The Forestry Forum

I'm seriously considering bariatric surgery as a solution to my serious over weight. Any body have any experiance with it that the want to share? Pros and cons? Advice, encouragement, anything at all? I have to do something. I can't keep going like I am and I have no luck with dieting.

From what I've read on the low carb forum, a doctor will probably want you to lose some weight before the surgery partly to show that you have the will power to change your eating habits and partly because overweightness adds to the risks of surgery.

Good luck whatever you decide.

A family member had this surgery, and as Sprucebunny explained, she was on a liquid protein diet for about six weeks prior to the surgery.  Her operation was about a year ago, and she has lost and kept off about a hundred pounds.  She said the "full" sensation is something she didn't experience before she had the sleeve put in. 

I'm still back and forth on it. I know I have to loose weight. I'm pre-diabetic, have OSA, Can't breath because of all the belly fat, and have low level hypertension. Not to mention parts of my body I haven't seen in a long time, but..... I really like the taste of food, a good steak, a glass of wine, fire hot chili peppers. Just not sure I'll have the will power to give it all up.

Quote from: LeeB on September 27, 2015, 11:48:03 AM
........................ but..... I really like the taste of food, a good steak, a glass of wine, fire hot chili peppers. Just not sure I'll have the will power to give it all up.

Professional friend did it and lost what they call a "whole me" They lost 50% of original weight 360 down to 180 lbs. 6'-2" in height so not a small person by any means.  They worked really hard at it and it shows. 
I am not a nutritionists by trade so they may say otherwise; but I would say you don't have to give up those foods  that you really enjoy, just moderate your intake of them.  You do have to really want to do it or it will not happen however.

I've read a little about it from my research into diabetes, and I don't like the sounds of it at all. You are lucky to be addressing this as a pre-diabetic. The hard truth is that you need to decide between living the life you have now, or making changes and greatly reduce the risk of an early death, possibly in installments. A diabetic diet is not going to be fun for you at first, but you may learn to like it when you start to feel better. Sometimes we get dealt a bad hand, and we just have to learn to make the best of it.

QuoteI really like the taste of food, a good steak, a glass of wine, fire hot chili peppers.

Actually none of those things are "bad". You might want to work on the size of the steak, only one or 2 glasses of wine, and chilli is a vegetable, so knock yourself out there

Then cut back on the carbs.. The bread, potatoes, pasta etc.

You don't have to eat rabbit food, and spices are OK no matter what actual diet routine you follow.

One suggestion I like is "Only eat until you aren't hungry any more". Not all you CAN eat. You can physically stuff in 2X as much food as you actually need to eat to maintain weight. Tricky part is to know when to stop.

A very tricky part Ian, one I have come nowhere near to mastering. I really really need to learn to listen to my stomach and not my tongue. I have been making an effort. Nothing major, but little steps. It's hard to teach myself that I don't have to clear my plate like momma always told me. I figure little steps is a start.

Quote from: LeeB on September 27, 2015, 11:48:03 AM
I'm pre-diabetic, have OSA, Can't breath because of all the belly fat, and have low level hypertension.

Lee - I'm right there with you.  I'm 5'8" and weighted 255.3 about 10 weeks ago.  My last doctors visit wasn't nice.  He stated that if I didn't do something, he was going to put me on a diabetic pill.  Well shortly after that my buddy and I were given a HUGH stack of pushed over logs and we have been sawing the he77 out of them.  All the hard work on sawing and me paying real close attention to what, how and when I eat, this morning I'm down to 236.3.  The lowest I have been in SEVERAL years.

I read somewhere that if you loss 7% of your body weight, it reduces your chance of type 2 by 30%.  I'm hoping those 19 pounds and all the others I'm trying to loss will make a difference at my next meeting with my doctor in late October or early November.  Hopefully an additional 5-10 pounds by then.

I wish you all the will power and luck I can because I know how hard it is to loss any real weight.

BTW - I enjoy food also and that is one of the real problems.

Bruce

Lee eat that steak and 2 more. The trick is to skip the bread and pasta that goes with it.  I am a lot shorter than you and I lost over 50 lbs since Easter.  2 slices of bacon and 3 eggs for breakfast meat and vegetables for other meals. use real butter and half and half in my coffee.  Splenda in place of sugar.  Watch the carb count in things and dont worry about fat and calories in food.  My wife lost over 20 lbs because she eats what she cooks for me. Many fat free foods have more carbs than the full fat ones.

When I went to the dr last I weighed in at 345. Since I started this thread I've been actively trying to loose weight and have now dropped down to 327. I can and will do this.

Lee, my daughter had the surgery about 6 years ago and I am sure it has saved her life. It took some getting used to with the forced change in her eating habits. If she ate too much at a time she would get sick and she had to learn what she could and could not eat, but it absolutely was worth the effort to overcome her eating problems.

