TGIF NSVs & Tips! (w/ pics)

It's that time again! Post here to share your weekly victories, tips, insights, or whatever you'd like.

Me, before surgery, in "Fat Man's Misery" at Rock City, Tenn.

Me, a month after surgery, on a train to Chicago.

-Here are my NSVs:

• I'm no longer the biggest person in the room when I hang with friends or go to family parties. Also, my weight loss has encouraged people around me to make healthier choices and lose weight themselves!
• I'm down another shirt and pant size!
• An old high school friend I haven't seen in years told me I'm starting to look like I did in my varsity football days!

Have a great weekend!

Wow 57 lbs so far...fantastic job! Keep up the good work!!

Congratulations, you're doing great!  

I can fit into a pair of jeans that was way too tight 3wks ago! They were even loose! Went in for my check-up with my surgeon and I've lost 24.5lbs since surgery on 01/15/16!

Keep it up! Way to go! Enjoy the weekend!

At 4.5 yrs out I have the most peace and serenity around food than I've ever had...even more than the first year post op(which was great too). 

Almost 70 views and only a handful of posts? You all need to stop being so shy and chime in! 

Congratulations on your success! 

The second best tool I have for my weight loss is my Jawbone UP24 fitness band.  My son says his UP3 is better, but as long as it ain't broke...  They are all similar enough, but a fitness band is a must-have in my opinion.  I had to upgrade my phone when I got mine a few months before surgery, but it was still worth it. I log everything I eat on the included free app.  I eat mostly the same things every day, so those things are stored making it super easy to log my food.  It has a scanner so most of my foods are entered precisely.  It logs all of my steps, my sleep, spots trends and gives tips.  It has encouraged me to walk more because I absolutely love hitting my goals.  You can record water, but except for the beginning of this month following when my mother died and the rug was pulled out from under me and my routine, I drink more than enough water. 

Propel is another great tool that I have used since surgery.  Grape propel went down very smoothly for me following surgery, much smoother than plain water.  I get the big bottles at Walmart, drink one during my morning commute and refill the bottle with Propel powder or all-natural powders sweetened with Stevia.  When I did not drink enough water, I felt bad physically, my lips chapped worse than they ever have and the skin lining the inside of my cheeks and lips peeled off!  It didn't hurt, was disgusting but kinda cool.  Trust me and drink a ton of water.

Simplicity and routine are important to me during weight loss.  Lots of people here eat a variety of things and stay on plan.  On the weekends, I sometimes experiment with new foods and the time I eat, but during the workweek, I bring the same thing most weeks.  I go to Costco, get a packet of sweet yellow, orange and red peppers, pack 5 for the work week with 5 packets of StarKist tuna creations (ranch is my favorite) and 5 containers of yogurts for 3:00 snack (Dannon Light & Fit Greek weaning off of them to Oikos Triple Zero because they are sweetened with Stevia).  I keep protein bars in my desk in case I have to work late.  I also have "emergency cheese" in the refrigerator for hungry days (light mini baby bel).  They have a lot of goodies at work, so the cheese keeps me from being tempted to eat something I shouldn't if I am truly hungry. 

This month, I was off my routine so I was living off of protein bars, cottage cheese mixed with Greek yogurt for lunch, Greek yogurt for snack and a protein bar or shake for dinner.  This week, I put myself back into my routine with the peppers, tuna and yogurt.  I still have 12 pounds to lose to reach my goal and then another 11 to my ultimate goal of a "normal" BMI, but that last bit may need to come from skin removal surgery.  We'll see.

Hopefully everyone is out partying it up on a Friday! Repost on Monday maybe and ask for lists of NSVs. You kind of just asked for vague stuff - otherwise I would have types pages for you!

Point taken! You're probably right. I post on a lot of video game forums (I'm a huge geek) and guys like me don't get out to party much on Fridays haha. Guess I need to tweak my strategy!