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Introduction Text I am a 50 year old mother of 3. I have spent the majority of my life fighting with my weight. Like many, I have lost hundreds pounds over my lifetime, only to become frustrated and regain the weight plus some each time. On January 3, 2007, I underwent gastric bypass surgery. It is not the right choice for everyone, but for me, I had finally decided this was the road I need to take. I call it forced behavior modification. No cheating on this diet. The weight loss has been amazing but the sacrifices many. So if your interested in my journey or have your own to share, I would welcome hearing from you. Update: June 2009. Now the hard part begins. I am constantly reviewing and revising my goals. I joined a gym in November 2008 hired a trainer and am now totally addicted to weightlifting. Not just the machines, but all out heavy weights (can you believe at my age I can lift 180 pounds, who would have thunk!!). I find between the cardio and weight training my body is forever changing. Yes, I gained a couple of pounds but my body fat percentage has dropped another 6% since November. I find this to be such a great stress buster. No matter what mood I go into the gym with, I come out feeling better both physically and mentally. All of us need to find something that drives us to succeed. Whether it's the personally satisfaction or physical. So for me, my weight battle will always be with me. I still want to lose more weight, but if my body insists on staying where it is, so be it. I am happy, healthy and so much better off than I was just a couple of years ago. Update: December 2009. A few months ago I decided to really revisit my nutrition plan (no, I won't call it dieting anymore). I found myself falling back into old habits. A dinner roll here, bite of this or a piece of that. I was getting physically ill at times from my food choices. I made to decision to completely cut carbs from my plan, except for some berries, green veggies and nuts. I held fast to a strict protein intake. It wasn't easy at first but as a couple of weeks passed, I noticed how much better I felt and the pounds starting coming off again after having come to a stand still (and even gaining a couple back) over the course of the prior year. My workouts at the gym started to become more intense and all of a sudden, muscles started to appear. My body fat has dropped even further while I have gained more lean muscle. As my 49th birthday approaches shortly, I reflect back over the past 3 years and am amazed how much I have changed and even how people I come in contact with treat me. I could not have imagined I would have changed so much and I truly believe anything is possible and it's never too late to start. We don't have to live our life as prisoners trapped in a body. We have the power to change anything in our lives. We just need to step out of our comfort zone in order for it to happen. A journey of a thousand miles, begins with a single step.

To finally reach a healthy weight. For the first time since I was a small child, my doctor told be my weight is normal. So my goal now is to maintain my weight loss. Gastric bypass is only a tool, the real work begins once that goal is reached and to keep the weight from coming back on.

My diet is protein based, no sugar and very few carbs. No pasta, rice, bread, etc. Limited fruits and veggies. I workout 5 days a week at the gym and always try to a positive outlook.

I am from South San Francisco, CA. Email me at Susanne12761@aol.com

My goal in the gym on my 49th birthday,01/27/2010: 49 minutes on the treadmill 4.9 incline at 4.0 speed (can't handle running at 4.9 for 49 min.) IN 49 MINUTES COMPLETE: 49 situps 49 chin ups 49 burpies ( for my trainer, he loves to punish me with these because I hate them so much) 49 deadlifts 49 lunges 49 squats 49 swings w/50 lb. weight 49 pushup (guy style of course) 01/27/2009 I completed my challenge!!

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