Last Sunday she walked the about 4 miles from her house to ours along with her daughter and there is no way she could have done that before the surgery.

So I would just say, do it, you will live better and longer. I don't think there is much downside risk with the surgery today that exceeds the risk you are living with at that weight.

Gary

While doctors generally will recommend a vegetarian diet, for some of us carnivores, we would rather die young, (I actually told my doctor that).  I had the vertical sleeve gastrectomy 4 years ago, and feel great.  However, prior to having the surgery, I first changed my lifestyle and started going to a gym to get back in shape.  When that wasn't enough, I changed my diet to the Paleo Diet.  Those changes vastly improved my health and helped me lose 50 lbs, but not down to where I wanted to be.  So I finally chose the surgery, because I felt like it was the only option I had left.  After my surgery, I lost another 70 lbs and have kept it off, but only because I continue to primarily eat a Paleo Diet, get lots of exercise, and watch my portions.  My high blood pressure, diabetes and asthma all went away after I had the surgery and lost the weight. 

So Bariatric surgery CAN be a great way to help you lose weight, but it is not THE answer by itself.  Its like putting on a new saw chain on your chainsaw.  That new chain will cut fast for a while, but if you don't keep it sharp,  you will end up right back where you started with a dull chain.  If all you do is have the surgery, you are guaranteed to lose weight, but you will likely gain it all back over time if you don't keep a physically active lifestyle and a good diet.

I strongly recommend you start by increasing your physical exercise (just walking is a great exercise to start with or join a gym where you can have a personal trainer help you to learn how to exercise safely and motivate you to to it), and improving your diet, (there are lots of books and recipes that you can download for free from Amazon about the Paleo Diet which I recommend).  Try making those into a permanent part of your lifestyle and see how far you get with them.  You might find that they give you the help you need by themselves.  However, if after a year of putting those pieces into your lifestyle, you still find yourself unhappy with your health, fitness, and weight situation, then you should certainly consider whether bariatric surgery would be of assistance to your situation. 

Dave,
That is where my head is at right now. As I said before, I am now actively trying to loose which is something I had not done before. Whether I have the surgery or not I will still have to change my diet and eating habits. Even before I could have the surgery I would have to do this. So I'm going try and to see how far I can get on my own. (try leaves an out for failure). I can do this and will. If I still need surgery in the end, I'll cross that bridge after I've given my best effort.

Lee,

Let me share my Bypass surgery experience. 5'10" at 300#. Disabled and in a power wheelchair. Drove the wheelchair (with my Service Dog) to the hospital 2 miles away. Had the full fledged bypass. (Forget the lap band). Two nights in the hospital. Every few hours during the day I took my drug tree and my Service Dog outside. On the third day I drove the powerchair with my Service Dog out the front door and back home. (My Service Dog was the first to stay in that hospital) Can't eat for a while so I had to get liquid pain med. Never opened the liquid pain med bottle. Follow the doctor's directions and it's a breeze. I went down to 200#. I've been at 220 and comfortable for the last 10 years. Being disabled I can't do a lot of exercising.

Something only those that have had the surgery know? Most of us loose the constant feeling of hunger most morbidly obese people feel. Which is now thought to be a hormone issue they still don't fully understand. The only real failure my doctor had was a woman that left the hospital on the third day and stopped at Taco Bell on the way home. Needed some extra surgery to deal with the results.

Would I do it all over again? In a heartbeat I would. Years later I also had both knees replaced on the same day and was able to get out of the chair and walk. After the knees, I was able to walk with my wife and had our first dance together.

I am 64 yo and on absolutely no meds and am much more mobile.

Seriously consider the surgery.

If you want more personal details, PM me and give me a number to call. Overall, it's pretty cool surgery. After surgery, we no longer have a stomach. We have a pouch.

Congratulations on the weight loss, Lee  8)  8)

You CAN do this !!!

Looks like you are heading in the right direction. Good luck to ya!!

Several members have sent me personal messages in regard to this thread and I truly appreciate the interest and information shared. For the time being I'm still going to see where I can get by changing my eating. Doing good so far and have lost 22 pounds since Sept 15th. I know I'll go astray some when we go to Belize for a week but I intend to keep it in check and not go hog wild. I'll get right back in the wagon as soon as we get back. I'm going to miss some of the foods I was eating before but I'm really enjoying the weight loss even more. Thanks for everyone's support. That helps tremendously.

I don't need a personal trainer so much as I need someone to follow me around and slap the unhealthy foods out of my hand

The threat of diabetes and stroke is a powerful motivator.  When the doc started talking about blood thinners and other meds I got serious about my diet.
Down to 172# and I know 160-165 will happen.  I am 5'6" and 195# just did not work on my frame.  My blood work has improved and my bp is back to normal for my age.
You can do this Lee and you will feel a lot better.

