Manatee

Holidays are hard on many people. You are perfectly normal. Just hold on a bit longer, and this too shall pass.

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f110/

Hi guys For those doing weight training, I have a question. I've been on a plateau for a while, and that's fine. One thing I've noticed though is that my belly area is actually starting to push outwards again. I asked my trainer about this, and he stated that it was because of increased muscle mass in the core areas below the abdominal fat layers. Fact? Possible? Total BS? I don't think I'm eating badly right now

It's both depressing and enlightening to see those who are lighter than me having the same issues I am. I know objectively that I'm doing well, and am well within 'normal' body ranges now (cue minirant about BMI charts). I can't 'see' it in the mirror, though, and I still act like the fat guy when interacting with people. For those who have been there, does therapy help? Are there therapists that specialize in body image issues for WLS patients? One thing I HAVE noticed -- I no longer get the 'bow wave effect' when walking through a crowded place. That's kind of annoying

Hmmm. I can't say that I feel like an athlete, but I no longer feel like a fraud walking into the gym. My body shape isn't any worse than some of the others there. Six months ago I was quite literally round, and now I can pass for normal. Sometimes I surprise myself when I catch a random reflection (and other times I still feel like the bloated round thing I was!) I can't run well due too much damage to the knees over the years. Guess I'll have to feel like a powerlifter

If y'all can fix the edit function, that would be great. I've never seen another Vbulletin site that inserts those dang smileys everywhere.

Well, seems that I didn't make that much of an impression on BlindDateGirl. So be it. Small world time -- I went down to a local tattoo parlor for some art, and during the course of conversation in the chair it turned out the artist was someone I was already talking to through an online dating site. Kinda freaked us both out, especially since she doesn't live anywhere near this area. Took a bit of talking to convince her I wasn't some weird stalker. Neat lady, but her schedule and mine are so different that that's going to be hard to coordinate. Besides, there's always someone else to date, but a good artist is hard to find! Oh -- and on these online things, I'm beginning to think there's some folk out there who are online performance artists or something. Some of these emails.....sheesh!

Am I reading that right? 142 lbs in SIX MONTHS?? Holy cow.

My poison of choice is a grande soy white chocolate mocha, no whip. I know it's badish for me, but I don't really care. There's some mornings where I'm so tight there's no way I'm getting anything solid down, and that drink lets me get some calories and the heat seems to ease the restriction.

You have a very valid fear. The odds are on your side, but there is alway the possibility of death. On the other hand, staying very heavily obese WILL result in a early death for you. Pick your poison, and best of luck.

As a complete aside -- why don't wine bottles have nutritional value labels on them? I want to know precisely how many empty calories I chose to have instead of supper :) (Ha! Can't walk, but can still type!)

Yesterday went fine from my perspective, but she's probably telling her friends I'm some sort of loser I didn't have the nerve to try for a hug or kiss or anything so it just kinda ended with "had a nice night see ya later" in a piano bar parking lot. Bleah. I sucked at dating all those years ago, and haven't kissed anyone in damn near a decade (and yes, for those paying attention, my divorce was final in April. It was a cold, long time. Glad my real name isn't on here.) Ladies, how do I know when it's ok? On the positive side, she asked me to her corporate Xmas party. I don't know if that means she likes me, or if she's just desperate In the meantime, it's Friday night and I'm sitting at home watching a crap movie, buzzed on cheap wine and chowing on a bag of Salsa Verde Doritos. I'll probably be up 2 lbs tomorrow.....

I think we've lost JC for good. Hurrah for him! So, it seems that I have a date tomorrow evening with the friend-of-a-friend.

Kimmie, good for you!

Well, I got a number of a friend-of-a-friend, and after the initial "who are you and why are you calling me?" stumble we had a fun multi-hour conversation yesterday. Being the idiot I am, I forgot to actually ask her out at the end of the call. So, I suppose I need to call her back soon. What's the rules on this these days? I don't want to seem like a stalker. (dang, I'm actually asking this question. I'm lame....)

Well, it's been almost half a year since I had this thing implanted. I have to say, this has quite literally been a lifesaver. I've gone from morbidly obese to merely overweight, and can pass for a normal average person. The rate of loss has slowed, but I should be able to hit goal by the 1 year mark. So how are y'all? Still glad you did this?

Right now you don't have any restriction beyond that caused by the post-surgical swelling. That will change as you add fills. Exactly how tight you get is entirely up to you and your doctors. I backed off a super-tight fill so that I can eat and drink more normally. That will delay my weight loss somewhat, but really made the quality of life better.

Denise, yours looks fine, but I would put in more photos if I were you, and maybe something about who you're looking for Di, again, there's nothing there about who you're looking for. Good photos. On the profile review I was told to remove my paragraph about losing weight so I did -- maybe that works better on a female's profile? I know my profile is long, but it started short and I kept expanding it as I had more and more disappointing conversations. I figure that if someone reads that and still contacts me, she has a good feel for who I am. As far as body type, that's just what I feel. Doing better, yeah, but still got a big spare tire and a convex shape. You all know how the right clothes and angles can hide things in a photo! When I hit my goal, I'll change it to average. If I can ever see my abs, I'll change it to athletic

You don't have to get the band removed to fix the port if that's all that bothers you. Talk to your doc about moving it and getting a low-profile port installed. It's relatively minor work compared to removing the band itself.

So I stuck this in my profile after getting several emails from the Single Mom Brigade (not that there's anything wrong with that...) ==== IMPORTANT: I'm not looking for any situation that involves children. I make a great uncle, but that's about my limit -- wind them up for a few hours, and then give them back :-) ==== Feedback? I can't really think of a way to phrase it that's nicer but still gets the point across. Congrats Di on the date!

My gym made the local new. Fluff piece, but still fun Gym Weeds Out People Not Committed To Fitness - Videos - KXAS

Ah jeez.... looking at your last blog entry, all I can say is that you really need to quit internalizing these forum posts. A generic comment on body types doesn't necessarily reflect directly upon you. If you're happy with yourself, what does it matter if some random people don't agree with you -- especially if they're living quite literally halfway around the world? Screw 'em. Take a look in the mirror, have the last laugh and go enjoy your life.

See my ticker. You can lose weight fine with a lapband. You'll definitely need to add exercise to your routine when you start feeling like you can do so safely. It's a tool, not a magic bullet. The initial loss rate will be slower than a bypass, because you're not chopping out part of the intestines. That's not necessarily a bad thing. I would discuss both options with your doc. For me, the lap band was the only choice because I didn't want my innards rearranged.

From a guy's perspective: Too thin looks sick. What "too thin" means is usually in the eye of the beholder. I do know that I have seen women who are quite definitely too thin, and I'm certain they don't believe that. Women who look like 12 year old boys just don't look good, IMHO. That said, I don't personally believe that 'skinny' is an insult, any more than 'fat' is. The word is just a descriptor -- you have to give it power to hurt you.

PoF, and I do have "don't want kids" and "don't have kids" selected. I suppose reading comprehension may be a bit lacking around there. What surprises me is the number of folk who have "don't want kids" AND "have children" selected. Just a mistake, or Freudian honesty? And yeah, I know the long odds of finding someone of my age who isn't either a multi-daddy baby machine OR a biological clock watcher, but there's bound to be a few out there. (no offense intended towards multi-daddy baby machines and biological clock watchers)