Howdy

[Deleted]

Former heavyweight checking in here ;D. I started out at 400 pounds and a BMI just shy of 63. YES YOU CAN DO THIS FOLKS!!!!

[honeybadger11]

I was also in the SMO category my highest was 348, BMI of 55. Once i made the hard decision to have the DS the rest has been easier than any diet ive ever been on and ive been on more than i can count!

Im 2 months out and below my wedding weight which i struggled to get to by working out like a mad woman and taking harmful diet pills. The DS is truly a blessing!

[smokinstella]

I always wondered just how much you started out at EN. Its amazing see the transformations on the former heavyweights. Gives me so much hope.

[pktwatch]

Does 375 count? That was my heaviest, I dropped about 45 pounds before I had my DS about 4 months ago and have since dropped another 64 pounds. It just now hit me, I have lost over a hundred pounds!

I need to take new pictures, the last one was 6 weeks out of surgery and I am down almost 30 pounds since then......









Ohh, and THANKS for making the pictures SO EASY to upload here!

[mark540]

I started out at 626. I don't think I will hit the size listed in the charts for my height. It seems there is no allowance for frame size in the calculation of BMI. I would definitely do it all over again in a heartbeat.

If I ever figure out how to post pics I will.

Mongo not smart with computer. Just rock and stick.

[Deleted]

Jan 17, 2012 23:01:00 GMT -5 mark540 said:

I started out at 626. I don't think I will hit the size listed in the charts for my height. It seems there is no allowance for frame size in the calculation of BMI. I would definitely do it all over again in a heartbeat.

If I ever figure out how to post pics I will.

Mongo not smart with computer. Just rock and stick.

Happily, there's a rock and stick option here for posting pictures! If you have them on your computer, click on the tiny words at the top left corner of your response window, "Add image to post." If you want more than one image in one post, then click on "Many images."

Then click on browse. A new thingie will open where you can find your pictures on your computer. Double click on a picture you want to upload. Repeat until you've double clicked on all your pictures.

Make sure the words "do not resize my images" are showing.

Click on the little circle next to "family safe."

Then click on "upload."

Voila! Pictures in your post! They will be all words and symbol thingies until you post your reply, though. THEN you will see pictures.

[Deleted]

BTW Mark, what clothing sizes do you wear now? That's a better indicator of appropriate size IMO than BMI.

Also, you no doubt have a lot of excess tissue left over. We very large people grow that stuff to support all the fat, and not a lot of it goes away--though on me, at least, I've seen a bit of "restructuring" over time. It's not just skin, it's lots of other kinds of tissue, too.

[smokinstella]

Thats one thing I wonder about is how well is everything going to shrink down and what not. Is all the elasticity gone from my skin or is there still a bit there to help shrink it down a bit instead of it all getting longer since there will be no fat in it.

[So Blessed]

I started out with a BMI of 51 wearing size 26-28.

[Deleted]

Jan 18, 2012 12:39:52 GMT -5 smokinstella said:

Thats one thing I wonder about is how well is everything going to shrink down and what not. Is all the elasticity gone from my skin or is there still a bit there to help shrink it down a bit instead of it all getting longer since there will be no fat in it.

People tend to refuse to believe I was ever that heavy LOL. Of course, they are seeing me clothed!

What I found was that the places with the worst stretch marks had the least bounceback. In minimal stretch mark zones, like my face, neck, forearms, calves, the changes were incredible.

Remember, too, that it isn't just about skin. Under that skin there are lots of other structures supporting the fat self....connective tissue, blood vessels, lots of goodies. Our bones tend to be denser than lighter people's bones are.

I got rid of a lot of that tissue in front with my hernia repair/TT. Now you can see a difference in where I have or don't have the tissue. The result is what some people would decry as OH HORRORS "back fat" (but is only a minimal amount of fat), floppiness in my thighs and saddlebags at my hips. So my overall shape, which before steroids and type II diabetes was pretty much hourglass, is a wee bit bottom heavy now.

I laugh my ass off when some of the bitches from a certain OtHer place make stabs at my shape and appearance. I am ALIVE, healthier than ever before in my life and able to do just about anything I want to do. Call me a pasty grey frump or elephant legs all you want. Claim I hate you because I "didn't make goal." I'll just laugh harder.

