Banannie

Somehow when someone joined in some of us got lost - I'm adding myself back in! July - Labor Day 2007 Challenge Name.............................Starting….Current…...Goal….....To Go losingjusme........................293...........2 94............266...........29 juliegeraci...........................226......... ...226............206...........20 areellady.............................251.5....... ..247.5.........230...........17.5 punkeyb88..........................306...........2 38............225...........13 Chris_NJ.............................326.......... .322............290...........32 PaulaD................................222......... ..222............200...........22 MM.....................................248........ ...248............230...........18 sdakotaRN...........................255........... 255............230...........25 Babygrl1234.........................224........... 224............199...........25 faithmd................................312........ ...312.............285...........27 Jan421................................267......... ...267.............247...........20 Metalband...........................203.........20 1................183...........20 tann............................223.......223..... ........198........25 Banannie......................182..........181...........162........19

OH! And since the edit function works so well I'll add in a new note: JULI YOU ROCK GIRL! 60 miles in 3 days? OMG Girl, you're incredible Babygrl - sorry to hear about your fall, glad you can laugh it off, and that's so cool you fixed your bike and went out riding! AND to all who this applies to - GOOD FOR YOU FOR GETTING HELMETS!!!!!!

I'm dirty, sweaty, and exhausted. Took my now one week old bike out and did 27 miles, 2 hrs, average speed of 13.1mph, average heart rate of just under 150 (love the bike computer!) AND this is on top of doing my first hike yesterday - 5 miles round trip to the top of a mountain, 2040 ft elevation change in a steady climb of 2.5 miles. I seriously kicked my own ass this weekend. Going to go shower now otherwise my stench may come through the keyboard!

Thanks Boo for the welcome and thanks Julie for noticing that I'm at 100 lbs! That was a BIG goal for me... I'm really liking this thread.

Chickie, I'm GLAD you're here - you can likely give us some great insight as to what you went through that some of us are just now experiencing! And Julie - part of me would love to be in a new situation where people didn't know me at 280+ lbs, but I agree, how can someone really know me without knowing the struggle I went through to get where I am today (and my journey isn't even over yet!). I had someone tell me the other day that I might disappear if I turned sideways. Uhm. Yeah. Not quite... :confused: But it's odd to hear those types of comments, like skinny and thin...

I weigh technically every day but only really officially record it on Thursdays - so, since I joined the challenge yesterday with my official Thursday weight, I'll probably stick with that! :confused:

I'm also 7 mo out and have no problems with vigorous exercise and my port - I'd say go see your surgeon! Maybe you pulled one of the stitches out that holds the port in place or something... it doesn't sound quite right to me.

Julie - great idea for a thread! I've been lucky to lose fast, like you. And like you, I also have days where I think I'm still the biggest girl in the room, and other days I have a sexy little swagger in my walk. My head certainly hasn't kept up with my weight loss! And I'm not entirely "comfortable" with all the praise, attention and comments yet.... I'm certainly interested in others who are nearing the "end" of the weight loss journey and how we all start adapting to normal-weight life! Love the thread!!

Thanks Deanna for pointing me to the challenge! It'll help keep me focused. Babygrl - way to rock it! 14 miles, with hubby on rollerblades? Both of you are superstars in my book!

Hoosier - Juli and Deanna are right - keep on trying - you're doing GREAT! If you aren't able to get the bike set up well, take it to a bike shop that can help - it's worth the hassle! Deanna - it's only about 78 here at 8pm in Seattle - perfect temp! I'm going to head out for a ride! Yeah, I know you're jealous, but think of the other 300 days a year where it's gray in Seattle... :eek:

Ok Deanna, I signed up for the challenge - I hope my goal is reasonable!

Ok, count me in, too! I have no idea if 20 lbs in just shy of 2 months is doable since I'm getting closer to goal, but so far (knocking on wood) I've been able to lose more than 10 lbs per month each month... July - Labor Day 2007 Challenge Name.............................Starting….Current…...Goal….....To Go losingjusme........................293...........2 93............266...........27 juliegeraci...........................226......... ..226............206...........20 areellady.............................251.5....... .247.5.........230...........17.5 punkeyb88..........................306...........2 38............225...........13 Chris_NJ.............................326.......... .326............290...........36 PaulaD................................222......... ..222............200...........22 MM.....................................248........ ...248............230...........18 sdakotaRN...........................255........... 255............230...........25 Babygrl1234.........................224........... 224............199...........25 faithmd.................................312....... . ...312.............285...........27 SWEETY.............................217............ 217.............199...........18 Banannie..............................182.............182............162............20

Thanks for the welcomes, everyone! I'm so enjoying my bike, it's great to be in a thread where others have the same passion!

Thanks Deanna! My weight loss has been my #1 priority (since I got to 100 lbs less than 7 months after banding!). I love it that people simply don't even recognize me now - either physically, or because I want to do. Last Thanksgiving at 282lbs I wouldn't have dreamed of hopping on a bike and doing 10 miles and LOVING it!

