BryBro63

Had my 12 day post op exam with my doctor today. He was pleased with my progress and green lighted me for eggs, tuna, and most importantly: BACON. Had it extra, extra, extra, crispy. So 4 bites of scrambled eggs and a piece of Bacon later, I left a VERY happy man from my local diner. Also cleared to eat chili! Can't wait for dinner!

Offense: called former fatties Barriatric Bozos
Request: Kick my ass if need be
Evidence: online dictionary definition
Outcome: I'm still okay with whatever you bozos say ????
http://i.word.com/idictionary/bozo

I like the idea!!! Personally I always prefer the swift kick in the ass, to get my full attention!!!
I like it!!!!

I like the idea!!! Personally I always prefer the swift kick in the ass, to get my full attention!!!
I like it!!!!

I like this forum as well!!! I had mentioned this in quite a few other forums and threads, but this is definitely me!! Felt kinda lost once I reached goal, and now I want to assure that I don't go into 'failure mode', and start gaining back!!! So far so good, but want to assure I can continue the success!!! I'm sure I'll also be visiting back quite often, and I already have questions and concerns that I'd like to discuss!!!

I like the idea!!! Personally I always prefer the swift kick in the ass, to get my full attention!!!
I like it!!!!

Congratulations on hitting your goal weight…what is your next step? As you know, losing weight is a battle, and it’s one that you’ve won if you’ve hit your goal weight. That’s a huge accomplishment…but the fight doesn’t stop there. Let your guard down, and pounds come back on. That’s what this forum is for: to help you succeed in this next stage of your weight loss surgery journey.
These forums are for you if:
You are at goal weight and are working on keeping the pounds off. You are getting close to goal weight and you want advice and tips from others on how to make the transition to maintenance as successfully as possible. You are considering weight loss surgery and want to know what your life will be like when you hit goal weight one or two or three years after surgery. Talk about recipes, eating new foods, working out for health and maintenance, and other healthy long-term behaviors as a successful WLS patient. You can also come here for support if you find the pounds starting to creep back on, or if you get a little discouraged with the idea of following this lifestyle for “forever.” There are others in your boat!

My wife and I called them "Food Funerals". Had some between insurance approval and pre-surgical diet. Best was Cracker Barrel Breakfast with country fried streak, biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs and hash brown casserole... the thought of eating that much food in one sitting is disgusting now, but my old stomach sure did love it! :-)

Love this thread. Nothing has convinced me I'm making the right decision more than what I've read here.
This is one of the main reasons I'm getting sleeved...
Bummer I still need to go through my Ins. Co.'s 12-week program or I'd be knocking on the surgeon's door tomorrow.
My wife is 14 years younger than me and as freaky as they come...... I want to use that to my advantage.

Hi everybody! Im from phila and my surgery date is June 3rd!

I think I'll wait it out. I have an appointment with my nutritionist in 2 weeks. I guess it's all trial and error in tiny portions. Thank you so much!!

My first meeting of my insurance-required 12-week program is on May 12th.
While I'm still cutting back and cleaning up my eating, I'm going to use this as my "jump-off-point" to my new life.
I'd love to add some friends to my account on that day if it's alright with you gentlemen?

After much waiting...and much heat from my sleever homies...I'm posting my before and after pics!!! I hit my goal weight back in August, and haven't had any significant gain whatsoever...swearing that I'm never going back to 'Heavy B' again!!
 

As anyone who has ever been overweight can tell you, heat and skin friction is a constant battle. Luckily last year I found "Gold Bond Friction Defense". It has been the best think since sliced bread. It has worked with no recurrence of that nasty friction rash we all get. Anyway, this weekend I noticed that I no longer needed this. I can now free myself of this burden. My point is this, we need to not only Celebrate the fact that our numbers are decreasing, but we need to also Celebrate the small victories that make our life better. So Gold Bond Friction Defense stuff you have been great to me and helped me in so many ways, but now it is time to say adios.

Hi Dione,
Congratulations on your decision to be a healthier you!
I would suggest you walk a lot and do some extra strength training on your lower body.
I have been doing a lot of walking and have lost a lot of inches off of my hips and thighs. I am apple-shaped and I wish the inches would leave faster from my upper body. Especially my stomach. Oh boy! Everyone says that the stomach is the last to go. I can't wait for it's exit!

I developed a new lifestyle of eating end exercise, NEVER to go on a diet again or be a calorie counter.....
I let my body determine what my goal should be....just as a bad lifestyle of eating wrong and being a coach potato slowly increased my weight to obesity, this new lifestyle slowly led my body back to "Normal"
How do I know my weight is normal? Not by BMI's, they are worthless....but because I know what % of my weight consists of body fat, and what % is not....and it is actually a little below normal, in the "Athletic" range due to all the exercising.....
I have been at this weight for about 3 years, there is nothing left to loose and still be healthy....
I get on the scale sometimes twice a day (out of habit) and I am accustomed to the same 5lb negative and positive swings (10 lb range I guess)
And following this lifestyle, I still enjoy things a dieter would never dream of eating....
I plan on staying right here for the rest of my life....

I have no "target", just a bit of thinking out loud.
I think that sometimes we focus so hard on a number, we forget about the reality of our situation. The whole perspective thing gets lost. But again, just my feelings on the subject.

