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I almost forgot about it, but 2 years ago I had my lap band installed. This has been a very fun journey. I had successes and failures, but generally I'm ecstatic! I'm still hovering around 230, but last year I ran a 4 mile race and another 5K, I never would have been able accomplish these feats without the aid of my Lap band. I'm down almost 100 LBS and couldn't be happier.

Thanks family and friends for all your love and support.

On a wim I decided to look at my OH site today. I hadn't looked at it in a while and had forgotten where I came from. Pictures don't lie. I almost cried when I saw my fat pictures. Sometimes it's hard because I'm not making the progress that I want to make. I've been stuck at 230 lbs for months and have been limited physically. Looking back at where I came from definitely is encouraging though!

It's my anniversary!

Yes, 1 year ago yesterday I had my lap band installed. A lot has happened since then. First, I'm almost 100 lbs lighter! I now run, that's right I said it, run 3 times per week. My resting pulse is around 48 and I feel great! I used to take a hand ful of pills everyday. Now it's just my vitamins an a small blood pressure pill. This brings my natural pressure 147/95 down to 120/80 or lower sometimes.

All of this is not without challenges. I still have difficulty with food. I frequently get obstructed because I eat too fast, or eat the wrong foods. But I wouldn't change things for the world!

Thank you God for giving me my strength. Thank you Bonnie and Myles (my wife and son) for supporting me. Thank you Dr. Silvestri, Dr. Fredericks, and Dr. Viamakis and staff for all your coaching and encouragment.

If you're reading this and you'r saying should I really do this? My answer is do it for you! Do it for your kids! As the president says "Yes we can!"

Well, it's been a couple of months since my last post on April 25th. A lot has changed. First, I just had another adjustment today, this is the second one since my last post.  Currently, my band has 7.5 oz of fluid in it, or about half of its capacity.  My current weight is 265. I'll post a picture later.  I was going along pretty good until a couple of weeks ago. At that weigh-in I had only lost 1 lb.  I was eating more. I also wasn't getting the kind of exercise that I needed. I received a 1 oz. adjustment and that seemed to do the trick.  I dropped 5 lbs quickly.  Today, I was 7 lbs lighter than last week.  I still received a .5 oz adjustment because I want to stay on track. The post adjustment fast helps me stay centered. I find I get quieter and more peaceful.

About exercise...

My goal is to exercise 4-5 times per week.  Up until last week I had been only making it twice per week.  I missed sessions based on two criteria, pain and scheduling.  I hadn't bought a pair of sneakers in several years. This means that my old pair didn't have the support I needed. This caused pain in my achiles tendon area after exercise. Generally I had to wait 2-3 days for the pain to subside.  I finally was able to get a new pair of sneakers last week. I immediately experienced improvement after the first exercise session and continue to experience less pain.  This week I've had 3 walking sessions, Saturday I walked 3 miles. Monday I walked 4 miles and Wednesday I walked 1.5 miles.  I won't have a long walking session today, but will walk another 4-5 miles on Saturday.

Another useful tool that I purchased was a heart rate monitor. I'm naturally competitive with myself, always trying to better my performance. Keeping track of my heartrate and the time to cover a specific distance makes walking fun.  I'm still having issues trying to jog outside, but I've been able to sustain a jog on the treadmill for about 15 minutes at 4.0-5.0 mph. I'm really excited about my progress.

Ok, it's been 7 weeks since my surgery.  I've lost about 45 lbs and I feel much better. I'm having difficulty find clothes that fit so I spend the morning tightening my belt and pushing the excess material to the sides.  Looks horrible, but it'll have to do until I can afford to buy some new clothes.

I've been pretty good about keeping to a minimum of 3 workouts per week.  I want to do better but ya'll pray for me.  This weekend I went to the Jersey Shore with the wife. We had a great time. I used the fitness center and got in two 30 minute workouts.  My picture this week was taken in the hotel room.

Today's workout was great! I burned 466 calories walking at 3.8 Mph on a hill profile.  I walked 2.12 Miles.  So far this is the second longest walk, and the longest on the treadmill.

I had a very interesting weekend.  Let's just face it, I pigged out! I still haven't had any episodes where I'm getting sick, but I ate a lot of things that I wasn't supposed to eat and a lot more than I was supposed to eat. I had to put a stop to it on Sunday. I went back to the recommended diet and had some exercise. I feel much better. It feels good to reestablish control.

Speaking of control, being 46 and 327 pounds is not really good for your love life. I wasn't having issues that required a little blue pill, but I wasn't really enjoying love making because I was tired and out of breath. In the last few months I was also having issues finishing (if you know what I mean). My wife was pleased, but I really wasn't.

Now, 45 or so lbs lighter I'm not having any problems. I still don't need a little blue pill, or Smiling Bob either. My wife and I enjoy love making a whole lot more and if there every was a reason to go through with getting a lap band, this definitely tops the list.

Tomorrow I meet with the personal trainer.  I'll keep you posted.

It's Friday and I posted a new photo. My wife comented that I was wearing the same outfit every Friday, so I started changing up a little. I also changed my profile picture. I cropped this from a picture that was taken at the Pacific Ocean during our vacation over the Christmas holidays. I'm amazed by the change when looking at this photo vs. the last one taken. I definitely can see the difference in the face and stomach area. When looking at the difference week to week it's hard to tell the difference.

