Mr Mom
Checking in with my OH friends!
Jun 18, 2013
Hello OH extended family!
Sorry I've been away for so long! I've just been living life and honestly broke with all the hard-core disciplines I used to get me the 175 Lb weight loss I had attained. So before we go on any further, this is NOT another one of those "OMG I've fallen off the wagon and I can't get back on track" posts. I have gained back some of the weight I lost but honestly I was feeling so weak at times and looking so ill and gaunt that I had to rethink what I was doing. The original goal I had set was based on a healthy weight I was at when I was an athlete in my early 20's. As it turns out 225 Lbs really isn't applicable to a 50+ year old obese man simply because the amount of lean muscle mass and more importantly the 25-30 Lbs of excess skin I'm now carrying around really hadn't been factored in. So here's the short story.. After several bouts with dehydration and trips to the ER I decided to eat more than 800-1000 calories a day. I also allowed myself to eat more than 50 carbs per day and slip out of ketosis. Within weeks I had gained about 6 Lbs but to me that had to be water weight and likely much needed water weight. The frequent bouts with dehydration and electrolyte imbalance started to subside. So now fast forward to today. I'm ~45 Lbs heavier than my all time low of ~240 Lbs, I'm slightly disappointed that my dietary habits are not as strict as I want them to be, but I still only consume ~1500 calories a day and I feel very very good! The VSG did exactly what I needed it to do. It saved me from myself. Even when I have a day when I eat nothing but convenient, high fat, high carb crap the damage is contained simply because of the small stomach capacity. I'm not chain eating so when I do switch back to monitoring what I'm putting in my mouth the weigh falls off quickly, like 5-8 Lbs a week quickly! Gotta love the VSG!
So here's where I'm going with this today. I yearn for the structure and the OH support system I've left behind for nearly 2 years when I went free styling. I've started tracking my food again (today) on myfitnesspal.com, I've set reasonable food intake goals, and I plan to get back to walking or riding my bike for exercise 4x per week for at least 20 minutes per session. I hope to bring my weight back down to around 250 Lbs and hold it there. I wish I had a stack of money or a rich uncle to fund some plastic surgery for excess skin removal but it just isn't going to happen. The reality is a former 410 Lb man weighing in at 250 lbs is actually a 220 Lb man without his excess skin. I had to learn this the hard way but I'm ok with it (sort of, but physical identity is a whole other conversation). I'll check back more often now so please drop me a message and for those of you that want to talk off line I would be happy to exchange cell numbers with you so we can chat or text each other outside of the OH.
Looking forward to hearing from you!... Craig
PS: This is the most recent picture I have to share. It's from Dec 2012 and it's pretty much how I look today. Yes, my hair did come back thanks to lots of daily doses of biotin!
