Wed, 5/18

Good morning all. I'm at 111.  Food choices are fairly solid and look like appropriate maintenance.

Another beautiful day here in southern Alberta, but we really need rain in the northern part of this Province. Without it, there is absolutely no hope of dealing with the fire that has become known as "The Beast". No amount of equipment or manpower can put this one out. More destruction of human habitats yesterday with continued high winds. No hope of the 90,000 evacuees going home any time soon. This is their third week of displacement.   Can't even imagine the impact on wildlife for a fire of this magnitude. 

No, no way to imagine what it must be like for anything living in that area.  Everything literally running for their lives.  Really puts into perspective my worry-of-the-moment (currently it is too many coconut chips)

201 on the dot.

Eh.... Was hoping for a drop today, but no such luck. Calories, carbs, etc...all on point. Just have to wait for the body to cooperate.

Good level of exercise both Monday and Tuesday. Yesterday I did 2.75 miles and 4500+ steps in 30 minutes. I'm pleased with my 5.5 miles per hour pace. That's really good for me.

Yes, Shel, sleep is for sissies! We be two tough birds who don't need much to survive! But Lord, it's not right to want a nap at 8:00 am. Plus side is I got tons of stuff done this morning and even got to school quite early. Of course, one of the pups I really like is the damn crier! LOL!

We are having summer weather. It was in the low 90s yesterday and is again today, though the weather guy said it would be cooler. HA! Not so! I'm loving this hot weather.

That weight drop is coming Kairk! I see a lovely whoosh ahead for sure. But let's hope the Pushy Broad doesn't have to come out and start wagging her finger at you and Shel about your sleep deprivation heroics 

126.2 today - up. This weight made me feel like a bit of a failure which in turn prompted much thought today about warped sense of body image and not ever really being satisfied with where I am at. With all of its faults, BMI still gives us a starting point for a healthy weight range. For me, being a more muscular build, BMI probably errs on the light side at any given weight. A "normal" BMI weight for me is 144 lbs. My personal goal weight for weight loss was 135 (BMI of 23.2). My surgeon wanted me at 128-130 (BMI of 22-22.3) to allow for some wiggle room for re-gain. My low was right around 123, I maybe flirted with 122.something for a few days (BMI of 21.1). Current BMI is 21.7. What is there to be discouraged about? I am well within a very healthy BMI range. But I want more (less actually). I covet the 120.something Shel has been seeing and I remember DianeO once mentioning that she was getting close to me - why do we do that? It isn't a competition - we are all different ages, heights and have different body compositions and SHOULDN"T weigh the same. Linda is just in a class of her own in the 110's and low 1 teens - I couldn't even imagine getting that low (which I guess is a good thing!). A few months ago I thought 125.0 was the perfect weight. Now I want 120. Weird!

I appreciate the feedback Diane O got from her surgical team. Bone mass and extra skin do come into play and we need to account for that.

Not sure if these musings will drive different behavior, but good to be thinking about it anyway. I'm not the insightful one on this board, so anything that gets me thinking is good! Lol!

Love to you all!

Paula

Paula your musings about comparing our already healthy weights to others here brought back memories from earlier in my journey when I experienced similar feelings. A couple of years ago there was someone here who was regularly around 100-105 and it messed with my head a bit too. 

These large normal BMI ranges are partially to blame. For me, it's something like 101-136.  So that means at 3" shorter than you I could weigh 10# more than you or 10# less than I do right now. All healthy weights, theoretically. Weird, right? 

If it helps at all, I've become very confident of my maintenance weight number since then. In a large part, due to the DEXA, which is the only tool I trust as a standalone one.  Even when Devon mentioned in passing that I might end up maintaining a little lower around 110-112, I knew that 112-115 is actually right for me. Splitting hairs, maybe, but my point is that certainty came with time. 

I plan to get a DEXA after I am done with plastics. I do think I will get more valuable information then the Bod Pod which put me at 10.9% body fat.

Thanks for letting me know that I may one day become confident in my weight range! What will my Goldilocks "just right" number be?

Paula

I had forgotten about that crazy low Bod Pod result!

Everyone draws comparisons and contrasts with those around us. It's human nature. We can't help it. However, comparisons can become a detriment when they begin to affect your thinking in a negative way.

I have a theory about why some people get driven to strive for lower and lower weights. Obese people SUCK at maintaining a healthy weight. We have lost and gained and lost and gained again. Research is beginning to show us why we couldn't keep it off, but on an emotional level it's altogether different. I think that being thin actually scares the **** out of most of us. We don't know what thin is. The only thing we know about thin, I mean really know, is that thin is a fleeting state. So there someone is after WLS and a super restricted calorie food plan/diet at the "temporary" state of being thin, but still has no idea of how to BE THIN.

What we know is how to lose weight and how to gain it and maintain within some range of obesity. People handle this new THIN in many ways. Me, I decided on some level I was invincible. You know, I was now thin and magically I could eat like a thin 22 year old. So yes, I was steeped in DENIAL. Others know that once they stop a diet they will gain weight. Obviously the answer here is to continue to diet - to lose weight. I can set a new goal just a bit lower because you know, maybe that muffin top is really not all just extra skin. I could be leaner and meaner. Etc....

Then there is that last group that have been through the wringer of obesity and weight loss so many times and with WLS also came an internal slap upside the head that told them to approach being thin in a whole new way. That way is thoughtful and methodical. It is a logical approach and detached from personal value. It is a quest to find what will work for that particular individual taking every little thing that comes her way with an ability to evaluate behaviors and events as they occur (sometimes prior and sometimes after). For this person (the one I someday hope to be!) maintaining a healthy weight becomes to goal. They understand that maintaining within a 2-4 pound range takes far more work and insight than losing 2-4 pounds.

This is just my opinion. It is not based on research, but rather my gut and own experience. Take it or leave it, but my theory sure makes a hell of a lot of sense to me.  

"I have a theory about why some people get driven to strive for lower and lower weights. Obese people SUCK at maintaining a healthy weight. We have lost and gained and lost and gained again. Research is beginning to show us why we couldn't keep it off, but on an emotional level it's altogether different. I think that being thin actually scares the **** out of most of us. We don't know what thin is. The only thing we know about thin, I mean really know, is that thin is a fleeting state.  So there someone is after WLS and a super restricted calorie food plan/diet at the "temporary" state of being thin, but still has no idea of how to BE THIN." BINGO!

Thanks for this! I agree wholeheartedly