Been gone, but I'm back

Hi there, If no on here remembers me, I'm Kevin.  I had my VSG on 12/20/11.  I took some time away from the boards and recently came back by and I decided it would be fun to update everyone.  My story so far is a good one.  I went into surgery at a hefty 325 lbs.  Surgery was good, no real pain, mild discomfort, was discharged after 27 hours.  Had surgery on a Tuesday, was in my own bed Wednesday afternoon.  I was lucky as I had no complications or problems.  I think that I was blessed with an amazing surgeon.  Things were going well until May 20, 2012.  That morning, I ran my first ever Warrior Dash, and about 2 miles in, I had a bad encounter with the ground after the 225lb, soaking wet me attempted to slide down a 15ft fireman's pole.  The result was a severe compound/spiral fracture in my left leg just above the ankle.  This is where things really slowed down for me.  As a result, I was forced to stay off my leg for 8 weeks, and during that time, I stopped working out, and began to let my diet slide a bit.  I was lucky in that my weight just leveled off and didn't start climbing.  By my 1 year follow up, I was starting to get back in the habit of working out and trying to start running again.  I weighed in at 210 pounds and my Dr seemed to be very pleased.  Things for me have slowed down greatly.  I'm currently working on strength training with a personal trainer and trying to keep my diet in check, as it feels like I can eat a normal sized portion at most meals.  Its not hard for me to hit 1600-1800 calories a day or more if I'm not careful.  My current weight is 208 pounds and I am working very hard to be under 200 by mid April and under 190 by Memorial day.  

 

So that's my story so far.  Would love to talk to some of you, old timers and newbies alike.  And I am always free to answer questions.  

 

 

A before and after photo taken in October 2012

 

 

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You look great Kevin.  Thanks for coming back to update us.  You can reach those goals if you set your mind to it.  I'm thinking out loud since now since I have to lose a few myself.  The support here is great.  Again, congrats on yours success so far!

Lookin good there! Glad to see you are back to working out and eating right. It definitely gets a lot harder the further out you get.

Welcome back and glad your "getting back on the horse" 

Hi Kevin, I'm a newbie (surgery 3-11-13) but wanted to reply, you have done amazing even with the set backs. You look awesome!! You will get to where you need to be, Keep your eye on the prize, you got this!! =)

Take care

Mel

Thanks, Mel.  I WILL hit my goal this summer.  Not going to let anything stand in my way.  would really like to be at goal by 18 months post-op.  You will get there too. Congrats on joining us on this crazy journey.

I'm a "newbie" and wanted to say how great you look! What a tremendous accomplishment to achieve after breaking your leg. Congratulations!
I had my surgery last Aug an am 13lbs away from my goal. I also have started running which has made a huge difference in my health.
Best of luck to you!

Hi Kevin! I'm a newbie. I was sleeved on 12-10-12. Welcome back to the boards and in getting back to the grind! :) You look great! Keep up the good work!