GreenTealael

On 7/4/2025 at 9:51 AM, TianaBell77 said:

OMG YES! How were you so spot on???

I’ve been eating my whole life 🤣

Don’t do it.

13 hours ago, Angieee said:

I ate about 1400 calories per day and see a nutritionist about the content of food I eat. I'm still obese. I've been eating extremely healthy for the last four years with Portion Control and still never lost any weight unless I completely starved (500 calories per day).

I've posted here before about wanting to get the surgery but now I'm not so sure. I have no food addiction and don't over eat. I have no issue sticking with a diet.

I'm not so sure this would be the right procedure for me at all. My heaviest weight was 230 pounds and I am 213 and can't lose anything at all. My body tries to put on weight when I skip a day at the gym even.

I'm not sure what to do. Is the surgery for folks with a food issue primarily and does it not work otherwise?

I never had a food addiction, never had any food related issues and WLS worked (for me) by managing whatever metabolic dysfunction I had.
My heaviest was 250 lbs and I am now ~ 150lbs for the past 7+ years. Not battling a food addiction probably set me up to have an easier journey.
I didn’t really over eat prior to WLS, but I definitely don’t over eat now.
You can try to hunt down the reasons for your obesity (but often it is too complex even for doctors to really appreciate) but TBH managing it is much more rewarding to focus on. I hope you find what you’re looking for, Good luck!

Ground turkey, cottage cheese, avocado and coleslaw.

My kid is starting to cook more often (thanks to ticktoc?) and this is a Protein bowl she put together and persuaded me to try. I am glad she’s trying new things (like cottage cheese which I refused to eat until 7 yrs ago😝) and coleslaw was my addition.

21 hours ago, TianaBell77 said:

Grand Rising beautiful people,

"Not every load is meant to be carried. shake that mess off and live your life and be happy."

Have a great day everyone. Cheers!

What kind of shake is it? Can I guess? banana avocado?

On 6/30/2025 at 9:52 PM, SpartanMaker said:

Jollof Rice with Coleslaw, Smoked chicken with Peanut Butter Sauce & Fried Plantains:

Congratulations!

Congratulations!

Another salad! This time with crispy chicken nuggets (Aldi).

Congratulations!

On 6/25/2025 at 2:52 AM, EmilyFlowers said:

I had my RNY in March 2024 and I'm down 73 pounds so far. My diabetes has improved significantly (HbA1c went from 9.1% to 7.8%) and I'm completely off my blood pressure meds now.

Looking at your pictures has been an inspiration. Thank you for sharing your journey and congrats on your 7 year journey 😍

Congratulations! Just the reduction in A1c is amazing on its own but I hope you continue to experience compounding benefits in all aspects of life and health. Please post updates on your journey too.

Teriyaki salmon and salad. for some reason these frozen filets were slightly Water logged when thawed so this was the best way to cook them. Still delicious 🤤. If I had to guess calories I would placed this meal at about 400 cals. I wonder if my calorie count guessing has gotten any better or worse over the years?

1 hour ago, Dub said:

Lemme see here....what order to roll with....I'll start with the No-Can-Do List. Gonna sound cornball...but then again....cornball is my wheelhouse, lol.

Okay...here is the Top 5 that come to mind over my morning coffee:

