christielyons

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Here you are folks, ME!  =)  16 months ago before jumping back onto the bandwagon, 6 months ago during all this, and now.  I've lost 80 pounds since joining the gym in late July and completely kicked my ass to do it.  I did NOT have a revision to surgery, I simply worked my butt off almost every day for at least an hour in the gym. 

Its been now 7 months since joining the gym.  I've gone from 257 pounds to 184.  A size 24 to a 10.  I have lots of muscle definition in my arms and shoulders and I find myself staring at them in the mirror in disbelief.  What is different this time around, is that I can actually SEE the weight loss.  After my bypass, even at my smallest (175...so close!) I still saw myself as the 350 pound person I was.  I've been working my butt off at the gym, going in daily.  Our budget required me to give my trainer up as well as the weight loss class.  Thankfully the gym does offer a ton of free group classes.  I've been trying some out.  I did a cardio kickboxing class and REALLY enjoyed it!  I also joined with the gyms 90 day weight loss challenge.  I didn't do it to win by somehow losing a tremendous percentage of weight though.  At the end of the challenge, there is a 5k.  One of my resolutions to myself this year, was to complete a 5k (perferrably running/jogging the entire thing, but that just might have to come later).  It was a perfect opportunity and if I happen to lose my last 20-30 pounds, then so be it!  Its a win-win situation! 

I am beginning to research plastic surgery again.  Before my children came along, I was scheduled for a LBL and found out that my first child was coming the day BEFORE my surgery.  =P  My skin is horrible!  I'd say worse than it was before but thats what happeneds when you lose 200 pounds, gain back 150 and have 4 children, then turn around and lose it all again.  Speaking of my children, you would think that after having and breastfeeding all 4 of them, I'd have something to show for it at the end!  My chest muscles are now larger than my breasts and it makes me sadder than sad.  So I'm also looking into getting the twins done (hopefully at the same time as I'm not a fan of surgery in general).  The skin is beginning to get in my way of exercising but not terribly.  I want to jog more but I'm not.  I was jogging the other day and was happily listening to music in my own little world.  Heard a weird flapping sound (OVER the music) and it was my skin flapping against itself.  That grossed me out to no end.  So, instead I've been doing the elliptical for cardio since its a much smoother motion.

I want to try to check in more often on this site but can't promise anything!  Life is hectic with 4 kids and such.  =P

It has been 2 months since I've joined the gym.  Things are going well!  I've begun doing some jogging on the treadmill, still doing the weight loss classes, and still meeting with a trainer once a week.  I've lost 20 pounds and (according to their scale at the gym) am 219!!!  Thats quite a loss!!!  I'm in a regular size Large shirts & 16/18 pants.  I have another 50 pounds to go until I get to my lowest point post surgery of 170 but I'm well on my way and feeling incredibly accomplished!  I really am doing this again and being sucessfull at it!  I haven't given up on myself and am simply gaining more and more determination to get it done. 

Skin is becoming an issue again for me.  My husband is all for me getting the removal surgeries later when I'm ready for it. 

Other than that, things are really just business as usual.  I get cranky when I DON'T get to the gym and feel wonderful when I leave all sweaty and gross.  =)  its a nice feeling!  I still am dying to do my measurements but my kids played with the tape and I can't find it anywhere and just haven't bought a new one.  I haven't really even thought about it because my clothes are just getting bigger and bigger so I don't currently need the reassurement that measuring brings.  I'm sure the time will come soon for it! 

Today is my son's 2nd birthday.  I can't believe he is 2 years old now as time has gone VERY quickly! 

This weekend, I'll be taking my measurements and doing a weigh in to see how i did this month.  I've joined up with a weight loss group at the gym.  We work out together with a trainer using treadmills, various heart zones, and weights.  Its brutal at times, but I've fully completed 2 classes!!  =)  Its a 12 week program and I've only missed the first week so plenty of time to catch up.  I also have a personal trainer one time a week for more core exercises since I've discovered that I have very little core strength.  Even though I've only been at the gym for 2 weeks, I'm curious to see how my measurements are doing.  I'm noticing quite a few less lumps in my pants from my thunder thighs.  =)  Things are fitting better and I'm beginning to feel better.  I really am enjoying the time it gets me away from my kids as well.  I'm working on getting my husband in more often but I definitely can't push him too hard because he will revolt on me. 

