SteveT74

Hi there,
Congrats on doing a great job losing that weight. That's outstanding work. None of us are in a position to really know how much you're still capable of losing. However, given that you have already lost more than 70% of your excess pre-op body weight, it's fair to say that the days of rapid, seemingly effortless weight loss is over. You can still lose more and reach your goal weight, but it may take longer to lose the weight than in the beginning and it will probably require a lot more work on your part. The last 20 pounds is always the toughest. I am at that point too (although I am only 3.5 months out--but different situation). I am only 15 pounds away from my goal weight, but I only lost 3.5 pounds over the past month. It's better than nothing, but even losing that 3.5 pounds required hard work on my part (strictly following my diet and hitting the gym daily). You may need to go over your diet with your nutritionist to see if there is areas where you can improve. How much exercise are you getting each week?

I have so many non-scale victories--which is fortunate since I only lost 3.5 pounds in the past month. I am, however, only 17 pounds from my goal weight (maybe I should just change my goal??). So, my non scale victories are as follows:
1. I went from wearing size 44 pants on December 1 to now wearing 32 pants!
2. One of the other kid's mom at my daughter's nursery that I used to talk to all the time saw me this past weekend and introduced herself as if she had never talked to me before. She didn't recognize me!!
4. I had to buy slim fit shirts and suits because standard fit is too loose around my waist.
5. My wife says I am not snoring anymore!!
6. I am no longer taking medication for T2DM, high blood pressure or high triglycerides,
7. My surgeon asked me if I would be willing to be in advertisement where I show my before and after and talk about how bariatric surgery changed my life (haven't decided if I want to do that though).
8. Most importantly, I feel great. I have loads of energy and I am not embarrassed of my appearance or being the fat guy in the room. I am actually looking forward to wearing a bathing suit this summer!! I feel like i didn't just lose weight, but like I turned the clock back 15 years.
Even if I don't lose another pound, I am thrilled with the results. My only regret is not having had the surgery sooner.

Hi there,
Congrats on doing a great job losing that weight. That's outstanding work. None of us are in a position to really know how much you're still capable of losing. However, given that you have already lost more than 70% of your excess pre-op body weight, it's fair to say that the days of rapid, seemingly effortless weight loss is over. You can still lose more and reach your goal weight, but it may take longer to lose the weight than in the beginning and it will probably require a lot more work on your part. The last 20 pounds is always the toughest. I am at that point too (although I am only 3.5 months out--but different situation). I am only 15 pounds away from my goal weight, but I only lost 3.5 pounds over the past month. It's better than nothing, but even losing that 3.5 pounds required hard work on my part (strictly following my diet and hitting the gym daily). You may need to go over your diet with your nutritionist to see if there is areas where you can improve. How much exercise are you getting each week?

Hi there,
Congrats on doing a great job losing that weight. That's outstanding work. None of us are in a position to really know how much you're still capable of losing. However, given that you have already lost more than 70% of your excess pre-op body weight, it's fair to say that the days of rapid, seemingly effortless weight loss is over. You can still lose more and reach your goal weight, but it may take longer to lose the weight than in the beginning and it will probably require a lot more work on your part. The last 20 pounds is always the toughest. I am at that point too (although I am only 3.5 months out--but different situation). I am only 15 pounds away from my goal weight, but I only lost 3.5 pounds over the past month. It's better than nothing, but even losing that 3.5 pounds required hard work on my part (strictly following my diet and hitting the gym daily). You may need to go over your diet with your nutritionist to see if there is areas where you can improve. How much exercise are you getting each week?

