tammym
March 20, 2010.
Still 182. I've given up sweets and fast food. I stick to 1500 calories a day. I'm using fitday to track calories. I've recently had to quadruple my diabetes medication and add another one, plus had to double my high blood pressure meds, and back on the cholesterol meds too. I try to exercise but it's extremely painful. I think it's due to the meds. I'm now checking into getting a revision.
September 5th, 2008. 185, size 18.
I've managed to gain all my weight back and my health problems too. I'm back on the blood pressure meds and others. I have tried dieting and even fasting but nothing seems to help. The medical insurance I have now specifically excludes any obesity treatment, so a revision is out of the question. I do not regret having the surgery, and I am very grateful for the few years of better health. I hope to get back to that point some day.
September 28th, 2007
169, size 16 Well, I haven't gained any ground, but I haven't lost any either. I've actually been doing really well diet-wise. I'm off sugar enough that I don't constantly crave it. I take a lot of supplements that seem to help with that. I'm not sure which one it is, or if its a combination of many. My main concern is my blood pressure, which is usually around 160/110. Today it was 177/115. Back in March when I turned 40, my metabolism just seemed to shut off. No matter What I did, it didn't matter. I even tried fasting for a week in hopes of jump starting it. Another diet I tried was the polymeal diet. It's supposed to be good for your heart so I thought it might help my BP, but, just like everything else I tried, it made no difference at all. I still have only one pair of pants that fit and one dress. I refuse to buy bigger clothes when I have a huge closet full of nice things. I can't bear to part with them. I guess I failed to reach my goal of finishing a marathon before turning 40. It's still in the back of my mind though. Maybe someday.
June 15, 2007
170, size 16
Wow, I sure managed to gain a lot in the past year. I miss running and going to the gym. I don't have the time or money to do that anymore. I stopped eating sugar (again) two weeks ago. Haven't lost any weight yet, and the cravings are BAD!!! None of my close fit and I hate the way I look.
March 9th, 2007 I realy wanted to fit in to my 'birthday dress', so I managed to starve myself down to 150 by not eating for weeks. I kept taking my all day energy greens and exercised every day.
march 9, 06
135
size 10
That was a long hard road. Working out two hours a day, 6 days a week, for months.
9/3/05 - 149, size 12
Well, its been slow, but at least I'm losing so I'm not complaining! I've been sick with the flu and haven't been to the gym in over a week, now I have strep, but I walked 8 miles today. I hope to be back at the gym on Tuesday. I still avoid ALL fast food and sweets. I love the Snickers Marathon low carb bars. They really fill me up for a long time.
8/5 - 156 size 14
Still doing good. Haven't had sweets in weeks. I'm walking on the treadmill 3 days a week, lifting weights 3 days a week, and adding some other excercise and dieting every other day. It seems to be working :)
7/23/05 160-size 14
Finally the craving for sweets is gone. I didn't lose any weight this week despite staying under 1000 calories a day and doing over 3 hours of cardio plus an hour of resistance training. I've hit My 'first' plateau. I'm a little disappointed that I didn't lose a few pounds but I know I didn't do anything wrong so that's the best I can do.
7/16/05
Getting off sugar (again) was tough. The cravings lasted longer than I expected. Probably because I didn't stop eating carbs, just sweets. I joined a gym and have been going every day. Walking on the treadmill and lifting weights. The best news is, I am at my lowest weight in months :) 160. I've lost 15 pounds in 6 weeks. That's my fastest weight loss since surgery. It sure would be nice to lose a lot more weight before the run in October, but right now, weight loss is not my goal. My goal is to be able to run 5 miles in October. I have 12 weeks. It is possible. Last year I only trained for 2 weeks and I walked half, ran half. I was lighter, but if I keep losing weight the way I have been I should be able to do it. I've been eating a diet shake for breakfast (150 calories), an atkins bar for a morning snack (160), soup for lunch (60-160), a low carb snickers marathon bar for afternoon snack (170), and a light dinner if any. I'm ranging around 700-1000 calories per day. As long as I stay away from starch, the cravings aren't so bad.
