Hard to believe it's been 2 years since surgery (actually it's 2 years and a month) and I just got back from my 2 year check-up with Dr. Mailapur.  Labs were great, weight was up, but according to the doctor, to be expected.  I'm at 230 pounds...as heavy as I want to be, so I have got to really watch it from this point forward.  I would like to drop 15 pounds and my goal is to do that by my birthday.  Excersise and less pizza and chocolate.

I still feel great and am still very glad I went through this...still best decision I ever made outside of marrying my wife.  Would do it again today.

It's been a while since I updated my page.  I was taking a break from repairing and painting walls in our kitchen and thought I would update my progress.  I now weight around 203 pounds....down about 180 pounds from my highest recorded weight.  I am still feeling great and thinking about trying to lose another 10 pounds.  I have been going between 203 and 210 but would like to get under 200 to see how I feel at that weight.  With all the work that I will be doing on the house updating our kitchen and master bath and installing new flooring in the whole house, I am hoping that all that physical effort will help...we'll see.  

I ended up with some extra skin that did not tighten up with the weight loss.  At times, I still feel overweight just seeing myself in the mirror, but I have to stay focused on the health benefits of this surgery.  I am in the process of getting life insurance...something I could not do before because of my weight.  

After a year and 3 months, I can still say that having the surgery was the right thing for me. 

I didn't realize it had been so long sice I updated my blog, but I wanted to give an update on my progress.  It was one year since surgery on February 12, 2008.  I had my one-year check-up with Dr. Mailapur on Feb 14.  All blood work came back great.  My B-12 was still on the low side of normal, and I have gone to monthly injections instead of daily sublingual and that seems to be helping with my energy level.  I was down 161 pounds officially in 1 year...over 80% of my excess weight gone in a year.  According to my BMI, I am still considered on the low end of overweight, but from where I came from to where I am now, I DON'T CARE

I feel great, and I look great and I am able to do all the things I wanted to do but couldn't.  I am still going to try and lose another 10 to 20 pounds (as of this writing, I have dropped 3 pounds since my check-up).  I hope to do that over the summer with increased excersise.  I am loving life for really the first time in my adult life.  What an incredible tool this surgery is.

Sept 13 2007

I had my wife make some new photos of me tonight and it is really shocking to me how much I've changed in just 7 months.  I am down 140 pounds and now weight close to 220.  The shirt in the photos taken tonight I bought off Ebay, size Large.  I am now wearing a size 38 pants and large shirts...WOW!

Things are going well.  I still feel great.  My energy level is great and I am able to eat more things now, which is good because I get hungry more than I did early on after surgery.  Luckily, with the smaller stomach, I don't eat as much.  I average between 800 and 1200 calories a day.  I used to do that at some meals before.  I still miss being able to eat a sandwich...still not able to handle soft breads.  Besides that, I am able to eat pretty much what I want.

Dr. Mailapur wants me to be at goal (172 pounds) by my one year check-up in February.  I hope to make it, but if I don't, I am not going to worry about it.  I absolutely feel great at this weight and if I were not to lose another pound, I would consider this experience a huge success. 

I had my six month check up today with Dr. Mailapur.  My labs all came back fine..my B-12 was on the low side of normal, so that's something I will have to watch, but everything else was fine.  I have officially lost 120 pounds in six months...looks like my scales at home are not as accurate as they need to be.

I had a suit that I have kept in my closet for the past 11 years altered so I could wear it to a work function.  It's a nice Hart Shafner and Marx classic and was the suit I wore the night I got married after the reception.  It had to be cut down quite a bit, and I had asked the tailor to measure it a little snug to allow for more weight loss.  He did, but it's still a little big on me.  I have gone from a size 20/37 in dress shirt to a 17/35.  I haven't been this small since my junior year in college.  What a great feeling.  

I am, according to my surgeon, still 69 pounds away from goal and he has said he wants me at goal weight at my one year check-up on Feb 14 2008.  I can't imagine myself at that weight, 172, but that's the weight I will be shooting for.  I really feel that at 200 pounds, I will be feeling the best...we'll see.  

I will have some photos tomorrow in my "new" suit...stay tuned.