I sure do love the forestrforum family. I have gotten quite a number of PM's and much good feedback here too. Thank you one and all. Was a little disappointed this morning to see that I had put a half pound back on but I won't let that under my skin. Just means I have to work a little harder at it.  :)

Don't worry about the small fluctuations. You just needed to see that on average, you are dropping.

I've been closing my cabin in Canada and missed this conversation.  I am not an expert here in any way.  My recollection about the various procedures is that there is a great tendency to lose a lot of weight with bariatric surgery, but that the weight is often regained over the first few years after the initial loss. 

Lee- I would look on the internet for long term effectiveness of such surgery before considering it.  I'm glad that you are progressing in your weight loss, which is a much better way to go.  I do agree with other posters that, in the correctly selected patient, this can be a life-saver.  The key is in patient selection.

Kinda stalled out a bit. No change for a few days now. Not to worry. It will start moving again soon.

Down 40 lbs so far. Phewy on surgery.

For you, it sounded like a good life changing decision.   smiley_thumbsup

Way to go!   8)

Congratulations  8) 8)

You are on a roll.  I am proud of you. 

I'm proud of me too. I gained 7 pounds while we were in Belize but have lost that and a few more this week.  8)

The more you can lose through diet, exercise and lifestyle changes, the better you will do, no matter whether you have surgery or not.  So remember, this is for the long haul.  Keep on doing your best.  Remember that it is ok to splurge once in a while also.  Belize sounds like a good time to splurge to me.  =)  Now you are getting back on track, and keep working the weight down.  That's all you can do, slow and steady is the way to be.

Great job.
Dave

Way to go Lee. Keep up the good work.

Looks like you're doing pretty good Lee, congratulations.

Keep on Keepin' on.  ;)

It's all about grit and determination.  Keep it up!

Quote from: OneWithWood on November 07, 2015, 11:41:49 AM
It's all about grit and determination.  Keep it up!

Can't have grits. Too many carbs. Determination I have. Encouragement from my forum brothers and sisters makes that much better.

Grit not grits!  You be correct about the carbs. :))

Well,
After I got back to work and weighed on the scale I started with I found I hadn't lost as much as I thought. I've had some ups and downs and ups but have finally started back down and have now truly broken the 40 pound mark. Onward through the fog I go. Next short term goal is to get below 300 lb and that's only 3 pounds away and then to reach 50 pounds lost. Small goals keeps it achievable. I have an abdominal hernia surgery next month and I'm sure the weight loss will help with that. Pretty sure the weight was a big contributing factor to begin with.

Good plan.  Hope the surgery goes well and that you have a speedy recovery.

Dave

Thanks Dave. How are you doing? Any more scares?

You are doing great, Lee  8) 8) Keep with it !

Quote from: LeeB on November 27, 2015, 09:55:55 AM
Thanks Dave. How are you doing? Any more scares?

Well, no more palpitations,  but something doesn't exactly feel right.   Waiting for results from the monitoring they have had me on.  I can physically work just fine, (no symptoms), but I occasionally get some "flushing" feelings while resting and at night, (which I have never experienced before).  With my own heightened monitoring, it seems that these "episodes", coincide with my heart rate falling in the 50 bpm range.  So first it was too fast, and now, it may be too slow.  Blood pressure is good, O2 level is good, and while I can't say I get "short of breath", when I get the flushing going on, I end up feeling like I need to concentrate on my breathing.  So waiting to see what the medical minds think is up.

WooHoo!!!!!!!!! Made it down to 300 lbs. First time in many years I've seen that.  8)

Grats.  Keep up the good progress.
;D

Big milestone  8) 8)

Keep at it !!

Imagine how you'll feel when you can say, "I weigh two hundred something."  Good job! 

 smiley_clapping

Congrats Lee.  Keep on keeping on.   8)

I would like to thank all of you for the encouragement. It make a difference. I would also like to thank my producer. Oh wait, I don't have a producer. Seriously, thanks to all of you for the kinds words of encouragement. It does matter and it does help.

You will have to post a picture or we won't know you at the next pig roast.

look for the big mustache.  :D

Lee,
Your fixing to be an inspiration to the rest of us. I kinda figure most of us could stand to loose a few pounds and a few of us need to make some real life style changes so watching your progress gives hope and strength to everyone.

WAY TO GO

And a personal thank you as well.

 8)

Lee, congrats! Dave, hope it is relatively minor.

It is very difficult to stay on track when flying. It's either go off the plan or starve for a day and a half. I just try to do the best I can.

Hernia repair hurts! Glad I have lost weight beforehand though. I can't imagine how bad it would be with all the extra pressure. Down to 290 now.

Way to go Lee. Stay at it and you will get there.

Getting below 300 is a HUGE milestone.  Keep it up.

Congratulations on the milestone, Lee!   8)

Congratulations.  Nice Christmas present to yourself!

