From 263 Pounds to 128 Pounds (Lots of Pictures)

kamakazeekim

I thought I would share my success story up to this point. While I was young I was very athletic and had a muscular build. I always felt much bigger than other people. I started gaining weight like crazy when I was about 19 years old. At 20 years old I got married and become pregnant with our daughter. I was on bed rest for most of the pregnancy and my weight continued to balloon. After she was born I was working out 6 days a week and literally living on steamed broccoli...I continued to gain more and more weight.

In 2011, we got pregnant again with our son. This too was a really hard pregnancy and I spend most of it confined to my bed. After he was born I wanted to get serious about my health. I was running 5 Ks, weightlifting, eating about 900 calories a day but my weight continued to rise until I hit 263 pounds. I had a hard time nursing because I was scared of suffocating the baby! I went to doctor after doctor but no one could give me any answers. I saw several dietitians and personal trainers. Nothing helped. I tried all the over counter shakes and weight loss products. I was desperate. My husband is a wrestling coach who is a big advocate of wrestlers losing weight in a healthy way...even he didn't know how to help me.

In 2013 I made the decision to have weight loss surgery. The problem was they wanted me to lose 40 pounds before I could have the surgery. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't do it and I became extremely depressed and anxious. I finally saw an endocrinologist who diagnosed me with PCOS and put me on medication. The weight started flying off! I was warned that after a while the medication would no longer work so I made the decision to go a head with the surgery. In May 2014 I had a gastric sleeve. The surgery initially didn't work and no one knew why. My endocrinologist upped the dose of my medication and that did the trick. I am one year out from my surgery and I now weigh 128 pounds which is the lowest I've weighed since about 7th grade. I exercise 6 to 7 days a week and I eat between 900 and 1200 calories most days. I would like to lose another 10 pounds but I am starting to focus more on weightlifting and building my muscles back.

cmsu64113

Amazing job!

kleighsamboer33

Wow! You look amazing! I started at 277 and am down 26 pounds so far. My goal is to get down to around 125. It helps knowing that others have done it.

kamakazeekim

Thanks you guys! It's been tough but totally worth it! I was at the point where I had panic attacks when I had to leave the house but now I feel confident and good about myself!

jharris1378

Great job. You look amazing

MrsCies6207

Wow!! Amazing job! I have been diagnosed with PCOS as well. Would you mind sharing the Ned they put you on that helped? Thanks!

kamakazeekim

I'm on the max dose of metformin and a birth control pill. The combination of the two has been a miracle!

MrsCies6207

I asked my OB about metformin and she said that unless I'm trying to get pregnant, she feels it isn't necessary I was disappointed! This has inspired me to get a 2nd opinion

kamakazeekim

Metformin is way more than just an aid to getting pregnant! Many women with PCOS struggle with undiagnosed insulin resistance which has a huge impact on weight! It does other stuff too...it does help you ovulate and some other stuff as well.

sarahl038

Wow you look amazing,well done to you.

jorinya

Congratulations. You look wonderful after your two kids. I have four. You look amazing! Well done!!!

natkaye

How long were you on the metformin before it started to work? and what dosage?. Also I might ask my endocrinologist if its ok to take whilst on a marina, because I was taking the 250mg for about 2 months and it did nothing except make me feel extremely sick every morning, so I stopped it but thinking about starting up again

kamakazeekim

I had a really hard time with side effects when I first started the metformin so I was on a low dose and it didn't work at all. My endocrinologist told me that most women with PCOS need the max dose for it to be effective. She told me to power through the side effects and that my body would eventually adjust. It finally has and I feel terrific! Once I started the max dose I saw results within 2 months.

ZaraxXx88

You look amazing! You've done so well you must be so proud! You truly are an inspiration to the rest of us. So proud of you! xxx

TXRedDirt

WOW!! Congrats and nice work.

erojoy

Nice job! Sorry that you had to struggle so much with just finding what worked for you. I hope that you find true happiness.

kamakazeekim

Thank you so much!

GenElizabeth

Beautiful, awesome job!!

ReinasWrath

You look so amazing! Congrats, all your hardwork really paid off!!

spookyface

Great Great job!

noclady1995

Wow...you look great! You're a prime example of someone who doesn't make excuses, despite medical conditions that could seriously hinder all your efforts. And you kept on top of everything. I really admire you and your journey.

purplemystra

Thanks for sharing your story. PCOS is something doctors need to pay more attention to. I have PCOS too. I'm so glad you found a doctor who was able to help you. Congrats on your success and accomplishing your goal.

ddnavy

Fantastic... I love seeing the pictures. I helps keep me going. Thank you. Congrats!!

TeresaMarie2015

Yeah - looks good on you. Great inspiration for my journey.

Jilliankosto

Nice work!

Gska17

Congratulations!

lewispwest

Incredible!

ginny92802

Thanks for posting. I saw an endocrinologist last week and I am going back next week to go over results of my blood work. I'm really hoping I get the missing link like you did. It's so discouraging to work so hard for so little results and stick with it. I had already been diagnosed with PCOS but no doctor ever did anything about it except send me to a nutritionist who didn't really give me any information I could use that I didn't already know. I felt like I must somehow deserve to be fat if I tried so hard and never could lose more than 20 lbs, and that was with real effort. Congrats on your success!!

kamakazeekim

ginny92802 wrote: »

Thanks for posting. I saw an endocrinologist last week and I am going back next week to go over results of my blood work. I'm really hoping I get the missing link like you did. It's so discouraging to work so hard for so little results and stick with it. I had already been diagnosed with PCOS but no doctor ever did anything about it except send me to a nutritionist who didn't really give me any information I could use that I didn't already know. I felt like I must somehow deserve to be fat if I tried so hard and never could lose more than 20 lbs, and that was with real effort. Congrats on your success!!

I had the same experience where I was sent to several nutritionists and none of them would believe me when they looked at my food and exercise logs! It was beyond maddening!!! I would usually sit in my car and cry after those appointments keep advocating for yourself!

LuckyMe2017

Good job!

raraCoco

Amazing story, and it also sounds extremely frustrating for you! I also have PCOS and for the longest time I weighed 210 pounds. I started eating low calories but could not lose weight at first. I went on an elimination diet and lost 20 pounds (mostly water weight) within the first 2 weeks. My naturopath helped me realize my body could not tolerate gluten, soy, beef and dairy. I stopped eating the gluten and soy but just could not give up the dairy and beef. Weighing 193 pounds for the longest time, even though I was extremely active and low calorie, I finally went off the beef and dairy and I lost 7 pounds! Perhaps you have a food sensitivity you don't know about!