Can I Really Be That Close To My Goal Weight...And More?
Hanfordrose
Posts: 688 Member
Yesterday, I weighed in at 167 pounds...113 pounds less than where I started in the fall of 2012. That wasn't even my top weight. I was closer to 290 pounds just a few months earlier, before my fateful meeting with a Kaiser orthopedic surgeon, Dr. K.
My sweet hubbie Ed was with me that day, when I spoke to the man who had the power to give me new knees and freedom from my sedentary, wheelchair bound life. Doctor K told Ed and I some important things that day. At that current weight, I should not be trying to stand or even walk outside...even with a walker. He had x-rays showing multiple fracture in the heads of long bones of my legs. A twist of a knee or a fall and I would likely split one of those long bone right up the middle.
Dr. K turned to Ed and said, "She has to stay in wheelchair, until both her knees are replaced. Don't let her walk around outside. Keep her in that chair. Sue can use the walker in the house, if she goes slow."
Then, he turned to me and gave me the really 'good news and bad news.'
"You are a perfect candidate for double knee surgery. You're not diabetic and labs are great...BUT..." Here it comes...the terrible BUT. "Sue, you must lose at 70 pounds, before I can do that surgery. We (meaning Kaiser) now know that any knee replacement surgery on someone your size will likely fail within 5 years or less. The metal prostheses and connection to bones won't hold up."
In a matter of moments. I went from being thrilled to finally be get my painful, old knees replaced to completely discouraged. I just knew that I didn't have another DIET in me. A lifetime of trying to lose weight had yield small, short-lived successes. Only once in mid-30's did I really lose weight (99 pounds in one year with Overeaters Anonymous), and I gained in all back in just a few months doing some really crazy eating, during a medical crisis with my little boy. I let food become my comforter...my sedative for the fears and concerns over my baby. Then, I never went back...never tried to lose weight again.
Here is what I look like on the night before that meeting with my surgeon, back in 2012...
and this photo was taken of me just a couple of weeks ago.
This is what I looked like at 175 pounds. I was hoping to get to 165 pounds, but I didn't make it. That was in 1980...the last time that I was under 240 pounds.
Perhaps now, you can see why I thought that a 70 pound weight would be unattainable on that day in November. I just didn't think that I had the strength to endure another try at losing weight. It took me a month to even think about putting myself back on a DIET. I hate that word, because it always seems to equate to 'starving myself and eating nasty food'. Diet meant giving up all my favorite junk food; but I decided to try.
I put myself on a rather strict, forced diet through December of 2012, living on meal replacement shakes, bars and snacks. Fortunately, my general practitioner ran some labs on me and insisted that I add some 'real food'. That when I decided to count calories and found MFP online.
MFP was a gift that helped me to begin making my food plans and new friends. To them...a made my commitment each day and got inspiration beyond anything that I could imagine.
14 months ago, I joined MFP. With few exceptions, I have logged in my food diary everyday. My MFP friends have followed my adventures, as I bought a swimsuit and returned to swimming after more 50 years. They were there as I got used to my rapidly shrinking body; and they were there, when I finally qualified and received my double knee replacement surgery in December 2013...one year after joining MFP.
The 70 pound weight loss WAS VERY ATTAINABLE. My commitment to MFP and new life changed as I realized that I could do even more. I blew past the 200 pound mark and changed my MFP ticker to reflect the weight that I really needed to reach...an unbelievable 145 pounds.
Sure...I hit plateaus along way...even for a month or more at a time; but something in me said, "Don't change anything. Stick to your food plan. Trust in the Lord, and you will start losing again." That is what I did. In January and early February I plateaued once more, probably in response to all the stress on my body from the double knee surgery with its difficult and painful recovery.
Pain or not, I stuck to food plan...to my very limited 1,000 calories per day. Then, my doctor suggested that I should increase my calories and protein to help with my recovery. My hemoglobin was bit low.
Here was the surprising thing. I increased my calories, first to 1,200 and then to 1,300 per day in mid-February; and suddenly, the weight began to melt off of me. In the past 2 weeks, I have lost 14 pounds! That is an incredible drop in pounds in such a short time; but I am thrilled. I feel like this is a gift from God for not giving up, when I wasn't losing...for trusting in Him.
Last night as lay in bed, I started 'doing the math'. I am almost 165 pounds, which is a weight that I have not seen, since I was 20 years old. That was almost 50 YEARS AGO!!! That means, I am about 20 pounds away from what my doctor says would be good weight for me...a normal body weight within those crazy BMI numbers. I wouldn't be obese anymore. I would be NORMAL. Oooo! That's scary.
