Hello fellow sleevers,

just thought I would start a thread for all those who want to get to goal in 2012, regardless of where we are in the process.

I posted it the 'Slow Loser' thread, because that is what I am!! (I am not complaining by the way, just pleased to be a loser...lol)

For me to get there, I know that at 18mths out I need to be strict, accountable and have support from those in the same 'place', who understand that the sleeve isn't a miracle but a tool.

I have done well so far, but the weight hasn't 'melted' off me and since 6mths post op I have had to fight for each and every pound. At first it made me a little bitter, frustrated and I started to get into a 'dark place' about it, now the scale victory tastes sooooo sweet!

I have taken the month of December 'off'... I needed to rest from the constant worry of food, cals, water, carbs and protein... my head was spinning and I was starting to feel very frustrated and overwhelmed at not being at goal again. I needed time out!

I have thoroughly enjoyed the Christmas period and I have eaten what I wanted and when I wanted it; this includes ALL foods, no food was off limit and I let my sleeve do its job! The quantity was low but I still enjoyed every mouthful. Interestingly, I found that my cravings were satisified very quickly... 1 or 2 biscuits/sweets, and so on, hit the spot, instead of 5,6,7,... you get the picture. Subconscious damage limitation? I don't know but I like it!

I have learnt a lot by doing this. I now know that I can eat a little more if I 'try'... I know that I can enjoy food again without feeling guilty and I know that food doesn't have to be the enemy. So, with all that, what was the outcome? Yep, I have gained 2lbs above my personal bounce! Oops!

I am not, in the slightest, worried about this because I KNOW what is the cause... sugar and salt! And this time, I am sure it will come off as quick as it went on!

So, what is the plan?

Per my surgeon's instructions: I am going back to basics... yep that ole one...lol

• 3 meals a day - no snacking.
  
• Weighing my meals between 6-8oz depending on what is on the plate.
  
• Protein first, followed by veggies.
  
• Plenty of water.
  
• A limit of 1000 cals a day.
  
• Continue with my exercise - boxing twice a week, gym in work 1-2 times a week (depending on work load) and walking my dog (just over a 2 mile circuit). The exercise is the only thing that I have stuck to in December... I actually enjoy it now!!
  

As a side note, and I ain't sure if my American friends can get this, but here in the Uk, on SKY there are a few fitness channels. I have recorded some aerobic workouts that are really good... they're free and can be done at home... this is saving me some money on classes and DVDs and if I don't like the workout I can delete and look for another!! Bonus!!

Ok, who is ready to join me on the final stretch to goal... hope on board and enjoy the ride my friends...

So I've gone through some difficulties recently; my position at my job was eliminated, I thought I was deploying so didn't renew my lease on my house so am now going to be out of a place to live, reproductive issues and a chipped tooth. That's a lot of stress and anxiety and worry and I'm starting to eat over it. The weekend after I found out about my job my house and my uterus I bought a loaf of bread and ate toast with butter for 3 days straight until I finished the loaf. I also had a bad case of flu 3 weeks ago and haven't gotten back into the swing of things at the gym. And someone I thought was a good friend hasn't bothered to show any care or interest and I think she is going to drop my friendship now that she can't brag about my job anymore. It's a lot, I feel fat flabby bloated and weak.

I am so sad you are experiencing this sh** right now! I want to give you a big hug right now! XOXoxoxo coming your way.

Awww, thanks for the encouragment, Coops! Down 1 lb, 24 to go!!! Sorry, you can't workout, but I think it's good to take a break from working out sometimes, and especially if you are injured. You'll get back to it, I know!!!

Wow, just seeing this thread. GT, "friends" like that deserve a kick in the behind. So sorry you're having such a horrid time--I hope by now things have calmed down a bit and are back on track.

Coops, sounds like stuff is going better! YAY!

Dorrie, it's nice to see your pic--I was offline for a bit and I guess you posted that while I was off. Nice to "meet" you!

And Lila, sounds like you're doing great--hang in there and keep up the good stuff!

Things here are busy but what else is new. Took our second group on their cruise; all went well, everybody had a great time, and I somehow dropped another pound while at sea. No idea how. I think it's something to do with my "new" eating plan finally kicking in--focus on fresh veggies (especially greens), fresh fruit, and staying away from sugar, minimizing nuts (my weakness). So far, so good. I was trying to figure out what was different while on board and while here; I got more exercise on board, just running around, swimming, doing the tours, etc., and I guess that had a bigger impact than I thought.

This is Kool. Go girls.

MegInNOLA: You lost a pound at sea! How awesome is that? Welcome back, we've missed you. You are doing really great with the swifting things around. I too am focusing more on veggies and trying to get more fresh fruit in. I go down a couple of pounds and then up a couple of pounds. It is what it is and thank you for the compliment on my pick.