We're heading to Michigan over the weekend to visit with some of my husbands family.  We haven't seen them in quite a long time and they haven't met all of our kids even as one of his aunts lives in Las Vegas and will be flying in for this.  I'm looking forward to it!  Its about a 2.5 hour drive for us to get there (minus evil Indiana construction) so hopefully the kids will be alright in the car for that long.  I hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Today was my first session with a personal trainer at the club and he's a really nice guy, but OH. MY. GOD!  Walking out of the club, I couldn't even carry my son, my arms and shoulders were so sore.  Going back Sunday morning and have some cardio homework to do between now and then.  Wow, I am so out of shape but you know what?  I DID IT!  I completed every exercise he told me to do and I kept trying to do one more rep.  It can only get better from here.

My husband was scheduled for his teeth to be cleaned this past weekend.  He usually runs hot and the hotter he gets, the redder his face becomes.  The dentist took one look at him and said he didn't look well.  They took his blood pressure (I never even knew the dentist office HAD a blood pressure cuff!).  I can't remember the numbers but it was HIGH and his pulse was racing.  They checked him again after about 20 minutes of rest and it still was quite HIGH.  Needless to say, the dentist refused to even clean his teeth because they were worried about his heart.  That scared the crap out of me!!  I am taking the bull by the horns for the both of us.  I signed us up for a fitness center that has 24 hr availability and a wonderful indoor & outdoor pool deck for him.  I'm not entirely sure where this is going to materialize out of our budget just yet (thinking the cable will have to go).  But it has to be done.  He is going to have a physical on tuesday before he begins any strenuous workouts to find out whats going on with his blood pressure.  I just had a physical recently so I know that I'm in tip top shape aside from low iron & being fat. 

I dropped my kids off in the kids center (BEST.  AMENITY.  EVER!) and met with a personal trainer at the club to get my fitness assessment done.  They basically measured my flexibility, heart condition, weight, and fat percentage.  My heart is relatively weak.  I hit my target heart rate VERY quickly and with regular cardio, that will improve.  My weight is at 240 which was expected.  I weighed myself this morning at 238.2 so after coffee and breakfast, 2 pounds makes no difference to me!  Body fat percentage was 38.5% which is VERY high but not as high as I was expecting.  I was expecting to be closer to the 50% range so I took that as a mild positive.  The only "good" that I got on this "test" was my flexibility.  I was able to reach about 6 inches beyond my toes.  The trainer was quite surprised by that.  =)  I've always been pretty flexible. 

We were able to come up with a plan that will work for me.  It will require alot of "homework" on my part because I just can't afford to see a trainer 2 or 3 times a week consistently.  Because of some of the perks that were offered at sign up, I'll meet with the trainer 2x/week for the first 2 weeks.  After that, 1x/week for the rest of 3 months.  The goal that they set for me was to have 20 pounds lost by the end of the 12 weeks.  My personal goal, is to have double that gone.  =P  But as long as my weight comes off and I get healthier, its a WIN/WIN situation!  =)  Tomorrow is my first session with the trainer.  Should be interesting!!

I'm talking about poop.  I don't dump.  At least I always assumed that I didn't.  I've never thrown up from my surgery (not including the time I had a strangulated hernia & bowel obstruction).  What I did have though as my eating progressively got worse, was almost uncontrollable diarrhea.  You would THINK that after having this issue for MONTHS on end, would be enough to make me evaluate my eating habits.  Nope.  Apparently, I'm quite the stubborn being.  =)  One thing I HAVE noticed this last month of very conscious eating, is that certain aspects of my digestive system have....shall we say, firmed up..?  I can't begin to tell you what a relief it is to be "normal" again!!  I have FINALLY come to the conclusion that perhaps I was dumping all along!  But since partially digested food wasn't coming out of my mouth (EWWW), it was much easier for me to ignore what was happening.  Since my eating has so drastically improved, GONE are the noxious fumes that my husband swears killed some of his sense of smell.  The smells that seriously made my mother stick her head out of her car window like a dog as she was driving in order to get some relief.  I think it will take YEARS to end the jokes that my family continuously does when some gas slips because lets face it!  I could clear a whole block after eating the delicious Chicken Scampi at Olive Garden!  Just another unexpected light bulb that has gone off over my head as I re-evaluate what exactly I've been doing to myself.  Even though I'm almost 9 years out, I'M STILL LEARNING!  The part that I'm most grateful for?  That my WLS Tool is STILL working for me!

