Ten Things Thursday

Catching up here:

1. Hit a new low today of 277.6. Slow but steady going. Unlike the 6 weeks that I spent in a stall earlier this summer.

2. Must try harder in the next 3 weeks. I have a wedding to attend and I will be seeing family that I haven't seen since Christmas (at 320 pounds). I'd like to shred off about 13.6 pounds which would put me at my lowest weight since living in Florida (6 years). It's possible if I live on protein shakes and work out/walk daily.

3. I'm having a tattoo laser-removed and today the itchiness has set in. I have to say it's about the worst pain I've ever experienced (the actual treatment - not the itchiness). For 2 minutes it makes me feel like I'm going to pass out. But the results are starting to show after 3 treatments now. I paid for another 3 since they were offering a price break. I'm hoping after the 6, it'll be gone. Dumb dumb thing I did. It's going to cost me at least 3x what I paid for it to have it removed. What was I thinking that day?

4. Saw a bicycle accident this morning. The car won. I hope the woman is ok. She took a bad fall.

5. My mom is considering another shoulder surgery. At 81, I hope this goes well for her. Her April surgery didn't seem to help. This worries me.

6. We have an office farter. 'Nuff said. At least its not me.

7. I'm going to the Bok Tower Gardens this weekend with a friend and her son. Should be a good time.

8. My heart goes out to my dear friend Valerie who just lost her 41 year old husband to unknown causes. It's a heart wrenching story. She's a strong soul though. She will carry on and have a good life.

9 and 10. Pictures from last weekend. Went to MOSI in Tampa for a mummies exhibit and then ate at Taco Bus. Had the most amazing butternut squash tostada. Must see if I can replicate the recipe sometime. Moday was spent at Silver Springs and was a good time. A small outdated "theme park" --not by today's standards but back in the day, I could see the appeal. Was still a good time.

Take care all and happy Friday-eve!

Catching up

279.2

Well I finally hit the 270's. It's been about 6 or 7 weeks to lost the 10 pounds in the 280s. Longer than it should have taken. But now I'm motivated - like no other....I have an apt. on Oct. 4 to see Dr. Kim my surgeon. I fear him. I had to go into to see the nurse a couple of weeks ago and was told I was not on schedule and had started back on complex carbs too early. So no more rice, bread, pasta, potatoes, etc...for a while. I've started walking consistently and even made noon trips to Walgreen's (about a 2 mile walk round trip) in this god-awful Florida heat twice this week. I seriously fear my surgeon so I want to get off another 20 pounds  or so before D-day.

I've been doing some sightseeing lately on the weekends as usual. Here are some photos of recent trips to Old Town (cars - Orlando), Miami (Ibis bird and palm tree), the Brevard Zoo (Macaw)

An even 60

285.0

I've now lost a total of 60 pounds. It feels really good. The size 26 skirt I bought a month ago and couldn't get on yet is now feeling like its becoming too big. Or maybe it is fitting now and I'm so used to things being so tight on me that I don't remember what clothes that actually fit feel like.

Here's some pictures from last weekend. I went to Downtown Disney and Clearwater to see the sights. It was a very good weekend. I had a killer veggie sandwich from Wolfgang Puck Express at DD. Plus I indulged in a caramel apple. Boy did that thing taste good. I didn't need it but I sure wanted it and with all the walking, I justified having it.

280 here I come

289.0
I am back from my 10 day trip to Minnesota to see my family. I ate a lot of sugar while I was home. Something I don't really do much of down here in Florida. I thought for sure my weight would be up by 5-10 pounds, but I actually lost weight on my trip home. And I only threw up twice. Once for a wild rice hotdish that gave me horrible acid reflux and once for overeating lunch. Here are some pictures of the arboretum we went to.

Vacation Plans

I'm off to Minnesota for 10 days to see my family (mom, sisters, aunt, uncles) in just a couple of days. Because babysitters for my mom's dogs are needed if we go anywhere for a length of time, Dr. apts, and when my sister is off work - and because I like doing it, who am i kidding - I made an itinerary for the trip. I outlined the apts. and the wishful to-do list. It's pretty chock full of things and lots of driving to and fro.....but what struck me after reading and rereading my list in preparation and excitement of going "home" was that no where on this list was any food/restaurants mentioned. :)

7/2 Weekend update

290.0

Very happy with the weight. I was hoping to hit 290 before my trip coming up on Friday. It's the weight I was at one year ago for my art show. hard to believe that I put on and lost 55 pounds in a year. What was I thinking/doing?? Things got out of control very quickly. It now bring my total since surgery to 39.2 and overall to 55 pounds lost.

