Nothing says a job well done like a firm smack on the ass.

These brave people de-lurked themselves and created their own blogs!

Well done.

Please stop by their blogs and tell 'em that I sent ya:

Chillin' With The Band

The Land of Flying Pigs

Ask Me About My Band, my Lap-Band

Nikki's Meltdown

Principal Bandster

THANKS!

How To Gain Four Pounds in Four Days With the Lap-Band

....just keepin' it real.

Getting my dose of accountability for the day. 

I've just had a very busy and fun four day weekend of FOOD. 

I won't go into the details. No food porn talk needed this morning.

I weigh every morning, but only count my Friday weigh-ins.

If you remember, last Friday I was 142.2 lbs.

This morning's weight: 146.8 lbs.

Yep, that's a GAIN of 4.6 lbs in 4 days.  All related to MY food choices over the weekend.

The Lap-Band is not magic.   wish it was.

It takes work.

There is no "done."

There is no finish line.

Let's see what my official weigh-in is on Friday.

Weigh-in Day & Me-Ality

Goal Weight: 145 lbs

Today's Weight: 142.2lbs

***************

When I was a size 22W/24W, I could walk into plus size sections of clothing stores and/or Lane Bryant and always be the same size no matter the store.

Now that I've slid down a few sizes, I am beyond frustrated with how inconsistent misses and petite sized clothes can be at different stores.  

Here are some crazy examples of my current sizes:

• BCBG: size 8 or Large
• Ann Taylor: size 2, 4, or 6
• Kohls brands: size 4 or XS
• Old Navy: Size 6 or Large

Therefore, when I heard about Me-Ality, I just knew that I had to give it a try.

It's a scanner that scans your body and provides you with a print out of what size you are in most stores and brands.  Amen. And it's FREE.  It also tells you what type of jeans (cut/style) will look best on your body. Amen x2.

I plan to stand in one of these Me-Ality scanners this weekend.  I'll check back in and let you know how it went.  My only question that I have so far, "Do I get to suck in my gut when it scans me?"  Hmmm.

Check out this Me-Ality video:

Weekend Snapshot

Here's a quick photo from this weekend.

I'm so pale that I think that I'm becoming see-through. Spray tan needed! Stat!

Let's do an analysis, shall we?

Even though I've been at my current size (not shape, 'cause that's always changing), I still can't get over the fact that I fit into smaller sizes.  No more 24W for me!  Never in a million gajillion years when I started my journey with the Lap-Band, did I ever think that I would be wearing size 2 and X-Small.  I remember when I was pre-op and I mentioned to my friend Amy how I hoped that I would one day be a size 10/12.  Who woulda thunk it that I would have exceeded that dream?

Take a look in that red cup.  I was at a 'Kegger' party.  Everyone was drinking beer.  I was drinking water.  I am very lucky that for me, alcohol has never been a trigger for me and I will very rarely drink.  Maybe one cocktail every few weeks.  Now, if it was a 'cake' party, then I'd be sitting there with a big ol' piece of cake.  I guess we all have our triggers.

Lastly, I'm an official iPhone addict.  Admitting that I have a problem is the first step, right?  Almost all of my Facebook updates (what I'm eating, doing, exercising, wearing) are posted using my iPhone.  If you really want to know what I'm up to, check it out.  The latest FB update?  I'm going sky-diving!

Are You Scared?

I can sense your presence.

Are you a lurker?

Yep, I'm calling YOU out.

The best way to get the most out of YOUR journey to improved health: give back to the online community that you frequently visit.

For me, I started my blog as a way to document my weight loss journey and most importantly to have ACCOUNTABILITY.  Yep, those Friday weigh-ins are still very important to me and my success with the Lap-Band.

So, here's my request to YOU:

START A BLOG.

Don't roll your eyes at me.

I'm serious.

You can be very anonymous with your blog, make up a super secret alias name, post NO pics or pics of your head cut off, and blog away to your heart's content.  Here's one great example of this type of blog: Meet FLUFFY.

OR

You can spill all the beans about your life in full detail and show us pictures of your family, friends, outfits, struggles, successes, etc.

It's your choice to blog about whatever YOU want.  You reveal what you want.  It's up to YOU.

Don't worry about spelling, grammar, or any other "rules."  A blog is a safe place for you to talk about whatever you want.

For me, there are a few things that I don't blog about:

• I don't reveal my real name.  This is the Internet people.
• My dating life.  There's enough drama on that topic to start a whole other blog.

To start your blog, go HERE.  Fill it out and off you'll go into the blogosphere!

I want to read about your journey.  Really, I do. We all do.

