Hello from the other side!

I'm almost a year and a half out and made my goal weight of 155 yesterday.  The original goal was a range of between 145 and 155 and I assumed I would want 145, but I'm very happy at 155 and can't remember why I thought less would be better.  After gaining a few pounds whilst still dieting last fall, I have settled into not dieting, but still losing about 5 lbs a month.  The first month or two coming off the low carb lifestyle was wild.  I had no discipline at all.  Now, I've pretty much normalized.  I worry about not getting enough calories and protein, but mostly I just seek variety. 

In November, I started working out with a physical trainer twice a week.  I seriously recommend this post honeymoon period.  At the beginning it was more physical therapy than working out.  Twenty years of being super sedentary took it's toll that I'm beginning to pull out of now.  There were all sorts of pockets of weaknesses that I was compensating for and my balance after losing 150+ lbs was dangerous.  I couldn't lift my left knee to my waist, it just wasn't strong enough, but I would almost injure myself with my right leg's enthusiastic response.  I am about 99% sure I would have hurt myself and not balanced out my body without his help. 

Learning to eat enough so I can withstand the whims of STEVE the Personal Trainer is an ongoing struggle.  The first month I only lasted ten or twenty minutes before I would start blacking out.  I don't think I could have eaten enough to sustain what to him is an 'average' workout until about now.  I don't know, maybe I could have figured out the same food choices/combos earlier, but I don't think so.  I need a fair amount of carbs and those were off limits earlier.  Until my honeymoon was over, I just walked a mile or two a few times a week and I think that worked well then and this is working well now. 

I can eat anything.  Of course, the first few times anybody eats something after not eating it in a long while is going to cause gastric distress.  I just changed dog food brands without remember to leave a buffer, so I'm living this reality with my k9's right now too!  And maybe once a month I have a bloated night but I generally can't figure out what was new or risky any longer.  It may just be one of those things that happen to everybody, but more often to us.  But bread, sandwiches, pasta, donuts, cake, fruit --- anything.   I feel very blessed.

At about 10 months out, I halved the recommended calcium for my 55 year old body.  The recommendations are around 3K and I do about 1K and then make sure I eat a lot of dairy.  I feel like a kid again, drinking milk at every meal.   But every attempt to get above 1500 caused constipation issues and kidney stones.  I have always struggled with calcium pills and I have always had great bones.  My bone scans are very good.   I might check into a mid-year calcium blood test, but I think this is just the way I am.  Knock on wood!  This worries me, but *&$##, even at this level I have to do serious mitigation (mirilax, stool softeners, aloe vera, mag ox, +++). 

I find it hard to talk about the other side of this.  About how my life is so much better it gives me shivers.  That when I look at old pictures of myself I feel so sorry for that lady.  I refer to my old life as "those dark, dark days."  I had almost turned into a recluse and now I'm taking paining classes and having the best time in the world reinventing myself.  I feel awesome and I'm happy and my relationships with everybody, including hubby, are so much better because I'm happy again.  It just feels like bragging and my WASP roots shiver at that. 

So, wow!  I've joined the maintenance stage.  It's better here!  Now I've got to learn how to prosper with these criteria.  It will be fun!

All advice welcome!

Congrats on your success! I'm a few months after you on surgery and also in maintenance mode.

The fitness training is great advice and I desperately need to start it now.

Congratulations!  Great advice from you this morning...working out and keep moving in the maintenance phase.

--gina