FLORIDAYS

interesting stats on the BMI....My dr said the band will do 70% of the work. He told me I had to do the other 30% by eating proper portions and making smart food choices. I personally do not think the band works on its own until we are in the green zone. And then you will only lose if you kick in the 30% effort.

I too tossed out the heartburn meds.... Unless its a coincidence... It tells me heartburn is a direct result of eating fatty foods. Congratulations

Somehow I don't think this thread is about the band.... There are much deeper issues here. Best wishes for a successful recovery.

Welcome... I hope you find this forum a source of help and motivation as you enjoy your lap and journey.

I ate 1000 calories a day for 22 months and didn't starve. At my first appointment my NUT said 1500 was the number I should be at. I thought that was too high for my personal situation so discussed it with my dr and he said I just couldn't go below 1000. I do also take a gummy Vitamin. I am healthy, have no vitamin deficiency and have lost in a reasonable amout of time. On my calorie tracker it said 1800 was my number.... Which is crazy but you can manually adjust it on your tracker.

My dr suggest my portions for every meal be as follows... 3 oz Protein 1/2 c veggies 1/4 c startch That is a little over a cup but most of the time I cannot eat it all... I also limited myself to 1000 calories per day for maximum results but check with your dr on what is right for you.

I am sorry you had this experience but I don't believe you can die from getting stuck. It doesn't block the air flow I don't think. Of course I am not a dr. I would hate for new bandsters thinking about getting banded to get scared off by the dramatic scenario you portray. That said I would be more focused on eating 3 balanced meals so you aren't so hungry in the middle if the night you resort to rummaging thru the fridge for food. You may want to speak to your dr about getting in the green zone.

Congrt on your success. I respect your point of view but some people need to be more strict with themselves in the losing stage. I cheated 5 times during my losing stage of 22 months... Because i needed to stay focused or I would back peddle. I know myself. Lol So while it's great to enjoy life and splurge every once in awhile ...for people like me it might be best to be stricter during the losing part of the journey. Just wanted to share that point of view.

I love hot tea..... But be careful with gum. Swallowed gum can wreck havoc for bandsters.

Just wait... Time flies when you are losing!!! The last 2 years really flew by!!

well I weighed 377 and now I weigh 162. I have lost more than 50% but it is because I tracked every morsel, weighed out my portions and counted every calorie I ate and learned how to live with my banded. Maybe in his experience people just don't put forth the effort.

I wouldn't take a laxative. You might add fiber supplement to your liquid a day or 2 before. It's tasteless and incomes in individual packets like crystal light. I don't understand why no preop. It as well all know doctors differ on that topic.

My dr doesn't advocate Protein shakes after the liquid phase is over 3 weeks post op. he says he would ather see me get my nutrition from real food. And the question about 8 oz or 1 actual cup..... It's one actual Measuring cup.

I am not sure what you mean by normal. You are different now. Thankfully you have an amazing tool to help you lose weight...so you aren't ever going to feel like you did before , if you are talking about the post op surgery recovery... It takes a few weeks for the gas to totally escape and the healing to be finished. So you will feel more like yourself but I haven't felt like I did pre banding so far. And don't get me wrong...it's a great thing.

You just deal with it. Honestly you ignore it and focus on doing what you are supposed to be doing to lose weight. I went through menopause just after I got banded. My moods were out of wack and my emotions were raw. But I found other things to do except eat. You must not give in to the cravings...and it's not that hard as with the band you can eat plenty of stuff which will satisfy you. For example... You crave chocolate... Have. sugar free pudding cup for 60 calories as a snack instead of ice cream or candy You crave tacos,... Make a taco salad with 1 c of lettuce, 2 oz of lean beef, 1/4 c shredded cheddar and lots of salsa You crave salt... Have 6 of the mini pretzel sticks You crave French fries...ignore it. All those things will fill you up...and you won't blow your diet.

Not sure how far along you are but you might want to do liquids tomorrow to offset any damage u did yesterday. The band is all bout the ability to make good choices and learn what it will and I'll not tolerate.... You have to focus on portion sizes to discipline yourself otherwise you won't get the results you want.

I also weigh myself 2x every day and I tracked everything I put in my mouth up until I was 3/4 of the way to goal...then dr wanted me to becom less dependent on tracking....but I read that people who track their calories when losing are twice as likely to succeed that those who don't. I am not saying you won't be successful.... I just wanted to put it out there for those who are struggling.

My band surgery took 45 minutes according to my dr. I was put out at 1230 and was awake by 2p

My dr told me to stop tracking when I was 3/4 of the way to goal... I had been at it 18 months and lost about 180 lbs. the reasoning was that he wanted me to learn to eyeball it... Become not be dependent on a tracker. I was scared to death since I had been so successfull. so I tried it but I did use the calorie Serb every now and again to check out food I wasn't sure about. When I went back to the dr I actually had lost about 10 lbs which is the same as I had been averaging every month, however I knew that because I didn't give up my scale. Maybe your dr has the same reasoning if you are close to goal. I will tell you that every so often I will track a day here and there just to keep myself in place.... But for the most part I have learned to live without it...but I do believe it was one of the secrets to my success.

It seems I lose my memory when rice is around. I know better... But I take a tiny bite... It goes down. So I take another.... And by the 3rd bite I am remembering why I shouldnt eat rice.

I havent tried a happy meal... But I cannot tolerate fried food so I doubt I could eat much of it. I have eaten a taco from toxic hell aka taco bell and I can eat just one and that's tossing 1/2 the tortilla.

Think like a thin person. If you were thin...and I don't mean those pesky people who can eat whatever without gaining an ounce... I mean the thin person who tries hard to stay that way.... If she pigged out yesterday she wouldn't do it again for a while... Even if the scale didn't move upwards. On the other hand ... a fat person who pigged out yesterday and didn't see the scale move would continue to eat that way and eventually forget about the scale. That's the difference.

I just responded to your words written in you post so evidentially as you say I misunderstood. Sometime writing is like thAt. Everyone has to do what is right for them. Personally overeating at 3 wks post op doesnt work for me but I was on a mission to get the weight off so I wouldn't have to diet like I had been doing for 30 years. Best wishes for your success

My dr said 3 months to make sure everything is healed. But when you do induldge just make sure to stay away from the carbonation and count the calories.

Fabulous!!!!! You look great!