I'll even do a shout-out to you on my blog to get you lots of followers.  I love how that sounds slightly cult-like!

So, go start that blog and let me know the link.  Because I'll be reading.

Weigh-in Day & a Scary Thought For Me

Today is my 141st weekly Friday weigh-in since I started the pre-op diet back in August 2009 at 256 lbs

Goal Weight: 145 lbs

Today's Weight: 140.6 lbs

Golf claps all around.

*******
Onwards to a scary thought:

This week, the word "bikini" emerged from my mouth in the same sentence as "I might want to try wearing one this summer..."

There's a FIRST for everything.  Right?

I have NEVER EVER put sunblock on my belly because it hasn't seen the light of day. Ever. Seriously.

I'm hung up on the extra skin on my belly.  There I said it. 

It's wobbly.  It's mushy. It's squishy like bread dough.  Spanx are my friend. 

I know that my hang up on wearing a bikini is just my inner fat girl screaming "no! don't do it!"

So, I ask you, can you recommend a good quality, well-constructed line of swimwear/bikinis?  I'm looking for something that'll hold it all together if you know what I mean and contain these 36 DDs. 

Help.

Maybe if I find something decent, I'll do a blog reveal of me in my bikini a la Kirstie Alley on Oprah

I feel like I would like this.

Boobs!

Nope, I'm not talkin' about the girls or the tatas.

I'm talking about the third annual Band Of Outrageous Babes bandster meet-up in Chicago this Fall.

It's theeee event where blogging bandsters invade Chicago and have an amazing time hanging out, shopping, and eating....oh and drinking...there's always the drinking.

Here are my recap posts from the past two year's of meetups:

BOOBS 2010

BOOBS 2011

I hope that my finances and schedule allow me to attend this year.  My fingers,  toes, and eyes are crossed!

If you're interested in learning more about this fun event, go to the official site HERE.

Will you be going to BOOBs this year?

Ding Dong!

Is that the doorbell that I hear?

Could it be one of my favorite men waiting at my door?

It's the UPS delivery man!

Last week's online retail therapy session has arrived.

I found this dress at Target.com in the clearance section for $14.98.  Damn! That's a steal.

Size Petite Small. Super snug. Hugs my curves in all the right places.

But the most important question of the day is:

Belt or no belt?  

No belt

with belt

I think the belt adds a little somethin'-somethin'?

Remembering the Promise...

Remember that promise that I made to myself back on my two-year bandiversary?

It was the promise to never forget what it felt like to be obese.

If you missed it, you can read it here.  It was a letter to the fatty that I used to be.

What it felt like to be out of breath all..the..damn..time.

How the back pain and the swollen ankles were a craptastic daily event.

It's that promise that keeps me going each and every day.

It's that promise that reminds me to focus on healthy food choices and making exercise a priority.

I recently read a fantabulous article that helped me to remember that promise that I made to myself.

The article, Daily Life - Struggles With Obesity, was in this month's Obesity Action Coalition's magazine.

I highly recommend that you give it a read and join the OAC as a member.  Just $20/year.  That's 5 cents a day people.  The OAC is thee bomb, just sayin'.

Anywhoozle...here are parts of the article that really hit home for me:

"It is now 6:20 am and John is getting ready to head out for the day. As usual, his shower was an adventure, as the shower hose does not reach far enough around his body to wash himself. Compounding his frustration, his shirt is wrinkled as it spent the night lying on the closet floor because it continually falls off the hanger, due to the fact that the hanger is not large enough to hold the XXXL shirt.

Dressed for the day, John now reaches for his seatbelt extender as he pulls out of the garage. Backing out slowly, he looks in his side and rearview mirrors, being careful not to back into anything. Turning his neck to actually look backwards is no longer an option now that he has topped 380 pounds.

A woman named Jane has anxiety as she pulls into a restaurant parking lot for another early morning meeting with clients. Jane hopes that all of the front row spaces have not already been taken, so that she does not have to walk very far. She knows her legs will have a hard time carrying her 300 pound body from her car to the doorway.


She thinks to herself, “I really don’t want to have to catch my breath again before I say hello to them.” That thought quickly fades as she scans the room looking for her tablemates. “I hope they didn’t get a booth again! I knew I should have gotten up earlier so I could be the first one here,” she thinks to herself, and then continues on, “Oh good, they got a table. I hope that chair is sturdier than the ones at the library last week. I don’t want to break another one.”

How easily I can forget what a daily struggle it was for me to be obese.

I know that I have to keep remembering that promise that I made to myself or my old fatty behaviors will creep back in to my life:

Did You Watch 20/20?