I'm enjoying my breakfast so much right now that I just HAD to share!!
1/4 cup egg beaters
1/3 cup turkey sausage crumbles
1/4 cup cheese
All this on a whole wheat tortilla & my mouth & tummy are VERY happy right now!!

I purchased a scale last week.  Yes I weighed myself but No, I'm not posting the number until the end of the month for my "official" weigh in when I update measurements as well.

I've purchased a few DVDs from the Biggest Loser brand:  Weight Loss Yoga & the Bootcamp Workout.  Both of which are kicking my behind and I'm SORE!  But I've noticed I'm able to do a little bit more every day, taking fewer & fewer breaks.  I've been waking up earlier in the AM to do the Bootcamp DVD and my oldest daughter loves doing the Yoga with me in the afternoons.  Trying to walk more & being more conscious of keeping abs pulled in while doing household chores & flexing my wonderful glutes when sitting at the PC.  Who knows if its working or not, I'll find out in a couple of weeks.  The main point is that I'm HAPPY doing it!  =)  Have a great weekend!!

Measurements Start

Neck	13"
Chest	43"
Waist	39"
Hips	48"
Thighs	59"
Calves	32"
Upper Arms	30"
Total	264"
Monthly Loss	0.00"
Total Loss	0.00"
Weight	257
Monthly Loss	0.00
Total Loss	0.00

So, there we go.  I took those measurements on 7/2/11.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that at very least, I hadn't gained totally back to my former size when I began relosing my weight 2 years ago.  I was well on my way, don't get me wrong!  It was one result I am quite content never to reach again!!

In other news, I survived the 4th of July!  I did not even touch a single bite of the 3 funnel cakes my husband bought for himself & our 4 kids.  Unfortunetly, I didn't even eat dinner at all that night.  As I was wandering around trying to find food that all our kids would eat, there was nothing that jumped out at me as being a part of my current plan.  What is my current plan you may be wondering?  Well, its not any different from what we ALL should be doing.  Heavy on the protein & lower on the carbs concentrating on vegetables.  I'm trying to keep the carbs around 50, protein 90+, & fats as limited as possible.  There are some things I just WON'T do like fat free cheese.  UGH!  There are no words to describe how disgusting that stuff is!  I WILL however do the cheese made with 2% milk.  Less fat, MUCH better tasting.  I'm drinking at least 2 protein shakes a day & either a salad or soup (minus broth) for lunch.  Dinner is really what I'm making for everyone!  I just take less & more veggies rather than the starch. 

Still haven't found that stupid scale but the purchase needs to wait until later in the week when we have funds.  Carnival rides & festival foods for 6 people takes a toll on one's budget for the week but it was WELL worth it to see how much fun my kids were having!

Some goals I now have after encountering the difficulties at the fair:  Next year, I VOW to be able to sit on the provided chairs & not worry that my shifting will cause the chair to break.  I VOW that we WILL stake our spot on the top of the hill again & I will be able to go up & down that hill with my kids withOUT becoming winded and/or my legs screaming in protest at having to work like that. 

There's a certain trend that goes on with any weight loss blog.  When the author disappears, you can be almost assured of the reason why:  they've fallen off the wagon.  That is certainly true of me.  Yes, I was pregnant during my last blog post.  I stopped coming here because I just didn't want to read of anyone being a sucess that wasn't me.  That also means that my motivation was lost.  In my head, I justified everything by the simple phrase:  I'm pregnant!  After 3 little girls, I finally had my boy!  That was a positive!!  And now my little man is approaching 2 and I'm officially out of excuses. 

I regained up to 277 pounds.  When I saw that number, talk about being mad at myself!  But did I do anything about it?  Nope.  Drowned my sorrows in some coconut M&Ms that my husband found at the convience store near his work.  It took a long standing desire to have straight teeth to get me off my ass and take a hard look at what the hell I was doing to myself.