Continuing to drop the pounds. Was at 282 (with clothes and tennis shoes) this morning. I hope to reach 275 this time while at work and should be able to reach that without too much problem. I did go to the doctor when I was home this last time and told him he ticked me off when he told me my only hope was surgery. He just grinned and said congratulations and that he was proud of me. I'm hoping by the time I get home I can wear my old blue jeans. I can't remember how much I weighed when I wore them last. I thought Christmas was going to set me back but I managed to be pretty good other than eating too much ham. I did stay out of the sweets completely except for one bite of pumpkin pie to make my daughter happy.

 8) 8) 8)

sometimes we have to eat pie to make folks happy,,it's a sacrifice, and happy to catch up on your progress Lee, sounds like it's working,, 

I'm happy to hear you are still making progress  8)
We're all proud of you, too !!

Wonderful news that you not only survived the holidays, you thrived!  Way to go!   8)

You are doing mighty fine!!

Way to go, Lee  8).

Nice progress, Lee!   8) 8)

Good to hear Lee.

Now, to get your daughter on your side of the equation.

We have a grand daughter that is needing to go a gluten-free diet. When she visits, their is nothing around to eat that isn't gluten-free. For me, that is a bit over-board, but then I'm not the cook... just the bottle washer. ;D

I would love to get my daughter on the right side of this thing. She needs to do this even more than I do. I had hoped that seeing my achievements would spur her to try it but she won't even think about it.  :(

Maybe you could get her on board with this recipe, which I highly recommend as a special treat that's 10 carbs and low glycemic index, and @Beenthere, it's gluten free. 

http://www.sugarfreemom.com/recipes/sugar-free-pumpkin-pie-chocolate-chip-mug-cake/

10 carbs is half of my daily allotment.  :(

Quote from: LeeB on January 08, 2016, 09:38:54 AM
I would love to get my daughter on the right side of this thing. She needs to do this even more than I do. I had hoped that seeing my achievements would spur her to try it but she won't even think about it.  :(

Then stand strong (for her), and refuse to eat her pie. May help it sink in if you are taking the lead. ;)

She just refuses to give up her taters and rice and gravy and pasta. Her other excuse was it would cost too much. I even told her I would pay for her food. Still no go. You can lead them to the water but you can't make them drink it. I'll keep trying though. I have no idea what shew weighs. I started out at 345 and I know she is bigger than that. She's still young right now and it hasn't started to noticeably effect her health yet but it's only a matter of time. Much cheaper for me to pay her meals than pay her medical later.

When they are working and paying for their own food, hard to change their habits and destination.
What I find sad is where someone else is feeding them whatever they want to eat.

Sorry to hear about her extra weight. Has to be very frustrating for you.

Made another milestone today. Just hit 275.  :) 8) :)

Way to go Lee.   8)

I just got thru a bout of Gout and now have to loose about 25 lbs. to keep from having to go thru that again. You're getting close to my 245 so I've got to get moving down or you will catch me.

It's dropping off a lot slower now but I'm still managing 10 lbs a month.

Great to hear you are still at it, Lee  8)

10 pounds a month is 2.3 a week which is pretty fast.

Keep up the good work !

Way to go Lee!  Your health is improving by the month!

It is indeed doc. My knees are much more happy. My last blood work showed much improved cholesterol. I can breath and my blood pressure has greatly improved. I was having problems with edema in mt feet and ankles and that is gone. Between that and the blood pressure my GP has taken me off of hydrochlorothiazide. I even think my sleep apnea has improved. Ant time before that I have had to go without my c-pap I have woken up with a sore throat from the snoring. I've been without for a week now and no problems and not sleepy like before I started using it. All great incentives to keep going. Again, I say thank you to everyone for the encouragement and support.

So happy for you!   :)

Sounds like an excellent report Lee, congratulations!   smiley_thumbsup

Keep it up big (er, smaller) boy!

You da man Lee.  Stick with it.   smiley_thumbsup

Well done!

Pulled out some  blue jeans the other day that I haven't been able to wear for about 5 or 6 years. I was totally apprehensive that they would still not fit. Happy day. they fit and this morning when going through the security check at the airport I thought I was going to loose my britches. (they make you take your belt off) I haven't flown in blue jeans in a long time. Down to 260 if I weigh first thing in the morning after all the morning requirements are taken care of. Actually saw 259 a couple of times. I'll be interested to see what the scales at work say. They are different than the ones I have at home. I also have clothes on when I weigh at work.

Glad to hear you are still eating right .

I know it's frustrating to not be losing as fast when you get closer to your goal but keep at it  8)

It must feel awesome to get into those jeans!  Proud of you!   :)

Send me your bigguns.... I just rounded 265 going upward, most of mine are too small now :o

Quote from: sprucebunny on March 04, 2016, 11:58:42 AM
Glad to hear you are still eating right .

