It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving, 2013 is looming on the horizon . . it was the day after Thanksgiving, 2012 that I started down a path that has - literally - changed my life in more ways than I can even begin to count!
As many of us do, around the holidays, I feasted on Thanksgiving, 2012 . . I woke the following morning and - with considerable trepidation - stepped onto my fancy-dancy scale. Let me tell you about my scale. It's made by a French company called Withings . . it's a wireless/Wi-Fi-enabled scale that keeps me honest. I bought it prior to making life-changing decisions about my weight and lifestyle . . I needed a tool that I couldn't "work around" - there is no altering numbers . . . no fudging . . trust me, reality can really bite!!
I am not - by any means - financially secure. There is never EVER money left at the end of the month . . purchasing that scale (it was downright spendy) was something I considered an INVESTMENT in my future good health. Bottom line, I stepped onto the scale and my weight, Body Mass Index (BMI) and percentage of body fat were wirelessly transmitted to my computer. The numbers could not be changed/tweaked/altered . . they were what they were - PERIOD. As I said, reality bit - HARD!!
The day after Thanksgiving, 2012 - Friday, November 23rd - at sixtry-three years of age and 5 foot 2 inches tall - I'd, literally, hit *TILT* - my high-tech scale blithely recorded the highest body weight I'd registered in my entire life . . 288 pounds. Enough was enough. I believed, with all of my heart, that my life - and my lifestyle - had to change if I wanted to live to see seventy. My journey had begun.
I underwent Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass surgery on January 15, 2013 . . an amazingly short time had elapsed between the realization that a change HAD to be made and the major surgery that has brought that change to fruition. I no longer weigh on a daily basis . . my scale recorded my most recent weight (October 28, 2013) at 146 pounds. It's necessary (when establishing a goal weight) to factor in the estimated weight of the loose skin that is part and parcel of bariatric surgery (younger folk tend to have a bit more elasticity in their skin and their loose skin isn't quite as dramatic/traumatic as it is for those of us in our "senior" years). The weight of my loose skin is estimated at between ten and fifteen pounds - after factoring in the "flab" and subtracting an additional 12.5 pounds from my "scale" weight .. . I'm sitting at around 135 pounds. I'm very aware that, given my age and my body type, I'm considered to be underweight at this point in time (freakin' u-n-b-e-l-i-e-v-a-b-l-e!!) I'm working on increasing my calorie intake, I never miss my Bariatric Support Group meetings (they keep me centered and real) and I'll be meeting with a member of my bariatric medical team on November 12th. All will be well..
The journey continues . . evolving, for me, is a fascinating process. Well, fascinating could well be an understatment .. there are times when it is absolutely surreal!
It's 1 a.m. . . I'm weary. I have more to share but it's time for sleep. I'll pick this up again - soon. G'night.
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