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The Goal is met, which road do I take on my continuous journey?

Linney

Linney

Member
Which road? The road taken and no longer serves you, or the road of lessons to be learned. If we are not learning, we're not truly living life. Learning about food addiction, and finally admitting this to myself seemed so insignificant in the big picture. It did occupy my thoughts. I have to learn how to live out my life without food taking over my entire life. I believe this makes sense to a true food addict reading this, but it's the truth, and being obese comes with many obstacles. Not being in "balance"....I found my body was "off balance" since the weight distibution of my body was not in "balance". Now that I've lost 200 pounds, I can walk, jog, remain active physically, since this is ESSENTIAL to your overall success in your life-long journey of "learning how and when to eat, and why" Excercise was not easy for me to undertake since I had 200 pounds of excess weight on my small frame.

It becomes debilitating not only to the body, but also the mind, and soul of a person. Life gives us many experiences, the good, the bad, and the in-between. All serve or served a purpose, but if your life is harder due to your weight issues such as:
Fatigue, Insulin Resistent, Sleep Apnea, Arthritis, High Blood Pressure, High Clohresterol, and all of these obesity-related health issues resulted in not a good quality of life.

I look at my life as how many days or years will I live here? When I was morbidlly obese at 330 pounds, which was an all-time high, and low point, I realized I was tired of feeling sick and tired all of the time. Never feeling good physically, therefore, not feeling too good mentally as well. Mind and body are inter-connected and if caught off balance, it's not in sync with "yourself" your true physical self and being.

You will learn a lot of lessons on this journey. We learn, we grow, and move into the moment of a newness, a refresh button was pushed on yourself. Ahhhh Refresh! Renewed, rejoice, and revived! I have some catching up to do since I've been on a Morbidly Obese Vacation for 14 years. I am in the process of learning how to maintain my weight, and not feel I have to "FORBID" certain foods. In order for me to feel I don't "need" those "trigger" foods would not be telling you the truth. If I want to finally "OVERCOME" this so-called self-talk to ourselves saying you have no control over that particular food item? Once you can come to terms with being able to have this food, only in "MODERATION" a key factor to success for the long-term journey of remaining a thin person. Challenges will arise, but I'm learning, and at the same time, more aware of my decisions and attitudes about food.

If I put it into perspective, food no longer serves me well. The false sense it's given me for so long were lies I told myself and actually believed them. Food is a necessity to live, but not your EVERYTHING. So much is out there in this beautiful world of ours, and every moment I wasted no longer will I ever waste another MOMENT for life is precious, and life is good. Stay well and be!
 
Thank you for your kind words. We are all in this together when it comes to the battle of the bulge. The rewards are many, and I feel like I can do just about anything that I put my mind to when it comes to accomplishing personal goals. Stay well and keep your eye on the prize!
 
Linney, you said something that I think many of us have felt, but didn't express clearly. I hope you don't mind my printing it out and posting here in my office. Be sure to stick around and share your wisdom with the rest of us. I am looking forward to hearing and learning more from you. I've only started my journey and I'm making progress, but I still worry about when I'll be able to eat normally again. Thank you for your words.
 
Hi Fkrebs,
I don't mind at all. It's such a long road, but a rewarding one if viewed that way. I will be here for the long haul, no worries about that! I will share as much wisdom that I can give to those of you on the journey of reaching your goal. You're doing fantastic! Keep moving forward in the positive direction you're on. I understand completely your concern about being able to eat normally. I no longer mindlessly eat. I have kicked the habit since I've been on the straight and narrow path of eating properly in order to obtain my ideal weight. I never ate anything that was not beneficial or high in protein. Protein is the name of the game, and men tend to lose weight much faster than woman. Keep working out frequently! I began with three days per week, then four days per week. Now just about every day I work out either with the bands, or the weights or my stationary bike, or I walk, or I do Isometrics, which is stationary exercise. I have to really think about my food choices and always counting calories in my head. I was on 900 calories per day when I first began and only ate 2 oz of food at a time. Now I'm up to 4 to 6 oz of food, but also my exercise has increased, so I need more food to fuel. Once I work out, one hour later I drink an EAS protein shake for muscle tone and strength and also to replace the protein I lost during the workout. You'll be at goal before you know it! It's so wonderful to be given this gift (tool) to use wisely and it's our window of opportunity to rapidly lose the weight we need to lose in order to obtain optimum health! Stay strong my friend, and be well! Linney
 