Hey Everyone!! So glad to see such great progress and happiness from everyone! Congrats to everyone on all of the awesome work.
I am in a GREAT place as well. I am very satisfied with my weight loss thus far. I don't weigh daily or even weekly sometimes. I don't want to turn psycho (and if you knew me you'd know that I analyze everything). I just want to continue to allow my body to do her thing. I have graduated from walking, to speed walking, to jogging 🤯! I am working to tone the flabbies of my triceps (that'll be a long road, so I am patient). Working with this stomach (I see a waistline coming through). I've purchased a few things for my home "gym" rope, medicine ball, etc. Days that I don't make it to the gym, I workout here at home. I am down from a size 16/18 to a size 10 in pants. I am down from a 16/18 in shirts to a medium. I am down as of right now a total 67 pounds. I figure I'll lose another 30-40 or so. Really happy with where I am and how I look.
On a personal side note... early on I was asked what is one simple thing that I am really looking forward to doing when I lose weight. Something that is just kind of taken for granted almost. Mine was crossing my legs without it feeling uncomfortable or even like I have to work hard to force them to stay crossed or crossing my ankles because crossing my legs was to uncomfortable. I am here to tell you all these legs stay on crossed!!! In the car my legs are what??? CROSSED! So easy, so carefree, so natural, so crossed! Lol!! It was really difficult in the beginning and I still have my moments even now with "hey I need a few more calories, hey I need to eat something, hey I haven't had enough liquid today etc.", but I would without a doubt, hesitation, or second thought make this same decision again. It is amazing.

Hey guys,
I haven't checked in for while. I hope everyone's doing well. I know I am doing great. I am sticking with the modified Keto and exercise routine. The scale hasn't moved much in the past six week--only down about 5 or 6 pound. However, during that time I lost: 1.5% of my body fat (down to 16.5%); 1.5 inches off my waist; inch off my chest (down to 42 from a 50) and a quarter inch off my neck (down to 16.5" from 18.5" in the fall). My pants size is now a 32, down from a 44 this past summer. I have gone from wearing XXL shirts to M slim fit shirts (sometimes large slim depending on the brand). At this point, I am not really sure how much more weight I am going to be losing. I am ok where I am. Aside from the number on the scale, all of my aesthetic goals have been met (or are very close to being met).
More importantly, I just had my 3 month follow up last week. My blood work looks great. My triglycerides are down to a 54 (they were over 450 last summer). My good cholesterol is up three fold to 96. My A1C's have dropped from a 6.3 (with 1000mg of MetFormin and 1.8mg of Victoza) in November to a 5.1 with no medications. As of now, all my nutrional numbers look good and are well within normal ranges, including Vitamin D, B12, B6, Calcium, Iron etc. Of course, nutritional deficits can take a while to show up in blood work, so we'll see how they look again in three months.
So, far the only downside is that my once very thick hair is thinning a bit. Not loving that, but no one can really tell yet except me (hope it stays that way). I am taking my Biotin, but not sure how much it really helps (can't hurt though). I would still trade lush hair for a slim body any day.
Anyway, here's a picture from this past weekend (3/23/19):

Hey guys,
I haven't checked in for while. I hope everyone's doing well. I know I am doing great. I am sticking with the modified Keto and exercise routine. The scale hasn't moved much in the past six week--only down about 5 or 6 pound. However, during that time I lost: 1.5% of my body fat (down to 16.5%); 1.5 inches off my waist; inch off my chest (down to 42 from a 50) and a quarter inch off my neck (down to 16.5" from 18.5" in the fall). My pants size is now a 32, down from a 44 this past summer. I have gone from wearing XXL shirts to M slim fit shirts (sometimes large slim depending on the brand). At this point, I am not really sure how much more weight I am going to be losing. I am ok where I am. Aside from the number on the scale, all of my aesthetic goals have been met (or are very close to being met).
More importantly, I just had my 3 month follow up last week. My blood work looks great. My triglycerides are down to a 54 (they were over 450 last summer). My good cholesterol is up three fold to 96. My A1C's have dropped from a 6.3 (with 1000mg of MetFormin and 1.8mg of Victoza) in November to a 5.1 with no medications. As of now, all my nutrional numbers look good and are well within normal ranges, including Vitamin D, B12, B6, Calcium, Iron etc. Of course, nutritional deficits can take a while to show up in blood work, so we'll see how they look again in three months.
So, far the only downside is that my once very thick hair is thinning a bit. Not loving that, but no one can really tell yet except me (hope it stays that way). I am taking my Biotin, but not sure how much it really helps (can't hurt though). I would still trade lush hair for a slim body any day.
Anyway, here's a picture from this past weekend (3/23/19):

