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I just went back and read all my posts and I saw where I never really shared my weight loss goals.  It's a bit aggressive at about 4.4 pounds of loss a week through October. Here goes!

1.  50 pounds in ten weeks.   Completed in 8 weeks, 5 days.

2.  Be at 350 pounds by the start of kids Camp on 7/16/07.

3.  75 pounds in 15 weeks. (August 1)

4.  100 pounds in 23 weeks (September 26)

5.  Be at 280 pounds for my 22nd wedding aniversery.  (133 pounds) 

6.  Be at 250 pounds by Christmas (166 pounds/38 weeks)

I hit my first of many weight loss goals this morning by losing 50 pounds and I did it a week and a half early!!  Praise God!!   My next goal is to be at 350 pounds before Kid's Camp starts July 16th.  That's 13 pounds to go to reach a weight I haven't been at for more than 15 years.  To go along with the weight loss, I've been cane free for 14 days, my insulin intake has gone from 90 units a day to 10 units a day.  The Byetta shots are no more along with the Actos pills.  I've stopped my medicine for high tryglycerides and the muscle relaxer for my neck.  I've cut my pain reliver medicine by half and hope to be off of it completely in the next month or two.  I got my two month lab report this weekend and my numbers are the best that I can remember in the past 10 years.  The only negative is a slight deficency in iron.  My trigger thumb has improved so much that I go without the brace far more than with it.  I'm in the gym four days a week and have sworn off elevators and esculators whenever possible.  My BMI has gone from 57.0 to 49.2. God has surely blessed even though I have been less than faithful.  Past failures always linger in the back of my mind but God continues to work in my life.  It is definately not my strength but His strength working through me.

Praise God it's been a great week.  I busted through the weight loss plateau with a six pound loss.  That's 41 pounds in eight weeks to go along with the 63 pounds lost in the previous two years.  104 pounds gone forever!!   The doctor tweeked my snack foods by making them more protein based and I was in the gym four times this past week.  I haven't been in the gym four times in ten years before this.  My trainer has been a blessing keeping me motivated and challenged.  I love the treadmill and I'm doing 30 minutes at 2.5 miles an hour.

With the good comes the bad.  I received an unexpected bill from the surgery gas passer.  It seems they received nothing from the insurance company so they billed me.  When I checked, they never submitted a claim so now I have to do battle with a company based in California.  Go figure.   I also lost the transmission in our primary vehicle which is going to be a big hit to the old wallet.  Through all this, my strees level has not gone through the roof as it would have before the surgery.  God has been faithful to provide in the past and I know He will provide in this situation.

Well, today makes seven weeks and things have changed somewhat.  I started losing weight again this week.  I lost the four pounds I gained and two extra for good measure.  That's a 35 pound weight loss all together.  Praise God!!  There is two things that I think have made a difference.

First, I found this website named calorie-count.  It is a free nutritional journal that takes the food you eat and converts the portions into calories, fats, protiens, and carbs.  It then grades you on your nutritional content.  I have yet to do better than an A- but that's due to eating more protien and getting very little fiber.  What it does for me is let me know when I'm eating too much fat or not getting enough protien.  It also has an activity log that turn everything you do in a day into calories burned.  This includes every activity from sitting and reading to working out.  Of course, it also has a weight log to track your weight.

The second thing that has helped me jump start my weight loss is working with a trainer.  I joined a small laid-back gym and hired a trainer at $25 per session.  She not only sets up my workouts but also is helping with my nutritional needs by pointing out alternatives for certain foods I eat.  My first session was an evaluation session where she took my medical history and goals and worked out a fitness program.  My first workout was yesterday and we did just enough that I'm sore this morning but I'm not in so much pain that I can't move.

I'm looking forward to the next workout and more weight loss.  I'm on my third day without my cane and I'm have more energy than I've had in years.  To God be the glory and honor.

Well it's been six weeks and my weight loss has totally stopped.  I haven't gained or lost a pound in two weeks.  I am a bit confused and frustrated as I have followed the doctor's and dietitian's orders.  Everyone keeps telling me not to worry that the weight weill come off but words and deeds are two different things.

I am trying to be proactive.  I joined a gym yesterday and will be working with a trainer for the month of June.  I've also started a very detail food log to track calories, fats, and protiens.  My wife, God bless her, did remind me that two years ago, I weighed 475 pounds.  That's a 93 pound loss in just over two years so that's something to be positive about.

This has been a hard week as there has been no weight loss.  In fact I gained 4 pounds early and ended the week with a two pound gain.  It's somewhat frustrating as I have not deviated from the plan and I am still eating leass than 1200 calories a day and walking.  I have lost a total of 12 inches with  5 inches coming off my chest.  My dietitian is not concerned with the plateau saying that if I keep doing what I'm doing, the weight will come off.  I'm walking a mile and a quarter five times a week in thirty minutes.  My wife and I walk through the neighborhood via a route that has a couple of challenging hills half way through the walk and toward the end.  Tonight we plan to add an additional quarter mile as the mile and a quarter doesn't seem to be enough anymore.  I did have a "WOW" moment this past week.  I went to drive my 1993 truck this past weekend and for the first time in ten years I could fasten the drivers side seat belt.  Praise God!

Well, I'm holding at 34 pounds with no weight loss this week.  I saw my dietitian and he was not concerned saying that having times of no weight loss will happen from time to time.  He reviewed my diet journal and found nothing out of line.  In fact, he told me to keep on doing what I was doing.  I'm walking 45 minutes a day, five days a week with only a little discomfort to my back.

Big "WOW" moment this past week.  I'm off a lot of my medications already.  Two of my three diabetic meds are gone.  The third med is a fast acting insulin and I have cut my intake from 60 units a day to 20 units max a day.  I'm no longer taking Neurotin, Mobic or Lipitor.  Talk about a cost savings.  Praise God!

I had my first doctors appointments since the surgery yesterday.  I've come off two of my three diabetes medicines, my triglyceride medicine, and a couple of others.  I started on a new vitamin regiment and they upped my minimum protien grams to 80.  The weight loss is now at 34 pounds.  I guess the worst part of the whole experiance has been the gas.  I've burped more in three weeks than I did in a year.  Doctor says that it will get better.  I'm also down four pant sizes.  All is good!

One wild thing that happened this week was the temporary retirement of my size 15 wedding ring.  I was working at church with some Awana awards when my ring slipped off my finger.  I found an old gold chain from the 70's and now the ring resides around my neck.  We'll get resized at a later date.

It's been two weeks since the surgery and I'm doing well.  I'm up to walking 30 minutes a day and I'm down 28 pounds.  My appetite has not been a problem and I have even cooked chicken marsala and pork stir fry for my wife before she get's home from work the past two nights.  I have received a ton of supportive calls and my Sunday School kids have sent me cards, letters, and e-cards.  My biggest problem has been back pain, hic-ups, and gas.  I hope it all gets better as the pounds come off.  Praise God!!  

Five days post-op and feeling good.  19 pounds gone.  Walked for ten minutes and was stopped more by back pain than being tired.  Got in all my fluid today for the first time.  To God be the glory and honor.