I'm about 2 weeks late for my surgiversary post, but I'll make it up to everyone by being short and sweet!!

Started:

• 25 years old
  
• 5' 1" tall
  
• 241 pounds
  
• Size 20 pants
  
• Size XXL tops
  
• 40DD bra size
  
• Size 8 shoe
  

Currently:

• 26 years old
  
• 5' 1" tall
  
• 125 pounds
  
• Size 4 pants
  
• Size Small tops
  
• 34C bra size
  
• Size 6.5 shoe
  

Key surgery/post-op points:

• I had no pre-op or post-op fasting or liquid diet. I started on pureed Protein such as eggs and tuna while I was still in the hospital on day 2 post-op. I ate regular meals up until 24 hours before surgery. This was at my surgeon's discretion.
  
• I've never counted calories, carbs, fat or any of that stuff. I eat and drink as I feel comfortable doing so. If I had to guess, I would say I take in about 900-1200 calories a day on average.
  
• There is no food I can't eat or drink, but I don't eat many rice/pasta/bread products because I tend to feel uncomfortable afterward. I do take bites here and there and I do eat dry carbs such as chips. I also eat potatoes. I love dairy such as cheese and yogurt. I love fruits and vegetables of all kinds. I love fish and seafood as they settle easiest in my stomach. But I also eat steak, hamburger, chicken, etc... and I love it
  
• I eat all day long. Tiny amounts, but constantly.
  
• I still enjoy half a cheeseburger or handful of french fries from time to time. I have cut NOTHING completely out of my life food wise. I did not go through all this to be on a lifelong diet. I change my lifestyle and my eating habits, but not a diet.
  
• Now that I'm thin, I have so much more energy to run around and exercise. I have a gym membership and I use it primarily for cardio, but this summer I'm going to focus on strength training to rebuild my muscle that was lost in the rapid weight loss. I want to be strong
  
• I do have loose skin, but it's getting better. My stomach is pretty flat, and my arms are tightening up. I have a little sag in my butt and a small pouch of skin/fat left in my pelvic area, but I'm comfortable with it at this point. I would never consider having surgery. I think with toning and time it will firm on it's own (I've also had two kids, for what it's worth)
  
• I was the healthiest fat person I know. That's something important to take into consideration when looking at my results. I had no other underlying issues that would prevent the weight from just melting off, which it did. I've been within 5 pounds of my current weight since 10 months post op. Nowadays I'm just trying to get my shape back and build my strength and tone back up.
  

Pictures:

If I can do it - anyone can Hope this motivates someone who was in the same place I was in a year ago - scared and overwhelmed. It's all gonna be ok :)

(by the way, that's the same grey sweatshirt in the before pic and the one where I have the hood on)

Wow!! You do look amazing!! Congrats;)

This is exactly how I hope to be. I have never been good at keeping track of anything. I get discouraged on this board sometimes because it seems like everyone is so strict with tracking and never eating any carbs. This makes me feel like there will be some hope for me. Thanks!

Thanks for sharing your stats and pictures. You look fab!

You look so different, my gosh!! My dr was the same way in that i didnt do a liquid pre op diet and she has her patients eating food right away. You know I've always wondered if ppl who had to do weeks of liquid had some sort of edge but you have done great!! You look awesome!! Nice job!

Yeah I always wondered that myself in the beginning-- but I think there's really something to be said about the progress you make when you don't stress or worry. From my perspective, I just really felt like if I would be willing to count calories, count Protein, and cut out foods that I loved even though they were bad for me... I probably could have accomplished the same weight loss without the surgery. Does that make sense? I just felt like if I was going to go through the process, and all the side effects, etc... that I wanted to live life like a normal person. And now I do. I eat what I want, but I make better choices. And I can get back on track if I gain a couple pounds. I just seized the opportunity to start over, and now I can prevent myself from making the same mistakes over again

Thanks for sharing your stats and pictures. You look fab!

Thank you so much

This is exactly how I hope to be. I have never been good at keeping track of anything. I get discouraged on this board sometimes because it seems like everyone is so strict with tracking and never eating any carbs. This makes me feel like there will be some hope for me. Thanks!