• skydiving. hell to the NO. Added to that anything that involves heights. It wouldn't be cool for them to see me pass out from terror......although I did have a great conversation with a gal yesterday afternoon who has professional live saving medical skillz. So....she could probably take me to death's door....and bring me back. But no planes, roller coasters, wall climbing or the like. Wind tunnel is about the best I can consider.... Years ago she took me out for margaritas...took my arse out. We found solace as two souls in marriages that were struggling,
• no sharks. I grew up near the coast...snorkeling and scuba diving frequently.... continued it through college. At some point in my mid-20's I began to have sinus troubles equalizing the pressure when diving...made for painful surface intervals between dives. My Uncle had been through the same a few years prior. He tried surgical remedy....but it didn't help. My late wife, her brother, his wife and some other friends all took their diving certification stuff....and then for various reasons,...each of them dropped out of the class. I'd resigned myself to give the sinus surgery a chance....surgeon was also a diver and he felt like success was most probable. During my years diving I've been close....crazy close....to sharks a plenty. It was all good as I was most often near rocks, reefs, shipwreck structure, etc. Cover was close, if needed. The exposure and sketchy periods were when getting to the bottom & when resurfacing....there I sometimes felt like bait on a hook. Since then I have had some close calls when I was simply swimming on a beach day.....going for a swim to cool off from the sun. One time I had my early teenage son with us....We saw a sand bar a couple hundred yards off shore.,...there were surfers out there. He was deadset on making it out there. I finally caved in and told him we could go but he had to listen to me...currents and such. He agreed and out we went....all was well until it wasn't. I found out the scary way that baitfish were schooling in spots between the sand bar and the shallows. We were swimming amidst the schooling baitfish....joining them on the freakin menu. I saw one, two then three sets of dorsal fins surface in between waves. Then one came too close....got my son's attention and lied to him....told him to get in close with me and we were headed back to shore because I was cramping. He was pissed, but he did what he was told and then gave me a dose of ribbing later on...."Dad you wanna hand me a drink.....oh no...don't do it....you'll cramp up", "Dad....you want me to take the cooler back to the car....don't want you cramping up", etc.
  • My favorite kind of vacation is to sandy places. Don't want to become baitfish again, though....ever. Never thought it would be an issue until recent weeks. Met a gal who is a diver....kept my shark aversions quiet, lol
• No yoga....period. Could be the greatest thing ever.....but I'm sidestepping. Same could be said of other types of group excursive. I'm a no-class sorta dude. Not going to line up and get into some torture. I prefer to do my torture in solo....lick my wounds and gain the benefits results. I have to protect my shout out knees and right shoulder and keep pre-habbing them until I can get schedules aligned to have joint replacements done. My geriatric-bariatric sorta gym stuff would likely have younger womenz laughing their butts off. So yeah....the gym is where I need to go it alone....for now, at least.
• Nothing illegal...or at least keep it mostly legal. I'm not robbing banks...but if she asked really nicely and had a killer smile....I may be her getaway driver and lookout.
• Snakes are off limits. So if they are into snakes as pets.....it is gonna take a HEAP of Dr. Phil-esqe counseling to make that something I can ease up on. My time in the woods has me averse to snakes. The part of Georgia where I live has many varieties of rattlesnakes, copperheads, moccasins, etc, etc. I've had some sketchy moments with 'em all and I went to guns every time. Probably wouldn't go over well with a date who had pet snakes.

.........................................

Note that karaoke is now off the list. I'm averse to it. Averse as all hell......but developments yesterday have me sliding that one off my radar.

I met someone who sings. I mean, sings at a high level, in formal events, etc. When the subject came up in conversation I was coy....thinking, "here we go with the freakin karaoke silliness"....but I kept my mouth zipped as she was discussing things she enjoyed....music...making music via singing wasn't a hobby....but a passion. My coy arse ...when asked about likes...simply said something cornball regarding singing. "Well...it is highly ironic that we have met...you being a singer, and all." Winked and nodded...knowingly (even though I no nothingsss...strong is my ignorance). She bit and wanted to know more. I deflected and said something about having a small bit of singing experience.....at a professional level....but didn't want to bore her with details....wanted to find out more about her.

So it went for a few minutes until she went back to my singing and pressed the matter. "Well, young lady....here is the cosmic irony on this matter....you are clearly impassioned & talented with your voice.....so very odd that we would meet.....you see...you are now looking at the WORST singer on the face of the Earth.....or at least in this county.....I suck.....I've even been paid to NOT sing....had dollar bills tossed at me to put the mic down.....so there it is....I am in awe of your courage to stand up and rock your voice......I am in awe and I'm hardcore untrainable in that area".