I had my sleeve May 2013. I still have restriction, but have not been successful in losing all the weight I wanted to. I had the sleeve surgery in order to reduce the amount of insulin I was taking, and to be healthier, not thinner. At least, that's what I told myself. I did reduce insulin from U500 to U100, via pump, and my bp evened out. However, I am about to have bypass surgery, in order to get skinny and live healthier for the next 40 years! I realize nothing will change though, unless I change my habits for the better.
My dear friend has been in every diet out there, but has had the most luck with Keto. She even just had all-over body plastic surgery to remove her excess skin. She says shes had the most energy in her life, and can think so much more clearly than ever before. For her, it's her new way of life.

I disagree with with Dabeyhive and RickM's comments above. Sure, Keto isn't for everyone, but it's great for many people. I love the fact that it gives me some firm rules to follow and it happens to fit my eating preferences. First, I don't believe Keto is a fad diet at all. It's been around in various forms since the 1920's and became the basis of the original Atkin's diet in the early 1970's. It works very well both for weight loss and general health benefits. The problem is that some people don't really understand the diet or follow it correctly--and that's where people into problems. Following a proper Keto diet doesn't mean you should be chowing down on cheeseburgers without the bun eating bacon with every meal. While cheeseburgers and bacon are not prohibited on Keto, those aren't recommended either. You should stick to things like organic eggs, lean organic meats and wild caught fatty fish (like sockeye salmon). Stay away from fatty meats, since the fat is bad things the animals consumed are stored. You then add healthy fats to your food, like avocado, MCT oil, extra virgin olive oil, ghee etc. The idea is to "prime the pump", so you body burns off its excess glycogen stores and then converts stored fats into ketones for energy. This is important, especially if you're insulin resistant. For me, I am really happy with Keto and I can definitely stay on keto long term.
My surgeon and nutritionist are on board with my keto choices. I just had my blood work done after 2 months on Keto and everything was perfect. I am no longer diabetic (A1C dropped from 6.3 on multiple meds to 5.1 on no meds). My triglycerides dropped to 54 (they were 450 this past summer on meds). My cholesterol is 190, but my good cholestrol is 97 (which is outstanding)--so that's good. Some of these may be from the surgery, but diet and exercise are equally critical. I suggest that you don't do keto on your own, but you do with with the guidance of a doctor or nutritionist that has a lot of knowledge about keto. I personally keep my net carbs down to approximately 20g a day and close to a 1:1 ration of fat to Protein. At this point, I am 14 weeks post op (99 days). I am eating between 1200-1600 calories a day. Those calories are made up of 45% protein, 45% fat and 10% carbs. The carbs I am consuming are mostly from vegetables--even green veggies have some carbs. I don't eat any bread, starches, potatoes, sugar etc. I avoid high carb fruit, but I am allowed berries. I avoid processed foods to the greatest extent I can. I also work out daily--at a high intensity (and have been since I had all physical restrictions removed 1 month after surgery). I have lost 70 pounds since my highest weigh in. My pants size has dropped from a 44 to a 32. My body fat has dropped from 28% to 16.5%. Weight loss surgery is only a tool (a good one), but I would say it gives you a head start and helps prepare balance your body's hormones and stomach so people like me (morbidly obese, with a trifecta of co-morbidities) can lose weight like a normal person without insulin resistance/diabetes and other issues that get in the way. Once I had those issues, in check the rest of it was up to me--with keto and serious exercise making the big difference in getting me to where I want to be. I'll let my pictures speak for themselves:
The was me on July 4, 2018 (weighing around 255-260) :

This is me on the day of Surgery (weight 235):

This is me on March 23, 2019 (weighing 190):


As a 45 year old man with diabetes etc., no way I could have done this without VSG. However, I really believe Keto and exercise (45 minutes moderate to high intensity cardio 5-6 times a week and 1 hour of high intensity weight training 4-5 times a week) have changed my health and my life. I can't imagine going back to the life I had before surgery, nor could I imagine not living a keto lifestyle at this point.