Looks like there are two threads on biking - I posted this in the other one but it looks like this is the more active thread! I splurged and just bought a Specialized Ruby Comp (full carbon fiber road bike) and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I really hadn't planned to spend that much on a bike, but I figured I wanted one that would last 5+ years, and just enjoyed the fit (and look!) of this one. Oh well, you only live once, right? I had a Polar bike computer installed yesterday but unfortunately even though I spent hours trying to get the dang thing to work, I'll likely have to take it back in today (got everything other than the heart rate monitor to work, but that's one of the reasons I bought the thing!). Went a touch over 10 miles last night averaging well over 12mph - I'm hoping to go again tonight after my Personal Trainer kicks my butt and I get the bike computer fixed. I had started trying to run a few weeks ago (doing intervals of running with walking, working up to more run than walk!) - but I enjoy the biking SO much more!!!

YAY! A thread on biking! I splurged and just bought a Specialized Ruby Comp (full carbon Fiber road bike) and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I really hadn't planned to spend that much on a bike, but I figured I wanted one that would last 5+ years, and just enjoyed the fit (and look!) of this one. Oh well, you only live once, right? I had a Polar bike computer installed yesterday but unfortunately even though I spent hours trying to get the dang thing to work, I'll likely have to take it back in today (got everything other than the heart rate monitor to work, but that's one of the reasons I bought the thing!). Went a touch over 10 miles last night averaging well over 12mph - I'm hoping to go again tonight after my Personal Trainer kicks my butt and I get the bike computer fixed. I had started trying to run a few weeks ago (doing intervals of running with walking, working up to more run than walk!) - but I enjoy the biking SO much more!!!

Steph - SO GOOD to hear from you!!! Sorry you're so stressed - try to relax on your vacation and know when you come back & get the fill, it'll kick you into high gear! Nat and Brandi - what the heck are you guys doing up at 1am? You two are CRAZY! Brandi - have FUN at the regatta - I haven't been to one in a million years and they're just a hoot! As for me, I keep wanting to sing "99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer..." The freaking scale is taunting me!!!!!!!!! I want that dang pound GONE! Yes, Nat, I can hear you now - ANNIE STEP AWAY FROM THE SCALE, but I just can't, not until I see that next pound go away! I'm so helplessly addicted. Now the next goal is to get the last 40 lbs off by about Thanksgiving so I can get a lower body lift... I want to be hot when this is all over with! It's going to be tough - the lbs come off slower the closer we get to goal, right?

OH! And I upgraded to this saddle on my bike - the shop I went to said that almost all women who try it love it. Even without bike shorts I'm able to walk today - it was way better than the standard one that I did try when I test rode the bike... http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCEqProduct.jsp?spid=25408

Brandi - you and I must be on the same wavelength - I just bought a bike yesterday and had the SAME thoughts - I LOVED the bike ride way better than the running I've been trying to do! http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=21960

Brandi - you'd stopped working out for a while and got into a rut of not eating right. You were still losing for a bit, but what you lost was not only fat but lean muscle. Now that you're workin' it again, hitting the elliptical, crunches, weights, you're gaining back your muscle! Also, it sounds like your body's "compacting" since you're losing inches. It WILL WORK. You ARE doing the right things! Just let your body catch up to what you've been doing (right) the past 2 weeks and you're going to start dropping QUICK! Hang in there - I know it's frustrating, but you ARE doing the right things and the scale will move, just give it a touch more time! (and yes, 3500 calorie deficit = 1 lb fat loss)

Yowza Brandi! You look MARVELOUS dahling!

Nat - under 240 AND over 60 lbs down - YIPPPPEEEEEE!!!!!!! You rock girlfriend!

Thanks for the comments Brandi, I will promise to not leave! And yes, I WANT you guys chomping on my heals Nat - Glad you talked to the nutritionist! This is way easier with the right restriction. I'm probably a bit on the loose side (had an unfill about a month ago after getting too tight) but I need to actually eat a bit more with the training sessions coming up.

Oh gosh girls, I certainly didn't take anything you said as criticism or bad mouthing, I think Nat's right, it's the fat girl "I should hide behind my accomplishments" thing. I have horrible self esteem. HORRIBLE. I know you guys are supportive! As I said, there is 100% absolutely NO WAY I'd have done this well with out YOU GUYS. You're my rock and stability - ALL OF YOU! I just don't want anyone to be intimidated! I want people to come and ask "what the heck are you doing??" without thinking I'm going to judge them or think less of them, because I've been on both sides of this struggle - I've had success and I've struggled. I know how much it sucks when you totally and completely want to do something, and are struggling. And if I can help, I want to! So ok, I'll put my ticker back up tonight (I have it set up on my home computer) See, this is why I'm on this group - you don't let me go hide under a rock!

Brandi - YAY on the elliptical! You know, you're probably reenergizing some muscle tissue which is why you've been steady on the weight and not dropping. I wouldn't worry for another week or two! But go talk to your doc and see about a fill - if nothing else, go chat with them, they may be able to see a few things to do differently to rock it all again! I admit, part of the reason I haven't been on the board as much is I specifically don't want others to feel bad that they "aren't doing as well as Banannie" - I'm so sorry about that! Remember this isn't a race! I'm fortunate enough to be able to make this my #1 priority and have the funds to do the trainer and such. I think I'm going to pull my ticker off so people don't get frustrated with me. I want to be here to support you guys AND to get support (honestly, I could NOT have done it without you guys!) and not have anyone mumble under their breath "oh there's that Banannie again..."