Life is GOOD. I love being the embodiment of the AVERAGE sized American woman in my 14's. I just bet you'll get there and beyond, too .

[smokinstella]

I have seen your before and after's EN and it amazes me that one could even get that tiny after being as big as this. Seriously you say your a 14 and that just seams soooo very tiny to me, then again I am in something like 40 or higher. So it really is tiny.

Screw them OtHer bitches they just jelly they cant look as good as you

[mark540]

I will add pix tomorrow- they are on my work computer.
was 6'2" 64"chest 72"waist size 6XL size 13D shoe
now 6'2" 52"chest 40"waist size XL size 12D shoe
I have been getting some flack from certain quarters that I am losing too much- bones sticking out and the like.
As soon as my daughter graduates college (1-1/2 yrs) I will be able to afford plastic surgery for the excess skin. It will actually be cheaper than another year of college! I need to convince her not to get into a masters program too soon, work experience is better I'll tell her.

[bigcoop]

high weight about 510 in 2011. Current weight 480. BMI 65

[mark540]

I FIGURED IT OUT! MONGO HAVE NEW SKILL! ADD TO RESUME!
The before picture is the only one I know of in existance, I avoided cameras. The after pic is a bit older and I've lost another 30 lbs since then. Need to update it.

[shann_ds]

Hope it's okay to chime in on this thread, but I just had to say--- Mark, you are adorable!!

[mark540]

Jan 25, 2012 16:38:26 GMT -5 shann_ds said:

Hope it's okay to chime in on this thread, but I just had to say--- Mark, you are adorable!!

Aw, shucks. Thank you.

[Deleted]

Mark - all I can say is "wow"!!!!

My weight at time of surgery was 320 (highest weight was about 350). I'm only 5'3" so my BMI was 57. My all-time low was 140 (way too skinny). Now I hover around 160 and have been in the 150-160 range for about 6 years. Would prefer 150 but that's a struggle. I had plastics (TT and had the girls lifted) about year 3.

I'm a month away from 9 years post-op (still can't believe it's been almost 9 years).

[Deleted]

Jan 18, 2012 20:15:48 GMT -5 smokinstella said:

I have seen your before and after's EN and it amazes me that one could even get that tiny after being as big as this. Seriously you say your a 14 and that just seams soooo very tiny to me, then again I am in something like 40 or higher. So it really is tiny.

Screw them OtHer bitches they just jelly they cant look as good as you

Yes, a 14 *IS* tiny, comparatively speaking. It's considerably bigger than a 14 used to be, though. I've shopped in a number of vintage clothing places, and the 14 of then, depending on what "Then" was, is today's 2 to 10.

That doesn't matter, except that I'm annoyed when I can't get into a magnificent Talbot's suit from the 1970's . Yes, 14 IS tiny when you've been the person who's maxing out the size options at places like Roamans and Making It Big, who can't shop at Lane Bryant or Catherine's.

That's what WLS is about, making very obese people *less obese.* It's not about making anyone Hollywood Hawt.

As for the impaired biddies previously mentioned, one must remember that there are very different definitions of what is attractive. I don't care to hang out with people who want to see bustiers and less than artfully cared-for pubes, especially on strangers from the Internet....Or even artfully landscaped pubes, for that matter.

Since I believe in dressing for the occasion, that is reflected in attire choices. In rural MT, jeans and t shirts or work shirts are what you wear except sometimes to church. In the more civilized parts of NJ, professional attire has a different meaning.

Being free to dress for the occasion is a MARVELOUS benefit of being normal sized ;D.

[Deleted]

YAY MARK!! Told ya it was a rock and stick option . Congratulations on NORMALCY, ain't it grand?

[Peggy]

Mark it is amazing as a preop to see your pictures simply amazing!!! you look great !! Congratulation

[susan1219]

It does me good to hear these success stories with only being not quite a month post op. Congrats to those who have made this journey successful for them...I can only hope that it goes as well for me@

[calendargirl]

Y'all are amazing!