Wednesday Weigh In

We got a new scale and I was 138 this morning. I tried the one at the senior center and it was 2 lbs heavier with clothing, so I think mine is pretty close to accurate.

Ohhhh, ladies...I need this thread!

I'm 5'5", and my post-menopausal high was 204. By the time I had my BMX/TEs in December 2011, I'd gotten down to 181. Then came the post surgical bloat, the sleeping-around-the-clock inertia, and before I knew it I was back to 190.

I've been on a million diets and failed at all of them. I should own stock in WW, since I've been paying the stupid monthly fee forever, and the last time I was there was three years ago. I also pay a monthly fee for my gym, and haven't been in a year and a half!

My scale was driving me insane. The numbers would change each time I stepped on it. It was wildly inaccurate, deviating as much as 6 pounds within five minutes.

A  bunch of things changed and I came to a big decision.

My PS had put in Amazon sized TEs in me. I realized that the permanent saline implants I'm getting will be the same size. I asked what would happen if I got my squishies, and later decided to lose weight. He said they would appear a lot larger. (In my mind, I'm thinking STRIPPER BOOBS!!!)

So I was desperate to lose weight before exchange. But what to do? WW and Jenny Craig didn't work. I hate to exercise. But last year, a friend signed up for the Kaiser Optifast program, lost 70 pounds, and went off all her diabetes and blood pressure meds. (I think she's gained a little bit back, but she's had some orthopedic problems and can't exercise.)

So I did it. I signed up for Optifast - four months of meal replacements. At least it's at Kaiser, you have to qualify to get in, and they monitor you weekly. It costs an arm and a leg, but if I can lose that equivalent in pounds it will be worth it to me. My goal is to lose 40-50 pounds. The plastic surgeon is happy.

My MO is THRILLED. She told me that the best thing I could do for my overall health - AND my ER+ breast cancer would be to drop the body fat - NOW.

So I cancelled WW. I made an appointment with my trainer at the gym. (It's in a rehab hospital, and all the staff are licensed PTs or PT assistants.) They also have a therapy pool that is 94 degrees....heaven for my fibromyalgia!!! I threw out the crazy scale and got one that works.

Only problem was that I couldn't start the fast right away. (DIfferent "cohorts" have different starting dates.) So I went into "training" for my 16 weeks of liquid diets. I went to Trader Joes, and got something called Designer Whey Protein Powder, and for breakfast and lunch, I'd make smoothies with water, Greek yogurt, ice, blueberries, and protein powder. For dinner I'd have Progresso Light Soup.

Must have worked pretty well....by the time we met the second week (and before we started the Optifast products) I'd lost 4.5 pounds.

SO...here's how it goes. For breakfast, I have a shake (Vanilla, Chocolate, or Strawberry). I make it with 2 cups of water and half a cup of ice, and add 2 TBS of Torani sugar-free flavored syrup. Mid-morning, I have some of my nutrition bar. At lunch I have another shake. Mid-afternoon, some more nutrition bar. For dinner, I have soup (chicken or tomato) and another shake. For an evening snack, I finish my nutrition bar and have my final shake.

We're supposed to drink a GALLON of water a day, but since I use so much extra water in my products, I don't need to drink any extra. I have never felt hungry, light headed, had a headache, or any other side effects. The docs took me off my diuretic and my cholesterol meds, and I just decided to quit everything else. (I still have my Valium and my Norco for TE issues.)

We have to wear pedometers from the minute we get up in the morning. Our goal is at least 10,000 steps a day. We formed teams in class, and we are "walking" to New York City. Between last week and this week, my team almost doubled their steps! Having to be accountable (and in competition with others) makes it easier to tell myself "I need to keep moving!" even if it IS just around the house.

Once we started the "Meal Replacement" phase, I actually GAINED two pounds the first week. That's because I no longer was taking the water pill and my fingers and ankles swelled up. The doctor told me there was really no reason for me to be on it, and eventually my kidneys would learn to do their job on their own again. He was right. My kidney function (GFR) is back to normal!

After three weeks on program, I've lost ten pounds. I weighed in at 180 last night! Never, ever in my life have I had the discipline to do this myself. I know all about nutrition and portion control and exercise, but do I care? Nahhhh.....

