billho

I'm a fan of the Costco/Kirkland Protein bars. They are 190 Calories with 21 g protein, 2 g sugar (slight variation from flavor to flavor). I like the Cookie Dough & Brownie flavors. I can't stand the Cookies & Cream. As a backup, Luna, Atkins, or Pure Protein bars are OK. I'll eat them if I am out of Costco bars.

Progress photos: First pic at 273 lbs (I had lost about 10 lbs before I took a photo), and second pic at 184 lbs.

That was really fast! You've completely changed in half a year.

184.4 (goal of 184.0) so I'm .4 away. Almost there. Got a little more work to do this week.

I've been at the beach with my family this week and for the first time in a very long time, I'm comfortable walking around without a shirt on. Also, I'm really close to losing 100 lbs, so I thought I'd take this chance to kick up my walking routing up a notch. I've been walking about 25k steps a day, and after 4 days of this, I woke up this morning feeling my abs when I touched my belly. I'm eager to weigh when I get back home- I think I'm close.

I'd probably recommend not bringing bacon.

I had one a few months ago- I recently joined my local volunteer fire department and when they went to find turnout gear for me, they had to really hunt for some that was small enough. And my daughter (who is also a firefighter) wears the same size as me.

another NSV: I have a large hill on the vacant lot next to mine that I mow every week (because the owner doesn't take care of it and I don't want his weeds spreading to my yard). Last summer, I had difficulty getting up the hill on my riding mower and couldn't even attempt to go horizontally because of the risk of rollover. Now that I'm almost 100 lbs lighter, I can go horizontally with ease and my mower has no trouble getting up the hill.

I have many I could mention, but one that has been important lately is that pre-surgery, I needed EE width stability shoes. About 4 months ago, I moved to D width stability running shoes. Now those aren't comfortable anymore, especially now that I'm running more, I just bought D width, neutral shoes. I'm looking forward to being able to do more running.

I have no regrets and glad I made the decision to do this. I can eat anything I want, but I do have to make choices about what I eat and be prepared for the consequences. I eat some red meat and some other meats in small portions, but it sits heavy in my stomach and causes discomfort if I over-do it. But, that small negative is far outweighed by the fact that I am a completely new person, almost 100 lbs lighter, and doing things that I haven't been able to do in 30 years. I enjoy a Coke Zero from time to time, but not every day. I eat a hamburger once in a while (but maybe only half), but not often. As long as you keep the mindset to put down the food whenever it is time to stop, even if you aren't done, you should be fine. But, if sheer willpower was enough, all of us here wouldn't need this. The fact is that that wasn't working. I'm only 7 months out, so time will tell how successful I'll be. We'll see, but I'm happy with it so far.

1. No. I feel like a new person- in a good way. 2. Absolutely 3. that I didn't do this a long time ago 4. What are you still doing thinking about it? just get it over with and say hello to the rest of your life!

after a stall around 190 that lasted about six weeks, I have finally broken through. I'm feeling good and 100 lbs lost is getting closer.

I thought I'd log in with a few updates today. I started this process back on July 31st with a high weight of 284. I lost 34 lbs before surgery on Sept. 21st and weighed in at 233.2 this morning. The two big milestones are that I passed 50 lbs lost and I am now a BMI of 34, which means I'm only "obese" instead of "morbidly obese". I have a long way to go to my 180 target, but I am happy about the progress so far.

I took my first weekend trip on a motorcycle this past weekend. Since the Honda Shadow is still in the shop (needs a new fuel pump and back tire), I rode the CB250 Nighthawk about 1 1/2 hours away to a weekend retreat with a bunch of guys from my church. The trip there was 40 degrees and windy, so by the time I got there, I was a popsicle. But, the ride back was 65 degrees and sunny, and perfect for riding. One thing I have to mention- the guys I was with I hadn't seen since before the pandemic, so they only knew me as the fat nerdy guy that I've always been. So when I showed up 95 lbs lighter with a full beard, wearing a leather jacket (and a COVID mask) and riding a motorcycle, some didn't even recognize me. And the most important thing was that I had a group of guys that I was working with in a small group all weekend and a 23-year-old kid said I was "cool". I don't think that's anything I have ever heard in my adult life as a fat guy.

Sounds familiar. It was frustrating having to see the dietician as part of the process, especially since it was the one thing that wasn't covered by insurance. So I got to spend $179 (twice) to hear the same thing I read in my WLS workbook. The dietician was very nice but didn't tell me anything I didn't already know. But it was part of the process and I was willing to do whatever was required... which I'm so glad I did.

I took Saxenda a few years ago- I lost about 35 lbs and managed to keep it off for about a year. But it gradually lost its effectiveness and after a couple of years, I had put most of the weight back on. Then when I stopped because of a change in insurance coverage, I quickly added another 20 lbs. I didn't stick to the diet and exercise plan long-term, though. I'd recommend it, but with the understanding that without changes in diet and exercise, once your appetite comes back (and mine did), the effects are only temporary. VSG was a much better option for me- I never got below 225 on saxenda. I'm at 190 now and I am continuing to drop every week.

I am on the fence with this topic- Yes, my weight was largely due to my own poor choices, and didn't expect the world to revolve around me. But, a doctor's office that caters to an overweight population should have bigger and heavy-duty chairs. Any bariatric doc should have this as a priority, especially if they care about having to replace broken furniture and, more importantly, subject their patients to the shame and discomfort of wedging into a chair that is too small. One of the things about losing weight is that I don't need the big chairs anymore. My Bariatric surgeon's office has mostly huge chairs, but now that I can, I seek out the small ones in the lobby, as a small victory.

like others, I think I tried to puree some meat maybe once, but couldn't eat it. An alternative could be chicken or pork shredded or chopped really fine. If I remember, my go-to during this phase was tuna, because it could be really soft and smooth when mixed with a little mayo and olive oil. Chicken shredded really fine as a chicken salad was also good.

that's a good idea. If others are usually dependent on you to fix meals, then it makes sense to do that ahead of time. You'll probably feel like taking it easy for a week or so, or if you feel like moving, you'll want to be able to focus on your own recovery and walking as much as possible.

It is probably a good idea to have an assortment of things to eat right after you get home to maybe last a few days or more, but it depends on your situation. After the first few days, I was able to fix things for myself and didn't need to depend on my wife to bring me anything. In fact, I needed to be moving as much as possible, so it was good to be getting up and not be waited on constantly. I did stock up on broth and jello and a few other things that went uneaten and eventually got thrown away. Honestly, I wasn't all that interested in food and nothing really appealed to me for the first few weeks, so once I found something that didn't turn me off, that's what I ate. So my diet was more focused on getting in protein, electrolytes, and water. I figured out the rest later.

yes, just tired. Not too bad.

I had the virus in November and have had both vaccine doses this month. No issues with the vaccine, other than I felt crappy the next day after the first dose.

Congrats!

I was thinking it would good to try to meet up sometime. I'm in Winston-Salem, but I am in your area from time to time (a lot more before COVID). Let me know if you happen to be heading west, though.