DanaC84

Flying today. No seat belt extender. 👍🏻

I had to fly to Penn this past weekend for my son's college graduation. The person that had the plane seat before me had the seatbelt expanded as far as it could go and I thought about when I needed it there too, then I cinched it in about 15 in!
My son has not seen me since I started this bariatric journey and his response was "Gee Mom, you are so skinny!"
And, the NSV I planned for just in case it happened...I ran into the ex and his wife (I've never met her before) and I was looking pretty damn good and smaller than her! Not that I really care what either of them think about me but it did make me feel good for a moment!

Just ordered shedloads of clothes to try fill holes in my wardrobe cos, quite frankly, my jeans now look stoopid.

Ordered UK 16 and 18 in most stuff as a lark. Kept a size 16 maxi skirt, 2 size 16 vest tops, and a size 16 shirt...and I cried.

Uncharted territory from here on out. Very weird. Very wonderful.

Back in January I started recording my measurements. Today I'm down 17 inches... [emoji4]

Sent from my SM-G960W using BariatricPal mobile app

These days I've been coming up with NSV's that somehow/sometimes don't really seem like NSV's, as I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. So here's another one:
Yesterday, Mr. carried me up the stairs, not like on his back like piggy-back, nor over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes/flour/presents/whatever, but like over-the-threshold kind of carry...which he hasn't done since he literally carried me over the threshold to our first house before the Kid was born (~15 years ago)
All the way up, I kept thinking he was going to pull his back out or something and we would take a tumble and then when we got to the top, sooooo relieved when we got there intact.

I was looking at pictures I took of myself last year and I couldn't believe how much of a difference there was in my face! I always feel like my face never changed because I have loose skin on my neck and chin, but WOW.

I need to get better about posting daily. Playing catch up
Day 7-Work up a sweat- I did go for a 30-minute run that day
Day 8-Get crafting-I've been working on making some birthday cards this week
Day 9-Meditate-I did a 15 minute guided meditation
Day 10-Yoga-I didn't do on Friday because that is my rest day, but I am doing a yoga class tomorrow along with weight day.
Day 11-Complete a Puzzle-Not a physical puzzle but working on some problem solving for some work projects so that counts as a puzzle right?

May Day #11:
11 push ups: done. Easier this morning than yesterday (HINT: I did them much faster ) Yeah, yeah, I'm only cheating myself, I'm just not feeling it these days and its better than nothing! Finish a puzzle: dusted off an old Sudoku app that was still on my phone and finished a couple games while waiting for girlfriends to show up for our pre-Mother's day brunch this morning. At this particular restaurant, I normally would have ordered the Grand-Marnier-infused, Marscapone-stuffed french toast with mixed berries, bananas, caramelized pecans & caramel sauce (with a side of bacon AND sausage), as it was a favourite of mine pre-op. Today, it just wasn't calling my name. So I ordered mussels in white wine sauce and ate four of them. Four!! My, how times have changed.

10) yoga. I have a ton of the Namaste series recorded on my DVR . I’ll have to give it a shot this afternoon
11) Finish a puzzle. I do a lot of word puzzle apps on my phone. Ones like Wordscapes and SpellTower . Those will have to do for me.

Yes please!
I joke but I’m sure I’ll want it at some point in the future on my upper arms and possibly my neck. I’ve still got another 70 lbs to goal and then from what I understand we need to be in maintenance for an extended period of time so I’ve got plenty of time to save my pennies

I hope you’re feeling better 😍

This is freakin exciting!! Congratulations 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

Yeah the Shadow is always there for the Shadow Knows you may weaken and return!

Also ME.

10) yoga. I have a ton of the Namaste series recorded on my DVR . I’ll have to give it a shot this afternoon
11) Finish a puzzle. I do a lot of word puzzle apps on my phone. Ones like Wordscapes and SpellTower . Those will have to do for me.

I've lost 50 some odd lbs since December 10th 2018 RnY. I am biding my time for a knee replacement in one leg and have a bone disease in the other. A brace on both legs. I was doing so good then bad weather hit and put a kink in my exercise. I was just setting here disappointed in myself that I can only ride a bike approximately half a mile. Knowing later my legs are going to hurt like blazes. I keep trying and I'm told to just keep trying. When the pools open I hope to do Water exercises. Don't be discouraged my friend baby steps are going to get us where we are going as long as we keep trying and not give up or give in. Slow and steady wins the race. [emoji3] [emoji274] [emoji148] [emoji188] [emoji122]

Sent from Zebby's SM-G950U using BariatricPal mobile app

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.

And their brothers are Legion!

Apparently, we're married to the same man!

My husband’s idea of weight loss meal prepping.

Don't let it happen to you...

11. All 11 pushups accomplished. I also just completed a puzzle online at JigZone. I do need to get a card table and chairs so that I can do a hands on puzzle...nice to have available for when my mother visits. I haven't made it to the gym yet but it's such a beautiful day and I'll be mowing my lawn. Tomorrow is supposed to be rain. I'm undecided about getting to the gym today but I'm definitely going to move today one way or another.