Entering Maintenance!

Hi all!

Drumroll please:

I hit the 120s today! 129.8, to be precise. I literally haven't been in the 120s since I was in my 20s! I am 20 pounds under my original goal, and at 5'8", I really am as lean as a whippet.

That being the case, I have decided that I am ok with not losing more weight - if I do I do as I figure maintenance out, but I'm not deliberately chasing it any further. I am fine being this size and don't feel any need on any level to be leaner - though I do admit to some anxiety about holding the line, something I failed at so many times. But I have a whole toolkit now that I didn't have before, so fingers crossed! My emphasis from now on will be more on maintenance rather than loss.

My face is ok, thank goodness, and my jawline has really improved so dramatically - those jowls that I had going on were really not a pretty sight! They make a bit of an appearance if I tuck my head down, but c'est la vie. But my ribcage, clavicles, and shoulders are just looking too thin at this point. Even my neck could fill out a bit.

Anyway, I am calling my weight loss phase complete at this point!

My surgery was on 6/12/17, 18.75 months ago. I started my 2-week pre-op diet with a BMI of 53.8 - solidly in super morbid obesity. Today my BMI is 19.7, at the low end of normal. I've lost 223.8 pounds.

I actually didn't intend to settle in the 120s, but really just wanted the extra room in order to protect my loss.

I'm going to write to my surgeon and send him a photo. He told me he could get me to 200 pounds via the surgery, but that to get any further I'd have to do everything right. I'm just so incredibly glad to have had this chance to truly change the trajectory of my life!

OH and all of you have helped me so much, too, and I will be forever grateful. Thank you all.

So darn happy for you!!! You have put in the effort and are rocking this!! Congrats my friend.

Thank you so much, Kelly. It does blow my mind that things have changed so much for me, so quickly. Now on to the hard and consistent work of maintaining! You have been a wonderful support to me and to all of us here, not to mention a stunning example of dedication to fitness and exercise! Your exercise levels leave mine in the dust! Thank you for everything you do here, not the least of which are your amazing demonstrations of kindness. I appreciate that so much. Thank you!

We are here for each other

Cara, you have done AMAZINGLY! It takes a whole lot of planning and dedication to lose that much weight, and I am super proud of you. Maintenance is the tough part, but you seem to understand the challenges going into it. My regain was in year 4 when I got lax and just stopped weighing and measuring and thought "I can eat like normal sized people with smaller quantities". If you stay vigilant and keep doing what you are doing, I can see you transitioning into a successful life of maintenance. Way to go!!!! You have lost more than what some people's starting weights are!!!

Now we just need a before and after picture so we can marvel at the transformation, please!

Em, thank you so, so much for your support and kindness towards me and towards us all! I think you are freaking AWESOME! I am far from complacent about maintenance and will do my best to hold the line, steady and true. I really do understand that this is it for the rest of my life. I have blown it so many times by pretending to myself after losing weight that I had conquered obesity and was now just a normal person who could eat like a normal person! I know I cannot do that and stay slim. I don't think I can bring myself to publish my Before pics, but maybe in time I will overcome that nervousness. I know I always appreciate the Before photos folks are courageous enough to publish here! In time, I may man up. Until then, Onward! Love you! XOX!

So very proud of you!!!

Thank you so kindly, Maddy! I'm proud of you too! Onward to our fit and healthy new lives!

Over the moon for you, Cara!! Congratulations on your amazing success!! You are truly an inspiration to me and all of us! I agree with Emily- we need before and after photos - it's time to show us what you got girl!!

Thank you so much Amy! You have been an inspiration for me too, all along! I'm sorry about this, because I do understand how amazing Before and After photos can appear, and how encouraging they can be to others who are considering surgery or who are in the middle of their weight-loss phase, but I feel conflicted and uncomfortable with the idea of publishing my own Before photos (of which very few exist!). But that doesn't mean I don't thank you and love you for all of your amazing encouragement and kindness towards me - I do! XOX!