JustWatchMe

Glad you're here, @enjoythetime. This is a marathon and not a sprint. I'm done with beating myself up. Each day brings its own level of challenge as well as motivation. I'm on a path to good health, and by consistently choosing well most days, I am healthier than I have been in decades. Let's all cut ourselves a collective break, shall we? I don't mean toss out our personal meal and exercise goals or even stop checking in for accountability. That's all awesome and it's why I joined this thread. However, we are human, people!! Getting to hear about some of your lives here just makes it clear that we are dealing with so much more than our food plans and exercise plans. Any progress I make compared to my sedentary and fearful life I led before is pure frickin amazing to me and cause for pure celebration and gratitude. You guys are dealing with some heavy stuff. So am I. We are doing all that while we are challenged DAILY to NOT reach for our old comforter, food, to make us feel better and help us cope. MOST days we win that challenge. Woo hoo!!!! Those physical and emotional muscles get stronger the more they are used. So each time I make it through a day where I walk on my lunch break (eternally thankful to @@bacon for that) or walk my steps at work, or make a food plan and stick to it (thanks for your example every day, @s_suther) I am kicking ASS. Some days I reach for my favorite carby food. Some days I reach for a glass or two of wine. But I do that way, way less often than I did before. When I'm ready to kick it up a notch and exercise more and eat less, I'm sure the scale will move. Meanwhile, I'm not going to lose any ground. I added these two good habits and now I enjoy them and they are healthy for me. That's cause to Celebrate and furthermore, cause to learn that I. CAN. DO. THIS. I can change my whole darn life. And I will. I challenge all of you: when you're tempted to smack yourself upside the head in this thread, stop yourself and imagine you're smacking one of us. Aha! Changes things, doesn't it? Speak to YOURSELF the way you would speak to a fellow WLS traveler. You would encourage, not berate. You would find the morsel of progress in that seemingly "fail-filled" day. You'd take the long view and you'd tell your friend to dust yourself off and Cut. Yourself. A. Break. Now. Get off your butt and go walk some stairs, all of you!

Someone recently posted about crust less pizza made in a skillet so I tried that recently. Mozzarella, mushrooms, sausage crumbles, a little tomato paste, seasonings melted in a skillet with a dash of olive oil. It was heavenly. Chewy and satisfying. If I had peppers on hand I'd have thrown those in too.

Plan a day for yourself and go out of the house without him. My husband was not supportive either. It's not why I am divorcing him but his narcissism and abuse was. I deserve better and so do you. This will be my first birthday as a divorcing woman and my kids are away at college and my mom drives me nuts. So I'm planning events with friends over a couple of days. and a day completely to myself on my birthday. As hard as it is, you have to find a way to stick to your healthy plan without his support and even in the face of pure sabotage. Tell him flat out what you intend to do on your birthday and do it. Good luck. I lived with my narc for 23 years.

Lol. My legs and ass were always ok. I wish I could lose this belly though.

May I ask why you're removing it ? Thanks.

It's been over a month since I started a new thing in my day. I started a routine of walking stairs at work. Three times a day I walk down 4 flights and up four flights. That's 24 flights of stairs a day. 504 steps. I do it midmorning, then midday, then midafternoon. I do this five days a week. And now it's really a habit. It's easy. It's my routine. I don't have to think about it anymore. I just do it. So much so that I'm considering adding another set of eight flights because I'm often getting my three sets in before lunch. This is what my new life post WLS is all about. New habits. New patterns. I'm not a gym rat. But I love to walk now. I also started walking outside on my lunch hour at work. On the days I do this, I easily get in 2-1/4 to 2-1/2 miles. On my lunch break. With arthritic knees yet. This habit is about three weeks old and I do it when the weather permits. So much better than sitting in my car for an hour with a lunch of fried chicken strips. I need to put this out there because my weight loss has slowed. No, stopped. I want it to start again. I want to lose the last fifty. The first hundred was awesome. Time for the last fifty. I believe it will happen. If this old broad can make these two changes and enjoy them, anything is possible.

