Holiday Time

I started this last month:

It's the end of the Thanksgiving weekend and I have so much to be thankful for and since I haven't written an entry since August I thought I better get to it. Almost nine months since my surgery and almost 80 lbs lost.

Fast forward to today:

I really have been meaning to get back here but every time I think of it something distracts me; tonight I am determined to finish this entry.

Dave and I have been working with a personal trainer at the Y. It is fun to have our sessions together - to see if I can keep up with him. The only thing he beats me at is push-ups. But I surprised myself and was able to do 15 (the boy way not on my knees) the first time I tried. Now I can do 3 sets of 20.

Tonight I had to search in the storage shed for our bible (Jena has a religion final tomorrow) and came across my high school uniform. So I brought it in to try on. It fit!! Funny how our perceptions of ourselves change. In high school I thought of myself as fat. Now wearing the same skirt I think of myself as not skinny but as "not fat".

I am worried about the holiday eating. There is always lots of food - especially sweets - around. I have to stop my desire to "graze". Especially when I will be off work for 2 weeks. It is so easy to fall into old bad habits when I have lots of unstructured time. I will have to keep busy.

One way I am planning on keeping busy while at home with family is to start crocheting. I bought some yarn and found some simple how-to videos on youtube. They even have ones with instructions for left handers. If only I could see the stitches better - I need to update my eyeglass prescription. I will start with a simple scarf and go from there.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday season. I'm not sure if I will have another entry before the new year, so Happy New to everyone. Looking forward to a happy and healthy new year.

Greetings from Hawaii

Maui is so great. We have an ocean front villa from which we can see the sunset between Lanai and Molakai. We can also see groups attempting to play volleyball in the up to 20 mph winds. It's hilarious.

Since I have been waking up by 8 am every morning, I go for a walk along the beach path. Last time we were here I considered walking to the pool enough exercise.

I also don't feel too self concious in my bathing suit - except for the loose skin on my thighs and upper arms. I have seen far worse bodies than mine in 2 piece suits.

On Saturday we are going up to the top of Haleakala, the volcano, to see the sunrise. We will then bike down to the bottom and have breakfast. I will probably need to being a protein bar to have along the way.

I'll let you know how it goes. Aloha for now.

Summer Fun

I have been enjoying summer - although since we are having a cooler weather than usual I am always cold.

My hair continues to fall out - luckily God gave me lots. I think it should stop soon and start its way back.

I am officially not fat any more - my BMI is 24.9 which is normal for my height. I am 9 lbs from my personal goal of 150 lbs. Perhaps I should aim lower?

Dave and I went to Napa, just for overnight, last weekend for our 17th Anniversary. It was nice to get away. I am such a "cheap date" - 1 glass of wine and I was "looped" as my mom would put it. (I wish she was here to see me achieve my goals.) The weather was nice and we had an enormous suite - 2 tvs and 2 bathrooms, what more could we ever need?

I have started working with a personal trainer at the Y. I hope I can tighten things up before we go to Maui in August, but its only a few weeks away. Oh, well, Jena and Dave will just have to deal with saggy ol' me.

I hope everyone else's summer is going well too.

Hair

Well, my hair is starting to fall out. Not that I am going bald but I am seeing a lot more hair on my hands when I wash my hair. It is an inevitable side effect of rapid weight loss; because the first month or so I was not getting enough protein. It will grow back. Lucky for me I have thick hair so it probably won't be noticeable, but I have gone back to my natural curly hair. All the blow drying and flat ironing seems to be more stress than my tresses need.

On a positive note, I am now a size 10 (I was a size 18 before surgery). One thing I have noted is that sizes have gotten bigger - meaning the last time I was this weight (about 20 years ago) I was a size 14. They have defiantly reworked women's clothes sizes to make us all feel smaller, but I'm not complaining.

I am meeting with a personal trainer at the Y on Monday to get a fitness assessment. I need to get on a program to tighten everything up. My skin and muscles need tightening. After all we will be in Hawaii in about 6 weeks and don't want to look all "saggy" at the pool.

Surgiversary

I had my 3 month Surgiversary on Tuesday. All has been going well, except that I found out that I am iron deficient and now take 3 iron tabs a day. If you have never taken iron I will tell you there are 2 bad side effects - this falls into the TMI category so don't finish this sentence if you would rather not - my poop is now a greenish black and I have lots of constipation.

On Friday I saw the surgeon. He is very pleased with my progress - 50 lbs down (I have lost 87% of my body fat), no more high blood pressure, no more diabetic tendencies, no more sleep apnea. I just need to be diligent about taking my vitamins and that darn iron. As a way of reinforcing that message I was told that one of the deficiencies that could result from not taking my vitamins is irreversible neurological damage. That scared me.

I have been trying to get to the Y 2-3 times a week. I am up to 10 minutes on the elliptical machine now and do 10 circuit weight machines - total weight lifted at last visit 10, 225 lbs. I am meeting with a Y "wellness" coach next week to get some exercises to tighten my flabby upper arms and sagging butt.

Jena and I went to her Alumnae picnic at GMS last night. None of the teachers, staff or parents there knew about my surgery. Most boldly looked me up and down and then said, "Wow, you lost a lot of weight." I just said, "Thanks." I have been so open about things, but didn't feel I needed to explain it to everyone there. It felt weird and good.

So glad it's finally summer weather here. I think I will go for a swim.

I have been feeling great.

I have been feeling great. I have one 4 ounce drink for breakfast that is 30 grams of protein. I didn't realize just how much better I feel since I have been having this drink daily until I didn't have it today. I was low energy all day.

I have been hitting the Y about 3 times a week. I have upped each machine to 2 sets and added 4 more machines. I still can't do more than 3-4 minutes on the elliptical machine but I am trying.

My weight hasn't moved much in the past few weeks - down to 184. But after reading some wls forums this is typical. The scale should start moving again soon!

60 - 14

I ate 60 grams of protein today!! Whoo Hooo!

The best part was that I had a cheesy, beefy burrito from Taco Bell for dinner - actually only 1/2 of it mostly without the tortilla. It was the yummiest thing I have eaten since surgery. I know I cannot eat Taco Bell on a regular basis but it was so great to eat something that tasted so good and satisfying.

After Taco Bell we went to Kohl's. Not my favorite store but I wanted to get a few pieces of clothing that fit. I bought a pair of jeans and capris - size 14. It will be so nice to have pants that don't fall off of me.

Thanks Dave for the early Mother's Day gift.