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I've been reading a lot of blogs where people are having a hard time with the band and losing weight. I have posted a few other times about this same topic so it may be helpful for people to read those as well. It's been over a year for me and I have been through all of these struggles- from not losing weight, working out ALL the time, to getting filled so tight that I threw up several times a day to eating less than 800 cals...... Ive been there! I went to an X national body builder and licensed nutritionalist and learned what I was doing wrong. Here's the deal: You MUST eat 5-6 times a day and get about 1500-1800 cals in a day depending on your weight and activity level. You can find out what you need by knowing your metabolic rate which you can get off the internet as a guide. You MUST eat a lot of protien or you will lose muslce instead of fat. If you weigh 200lbs you need 200 grams of protein per day. You MUST do moderate cardio 4 times a week for about 40 min ( dont go more or you will go into a catabolic state and burn muscle) You MUST lift heavy weights 2 times a week just to keep the muscle you already have - takes about 20 min You MUST eat a protein, good fat and incindental carb ( berries and veggies) with every meal You MUST have a good "cheat day" every week - it causes our bodies to not get use to the same food day after day and requires the body to work hard ( burn calories) to digest a heavy meal. You MUST limit sugar, starchy carbs and bad fat!! I can promise you that if you do these things you will burn fat. Throw the darn scale away. The scale does not indicate how much FAT you lose. I lose about half of a pound to a pound a week but Im very close to my ideal weight. My weight loss has been very slow the whole time, but thats OK! I got all the fluid taken out of my band a few months ago because I could not eat what I needed to eat in order to lose fat. Please email me if you have thoughts or questions.

Well, I returned to work, arrived early - 7 AM, since I had insomnia last night - I figured I'd make the most of the day. After I got my walk on with the love of my life. My hubbage has been super awesome supportive. I am blessed. I keep my big GNC MIO flavored water at my side where ever I go, and I have a bottle of Isopure on my desk. I sip, sip, sip and that does the trick. I had egg-salad at my desk - started at 12, and finished at 3 - I took my sweet time eating bit by bit. I'm so afraid of feeling uncomfortable and visiting up-chuck city at work that I would rather slowly pace myself. Granted, it is HARD AS HELL. The shadow man from stress eater land is lurking over me all the time. It is so wierd to want to eat but to not be hungry. I think that is the biggest challenge for me. Recognizing and listening to my stress triggers and not immediately thinking FOOD. I find so much support, positivity and community on this site - thank you who ever reads and comments, you are lifting my spirit as I work through this life change. Every smiley face is getting a smile right back. I talked to my HR Director, she did not turn over the paperwork to my boss, kept it confidential as requested, fully supported me. (I LOVE WHEN HR DOES WHAT THEY SHOULD). I met with my boss, the good news...well she told me about my "bonus" for the performance year - we did well. However, she "negatively modified" my bonus because she felt I "struggled" this year. Let me define the struggle. An anonymous complaint to HR w/out facts, inuendo and no specific examples to substantiate the claim. I've asked time and again - but to no avail. And I got "dinged" because she did not feel I had as outstanding of a year as my peers. She smiled the whole time she said it. She's inspires me to be a better person. Even though it was a small "ding" - it is the point none the less. I've been working on my Resume - time to be successful somewhere else. Some day. I love my staff, my team, the work I do. It is challenging, fun. I've got AWESOME health bennies. So, I shut up and put up, or I move on. I don't think I could handle moving on so soon. So I will vent, and deal. And wish the flees of a thousand camels infest her pants.

Good Afternoon Family, What A Glorious Day! It's time to take our Spiritual Vitamin, today is: Vitamin D: Delight Psalms 37:4 says that we are to, "Delight ourselves in the Lord, and He will give us the desires of our heart." These are very uplifting words for us as we go on our weightloss journey. But we, first need understand that it didn't say He would give us "all" the desires that we ask for. There's also a "condition" that we must fulfill before we can start to receive any of these blessings. We must "delight" ourselves in His love, His mercy, His grace and His Word on a daily basis to show our Father in heaven, we love Him and that He is the head of our lives. God wants us to be happy, joyful, and successful in all that we do. But first, He wants us to acknowledge that all we are, all we have, and all we hope to achieve, we owe to Him and without Him, we are nothing! There is not one thing we can accomplish that is "good for us" without Him! "Every good and perfect gift, comes from our Heavenly Father." James 1:17 (including healthy weightloss) Let us be concerned more about our "inward spiritual appearance" and in doing this, our "outward appearance" will happen as a result!

Anyone have surgery on february 21st 2012? Surgery went great. Now I am on the road to recovery.

