Hi Sharon! I've been working my butt off to get ready for the race...but I'm really mad! I've been doing good on the diet, no sugar, low cal, low fat. Yesterday, I stayed under 1000 calories, drank over 2 quarts of water, walked 4 miles, and GAINED 4 POUNDS! What's up with That??? It's not part of PMS, so I dont know What's going on. The good thing is that being mad makes me want to work harder. I saw that post about the cruise. I doubt I'll ever be able to do anything like that. Well, not until the kids are grown. I have a hard time getting a sitter for a Saturday night, let alone to go on a vacation. Even if I had the money, which I don't. I truly enjoy my little 'mini breaks' on the weekends though. I've met some great gals through this site and we go out dancing and singing on the weekends. Exercising in the winter in Minnesota must be Hard! Just think about how that fact will make your victory so much sweeter! Do you belong to a gym? I joined 24 hr fitness when they had a special $17 per month. Anyone can afford that. The trick is to find something that is fun for you. I LOVE walking up (a VERY steep hill) to the park every day during lunch. It's so beautiful there. Don't like walking? Find a pool. Not a swimmer? learn racquetball. We even have an adult dodge ball league here! Don't know what you like? Try everything! One of the gals on the local board scuba dives! 'With a stick' LOL. I will come to Minesota and kick your behind if I have to... but I will NOT be happy about freezing my arse off. They messed up my internal thermostat when they did my WLS so I don't tolerate cold well at All. Happy Week! Tammers

Congratulations Sara!! The next year of WLSM (Weight Loss Surgery Moments) will be a fun and exciting ride. The best part of weight loss is the internal changes that take place. Pride, self-esteem, confidence, love... etc. Enjoy the journey (and don't forget to journal as you morph into a healthy being.) The farther post-op you get the more calories/protein you will be able to get in. Don't worry too much about early out. The sooner you start an exercise program the better and further ahead you will get yourself. It has been my experience that the first 6 months brought the most significant weightloss so take advantage of this time. How, what, when (did I mention How, what when?) to eat is a lengthy learning process. It is mostly a "learn by error" process; so expect some blips along the way. Welcome and enjoy... the losing side of life is a life-giving; gratifying experience... have FUN! Sharon 340/221/190 (or less) start/today/goal -119#

Hi, Sara: Congratulations! You are doing wonderfully! I was the same way, and actually still am, every time I get on the scale and its numbers keep going down! What a thrill! I'm 6 months out and have lost 67 pounds. That's more weight than I have ever lost in my life, but I've worked very hard to get where I am. I considered VBG my last chance to lose 130 pounds and keep it off the rest of my life. I was definitely ready! When you get tired of soup (I ate a lot of soup myself at first), try something with more protein, like yogurt, low fat cottage cheese, maybe sloppy scrambled eggs; find a powdered protein shake that you like (I still drink Naturade Meal Replacement Protein Shakes every morning, because I can crush up vitamin supplements and mix them all up in my blender). It takes a few months, but you will soon settle in to things you want to and can eat, and things that are good for you. Luckily, I like most all foods that are good for me, I just didn't eat a lot of those things when I was fat because I preferred to eat high fat high caloried foods. NOT ANY MORE!! Remember, drink lots and lots of water; chew, chew, chew, and walk, walk, walk!! Welcome to the losing side of life!! Mary

I lost 22 pounds...I can't believe it. I almost fainted when I realized what the scale was saying I also got the drain removed which is so great I can't even tell you. Oh and they told me that the reason they couldn't do the RNY was because my intestines were too short and it will never be safe to have the RNY no matter how much weight I lose. The only thing is that the nurse said the weightloss in the first year is similar for RNY and VBG, so I am happy. Even if it is slower I already lost more than I ever could with only dieting and if 22 pounds is losing slower...shoot I'll take that any day So I am on pureed foods now which is nice, but yesterday I tried an egg and I could only eat 1/3 of it. Can you beleive I was full after that and full for a few hours too? It truly is amazing. I am so happy with my decision to do this. It's been better than I ever expected. Getting in enough calories and protein is really hard, but I am trying. I do really well with soup...it goes down easily and I can have quite a bit before I get full. It's a good thing to have because it tastes so good and there is so much variety. Thank you all for your guidance and support. I don't know what I would do without this group of wonderful individuals Hugs, Sara