Welcome back Butterfly. I stopped tracking calories about a month ago but when I was logging I was maintaining even at around 1200. I think it's my age and my destroyed metabolism from years of overeating and obesity, but for me to lose I need to consistently eat less than that. I'm almost 54. Sucks. I still want to lose 50 more pounds but I'm so sick of the cycle of dieting and being hungry.

Lisa, I found some at Barnes and Noble this past weekend. I then bought some Crayola Twisters colored pencils. I'm going to get some fine tip markers as well. It's so relaxing.

"When you peel back the layers on an jerk, you just find more jerk." This. I'll add: and then you have a bunch of stinky layers on your hands. Those need to go straight to the CURB or they will stink up your life. That is all.

???? These are a few of my favorite (non-food) things ???? Gel manicures Foot massages Leisurely walks on my lunch hour Playing on the floor with my dog A comfortable night's sleep Coloring books for grown-ups Podcasts What are yours?

@@punkinvine, I'm hoping for a pain free and speedy recovery for you. My mom had shingles. No fun.

@@lisacaron, holy cow what a weekend you had. Best wishes for your son. My day was okay but I found myself emotional and had a little indulgent cry on my lunch hour walk. Got my stairs in before noon and walked 2-1/4 miles at lunch. Had two Protein shakes during the day but then got stuck on my first bite of ground beef and had to postpone dinner for a few hours. Just had chicken now and some toast. I didn't overdo it, just ate quite late. I had planned to make a dent in some legal stuff tonight but instead I went to a CODA meeting and I'll tackle it tomorrow. This divorce is kicking my ass. I decided that house hunting is stressing me out right now. I can't sensibly determine my price range and it's just making me anxious. One thing at a time. I won't rule out open houses but I'm not going to add more "shoulds" to my plate today. I need to cut myself a break. I have a counseling appointment tomorrow. Thank God. You all have helped me whether you know it or not. I'm so glad I found this thread. Thanks for starting it, @@s_suther! And because of @@bacon and his challenge a few weeks back, now I am a daily lunchtime walker. Who knew? You guys are the best.

Congratulations !

Bander here, but yes. Don't worry. Just keep reminding yourself that this time truly is different because you are different. It will work. But trust me, everything changes. It's not always easy. But I'll take the hardest day post op over the binging pre op days any time.

Planning on two protein shake meals and a sensible dinner tonight. I want to walk at lunch today and get my stairs in. Happy Monday to all.

Look at me, wearing grown ass shoes. With a dress. What a difference a year makes.

Fluoro is great ! Why is that bad? You should still be able to get a fill if you need it. It's just a way for him to see the flow of liquid through the band as well as the band placement. I'm not sure I understand the problem unless it's that you didn't want to wait that long (?). Good luck.

@@Sharpie, that's awesome !

Congrats on meeting your surgeon's goal! Woo hoo! Have fun in San Diego.

I went on a Goodwill crawl with my daughter today. Five stores in five hours. I came home with eleven tops. Most were four dollars and a few were five dollars. Then we went to Payless and I actually found and bought a pair of cute heels that feel good on my feet. People, I am wearing a dress tomorrow. It's an Easter miracle.

My first stuck episode was loads of salivating (sliming). I tried to ride it out. I don't recommend that. Just get to a bathroom and gently spit it up and out. You're not vomiting and since it's stuck in your esophagus it's not trying to bring something back through your band. You won't want to repeat it and it will teach you to chew better and to slow down. And for Pete's sake, stop chewing more food. Once you're stuck, that meal is over. No exceptions. Too bad if you're still hungry. Nothing chewed for several hours afterward. Rest your system. Been there, done that.

I no longer cut the size tags out of my clothes. I learned that from my mother and have done it all my life.

Congrats on your success so far. I know what you mean about knowing what still needs to be done. I need to seriously up my exercise and reduce my calories further to get the last fifty pounds off. I will do it. I am grateful for my band and I won't waste this opportunity. Keep on fighting the fight!!

Looking good, Debbie!