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 I had my 3 month post op visit at my clinic today.  Next week I see the surgeon for my 3 month visit, although surgery was exactly 3 months ago today.

Unfortunately the labs I had to fast for last week were not completed correctly so I have to redo them.  That meant i didn't get all the results.  The number i was most interested in though was my Glucose level because it had previously been in the pre-diabetic range of 120.  It has come down to 79.  That in itself was worth the visit!!!  I won't know about other levels, including cholesterol, for a few weeks now.  

My weight is down 51.3 pounds and my blood pressure is within normal range so I have stopped my BP meds.  I will wait another 25 pounds or so before I schedule another sleep test to see if I still have sleep apnea although I'm feeling confident that will be gone as well.

I want to lose 25 to 35 more pounds but am feeling healthier than ever.  I ran a 5k Sunday and while it was at a turtle's pace, at least I did  it.  My 2nd one ever.  I am doing the Heart of a Spartan race on campus next weekend.  The race ends with running thru the tunnel and out onto the 50 yard line.  I think it will be very rewarding.  I know I was very proud of myself yesterday when I was done.

I'm continuing to work out with my trainer twice a week lifting weights, running, walking, doing zumba class and the elliptical.  My bike is coming out of the garage as soon as gary finds it andfills the tires.  I'm just trying to be more active in as many ways as i can.  The weight training paid off in my body composition test today because they said I had not lost any muscle mass at all, which alot of people do.  I credit the strength training.  

I am not having difficulty with eating or portion size. My appetite has completely returned to normal and sometimes am starving just like the old days but I make healthy choices now and eat only what i'm allotted and then am full after 20-30 minutes so I'm not tempted to eat more or things I shouldn't.  I realize I have become a little too rigid about food and what I'm eating so I'm going to start giving myself permission to not be quite so strict. (that's what the dietician told me, LOL)

I am enjoying getting into smaller sizes again.  I'm into a 12 pant, 14 top and basically going through the sizes  so quickly I can barely keep up.  It goes out of my closet almost as quickly as it came in.  LOL  I'm especially enjoying the compliments. Unfortunately, while I do see my own weight loss, I dont see that I could be done in 25  pounds which is why I increased it to possibly 35.  I just hope I have correct perception about myself when I finally get to whatever my goal weight is going to be.

I see the surgeon next week but that will probably not be more than a few minute consult to make sure I am doing ok. I dont go back to the clinic again until my 6 month check up (although they will get in touch with me about the labs I need to have redone).  I will see the dietician again, doctor, nurse and therapist.  I'm  thankful for the follow up they do at my clinic because not everyone receives such good care.

I am so appreciative to almost everyone for the help, support and understanding they have given me.  And for those who weren't that way, I guess I learned something there as well.   Life is good, I am  healthy, and I am going to be at my goal weight VERY SOON!!!  YEA ME!!!

 I got a wonderful birthday present this morning. I am so sick and tired of being in the 180's and it seemed like it took forever to get out of them but I woke up this morning and my gift was 179.2...ya  me!!!  I'll probably be as impatient through the 170's as I was in the 180's.  Oh well..such is life...If I had patients i'd be a doctor.  LOL

Last night we went to Carrabbas and I had the shrimp and scallop dinner...brought most home and had it for lunch today.  Lost 1.5 pounds after eating there.  I ate the left overs today for lunch and then this evening we went to Mitchells Fish Market and I had lobster (about 2 ounces) and a shrimp/lobster cake.  Fabulous and I was satisfied.  Tomorrow morning I am having brunch at my girlfriend's and my mom is bringing lobster tails for dinner...alot of eating out and birthday eating this weekend but I feel so blessed to be able to just eat a small amount and be satisfied so that I am still able to lose weight.  Life is good!!!

I'm down just short of 45 pounds total and I'm feeling great!!!

Still exercising about 4-5 days a week, 2 of which are with a trainer lifting weights. Next Thursday I start Zumba classes (latin dance exercise) and I've finally managed to run a mile without stopping. Kudos to me!!!  I'd like to be able to run the 5k's in two weeks for breast cancer and the next week's Heart of a Spartan Race but fairly sure I'll be having to walk part of it. oh  well, it's the journey that counts and i'm a work in progress. LOL  I'm looking forward to nicer weather and getting my bike out too.