I was feeling pretty good about things (although I certainly wish the weight would come off faster) yesterday. Then I went on a day trip to St. Petersburg FL with a friend. She coaxed me into a photo booth for photos and I couldn't believe what 290 looks like. I was so internally upset after seeing myself. The chins is what got me. You'd think 55 would show more but I was aghast. I also got a very disapproving look from some lady at The Pier. I don't know what that was all about, but she gave me the up/down frowny face and I wanted to slug her and pull her hair. I wanted to yell "I've lost 55 pound biotch and I'm working on it."

Overall though it was a good day. I'm going to add in some protein shakes this week and I debated hitting the emergency room last night as I was severally dehydrated and had a monsterous headache. What stopped me was knowing how hard of a time they'd have sticking me for an IV. I was up at 2AM drinking water and watching tv just to get some fliuds in me. I have to be better about that this week.

Sunday, Jean and I went to St. Pete to see the new Dali museum and The Pier. She really had a good time. I had a hard time with the sun and heat (middle 90s). I was dehydrated as I stated before, so I was a little on the miserable side, but it was still fun. Photos to follow

Weekend update

291.6

I've been sick for about a week now. It's definately helped kick start the scale moving in the right direction though.I had another co-worker ask about my weight loss on Friday. I had to do some quick math when she asked me how much I've lost and it was then that I realized that I went over the 50 pound mark and didn't even notice. I've lost 53.4 pounds so far since my heaviest. Her mouth was agape when I told her. I don't think she expected that large of a number. She told me how wonderful I look. I was so happy about it. I haven't changed my clothes yet..I'm still in the same clothes I was in at 53.4 pounds heavier. So apparently it is noticeable even in the old clothes. I think I have about 10 more pounds left before shucking these clothes I'm in and refinding something smaller in my closet.

Numbers Numbers

Thought I'd share some progress today....here's the little ticker I keep at work. I don't record daily, just randomly. These are results since about early March (had surgery early April).

Small victories

I'm finally below 295. I'm at 292.6 right now and very happy about it. I lost 2 pounds in one day and someone told me it was a small victory to celebrate. I think I took it the wrong way. I felt really put out by it. I've been at about the same weight for 6 weeks. I felt like this was a huge accomplishment and to have that result in a single day. Why, that IS something to celebrate. It felt like a huge victory. Not a small one.

Lose a marathon - week 1 weigh in

Week 1 weigh in - 295.8. Looking forward to the challenge even though I am feeling a little under the weather today.

Lose a Marathon

Yes yes, I'm in. My first challenge that I've accepted. I'm very excited to see how this goes for me. Starting at 297.2..

Stricture Fun

I had my first endoscopy yesterday. They didn't find an ulcer but did find that I had a stricture, so they popped it back open for me. I found throwing up last night to have a much greater volume as a result. That was some dinner last night. When I got home from the Dr. about 2 o'clock I ate well. I had a good amount too. No problems at all. Then for dinner I had a spring roll. That's it, one leftover spring roll and I spent the next 4 hours throwing up about every 15 minutes. I think the regurg was pulling from my toes, I was heaving so hard. It was a very unpleasant evening.

Hopefully this solves some of the pain that I was having when eating.

I'm not sure how I'm doing on the scale front. Tuesday I saw a drop of about a half a pound which put me at my lowest since surgery, so I was stoked about that. I've been trying to stay off the scale since my stall was slowly driving me insane.

Hope everyone is having a great week. I'm looking forward to the weekend.

Following Directions

I did almost everything that I'm supposed to be doing (water, vitamins, protein, exercise) yesterday and guess what....today the scale hit the lowest mark since surgery. 297.2 - I'll take it. Maybe there is something to the Dr's advice afterall. Stay tuned...

Someone else noticed!

Today I saw a coworker that I haven't seen in months and she commented on how it looks like I've lost a lot of weight. I guess people that see you every day and see the changes little by little are less likely to notice. Someone that hasn't seen you in a long time, would be holding onto that last vision of you in their head, so the difference is more noticeable. Regardless, it felt nice and was from someone I wouldn't have expected.

Movie Popcorn

I went to the movie theatre last night and saw Snow White and the Huntsman. Man, movie graphics are getting so good these days. Constantly improving...So I got a small popcorn while at the movies. I had been mentally preparing myself all day and had a decent breakfast and lunch. Before heading to the multiplex, I thought about a MEDIUM popcorn and when the lady behind the counter offered to upgrade to a medium for just a dollar more, I thought about it for a split second..but I didn't think I'd be able to eat that much. I was right. I stuck with my small (so proud of myself) and couldn't finish that. It's such a small thing on the beginning on my journey, but I was so happy about a) sticking with my smaller size food portion b)not being able to finish it and c) hey, i saved a buck. yeah!

Regrouping today....

I haven't lost any weight in a month.

Therefore I need to regroup. Today I will:

• Focus on getting 80 oz of fluids



• Have a protein shake 3 times for 60 grams of protein a day




• Exercise for 30 minutes


I want to do this for the 2 1/2 weeks that my co-worker Caroline is out of the office and see what happens on the scale.