She laughed and took it all in stride. "So what can you be trained to do....." Mr Cornball here replied with something dumb like, "For starters, I am housebroken...errr mostly housebroken. I can bark...or not bark...roll over, shake and play dead, fetch....you know, stuff like that". She laughed again...but not laughing in the way of "somebody come save me from this nerd....somebody, anybody". Humored laughing....dare I hope, acceptance laughter....is that even a thing ?

When I say we laughed....I mean throughout the afternoon and eventing we laughed. Either this gal is challenged or she was actually amused at my dipshyt self. I was intrigued of everything she volunteered about her life, likes, loves, views.

@GreenTealael had recently stated major bigtime advice that was THE SURE 'NUFF TRUTH. it pertained to core values being integral to compatibility. Not realizing it was occurring, this lady and I spent hours yesterday covering so much ground that it was unreal. By dawns light this morning I am still shaking my head in amazement. Without me realizing it had occurred....we'd checked off a pile core belief simpaticoisms....yep that is now a word. Simpatico-isms.

I was open and honest and simply went with it. Each topic was a new discovery of our views and feels about stuff.

Been down this road a good bit lately....and there were always stumbling issues or categories where divergent views may be a red flag. I'm not talking about politics or stuff like that. I couldn't give a rip about that. I appreciate different viewpoints. I mean the bigger issues...

Here are some of the hurdles or outright roadblocks that I've had recently in this bachelor living...and this is with even short term fun:

• No married women. As tempting as a couple have made it...No-Can-Do. I am NOT about to go there. DO NO HARM is the hill I will die on....regardless of the temptation.
• No coworkers...or at least within my work "zone". There is an engineer and another administrator in another "zone" where some interesting recent conversations have occurred. Even then, I waded much more cautiously than other situations.
• My sobriety will not be compromised. Long story...shortened version: haven't had a drop since February 2019. Quit for practical reasons to be a responsible caregiver 24/7. Considered myself a casual drinker...social drinker.....but in the years since I saw where I'd used alcohol as a crutch...a tool...a mechanism to distance myself from work stress....or marital stress... I later acknowledged it was a simply delaying those stress & ultimately combining them. So, after my wife passed in 2021...I maintained the sobriety...realizing it was in my best interest. Since then I have benefited hugely from it. I can go out with a girl and am A-Okay with her having a drink or three....I'll have my coffee, Water and am just fine. I won't open a bottle or pop a top again, though.
• Matters of the soul. Didn't seem like this would be an issue for initial attraction and such. But I found that even in casual contact it can and does surface and diametrically opposing views are a non-starter....even if physical attraction is main the component the main draw.

Back to yesterday's first meet with lil' Miss Singer....it--was--wonderful. Wunnerfull....I didn't want to be pushy,....or forward....but....wow.

So refreshing,

I was thirsty for more....and it was shared, clearly. She even stated such....boldly. Stepped up and put it out there....interest demonstrated. She made the first commit.

I had been keeping my desires reserved...she was... different. I was having different feels and did not want to rush into anything. This was someone that, yes, major physical attraction is there...but all my no-can-do stuff were non-issues...taken in stride....acceptance. She probably has guys hitting on her all the time and I didn't want to be another schuck trying to come on to her. I mean...I DID want to...but there seemed to be "more than that" taking shape. Everything was.....different. Yeah, I know I said that already...having difficulty finding correct verbiage to accurately describe.

Your ever had the thought that you'd love to go back in time and slap the cowboy shyt outa your past self..and do so at a most specific moment and change the outcome and improve the trajectory of past self ????

Yesterday at some point after an hour or so...it was almost as if I felt a hand on my shoulder....a warning hand...it was telling me to slow the roll...be real....look at the bigger picture....and boy howdy, there is a strong hint there is possibly healthy structure for a bigger picture. The hand on the shoulder clenched down more than once....the physical desires needed to be reminded of the cosmic slap that was needed. Dumb as it may sound.....and for whatever reason I can be grateful for....I was calm and didn't blow it....wasn't "that dude". It was rewarded with hours more talking, laughing, disclosing, supporting, etc, etc.

