Endorphins?!? Yeah, right.

I've recently come to the (very sad!!) realization that my stomach seems to be able to hold more food than it was before. And how do I know this, you ask?  Because I've been able to eat more food lately.  And it scares me. Because that's what got me into trouble before. So now I have to be really, really, really careful with what I'm eating. I've got to keep track of my calorie intake. And I've got to start (I can barely say the words) exercising.  

I absolutely hate exercising. Hate it. I've never been one of those people that feels wonderful after a workout. I'm too busy counting down the minutes until it's over. It's always been just something I know I should do. And it's not a good look on me. I get all sweaty. My face gets bright red. I'm certainly not a runner. But the time has come to get busy moving. I'm going to start walking at work a few days each week with a friend. And I know she'll walk fast which will push me to walk fast.

But I decided to do something today. This is one workout tape I really like. Leslie Sansone has a bunch of tapes out. I started with her "Walk away the pounds". But this one is slightly different. It's got two different 30 minute workouts:  Burn and Firm. The Burn workout is 30 minutes of walking and the Firm is 30 minutes of strength/weight training.  You're supposed to alternate days. So today I did the Firm and I made it the entire 30 minutes!  Now if I can just keep it up.

Weight today:  219.4
Exercise:  30 minute Firm workout
Waist:  42 inches (down from 50 inches 6 months ago)
Food diary:

Healthy Choice is the BOMB!

If you haven't tried Healthy Choice steamers, you are really missing out.  I've tried a lot of frozen dinners over the years.  And by lots I mean.....well, LOTS!  Some of them are ok, most are not.  Healthy Choice and Lean Cuisine were definitely my faves.  Until HC came out with their steamers.  And oh man are they yummy.  I'm not talking Johnny Carino's Baked Tortelloni yummy, but for frozen food, they can't be beat in my book.  I've even turned some of our student workers onto them.  And these are 20 year old young ladies that are choosing this food.  So that really says something.  AND the bestest part?  They typically contain 16-22 grams of protein for approximately 300 calories.  And I usually can't even finish the whole thing.  As my 7 year old would say "what WHAT?!?".

Try some for yourself.  And don't worry....you can thank me later.

Here's my absolute favorites....'cause you know I eat the same thing over and over once I find something I like:

First Steps

Here's the steps I had to go through in order to have my surgery approved by insurance and scheduled with my surgeon.  I realize these may differ for you, but these were the ones issued by my doctor, Dr. John A. Mason (College Station, TX).

1.  Attend informational seminar - these seem to be held on a monthly basis by my doctor's office.  It lasts approximately 1 hour and they present the different options available to you (i.e. gastric bypass, lap band, gastric sleeve).  At that time, I submitted my name and number and was told to wait to be contacted by their office.

2.  Meet with the doctor - my first appointment with Dr. Mason was on June 11, 2013.  At this time, he once again went over the options available and asked which I had decided upon (which was the sleeve).  I was weighed, measured, etc at this appointment.  I then met with the lady that coordinates the entire process, Tish.  She works with your insurance company and the other service providers to make the process as smooth as possible.  And she's awesome.  Love me some Tish!

3.  Meet with Nutritionist - this lasted approximately 45 minutes.  We reviewed good food choices, nutrition values, proper plate proportions, etc.  All the stuff we all know....we just choose to ignore it most of the time.  I took lots and lots of papers home from this appointment, but honestly, I haven't really looked at it since.

4.  Psychological Evaluation - this lasted approximately 2 1/2 hours.  I sat and visited with the psychologist (a lovely lady who had also had WLS) for a bit, then took some sort of personality profile.  Basically, they want to see if you have any mental issues that might hinder your recovery.  And if you have depression or anxiety issues, this surgery will not 'fix' you.  I'm a pretty happy person in general, so this surgery is not 'fixing' anything for me.  I'll be happy - whether I'm fat, skinny or somewhere in between.

5.   Cardiology Consultation - if I had heart issues, I would have had to do this, but thankfully I do not.

6.   Education class - this lasted approximately 4 hours.  There were two ladies that taught the class.....one had WLS several years before and the other was a nurse that assisted with WLS, so their knowledge was incredibly helpful.  We were given a 1" thick binder full of good information and told lots of good stuff including how to prep for surgery, what to eat before/after surgery, what to pack for surgery, etc.

