ms.sss

@Tracyringo: do you find that you are maintaining on this intake or still losing?

Mr. bought us tickets to the opera for my birthday a while back and we went to go see it last night. Never been to the opera before, turns out I'm not a fan (love regular theatre though ). When the bells went off to signal that intermission was over, I was all, I'd rather stay out here and finish my charcuterie snack pack than go back in there for another hour, hahahaha. I guess I'm not all that cultured.

Team lunch at work today, and the client took us to a Chinese Buffet of all places 🙄. Wouldn't have thought I had it in me, but I ate almost everything on the plate below (I didn't eat the giant chicken wing in the middle, nor the piece of brown rice sushi at the bottom right, nor the baked grouper which is the white blob under the giant chicken wing). It took me almost 3 hours, but I ate everything else! Worth noting that this is probably the first time in my life I only had 1 plate of food at a buffet. Pre-WLS I would have gone for seconds, thirds, etc... Sweet & Sour Pork + Sesame Chicken + Mango + Seaweed Salad + Steamed mussel + Tamago (rolled omelette) sashimi + Grilled Octopus + Fried Chicken Breast + Peking Duck w/ Hoisen Sauce + Green Beans + Chinese Broccoli Not Shown in this pic, but I also ate: the insides of a mini cherry tart (didn't eat the pastry shell) + tofu pudding w/ simple syrup. 673 cals - 39g protein - 56g NET carbs - 33g fat

WHAAAAAAAT??! You are a grandma?!?!?!? You. Look. Amazing. (and your skin is fab) ❤️ Nice job, lady.

👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

I suspect that as you get further along you'll see that it may not be as high as you think, nor as difficult. I'm a good 6 inches shorter than you (and a female) and based on my records, it looks like I maintain in the 2000's. Anything less and I will generally lose. Try not to stress (I know, I know, easier said) and just enjoy the ride...your body will find its equilibrium eventually. My tip for adding extra cals in a pinch: Avocados, Nuts/Seeds and CHICHARRON (my fave, lol). Edited to add: Oh, and if you are interested, check out this thread. I started it a couple weeks ago so maintainers specifically can see/share how we are handling our food intakes (so far its mostly just me posting though, lol. And @FluffyChix sometimes ❤️ :

Never got to see the more inland parts of Australia (we stayed and visited mostly along the coast), but I hear its beauuuutiful. Time to enjoy life down there! You may even pick up the awesome accent

Yesterday, Thu, Oct. 24 Maintenance : 5'2" / F / 1yr PO / 112.5 lbs ...allllllmooooost hit 2000 cals yesterday. Close enough, I say. I have to admit I did not enjoy eating yesterday as I'm still sick and food was like meh. On the bright side, I got to go the the bathroom as I was going on 3 days poop-less. 9:10am - coffee with Stevia 1:30pm - 9 pieces various sashimi (fish) with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger + 1/4 a side Japanese salad w/ mango dressing + 3 pieces beef sashimi w/ dipping sauce + 1/4 cup red bean ice cream 3:30pm - Tea with Stevia + chicken broth + 6 Avocado chips + peanut butter 5:00pm - 1 Costco Garlic chicken leg + Tzatziki + chili oil 9:15pm - 1 Costco Garlic chicken leg + Tzatziki + chili oil + beef jerky + coffee with Stevia 11:00pm - 3.5 oz chicharron Totals: 1929 cals - 175g Protein - 41g NET carbs - 138g fat

Well, if you are self-pay, you can have whatever surgery you want. But if you are looking to get insurance to cover it, you may have some hurdles to jump, as your BMI at your current weight/height is only 32.4. I believe you need to be at least BMI 35 (for your height that would be 211.7 lbs) with co-morbidities. Maybe just straight up tell your doctor what you want. If he/she isn't down, keep looking until you find one who is. Good Luck!

It's been a year, people!

It's my one year sleeve anniversary today! Yay me! I wrote up an update. Check it out here:

The belt is one of those stretchy weaved belts that have no actual holes - you just cinch it and stick in the little metal thing at whatever tightness you choose...very handy for weight loss cuz its literally one-size-fits-all P.S. You are speaking to a fellow copycat. I went out and bought a jean jacket a couple days ago, hahaha. Was going to wear it today but the Kid said I looked too "cowboy".

