Realizing you are amazing!

Hello everyone! Tonight’s blog post is going to be on a serious topic. This evening I watched the news and saw a story about a Wisconsin news anchor, Jennifer Livingston, who received an email from a viewer criticizing her for her weight. This viewer went on to say that she was “not a suitable example for this community’s young people, girls in particular” because she is overweight. I wanted to dedicate tonight’s post to bullying in hopes that if anyone out there is feeling judged, bullied or picked on about their appearance; they can realize they are not alone.

For some strange reason, some people feel the need to tell overweight people they are fat. News flash, they already know! Every morning when they face the mirror, every time they try clothes on at a store, every time they are out in public and get looks from people on the street; they know. There were many times where I would get dressed in the morning, do my hair and makeup, get ready to leave and every time I looked in the mirror I would never look at myself; not because I didn’t like myself, but because I didn’t like the reflection that looked back at me. Far too many times, I made myself laugh off when someone would say something about my weight. Fact is whether it’s a friend, relative or just a stranger on the street it hurts. A smile or a quick catty remark in response can seem like strength and mask the pain but it hurts none the less.
When I was in high school, I weighed roughly 300lbs. I remember a specific time when I was in high school and I went with my mother to take my brother to the park. A girl and boy that was about my age were sitting on one of the jungle gyms and the girl walked over to me and said “That guy over there is saying your fat.” This was not her way of telling me someone was making fun of me. They were being cruel and wanted to make sure that I felt their harsh words and to make sure I knew they were talking about me. I turned completely red and just wanted to cry. My mother being protective said something in response to them, but it didn’t help; the damage had been done. That was about 15 years or so ago. I am now 31 years old, and even though I am over it, it doesn’t make it right. I truly hope that those teens didn’t grow up and teach their children to be ignorant as well. I hope that at some point they learned compassion and basic respect for other human beings and their feelings.
This blog post is dedicated to anyone who was ever forced to feel as if they are not good enough, too fat, too skinny, ugly, nerdy, too tall, too short, etc. No one is perfect. If we were all meant to be the same, this world would be a pretty boring place. It took me a long time to be able to say the words “I am not fat,” but once I did I felt amazing. We need to take derogatory words out of our vocabulary. We are all amazing and everyone has his or her own cross to bear. No one has the right to add to anyone else’s struggles in life. I hope that anyone who reads this knows that you are amazing; you are special and whatever life throws your way, you are strong enough to overcome it. As Eleanor Roosevelt said “No one can make you inferior without your consent.” Be strong and know that you are a special unique person the way you are. No one can or should take that away from you.

Please repost this blog and I have posted the link to the statement made by Jennifer Livingston below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIwBwJzl5eI&feature=youtu.be

Finding creative ways to exercise and feel good inside and out

Hi everyone! Tonight’s post is all about exercise and doing something good to feel good. A great way that I have been finding to stay active is doing charity 5k's and walks. It’s a great way to meet people and see different things. Last spring a few friends and I did a charity 5k to raise money for Memorial Sloane Kettering Cancer Center. That walk was beautiful we walked a 5k around Central Park and it was really nice! I have also done the Revlon Walk/Run which was from Times Square all the way to Central Park.


I have made it a point especially to do the Lung Association Fight for Air Climb every year in honor of my grandmother and uncle who suffered lung cancer and COPD. This one is different because instead of walking or running a 5k you are climbing 51 stories of One Penn Plaza. It sounds crazy I know, but I felt such a sense of accomplishment when I completed it last year. Before I had my surgery I would have never been able to do this climb. Now that I can do it, I choose to do it. There is nothing more empowering then when you finish the climb, walk out of the building and look up and say "Wow! I actually did that!"
 

www.Active.com is an excellent website that has all kinds of local events near you from everything to 5k's, runs and marathons. They have all different levels from beginner to expert as well. Finishing the race feels great but knowing you raised money for a worthy cause makes it feel even better.
 

If anyone would like to join the Fight For Air Climb or donate click the link to my participant’s page :)

http://action.lung.org/site/TR/Climb/ALANE_Northeast?px=4735248&pg=personal&fr_id=6621

Suriving Weekend Outings

Hello again everyone! I apologize for my absence this week I was unfortunately not feeling well. However, I am now back and ready to talk about how to survive weekend outings without compromising your diet and Lap-Band rules you must follow.
 