Now, what I am about to say may make some of you laugh, some of you groan and some of you just want to give me a quick reality check; but this really is what I was thinking as I lay there, letting my mind wander.
1. I have lost 14 pounds in 14 days.
2. Even if I ONLY lose 14 pounds in March and 14 pounds in April...I will weigh less than my final goal weight. :happy:
3. Could this be REAL? Am I that close to 145 pounds and 'the finish line' of this very long trip from 280+ pounds to a normal body...a body that I have never known before, except as a new recruit in the Navy, when I was 19 years old. :bigsmile:
I didn't get to live at that weight for very long, because I jumped right up into 160's and then got pregnant. That began my years of 200+ pounds. In truth, I have lived most of the last 50 years as a woman buried under more than 240 to 290 pounds.
The body I am wearing today is battered from those years of abuse. The skin on my belly, my inner thighs and especially under my upper arms will never be the youthful, taut skin of 19 year old, but that's okay.
For today...I am just daydreaming about 'How close I am to my goal weight'. Today, I can see myself reaching that illusive goal...and maybe sooner than I could even dream. Or...I am getting ahead of myself and setting myself for disappointment? Either way, the daydream is nice.
How close are you to your dream weight? Do you see your goal coming closer and closer? Do you feel like it is SO CLOSE that you can almost touch it?
My sweet hubbie Ed was with me that day, when I spoke to the man who had the power to give me new knees and freedom from my sedentary, wheelchair bound life. Doctor K told Ed and I some important things that day. At that current weight, I should not be trying to stand or even walk outside...even with a walker. He had x-rays showing multiple fracture in the heads of long bones of my legs. A twist of a knee or a fall and I would likely split one of those long bone right up the middle.
Dr. K turned to Ed and said, "She has to stay in wheelchair, until both her knees are replaced. Don't let her walk around outside. Keep her in that chair. Sue can use the walker in the house, if she goes slow."
Then, he turned to me and gave me the really 'good news and bad news.'
"You are a perfect candidate for double knee surgery. You're not diabetic and labs are great...BUT..." Here it comes...the terrible BUT. "Sue, you must lose at 70 pounds, before I can do that surgery. We (meaning Kaiser) now know that any knee replacement surgery on someone your size will likely fail within 5 years or less. The metal prostheses and connection to bones won't hold up."
In a matter of moments. I went from being thrilled to finally be get my painful, old knees replaced to completely discouraged. I just knew that I didn't have another DIET in me. A lifetime of trying to lose weight had yield small, short-lived successes. Only once in mid-30's did I really lose weight (99 pounds in one year with Overeaters Anonymous), and I gained in all back in just a few months doing some really crazy eating, during a medical crisis with my little boy. I let food become my comforter...my sedative for the fears and concerns over my baby. Then, I never went back...never tried to lose weight again.
Here is what I look like on the night before that meeting with my surgeon, back in 2012...
and this photo was taken of me just a couple of weeks ago.
This is what I looked like at 175 pounds. I was hoping to get to 165 pounds, but I didn't make it. That was in 1980...the last time that I was under 240 pounds.
Perhaps now, you can see why I thought that a 70 pound weight would be unattainable on that day in November. I just didn't think that I had the strength to endure another try at losing weight. It took me a month to even think about putting myself back on a DIET. I hate that word, because it always seems to equate to 'starving myself and eating nasty food'. Diet meant giving up all my favorite junk food; but I decided to try.
I put myself on a rather strict, forced diet through December of 2012, living on meal replacement shakes, bars and snacks. Fortunately, my general practitioner ran some labs on me and insisted that I add some 'real food'. That when I decided to count calories and found MFP online.
MFP was a gift that helped me to begin making my food plans and new friends. To them...a made my commitment each day and got inspiration beyond anything that I could imagine.
14 months ago, I joined MFP. With few exceptions, I have logged in my food diary everyday. My MFP friends have followed my adventures, as I bought a swimsuit and returned to swimming after more 50 years. They were there as I got used to my rapidly shrinking body; and they were there, when I finally qualified and received my double knee replacement surgery in December 2013...one year after joining MFP.
The 70 pound weight loss WAS VERY ATTAINABLE. My commitment to MFP and new life changed as I realized that I could do even more. I blew past the 200 pound mark and changed my MFP ticker to reflect the weight that I really needed to reach...an unbelievable 145 pounds.