Fitness Through Technology - Be your own Coach! by, Luke Thomas - Bariatric Liaison, CRMC Smartphone’s are becoming a regular mainstay in society. Some haven’t adopted the Smartphone lifestyle yet. Others are glued to it like I am. The truth is more and more people of all ages are learning how to use their phones as personal organizers, cameras, video cameras, video gaming devices, online browsers, social media devices, financial managers, GPS’s, media players, e-readers… you’ve heard the slogan, “There’s an app for that.” Flurry Analytics, a technology analytics firm out of San Francisco, New York, and London recently did a study that says Americans spend an average of 1 hour and 34 minutes per day using mobile apps. This is 20 minutes more than actual web browsing (on a PC or laptop), which came in at 1 hour and 14 minutes. This means people are using Smartphone’s more than surfing the web on a home PC or laptop. Dr. Edward R. Laskowski, M.D. from The Mayo Clinic writes that the Department of Health and Human Services recommends getting at least 30 minutes a day of moderate aerobic activity (walking, swimming, mowing the lawn), or 15 minutes a day of vigorous aerobic activity (running and aerobic dancing [ex: Zumba]). It is also suggested that it is spread out over the course of a week. Want to hear something ironic? The statistics I cited in the paragraphs above are articles I looked it up on my Smartphone. Since were on the theme of time, it took me 3 minutes. Who cares? Why does this matter? What does it have to do with Bariatric patients? Some of you have either recently made a significant lifestyle change, or are considering making one with the Capital Regional Bariatric Centers Lap-Band® Program. Part of that lifestyle change is a life-long commitment to diet and exercise. Guess what? There’s an app for that! No, none that do the exercise and diet for you. I mean the commitment part. Rather, accountability towards your commitment. If you are a Smartphone user, it makes you wonder how much of that 1 hour and 34 minutes per day is being spent on something you would consider “productive” toward your weight loss goals. So, I made a list of mobile apps available on both iPhone, and Androids that I consider to be great tools to help you with your journey. I actually use some myself for my own fitness goals (and sometimes lack thereof)! Instant Heart Rate Pro – $0.99 (free version available) This is pretty nifty! It’s an app that you place your finger over the camera lens of your phone, and it monitors your heart rate; a great tool for any level of healthy living. You press the icon, hold it for 10 seconds, and that’s it. I use the free version, but you can go “Pro” for 99 cents. My Fitness Pal – Free – Luke’s Pick!!! I love this app and use it daily! It calculates your BMI. It calculates your BMR. It counts calories (over 1,000,000 food database from all restaurants). It lets you enter calories burned with exercise. It gives you reports on your progress. Plus, it’s free! Picked by Wired Magazine, and PC Magazine as Editors Picks for lifestyle apps. It’s easy, fun, and addictive! You can also log in from your home computer, which I prefer more than the app! My Tracks – Free I also use this app when I go out for a run, jog, or walk. It takes your map and GPS function and maps out your route as you go, recording distance, speed, and altitude. Sounds complicated, but the great thing about this app is all you do is click the app icon, and hit “start.” When you are done, hit “stop.” It does the rest for you. Eat This Not That - $4.99 Eating out is the bane of every diet. Based on the selling book series, this app lets you compare restaurant choices based on nutritional value, so you can make better choices based on information. It comes with a database of foods and nutritional value info so it streamlines the process of searching and comparing entrees, making it a little quicker for you. JEFIT Pro - $4.99 If you really want to take it to the next level, then JEFIT is worth the price. It has all the basic functions as My Fitness Pal, but dives into each workout by logging progress down to the set and rep, if you’re into that. It’s probably too intense for the beginner, takes a lot of time to enter information, and can be somewhat “un-user friendly” at times. Again, depends on what you want to us it for. There is a free version with limited functions available too. Ultimate Weight Watcher Diary - $3.95 This app gets a lot of good reviews, and pops up first on all of my searches for “Health and Fitness” apps. It states to be the most comprehensive application for those following a food value based plan (ex: Weight Watchers). Other Practical Apps: Basic Notepad App – Free Having a note pad app is great for quickly adding notes about health and fitness information you hear about (or anything really). I like to blog, and I compile information in what I call “blog blurbs” in my notepad app. Hint: If you are like me and hate texting, you can also download an app that lets you “talk-to-text.” Makes it a lot easier, quick, and hands free! Sometimes it misspells what you say, but for the most part it works great. Camera/Video Camera – Free (usually included on all phones) Things like before/after pictures, and video journals are important for motivation. Bar Code Scanner – Free Having a bar code scanner on your phone is great for checking prices, and nutritional value of food you intend to purchase. Also, some applications let you compare prices on certain items. For example; you are at a department store and you are looking at buying a set of 5lb dumbbells. You can scan the bar code on the item, and go online and compare that items prices. There are many more health and fitness apps out there. No matter what level you consider yourself “technically savvy” these apps are easy to get, easy to use, and sometimes free! These apps are by no means a necessity for a lifestyle dedicated to health and well being. Basically, you don’t NEED them to get results. However, similar to the Lap-Band® device, these apps are great tools to work with to achieve your weight loss, fitness, and wellness goals. They are great for logging benchmarks in your success, stay accountable, and getting great information quickly. So, after spending 1 hour and 34 minutes on your Smartphone, and 30 minutes exercising, you’re free to use the other 21 hours and 56 minutes however you choose!

