Struggles !

Yesterday, Melinda posted a thread about struggling with fluid intake. I write this as I drink my cappuccino flavored protein drink!

Anyway, it got me thinking. At what aspect of your weight loss journey do you struggle? Is it with snacking, or could it be like me...sweets? Do you have problems actually eating? Is post weight loss depression taking control of your life? I believe we all struggle to a certain extent. Even the "veterans" struggle! So don't be scared, or ashamed, or just down right embarrassed to admit it. We all struggle with some part of our journey.

Where do I struggle? My weakness has always been sweets! I have posted about my addiction to ice cream before surgery, and how it held an evil grasp on my life. Well since surgery, I don't eat sweets. At least not in the same way I did before. What do I do? I search for recipes that don't contain sugar , but Splenda! Guess what, I'm just kidding myself. Sugar free does not mean calorie free, it just means there is no sugar!When I make a decadent dessert that is sugar free, I have a tendency to throw caution to the wind. I will sit an eat until it's gone, telling myself..."Self, it's sugar free. so it must be OK!" Is it, probably not, all I did was find a way to cheat the system! One night in particular, I ended up eating 3 slices of Blueberry pie in a 4 hour stretch. The dumping Gods found me and deposited their wrath upon me. I have not done that since!

So, that's me. What about you? What part of this journey are you finding unbearable? Where do your struggles lie today? I believe by sharing this information, we are making this support group a better place . Who knows...someone might be able to learn from what they read here today! I know I learned a little about my struggles just by writing them out!

Hi, My name is Scott and I have a sweet addiction!

Click here to read some of the responses from Obesity Help!

This week in the life of...

WOW! What a week here at the O'Neal homestead!

RJ started football practice this week, so there goes our evenings. Beth and I have split the duties, so she will be taking him on Mon/Wed and I have Tues/Thurs. We will split up Fri/Sat just so we can each get a little rest. RJ also attended a summer camp for upcoming 5th graders. I can't believe he is going into Middle School. We are very proud of him and his academic achievements. He was selected to attend Head Math and Science Magnet in our town.


Another sign your child is growing up also happened this week at school. RJ came home with a note from a girl. Oh no, here we go! The girl asked if he liked her? RJ's response, "Let me sleep on it!" She even drew a picture on the paper and kissed it. When I asked RJ about it, he said he was gonna frame the paper since it was his first note from a girl! My baby is growing up too fast!

Beth and I got to go out this Friday evening with friends and RJ stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's house for the evening! We went to a nice little Mexican restaurant with a group of our weight loss surgery friends. All together we the people in attendance have lost 1027 pounds. It has actually been a year since we attended our first get together, wow what a difference!

In the world of protein ice cream, I have made 2 new flavors, just click on the pics below to go to their recipe page. Nothing taste better on hot, sultry, humid,summer day!

Pistachio Protein Ice Cream

Cookies & Cream Protein Ice Cream

I guess that's enough for now. Don't you feel better since you've caught up with the O'Neal Clan!

Have a great week!

Protein Ice Cream

Well, I have finally dove into the pool of protein ice cream, and I LOVE IT!!!!!!!

For those that don't know what I'm talking about, go over to Eggface's blog and you will be enlightened to the scrumptious flavors she has created! I'm talking everything from Butter Pecan, Strawberry Cheesecake, to Peanut Butter Cup.

I'll be honest, ice cream is what got me into trouble in the first place. Before surgery, it was nothing for me to buy 4-5 half gallons a week. When Blue Bell was on sale, I would buy 10 1/2 gallons and stock the freezer. A couple of weeks ago, I actually bought my first ice cream since surgery. It was Bryers Carb Smart, and it lasted 2 weeks. That was a major improvement for me!

Well let me tell you, I have found a replacement. A substitute that is not only a little healthier than regular ice cream, but also packs a protein punch! Yeah!

So, here are a few of the flavors I have made so far:

Chunky Monkey Banana

Strawberry Caramel

Oh yeah, here is a recipe (it's not ice cream) that I made for some dear friends that came over for dinner last night:

Sugar Free Caramel Flan Cheesecake

With the cheesecake, I would recommend you look at what stage of the journey you are on before trying. Even though it's sugar free, that does not mean calorie free. With the protein ice cream, I say go for it. It's really nothing more than a protein shake that has been frozen!

Well, here's your turn...what flavor of protein ice cream would you like to see? I've already had a request for Cherry Garcia (which I have the recipe for). For that one I might have to visit Melinda-Mart for some Valor Sugar Free Chocolate! For me, it's going to be what I am calling "The Elvis Presley"...Banana & Peanut Butter. Whadda think?