January, our dental coverage decided to include adults in their coverage of orthodontia.  I have these wonky canine teeth that stood on top of my others, protruding like vampire teeth that made me uber self-conscience of my smile since those things came in when I was a kid.  A few budget discussions later and I'm scheduling 4 (perfectly good!) teeth to be ripped out of my ever non-willing jaw in order to make room for my screwy canines.  In February, I had good, old fashioned, metal braces put on.  My ever penny pinching mind couldn't justify the cost of the less noticable ceramic braces.  I am 31 years old, happily married, with 4 kids.  Who would I have to impress??  Especially for an extra $2000!!!  It was then, that I learned what true, excruciating pain (at least as far as teeth were concerned) could feel like.  The day they were placed was not a bad day.  No!  The pain didn't slam me until almost a week after they were placed and I tried to bite into my sandwich only to discover my teeth were in so much pain that even the thought of biting down on something sent me into a panic.  Have your teeth ever hurt so badly they make your nose hurt?  Not even mentioning the horrible headache that just wouldn't quit!!

Knowing that I was going to have approx. 2 years of this bologna (how the heck to teenagers do this?!?), I knew I needed to make sure I was at least eating things that were better for me than the cookies I was eating because they made me happy.  Since I was eating only small amounts of food before my back molars screamed their protest at having to work, I might as well make sure I'm eating small amounts of food that my body actually NEEDS rather than what I WANT. 

I started actually thinking about what I was going to eat rather than mindlessly grabbing whatever was closest.  Here I am, almost 4 months into this dental journey from hell, and I noticed my pants were beginning to get annoyingly big.  My husband had even noticed the weight loss and said things that I abrubtly brushed off as him just being nice.  The batteries have been dead on my scale for well over a year.  Now that I WANT my scale, I can't find it.  Its probably hiding in a closet or under a bed somewhere.  I was at my mother in laws the other day and hopped on her scale.  255.  WOAH!

I guess that pretty definitively explains why my 24s were slipping down and why I was wearing a cute pair of capri's from Kohls that were a 20.  I tried to convince myself that clothing manufacturers adjusted sizing again to make us feel better about ourselves. 

After the brutality of my last adjustment (couldn't bite anything for almost 3 weeks), I went to Costco and invested in protein drinks.  Started drinking them to ensure I was getting what I needed nutritionally.  Then, a little lightbulb finally went off in my head.  I was a 20!  I had accidently started my weight loss up by getting braces!  Now it was my job to shift gears and get this beast moving!!  I was feeling better and having more energy.  My house was cleaner since I wasn't just sitting on the couch and thinking about things to do.  I was doing them!  It has begun and I don't want it to stop!!

 Unfortunetly, I sold off my elliptical machine.  When I bought it, I made my husband a promise:  If it ever began collecting dust or being used as a laundry holder, I would get rid of it.  When I never used it after our son was born, then our son turned 1 and there were at least 2 piles of clothes on the handles, I broke down and said it was time.  When the buyer drove off with my machine, I was incredibly sad.  It was like the proverbial nail in my coffin.  I had just sold the one thing I owned that said I was going to get my thinner self back.  There was no other options for me.  I let myself get fat again and I was now going to stay fat. 

Good thing for me, the motivation returned!  I would've never guess it would've been braces (of all things) to kick start my head again but I'm sure glad that something did!  I've been searching on craigslist for a treadmill or elliptical machine that I can afford.  We can't afford the gym memberships in the area so I'll have to do this my way again for awhile.  I still haven't found my scale (I do know that I haven't thrown it away!) but I have been taking nightly walks.  Granted they are with the kids so I can't exactly speed walk around the block a few times but its better than what I was doing which was nothing! 

I'm back!!  Hopefully for good this time.  Time will tell so I make no promises.  Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I AM human and I DO make mistakes!  =)  I am going to take my measurements tonight and input them into my handy dandy chart, clearing out the old data because I AM starting fresh!  This is just the third take.  And if I can't find the scale by the end of the week, I'll be buying a new one.  I try not to weigh myself any more than once a week.  I'd prefer even once a month.  The plateaus aren't as noticeable that way.  I appreciate any and all support!!  Good luck to everyone out there!