I disagree with with Dabeyhive and RickM's comments above. Sure, Keto isn't for everyone, but it's great for many people. I love the fact that it gives me some firm rules to follow and it happens to fit my eating preferences. First, I don't believe Keto is a fad diet at all. It's been around in various forms since the 1920's and became the basis of the original Atkin's diet in the early 1970's. It works very well both for weight loss and general health benefits. The problem is that some people don't really understand the diet or follow it correctly--and that's where people into problems. Following a proper Keto diet doesn't mean you should be chowing down on cheeseburgers without the bun eating bacon with every meal. While cheeseburgers and bacon are not prohibited on Keto, those aren't recommended either. You should stick to things like organic eggs, lean organic meats and wild caught fatty fish (like sockeye salmon). Stay away from fatty meats, since the fat is bad things the animals consumed are stored. You then add healthy fats to your food, like avocado, MCT oil, extra virgin olive oil, ghee etc. The idea is to "prime the pump", so you body burns off its excess glycogen stores and then converts stored fats into ketones for energy. This is important, especially if you're insulin resistant. For me, I am really happy with Keto and I can definitely stay on keto long term.
My surgeon and nutritionist are on board with my keto choices. I just had my blood work done after 2 months on Keto and everything was perfect. I am no longer diabetic (A1C dropped from 6.3 on multiple meds to 5.1 on no meds). My triglycerides dropped to 54 (they were 450 this past summer on meds). My cholesterol is 190, but my good cholestrol is 97 (which is outstanding)--so that's good. Some of these may be from the surgery, but diet and exercise are equally critical. I suggest that you don't do keto on your own, but you do with with the guidance of a doctor or nutritionist that has a lot of knowledge about keto. I personally keep my net carbs down to approximately 20g a day and close to a 1:1 ration of fat to Protein. At this point, I am 14 weeks post op (99 days). I am eating between 1200-1600 calories a day. Those calories are made up of 45% protein, 45% fat and 10% carbs. The carbs I am consuming are mostly from vegetables--even green veggies have some carbs. I don't eat any bread, starches, potatoes, sugar etc. I avoid high carb fruit, but I am allowed berries. I avoid processed foods to the greatest extent I can. I also work out daily--at a high intensity (and have been since I had all physical restrictions removed 1 month after surgery). I have lost 70 pounds since my highest weigh in. My pants size has dropped from a 44 to a 32. My body fat has dropped from 28% to 16.5%. Weight loss surgery is only a tool (a good one), but I would say it gives you a head start and helps prepare balance your body's hormones and stomach so people like me (morbidly obese, with a trifecta of co-morbidities) can lose weight like a normal person without insulin resistance/diabetes and other issues that get in the way. Once I had those issues, in check the rest of it was up to me--with keto and serious exercise making the big difference in getting me to where I want to be. I'll let my pictures speak for themselves:
The was me on July 4, 2018 (weighing around 255-260) :

This is me on the day of Surgery (weight 235):

This is me on March 23, 2019 (weighing 190):


As a 45 year old man with diabetes etc., no way I could have done this without VSG. However, I really believe Keto and exercise (45 minutes moderate to high intensity cardio 5-6 times a week and 1 hour of high intensity weight training 4-5 times a week) have changed my health and my life. I can't imagine going back to the life I had before surgery, nor could I imagine not living a keto lifestyle at this point.