I'm continuing to eat healthy, control my portion size (which is much easier due to surgery) and I haven't experienced any real food issues.  I think I've developed a healthier view of eating and what I'm putting in my body as well as the importance of exercising without going overboard. 

I did update my photo since people have asked for a new one....this will have to do for now as I dont have a solo full body shot.  I think the loss is evident in my face though so hopefully this suffices for now.  

Stay tuned for the next update...i still want to lose another 30-40 pounds so I'll be posting for awhile.  Again, thanks for your support and concern. Life is good!!! 

Yesterday was my first day of strength training. Until yesterday I have only been doing cardio. I knew I needed to get busy with strength training for a variety of reasons but I hate it.  I will admit that after I finished, I felt great.

The trainer lectured me on having this goal weight in my head. She is 5'3 and weighs 157 pounds but is in a size 6 and looks very small.  She said with the right strength training program and adding muscle versus fat I will be the size I want to be without the scale going down to 130-140.  She said I need to pay more attention to body fat % than the number on the scale because the scale and BMI do not give a true picture of physical fitness.  Okay -- I will try to stop letting the # on the scale (weight anyway) control me so much.

My weight loss continues to be a slow go but the last time I saw the surgeon he did remind me that I started at a lower weight so my loss would be slow..the important part to focus on is getting healthy physically and changing my eating  habits.  I am doing both of those  faithfully.  The scale was down a total of 37 pounds and said 189 this morning. I am so happy to be in the 180's.  I can't wait to see the 170's..of course when I get there I will be saying I can't wait to see the 160's. LOL

I still have a goal of running 2 5k's the end of April and beginning of May.  I may have to walk and run but I'm working on it anyway.  Today I managed to run 40% of the time so I'm improving from the 20% I started at.  Its about the journey, not the destination and I'm learning alot about myself along the way.

I have never felt better and my outlook on life is great right now..full of energy and excitement for the future.    Life is good!!!

Surgery was 3 weeks ago yesterday.  It already seems like its been forever ago.  I started to feel better as soon as I got real food in me and then 2 days later I got an upper respiratory infection (compliments of my mother) which had me under the weather for a good week to 10 days.  I still have the cough hanging on but am finally on the mend and feeling better.

During that time it was all I could do to force myself to eat and get my liquids in.  I slept alot.  I did not walk at all during that time but i'm getting back into the groove now.  Need to have an exercise program if I want to lose and maintain my weight loss.  My weight loss is 26 pounds total, 12 since surgery.  I have about 60 more to go.

I have been fortunate that thus far there has been nothing I've eaten that has not agreed with me as is apparently common for many folks.  Looking forward to when I have room for more than protein...right now that is all I eat but that said, I'm managing to get my 70 grams in without protein shakes.

We went out for our 6th anniversary on Saturday night to Mitchell's Fish Market.  What a treat.  They had a Valentines special which was a 4 ounce lobster tail (probably 3 ounces of meat after the shell) and a shrimp and lobster cake.  I got that and ate about half of each.  I didn't have any of the scallion mashed potatoes or the corn saute.  I felt like I was in heaven. It all tasted so good and the little I had was enough to leave me satisfied and pleased with dinner.  

I return to work on Monday March 8th so I have just under 3 weeks left.  I am still napping every day between the fatigue from the surgery and being sick but hopefully by the time March 8th rolls around I will have found my energy again.  

I went for my follow up appt with my surgeon.  He thinks because i've lost 8 pounds since surgery and 12 in the 2 weeks since I last saw him that it's contributing to my extreme exhaustion.  He said that kind of weight loss is generally something he sees on someone with a far higher BMI...(which i officially hit 34.9 today - yea me!!!)   So, here's the really good part -- DON'T CONTINUE LIQUIDS FOR ANOTHER WEEK -- GO STRAIGHT TO PUREES. Oh ya, be still my heart!!!