I know it's frustrating to not be losing as fast when you get closer to your goal but keep at it  8)

I'm still losing 10 lb or more a month, so I'm quite happy. Some days it bounces up a little but I pretty much know when it will and why so no problems there and I also now know how to get get it to keep falling. 40 lbs to go to reach my goal and 60 lbs if I want to hit 'ideal' weight.

Quote from: Raider Bill on March 04, 2016, 01:13:47 PM
Send me your bigguns.... I just rounded 265 going upward, most of mine are too small now :o

I've just about got a closet full of clothes now that are becoming to big.

Quote from: Roxie on March 04, 2016, 12:57:32 PM
It must feel awesome to get into those jeans!  Proud of you!   :)

It does feel good Roxie. It feels better to be able to do things that I haven't done in years. Standing on one foot to put on underwear is one of them. Sounds small but it is really a big thing. To be able to climb around and get some work done at home is a real biggy. All n all it hasn't been a bad journey so far for me. I think Lindy has more trouble with it than me because she isn't really into what I eat but she puts up a good front and I make concessions every now and then so she can eat what she wants and we can have a shared meal. Those are usually the days when the scales go the wrong way but so be it. A little reward every now and then is ok.

LeeB  Your are a Hero and a man, who is admired or idealized for courage

I don't know that courage has anything to do with it. Probably more fear than anything else got me started. Last summer I was in the pool with my grand daughter and realized if she had trouble old fat pawpaw wouldn't be able to do anything about it. That helped me get started. Desire and stubbornness has been a huge part of the rest of it along with a good helping of pride in achievement. The real tale will be maintaining the new lifestyle and not slipping back into my old ways.

Way to go Lee. Still cheering for you.

That all sounds good. Doing more at home is a big plus. Moving and working around the house will keeps those pounds from staying with you.  :)

In all reality exercise doesn't do much for weight loss. It just tones up muscle. What goes in your mouth will determine what you weigh. 1 pound of fat contains 3500 calories. Takes quite a while of exercise to burn that much.

That's true, but improving your muscle tone will make it easier to eat less.

Actually, Lee, I think a pound of fat is a bit more than 3500 calories.

1 pound = 454 grams X 9 calories/gram = 4176 calories.  Don't know if that's correct, but that's what I tell my patients.

Just read thru this whole thread. LeeB congrats on the journey to the new "you"! You are an inspiration for us 8)

So who's right? LeeB or doctorb? Time to fish out my old kinesiology texts  :P :P.

Aha, you're both right. I thought I remembered the 3500 kcal per lb of fat from my course. Mind you, that was 25 years ago. And so it is. 3500 kcal per lb of body fat.

The digestable energy content of dietary fats (such as butter) is as doctorb says -- 9 kcal per gram or 4176 kcal per lb of fat.

From those numbers I'm kinda guessing that body fat isn't quite so pure.

Not if it's mine. I'm definitely not so pure.  :D Either way, it takes a heck of a lot of exercise to get rid of a pound of fat. It is true however that your body burns more carbs with a higher muscle mass than without. In that sense exercise would make a difference on your total daily calorie burn.

Excellent work LeeB!  Now you are inspiring me to get back on the loosing pounds train.  Seems I always get side tracked during the colder months  ::)

This was posted on a total knee replacement thread.  It outlines what I tell my patients about calories, exercise and weight loss.  Just FYI.  Seemed to fit this conversation as well.  Again, Congrats to LeeB.


Here's a little Q&A I go through with my patients.  If you want to skip it, the take-home message is that while exercise can help you lose weight, you don't need to turn into a gym rat to do so.

"How many calories in one pound of fat?"  Answer:  "I have no idea"

The answer is that there are about 9 cal/gram of fat....and there are 454 grams in a pound.  Roughly speaking, that's about 4000 calories in a single pound of my spare tire (I usually grab it now to make the point.)

"How many calories do you burn if you run a mile?"  Answer: "I have no idea."

The answer about 100 calories.  And it doesn't matter whether you run a mile or walk it, it's still about 100 calories.  The calories burned seem to correlate with distance, not speed.

"How far is Washington DC from Baltimore?"  Answer:  "I have no idea."

The answer is about 40 miles.  So I show them that walking from my office in Baltimore to the Washington Monument would burn about 4000 calories.....only one pound of fat!  (40 miles  X 100 calories / mile = 4000 calories.)  They are shocked to realize that a 40 mile walk only burns one pound off their weight.

Now, let's look at exercise....If you walked 5 miles/day, How many calories would you burn?  Answer:  500  (5 miles X 100 calories / mile.)

If you walked 5 miles every day for a week, How many calories would you burn?
Answer:  3500 (7 days X 500 calories / day)

Doesn't that figure sound pretty close to the 4000 calories stored in a single pound of fat?  So....ideally:

If you could eat 500 calories less than you burn up every day (and that figure varies for each of us), you would be at minus (-) 3500 calories for the week.  If, in addition, you could walk 5 miles /day, you would be at an additional minus (-) 3500 calories for the week.  Total those two methods and you would be at minus (-) 7000 calories for the week, and, using the 4000 calories per pound estimate, you would lose between 1.5 and 2 pounds per week.

