IcanMakeit

Challenge starting weight: 107 Goal: 107 Labor Day weight: 104 I did not achieve my goal, but I have learned a great deal by following my weight and food intake. I know that I'm under eating out of fear. I believe that as time goes on, I'll get used to being thin and will become less fearful of weight gain.

I went to a wedding about one month from my surgery date. I brought Atkins shakes with me and had one while everyone was eating the buffet and drinking champagne. I missed being able to join in,vas the catering was excellent, but I still had a great time and was glad to be able to give the happy couple my best wishes. I also went on a road trip to the Ashland Shakespeare Festival a few months after surgery. By then, I was eating a limited diet of real food as tolerated and I really enjoyed the trip. So my advice is to go forward with your travel plans as long as you feel you are recovering normally, but understand that you will have to refrain from recreational eating/drinking and find your fun in other ways.

I'm back to my pre-vacation weight: 105.

I was at 108 this morning after my week and a half of vacation. This is what I knew would happen if I stopped following the rules. This is not a disaster since I was underweight, but I am now recommitting to my healthy lifestyle.

@@Essence46 I understand your resentment. You are putting in the effort, you should get the desired result, dang it! But as you stated: we can't compare ourselves to others. Some have bodies that are stubborn and hang onto every pound, others have a pretty smooth journey for the first year. But most of the people who consistently continue the healthy lifestyle end up in the same place a couple of years out.

I'm sorry to be late to report in. I've been on vacation with no access to a scale. And apparently no restraint. My weight this morning was 107.

I'm going on my third annual road trip to the Ashland Shakespeare festival this weekend. Last year, I was in full on weight loss mode and my eating style was very conservative. This year I am below goal and in maintenance. I'm trying to decide how I'm going to behave on vacation. I know I can't go back to my old hedonistic (and fat) ways and have a non-stop bacchanal, but since my goal is to learn to manage my weight for the rest of my life, I think I need to allow more treats while on vacation. I guess I should ask myself, "what do skinny people do?" And try to do that. How do you all handle vacations?

@@amazon, I heard you say ice cream equals weight loss and that's all I needed to hear! LOL. @@enjoythetime, I am afraid that the weight I put on will not come right back off. I have witnessed some pretty disappointing regains in my family and I don't want to follow in their footsteps.

When I first made goal I thought I looked a lot older than I did when I was obese. Now, months later, I feel that my face has adjusted to the weight loss and has lost the Skeletor look. But this is all probably more in my head than reality. People didn't see me as I saw myself. When I told my husband that I thought I was looking better, he said I looked fine all along.

@@JamieLogical I agree with what you say and did not mean to say that exercise is not an important component of weight loss, just that I think caloric restriction is what gets you past the post.

@@leag78 I know this isn't what you want to hear but my advice is that you just keep following your doc's plan and try to be patient. Everyone loses at their own pace and we don't get to dictate to our bodies how quickly to lose. Your weight loss so far seems pretty darned good. Try not to worry so much, just enjoy the benefits.

@@AR40 The real key to weight loss is caloric restriction, not exercise. Do you use MyFitnessPal? I find its projections and caloric goals very helpful and reasonably accurate. You could also talk to your nutritionist if he/she is available and knowledgeable about bariatrics. Once you determine the number of calories your body really needs to maintain your healthiest weight, you will have a much easier time.

I agree that trying to encourage people to lose weight is bound to cause friction. The best way to support your loved one's efforts toward health is to share your new healthy habits with them. Invite them (without insisting or nagging) to participate in your activities/exercise and share your healthy foods with them. You can't force people to change, you can only support the change once it begins to occur.

Welcome @maymae51951. There are a lot of us 60 something's around here. And we're all fabulous.

I'm back up to 105 after being at 104 most of last week. My extra snacking is working, but I hope it doesn't work too well.

At this stage, it is important to adhere to your surgeon's program very strictly. Check back with them to confirm the types of meals and the amounts you should be eating at your current stage, and then measure to make sure you don't exceed those amounts. Because you are still healing, the feeling of fullness is an unreliable guide.

I think you may have to put this activity off for a little while. This soon after surgery your energy level may be a little low and making sure you get your protein and hydration needs met is hard enough when you're just living your day to day life, let alone when you're hiking all day 10 miles from the nearest road. You can make the next trip extra special to make up for the delay.

Welcome to the forum. I've learned a lot from the people here. Most people here are very helpful, but some are so much fun that I want to check in every day. I hope you enjoy it as much.

Wow. I'm amazed that some people believe that because something is true, it must be public. I disagree very strongly with that notion. I have the right keep information about my body private. Period. It sounds like your co-worker does not believe in a right to privacy and she should not be privy to medical information. I understand you not wanting to rock the boat and I respect your decision, but I might have reported her.

Getting up after being seated for an extended period of time and walking without pain. I still revel in this. I was so used to being in pain all the time that the lack of it is a marvel and definitely my top NSV.

I can't count the number of brilliant, important posts that were eaten by my iPad! No, seriously this is very irritating and I hope there is a solution.

My husband bought a new deep fryer and I made fried chicken for the first time since I started losing weight back in January 2014. Yes, it's still delicious. And yes, if I were able to do so, I would have eaten 2 pieces. Even with all that I have learned over the past year and a half, I haven't lost the urge to overindulge in my favorite things. It's not a big problem now. I made sure to save up calories today for the chicken and my sleeve kept me to my planned allotment. But what about the future, when my restriction is less? Maybe it's too soon to be worried about this. I'm currently far below my goal weight and at this point I'm still following all of the rules that I set for myself. But I see so many women regaining after their second or third year, that I must conclude that regaining is not that hard to do. It's too bad that this surgery was not a magic cure. It looks like I'm going to have to continue to log, count, plan, etc. every day, forever.