I went straight home and made one of the things I've been dreaming of....tuna and lt mayo.  I ate all 2.6 ounces of it...took 30 minutes, I was not over full and felt GREAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!!!  I do not think I have EVER enjoyed a meal more in my entire life.  And the best part is that I actually have some energy this afternoon.  Weird.  

Tonight I'm pureeing some chili and hoping it too sits well.

Life is good!!! 

Wow -- incredible exhaustion like I have not known before...wasn't even this bad when I had my breast reduction last year.  I do one thing and have to rest cuz i'm tired and out of breath.  I do not like this at all.  I want to feel a little more energy and can't believe it could be weeks before I do.  I don't understand how people go back to work after a week or two.  I would not make it thru the day.

On the upside -- wow...7.6 pounds since surgery a week ago...puts my total loss at 22 pounds...and in another half pound, I  wouldn't qualify for surgery. LOL

I've opted not to switch to pureed foods for another week at the advice of my surgeon.  I am thinking about food alot but have heard this too is normal.  And my thinking about it is really about healthy items i can have as soon as I begin eaing -- tuna, shrimp salad, refried beans, etc.  I know it will be hard to eat much cuz I just had yogurt and couldn't eat much before I was full...but still,, its just the ability to have a bite.

 

 Not sure why but i'm punky today.  I am wondering if my 45 minute walk yesterday wasn't just a bit too much or if it was the evening drinking to get in all my protein just didn't sit well cuz i felt like I was going to float away.  I was feeling so good til today and now i'm just a bit punky. I skipped church and went back to bed.  Oh god, the pastor told my husband he would stop over later and my house is a mess...that's stress I dont need. LOL  Also the gas is still not under control and i feel like i have so much to burp out with a big block in my chest and then I can't get it up...very frustrating.

Really enjoying watching the scale go down tho...4 pounds in the 5 days since surgery. Woo Hoo...

Surgery was Tuesday and I'm finally home...happy to be here.  What an awful day Tuesday was.  I am prone to getting sick from the anesthesia...they gave me 5 different medications and nothing helped...they had a cold wash rag on my head and ice packs in my arm pits because i was feeling so hot.  Noone saw my face for HOURS...LOL  I was dry heaving in the beginning and after that just couldn't see the light of day.  Surgery also took a couple hours longer than expected because of the scar tissue from my gall bladder surgery years ago.  

I felt a little better on Wednesday as far as the nausea went but then felt worse than I had anticipated...so many people had said it was no big deal and for me, it turned out to be a huge big deal.  Today is much better. I'm far more mobile and more with it.  I had to stop the pain meds except at night cuz i think part of the problem was being in such a fog.  Anyway, they released me to come home early this afternoon.  I've already had a nap and am up again.  

Praying the rest of my journey goes uneventfully...LOL 

DATE CHANGE – Surgery is now a week from today – Tuesday January 26^th. I saw the surgeon yesterday and he was not happy with my surgery time of noon. He said he doesn’t like those because the person scheduled in the OR earlier usually goes over their reserved time and then we could have to wait a couple hours for my surgery. I remembered mom’s surgery being hours late for the same reason. After I got home from my appointment I got a message saying it was being switched from Thursday to Tuesday because they could get me in first thing. The downside to that is that instead of noon surgery with arrival at 9, I now have to arrive at 5:45 IN THE MORNING for my 7:45 a.m. surgery. I suppose its not a bad deal for me given that I get to go back to sleep. My husband and mother will be the ones to suffer the long day. LOL   I’m on day 5 of the liquid diet and surprisingly, its not really that bad. Its easier than the traditional diet. Since I am not “eating” at all, there is nothing to think about. On the regular diets, it requires planning and thinking about what to have. With this, I just grab a protein shake and my only choices are chocolate, strawberry or vanilla. Pretty easy.    One week from today sounds so close. I will spend the weekend getting things done around the house, a few last minute items purchased and errands run. I will work on Monday and then try to get some sleep on Monday night. I’m betting not much. 

I'm hoping this week goes by fast!!!

Oh and I also created a website so that family & friends could follow my journey and I didn't have to remember who i told what to.   www.caringbridge.com/visit/amymugnolo