Fun discussion topic! My reasons for WLS were to get rid of diabetes, apnea, asthma, high cholesterol, and borderline blood pressure. At my next checkup I expect the cholesterol numbers to be normal, and then ALL of those diseases will be gone. But, even more importantly, I want to live a longer and higher quality life with my wife and daughter. (Looking better is okay too.) I set my initial goal at 154. That's exactly one pound into the "normal" BMI for my height. As I approached that, I ran across an "ideal weight" calculation that put me at 148. Okay, that seemed doable. But when I got under 150, I realized that I liked being below that nice, round number. And then I learned of a rule-of-thumb that doctors use to calculate "ideal weight". That calculation put me at 142. Since I'm an analyst, I quickly noticed that the halfway point between those two numbers is 145, which just happens to be exactly 120 pounds down from where I started. How perfect is that?!! So now I'm at 145, and have no desire to lose any more weight. In fact, I'll be happy to remain anywhere below 150. I just have to figure out how to do that.....

I just picked a weight I remember from my past dozens of diets and weight loss efforts. A weight I felt was the most ideal weight for my body type. I completely ignored doctors or charts. I figured I'd tweak it the closer I got depending on how I looked and felt then.
The excess skin does have an adverse effect on appearance and skews the number somewhat, but ultimately the number really didn't motivate me as much as clothes sizes and fit, but it was pretty close.
Even though at times I felt I wouldn't reach my original goal weight, the additional effort to reach it, kept me on track with my new eating habits to solidify them and make them permanent.
I did eventually reach my goal and then to avoid any anti-climatic backsliding because I no longer had a goal...... I set another one to lose a few more.......(no number.....just a few more) I found that in maintenance, I bounced up and down a few pounds every few days, so I wanted a margin of a few pounds leeway. Also, I wanted the knowledge that I had control of my weight on a daily basis. I lost another ten pounds over a couple of months and gained alot more insight into how diligent I must be to maintain.
Bottom line.......the number is an estimate at best........you'll be the ultimate judge of what's best for you and you'll reach whatever goal you want by staying focused and not forgetting your past.

I really needed to read this post and the comments because I have been so frustrated and discouraged lately.

We all have our own reasons for having weight loss surgery. For some of us, it's so that we can stop the progress of diabetes, heart disease and other obesity related illnesses. For others, it's because we are starting to feel pain in our knees, our backs, our feet. And of course, many of us want to look great in skinny jeans, in a bathing suit, a summer dress. (There is NO SHAME in the vanity aspect of WLS, who doesn't love an admiring glance, a great compliment, a quick head turn?)
Personally, I had WLS for all of the reasons above. Not only did I want to extend my life span, but I wanted to improve the quality of my life for myself and my family and I wanted to look and feel great for these prime years of my life. I really had no way of picking out a weight goal as I had been obese for decades and after two children and a few dozen years, I had no idea what 160, 150, 140 would look like any more. I chose to make my goal very Fluid, one of those "I'll know it when I get there" ideas, more focused on pants size than an actual weight.

The day of surgery, I did pick the number 159, which is still "overweight" according to the BMI scale, but that was a number that seemed so lofty and it was a number my doctor was thrilled with. When I hit that goal 9 or so months later, I decided that I'd really like to see 149 (WHAT!?!? UNDER 150!?!?!?!), a number that still alludes me to this day.
I often get messages from people asking me if I am unhappy that I've not reached that number and the answer is HELL NO. What I really imagined for myself was to be in pant sizes that were in the single digits, to be able to do a 5k with my kids, to eliminate all traces of pre-diabetes, to be able to shop in any store I chose. I've done all that and I've maintained it now for over a year. No only that, but I've maintained it without a whole lot of concerted effort -- something that amazes me every day.
I KNOW I could hit 149 -- my stretch goal -- if I worked at it. In fact, I think I could hit 139 and one day I might feel the need to, but I doubt it. I did not have WLS to live the rest of my life fully focused on every morsel that enters my mouth, counting, weighing, measuring obsessively. I still track, I still plan, I still log and measure much of the time, but I choose not to center every meal around my food log like I used to.
Why am I even bringing this up? Because I see some people here and elsewhere who I am scared for. I see a few members who are dipping dangerously close to the underweight end of the BMI scale. I see some people on other boards who are beating themselves up because their size 2s are tight. These people are oozing panic and anxiety over every gram of carb eaten and over every ounce of movement on the scale. Clearly they have traded one eating disorder for another and I fear for them. I also see people on the other end of the spectrum who think that because they've had this surgery, they are free to eat whatever they desire because their restriction will keep them in check and they are shocked when 6 months later they are up 30, 40, 50 pounds.

If you are just starting this journey or are midway through your weight loss, I'd love for you to write down your goals -- what's really important to you about this whole process. Revisit those thoughts as you get close to goal and write down what you feel really good about and where you feel you might be struggling. Use those thoughts to guide you when you feel your thoughts are going haywire and you might need a reality check. And seriously, do NOT listen to your friends, neighbors, family when they tell you that you are too fat, too thin (at 200 pounds, you are NOT too thin), need to lose more, gain some back, etc. Go to your doctor for that.

Keep your perspective in check. This whole process is a real mind fruck ( ) if you allow it to be.

Hi everyone! I just found this forum. I was sleeved 4/6. I've lost 40lbs so far (15 from my two week pre-op diet). I still have 110 lbs to go, so I know it will be a long journey but worth the effort. I just started soft foods today (thank Goodness!). I'm 5'8, female, and from Maryland. I love reading these posts, especially those 5-6 months out. I can't wait to be there, too!

I'm getting sleeved in a couple hours! Wow! Can't believe it's finally here guys!

I'm hooked...currently on a streak of 402 days!! Hope I didn't jinx myself!!
On the serious note, I update daily, to keep myself honest. I'm 14 months post-op, and swear that I don't want to go backwards and back to my old self. Documenting any intake keeps me aware and accountable.

After much waiting...and much heat from my sleever homies...I'm posting my before and after pics!!! I hit my goal weight back in August, and haven't had any significant gain whatsoever...swearing that I'm never going back to 'Heavy B' again!!