Linney

VERY WELL SAID I WISH YOU CONTINUED SUCCESS YOU'RE AN INSPIRATION TO THE REST OF US WHOM HAVE JUST BEGUN OUR JOURNEY OR FOR THOSE LIKE YOURSELF WHO'VE COMPLETED THIS FIRST PART AND OUR EMBARKING ON THERE NEW LIVES, YOU'RE GONNA MAKE IT YOU HAVE DETERMINATION AND THE RIGHT ATTITUDE, HAPPY FOR YOU, ALWAYS COME BACK AND SHARE YOUR STORIES WITH US,
DONNA
 
Thank you for your kind words Donna. This Journey is an adventure. Each phase of your transformation presents a self-awareness on a more "feeling" level than "feeling" good only with food. I have to make a choice everyday whether to stay on this path, which at times presents its own challenges, but are well worth it for your well-being. As your body changes, your mind wants to catch up with your body image. If you've been trapped inside a larger body for 14 years, you're ready for a change and a change for the better. I feel free and no longer imprisoned in my own body. The woman I once knew was hidden behind a "fat" suit of emotional armor, a false sense of protection. Being thin in this moment in time, I feel I was given a second chance to make it right once and for all. I am determined, motivated, inspired, and eager to live life instead of not being a participant in life due to my morbid obesity. Life is so precious, and we are given a tool to utilize wisely, to ensure success!

I was brought to my knees literally from the pain I felt physically for so many years. My obesity created many additional health concerns that certainly could have been avoided "IF" I learned how to look at food when I was much younger and impressionable. The binging, never purging, I loved food too much. Consuming thousands of calories, it was pure madness. I was out of control! I always wanted a much smaller stomach, and now I do. It lets me know if I eat too much, or to slow down. It guides me to make the right food choices. Hydration and exercise are essential for success. You don't have to run a marathon immediately. It's a slow, adaptable process, which is very successful as long as you abide by the new eating lifestyle and keep your new stomach small.

You will have physical signals that you'll know what you can tolerate and what you cannot tolerate. It's a learning process, but if you're eager and also determined, anything is possible. Some people say I don't look like I had gastric bypass surgery. I'm 51 years old, and can honestly say I'm in better shape now than I've ever been in my life. I finally "got it" it took many trials and tribulations, but if you want this bad enough, you will stay strong and follow this program to the letter, and please exercise, start out very little since most of us never really exercised. Each day the weight comes off, each day you will have more energy to "move" and each day you'll get stronger and want to move more. It's a gradual, but sure way to be on course.

You will succeed, and please let me know how you're feeling and what you're doing.

Linney
 
Thank you Tom!

It looks like you're succeeding on your journey as well! Kudos to a job well done! Isn't it wonderful to reaquaint yourself with your true self? I am enjoying this experience very much. It's opened doors for me that would have remained shut due to my morbidly obese body. I have taken up some hobbies to keep me occupied and also speak on behalf of my surgeon's practice to inspire and motivate others, who are considering WLS. I feel I'm finally on purpose in my life and my obesity was a blessing in disguise. It brought me to the lowest point in my life, where I was backed into a corner, which I would have never gotten out of unless I opted to have surgery.

As you well know, we've all tried the fad diets, pills, exercise, etc. and ended up gaining more weight than where we began. This wonderful tool (gift) we were given has allowed us a second chance to get it right this time and for good! I still have my moments where I'm afraid to delve into old thoughts and habits, but grateful that I'm very aware and mindful of the choices I have to make on a daily basis.

You're in the home stretch of your journey and it's so close! Please celebrate when you reach goal, whether you take a weekend trip, buy yourself a gift you've always wanted, but reward yourself for a job well done!

Peace and Hugs to you Tom, Stay well! Linney
 
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