Dorrie, you *do* look great! I just noticed your pic! Sooo slender! WAY TO GOOOOO!!!! Meg, congrats on losing while at sea! How awesome! Love it that you are focusing more on veggies--it feels so good to know you are getting in all your nutrients the way nature intended :-)

thought I would give a little update... I have been up and down since the last time I wrote... I thought I was on the up, then I attended two funerals in one week and that really fried my brain. The first one was my besties grandad; a beautiful man that I have known all my life and was like a grandad to me... his funeral, although very sad, was a true celebration and tribute to thsi wonderful guy. yes it was upsetting and emotional but he was 91 and he really did have a great and fulfilling life. It was an honour to 'send him off'!

The other funeral was a friend from school, he died just three weeks after his 41st birthday, very sudden and very shocking. That funeral, was a different ball game... that one really hurt! It brought home to me how valuable each and every breath I take actually is... to see his wife and two daughters walk behind his coffin really impacted on me and everyone who attended. This is the second sudden death in 4mths, and I really am struggling to understand what the hell is going on... I am a person who needs answers... and in this situation, there are no answers and the questions will always remain... how to get my head around this is really bothering me. I suppose time will be the best healer.

It seems that over the last 6mths there has been a lot of 'bad luck' coming my/our way... lots of little things, that alone are easy to deal with, but together the add up and add up... physical stress and emotional stress... lots of stress!! You get the picture!

On the scale front, I am back bouncing around all over the place. On HRT tablets now, not Patches and although it hasn't been a month of taking them, I am wondering if they are doing me any good... I am positive that this is part of the reason why the scale is bouncing around... and it is getting past frustrating again.

I have been so close to chucking to towel in and saying 'Oh sh*t to it'! 8mths of the same number is really crappy... I am getting 'bored' if that makes sense.

But, then there is a part of me, the perfectionist in me, that can't give up... that wants to fight but can't find the energy. For the first time in a very long time, I really feel that my glass is half empty - this is not like me at all and I don't like it.

I will keep on keeping on... I just gotta keep plodding and hoping; things have to look up soon, right?

On a more positive note, my physio on my back is going well... the hips are now back aligned and 'normal' again! The lower back is less tense and my physio wants me to concentrate on the core muscles and has given me a few exercises to do. I can also walk again, not too much, but at least it is something.

I haven't trained properly for 2mths, and I think this is also having an effect on my emotional well being!

Sorry for the long rant... and the less than positive tone...

Any ideas to get the glass half full are always welcome. I am looking for the light at the end of the tunnel...

Coops ~ it is so good to hear how your doing. It sucks to have the scale stuck for 8 months! You are having a lot of losses in the past 4 months, not including your young student before that. What do you do with your emotions? Do you stuff them? I know you talk with your dear hubby and it has been helpful. Sometimes it might not help to talk with someone so close to you. Anyhoo, I hope you work through some of this baggage. You have done very well on losing weight up until October. You look fantastic in your pics! You are pretty skinny as it is. I know that weight loss will happen because you are a very determined beautiful lady. You are working hard to lose it. I know that the next 10 lbs for me will be very slow. I feel great right now and I am struggling with the fear of gaining weight back. I see that I can eat much more now and when I make a bad choice like eating a portion of a mini small Dreyer's ice cream, I gain weight. go figure. So I'm asking myself what it would mean if I actually couldn't lose any more weight, can I be happy. Well, yes, I feel so much better and I look really good also. This is what I was seeking. I remember seeing you in your green jeans and wow, you looked really skinny! You still do! You are a success as far as I'm concerned. Hang in there and I'm going to start a topic on me some day really soon, I just need to sit down and write what I'm thinking and also organize it. LOL Hang in there, you fantastic!

Coops, I'm sorry to hear life is beating you up! Sometimes when things are tough, I just try to maintain and do no more than that. Things are really crazy for me right now, too. I've been under a ton of stress and trying to make some really important decisions, so I'm just trying to hold on right now :-) !!! When things are like that, I think it's good to step back and not beat ourselves up for how close we are to meeting all our goals.

Having said that, I think this article might make you feel like your glass is half full. This lady doesn't weigh too much less than we do (well, especially not much less than you!), and she's really tiny.

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

It really motivated me to continue to work on fitness and worry less about the scale. Maybe you can do the same? You have made such great strides, and in truth, your glass is 99% full with less than 10 lbs to lose. Just worry about maintaining right now (keep exercising a bit, and keep eating healthy even if you aren't tracking your food). That's what I am doing and seems to keep the scale on an even keel, even if it's not going down. I hope that helps! You deserve to feel great, and I hope you can just step back and Celebrate all that you've accomplished!

I'm a little further out than y'all, I think... I'm at the 14-1/2 month mark. I can say that I've had a pretty good 5-month "plateau" in the middle of all this--I'm not going to dignify it with the word "stall"--and that after my loss slowed, weight loss comes much more infrequently and with MUCH smaller drops than before. I think we get super spoiled with that first rush of weight loss! It's pretty thrilling to hop on the scale and find you have dropped 7 pounds that week!! It's not so thrilling to see that bounce up and down when you're still higher on the scale than you think you should be--and we beat ourselves up.

