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Follow me on my health blog: http://www.morethanmyweight.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/morethanmyweight! I'll also be posting on my YouTube channel soon: More Than My Weight.

Follow me on my health blog: http://www.morethanmyweight.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/morethanmyweight 

I went to my dear friend's memorial yesterday and saw some people that haven't seen me in a while.

I don't know if she was kidding (that's my first thought since it's hard to believe!) but a lady that knows me well came up to my roommate and me, said hi to him... then walked away... then came back and said, "Oh Helen (that's what they call me at the church), I barely recognized you skinny!"

When I came up to another woman that knew me really well she said, "Helen, is that you?"

It was just weird to get that reaction. It felt surreal!

I met a few 'fresh' bandsters recently that are going through that rough period where they're thinking, "Are you sure I even HAD a band put in?" (AKA Bandster Hell)

This is the journey I told them about getting to my sweet spot, in case it helps anyone (sorry, kind of long)...

It took about 15 fills to get to the sweet spot I'm at right now. Initially, it took me about 5 - 7 months. That sweet spot held strong until I lost a significant amount of weight, which caused me to lose fat around my organs and thus loosened my restriction.

What kept me strong during 'bandster hell' was the motivation that I conjured up from the excitement of getting the band. I was also eating high-volume, low-calorie foods. The volume was enough to sustain my hunger and the calories were still decently low. I admit that I didn't exercise much.

At one point, I struggled with the "to fill or not to fill" situation. I was tight in the morning and often got stuck on eggs and then VERY loose at night (could eat 5 tacos). I know some might say, "Have some control woman!" but I truly have little will when it comes to quantity eating. The restriction is very important to my success.

Eventually I realized that I needed to compromise. Eggs were a food that I couldn't tolerate in the morning. Once I came to that realization, I went in for a fill. That fill got me to my current restriction.

I've also been too tight... it's not worth it... and when you are, you'll usually know.

But there's a difference between too tight and not eating the right foods. I thought I was too tight at this current fill, but the doctor told me to eat the RIGHT foods and follow the rules for 2 weeks and then check back. When I did, I stopped getting stuck. I was getting stuck on large portions, pasta and bread... DUH.

The road has been long and there were times that I didn't think I'd get to my 'sweet spot,' but low and behold... I'm there. I am at the tighter end of the 'green zone' so I have to be really careful about overeating, but I like it here.

I can eat 1/2 cup of food for breakfast and up to 1.5 cups at dinner. I can't chug liquids but I can drink normally. I am rarely hungry and food is not always on my mind. I feel like the band is doing a HUGE part of the work for me.

I've lost 105lbs and hit onederland this week and will be celebrating! My success is largely in part to this wonderful forum so I want to give back. 

It surely takes GUTS to post these photos but let's be honest... we all want to see how the body changes underneath the clothes. At least I DID when I was pre-op. Results vary of course but here is how my body has changed. I don't look like a supermodel (and never will), but I am DAMN proud of where my body is at right now... it's toning up slowly and I am not ashamed to show where I came from and where I'm at. 

I force myself to share these because 1) I know they really give people a good visual and 2) it forces me to love my body despite my bumps, dimples, flab, etc.

I started at 304.5lbs. I am now at 199.8lbs. Alright... I'm taking a deep breath... Here we go...

MY TRANSFORMATION FROM 'LINEBACKER' TO 'LADY'... lol














And finally.... a few photos along the journey...

Thanks to the Plateau Buster Diet, I was able to get to 100lbs by my one year bandiversary! I love my band! I am so close to Onederland, I can feel it!

I have officially hit 95lbs (I wanted to make sure it actually STUCK)... and I am just in shock! I can't believe this is actually happening to me!

It has been a mind game to the maximum lately... I feel like I am someone else. My mother can't stop giving me compliments (and that's not part of our culture at all lol), I am getting hit on, feeling bones in all the oddest places and am not recognizing myselfin the mirror. I've never done drugs but I imagine it might feel something similar to how I feel now.

BEFOREs and AFTER:

 

AFTER:

I just posted this as a reply to someone and I figured it may be useful to someone else. It's about how I remotivate myself when I get off the wagon... and it has happened more than once along this journey.

I rejuvinate my SENSES. Why? Senses are tied to MEMORY. As put in an article about research on the matter: "The key, the researchers claim, is that memories relating to an event are scattered across the brain's sensory centres but marshalled by a region called the hippocampus. If one of the senses is stimulated to evoke a memory, other memories featuring other senses are also triggered."

So what I do is try to rejuvinate and "recharge" my senses. How?

TASTE: clean out the fridge, stock up on healthy foods and band-friendly foods
(Ex: I have Crystal Light out on the counter b/c it is part of my daily water intake)

SIGHT: Put out old fat photos, inspiring photos of people you want to look like, bathing suits and clothes you want to fit into, a list of the band rules
(Ex: I just bought a bathing suit that I hope to fit into and it hangs in plain view)

HEARING: Listen to inspirational books on tape, inspiring music that might get you in the mood to exercise or heck, even watch some exercise infomercials
(Ex: I listen to high energy music in the car after a long day of work so it energizes me to go exercise)

TOUCH: Really get to know your body - I touched all the loose parts of my body (thighs, belly, arms) and reminded myself of how I wanted them to look
(Ex: I touch my 'bat wings' when I exercise to remind me to keep working that muscle)

SMELL: Get outside, smell fresh air that can motivate you to exercise, get something that smells good and puts you in a good mood.
(Ex: When I part in my garage, I step outside for a brief second to smell the air b/c the scent is tied to exercise for me)

Our sense are POWERFUL and have strong memories. If you tie all your senses to things related to GOOD HEALTH, you will have a hard time getting unmotivated since your senses' memory will trigger your motivation. I know it may sound like a weird concept... but heck, it works for me!!

Sorry I haven't blogged in a long time. I've had a deal of stress with work, so I unfortunately put blogging on the back burner. Well ladies and gents, I am down 82lbs... from 304.5 to 222.8lbs... and MAN does it ever feel good!

I've had a lot of ups and downs through this journey, including a three-month plateau. It was horrible, but after a trip to Austria and skiing in the Alps for a week, I left 6lbs overseas!

I've also realized it's true what they say about plateaus... you get into them when you start relaxing your rules. I didn't even realize that I was doing that until I started tracking my food again. As some of you know, I also do Weight Watchers for the support, accountability, etc... well, they now have a new plan (no more CORE and FLEX) called MOMENTUM. It combines the two together. So, I had to start counting points again. And when I did, I realized I was eating WAY over my points!

My nutritionist specifically told me not to count calories... but I think that was my downfall. I didn't realize that the seemingly-healthy cup of chicken salad I had some mornings was 18 points!! (And I only get 29pts for the whole day)

So anyway... what can I recommend? TRACK, TRACK and TRACK some more! My weight is finally starting to move back down again thanks to my food journal!

The band is all about patience and persistence. You gotta have the two to succeed, in my opinion.

I am finally down 75lbs. I was plateaued for about 1.5 months and it was tough... but I made it through. All I can say is Keep On Keepin' On!! The holidays are so tough.. but my goal was to purely MAINTAIN through the holidays... and I actually lost a little. I hope the rest of the month goes just as smoothly. I can't wait to get to 80lbs lost!! :)