Ok so when I started I was 315lbs....I am now down to 198lbs with 28lbs to go till I make my goal and I am 5' 9". Some of my latest NSV's are....

• Some of my old shoes fit again...
  
• Some of my old clothes from High School fit again...
  
• The bath towel goes all the way around me...
  
• My lab coat at work has gone from a 3X to a M...
  
• I can cross my legs so easily now...
  
• I can wear clothes in the juniors department...
  
• I can wear things from Victoria's Secret....
  
• Goodbye Lane Bryant and Avenue.....
  

Some of my struggles are.....

• Getting 70g of protein a day it is more like 50-60g...
  
• Drinking enough water...
  
• Dying for a coke from Mcdonalds...
  
• I cant' see the weight loss in myself/ mirror... (This is my big one)
  
• I still feel larger than everyone around me...
  

Thanks for reading.....

Amanda

What do you mean cant see the weight loss? Do you still see yourself as 315?

Wow Congrats!!! You are doing awesome and so fast =) I love your NSV's You look amazing!!

I know crazy isn't it....I can see it when I put the pics side by side like that but it is so hard for me to see it i the mirror day to day. I think it is just because you look at youself everyday.

Wow! Such an amazing transformation in just five months. WAY-TO-GO!!

I totally get the "not seeing the weight loss" thing. I'm struggling with that now and am sure I will struggle with it down the road. I know my body has absolutely changed, I have the tape measure and scale to prove it. But when I look in the mirror, I see myself exactly as I did 42 pounds ago. I think I turn side-to-side in the mirror about 20 times every morning to try to convince my brain! I'm sure it will happen for you, but will take time and some reprogramming. Be proud!!

We have very similar stats. I'm 5'10. I really don't know what my starting weight will be. I intentionally don't own a scale so I will have them weigh me the morning i go in (Tuesday). My low with the lapband was about 210, I think. I had just broken a long stall and was heading down again, then found out I was pregnant. Gets hard to remember exact weights after a handful of years.

When my band was removed about 6 months ago I was about 290 so I'm probably now in the neighborhood of 330, judging by what my sizes have done. My healthy BMI weight would be about 175. I think I'll be thrilled with anything under 200. Although I haven't had my sleeve yet, with band and lost about 200 lbs. Here are my thoughts on your struggles.

• Getting 70g of Protein a day it is more like 50-60g... Are you still using protein shakes/supplements or are you able to get in your 60g on solids? I think 50 - 60 of solid protein is better for you in the long run than 70g from a supplement source, if you had to choose between the two. If you want to boost it, try little things like adding a teaspoon of unflavored Protein powder here and there... in Soups, into a pudding, whatever. If you have a number goal, every little bit will help.
  
• Drinking enough Water... I'm a chugger and I could chug with my band as long as I hadn't just eaten, so I will struggle with this too. I know I will. In fact, it's the single behavior around how I eat that I'm actually expecting to fight. I've already had to change all the other behaviors so it's more like "been there, done that."
  
• Dying for a coke from Mcdonalds... I used to be a big diet coke drinker. My first several weeks banded I craved, specifically, the burn from the carbonation. After that went away I was OK. 2 or 3 years post-op I decided to try a drink. It was one of the nasies things I had ever tasted. So... try to look at it this way. If you want to avoid drinking the Coke, just think about how completely synthetic and gross it's going to taste. Plus - that carbonation I used to love... really hurts now. I don't see how people do it.
  
• I cant' see the weight loss in myself/ mirror... (This is my big one) There is no cure for this other than changing your brain, and there's no quick way to do that. I see you have progress pics. So you know the change is there. Honestly, you may never see it. It may take years and years and years. You may have some defenses in place, like being afraid to believe it because dieting has taught you that it's all just temporary. I was down 200 lbs and would still be completely amazed when an old piece of clothing would hang like a tent on me. I ad, and still don't have, any concept of what I truly look like, in terms of physical body.
  
• I still feel larger than everyone around me... That will go away. It took me about 18 months. Mentally you're still the fat girl. About 2 years post-op I was out with some friends. There was a group of guys near us and one of them kept sort of blatantly staring at me. I was seriously getting pissed off, and was very close to saying something to him. One of my friends was like, "Duh, you're a tall, cute redhead. OF COURSE he's staring at you." It NEVER occurred to me that it would be a positive stare. I don't think I would ever assume attention was positive, ever. And it's all stemming from that "concept of self" that our weight has taught us. It was so common sense to her that it was positive attention, and so automatic to me that it was negative. Even though I was down to "a little pudgy" at that point, how I pictured myself in clothing or my mind's eye was still pre-op me. Which is REALLY weird, because pre-op, I always pictured me before I got fat and was devestated when I'd see a picture and realize Oh snap, I'm THAT fat?? Why can't I see it??
  

HTH. And BTW, do you realize you're almost at goal and it hasn't even been a half a year?!?!

Do I really need to tell you how rockstar that is?

You look absolutely amazing! Congrats on your weight loss!

Congratulations! You look great!!!

@Wheetsin... I do still use one protein shot 27g a day it was reccomended by my dr. I can't stand all the shakes and stuff. I assume I'll continue to do this until I make it to goal and need to readjust things. The goal weight I picked is actually still in the overweight category for my height but I don't care. I was 173 before I had my son almost 11 years ago and much less than that and I'll look sick. I'm sure I'll see the difference in time... I had a realization today... My work is ordering everyone really nice pullover shirts with the company logo on them and my best friend and I ordered the same size and I was like huh it took me a minute to process that one. Is your surgery scheduled yet?

You are the same height as me - I should b around 270 the day of surgery - hope my results are as good as yours.

you look great!!!

Can't quote using the phone but for your comment on still feeling big - I always feel bigger than most of my friends (even the ones "fluffier" than me) because I'm always the tallest. I'm sure as you continue to lose weight your mind will catch up and acknowledge that the girl staring back at her from the mirror is you!

You look so pretty, before and after! Congrats!

I'm not a fan of the Protein shots (if you mean the test tube looking things like this: http://www.body-atta...in_Shot_500.jpg) I don't care for the quality of protein. Kind of hard to explain, but (IMO/IME) some Proteins are better than others... whey vs. soy vs. soy isolate vs. pea vs. hemp vs...

Have you tried pimping your Protein drinks a little? I can send you some really, really good recipes if you'd like to try to make them more palatable

It's all like wood to me. 70g of wood is 70g of wood. But if I burn 70g of pine, I'm going to have a much different pile of ashes left over than if I burn 70g of hickory. I want the smallest possible pile of ashes.

My surgery is scheduled for this coming Tuesday (3/27).

You look great! I love the dress in your current pic, so pretty! I can't believe how well you've done in such a short space of time!! You'll be at goal in no time at all... congrats on an amazing job well done!

You look great. Congrats on your progress. This really inspires me, I'm going to have my surgery April 10th and I'm scared, nervous yet excited and it's always nice to see people's progress who are close to my starting weight so I can see how much it will be worth it. Can't wait to post my own progress pictures. Thanks for sharing and congrats again!

Wow! It's hard to tell the photos are of the same person! You look great, and more importantly you look happy.

You look great! Congratulations! Your success helps me know that it is possible......