I weighed in at 238 this morning. That’s a 3.5 pound weight loss for the week with a total weight loss of 20 pounds for the first three weeks of my Optifast diet. As with any diet, the weight loss slows after the initial water weight is gone.

I have a daily Optifast routine. I’ve been creative on making “meals” interesting. I add hot sauce and/or fresh herbs to the soups. Diet orange soda and ice blended with the vanilla drink makes a yummy cream creamsicle shake. One thing I know for sure is that I will not want to see soup or Jell-o for a long time after this diet. My only stray from the diet was a salad with grilled shrimp and salmon and low cal vinaigrette on Saturday.

This past week I added exercise into my daily routine. A very successful lap band patient who I follow in a weight loss forum really inspires me. He lost over 140 pounds in a year. That is phenomenal with lap band surgery. Exercise is integral in his success. I decided it needed to be part of my “new life”. I have been getting up at 5:00 a.m. and doing 30 minutes on the treadmill. It’s easier than I ever imagined, and I feel so much more energized in the morning. It fits right into my busy schedule since I rarely have free time in the evening.

Now that surgery is in sight, I am getting a little nervous. I have a couple pre-op tests and appointments in each of the coming weeks. I am sure that July 16 will be here faster before I know it.