7.  Final Pre-op - final meeting at Dr. Mason's office before surgery.

8.  Surgery Pre-op - meeting with staff at the hospital for final instructions and x-rays.

I was able to accomplish this pretty quickly and my surgery was scheduled for July 11, 2013, exactly one month after my first doctor visit.  Some people have to be on a doctor-supervised, documented weight loss program for 6 - 12 months before their insurance will cover it.  I am very fortunate that my insurance will cover the surgery in two circumstances:  [1] BMI is higher than 42 (which I was, but just barely)  [2] Health issues if BMI is under 42, including diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol.  The total estimated cost of the surgery was $12k-14k, but I wound up paying approximately $3,500.

Willpower (aka Girl Scout Cookie Time!)

Ugh. 

It's Girl Scout Cookie Time.  

Just when I was starting to make a little progress in my fight against sugar.  I'd be ok if it was just me in the house.  But it's not.  I live with 3 boys, 2 of whom just LOVE Girl Scout cookies.  And one of them is 44 years old, so he has the ability to go buy said cookies.  In HUGE quantities.  Which does not help me at all.  Because I have a problem with willpower.  Which is the reason I weighed almost 300 pounds!!  Hell-oooooo!

And I'm struggling.  Really struggling.  Every day I start off with resolve to do "good".  I have my entire day of meals planned out.  LOTS of protein.  I drink my Muscle Milk on the way to work.  I have my coffee as soon as I get there.  I get "hungry" around 10:00, so I snack on a few almonds.  I eat lunch no later than 11:30.  Then 1:30/2:00 hits.  And I get the "munchies".  And I can't stop thinking about these:

These things are like crack to me!  And they're conveniently available in a drawer near me.  So I sneak up there and snag a handful while no one is looking.  And yes, I did say 'handful', 'cause you all know I can't eat just one.  Then I gobble them all down and feel misery and regret immediately after.  And then I think....come on, you know what's coming......."Well, heck, I've already ruined my day so I'll just eat WHATEVER.I.WANT for the rest of the day and (say it with me folks) START.OVER.TOMORROW!".  Yeah, I've been doing that pretty much for the last 30 years, so it's very familiar to me.  And I'm very frustrated with myself.  This morning, I weighed 218.  Which is certainly not bad for me.  But that's up 4 pounds from sometime last week.  And I simply cannot allow that trend to start.  So whoever says this surgery is 'easy' and a 'quick fix', they're wrong.  You still have to make good choices and exercise willpower.  And it's still hard.  I have to fight my impulses every day and lately, I've been losing the battle.  I've GOT to get back on track.  

Wish me luck!  And enjoy those cookies.....just not too many at once. 

Jeans and a t-shirt

These are some of the things that I've been looking forward to.....

1.  Being able to shop for "normal size" clothes
2.  Not having to worry about the weight limit on a water ride or roller coaster
3.  Not having constant foot/heel/hip/back etc. pain
4.  Having the seat belt fit without an extender
5.  Tucking in my shirt AND wearing a belt
6.  Having my children be able to put their arms all the way around me for hugs
7.  Not worrying about whether the EMT's can lift me on a stretcher (if necessary, which I hope it never is!)

8.  Being comfortable in just a pair of jeans and a T-shirt

9.  My legs not rubbing together

#8 just happened today.  And it was awesome.

6 months!!

Today is the six month anniversary of my surgery. And it's a great day!  I've lost 76 pounds (today's weight = 214.4) and my size 18 shorts are getting loose so I tried on a pair of 16's that I very optimistically bought back in the Great Weight Loss of 2010.  I've never been able to get even a leg in them!  But guess what?!?  Come on....you can guess.  That's right - they FIT!  Not well or anything. And I certainly would not wear them in public yet. But they zipped up and I count that as progress. Don't you?  And I think you can even see a little collar bone action in this pic. Mind = blown. 

Happy 6 month anniversary to me!  And here's to an amazing 2014.

Before and after - 6 months out

Wow!  You know when you see yourself everyday, you don't really notice the changes?  I've been wanting to get some updated pictures of myself, so here we go.  Apologies for the bathroom selfies. My boys stink at taking pics of me, so I just do it myself.

I still have a little bit to go, but I'm 2/3 of the way there!  And I just feel so good, I want to shout it from the rooftops and tell everyone that can to do this.  It has permanently changed my life for the better. 

Today's weight:  216 (the least I've weighed in over two decades!)



January 2014

July 2013



January 2014

 July 2013