Dieting Club: 50 - 100 Lbs Community

Hello Deb and welcome to our group!

I too had considered the surgery and with all the reading I was doing about it realized that I really didn't need it. I would still have to change my mindset and my will power .. so that is what I am doing. While I started with a lot less of a BMI. I started out at a BMI of 39.3 and I am now down to a 30. I really don't like to watch my BMI .. I like watching the weight drop off.

I started out at 222.2 lbs and am now down to 193. I started my journey on January 11th, after going for my physical on the 10th. I was very depressed and thought about all the options of losing weight .. I even tried the pills .. which I will admit was stupid.. I told my doctor she might of well given me crack.. she laughed and reminded me that she told me what they were. NOT the way to go .. then on January 23rd I accidently found WebMD and the food and fitness planner and started tracking every morsel of food and drink that goes into my mouth and found this wonderful group that has really helped and given their advice and I try to come in everyday, sometimes things prevent it but I try to come even if it's just to lurk and see what is up. I go to the gym at least 3 times a week and finally am able to do intervals on the treadmill of walk a minute .. run a minute and a half ... walk,, etc.. It took alot for me to get there, and I have a long way to go, but I keep trying. If you have your family's support you can do anything. Just put your mind to it.

We share lots of recipes with each other and give each other ideas of what to eat and it really does help. Oh, and we are great cheer leaders and have great shoulders to cry on. Try it!

I think you should do a little more soul searching of what you want to do as far as the Surgery! It needs to be your decision. I personally wouldn't do it but I am not you and I don't know your whole circumstance. Just remember one thing.. you didn't get this way overnight .. don't expect to undo it overnight and you will suceed.

Good Luck whatever YOU decide.

Hi Deb. I'm Kim. Yes, I can imagine losing weight (not being able to run again, well, because I have NEVER run, lol always hated it, bad for the knees and ankles too much impact for the benefits.) Race walking? yes. I can see that, maybe now even in MY future.
Ok here's my background. Started my journey here on WebMD on Jan 3,2012 at 243 lbs and two days later got diagnosed and put on meds for severly high blood pressure.
I live with pain every day. In 2005 I was driving my F150 and got hit , literally by a Mack Truck (hauling scrap steel) . Crushed my left hip , I now have a rebuilt hip socket and pins,screws and plates in around the socket and down my thigh. I will eventually get a hip replacement, but the screws are permanant, and my doctor says, so will be the pain. Arthritis in rt knee, left hip, left knee and lower back. So I know where you are coming from.
I have had trouble even walking since the accident, I "weeble" from side to side, Stiff kneed, no flexion in left ankle, just sorta slapping my feet down without proper gait.
Sound familiar?
So, here's the deal. Since Jan , I have lost 42 lbs. No surgery or bypass. My bp has gone back to normal, albeit with the meds yet but soon to be off I think. And most importantly, I'm walking, with proper gait (most of the time) faster and longer distances. I'm now up to a mile in the morning and an 8 block round trip in the evening .
I don't recommend the surgery. I'm all for positive , healthy weightloss by retraining to eat proper portions of healthy foods and getting proper nutrition and more exercise.
I have found that walking and mild "seated exercises" for arthritis/elderly people have worked wonders in managing the pain and stiffness that I experience.
You ask , "why carry on struggling"? Well, the surgery isn't a cure all. Obviously, because you have to take a handfull of vitamins and other suppliments every day for the rest of your life, it's not a "natural" thing to do to your body. And even if you decide to have the surgery, read the feedback from "weightgain after gastric bypass" on the WebMD Diet Community blog site. The statistics of people who keep the weight off forever ARE NOT GOOD. It's an unrealistic diet plan that will probably fail in the long run because you don't get rid of your taste buds or your love of food or your cravings, nor does it teach you proper nutrition or eating habits. It is simply a quick fix to a lifelong problem that isn't gonna go away just because you've chosen to make your stomach smaller (to alter your body from it's natural state).
If you really want to lose weight, you have to do it with your HEAD not your stomach. It's a frame of mind that you must adopt in order to really succeed. Sure, surgery is the easy way out, go for it, if you have the money and the patience to eat a hanful of vitamins , tiny amount of food, NEVER be able to eat fried food unless you are prepared for the "dumping" that happens......
We eat whatever we want, in moderation, with our journeys. That's our option, an option that you will NEVER have again if you have that surgery. Not because of the calories , but because your body will NEVER again have the ability to process the foods like it was meant to do naturally.
Unless you are literally going to die if you don't have that surgery, I ask you to actually buckle down and give yourself the chance , the REAL chance with determination to NOT have that surgery, to lose the weight naturally. We here on the 50-100 blogsite are living proof that it can be done. We aren't some "test group' doing fad diets, we are real people that have made the choice to eat well for our bodies.
Join us. Take a Journey with us. Give it time and the energy it deserves. TRY your hardest. You can do this naturally, I promise.
Kim

