March Progress Picture

Well, the changes come a little slower now, but I can still see improvements every time I take a new progress picture. Sometimes it's hard to believe it really is me. I feel skinnier all the time. Still got work to do, but I am so proud of the progress I have made. My butt still looks a little big. I wonder if I will continue to lose that or if I will keep some junk in my trunk.

As of this morning my total weight loss is 106 pounds. Is that crazy or what? In fact today, I also hit 80 pounds of weight lost since my surgery day of 277. Sometimes I look at a picture or my reflection in the mirror and I wonder who the heck that is looking back at me, LOL.

Cure for Baggy Butt...Size 16's!

Well, I went shopping yesterday and bought some new jeans. I fit snugly into a size 16! As usual, I went to the plus size section of the store and then realized that there were no sizes there for me! Woohoo! I can't believe it, I truly am in the regular size section of the store. I also picked up the new sweater I am wearing and two other shirts, all size XL (16/18). I am a little lumpy, with a slight muffin top, but I know that the jeans will fit better every week, so it's better to buy them slightly tight. Plus they have spandex, so they will get roomy throughout the day as I wear them.

Scale says 202 today, which I can live with. It's been up and down this month as my eating habits have been a little off kilter. Hopefully I can get that in check and keep seeing some progress soon. Yippee for 16's!

Another Picture Today...OMG!

I was taking a picture of my baggy jeans...see the previous post for that one. I also took a side shot and damn, I guess I hadn't really looked at one of these in a while, so I put it up against my pre-surgery picture. OMG! It's funny how you don't realize how terribly fat you are until you see what you can be like skinny--and I still have work to do. By the way how do you like the new blonde me? I decided blondes have more fun! OMG, what a crazy difference. That's a shocker to me, I feel like I have blinders on sometimes and just can't see the changes. WLS patients soooooo need to take photos of their progress at regular intervals, it is so important to the change process that is going on both inside and out!

Smack Ass Turns to Baggy Ass

Sometimes the slow and steady weight loss just sneaks up on you. Today I noticed that my "smack ass" jeans--you know the ones, the size 18's that I was ecstatic about a few months ago 'cause I looked like a million bucks in them? Well, here we are, the jeans are straight out of the dryer this morning and I have a baggy butt. Time for some new jeans! So now I am thinking what size is next? Will it be a 16? Or dare I dream for a 14? These jeans were tight in October, now on to the next one!

Well, last night's colon cleanse was a success, everything is clean as a whistle now. Ha ha! Of course after a night like that, the scale was awesome this morning, giving me 201! But I doubt that will stick around. So we will see what today brings. My band was particularly tight this morning. All I had for breakfast was yogurt and that even hurt the slightest bit going down. Such a fickle thing, my band.

October Progress Picture

Well, it's that time again...time to post the monthly progress picture. Woohoo! Well, here I am at 220 on the scale. I am wearing an XL polar fleece vest from L.L. Bean--yes an XL, not a plus size! I got it on my trip to Maine in September. OK, I think I need to take photos of myself before I leave the house as I see that the cream colored shirt underneath is too big for me and the pants, which I thought fit well are actually baggy. Ha ha! Dressing this body is like trying to hit a moving target.

Anyway, I like what I see. The stats for the record are: 83 pounds lost all together, 57 lost since surgery on 12-15-09. Down from 3X-4X to XL's in most shirts. Pants size is down from mostly 28's to a baggy 18. I can't believe I am just 17 pounds away from 100 pounds down and 21 pounds to onederland. I might actually start the new year getting closer to those milestones. Wow!

Another Face Comparison

I love doing these photo comparisons...here's a recent picture that shows that I have lost part of my 80 pounds in my face, LOL.

It just gets me that my eyes look brighter and more alive. You don't realize how much that fat actually holds down your facial muscles and changes the shape of your face. I wonder if I will ever get rid of the double chin? At least it isn't a triple chin like it used to be!

September Progress Picture

Well, here we are in the middle of the month and it's time for a progress picture. I also included a picture comparing my pre-op picture at 285 and then down to my current 226. That's not even my worst of 303, but you get the picture, lol. I am feeling so much thinner! Wow, all of the sudden you realize that you are a different shape than you used to be. I know I still have a ways to go, but it has been a long time since I have seen me at this level--literally decades. I think I am getting close to my high school weight and perhaps starting to surpass it. That's weird. I don't know myself as a skinny anything, let alone a skinny adult. Now mind you my definition of "skinny" is not the same as the rest of the world, but you know what I mean.