There is so much hope for you!! I can't speak for anyone else, especially anyone that has a different system in place than I did. But I will say that it feels so much like the strict diets and routines are, more than anything, driven by fear of gaining the weight back. We've been given such a great opportunity and to screw it up would be devastating. That being said, I just wanted to take it a day at a time and use this opportunity to really get to know my own body a lot better than I ever did before. There WAS trial and error, I won't lie. I'm sure there are some really rigid folks who will tell you they never threw up, or only one time in years, or whatever. I'll tell you the truth of myself, I've thrown up from taking one bite too many. I haven't thrown up in probably 6 months, but that first half of the year was a lot of trial and error. But I HAD to learn, because I wanted to get as close to "normal" as possible. I wanted to understand what was going to work and what wasn't. And I wanted a solution that I was positive was going to work forever, that I wouldn't burn out on or learn to resent over time. I couldn't be happier

Wow! What an inspiration for me. I am almost the same as you. Can't wait for my sleeve surgery! Hope to find the success you did.

You absolutely can and will Good Luck!

Holy s*#t you look great lol. I like seeing pics of a year out. Van I ask of you experiences many stalls? If so, what worked for you?

Holy s*#t you look great lol. I like seeing pics of a year out. Van I ask of you experiences many stalls? If so' date=' what worked for you?[/quote']

Stupid phone sorry for the spelling mistakes!

This is an amazing story! You look GREAT!! You give us all hope.!

Awesome!!!

Wow your a total insperation!!! You look awesome!! Great job hope I have the same sucess as you have.. did you exercise a lot?

Great post! I luv the fact that ur no longer on a diet. I was banded 3 1/2 yrs ago (awaiting revision to sleeve) and lost 104 lbs eating everything, just smaller quantities. Its why I even had wls _ so that Id never have to diet again. I luv being able to eat anything (including Taco Bell and Jack in the Box) and still lose weight.

However, since my band slipped, Im counting calories. My band is totally unfilled and can eat alot more. So I've gained about 22 lbs. My fault. I own my mistakes. But if I wanted to watch what I ate and count calories I wouldn't be having the band or the sleeve. Im having the sleeve done because Im no good at watching what I eat. I've proven that recently with the weight gain.

Congrats on ur achievment. I hope to be u when I grow up!

Holy s*#t you look great lol. I like seeing pics of a year out. Van I ask of you experiences many stalls? If so, what worked for you?

Great question! I can say I lost pretty consistently. The only time I can recall stalling for a short period of time was around 9 weeks out and I don't think I lost much of anything for about about 2-3 weeks. Other than that I lost really really consistently... about 20-25lbs the first couple months, then I dropped to about 10lbs per month after and maintained that until about month 8-9 out, when I dropped down to about 5lbs per month. All totalled, I've lost about 117 pounds and about 105/110 came in the first 10 months

Great post! I luv the fact that ur no longer on a diet. I was banded 3 1/2 yrs ago (awaiting revision to sleeve) and lost 104 lbs eating everything, just smaller quantities. Its why I even had wls _ so that Id never have to diet again. I luv being able to eat anything (including Taco Bell and Jack in the Box) and still lose weight.

However, since my band slipped, Im counting calories. My band is totally unfilled and can eat alot more. So I've gained about 22 lbs. My fault. I own my mistakes. But if I wanted to watch what I ate and count calories I wouldn't be having the band or the sleeve. Im having the sleeve done because Im no good at watching what I eat. I've proven that recently with the weight gain.

Congrats on ur achievment. I hope to be u when I grow up!

I love the accountability but don't beat yourself up over it please!! Dieting never worked for me and if I ever had to go back to counting calories like the old days I would have a really hard time. What I really like most about the sleeve is that it really does help by force -- obviously you can't eat as much by far -- but it also promotes lifestyle changes too. I can honestly say that because I get so many fewer calories and nutrients on a daily basis, my body CRAVES healthy food. For example, I eat salad ALL the time now, and I was never a huge fan before -- it wasn't filling enough and always left me wanting more... a waste of time, if you will. Now it's perfect. And I get my fat from healthier sources like cheese, nuts and avocados. Fish is my preferred meat because it feels so soft and good digesting in my stomach. I've learned that the closer I can get to a raw and/or natural diet, the easier it is on my stomach and in the process I'm SO much healthier. That being said, I also eat plenty of ice cream, or a super greasy burger (well, half of one) when I'm hung over, LOL. I also indulge in french fries from time to time, and during my period just TRY to take a piece of chocolate away from me!

Anyway, Please feel free to follow up with me if there's anything I can help with along the way for you!!