Bravo on that decision not to do the surgery. I'm sorry to say, but I think of those surgeries to lose weight (unless you are literally going to die without them) as akin to having a full hysterectomy just because you don't like your period. I just cannot imagine "elective surgery" that changes your whole digestive process as being a good thing.

Hi Deb, Kim and Norma have given you good advice, but I disagree a tiny bit. I think some people might need the gastric bypass because they just cannot face the challenge of doing it the natural way. HOWEVER, if you do not address the cognitive, emotional and psychological reasons that have helped to get you where you are today, nothing is going to help. I have a dear friend who had the surgery and lost 60 lbs. in 5 or 6 months. Guess what? That was about a year and a half ago and although she doesn't say, my guess is she's put almost all, if not all of it back on. She went through all of that, but never addressed her real problems of "what is eating her." I started my healthy journey in June 2011 and hope to hit the 100 lbs. loss milestone by the end of this June. Slow, yes, but the years go by so quickly it seems like no time. Hard, yes, very challenging. I have done a lot of work on my emotional eating through talking to others, reading and journaling. Besides tracking food, the best thing I have done is join this community and shared my problems, failures and successes. AND boy, have I learned so much from other people's journeys.

You've already gotten a lot of ppl telling not to basically do it. It is a mindset and you have to change everything about you. If you're not willing to do that then you shouldn't even have the surgery. It would be a waste. I maybe coming off strong but I am only stating facts. If you want something bad enough you will do it with or without surgery. You don't have to change everything at once but start off slow and work your way up. That's how you are successful at weight loss or any other goal in life. You just don't get everything you want in one day.

Deb .. If you don't listen to any of us .. please listen to Amber and Judy .. (she is on vacation right now but check out her profile) They have both dropped massive amounts of weight and have been maintaining for several years. They are my biggest motivation and when I tried to drop out into a depressed state .. Judy came over to facebook and chased me back .. I love these ladies and someday will meet them in person.. They are great inspiration.

Norma, I'm getting that "warm , fuzzy " feeling from your post. We stick together, through thick and thin , that's just how it is here. Not a one of us needs to feel depressed or alone during their journey here.
I did feel a bit depressed this morning though. Even cried a bit. Was getting so close to One-derland two days ago then went and started my monthlies. Yesterday up .4 lbs and today another.... I know it's water weight but it bothered me that I probably won't reach the 1's by the end of this month. Well , I'll get there, once the water weight is gone down.

Awwww glad everyone here sticks together.

Amber you know we love you and Judy!

Yes and I love you guys too! I couldn't have done it without everyone on here plus maintaining as well.

Hi DEB,

I hope you take all the info and support here to help with your decision. It is one that after the surgery can not be undone.

Not to say all bad for some, but definitely not without pitfalls. I came to Web MD when I was facing breast cancer surgery and radiation. I chose not to have radiation after I read about the side effects. I chose to have a different treatment that did not require rads and with good results, too.

Information is key. What is your "gut" telling you to do? Do not ignore the instincts we all have. What is good for another person may not be good for you.

I ended up telling my breast surgeon that I wanted to change "the plan". I expected her to give me flack, but I learned that her staff told me, that my choice is what they would do and these people deal with breast cancer everyday.

So, get the facts and personal stories. Take your time and go with what you FEEL is right for you, no one else.

Hope this helps.

Barb