In January of this year I found out I had a stroke sometime in the past and ended up in the hospital for 3 days. Talk about an eye opener!
I had let myself gain back nearly 60 pounds of the 100 that I had lost after my Gastric By-pass in January of 2002 and had decided to make some changes. With the help of a co-worker I changed the way I ate and began exercising losing nearly 15 pounds when I found myself in the hospital with stroke symptoms, elevated blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides. I left that place with an even stronger desire to become healthy.
Upon returning to work I had a meltdown, not only was I reminded of my mortality each time I took my medication I was having withdrawals from chocolate and all the other junk food that had become main food staples. But I was determined.
On January 2, 2002 (the day of my Gastric by-pass surgery) I weighed 276 pounds. In less than 9 months I had lost 100 pounds and was feeling good... but I didn't listen to the experts and ate things I was told not to eat thinking, "I'm different, I'll never gain all that weight back." What a humbling and embarrassing experience to have a commercial on TV, ads in the newspaper and a billboard promoting Gastric By-pass to find myself almost right back where I started.
In March of 2004 through the grace of God I quit smoking (praise the Lord) unfortunately that is when I really began to put the weight back on. I just replaced one addiction with another. Now don't get me wrong, I am so grateful to be out of the grip of Nicotine but my weight was spiraling out of control. By January 2, 2010 I weighed in at 243 pounds! I was sick and ashamed but could finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. I had made a promise to myself and God to take care of the life He gave me. I believe I have a purpose here and it is not to look good in a pair of Levi's (although that would be nice too). I need to live a healthy and Holy life so I can be an inspiration to my family, friends and others I come in contact with. I want to live a long life and be able to be a part of my children's lives and to watch my grandchildren grow into the amazing people I know they will be. I want to grow old with my husband...
On 5/1/10 I weighed in at 213 pounds, having lost 30 pounds! Great, right? Except for the fact that as of 5/31/10 I weighed in at 217 pounds. I have gained back 4 pounds after going on vacation and not sticking to my plan of a healthy lifestyle. That is where you all come in... I need your help! I need you to help me be accountable. I need your help to stay on track. I will post pics (caution... they will not be pretty! LOL) and blogs of my progress. This is not a diet, it is my new lifestyle. I also want to help my daughters and husband become healthy and the only way to do that is to be an example. With your help and the help of my awesome Savior I know I can do it! And away we go...
This is a fantastic idea, Shari! You can be a real inspiration to others. I have to say, I can relate to you - others look at me and roll their eyes, because to most, I'm too skinny and little and "lucky". I have a total cholesterol level of over 300, inherited from my dad's side of the family. My dad died when he was 43 from a sudden massive heart attack - I was 18. So I've gradually made some serious changes to my lifestyle, both exercise and diet related. I've added some supplements to my diet as well. I struggle each day, too - Chocolate is my best friend! I will support you in this - I'm behind you 100% Maybe together we can lower our cholesterol! ha ha :)
ReplyDeleteMy struggle is similar, as you well know. I still say there is too big of a disconnect from surgery to real life after bypass surgery. I think you, like me, are probably too busy. This cuts back on concentrating on our own needs and the big one we miss the most is our health. If you think about it, we are always taking care of other people, family included (we both are addicted to our grandkids LOL).
ReplyDeleteAt one point I loved working out and the pleasure of seeing the pounds and inches melt away. The problem became, as I quickly realized, there has to be a middle ground with it and the program chosen has to be not only doable when I feel motivated, but also when I am not. Recommendations to work out 5 days a week is not realistic for me, and probably not for you either considering our work schedules.
Soooo, then the situation becomes, "What is realistic? vs What is necessary?" Honestly, I haven't figured that out yet because I'm tired of trying. I know that my eating habits have changed tremendously, and I eat healthier and way less than what I used to, but it appears that it isn't enough when I get honest with myself about my lack of exercise. I'm not convinced my problem now is food...it is the lack of vigorous exercise.
Now what? IDK! I'm not competitive, so that won't work...but I have several inches I'd really like to shed. But it still comes back to the feeling that being a 'normal' size is futile because I think I'll always see myself as fat. Even when I was much smaller, even in high school at 125 #'s I considered myself to be huge.
I believe the bottom line is, we have to figure out how to get the 'fat person' out of our bodies!!!
We have to rethink our beliefs about who we are apart from the weight and the defeat that seems to plague people who are overweight.
Thank you so much for the support you guys! I too have inheirited the high cholesterol problem and the "fat eyeballs". I weighed 135 when I graduated and thought I was fat...I turned in to what I thought I was! I always jokingly said my husband deserved more of a woman so I doubled in size for him! LOL. Seriously I am going to do this for me so I can be around longer for them. I appreciate your support.
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