7/7/05
Day three! No sweets! I've made it over the hump! OK enough with the exclamation marks. !!! ok, now I'm really finished. Can't help it if I'm excited. Today I walked two miles (hooray), and had an alba shake, some ritz crackers, a chicken breast (breaded, oops), and the last bag of micro popcorn. Still under 1000 calories I think. I signed up for the five mile race that is in October. Hopefully that will keep me motivated to exercise and diet. I wont update here for a while now that I've made the three days without sugar. I will still keep track of my exercisee and what I eat.
7/6/05
today I ate a bag of microwave popcorn, a turkey sandwich, and a bowl of beans with chips. Not great, but I managed to stay away from sugar so I'm pleased. I was in a very bad mood and didn't have time to exercise other than 25 sit ups this morning and the resistance exercises I do at the chiropractor. Two days without sweets!
7/5/05-165, size 16 - here we go again!
finally topped out at 175 or so. I'm taking trimspa now and have lost 5 or so pounds. I've been trying to cut back on sweets. I'm thinking about going back on the after surgery diet, but I still remember how MISERABLE I was then. I signed up for the 5 mile race again. Its in October. I'm still planning on running the marathon before I'm 40. That means next year is my last chance to reach that long time goal. I have one year and 3 months to prepare. I went for a 20 minute walk today. The first exercise I've done since last october. It's a start! I pray for the motivation to keep it up! Looking back, I see that ith has helped me to write down everything I eat and the exercise I do, so I will try that now. Today I had an alba diet shake for breakfast, a turkey sandwich for lunch, and a totino's pizza for dinner. not great but with my sugar addiction its a good start for me. Day one with NO sugar. Yesterday, I ate junk ALL day. cupcakes, cookies, hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, ice cream...and more! Today its time to say goodbye to the food I love again. I'm going to get offline and do some sit-ups before I go to bed.
4/17/05- 165 and completely out of control. Not exercising or dieting at all. Size 16
10/17/04
Well I've fallen off the wagon again. I can't exercise due to the knee injury, binging on sugar every day. Desparately trying NOT to gain weight. I'm on vacation all next week so hopefully I can take that time to reflect and get back on track!
10/05/04
OK, I know everyone is dying to know how the race went. Well, I didn't do it.
Just kidding- Of course I did it! Unfortunately, I injured my knee pretty badly the day before, so it wasn't a lot of fun. I was very worried that I wouldn't be able to finish, but I was determined. It looked so swollen and purple that the race officials tried to get me to quit at mile 4 but I refused. Sometimes adrenelin can carry you. I am Very happy with my time, however. Last year I finished in one hour and one minute. I trained 2 hours a day, six days a week, for six months to make that time. This year I finished in one hour and 10 minutes. 9 minutes slower. Not bad for training two weeks, especially considering the injury. I still haven't lost any more weight, but the marathon is 53 weeks away. I hope to do it next year! If I don't succeed, I'll still be healthier for having tried.
9/27/04- I ran/walked 4 miles on Satuday. Now I know I can finish the race next weekend! I am SO sore though. Finally down another pound! My lowest weight so far this year, but this time last year I was 20 pounds lighter! I read some interesting information about dieting that seems to be working for me. Since your body adjusts to whatever diet you are on, you can lose weight by NOT being consistant. So I've been eating breakfast sometimes (I usually don't) and eating a little more of a variety of foods, and trying to add tiny bits of exercise where I can.
9/17/04- I'm still trying. I feel pretty good about my efforts. Not great, but not horrendous. I just finished off the last 10% of a bag of frito's for BREAKFAST- but I haven't had any candy/cookies/sweets since Tuesday. I've been walking up Washington Park every day during my lunch. It's only about a mile and a half round trip, but its a VERY steep hill. I jog some of it. The 5 mile race is coming up in two weeks and I know I can finish, although I will be walking most of it. The race is 10/3/04.
9/9/04- Still fighting the sugar demon, doing pretty good right now. Two days without sweets. I have been committed to exercising more and have lost one more pound. I'm still planning on finishing the 5 mile race in 3 weeks. A friend of mine told me that I can't do it. I hate it when people tell me I can't do something, and I LOVE to prove them wrong!!