I just got back from a business trip to our firm's Disaster Recovery site in Ohio. This was my first trip after getting banded. I was grateful that I'm no longer on the puree diet. I had scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast. Eating bacon again was very enjoyable. For lunch, I tried some Japanese food at a Habachi resturant. I couldn't eat everything, but I ordered Salmon and fried rice. I tried a few fork fulls of the salad, which was very good. The rice was a welcome treat since I hadn't had carbs since before the surgery. I had a Filet Mignon and salad for dinner, very yummy. Breakfast on consisted of a cheese omlet and a side of bacon. I ate all the bacon and half the omlet. I had a slice of pizza with a side salad at Sbarro's for lunch. I ate all the salad and picked at the pizza. Basically, I ate the meat off of it and the some of the crust. I really don't want to talk about dinner becase I was really bad. I was running late and didn't get to eat at a sit down resturant. I arrived at the airport about 1 hour before my flight and after getting through security I had about 40 minutes before boarding to get some dinner.  The only resturant in the terminal was Johnny Rocket's so I decided on a patty melt.  Honestly, I should have had the salad, but I saw someone with one and it didn't look good.  Any how, I wanted to only eat half the sandwich, but as the Alka-Seltzer commercial said "I can't believe I ate the whole thing!" It  wasn't too bad. I wasn't too ful, but I was fuller than I wanted to be. I also killed my carbs yesterday. Way too much bread.

I'm back home and went back to my routine. Omlet for breakfast, small salad for lunch, and a small portion of whatever my wife cooks for dinner.

Well, where do I begin...

5 weeks ago I had a lapband installed. I've completed Stages 1-3 of the diet and will begin stage 5 in a couple of days.  I guess here is where the rubber meets the road.  I already know I'm eating too much, but I'm still losing weight. I've not had any episodes where I've had to "refund" anything I've eaten, but I'm eating a little more than the Nutritionist guidelines recommend.  Additionally, I frequently find myself hungry, and I'm eating too fast.  It's time to get an adjustment.

I'm preped to begin week 6 and fortunately I'm starting Stage 5 just as I have to go on a business trip.  Sounds like fun right!

Any how, I'm continuing my exercise routine. I was upset yesterday because I forgot to bring shorts to work so I could hit the gym.  Nevertheless, I didn't forget today and made it to the gym. I walked 1.76 miles at a pace between 3.5 and 4 miles per hour. I burned 317 additional calories and am feeling pretty good.  Saturday I walked 2.5 miles around a local park where I live. I'm really starting to enjoy the exercise.

Week 5 began on Tuesday.  Tomorrow will officially mark my 1 month banding aniversary.  When people think of the word banding they think of it as a lack of freedom, a loss of liberty if you will. I choose to think of it in the oposite way.  It's kind of like what happens when you give your life to Jesus.  Most people think that giving your life to Jesus means that you're now bound to a restrictive way of life. You can no longer do what you want to do. Instead, it's the exact opposite. Jesus gives us freedom from sins that have bound us. We can have freedom from food addictiions, and all other sorts of things that drove us to behaviors that were killing us instead of giving us life.  I look at my band in the same way.  Prior to this I was bound to a thought process that made me think that I had to eat a certain way to be happy.  I no longer think that way. The band has proven to me that I don't need all the things I thought I needed to be happy.  Food is just a tool, not a lifestyle and I can choose to eat food that is better for me than the stuff I used to eat.

To me, this decision is about much more than food. Post surgery I found my power to resist increased. I have a new freedom to resist addictive behaviors in my life, and for it, I'm a better husband and father. I'm truly greatful for this decision because I'm learning to walk in a new level of freedom.

Today, I eat between 600 and 750 calories per day. I'm satisfied. I don't really have cravings for things that are bad for me. I crave Salmon. I desire vegetables. I want a cheeseburger, but I can live without ever having one again.

Enough about food.  Let's talk exercise. Yesterday I went back to the gym. I took a break because last week I got over zealous and tried to run. I hurt my knee.  My knee still hurts, but I'm learning to "play with pain." I was able to burn 317 calories walking at 3.5 MPH and keeping my heart rate between 132 and 140.  I bought a new watch with a heart rate monitor because the ones on the treadmill hinder your work out.  I'm going back today.

Tomorrow is my offficial weigh-in day and I'll publish another photo.

Had a great day today. I have exactly two pairs of jeans. I've had them for several years and wear them on the weekends or to work when I have physical work to do. Today I put one of the pairs on and realized that without a belt, the pants would fall down around my ankles. I decided to to go shopping.  I used to wear a size 48 pair of pants. Today we went to the mall and I decided on a lark to look in Tommy Hilfinger. Here's the thing, 4 weeks ago, I never would have dreamed about going into a designer store like this. Designers never have clothes for larger size people and I would never have wanted to set myself for disappointment. But I felt pretty good today and decided to at least take a look. Tommy's largest pair of jeans for men are size 44. I tried them on and they fit loosly so I decided to try on the next smaller pair.  I'm happy to report that I now wear size 42 pants. This is amazing because it's been 15 years since I wore that size.  I'm totally blown away! This makes all the work worthwhile. After purchasing the Tommy Hilfiger jeans, we went to Target and I purchased two more pairs in the same size! I'm very happy!