Hope you enjoy!

May I introduce...

...Miss Priss!

As much as I would like to say this was my idea, I can not tell a lie! Beth was going to get this dog and then beg forgiveness. I knew it was coming, I just didn't know how I was going to handle it.

So, my thought was to call the girl we were gettin the puppy from and tell her that I would pay for it as a birthday gift. Just tell Beth Happy Birthday from her husband!

Anyway, she has acclimated to the family very well. Chi Chi has not barked at her once, well maybe one time when Prissy was going for Chi Chi's bone!

So, welcome our newest addition!

Tankful Tursday !

It's time for our weekly "attitude of gratitude" festival!

This past week I read a couple of things that really made me feel good about "Tankful Tursday". One was the daily blog I read...Lose Weight Find Life. I've talked about Cathy and her daily ramblings and encouragement before. But the other day, she posted something that was truly tied into "Tankful Tursday". Here is her post:

Ask yourself the question each morning when you begin your day….”What am I grateful for in my life today?”

When you start your day from a place of gratitude your attitude will immediately shift to one of complete thanks for all you have in your life. Are you grateful for all you have? Are you waiting to lose weight to be grateful and live your life fully? Do you feel your life is half empty rather than half full? You get to choose the framework that you want to live from. An attitude of gratitude will bring your closer to the success you are seeking. “Are you grateful? The answer to this question will set the tone for your day.
Believe In Yourself,

Cathy,

Certified Life Coach

Weight Loss Surgery Coach

The other was an email from a very good friend here on the Obesity Help boards. She just wanted to Thank me for this weekly post. She said that if they focused on the positive, instead of the negative, then the day started out much brighter.When I started this post, that was the main purpose...focus on the positive. So, what am I Tankful for:

Life in general and the loving grace of God. When I'm in a bad place mentally/emotionally/physically, some how, I'm always shown that my life is not all that bad. the saying, "There but for the grace of God go I", always comes to mind!

So, what are you Tankful for on this glorious and grand Tursday?

Click here for the original post to see what's it's all about!

Wordless Wednesday

An emotional update!

Well guys, it's that time of the month when I try to update you on what is happening with the weight loss!

At the moment, I am at 210 pounds, only 15 pounds from my goal! Yeah!!!! I have gone from a size 54 inch waist, to a 36 inch waist ! Amazing, I have lost 1 1/2 feet from my waist alone! For shirts size, I have shrunk out of a 4x shirt to a lg/med. Now, this is where the emotional part of the story comes in.

Last week at church, one of our dear ladies brought me a shirt. Now, she brings me clothes about once a month. I don't know if she sees how baggy my clothing is becoming, or she has brought these for her husband and grandchildren and they don't like them. Personally she tells me its the latter! Well, this shirt she brought last week was a large. Out of respect for her, I
took the shirt thinking, "I'll never be able to wear that!"

Well, I tired the shirt on yesterday, and Beth said it was big. So, I told RJ to go and get me one of his medium polos. Guess what, it fit! My loving wife looked at me at this point and aksed why I was teary eyed? I said, "I never wanted this to happen".

I wanted this surgery for one reason...my health! At my heaviest, I was havibng trouble breathing, getting out of bed, sleeping all night, high blood pressure, yada, yada, yada. The list could go on, but I believe you understand. The surgery was to better my health, not to make me smaller than my son! I feel like he would be devastated to know he was wearing larger size clothing than his father! Kinda like children are suppose to outlive their parents, not the other way around!

Now I know RJ is not as heavy as I am, but he has the potential of becoming just like I was. I don't want that for him. So, Beth and I are going to make a better effort at helping him not be the fat kid in school. We have a way to go, but we are going to do our best!

Oh yeah, the shirt I am wearing in the picture, is the one Miss Bobbie gave me. When looking at it, I guess it is a little large on me. Oh well, off to raid RJ clothes for church!

Fun Friday !

This is an old clip, or for the Web it's old (1999), but it goes right along with how I'm feeling these days! Hopefully some of you old timerz will remember it!

Have fun!!!!!

Uh Oh !

I received a call from our church at 1:15 on Thursday. It seems RJ decided to take matters into his own hands and stop a child from hurting others. Guess who got in trouble? That's right, RJ.

It seems this one child was swinging a piece of wood around on a stick and hit RJ in the back. At that time the other child's cousin started doing the same thing. RJ, politely moved his chair so he would not get hit again. Mild applause for RJ's actions.