Hey guys,
I haven't checked in for while. I hope everyone's doing well. I know I am doing great. I am sticking with the modified Keto and exercise routine. The scale hasn't moved much in the past six week--only down about 5 or 6 pound. However, during that time I lost: 1.5% of my body fat (down to 16.5%); 1.5 inches off my waist; inch off my chest (down to 42 from a 50) and a quarter inch off my neck (down to 16.5" from 18.5" in the fall). My pants size is now a 32, down from a 44 this past summer. I have gone from wearing XXL shirts to M slim fit shirts (sometimes large slim depending on the brand). At this point, I am not really sure how much more weight I am going to be losing. I am ok where I am. Aside from the number on the scale, all of my aesthetic goals have been met (or are very close to being met).
More importantly, I just had my 3 month follow up last week. My blood work looks great. My triglycerides are down to a 54 (they were over 450 last summer). My good cholesterol is up three fold to 96. My A1C's have dropped from a 6.3 (with 1000mg of MetFormin and 1.8mg of Victoza) in November to a 5.1 with no medications. As of now, all my nutrional numbers look good and are well within normal ranges, including Vitamin D, B12, B6, Calcium, Iron etc. Of course, nutritional deficits can take a while to show up in blood work, so we'll see how they look again in three months.
So, far the only downside is that my once very thick hair is thinning a bit. Not loving that, but no one can really tell yet except me (hope it stays that way). I am taking my Biotin, but not sure how much it really helps (can't hurt though). I would still trade lush hair for a slim body any day.
Anyway, here's a picture from this past weekend (3/23/19):

I disagree with with Dabeyhive and RickM's comments above. Sure, Keto isn't for everyone, but it's great for many people. I love the fact that it gives me some firm rules to follow and it happens to fit my eating preferences. First, I don't believe Keto is a fad diet at all. It's been around in various forms since the 1920's and became the basis of the original Atkin's diet in the early 1970's. It works very well both for weight loss and general health benefits. The problem is that some people don't really understand the diet or follow it correctly--and that's where people into problems. Following a proper Keto diet doesn't mean you should be chowing down on cheeseburgers without the bun eating bacon with every meal. While cheeseburgers and bacon are not prohibited on Keto, those aren't recommended either. You should stick to things like organic eggs, lean organic meats and wild caught fatty fish (like sockeye salmon). Stay away from fatty meats, since the fat is bad things the animals consumed are stored. You then add healthy fats to your food, like avocado, MCT oil, extra virgin olive oil, ghee etc. The idea is to "prime the pump", so you body burns off its excess glycogen stores and then converts stored fats into ketones for energy. This is important, especially if you're insulin resistant. For me, I am really happy with Keto and I can definitely stay on keto long term.
My surgeon and nutritionist are on board with my keto choices. I just had my blood work done after 2 months on Keto and everything was perfect. I am no longer diabetic (A1C dropped from 6.3 on multiple meds to 5.1 on no meds). My triglycerides dropped to 54 (they were 450 this past summer on meds). My cholesterol is 190, but my good cholestrol is 97 (which is outstanding)--so that's good. Some of these may be from the surgery, but diet and exercise are equally critical. I suggest that you don't do keto on your own, but you do with with the guidance of a doctor or nutritionist that has a lot of knowledge about keto. I personally keep my net carbs down to approximately 20g a day and close to a 1:1 ration of fat to Protein. At this point, I am 14 weeks post op (99 days). I am eating between 1200-1600 calories a day. Those calories are made up of 45% protein, 45% fat and 10% carbs. The carbs I am consuming are mostly from vegetables--even green veggies have some carbs. I don't eat any bread, starches, potatoes, sugar etc. I avoid high carb fruit, but I am allowed berries. I avoid processed foods to the greatest extent I can. I also work out daily--at a high intensity (and have been since I had all physical restrictions removed 1 month after surgery). I have lost 70 pounds since my highest weigh in. My pants size has dropped from a 44 to a 32. My body fat has dropped from 28% to 16.5%. Weight loss surgery is only a tool (a good one), but I would say it gives you a head start and helps prepare balance your body's hormones and stomach so people like me (morbidly obese, with a trifecta of co-morbidities) can lose weight like a normal person without insulin resistance/diabetes and other issues that get in the way. Once I had those issues, in check the rest of it was up to me--with keto and serious exercise making the big difference in getting me to where I want to be. I'll let my pictures speak for themselves:
The was me on July 4, 2018 (weighing around 255-260) :