The point is that you don't have to exercise to lose weight.  Many of my patients have injuries and disabilities that will not permit them to walk 5 miles per day.  But through a change in dietary intake, we can make a steady dent in our universal problem of being overweight.  But exercise does increase the amount of calories you burn, and exercise has tremendous other health benefits besides burning fat.  Many patients tell me they can not lose weight because they can not exercise. That's when they get this little lecture and hopefully they benefit.

I fully concur Doc. I haven't done any exercise per asy and have lost about 85 pounds so far. I will say I am more active now than before just because I can get around better but no structured exercise. It's all been by changing what I eat.

Sounds like you are changing what you don't eat. :D Great job Lee, keep up the good work.

MAde it to my next milepost. Down to 250. Next goal will be a little easier, only 5 lbs this time. That will put me at 100lbs lost.  30 more pounds to go right now to reach my final goal.

Outstanding!!!

I need some of your resolve.

Keep it up Lee! I know you are going to get to your goal.

You've done fantastic, Lee!   smiley_clapping

So happy for you!   8)

I know that you have to feel better. 

I do feel much better. Imagine having a teenager strapped around your belly and carrying that around every move you make. I can even see my feet now.  8)

You make me proud my friend.   smiley_thumbsup

 8) 100lbs lost. 25 more to go. Next goal is 235. At 245 now.

Woohoo  8) 8) 8)

I saw some pictures of you at the "Project".   You are doing a good thing for yourself.   smiley_thumbsup smiley_thumbsup

A big congratulations  8) 8) 8)

Hope you will have a big steak to celebrate  :)

Actually, I eat steak now. I just eat a moderate amount of it instead of 16 oz. at a time.

Well done! Great job!

Finally made it to 235. The losses have really slowed down now. Still slugging away at it though. I had a bit of a cancer scare this week with a metastasized squamous cell cancer under the skin on my left check. It was removed and a P.E.T. scan for any more cancer turned up negative. I truly believe that all the weight loss contributed to the good results.

The losses may taper off a bit Lee, but your adjusted lifestyle and eating habits will continue to pay dividends.  Stay the course my friend. 

Still slugging away at it. Now down to 230. 10 more pounds to go. Went to the doc to get my 6 month check and blood work done for prescription refills. In his words my "blood work was fantastic". He took me off of blood pressure meds. I've also been able to stop using my c-pap for sleep apnea.

Wow, You're really doin' it Lee!   8)

Congratulations.

Nice report from you Doc.

Proud of you, my friend!

That's great news, Lee  8) 8)

I'd call it a real success story  :)

The doc told me he thought I had probably lost enough weight but I still want to try ang get to my original goal of 220 lbs.

You are an inspiration, Lee!

OUTSTANDING Lee!!!!!!!!!!! 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8)

45 more days will make one year since I started this journey. I'm hoping to be at my goal by then. After that the real work starts of keeping it off and making it a permanent lifestyle change. To say there aren't temptations would be a lie. My meal last night came with a lovely looking order of crisp lightly browned french fries. I didn't eat nary a one. Haven't had taters or any kind of grain since I started.

Well done! smiley_thumbsup

Impressive, Lee.  Congrats and keep at it!

A very good job!!!!!

Congrats, keep it up.

Well done Sir.

  8) Way to get er done  8).

Amazing!  You da man!

One year into it now. I've lost 120 lbs so far. Only 5 more to go meet my personal goal.

My hat is off to you, Lee.  Your perseverance is admirable.

Congratulations , Lee for sticking to it  8)

You are no longer carrying around the weight of a small person !!

 Congratulations, Lee.

Seem to be stuck at 225. I guess I can be satisfied with that if it won't go down any further. Now for the real challenge. To keep it there.

There is only one way to keep it there ... keep your diet the same as it is now, and do the same amount of physical activity as you do now.

Sorry, you probably didn't want to hear that, but it's true :(.

Already fully understood Bruce. If you go back to what you were doing before you will go back to same old weight.

Considering your height and frame Lee, that might be your "normal" weight.  Getting plenty of exercise and keeping those muscles properly toned should be your present goal.  Oh, and Congratulations!

That's great, Lee!

I know quite a few people who think that once they've got their weight down (usually with a crash diet), they can back off a bit and do some of the things they were doing before.

Bruce,
I went into this from the beginning knowing full well that it was going to have to be a lifestyle change and not just a 'diet'. As the title of the thread says, my fist question was about bariatric surgery. After some research I realized that the surgery would take a drastic lifestyle change to be successful so I figured why not just make the change and do it without surgery. My challenge now is to find the right combination to be able move from weight loss to a stable weight. I'm doing that by slowly introducing some foods back into my diet that I had left out. Still no complex or refined carbs and no intention of ever going that route again. I've worked hard to get where I am now and have no intention of giving this up.