8/24/04
Well I've fallen off the wagon several times now in my battle with the sugar demon. I binged off an on over the weekend but now I'm ready to get back to business. I'm still fighting hard not to gain weight, so now it's time to start losing again! I found some sugar free carborite shakes at dollar tree, a buck for a 4 pack! Wow, I wish I had bought them all!
8/17
I've stuck to under 1000 calories a day, but still gained back a pound. Hopefully I'll get back to losing soon. At least I'm free of the sugar demon. That was the tough part.
8/13/04
The detox was Awful! I felt terrible and craved sugar for a few days, but Now that I have it all out of my system, I'm back on the right track! I feel great, and have lost 5 pounds. I'm sticking to 1000 calories per day (that's how much I need to maintain my goal weight) and going to the gym twice a week. Yesterday I walked/ran 3 miles on the treadmill. I've been doing really good at following the pouch rules too, although technically they no longer apply to me since I ate out the functionality of my pouch.
7/30/04
-Thanks to the support of my AMOS and other friends, I made it through 2 days without sugar! I'm on my way now. Other than that, my diet is still not so good, and I'm not exercising nearly as much as I should, but trying! I've been trying to follow the pouch rules for dummies and have been doing pretty good at that. I only went to the gym once this week, walked a mile and a half on the treadmill. I also signed up for the 5 mile race that is in only TWO MONTHS. I better REALLY get busy. Last year I worked out two hours a day, 6 days a week, for six months to get fit enough for it, and it was Still really hard. This year is going to be TOUGH! I may walk, but I will finish. It's WONDERFUL to have all this support from the message boards. It's the only thing that is keeping me on track.
7/20/04- I'm still out of control with my eating, although I am going to the gym 3 times a week. I wish I'd had the RNY instead, maybe I'd have been more successful? I was too impatient, and no Dr. would see me soon enough here in Oregon at the time I wanted surgery, they all had 1-2 year waiting lists. I went out of state so I could have surgery right away, and because I wanted the VGB surgery since it has fewer complications. I dont' think there are any surgeons here in Oregon still do VGB, due to the high failure rate.
6/21/04
OK, time to get busy again. I got lazy back in March and stopped exercising and gained even more weight. So far I've lost 5 of that. What a waste! I never should have 'just had a little' cake on my birthday. I was doing SO good for the first 2 years. I thought I could control myself but I can't. It has to be all or nothing regarding junk food. I simply can't afford to feel like that again. I'm not going to try running the marathon at 50 pounds overweight, but I am going to try for the 5 miler again like I ran last year. Next year I'll try again for the marathon. Some day I will succeed.
2/6/04
I'm still following the marathon training program. I haven't lost any more weight, but hopefully soon.
1/29/04
Getting back on track! I'm down to 155 after working hard all week to exercise and stay on the diet. At least I can fit into two pairs of pants now. I'm still on the marathon training schedule, its been really tough, but I'm going to make it!
1/23/04
160, size 12, barely, but I refuse to buy bigger clothes!
I'm trying hard to get back on track.
I'm still on the marathon training schedule, so I'm running three times a week. It's been Really hard to start running again- I stopped after the race I ran in October. I still walk more distance than I run, but my endurance is increasing a little and will continue to do so. The marathon is October 3rd this year.
10/10/03
I haven't been to the gym in over 3 weeks. I ran a five mile race last Sunday, and managed to Run the entire way without stopping and walking. I am down to 130, size 8, but lately I haven't been exercising and can't seem to stop eating everything in sight. I start training for the marathon in January. I'm hoping to lose 30 pounds before then.
9/30/03
Wow, it's been a while since I updated. I just took a week off from working out after having a terrible case of the flu, but I ran two miles today. I've discovered that running on a treadmill is fooling yourself! It's Much more difficult to run the same distance on a trail or pavement. Fortunately the weather is cool enough now that I can run outside. I'm still about 135-140, but have gained quite a bit of muscle. I like the weight lifting class, but since I am going to start training for next years marathon soon, I will cut back to only twice a week so I can get more miles in.
7/15/03
I stopped going to the gym for a while but have started again. I'm down to 146, and a size ten. I started using the Avon cellulite cream that has made me skinnier without losing weight. I lift weights (bodypump class at my gym) for an hour 3 times a week. I run 2-5 miles 5 days a week, play racquetball for two hours once a week, and swim for an hour once a week. I feel better, and look very slightly better, but haven't lost much weight for all the working out I do. I try to avoid sugar, and have given up dairy. I drink only water, and I still try to limit carbs. I would like to reach my goal!