Another day at the client site, another day to dust off some clothes from the closet....thought I would start wearing more colours now that I'm smaller, but I guess I just love black no matter what. LOL.

Btw, where in Australia did you move to? (We lived in Brisbane for a year... I never sweated so much in my life!)

I feel you. Unfortunately for some of us unlucky few, looking older WISER (lol) after weight loss is an occupational hazard. This summer, a house painter asked if my 30 year old neighbour was my daughter. Dude. I'm only 47. (EDIT: actually just realized that at the time he asked I was still only 46!!!) Said neighbour attempted to soften the blow by saying it was more a compliment for her rather than a diss on me. Nice try, lady. You many look awesome for 30, but that doesn't make me less wiser-looking.

Yesterday, Wed, Oct. 23 Maintenance : 5'2" / F / 1yr PO / 113.0 lbs ...soooo it looks like my lack of success in reaching the 2000 daily cal mark lately is starting to show on the scale. Yesterday's intake was a paltry 1200-ish due to various distractions and this annoying cold I'm nursing. Going to make a concentrated effort to up cals and sustain a higher daily cal average starting today. In any case, here is what I ate yesterday: 10:00am - coffee with Stevia 12:00pm - 5oz grilled chicken + 1 avocado + carrots + Tzatziki 3:00pm - leftovers of my 12pm meal + coffee with Stevia 5:00pm - beef jerky + almonds + pumpkin seeds 9:10pm - 2 tbsp protein ice cream + 2 tbsp peanut butter Totals: 1210 cals - 86g Protein - 39g NET carbs - 73g fat

Yesterday, Tues, Oct. 22 Maintenance : 5'2" / F / 1yr PO / 113.7 lbs ...today was an OFF day from my PPI (I am currently doing 2 days on, 1 day off as a wean-off strategy). And it looks like spicy stuff needs to get off my menu for a while as well. The stomach was NOT pleased after the 7pm meal. 8:00am - coffee with Stevia 12:30pm - salad greens + olive oil + carrots + half an avocado + 1 snack size can of lemon pepper tuna 3:00pm - half an avocado + 1 poached egg + 1 strip of bacon + 1 snack size can of spicy thai tuna 7:00pm - 1 cup of coconut curry chicken + 1 Pure Protein protein bar 9:30pm - salad greens + pumpkin seeds + 3oz grilled chicken Totals: 1634 cals - 130g Protein - 138g NET carbs - 74g fat

Dude. Look at 'em GUNS.

I ran out of salad greens ☹️. Gonna head to Costco after work to restock, but in the meantime, here is today's first meal of day. I already ate some of it before I remembered to take a picture. It's not the prettiest to look at, but it's totally yum. Dunno if I'm going to finish it yet, but if I don't, I'll eat the rest as a snack later. 5oz Grilled chicken + 1 avocado + carrots + Tzatziki 465 cals, 31.9g protein, 8g NET carbs, 30.5g fat

Everyone's weight loss journey is soooooo different...and this is the sobering fact of life. What works for Jane doesn't necessarily mean it will work for Jack. Some of us accept this in stride, some of us need more time to get used to the idea, and still some of us rail against it and lament (or rejoice) the fact their experience is not like another's. One person gains at 1300 cals/day, another maintains, and then still another would lose at this level. Not to say this won't change for any of them in the future, but that is their reality, right now. Which is why everyone tells us time and time again not compare ourselves to others. But lets face it, we all do, it's human nature. I guess maybe a better thing to say is, "When you compare yourself to others, use it as a motivator, not as a deterrent to get to (or stay at) a place where you are happy with where you are". Dunno why this made me sad writing this. Gonna go post something lighthearted now! ❤️

You go, brother. Advocate for yourself and seek out those who will support you...shrug off the ones who won't. 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆

@AngieBear: holy cow, you are shrinking before my eyes!!! Great job!!!