This is where you have to really, really careful. You said you seem to be stuck at 225. That means you aren't losing weight any longer. And that means your current lifestyle is designed to keep your weight at 225.

I've seen a lot of "diet" examples that talk about the "energy balance". Food adds energy to your body; physical activity (which includes breathing and heartbeat) uses energy.

• When the two are equal, your weight stays the same.
• When you take in more energy than you expend, the excess energy is stored in your body, usually as fat.
• When you take in less energy than you expend your body uses up stored energy to make up the difference.

I'm sure you've read all this.

What I haven't seen in diet guides is an explanation of how a reduced body weight affects your energy expenditure. It depends both on the amount of physical activity and on your body surface area.

• When you've changed your lifestyle so your energy intake is less than your energy expenditure, your weight will go down.
• As your weight goes down your body surface area will go down.
• As your surface area goes down your energy expenditure will slowly decrease for the same amount of physical activity.
• Eventually you will reach a weight where your energy expenditure matches your energy intake. It sounds like that's where you are right now.
  

And, yes, I've been through this.

I'm still living pretty much paycheck to paycheck on this energy balance job.  :D Have remained at +/- 225 for several months now. I drop a few pounds under and then go a couple over but on average stay right here. I've experimented some with adding a few foods back to my diet but not many. I'm pretty happy with what I eat and only occasionally get a hankering for something I gave up. Fried shrimp is a tough one that I miss. Maybe a little further down the road I might try a treat like that every now and then but for now I'm kinda like a reformed alki in that I'm afraid if I start I won't stop. My self control right now stems from fear of loosing control. Overall though, I'm happy and certainly much more healthy.

And keeping it there is the hardest part of any weight loss program.  Good for you!!   8)

Thanks for the update. Glad to hear you're maintaining  8)

 Good for you  8) . And your right about self control, 18 yrs the end of this month and if I drank a beer I'd be inside a 30 pack of natural ice by morning  :( .

Lee just read this thread.  Great job!  WOW! Congrats on the positive journey and results.  I hope you can get your daughter on board some day.

Guess it has been a while longer than I thought since I last updated this. I did manage to convince her to give it a try. She does a little less restrictive form of it than what I do but she is doing well with it. Enough so that she has dropped enough weight that she managed to get pregnant again. They have been unsuccessful for quite a while. I'm happy on boths sides of the coin. Healthier me. Healthier daughter, and best of all another grand baby on the way.  8)

every thing is sounding better on your side  8) 8)  ED_K I know how you feel it took me a long time just to be around it now I can have 1 and leave it alone for a long time and I think the only reason is it leaves a bad after taste and want to gag  :) glad you are doing good as well  8) 8)

I am proud of each of you and thanks for sharing your success stories.   Life is worth the effort.  smiley_thumbsup

Still managing to maintain a range of a couple pounds below or over 225. Fluctuates up and down. Been holding for 9 months now.  8)

I know a guy that recently had the surgery . He was 400 lbs and has lost 40 lbs.

Red,
I managed without the surgery. After researching I found that if you don't make a lifestyle change the surgery is only a short term fix and the side affects can be horrendous so I decided if I have to change everything I eat anyway why not just change what I eat and save the $20k and the misery?

My friend is about 38 years old and needs both hips replaced. It was a difficult decision but the weight had to go first.

Lee; that's exactly what I've been telling my wife!

If you have to change your eating habits following the surgery, why not save all the frustrations, money spent and the internal rearrangement of your digestive tract, why not just change the eating habits first and forego the surgery?

I really like your approach, Lee!   8)

Lee I think you are doing awesome. Keep up the good work. You have to remember to eat to live not live to eat. Keep up the good work.

Now 2 years into this. Have lost a total of 125 lbs. Have been maintaining at 225 now for about 1 year within a +/- 5 pound range. Still sticking to the low carb way of eating. Onward to the next year.  8)

That's great
I'm working on it

Good for you Bruno. Sharing with others and the support you get from them was a great motivator for me. Let the folks here know what you are doing and your progress.

Lee, you earned the support that you have here on the FF.  Sticking with your plan and sharing it here motivates others. 

Keep working on it Bruno.   smiley_thumbsup

Can I have your old Bibs? Congrats!

I sold the bigger ones and the rest I have worn out. Finally bought 4 new pair after a year at the same weight. I can maybe help you with a couple pair of jeans.

 Way to go guy's  smiley_clapping.

Ed,
My journey is a walk in the park compared to yours.

Quote from: LeeB on September 25, 2017, 08:31:49 AM
I sold the bigger ones and the rest I have worn out. Finally bought 4 new pair after a year at the same weight. I can maybe help you with a couple pair of jeans.

Even my 40 jeans are getting tight.