When the group moved to the gym, the situation started again. RJ went to the kid (my heart wants to say PUNK) and told him to stop before he hurts someone. RJ walked away and the kid followed. The child then asked RJ what his problem was? RJ reached out and took the wood/string from him and the boy went to throw a punch. Without thinking (RJ's words), he reached up and put the kid in a choke hold. At this point, the adults in charge turned around , and guess what they saw? Once again, thats right...RJ choking a peer. His consequence for this (the churches punishment) is for RJ to miss the next field trip and not return to camp until Tuesday.Now in my mind, this is not a problem. If I had my way, he would not go back to this camp for the rest of the summer. The only problem is...he loves it!!!

I'm proud of most of his actions. The choking might have been a little drastic, but everything else seemed reasonable. We talked about the situation and he knows he should have gone to the adults instead of literally taking matters into his on hands!

So, where does this leave me? Doing some really haeavy praying that God will enable me as a parent and fill mu heart and mind with His compassion and love! Oh yeah...do you think you could send up a prayer for me also?

Have a good day guys! I'm giving you a great big thumbs up and in the words of one of my kids at RIP (the place where I work with behaviorially challenged kids)...You are doing the bestus ewes can do!

Tankful Tursday ! on Fun Friday!

Good Morning All!

Well, once again it's time for that once a week celebration of thankfulness! So, put on you thinking caps and let's fill this page with gratitude for the things we are Tankful for!

One of the blogs I read daily is..."Lose Weight Find Life". It's written by a woman who had WLS back in 2001. She has since went on to become a certified "Weight Loss Coach". I really enjoy her words of wisdom everyday, it has a way of keeping my thought process on track. Lord knows with out something to keep this train on track, there would be a massive wreck somewhere down the line!

Anyway (as I attempt to get back on track!), Cathy spoke the other day about choices, How we have the choice to do whatever we want to. That really spoke to me! So, this week, I am Thankful for the ability I have to make choices. Now, not all my choices have been good ones, but I am the one you pays the price for that.

I am Thankful that I live in a country that allows me to make choices.

I guess I am most Thankful for a Risen Saviour who forgives me when I make the wrong choices!

So, what are you thankful for on this...Click here to read the original post that started this plethora of praise!

4th of July 2008

Well I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! We did! Beth has been house sitting this week, so RJ and I have been hanging out by ourselves. I will tell you this though, we have had a better time that the last. Boys night out (click here) was not too fun!

Beth cam home around 4 and picked RJ and myself up and we spent the afternoon and evening with some dear friends! We have known Shelia and Todd for exactly 1 year and they are the coolest and best Friends we have right now! Whats real cool is they have a son who is 1 or 2 years older than RJ. If you did not know better, you would think they are twins separated at birth by 2 years!

We cooked out, shot fireworks, swam and played card games all afternoon! In fact if you looked at all the food we had, you would think we were feeding an army. Really, how much food can 3 gastric bypass patients, 1 normal eating adult, and 2 children can eat in one sitting? Not this much, thats for sure!

Anyway, we had a blast..firework joke! And we hope you did too!

Fun Friday !

When I saw this weeks Fun Friday, all I could thin k of was the parents I work with at RIP. when they come into the program, they are at wit's end on how to work with their child's unruly behavior. I could actually see some parents trying this method. I hope not!

To all the mothers and fathers of more than 1 child, a big hat's off to you! I only have one, but that's enough!

Now make sure you watch the entire clip...all the way through the end credits!

Happy Fun Friday!

Weight Loss Surgery for Teens

With the Walk From Obesity coming up, especially since the focus of the walk being on childhood obesity, I thought this was pretty relevant. Kylie is one of those people that I have followed since day 1 of my journey. She was actually on The Today Show this morning!

As an adult, I know the decision to have gastric bypass was a chance to save my life and help me extend my life a little bit. for a teenager to make this decision really speaks to the long term. One of the comments in th video said, "When some one is drowning, we don't build a bridge to help them out, we throw them a lifeline." WOW! That makes a lot of sense!

Kylie is one special young woman and I applaud her for her decision to make her life more complete!

Have a great day!

Tankful Tursday !

What am I Tankful for today?

Real simple...my wife and what she means to me!

Nothing can compare to the support she gives me. She is always there when I need help, or even when I don't! She is the one that helps keep me in check when I tend to stray in my thinking. She is the one that helps get things ready when it's time to go. What would I do without her? Probably be a mess! OK, I'm a mess even when we are together!

So, what are you Tankful for on Tankful Tursday?

If this is your first Tankful Tursday, here is a link to the original post that has started it all:

Original Tankful Tursday Post