4/23/03
Still haven't lost any more weight, but I lost my job so I joined a gym and I am running on the treadmill, playing racquetball, and swimming every week. I love being active and feel much more fit, but I still haven't lost any more weight. I am happy with my weight loss even if I never lose any more. :) I eat what I want but still avoid sugar.
2/14/03-
The new attitude helps. I don't have a scale now so I don't know what I weight but I guess I've lost about 5 pounds and one size. I skip breakfast, drink a TON of water(about 3 quarts a day), and try to take the stairs whenever I can. I don't really have time to exercise, so for me right now it's all about the diet. I try not to go over 1000 calories a day. That's how many I need to maintain a healthy weight, so if I eat like that I should get down to that weight and be able to stay there, although it will take a while. I still try to avoid sugar and keep the carb count down because it makes me hungry.
1/22/03
OK, time to get busy again! I really need to stop using the hardships in my life as an excuse not to be ambitious. The surgery is done helping and the rest is going to be up to me. Last week someone asked me if I made any new years resolutions, and I said "lose 60 pounds", although I would probably be happy with losing 40 more. Now that I've said it, I need to DO it. I am back on the Low calorie, sugar free, high protein diet. After two days, So far so good. Longer than I have Ever stayed on a diet, except while recovering from surgery. I also started writing down everything I eat and every bit of exercise. I park 10 blocks from my office so I can get some exercise. I hope I get used to this so it becomes natural to me.
12/15/02
It's been quite a while since I updated. I am still doing well, maintaining the same 60 lb. weight loss, but have not been able to lose any more. I've tried a few more diets, but don't seem to have the time to exercise. I don't drink as much water now. It stretched out my stomach back to it's normal size- so now I can eat whole meals, although I still do my best to eat fewer meals or smaller portions. If I could go back I might have went ahead and had the RNY surgery instead. Although its much more risky, it would have been nice to lose more than 60 pounds. At least I am healthier now than I was, so I am still happy and consider my surgery to have been a success. I still rarely eat sugar, and still have occasional problems with beef if I don't chew it well enough.
07/25/02
I discovered that if you drink a half gallon of water for breakfast, you will not be hungry for lunch. I know that's a lot of water, but I worked up to it slowly. I really want to lose more weight, so I make sure I drink lots of water. I try for an ounce a day per pound of body weight. It is possible to drink too much water because it washes out the sodium in your body, so I occasionally put a very slight amount of salt in the water. I've been taking metabolift twice a day and fasting until dinner. Hopefully I will start losing weight again soon.
6/13
Still no more weight loss. I still eat no sugar and very few carbs. The pool where I used to swim closed, so I don't swim anymore.
5/15/02
Well I seem to be done losing weight. I haven't lost anything in a few months. I still walk and swim every week. I am slowly working in a few carbs and going off the Atkins diet, but I stay away from starches and sugars. I had a bite of mac & cheese, and a very small piece of lasagna and it just didn't taste good to me, so that's good. My favorite meal right now is 'fake oatmeal' I take Soy Protein Isolate (read the label on soy shakes or buy in bulk) and mix it with a little boiling water, add butter and stevia and it looks & tastes like oatmeal! Trader Joes has a large canister of the powder for $10. I accidently discovered this when trying to make a shake.
4/5/02
Not losing again. I like the atkins diet though. I guess I just never will lose the weight. I think surgery will not help change your body if your metabolism just doesn't allow it. Just like before surgery, if I eat anywhere near 1000 calories a day, I gain weight. If I starve myself, I lose weight, but I can't starve myself forever. It's just not a solution. My health is still good though, so I should not complain.
3/18/02
Could it have been just a really long plateau? I have lost a few more pounds, albeit very slowly. I really had hoped to be at goal by my birthday. I am starting to go off the 'phase 1' diet that the Doctor requires patients to stay on until they reach goal. 7 months of just meat, eggs, and cheese is just getting too hard. I stopped eating refried beans and cut way down on eating nuts. I started eating salad again. I have eaten some sugar free low carb pancakes and some sugar free low carb bread. I tried making low carb pizza but it didn't taste very good and made me nauseated.