This is me on the day of Surgery (weight 235):

This is me on March 23, 2019 (weighing 190):


As a 45 year old man with diabetes etc., no way I could have done this without VSG. However, I really believe Keto and exercise (45 minutes moderate to high intensity cardio 5-6 times a week and 1 hour of high intensity weight training 4-5 times a week) have changed my health and my life. I can't imagine going back to the life I had before surgery, nor could I imagine not living a keto lifestyle at this point.

I disagree with with Dabeyhive and RickM's comments above. Sure, Keto isn't for everyone, but it's great for many people. I love the fact that it gives me some firm rules to follow and it happens to fit my eating preferences. First, I don't believe Keto is a fad diet at all. It's been around in various forms since the 1920's and became the basis of the original Atkin's diet in the early 1970's. It works very well both for weight loss and general health benefits. The problem is that some people don't really understand the diet or follow it correctly--and that's where people into problems. Following a proper Keto diet doesn't mean you should be chowing down on cheeseburgers without the bun eating bacon with every meal. While cheeseburgers and bacon are not prohibited on Keto, those aren't recommended either. You should stick to things like organic eggs, lean organic meats and wild caught fatty fish (like sockeye salmon). Stay away from fatty meats, since the fat is bad things the animals consumed are stored. You then add healthy fats to your food, like avocado, MCT oil, extra virgin olive oil, ghee etc. The idea is to "prime the pump", so you body burns off its excess glycogen stores and then converts stored fats into ketones for energy. This is important, especially if you're insulin resistant. For me, I am really happy with Keto and I can definitely stay on keto long term.
My surgeon and nutritionist are on board with my keto choices. I just had my blood work done after 2 months on Keto and everything was perfect. I am no longer diabetic (A1C dropped from 6.3 on multiple meds to 5.1 on no meds). My triglycerides dropped to 54 (they were 450 this past summer on meds). My cholesterol is 190, but my good cholestrol is 97 (which is outstanding)--so that's good. Some of these may be from the surgery, but diet and exercise are equally critical. I suggest that you don't do keto on your own, but you do with with the guidance of a doctor or nutritionist that has a lot of knowledge about keto. I personally keep my net carbs down to approximately 20g a day and close to a 1:1 ration of fat to Protein. At this point, I am 14 weeks post op (99 days). I am eating between 1200-1600 calories a day. Those calories are made up of 45% protein, 45% fat and 10% carbs. The carbs I am consuming are mostly from vegetables--even green veggies have some carbs. I don't eat any bread, starches, potatoes, sugar etc. I avoid high carb fruit, but I am allowed berries. I avoid processed foods to the greatest extent I can. I also work out daily--at a high intensity (and have been since I had all physical restrictions removed 1 month after surgery). I have lost 70 pounds since my highest weigh in. My pants size has dropped from a 44 to a 32. My body fat has dropped from 28% to 16.5%. Weight loss surgery is only a tool (a good one), but I would say it gives you a head start and helps prepare balance your body's hormones and stomach so people like me (morbidly obese, with a trifecta of co-morbidities) can lose weight like a normal person without insulin resistance/diabetes and other issues that get in the way. Once I had those issues, in check the rest of it was up to me--with keto and serious exercise making the big difference in getting me to where I want to be. I'll let my pictures speak for themselves:
The was me on July 4, 2018 (weighing around 255-260) :

This is me on the day of Surgery (weight 235):

This is me on March 23, 2019 (weighing 190):


As a 45 year old man with diabetes etc., no way I could have done this without VSG. However, I really believe Keto and exercise (45 minutes moderate to high intensity cardio 5-6 times a week and 1 hour of high intensity weight training 4-5 times a week) have changed my health and my life. I can't imagine going back to the life I had before surgery, nor could I imagine not living a keto lifestyle at this point.