Sarasota Weekend

I was so excited to be getting out of town for the weekend. It's the only good thing about living here in Florida. There is so much to do and see. I started my adventure in Tampa, at the Taco Bus. I heard about it on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. It's a neat little place that serves Mexican food out of a school bus ala food truck style. I had checked the menu ahead of time and had my heart set on the fish tacos but alas they were no longer on the menu. So I ordered up some spicy shrimp and was amazed at the portion size. These seasoned shelled shrimp were mighty! And the green salsa on the side was a spice doosey. It took me about 4 mintues to eat about 4-5 good sized shrimp. And the next 40 minutes were spent heaving out my guts in various parking lots all over Tampa. I threw up in the parking lot, Wendy's parking lot, a gas station parking lot, and some printing company parking lot. I felt completely miserable and I'm pretty convinced it was the spices that did me in.


I was surprised at how difficult it was to eat on this trip. So many wonderful seafood restuarants on the Gulf coast and I couldn't enjoy any of it. At the motel I was all psyched for room service, only they didn't have it when I got there. So I went down to the pool area in my swimsuit and coverup. All 297.8 pounds of me in my black and white polka dot swimsuit. I had a ceasar salad at the tiki bar. Then I sat by the pool - too ashamed of myself to get in the pool. You see, there was a teen's birthday party going on. About 20 teenagers in the area and various parents and other patrons. I was the biggest one at the pool. I wanted to hide. So I did - I sat in a corner under an umbrella and waited for the area to clear. I really think I'm more conscious of my weight now that I was 45 pounds ago. I let it get to me, and I left the pool without ever getting in depite it be in the 90s. And on the way back to my room, feeling lonely and dejected, what did I want? To eat. I ordered delivery from some Italian place and had 2 side salads and a handful of yummy pasta tortellini with marinara sauce. It tasted good and was hot. I wanted more than I could actually eat. And then the last bite came up.
The next day brought the beach. That was very very nice and relaxing. Watching the sand crabs really freak me out though. Too much like spiders running around silently. For lunch I hit up Sweet Tomatoes. I love that place. But the $10 price tag was too much for what I ate. I had some various salads, a taste of the chowder, and 1/2 a bowl of the chili. I was done eating before the guy ahead on me in line even sat down.

After some more beach time in Longboat Key, I made it to Cortez. I had to pee at a McDonalds. I went in and ended up ordering a diet coke (small) and a McFishwich. It tasted so good but I only ate 1/2 as I didn't want to throw up. The rest I threw out the window and watched the seagulls fight over it. I kind of wish we had seagulls in Orlando. They are entertaining. But my favorite is watching the pelicans dive for fish. I don't know how they don't get hurt. Ohh I also saw 2 dolphins off the Venice pier. They were very close to the pier. At first I thought the fin I saw was a shark.

On the way back from Tampa I stopped and got a Subway tuna sandwich. I ate about 1/3 in the truck on the way home and then when home, peeled off 1/2 the bread and ate the rest. Not a bad weekend food wise but I was disappointed by my loneliness and the weight issues that kept me from doing things I wanted to do (get in the pool, get in the surf, walk on the beach, eat in a Gulf restuarant. But I did get some new duds at a Lane Bryant outlet and I can't wait to wear them. Teal and Yellow skirts that are super cute (size 26). Now if I can just get the scale moving again in the right direction. Today still at 297.8 - stalled again.

Today someone noticed

Today someone noticed the weight loss....and it felt really really good.

I can walk!

Why yes, I can walk....and last night I did. For the second time since surgery 8 weeks ago I actually went for a walk and got some exercise. And maybe a conincidence or because of the extra activity, today the scale was down further than yesterday. Since it's Florida and it's about to be summer here - the afternoon thunderstorms will be starting shortly. I have decided that I will walk on days when the weather looks clear. On the other days, I will have to find something else to do. My head knows that I have only a few short months to really maximize my weight loss after surgery so it is time to get busy and get regular.

When do people notice?

I've lost about 45 pounds since early March. When the heck do people start to notice? My pal Gwynne has lost 40 and it really shows, she is wearing clothes that fit her and look good. She looks amazing. She's also about 100 pounds lighter than I am. Again today, someone complimented her and went on and on about it. She deserves it. I just want to know when people are going to notice like that for me. Then again, when that happens, it makes me wonder if people DO notice, they just opt not to say something about it. Maybe to not draw attention to the fact that I have so much more or to lose. Why compliment the fat chick after all. Maybe it's my introverted personality. I don't really know. Nor do I really care all that much but it sure makes me wonder sometimes. I'll be sure to note in my blog if/when it does start to happen to me.

On another note: breakfast - about 2 oz of salmon

snack - crackers

lunch - 3/4 slice of thick crust pizza - peperoni from papa john's (work lunch)