I injured my knee and can't walk much right now but I am still swimming a half hour 5 days a week. I am FREEZING almost ALL the time, no matter how hot it is. It does feel good to be free of the sugar addiction. I have no desire to ever eat sugar or bread again. I can have a slice of low carb bread or sugar free chocolate without getting cravings for more.
2/25/02
Finally lost another pound. It was a real struggle. I have had to force myself to skip meals. I am still swimming for a half hour 5 days a week and walking 2 miles a day. I started my 4th job which is more physical so that will be more exercise, but it's only one day a week. My other 3 jobs are all desk jobs. It just seems like I shouldn't have two work out so much. I thought a half hour or an hour a day would enable me to lose weight but I have to exercise more than an hour a day AND starve myself. I had trouble for a while with pain, since I can't take advil anymore, but I found a cream that works great called Super Blue Stuff. It is expensive but worth it.
2/13/02
Still haven't lost any more weight. It wasn't worth so much pain to only lose 50 pounds. It has been too long without weight loss for this to be a plateau. I still swim and walk every day. I have stopped eating the protein bars, and my energy level went down a little, but I am thinking of adding weight training to my exercise routine. Right now my diet consists of eggs, cheese, nuts, all kinds of (non-breaded) meat, and refried beans. I also have an occasional sugar free low carb chocolate bar. The Atkins Chocolate candy is pretty good, but the Carbolite Bars are better. Trader Joes has the best prices on these.
1/23/02
I like the Atkins diet, but I am still not losing weight. I have not lost in over a month now. I am planning to join a pool near my office so I can go swim during lunch.
12/15/01
I have switched to the Atkins diet. I feel better, I am never hungry, and I have more energy. Still losing very slowly but my clothes are a little looser. I found the Atkins chocolate bars. sugar free and only 2 carbs. They are VERY good. Even better than Herseys. I eat a lot of low carb/high protein meal replacement bars now too. I haven't found a powdered shake mix that I like yet, but I would like to find one of those too. I wish I had found this diet before the surgery. I didn't think I could give up bread and sugar then. Now I know it can be done. I am walking 2 miles a day, five days a week now, and I walk up and down 5 flights of stairs a few times a day. I can make it all the way up without stopping to rest now, but I get out of breath before I get there.
12/9
Still losing very slowly,I've lost 5 pounds in the last month. I am going to switch to a low carb diet. Cutting fat does not seem to be working for me. I eat a lot of Atkins foods now, hopefully I will start losing again.
11/9
I have been walking at least a mile a day. Losing about 2 pounds a week. I guess that's better than nothing. I'm getting used to no bread, sugar, or carbs.
10/21
I decided I just can't live on an egg, and two slices of lunch meat a day, so I have been eating more than the allowed 200 calories a day. It's just not worth it to eat so little for to only lose 2 pounds a week. I do still stay on the list of allowed foods. No sweets or carbs at all.
10/14
Well at least I am losing weight again. Two pounds a week. It could be worse. At this rate I might reach my goal by NEXT Christmas. It's getting harder to stay on the diet. I want real food. I'm sick of protein, and still depressed. I can't sleep.
10/2
Could it be that this cursed plateau has finally broken? Finally lost 1 more pound, it took two weeks. I am starving all the time, I eat a half a cup of food (total) per day, and I am weak all the time. The Dr. tells me I must be cheating on the diet and eating more than 200 calories a day (I'm not) and that I need to exercise (I am).
9/17
Almost 3 weeks post. I still miss food. I am head hungry all the time and depressed. I still crave good tasting food. It is very difficult to stay on the 200 calorie diet that the Dr. requires. I hate counting calories. I Still have not eaten anything that is not on my list of acceptable foods, but I seem to have hit a plateau already. I have not lost any weight in the past week. I did not think that would happen so soon. I still wear the same size as before surgery. I am taking my vitamins, but I have no energy and feel very weak all the time.
9/14/01
Two weeks after surgery. The pain is gone, but I won't forget it anytime soon. I miss being able to eat meals. I am on the 200 calorie protein diet that the Dr. requires, but I have gained two pounds in the last two days after losing 25 very quickly.