He guys! I haven't checked up with everyone in a while. I hope you're all doing well. I see there have been quite a few posts on the forum about stalls, so I thought I would share my numbers for February. On February 1, I weighed in at 204.1 (which is down from 234 on the day of surgery (12/17/18) and 243 on the day I started my pre-op (12/3/18)). This morning, I weighed in at 197.4 (although I have been as low as 195.5 this week). So, for this month I am down 7.5 pounds--almost all of that weight came off before 2/13. I have only lost about a 1 pound in the past 3 weeks. Now, that looks like a stall, but I doubt it.
I guess the time I have been spending at the gym (getting there between 4:30 and 5am and leaving around 7:30am 6 days a week) is having the biggest impact on this journey. It's definitely slowing the appearance of weight loss on the scale, but it's changing everything else for the positive. I think I have gained at least 10 pounds of muscle since mid-January. As lousy as I am at assessing my own progress and appearance, even I can feel (maybe see) the difference in my body tone. I am feeling pretty great right now and while I am still 25 pounds away from my goal weight, I am happy where I am! Everything after this is gravy!
Here are the pictures to show the journey so far:
These were taken in July and August 2018. I weighed around 250 here, which is about 10 pounds down from my highest measured weight. (I am sure I weighed more than my highest measured weight, but was afraid to get on the scale for a while).
 
This is me on the day of Surgery (12/17/18). I weighed 234 on the day of surgery. 

I took this one on January 17 (one month post op). I weighed in at 210.2 that morning.

I just took these earlier today. I weighed in at 197.2 this morning.
 

Wow, you look great!!! Like a butterfly emerging from chrysalis!! Congrats!!!!

Shopping sucked!!! I never felt like I looked good in anything. It's hard to look good when your belly is hanging over your pants and pushing them down. It was like my tummy was fighting a tug of war with my belt and my tummy won every time! Nothing was ever comfortable. Selection sucked because the "cool" designers do not design clothes for horizontally challenged people. I could never find a dress shirt that fit me right because I had to get a shirt with an 18.5 inch neck. You can't find those off the rack. At a B&T store, you can find them, but then I had the opposite problem because they were cut for an person even heavier than me so they were too big on me and made me look even heavier than normal.
Being a normal weight opens up a whole new world for shopping. Finding something something to wear is no longer a challenge---well, not the same challenge. I now never know what size to buy so I have to try everything on. No problem---but that's not a great thing for shopping at costco (which I where I have been buying my clothes since you can get decent pants there for $20 a pair and they only last me a couple of weeks. It will be nice to reach a healthy stable weight so I can actually buy really nice clothes. I am just going for cheap and passable for now.

Thank you!! Yes, it definitely is easier to keep up with the kids and doing small things like tying my shoes, picking something off the floor, walking up stairs etc. I don't sweat when I am not suppose to be sweating (that was a big deal for me)!!!

Offense??? No way!!! I know what you meant. I was an overstuffed teddy bear. I used to be the first one to make fun of myself for being fat (sort of a defense mechanism I guess). Today, I still make those jokes (but only in my head). It's starting to sink in not the fat guy anymore. Btw, my mom said I look 15 years younger too!!! It finally feels like i have the old me back from when I was in my twenties and early thirties when I was in good shape.

Thanks! I am a dad. :-)

I agree!!! It's looking really good on you!!! Seriously, you look really really great!! What a transformation!!! It's finally dawning on me how much and how fast my body has changed since I had surgery in December. I don't see day to day, but everyone else seems to see it. I do see it on the scale, clothes etc. I am down to 197 from 260 (although I was probably closer to 280 and got to 260 before I was willing to put myself in a position to be weighed). It's a great feeling.
Summer 2018:

Today (2/28/19):
 

Also, don't worry about the extra skin!! I'll take the extra skin over the fat any day!!!! The extra skin isn't going to put me in an early grave. I wear compression shirts when I go to the gym and that keeps everything in check. I don't have a lot of extra skin fortunately, but you can't loose a lot of weight at 45 without paying a price for putting it on in the first place. So, that's the extra skin for me!