The two pair I have that no longer fit are 42/32 I think. Still in very good condition. I outgrew them and put them on a shelf. When I started loosing weight by the time I tried them on I had already past them up going the other way.

Funny story
I wear shorts all year but wear pants working out side starting in December most years.
I pulled up to the gas pumps last week one morning people every places.
Stepped out of my truck and my shorts fall right off on to the ground :)
Time to get some new shorts
I'm still big and have a long way to go but made me feel good in a strange way.
I don't think I will ever make it to normal size
Bruno

Or punch some more holes in your belt. I put a couple more new ones in mine yesterday. In the right direction, even.  :D

Keep at it guys. I never thought i could be a normal size either without surgery.

 Bruno, that was to funny. Time for some of the spenders the german's wear when dancing.

Ed
Lol :)
I forgot I'm on the blood thinners now
I might have to give up my shorts early this year
One of my building supply places have had a pool on when I stop coming in with the shorts on :)

I've been big for so long I don't think I will make it to 60
My grandparents on my moms side made it to 97 and 96
But my dad's side not so lucky

Normal? What's normal?   ???   Normal for me to be outside all the time. Some stay inside and watch TV all the time,that is normal to them.

Just a quick update.
Now almost 2 1/2 years since I started all this. Have put back on 15 pounds in the last few months and am making another run at loosing it.

 Please send the #s to me ;) . Bet no one ever thought they hear words like that ;D . Everything I do I can not gain,all do to taking med's.

I wish I could Ed. I would surely be happy to share with you.

Don't beat yourself up Lee. I have struggled with my weight all my life. Once you figure out where you want to be at and most important where you feel good at you will learn when to back up from the table and when to step up. 

You've done so well, and keeping it in check is just part of keeping it off.  :)

Not much change in my weight since my last update. Haven't managed to loose any of the 15 pounds I gained. Lindy doesn't help by telling me she likes the way I look better at this weight than less.

Keep up the good work. Holding isn't a bad thing.

Well, a little over three years in now and net loss of about 95 lbs. The boys here at work had the galley make a cake for my birthday, so to make them happy I had one small bite of it. First sugar in mouth in over three years. Made my heart race and my head swim. Talk about a sugar rush. Did not enjoy the feeling at all. 

Good job on the weight!  8)

Happy Birthday Lee!

Thanks Chuck

Great job Lee.

Ok Lee will share with you. In May of 2018 i topped out at 348 plus pounds and felt terrible and about ready to die. Even had a heart attack in October of 2017. Decided to get gastric sleeve done. Had surgery on August 13 and was 331 the morning of surgery. They make you lose some weight prior to surgery and to shrink your liver. Surgery was a breeze but it does take a couple month to recover. My recovery went very smoothly. Long story short i now weight 254 and continue to lose about 3 pounds a week. Feel great. No more insulin, cholesteral meds, bp meds and a half a dozen other meds. Take nothing but a vitamin and calcium pills now. I still want to lose another 60 pounds, but at 57 i feel like i am 40.  Wife Kristina, aka mrs. Beaver had same surgery on September 24th. She is down over 40 pounds but having harder, and more typical time recovering, mostly dealing with naseau, which is common in many patients. For me it is best thing i ever did for my health. Fred

Fantastic progress @ Busy Beaver Lumber. It's great to be able to give up all the meds, isn't it? My health hadn't gotten quite as bad as yours, but I was rapidly getting there. I have to really watch myself that I don't slide back to overeating which I am certainly prone to do. I've stayed low carb though.

Great job Lee. Keep up the good work

Weight had kept creeping up on me until when I got to work this last time on Dec 4th I weighed in at 261. Decided that was high enough and it was time to quit talking and start doing something about it. Got off to a slow start but since then have managed to lose 9 pounds and still doing much better about controlling my portions. Portion control has always been a problem for me and not so much what I eat. Maybe I'll even make it to my original goal weight when I started all this of 220. 

Been at the low carb thing for a month over 4 years now. Gained a good bit right before I was retired and got up to 270. Just weighed for the first time since then and am at 256. Not my goal weight by a long shot but far better than the 350 I started out at 4 years ago.

That may just be your fighting weight! Good job.

we do the low carb thing as well, hang in there!  doing great.

You've lost, and kept off, 100 pounds for four years!  That is cause to celebrate so buy yourself your favorite cut of meat, sautee some mushrooms in butter, and have a side salad!

I've been low carb for just over 15 years, but my devil is type two diabetes.  My A1C had gone up to 6.5 and my doctor wanted to put me on medication, and I said no, I would control it by diet.  It sure is fun to watch the doctors heads explode that this is working.  :D  My last A1C was 5.3 and random blood sugar was 95. 

Your accomplishment is amazing and it's a junk food jungle out there.  So very happy for you. 

Great job

Great job Lee.

Wonderful! Keep it up, or should I say keep it down!