In other good news, the scale was kind this morning, delivering a 226--even after my Oreo cookie binge yesterday. This weight loss thing is so fickle, you never can tell when a pound is going to drop off. Just when you've given up thinking that the scale will ever move, it suddenly does. Crazy world.

August Progress Picture

Thought it was about time to post my monthly progress picture. Here's the latest version of me and just for fun I even tucked in my shirt...something I never do! I don't think it looks too bad. I still have lots of work to do, but wow, I can really see the change in my shape and my posture. I just feel smaller finally. The shirt is a big and baggy 3X leftover from several summers ago and the pants are an 18/20 that I bought this summer. I can't believe how my hips have shrunk, I can actually stand with my arms hanging straight down rather than having them bow out to the sides.

Notice how funny my watch is hanging off my left wrist too. My watch has been dangling on my wrist for months, but if I take out a link its just a bit too tight and I haven't found one that I really like to replace it, so it just hangs off of me. Who knew you could lose fat in your wrists. LOL. I am so close to the 220's I can taste it. As of this morning, after my walk and in the buff on the scale I weighed 230. So awesome!

Holy Cow...I Have a Neck!

Time for a progress picture! Wow, I can't believe that I actually have a neck! This a comparison of 303 versus 236, from last June to today, July 16--that's 67 pounds ago! My face looks so different. I think there may actually be a little more spark behind those eyes too. It's easier to smile too since I don't have to use my facial muscles to push all that fat out of the way. I can't stress the importance of progress pictures to me. I really need that visual confirmation that I am changing.

I had to laugh, I took a few pictures with my camera's timer setting. I looked at he first one and realized I was swimming in this old shirt. It's a 22/24 which I have had for several summers. So I took a big binder clip from my desk drawer and cinched the back up a few inches for this photo. I am still working on that size thing, I think I need to go to a store and just try on some stuff. I don't necessarily have to buy it, but I think just trying some things on for size may help me match my body to my brain. I am feeling so positive about my progress right now. Sometimes it seems incredibly slow, but I know that each small step helps. Hope everyone is having a great day today and all your weight loss goals are coming true! Gotta love the band.

Progress Pics

Thought it was about time for another monthly progress picture. Here are the stats for this picture for posterity...

Shirt Size: 2X

Pants Size: 22W

Weight: 245 lbs.

Total Weight Lost Since Surgery: 32 lbs.

Total Weight Lost from High of 303: 58 lbs.

Time: 5 months (21 weeks since surgery)

Progress Picture

It was such a nice day outside I thought it would be a great day to take a photo outside. I haven't had much weight loss lately, but I am hoping that walking more will really jump start things. Today on the scale I saw 252. At least I am holding steady. For the record this is a 3x shirt from last summer (nice and loose compared to last year) and size 22 pants. Just wanted to save another picture for posterity and to look back a few months from now and say "wow". I still have quite a long way to go but I am making progress.

New Pictures

Thought it might be time for a photo update, so here's a comparison photo from my high of 303 to my current weight of 255. My hair looks like crap. I have been growing it out, but decided that is way too high maintenance for me, so tomorrow I am chopping it off! My face looks so different to me, in fact I can almost see a resemblance to my sister, which I have never really seen before, odd. Anyway, I am still holding steady at 255, just waiting for the scale to give up those final 2 pounds before the 50 pound milestone. I can also definitely tell that I am losing my butt, which is a good thing. Just keep making progress! :)

Progress Pictures

Thought I'd put up a new progress picture today. This is me at 260 lbs. I am definetly starting to see some changes! I'm still pretty lumpy in places though, so I still have lots of work to do. This is a new shirt, one of my bargain finds on my shopping trip--it's a 2X, woohoo! Down a size, it's maybe a smidge tight and clingy, but it will get better.

The second picture is my high of 303 in June 2009 to my current 260 in February 2010. My hair's grown quite a bit too, lol. To all my lapband buddies, don't forget to celebrate all your successes, big and small! :)

Comparison Pictures December to January

You may need to click on these for a bigger image, but here are some comparison pictures from December to January. I can see a little change, and I know for sure I feel it in the ways the pants fit. There is quite a bit of wiggle room as shown in the next picture.
It isn't really visible just yet, but just wait a little longer and it will look even better. Just wanted to record the progress. I want to celebrate every little step along the way to keep me motivated. These pants are a size 30, and I fit into a 26 very comfortbly, so there is a huge difference. One day I hope to take a photo of these pants falling off me! I will get there!

More Pictures

Here are some pictures, at various weights over the past 3-5 years. I think most of these are from about 2006 to present. In that time I was anywhere from a low of about 255 to a high of 303.