But this time it's different. I didn't need chemo or rads. But I will need Arimidex for five years, and I suspect I will be one of the ones with side effects. I may even have that conversation with the MO about whether or not my QOL is suffering on this drug. But something I CAN do is try to lose this weight. I consider it just another part of my breast cancer treatment.

Kaiser calls it a "vacation from food"....I call it my "food detox".....

I even have that pesky pedometer clipped to my  jammies. I want every step to count!!!

I give you all so much credit for all the hard work you are doing! In my mind, it's kind of like I'm  taking the easy way out, because I don't have to ever think about food. The program lasts 82 weeks, so Kaiser is hoping for some long-term behavioral changes to come out of this, I think....

Didn't come on yesterday but, like ruthbru, was up 3, no decimal point.  Was down a little today and also ate better and exercised so hopefully tomorrow's ELAB post will be promising. 

Blessings, being on the team definitely helps to keep you following the program.  I found similar success in January when I joined many in my church on the Daniel fast.  I tried to continue it on my own once the 21 days were over and it just doesn't work the same but I did get some "better" habits out of it.

Up 400 grams, probably because of all the chocolate I had. Maybe it takes time to slim down from chocolate.

down .8....mostly because I ran out of coconut creme filled (dark) chocolate Easter eggs!!!

Up .5 this morning. Darn those weekends!

Oops, missed Wednesday, again.  Was down .2 (yes, there's a point before the 2).  Will try harder this next week.  Hopefully will still be down tomorrow on the ELAB thread.

Hi, NatsFan!

Wow - congratulations to YOU for getting your weight off! I hadn't even considered that the Arimidex would undo all the good work the Optifast did......  Thank you for your encouragement!!!

Had a little snag last night: my liver enzymes tripled in a week. A friend in class asked if I was worried about liver mets. I just stared at her - I wasn't, until she said that! (She's a 3 year ovarian cancer survivor.)

The doc isn't too worried - he goes more by symptoms (I have none) than numbers, but sent me to the hospital for a liver and gall bladder ultrasound tonight just to be sure. AND - more blood work tomorrow morning.

The good news (????) was that the people sitting on either side of me in class had the same thing happen to them! It can be a side effect of the diet - temporary transient strain on the liver, but the numbers come back down again.

The best news? I lost 4.8 pounds this week!!! WOOT!

I finally caught on that everything I wear weighs something, so I've started taking off my watch and my pedometer before I get on the scale, and have a lightweight Tshirt that I wear every week. I even choose my shoes by weight!

And I remember Weight Watchers...the line to the bathroom was always longer than the line to the scale......gotta pee out those last few ounces!!!!

That is so funny, I won't even drink a sip of coffee my DH brings me until I weigh first. Check out this funny video of "Wes" exhaling to weigh.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCuI6E-AmOA&feature=player_embedded

Happy Birthday truebff! 

Happy Birthday, truebff!!!!!

A GUARANTEED low calorie cake!!!!

W.O.W. What a cake!!! What a nice celebration! Love and thanks to all for ALL our celebrations!

Up 0.4 lbs to 176.0.  I've started drinking at least 112 oz of water/day and doing exercise videos on most days.  Usually Jillian Michael 30 Day Shred.  Think I'm gaining muscle?? This is SOO frustrating. Arghh.

Hi Ladies! I would like to join your Wednesday weigh-in group. I finally got back to exercising last week after all the craziness of the last year. I am down only 0.6 pounds this week but my daughter keeps telling me that muscle weighs more than fat so I should try not to worry about it too much if I'm exercising...hehe... It would be good if I could lose 50 lbs but I am trying not to think about it in those terms. I'm telling myself that it took me 25 years to gain those extra 50 lbs and I can give myself a few years to lose it (or at least part of it hopefully). I just read a thread where a woman set a goal for herself of losing 10 lbs a year and once she did that, she just maintained for the rest of the year. She has managed to lose 50 lbs in the last five years this way. Sounds awesome to me!

I gained about two pounds the first week after Easter...too many goodies in the house!