I had to make the same decision between sleeve and bypass. Most studies show that bypass patients loose faster and have great % of excess weight loss at 1 year post-op, but by year three the weight loss is the same for both procedures. The risk of regain is also pretty close for both procedures (although a lot of it is up to you and the choices you make). However, if you do regain weight down the road (which can happen), the options for a revision from a bypass are limited. If you have the sleeve, you can always convert to a bypass or SIPS/modified DS down the road (I think SIPS is going to be the revision of choice in 5 years). I originally was leaning towards the bypass, but my surgeon pushed hard on the sleeve. I took his advise and I don't regret it.

He guys! I haven't checked up with everyone in a while. I hope you're all doing well. I see there have been quite a few posts on the forum about stalls, so I thought I would share my numbers for February. On February 1, I weighed in at 204.1 (which is down from 234 on the day of surgery (12/17/18) and 243 on the day I started my pre-op (12/3/18)). This morning, I weighed in at 197.4 (although I have been as low as 195.5 this week). So, for this month I am down 7.5 pounds--almost all of that weight came off before 2/13. I have only lost about a 1 pound in the past 3 weeks. Now, that looks like a stall, but I doubt it.
I guess the time I have been spending at the gym (getting there between 4:30 and 5am and leaving around 7:30am 6 days a week) is having the biggest impact on this journey. It's definitely slowing the appearance of weight loss on the scale, but it's changing everything else for the positive. I think I have gained at least 10 pounds of muscle since mid-January. As lousy as I am at assessing my own progress and appearance, even I can feel (maybe see) the difference in my body tone. I am feeling pretty great right now and while I am still 25 pounds away from my goal weight, I am happy where I am! Everything after this is gravy!
Here are the pictures to show the journey so far:
These were taken in July and August 2018. I weighed around 250 here, which is about 10 pounds down from my highest measured weight. (I am sure I weighed more than my highest measured weight, but was afraid to get on the scale for a while).
 
This is me on the day of Surgery (12/17/18). I weighed 234 on the day of surgery. 

I took this one on January 17 (one month post op). I weighed in at 210.2 that morning.

I just took these earlier today. I weighed in at 197.2 this morning.
 

Great Job. I just posted something similar in the December 2018 thread, but I'll do the same here!
Summer 2018: (Weighed around 250)
 
Day of Surgery (Weighed around 234)
  
January 17, 2019 (One Month Post-Op) (Weighed 210)

Taken today (2/28/19) (Weighing in at 197) 

Shopping sucked!!! I never felt like I looked good in anything. It's hard to look good when your belly is hanging over your pants and pushing them down. It was like my tummy was fighting a tug of war with my belt and my tummy won every time! Nothing was ever comfortable. Selection sucked because the "cool" designers do not design clothes for horizontally challenged people. I could never find a dress shirt that fit me right because I had to get a shirt with an 18.5 inch neck. You can't find those off the rack. At a B&T store, you can find them, but then I had the opposite problem because they were cut for an person even heavier than me so they were too big on me and made me look even heavier than normal.
Being a normal weight opens up a whole new world for shopping. Finding something something to wear is no longer a challenge---well, not the same challenge. I now never know what size to buy so I have to try everything on. No problem---but that's not a great thing for shopping at costco (which I where I have been buying my clothes since you can get decent pants there for $20 a pair and they only last me a couple of weeks. It will be nice to reach a healthy stable weight so I can actually buy really nice clothes. I am just going for cheap and passable for now.

Offense??? No way!!! I know what you meant. I was an overstuffed teddy bear. I used to be the first one to make fun of myself for being fat (sort of a defense mechanism I guess). Today, I still make those jokes (but only in my head). It's starting to sink in not the fat guy anymore. Btw, my mom said I look 15 years younger too!!! It finally feels like i have the old me back from when I was in my twenties and early thirties when I was in good shape.