I don't really have any great advice or wisdom to share, just a communal hug for everyone who's struggling. I know first-hand that stress and feeling pressed for time are the enemies of weight loss, period. And I think especially for us women, it's HARD to take time for ourselves--we've been taught that others come first, others' needs trump ours, and it feels self-indulgent in a bad way to take time out for relaxation, exercise, whatever it is that recharges your personal battery. So I say to my sisters, be a little selfish. It's okay. It's necessary for your long-term physical and mental health. Make YOU a priority. I get a lot of traction when I think about treating myself the way I would treat anyone else I know--I would be kinder, more understanding, less worried about flub-ups, more supportive. That critical inner voice is hard to re-train; that's what I'm working on now.

:-) HUGS y'all. Life can be horrid. We need to be nice to ourselves.

Well, here goes! Amazing, how FAST pounds come BACK on with only a few days deviated from plan. I've been basically doing low carb for a month or so. Been pretty stringent about it. Started the July 4th challenge - 9 lbs lost over 3 wks.- exercising more, etc. Last Thursday got sidetracked with LIFE - really did not OVER DO in any form but ate more carbs in small amounts. For example, I had a 4 cracker pack of Peanut Butter crackers yesterday. Half a hamburger (with one slice of bread removed). etc Well, guess what? (smile) In FOUR DAYS, all but 2 pounds back!

I'm over two years out - reached goal - re gained about 10 lbs and stayed there but Wow! It is so frustrating to realize that if I vary AT ALL I will gain right back in a a few days what takes weeks to lose ! Not a happy camper but determined not to regain anymore and get back to REAL comfort zone. I'm happy with my size 8-10 clothes but I truly worry about regain over the coming months/years! Again, THIS IS A TOOL and a lifeline NOT A CURE ALL!

Nannie, I'm pretty sure that some of that is Fluid gain--especially if you were low-carb and added some processed carbs back in, plus salt. No panic!! Even though I don't follow the low-carb lifestyle, I know from reading this forum and others that just the addition of some low-quality carbs can mean water/fluid gain; that's why we all lose so much right at the beginning of being sleeved--we've cut those "bad" carbs out and our bodies release all that fluid. Complex (healthy) carbs don't seem to have the same effect.

There's going to be times where I have a margarita, for instance, or a pickle, and that salt is going to cause my weight to pop up a bit in a day or two. It will go back down, but meanwhile I have flipped out.

I bet if you up your Water and cut your white carbs, you'll get back where you want to be super fast. :-)

Hey all, I've been on vacation the past week and so off the grid of technology - this vacation was bought before I found out about my job so I "had" to enjoy it, which I did, but at the same time I knew what I had to come back to so ...

The boyfriend and I went to the coast of Northern California, a supremely beautiful and tranquil place and my work pants are disturbingly snug. However, and this isn't an excuse, now that I am on Mirena my pre-TOM is so pronounced it is like being pregnant every month! I am most definitely NOT pregnant (tested and everything) but I get morning sickness, super-strength nose power, painful breasts, super bloat, and emotions ALL over the map.

I'm so upset over my weight (non) loss I'm ready to just stop eating and live off Protein powder. I'm willing to admit here in this safe place that I have once or twice stuck my finger down my throat just out of sheer misery regarding food choices. =( =( I'm panicking like a wild bird struggling in a net.

GT ~ it is frustrating when we make a bad choice and eat the wrong foods, and then to boot,your pants feel snugger. You have just lost you job and are turning to food again for emotional comfort which really suck. Now "STOP" making yourself throw up! It is not going to help. Get the foods that junk out of your house and refocus to Proteins. there are occasions where you will eat bad choices in food, but that's ok. Just take a bite or two and put it away. The place for the junk is actually the trash can! I have found myself eating more at times and it is scaring the pant off me. It's like "Oh ****," WTF did I just do. But I have to forgive myself. For now on, I've decided that if I want some stupid chips or something, I'm going to go for a long walk to work it off. If you keep up the forced throwing up, you are going to ruin your beautiful teeth in the process and could damage the staple line in some way. we care about you and don't want you to harm yourself in any way. We all make bad choices at times. When having a desire to eat bad choices, talk to your boyfriend if you feel comfortable with him, or call a dear friend. Also write a blog on here so we all can help you. Time to get back on track and you will. You have done so much and have lost a lot of weight, so put your head up, get back on track, and STOP beating yourself up. You are awesome!! You will find another job because you are very persistent!

Thank you for posting here and keep up informed as to how your doing. When you get scare, come here to VST and talk to us. If you would like to PM me, it would be a pleasure to hear from you.

NannyG ~ I am in the same boat, I eat a little bit of carbs, and low and behold, I had a 5 lb weight gain within a week period of time. Yikes! So I finally dropped 4 of those lbs. I think it was water retention. But I will have to focus on protein, veggies and some fats. I have a lot of head hunger that I need to address. It is so hard but am learning the task to just refocus myself to eating a fruit or something. You are an inspiration to me and hope to here more about your experiences. thanks so much for sharing.

Dorrie