Sure...I hit plateaus along way...even for a month or more at a time; but something in me said, "Don't change anything. Stick to your food plan. Trust in the Lord, and you will start losing again." That is what I did. In January and early February I plateaued once more, probably in response to all the stress on my body from the double knee surgery with its difficult and painful recovery.
Pain or not, I stuck to food plan...to my very limited 1,000 calories per day. Then, my doctor suggested that I should increase my calories and protein to help with my recovery. My hemoglobin was bit low.
Here was the surprising thing. I increased my calories, first to 1,200 and then to 1,300 per day in mid-February; and suddenly, the weight began to melt off of me. In the past 2 weeks, I have lost 14 pounds! That is an incredible drop in pounds in such a short time; but I am thrilled. I feel like this is a gift from God for not giving up, when I wasn't losing...for trusting in Him.
Last night as lay in bed, I started 'doing the math'. I am almost 165 pounds, which is a weight that I have not seen, since I was 20 years old. That was almost 50 YEARS AGO!!! That means, I am about 20 pounds away from what my doctor says would be good weight for me...a normal body weight within those crazy BMI numbers. I wouldn't be obese anymore. I would be NORMAL. Oooo! That's scary.
Now, what I am about to say may make some of you laugh, some of you groan and some of you just want to give me a quick reality check; but this really is what I was thinking as I lay there, letting my mind wander.
1. I have lost 14 pounds in 14 days.
2. Even if I ONLY lose 14 pounds in March and 14 pounds in April...I will weigh less than my final goal weight. :happy:
3. Could this be REAL? Am I that close to 145 pounds and 'the finish line' of this very long trip from 280+ pounds to a normal body...a body that I have never known before, except as a new recruit in the Navy, when I was 19 years old. :bigsmile:
I didn't get to live at that weight for very long, because I jumped right up into 160's and then got pregnant. That began my years of 200+ pounds. In truth, I have lived most of the last 50 years as a woman buried under more than 240 to 290 pounds.
The body I am wearing today is battered from those years of abuse. The skin on my belly, my inner thighs and especially under my upper arms will never be the youthful, taut skin of 19 year old, but that's okay.
For today...I am just daydreaming about 'How close I am to my goal weight'. Today, I can see myself reaching that illusive goal...and maybe sooner than I could even dream. Or...I am getting ahead of myself and setting myself for disappointment? Either way, the daydream is nice.
How close are you to your dream weight? Do you see your goal coming closer and closer? Do you feel like it is SO CLOSE that you can almost touch it?
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Replies
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What a wonderful journey! Bravo! You are an inspiration to us all. You look wonderful, but better yet, you have your health!0
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Congratulations! You're an inspiration!!
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AMAZING transformation and story!0
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Amazing!!! You look great. Wonderful story and you have your health now. Did you do any form of exercise or become more active in your weight loss journey?0
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I am just starting out wanting to lose 65 lbs. but you and others have show me it can be done. The inspiration has helped a lot. Thank you!!0
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Congratulations0
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Thank you for posting your journey! I am so happy that you are so close to your goal that you can taste it. I really look forward to your posts and all your encouragement! What a blessing you are! 0
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Amazing!!! You look great. Wonderful story and you have your health now. Did you do any form of exercise or become more active in your weight loss journey?
At first...being confined to a wheelchair, I found myself restricted to sit down exercises. I ordered a couple DVD called Sit and Fit that gave about 30 minutes of upper body workouts each morning. Then, in June...I took a chance. I bought my first swimsuit in more than 50 years. Mu surgeon had told me that could 'swim...but not walk or jump up and down, while in the water." I was sure that I would be the laughing of the Senior Center Outdoor Pool in complex in which we lived at the time. Instead, I welcomed and encouraged.
At first, I only swam 6 laps of 40 foot pool, but each day I grew stronger. In early October, Ed and I moved back to Hanford, California. No more community pool. I had been working out so hard with my swimming that I was up one hours of laps each day.
Once back in Hanford, I was scheduled for my surgery; and my new surgeon insisted that going to the pool might risk infection. If I had even gotten Athlete's Foot, the surgery would have been cancelled. So, no more swimming.
My hubbie joined a local fitness center; and when I am cleared by my doctors (especially the one looking at my recently discovered Lumbar Stenosis (protruding disk), I will get a membership and happily swim again.
Right now, my exercise is just getting used to my new knees and finally getting to parts of my home that needed some work.0 -
You are amazing and thank for sharing your story.0
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Well, you know I already think you're awesome! I just wanted to say that your beautiful smile never changes!0
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The BEST success story I've seen ever!!! Way to go!0
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I just wanted to say that I've been following your journey with interest (yes, I've been lurking in your blog) and you are amazing. Not only have you achieved so much and had the major surgery to get you mobile again, but you've done it with smiles, confidence and fortitude.