First and foremost, beware of the company you keep! I love all of my friends and they are very supportive of my diet. They are always watching what they eat as well which makes it easier for me. I find that when I am hanging out with the girls that’s when it’s easiest to watch what I am eating. Now, don't get me wrong we are girls and do enjoy martinis and chocolate cake, but we usually share a dessert or order a drink.  After getting my surgery and being limited to what I can eat I can enjoy the company of my friends rather than the food.
 

As far as ordering food, stick to what does not get you stuck! Anyone who has a Lap-Band already can understand what "stuck" is.....it's just not fun! Some foods do not go down as well as others. For example I have a very hard time with white meat chicken and steak. Anything that is dry and hard to chew will inevitably get stuck in the top of your band and you will be running to the restroom and get sick. My friends usually know when this happens and we joke about it, but trust me the first time it happens you will be shocked!  When I go out I try to order a salad or something mushy. With salads I find that I get stuck with iceberg lettuce usually I try to stick to leafy green lettuce or spinach. Another option even though it’s not exactly a low calorie choice but pulled pork or chicken is nice and mushy. 
 

As I mentioned before, carbonated drinks are a BIG no-no! Drinking something with bubbles, especially beer and soda will cause the bottom half of your stomach to expand and subsequently push your band up which could cause slippage. You DO NOT want this to happen. After all of the pre-surgery tests and preparations you had to go through soda and beer is just not worth ruining the surgery. I usually stick to water with lemon or unsweetened iced tea.  Some places actually carry the Minute Maid Light Lemonade which is only 5 calories per 8 ounces.  Alcohol is usually not recommended. I indulge in a drink when I am out occasionally but I usually stick to a martini because they never have carbonation. Martinis however can be very high in calories. My favorite is sour apple martini and I recently tried a cotton candy one that was great. One is not so bad but when you have a few it adds up. Wine is always a good low calorie choice. Riesling is my favorite and a glass usually goes for about 60 calories. The most important thing I should mention is your tolerance for alcohol is going to be very different. You have to realize that you have a lot less food to soak it up and you will not be able to handle multiple drinks.
 

I hope you guys enjoy this post!  As usual I would love to hear from anyone who has any comments or ideas for me to talk about!  Have a great weekend!

Recipe Thursday! Giving into Fall Recipes without Gaining Weight

Todays blog is all about fall recipes!  Mostly helpful hints on making them low calorie.  I must confess I love the fall because...I LOVE PUMPKIN!  I am one of those people who waits all year for the pumpkin spice lattes to come out.  However, as much as I love the pumpkin lattes, they are high in calories.  I have a few helpful tips for you guys, that I have in found so many recipes using apple and pumpkin that are low calorie.

First tip is regarding pumpkin coffee and lattes.  Flavored coffee can be high in calorie if syrups are being used.  I usually use the pumpkin spice coffee creamer, they're only about 30 calories per serving.  Last year however, I went to a coffee shop and inquired about sugar free pumpkin syrup.  The manager said they didn't have it but asked me to write to their corporate office and request it since a lot of people were inquiring about it.  She then was nice enough to make me a regular coffee with 1 pump of pumpkin syrup and skim milk.  Granted it wasn't a pumpkin spice latte but it was good enough and I didn't feel guilty. 

As far as pumpkin recipes, I have found quite a few.  SkinnyTaste.com has a whole pumpkin section on their website.  I made their pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting the other and their no-bake pumpkin cheesecake and they were really good!  Another good idea for pumpkin lovers is pumpkin pudding.  I made it using the recipe I found on LapBand.com.  Its basically fat free cool whip, a scoop of vanilla protein powder and fat free sugar free vanilla pudding.  Its an awesome treat if you are craving pumpkin pie.  I can go on and on with pumpkin recipes but there are so many out there that are awesome to try.         

Apple recipes are such a great part of fall as well!  Hungry Girl has so many apple recipes.   My favorite is a baked apple in a mug with red hot candies and fat free cool whip!  Put that in the microwave and its awesome.  Last year after apple picking I went on a pie baking frenzy!  Apple pies, or any pies really, can be made low calorie with the right ingredients.  I have tried replacing sugar and brown sugar with Splenda and Spenda brown sugar.  My biggest problem with baking apple pies is cutting them.  It is very hard to get a serving size correct with a pie.  I read that its a good idea to roll out the pie crust thinner, cut it into equal squares and put them into a muffin pan.  That way it was all portioned out and everyone got their own little pie. 

Well, this is the beginning of many more "Recipe Thursday's" to come.  I hope its been informative and if anyone has any recipes, websites or any insight at all that you want to share feel free to comment!  I will be writing on a different topic every day of the week.  My appologies for not writing last night as I was not feeling well.  Have a good night everyone!

