"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" ~K. West

Not so long ago, I would have used today’s weather as an excuse to avoid going to work out. But, exactly two months ago, Dr. Stacy Brethauer cut me open and reduced the size of my stomach by 75% so I could lose weight. If I was serious enough about weight loss to undergo surgery, certainly I could handle a little wind and snow. So, off to the Macedonia Rec Center I went. It may not seem like much to you but it was a huge victory to me.

For weeks, actually since I came home from the hospital, I have had very little energy. Dr. Brethauer kept telling me to wait, it would come. It was just a matter of time. I would come home from work exhausted and fight to stay awake to a respectable adult bedtime. I wanted to exercise but literally could not. I knew I needed to so I could build and preserve muscle and skin elasticity but there was no way to make it happen. Then, all of a sudden, ENERGY. There it was, just like my wonderful, amazing doctor said it would be. I joined the rec center located about 2 miles from my house and, this week, I started the Couch to 5K program. I don’t have any plans to run a specific 5K, I just want to run. I didn’t even know I wanted to run. I was just walking along on the treadmill, minding my business, when Kanye West came on my iPod and I just felt this urge to run. Two treadmills to the right of me was a woman running, looking ridiculous. I knew I couldn’t possibly look any more absurd than she did so I kicked the treadmill up a few notches and took off….for all of about 60 seconds. Then I thought I was going to have a heart attack so I slowed back down. A couple of days later, I put the Couch to 5K app on my iPod and bought some running shoes. So, now I run. And, I feel all cocky and full of myself every time I finish my little half hour program.

I have lost 25 pounds since surgery and the changes to my body are amazing. When I touch myself (Hey – mind out of the gutter! Not like THAT!), I feel different, for example, when I’m lathering up in the shower or putting on lotion or washing my face. I can feel BONES and MUSCLES. Pieces-parts aren’t as big as they used to be. It’s very odd. My face feels different and looks different.

Additionally, I am beginning to feel “normal” socially.  Yesterday I wore a regular XL sweatshirt. I’m not the biggest person in the room anymore, not at work, not at the gym, not most places. I don’t feel like people are looking at me/talking about me/judging me. I feel confident and happy almost all of the time. I cry a lot of happy tears and do a lot of happy dances over things like fitting into smaller clothes and watching the number on the scale go down.

You don’t have to be hundreds of pounds overweight to take advantage of this tool. I wasn’t. It is a realistic, viable option for many people who never consider it. If you would like to learn about weight loss surgery, let me know. I’d love to talk to you about it.