---------------------------

So.... we have an actual, real deal, no kiddin' super official date next week...Wednesday. We had to plot through our work schedules to figure it out...but it is set. A date. Not a hook up.

Congrats!

6 minutes ago, Dub said:

LMAO !!

I could use more women to think like this.

Had what could have been a fruitful relationship cut down before its prime.......simply due to her being a hardcore vegan.

FTR, I was okay with her decisions.....but she couldn't tolerate that I wasn't. Oh well.....she'd have really hated on me whenever she discovered that I occasionally hunt & fish.

Trust me you don’t want to date someone inflexible about core beliefs that they hold (coming from someone who is inflexible about core beliefs that I hold 🤣)

2 hours ago, Dub said:

This was lunch & dinner last night....salmon with steamed broccoli & cauliflower.

Oven cooked the salmon in a cast Iron skillet that allowed the skin to get crispy. I had been seasoned with olive oil, sea salt, coarse ground pepper and Tajín. A couple shakes of Mrs Dash lemon-pepper & light teriyaki on the vegetables.

Couldn't finish it, but that is generally the way of things.

My daughter wanted to make fruit pizza. I managed to convince her to make single serving versions instead because no one would eat it otherwise. These are way too sweet for us but we tried a few anyway.

Original recipe (https://www.melskitchencafe.com/best-fruit-pizza/)

Here’s the final product:

chicken bites, couscous and kale salad

12 hours ago, Bypass2Freedom said:

Did you wear many different things compared to pre and post-plastics? I feel like there are so many things that I want to wear right now, but until I have plastics, they don't feel too accessible!

I wore a lot of skater style skirts and dresses to camouflage my midsection and hip dips but after plastics everything was bodycon to show the ogee curve 😝

I also had enormous breast before WLS (G-H cups) and they were still large enough before plastics (deflated DDD). I told that the mastoplexy and augmentation would need to be staged (6 months apart) to preserve my nipples (they had a long journey upward).

I was so pleased with having small (B cup) breast for the first time in decades that I never had implants placed. Maybe one day but I am enjoying my current size.

These days I still like to display a smaller bust to hip ratio or play up my 0.75 waist to hip ratio of when I choose clothes to suit my body type. I bet this was more than you wanted to know about me lol.

Bruised kale salad with avocado, beets and chicken.

I started making this salad about a decade ago and it’s still apart of the family lore, lol. Everyone asks do I remember that salad I used to make. It’s basically an any and everything salad that happens to have a kale base.
My children still call and ask how to make it 🤣

To get kale the right texture to eat raw, I pour boiling Water over fresh chopped kale then hand crush while pouring in ice water to stop the blanching. Seasoning is usually Asian or Mediterranean flavors.

Couscous, pickled beets and crispy chicken nuggets

On 6/8/2025 at 2:08 PM, SpartanMaker said:

Mmm, best kind IMO!

I agree!

I think the first year I did the majority of experimenting with new clothes then again after plastics.

I have pretty much settled into my style (bodycon/boho/athleisure) and everything that survived the final culling still fits.

But I am a bit sad that I very rarely have an opportunity to wear the fancy clothes that I swore I needed.

On 6/10/2025 at 2:28 PM, Bypass2Freedom said:

I for one feel like I am constantly changing my style, whether that is my hair colour, the kinds of clothes that I wear, my make up etc!

Anyone else feel like they are constantly playing dress up and having fun seeing what suits them after weight loss?

For reference - I have just dyed my hair pink & have included a picture of my birthday outfit from Saturday!

Happy belated birthday!!! I love your hair!😍

On 6/10/2025 at 1:05 PM, meraynareyes said:

First time I’ve ever felt confident

Congrats on the new found confidence 🥰

On 6/8/2025 at 1:53 PM, Spinoza said:

Princess Teia(lael)!!!! Looks like loads of fun. If your BF is actually a Star Wars fan that's the perfect birthday isn't it?

He’s a fan so I win this year 🤣