The title of today's subject cracks me up! I really do mean this literally. This may be TMI to some, and if so I apologize. I have been backed up before surgery due to the amount of protein we take in and I am still having this problem. I searched the message boards and found a topic that discussed this already. So I will be attempting to use either Miralax or Benefiber. I think the Miralax will provide some relief and the Benefiber will help with fiber until I can consume more through eating. I am drinking as much water as I can. On a side note in Houston, it is time for the Livestock Show and Rodeo, with the carinival. So there is a lot going on with food, drinks and good times. Funny thing is that I am not even hungry nor do I have a desire to eat that food. Every year we go the barbecue cook off and this year we skipped it. I thought I would be a bit upset about not going, but no. My health and well being mean so much more!

My name is Denise but most people call me Neese. I am 23 years old, I will be married for 2 years, in May to my DH, Sean. We met when I was a junior high school (he was first year of college) and we have been together almost 8 years. I have been chubby/overweight/bigger, or whatever euphemism you prefer or have heard, all my life. It was never an issue until I could drive and that started the eating out and the no exercise because I had a car--I didn't need to walk anywhere! It wasn't until I realized I want to have children that I want to be healthy in my late 20s and from then on. My goal isn't to be skinny, but like most of you can relate, to honestly just be healthy and feel good in my own body. It was when I stepped on the scale at 5'6 and I saw that I weighed 292 that I realized it was time to be more serious about my health before serious health complications arose as a result of my obesity. So my journey, well my serious one after many failed attempts anyway, started in May of 2011. I did an online seminar and then had my consult the very next day. The next 6 months, as that was my insurance requirement, seemed to fly by and other days seemed to lull on forever. I remained at the same EXACT weight of 292; I will never know how I stayed at the exact same weight at all of my checkups . So my surgery was set for January 31, 2012 and I was only given a weeks notice because of some error at the doctors office. I have never had any surgery, e.v.e.r, I have never even been hospitalized overnight! I have no huge health problems (except, the obvious--obesity). My husband had to work that morning, I insisted he take off on a Friday so he could be home with me longer. My best friend came up from Virginia to take me to the hospital along with another best friend of mine. Before I knew it I was being put under, and when I awoke I was not in pain, although I had a catheter in that I was not crazy about. So it took about 4 hours to get me out of recovery because they had no clean rooms?? I dont know what that was about haha! Once I got to my room I had probably 10+ visitors with gifts and flowers--I am a very lucky gal to have such amazing people in my life. Not that I showed my appreciation much because I was SO out of it. I was released two days later--just in time for the weekend. The first two weeks home went ok, the head hunger was a killer because I watched a lot of TV and it was right around the super bowl . Then after feeling awful at my two week check up I was hospitalized overnight due to dehydration I felt so dumb like I couldn't even take care of myself. Tomorrow I will be 1 month out officially and later this week I am going back to work. I have lost 27 pounds, including 5 pre-op, and I have been at a stall since my stint of dehydration at the hospital. I am walking almost 50 minutes a night for exercise and getting enough liquids in and working on the protein. I am on the mushy phase early because my NUT believed I was doing so well that I could move up. I do NOT have a cranky sleeve, thankfully, nothing has really made me sick. I just hope to break this stall soon!

Sorry I haven’t been in touch for the past 10 days. So the day after my follow-up, things felt easier because I had an explanation as to why I was in so much pain. On Day 12, I was given permission to go from CLEAR (teas, water, crystal lite, broth, plus 2 protein shakes mixed with milk) to FULL liquids, which meant that I could have a creamy soup, vegetable juice, sugar free Jell-O, Cream of Wheat, sugar free pudding, fat free yogurt. On Day 14, I was given permission to go on the Mushy diet plan. The first thing I tried was tuna…not good. I was told that I should have 3 meals and 2 proteins shake. The meal are to be 2 tablespoon of a protein, 1 tablespoon of a veg and 1 tablespoon of a fruit…4 tablespoons total. So I tried 2 tablespoons of tuna with 1 saltine cracker (which is permitted also, if you’re not doing a fruit or veg)…an oh boy it tasted good going down but not so good coming back up. Soooo, I have learned that I can only take in 2 tablespoons at a time. I also wanted to report that I do not have any pain what so ever at this point. The only thing I have is an uncomfortable feeling in my throat if I eat too much. On Day 15, I went back to work…got a little sick at work because my friend and I were talking and I was not paying attention to how much I was putting in my mouth. But I am happy to report that I have only vomited one time. On Day 18 and Day 19…when out to eat with my family for the first time. It wasn’t to bad. I order soup and tea. Because I haven’t been drinking enough, my nutritionist said I can skip the 30/30 rule (for those who don’t know that rule…you have to stop drinking 30 meals before and after the meal) to only 30 mins after the meal. This has helped a lot. I will tell you that I am very tempted to gulp my water but that give me gas pain and it’s just not worth it.