long as you try, you're always gonna find It was worth it if you just believe

This is a before and "during" picture....3 1/2 months out from surgery. Went from a size 26/28 to 18/20 and shrinking! Height 5'5 1/2, age 34. Just starting C25k working around my AS (type of arthritis). HW 330 SW 289 CW 238

Great words of wisdom Gamergirl! I have found what you said to be true for the dinners I make- I was worried I wouldn't be able to be a foodie anymore, but I still enjoy eating and cooking 3 months out from being sleeved as much as I did before. Just less food! . We're going to Arizona to visit family soon and that will be our first vacation since my surgery. I hope our vacation goes as smoothly as yours is! Have a great time in Mexico!