SInce finding your blog way, way back last October, I've been inspired by you to carry on with my own journey. And if I've borne it even a fraction as gracefully as how you have, then your influence has made my loved ones lives that little bit easier!
Many thanks and good luck with the rest of your journey.0 -
You look wonderful and so slim, many congratulations!0
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Congratulations....what an amazing journey. Thank you for sharing...you should be very proud! An inspiration for so many others....you look FABULOUS!0
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Thank you for sharing. You are inspiring and amazing!
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Can't wait to see you in that new raspberry dress, Sue! How exciting!0
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Can't wait to see you in that new raspberry dress, Sue! How exciting!
I wish that I could figure out how to post new photos. For some reason, Photobucket won't let me download; and that is keeping me from adding new pictures. That photo in brown turtleneck was the last shot that I got to load. Only the folks that are Facebook friends as well as MFP sisters get to see the photos that have been taken in past few weeks.
After church yesterday, my friend Sharon took some beautiful photos of Ed and I. Ed looked so handsome in his black suit and cleric's collar. Our senior wanted her Associate Pastor Ed to wear the formal garb for communion Sunday. I wore black pants and a burgundy top that is closest thing to my size right now. I must admit, we looked mighty nice in those photos.0 -
Congratulations! I've been reading your blog off and on since I joined MFP last year and you're a true inspiration! Congrats on your success!0
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Great post my friend! What an inspiration! I am no where near my goal weight with 100+lbs. still to go. But I'm not giving up! It took a lot of hard work to get to where I am now and I'm NOT going back. Thanks for the encouraging post once again! Bravo to you and praise God for what you have accomplished!0
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Sue, you continue to be a blessing to so many with your amazing journey. Congratulations!!!0
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What a great story. It's never too late for any of us to become healthy and fit, no matter what struggles we face; you are living proof of that. Thanks for sharing, you look incredible! I bet you feel amazing!0
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How close are you to your dream weight? Do you see your goal coming closer and closer? Do you feel like it is SO CLOSE that you can almost touch it?
Very very close right now :bigsmile:
That recent loss of your's.... WOW.... fantastic....I'm jealous. Been following your blog postings and your journey has just been amazing. :flowerforyou:0 -
Really cool and a true inspiration. I started losing weight a few months ago and am 25 lbs down. Still a ways from my goal, but seeing you gives me hope that I'll make it.0
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Thank you for sharing your story! Very touching! I also have the feeling that mfp is a gift from god for me. It finally became so easy to lose weight! No more starving. It´s like a super-unicorn-rainbow-story! My goalweight is 14 lbs away as well! I will do it and I will stick to it!0
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Congrats, such an inspiring story.0
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Amazing transformation, truly! You look radiant and HEALTHY!0
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Incredible story. Thank you for sharing. You are an inspiration and I wish you health and happiness in your new home.0
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Amazing!!! You look great. Wonderful story and you have your health now. Did you do any form of exercise or become more active in your weight loss journey?
At first...being confined to a wheelchair, I found myself restricted to sit down exercises. I ordered a couple DVD called Sit and Fit that gave about 30 minutes of upper body workouts each morning. Then, in June...I took a chance. I bought my first swimsuit in more than 50 years. Mu surgeon had told me that could 'swim...but not walk or jump up and down, while in the water." I was sure that I would be the laughing of the Senior Center Outdoor Pool in complex in which we lived at the time. Instead, I welcomed and encouraged.
At first, I only swam 6 laps of 40 foot pool, but each day I grew stronger. In early October, Ed and I moved back to Hanford, California. No more community pool. I had been working out so hard with my swimming that I was up one hours of laps each day.
Once back in Hanford, I was scheduled for my surgery; and my new surgeon insisted that going to the pool might risk infection. If I had even gotten Athlete's Foot, the surgery would have been cancelled. So, no more swimming.
My hubbie joined a local fitness center; and when I am cleared by my doctors (especially the one looking at my recently discovered Lumbar Stenosis (protruding disk), I will get a membership and happily swim again.
Right now, my exercise is just getting used to my new knees and finally getting to parts of my home that needed some work.
Incredible story. Thank you for sharing. You are an inspiration and I wish you health and happiness in your new home.0 -
What an inspiration!Best of luck on your continued journey!!!0
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Wow - Congratulations. You are beaming with health and happiness inside and out. Very inspiring!0
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