I watched Friday's 20/20 episode this weekend called "Losing It: The Big Fat Money Pit."

I was fascinated by the approximate 7 minutes that was spent on the 1-800-Get-Slim surgeons, the Omidi brothers, who may have allegedly caused the deaths of FIVE Lap-Band patients.  Wow. Check out the video here. (ABC News)

This makes me so glad that I thoroughly researched which surgeon would do my surgery.

I even researched the option to go to Mexico and have my surgery.  No way, not for me.

In my first appointment/consult with my surgeon back in August of 2009, I had a post-it note full of questions that I asked my surgeon.  I hope he felt like I was interviewing him for a job, 'cuz that's exactly what I was doing.

Research your surgeon, OK?  Promise?  Go to the Lap-Band site and see what surgeons are in located in your area.

Onwards to the Lap-Bander, named "Cassie," in the 1-800-Get-Slim commercial that was shown in the 20/20 episode.

I have serious issues with her quote from the TV and billboard ads:

"The Lap-Band is the easiest thing I've ever done."

WTF.

Seriously?

I wonder if Cassie came up with that tag line on her own?  I doubt it.  Probably the crafty work of an advertising agency.

I can think of LOTS of things that are easier than being cut open and having a silicone device put inside me.

I can think of LOTS of things that are easier than going through the recovery and pain of surgery.

I can think of LOTS of things that easier than having to follow a new way of eating and making exercise a priority for THE REST OF MY LIFE.

And let me tell ya, all that HARD WORK is absolutely worth it!

What did you think of the 20/20 episode?

Weigh-in Day...

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 142.0 lbs

Not too bad considering I had lots of fun drinking cocktails and enjoying a dinner out last night!


- Posted from my iPhone

I'm Waiting For You

Here I sit.

Where exactly am I sitting? 

I'm on the "maintainers" bench.

I've been sitting here maintaining my 115 lb weight loss for 16 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days.

I'm sitting here waiting for YOU. 

When will you join me in maintenance? 

Yes, I know exactly how difficult it is to lose weight.  Boy, do I ever know.

Yes, I know it's a lot of work.  Tons of work.  Seriously.

Yes, I know how it takes making good choices each and every day.

But let me tell you, some pretty wonderful things happen out here on the maintainers bench:

I have a closet full of clothes that fit me. Size Small, Petites, and 2's, 4's, 6's that I can't wait to slip into each morning.  I remember when getting dressed and clothes shopping used to be such a chore with my 22/24s.  Not anymore!

I have so much energy now.  I'm not sleeping my life away.  I don't break a sweat climbing a single flight of stairs now. Amazing!

The world is a different place in this new body. My healthy appearance makes some people treat me so differently (better) now that I'm not a fatty.  It's nice not being ignored anymore.

And the best thing about maintenance?  I know that I am taking the best care of my body for a healthy future.

I just know that you can and will get here too.

I'll try to be patient.

But I'm waiting for you...

On Your Marks, Get Ready....Go!

It's that time again.

Yep, this is the part where I pressure you into watching more TV.  Can you handle it?

It's time to go set your DVR for this Friday night, May 11 at 10 p.m. EST.  Channel: ABC

That's right, while you are out partying your life away this Friday night, the TV show "20/20" will be doing an episode all about weight loss (including weight loss surgeries).  ABC is calling it “Losing It: The Big Fat Money Pit”

I can't wait to hear what you think of the show!

I'm Ready For My Survivor Audition

Here's a photo montage for you that was captured when we were hiking on Sunday in the wilderness of Oregon.  

Yeah, we were bored.

This made me realize that I am now actually fit enough to be a contestant on Survivor.  Hmmm.  A crazy thought indeed.  Perhaps another Non-Scale Victory (NSV) to add to the list?  Whatevs.

My 'American Gladiator' impression.
That was a really good show. I miss it.

"Walk softly and carry a big stick; you will go far"

You do know that laughing provides the best calorie burn. Seriously.

What Happens in Texas, Stays in Texas

Just kidding.

There's no way I would leave you hangin'.

I'm back from a couple of fun days in Austin, TX....and I'm going to tell YOU all about it!  

I went to Austin to meet up with some pretty famous bandsters (at least in my book).  I am honored to be part of Allergan's "Health Patient Executive Council."

You may be asking yourself...who the heck is Allergan?  They're the folks that make the Lap Band.

Shall we begin with a Non-Scale Victory (NSV) that never gets old? 

Of course.  

Here I am sitting in the airplane seat with my legs crossed AND tons of seatbelt leftover. 

