ash

Thanks! And again, I have changed my ticker! After looking at those pictures, I know I need to lose more than 40 pounds! :001_unsure:

Thank you everyone! Today was my official weigh-in day and I'm happy to say the scale didn't move up even though I did have a small piece of my husband's birthday cake yesterday! Lynda, I see you are from Sugar Land! I taught elementary school in Sugar Land 6 years before getting married and moving to Louisiana. I miss it so much!

Hello Sleeve Friends! I have been thinking a lot about my final goal weight lately as it gets a little closer every day. When I went in for all my pre-op stuff (that seems a lifetime ago), my surgeon came up with 209 for my goal weight. I'm 6'2" and have always been overweight, but I know the charts say I should be around 175. I don't want to get preoccupied with that number, so I changed my ticker goal back to my surgeon's goal today. Now, when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel like I have way more than 40something pounds to lose, but I can't say that for sure. I am going to stick with my surgeon's goal of 209, and when I make it to that number, I will just see how I look and feel and go from there with a new goal if I still feel like I need to lose more. That being said, I'm SO close to having 100 pounds off, I can taste it. Sunday will mark 8 months out for me and I'm hoping I can post some updated pics of me 100 pounds less than I was 8 months ago. I've been exercising enthusiastically (HA! I really am!) and as long as I exercise, I don't find I have to be so picky about how many carbs I have. That, to me, is worth it, so if exercise is what it takes for me to have a cracker or two, I'll keep doing it. Maybe this is in the wrong forum, but today is one of those days when I feel like I'm a success...even with ???? more pounds to lose!

Awesome job! You can totally make it to 210! I just got to 250 myself Congrats on your success!

I finally made it to 100 today! My official weigh-in is on Mondays, but I have weighed every day since my surgery. It keeps me honest. I'm 100% positive I'll change my goal once I get to my surgeon's goal, but my surgeon's goal seems a whole lot closer than the chart! So, I'm sticking with that for now. Will post pics Monday if I get a chance.

I have some beneprotein in my cabinet. I bought it hoping it would dissolve like benefiber, but it doesn't. It smelled/tasted just like regular protein powders, which I don't use anymore, but I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Find a flavored powder that you like.

Congrats girl! I am kind of doing the Couch to 5k too, but not consistently. I usually work out for about 45 minutes indoors (with my Jillian Michaels or Zumba DVDs) then take my dog out for a walk/jog. I have printed out the Couch to 5K program and kind of follow it with my jogs, but for a shorter time period...like 15 minutes. I'm so glad you were able to get through it! I couldn't jog more than 45 seconds at a time when I first started. :thumbup1: Great job girl!

Thanks y'all! I've only had that one pity party a few weeks ago, and once I got off my butt and started working out, I was over it!

I remember feeling "weird" about a month after my surgery...it was right around the time I went back to teaching in August. I realized the feeling was because I was on the brink of dehydration. I really started concentrating on getting in the water and I felt a lot better after that. I'd say by 2 months out I was feeling great.

Haha, you crack me up with the "yes, I know I need to tan." You look AMAZING. Congrats on your success. :confused1:

Great, now I want a coke. HA!

Chancie, how AWESOME for you! Congratulations. And by the look of your pictures, I can't even see where those other 22 pounds would come from! You look amazing.

Congrats! That's awesome...I cannot even try to jog on the treadmill for fear of falling, so I stick with the sidewalk.

I Zumba'd my (shrinking) a$$ off last night and burned almost 900 calories including the walk I took afterward with the puppy. Now my knee hurts again, but I just go on and do my thing, sore knee and all. Yay Zumba!

Most of you know I LOOOOOOVE Zumba so much but since I've moved away from Texas I can't find any classes here and have to use the DVDs. But, I think I have a little Latin in my blood because I adore the Zumba music. The canned music is okay, but my class in Texas used popular Latin music and I couldn't get enough. I have a heart rate monitor, and with 45 minutes of Zumba, I burn at least 500 calories, but if I go closer to an hour and really work it, I can burn close to 800. I so wish I could find a class because doing it alone is kind of sad. HA!

Thanks everyone! I'm feeling better today and I will NOT be having a snack with my kindergarten class this afternoon. I won't do it. I also love looking at recipes and trying to modify them. We love mexican food and tonight I am making tacos with ground turkey, low carb tortillas, fat free refried Beans, 2% cheese, etc. We'll see if my hubby approves!

The scale went up this week and I'm kicking myself for it! I have been eating bad, terrible, awful things and I haven't been exercising because of the crud that won't go away. Just wanted to vent and ask what you all do to get back on track if you have a bad week? Also, I need to start cooking healthier at night. I just try to focus on Protein for me, but my hubby hasn't lost any weight since my surgery because of my cooking. I'd be fine eating some deli meat and a few crackers, but I mostly cook for him. Has anyone drastically changed their cooking habits for their family members?

No, I totally agree. I gave myself the whole, "You are paying a lot of money for this surgery, so don't blow it" talk last night. I will be pissed if I can't make goal because I won't keep my hands out of the cookie jar. PISSED. It's my own fault. I can't blame anyone else.

Well, i have very fine, thin hair in the first place so I freaked when it started coming out so much. I don't have a bald spot, but you can see my scalp a lot more all over than you could before. I've NEVER had a thick head of hair. I have a cowlick (does anyone else call it that) and you can really see the loss at the top of my head. In short, it's just thinning out of the hair for me, not bald patches. I bought the Biotin at Walgreens and I got the maximum dosage. I think it's 5000 mcg? I could be wrong.

My hair recently stopped falling out. The loss started in October and stopped a few weeks ago. I started taking Biotin daily with my multivitamin at lunch, and I've got lots and lots of baby hairs sticking straight out of my head!

When I eat a bar, it's usually for Breakfast because I've always had a terrible time finding breakfast foods I like and that are quick! I buy the Myoplex Lite chocolate Chocolate Chip (190 calories, 5 g fat, 15 g Protein, 26 g carbs), but I am growing tired of them. Don't get me wrong here...I LOVE these because I can't taste the protein in them, but I'd like some variety, so I will have to check out all your other suggestions!

I was sleeved in the middle of July 2009, and I have lost 98.8 pounds in 7 months. When I get discouraged with myself, I remind myself that I have lost almost 100 pounds in SEVEN months. That, to me, is incredible. I still have some more to lose (45 according to my Dr, 65 or so according to me), and while I have some stalls, I am still losing steadily and am completely satisfied with the sleeve. My main concern is not gaining the weight back when my husband and I decide to start a family.

I haven't done anything more than think about exercising this week. I'm down with the crud and am traveling this weekend, so I'll have to start moving again next week. My plans are to use my Zumba dvd, Jillian Michaels 30 day shred, and to do some walking/jogging with my puppy. Going to get started Monday when I am back home.