Learning to fend for yourself

Hello all!  Today's post is all about learning to be selfish.  Not in a bad way but learning to put yourself first.  One thing I noticed after I was on the liquid diet is that I had to fend for myself.  Granted I was not a happy camper when my family was eating real food and I had to drink soup, but would I take it back? Nope, not at all!  I quickly realized that I was the one who controlled my food.  I had to make my protein shakes, soups, mushys and once I was on solid foods I made those for myself as well.  When you live in a house with other people the temptations are there you just need too take yourself out of the situation and not give into them.

My family is the biggest part of my life.  They have stood by me throughout my process and have been very supportive of me.  When they ate dinner I would cook my own meals and when it came down to it I had a lot of fun cooking.  I think the hardest part of my diet was having to be on full liquid diet on Christmas day.  I come from a large Irish/Italian family.  Anyone of my friends will tell you my house always has some good food lol, especially on Sundays and holidays.  But, I did it.  I had my cup of soup from Trader Joes and sat next to my Uncle John, who had the surgery as well.  I remember telling him "I think you're the only one who knows my pain right now."  In a way, by not being able to have all of the food I realized there was more to the holiday.  I made it about watching the kids open their gifts, helping my mom etc. Point is, at the end of the day I really did not even miss it, which made me feel like I was really going to succeed.

Thinking Positive and Not Taking "No" for an Answer

Hello again everyone!  I thought that I would keep things along the informational route and talk about some things that I went through while  preparing for my surgery.  A few people had questions regarding whether or not the surgery was covered by insurance.  My story is an interesting one! 

While you are going through all of the pre-surgery testing and doctors appointments, you feel as if you are working towards a goal.  In my eyes once I got everything done and my surgery was over my life was going to be different...and it definitely was!  However my road to getting the Lap-Band was a rocky one.  I was all set to have my surgery done with one doctor, I had all the pre-surgical appointments done.  Now anyone who has had the surgery will tell you there is a lot of pre-surgical things that you must do before your doctor will book a surgery date.  My list of doctors included: a psychologist/psychiatrist appointment, pulmonologist (and a sleep study...not my favorite part!), nutritionist for 6 months prior to surgery, cardiologist and finally my primary care physician had to approve me as well.  It is a long and daunting process to go through but the end result is worth it!  In my case however I was all set with everything when my prospective surgeon's office called me to tell me that I was not covered for the surgery.  You can imagine the pain and disappointment I felt.  I actually cried and felt as if I would be stuck forever at the weight that I was.  I was about to give up and forget about the surgery all together until my grandmother found a new doctor and pushed me to go to Dr. Geiss my surgeon that I have now.  My surgeon is truly amazing.  I walked in to his office for a consultation and I will never forget his words when I told him my previous surgeon said that I was not covered "We don't take no for an answer"  and they didn't.  Within 2 months I had my surgery. 

Thinking positively and surrounding yourself with positive people is the best thing you can do for yourself.  My family and friends were my own personal cheerleading team and their positive attitudes helped me through.  There are going to be people that say "Why are you taking the easy way out?" and "Why don't you just diet?" and you have to be prepared for that.  Truth be told it is not the easy way out. As with anything if you work it then it will work for you.  The most important thing is that you stay positive for yourself.  I now see that had I just given up I would not have gotten my surgery at all.  I am glad that I did and glad that I had my group of cheerleaders to help me through. 

My Story

Yay!  I have finally joined the world of bloggers!  Since I am new to this let me give you all some background about me.  My name is Christina and I am 30 years old.  On December 28, 2009 I had Lap-Band surgery.  That is definitely a date I will never forget because that is truly when the biggest journey I would ever embark on began.  I notice now that I refer to myself as 2 people (no I am not crazy! lol).  The first is "Pre-Surgery Christina" this is usually when I see a really fattening food or something tempting and I say "Oh Pre-Surgery Christina would have been all over that!"  The second is "Post-Surgery Christina"  which is who I am now.  I find it important to separate the two because I am truly a different person now. 

After losing 176 lbs and feeling as if I would never be able to lose the weight I have learned so much about myself.  There is so much to life that I wasn't living and did not even realize how much I held myself back.  Through writing this blog I hope to not only help myself but help others as well.  Recently I have gotten very "comfortable", a topic I plan on touching on, and have gained a small amount back.  Not something that I am proud of but when we fall we must pick ourselves up and keep going.  I hope that I can be of help to anyone looking to get the surgery or anyone who has it now.  It would be also great to get any insight from other people who have Lap-Bands that might have any useful information or tips for me too.