Can I get an "AMEN"?  I hear ya.

I stayed at the FABULOUS and haunted Driskill Hotel.  Wow!  It was built in the 1880s.

Here's my room.  I had an extra bed in my room. Too bad you weren't there. We coulda had a sleepover and braided each others hair and had pillow fights.  Oh well.  I guess we'll have to save that for next time:

Some damn creepy paintings that were in the hallway outside my room.  I swear those eyes on the paintings followed me as I passed by.

Hangin' with THEE one and only: Amy W!

I feel like a short troll standing next to the statuesque and stylish BandedWendy.
Check out her videos on Youtube! 

Alex and I chillin' between meetings.
Did you know that Alex is a 9-year post-op
bandster who founded  LapBandTalk.com?

How about some official Austin, Texas FOOD PORN?! Yum:

Amy and I met up with some local Austin bandsters.  It was great to hear about their weight loss journeys with the Lap Band:

(From L to R) To protect the innocent:
Austin Bandster #1 (preggers, duh), Austin Bandster #2,
Amy W., Me.  note: the all-important  toe points!

Lights! Camera! Action!
My chance to tell tell the world how much I LOVE my Lap Band!

What a fun group of Weight Loss Surgery patients!

Lastly, how do you know that you're at a meeting with a bunch of bandsters and WLS peeps that are watching their weights?  

Almost all of the Splenda is missing. We're a bunch of Splenda junkies indeed:

Sweet n' Low, Sugar, and two lonely packets of Splenda

8 Weeks Post-op and 87 lbs Gone!

Damn.

I'm speechless.

Seriously.

I've just discovered another ROCKSTAR bandster.  Actually, he found me.

I received a lovely email from Big Deal McNeil.  He calls him self BigDealWLC on Youtube.

...and let me tell ya: He's ROCKING his band.  

He's lost 87 lbs and he's 8 weeks post op.  Damn.  (oops, I said it again).  What an inspiration he is!

Here's one of his videos.  Please stop by his Youtube page and leave him some BOOBs loving/supportive comments. Tell him I sent ya:

Weigh-in Day?

Nope!

'Cuz I'm not near my scale.

I'm in Austin, TX doing this:



- Posted from my iPhone

Question of the Day!

Finally! I'm not going to ask you a rhetorical question.

That's my 50 gajillion point word of the day: rhetorical.

I gotta try and work 'rhetorical' into my next Words With Friends game. Do you play WWF?

Anywhoozle, here's the question:

If you had the opportunity to sit face to face with the Lap Band manufacturer and ask them ANY questions that you wanted, what would YOU ask?

Why do I ask? Because I'll let you in on a little secret: THEY'RE LISTENING.

Discount Extended!

Great news!


Jean McMillan has graciously offered to extend the discount on her cookbook  "Band Wagon Cookery" through this Saturday May 5!

She's been slammed with cookbook orders this past week and there are just a few copies left!

So if you haven't had a chance yet to place your order, scroll down to the bottom of this page and click on over to Jean's Paypal site.

I'm headed to Austin, TX today.  I'll be hangin' with some WLS peeps that YOU may know.  I'll be sure to post photos on Facebook. 

Tastes Like a Bait n' Switch to Me

I just realized that I forgot to take my high blood pressure (HBP) medication this morning.  Yep, I ran out the door and totally forgot.

Now I'm thinking...should I go home at lunch and take it?

Or just say f*ck it, I'll take it tomorrow?

I'll remember to take tonight's high blood pressure medication. (Yes, that's another HBP medication that I'm on).

The main reason that I got the band was to resolve my "co-morbidities."  Is that hyphenated?  Hmmm...

I don't like words that have "morbid" hiding in them.

Remember how when you were pre-op the medical professionals in our lives just LOVED to throw around that word: "co-morbidities".  They tell you how all those will go away.  It'll be like magic, you'll see.

I used to think that:
Getting Healthy & Losing Weight = No More Co-morbidities

Well, my HBP did go away.  For about a year. 

Then the HBP came back.

So now I'm back on medications. 

No dollar savings on co-pays that were promised long ago.

I do realize now that my genetics are not on my side. 

But that's OK, because I have GAINED so much from getting my body healthy with the help of the Lap Band:

• No longer carrying around and extra 115 lbs. I still can't figure out how I did that each and every day. No wonder I was so tired all the freakin' time.
• My back no longer hurts.
• My feet no longer hurt.
• I don't get sweaty and out of breath after climbing a flight of stairs.

What is the best thing about getting healthy for me?

I am no longer sick and tired of being sick and tired.