9/2/01
Well I made it to the other side, but I have to admit, if I could go back I would not have had the operation. Being thin can't be worth this excruciating amount of pain. I'm told I will change my mind later. The hospital staff was very nice. The surgeon was very informative. Absolutely do not go in for this surgery without a support person that can stay with you in the hospital. That is very important.
I am scheduled for Open VBG at Highland Hospital in Lubbock, Texas on August 28th '01. I tried to find a Dr. closer to home but only one has even returned my call and she wont see me until at least next year. My PCP wont refer me and I don't know of any that will. I have decide to go to the Images program at Highland Hospital in Lubbock Texas. All I had to do is fill out a few online forms and they have handled everything else, including the insurance company and my travel.
Date Weight BMI size
8/28/01 206 43.1 24
9/2/01 180 37.6 20
9/14/01 170 35.5 20
10/3/01 168 35.1 18
10/8/01 165 34.5 18
10/15/01-163 34.1 18
10/28/01-159 33.2 16
11/9/01 155 32.4 16
12/6/01 150 31.4 14
12/15/01-149 31.1 14
1/23/02 147 30.7 14
2/14/02 147 30.7 14
2/23/02 146 30.5 14
3/18/02 143 29.9 12
4/5/02 143 29.9 12
1/23/03 143 29.9 12
2/15/03 140 29.3 10
3/15/03 155 32.4 16
4/23/03 150 31.4 14
7/15/03 146 30.5 10
10/1/03 130 27.2 8
1/4/04 165 34.5 16
7/20/04 160 33.4 16
8/13/04 155 32.4 16
9/9/04 154 32.2 14
9/17/04 153 32 14
5/18/05 175 18
7/6/05 165 34.5 14
7/16/05 160 34.4 14
9/3/05 149 31.3 12
9/29/07 170 35.5 12
Photos
204
My 34th birthday, at the all you can eat buffet.
135
Hospital Reviews
(Lubbock, TX) - Highland Medical Center
Product Reviews
Atkins - Advantage Frosted Cinnamon Swirl
Weight Loss Survey Responses
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Member Interests:
Sports - I play racquetball once a week.
Cats - I have three cats.
Parenting - I have three kids.
Bodybuilding & Weightlifting - I lift weights twice a week.
Running & Jogging - I run 2-5 miles a day and will run the marathon next year!
Collectibles - I collect turn of the century flash glass toothpick cauldrons.
Volunteerism - I volunteer two hours a week.
Click here to see interests of other ObesityHelp members.
Surgeon Info:
Surgeon: David S. Hall, M.D.
Dr Halls staff gave very good service before the surgery. Since the surgery they don't always return my calls. I liked the fact that the hospital handled everything. All I had to do is fill out some forms on the internet. Every time I called before surgery with questions they took as much time as I needed to explain the answers. At first I wished he was doing laparascopic surgery instead of open, now that I have done a little research, I feel open has few complications. I chose the VBG which is what Dr Hall recommends because I really didn't want to be rerouted inside, and the VBG is statistically much safer. I like how he gets his patients back on solid food before they go home from the hospital. I really like the group setting that they use prior to and after surgery. There were others there going through the same thing. There were 8 in my group, so we could all support each other. I worried about the flight home, but it turned out fine, the pain was much better by then. I think a good bedside manner is nice, but I would rather have a competent surgeon than a nice one. Dr Hall is both. He seemed to answer all my questions before I asked. One thing I didn't like is the diet. They really should go over the diet they expect you to follow before scheduling surgery. If I had found out that I can only eat 150-200 calories a day (mostly protein, no sugar or carbs) for the next 9 months I most likely would have chosen a surgen who supports a different diet plan after surgery.
Insurer Info:
Mediplan/Managed Health Network, PPO
I have not really dealt with this insurance company. The Dr Office is handling everything for me. The Insurance company told the clinic on 6/21 that I would have an answer by 6/29. I called the Dr office on 6/29 but was not able to reach them. I then called the insurance company who told me that they had not yet received the request letter. The Insurance company faxed the approval to the Dr office on 7/3/01.
