healthy and happy

You look fabulous, hair and body! I do know what you mean. I look at my pics and think wow you are still fat. That is why I go back and look at "before" photos of myself about once a week to see how far I have come. when I do that, it quickly takes me to a place of saying "Dang, I do look good now and I sure feel better than I did when I was that heavy!" We are all telling you that you look fabulous, so believe it!

You are definitely not crazy! I just ran my third half marathon on Labor day weekend in Virginia Beach. I sign up for them knowing that it somewhat keeps me disciplined and on track. I know that I have to eat right and keep up a good training routine to be able to make the run. Without having a goal to work towards, I would fall off the wagon too easily. Good luck with your run! You will do great!

For whatever reason, fries do not do well with me. I just quit eating them altogether which is a good thing! I have problems with very few foods but that is one of them.

I couldn't agree with you more Terry! I know for me, the weight would have killed me. I had high blood pressure, cholesterol was getting dangerously close to being out of whack, and diabetes and cancer run rampid in my family. But now I am in the best shape I have ever been in at age 46. Not to mention the sheer quality of life has soooo improved too. I am so active now and can do so many things that I could not do before. I would definitely say the benefits of me losing this weight far outweigh any potential dangers as a result of the band.

I just want to say thank you for having the courage to post this. Karen is correct and I think that what she means by saying that people will condemn you is that there are many people who will chastise you for not following the rules and will say that you did all of this to yourself. Well duh, that is exactly what you are saying. You are admitting that you did some things wrong and you are gracious enough to help others by posting this and advising others not to make the same mistakes. I applaud you! A lot of people don't like it when they see posts where people are talking about problems or issues that they have had with the band, especially when it was due to not following the rules. I think that people think it discourages others and gives "banding" a bad name. Well I will tell you that what it does for me is it keeps me on track and encourages me to take care of myself and follow the rules. We are all human and most of us who had to have the surgery in the first place obviously have eating issues. I know I do and it is difficult to stick to all the rules all the time even though you know it could hurt you if you don't. Stories like yours help me realize that I have to look into the future and see what I am doing to myself in the long run when I don't do what I am supposed to do. Thank you so much for posting and I pray that you will be able to get back on track now and get yourself healthy. You can do this. Look at it this way- you learned from your mistakes so now you know what you need to do. Best of luck. If you need a lapband friend to talk to, just let me know. I lost 90 pounds and then started breaking the rules- drinking carbonated sodas, overeating, etc and gained back 40 pounds. I really started feeling the effects of my behaviours and started reading how it affected people long term to do these things and it got me back on track quickly. I am now doing what I should, re-lost the weight and my head is in such a better place.

Since being banded, I have run numerous 5k's and 10ks' and have run 2 half marathons and I haven't experienced any problems with my band. Go for it!

Wow. What a great post. You are a true testament to the success that you can have with the band if you follow the rules and keep your head right. You are an inspiration to so many people and I think your coffee meetings are fantastic. Keep on posting your success and helping others. Congratulations on your long term success. I am two years out and so far so good for me. I have lost and then regained weight many times before my decision to get the band, but i must say my success in keeping the weight off has been so much better since the band. I think I may be finally conquering this weight struggle with the help of my band.

I am with B-52. I get some kind of cardio in everyday, whether its the treadmill or elliptical at the gym or a good bike ride or run outside. I do believe however that weight training will kick your weight loss up a notch too. Muscle revs up your metabolism helping you to lose even more. Plus it tones everything up as you are losing. It doesn't have to be one or the other. Do both.

Good Morning! How exciting for you! I have been banded for almost 2 years now. I am typing this as I sit on the deck looking out over the ocean. I am on vacation in Outer Banks, Nc. I have lost 90 pounds and it is so wonderful to go out on the beach in my tankini 2 piece bathing suit and not feel self conscious about the way I look. I am proudly strutting around! So all that being said to make this point.... You will have a couple of tough days during your first week or so after surgery, but think about the payoff in the long run. It will be sooooo worth it. I lost the weight relatively quick (about 6 months to lose the 90 pounds) but everyone loses at different rates so don't be discouraged if it is losing slowly as long as it is going in the right direction. Walk! Walk! Walk! as much as you can after surgery. The more you move the better you will feel. Go shopping now and buy the stuff you need for after surgery. Your diet and nutrition needs, the gas x (I never used them though). Take very loose fitting clothes to wear home after your surgery. Most importantly- stay focused and be positive!!!

Wow! I had my surgery on a Thursday (band with plication) and I went to a wedding on Saturday. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't tearing up the dance floor or anything but still I felt well enough to go. Then I went to work on Monday. I don't understand a whole month. A week would be plenty I think. In fact I think it is helpful to get up and start moving as soon as possible.

Don't worry. The smaller you get the faster the sizes will change. I was 253 pounds when I started and I too lost probably 30 pounds before I changed sizes but then every 10-15 pounds or so I would go down in size. If you think about it the larger you are, the more area the weight is coming off, if that makes sense. just keep on working on that loss and you will see it in your sizes soon!

What will really be exciting is when you can leave that plus size side and go to the regular side of the store. If you are in 1x now you are very close. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I used to hate shopping. Nothing looked good anyway so what was the point. But the day that day that I went shopping and had to go to the regular side was an amazing feeling. My daughter was with me and we had a blast. she was bringing outfits to the dressing room saying "here mom, try this. it will look great on you." I don't know who was more excited, me or her. There are so many more options when you get to those sizes. Keep on working at it girl!

Im with sp70. It sounds like you know what you need to do. I will tell you I have to plan in order to exercise and eat right. I pack my gym bag every morning before I leave for work so that I can stop by the gym before I come home. if I come home first, it wont happen. I pack my lunch and snacks for the day. That way I don't have to make choices and there is no chance of making a bad one. It really keeps me on track. Plan, plan, plan! Once you do these things for a while they become habit and it will become easy. Good luck!

I too had the banding with plication in Aug 2011 so it has been almost 2 years now. I went from 253 pounds to 160 in probably about 7 months. I will say that it doesn't happen by itself. I do watch what I eat and exercise, but I truly don't feel hungry and the band and plication help me know it is time to stop eating. Just follow the rules. Good luck!

Soontobe.... You really need to eat more. I believe with you eating that few calories each day, your metabolism has probably slowed down to nothing and your body is probably in starvation mode. I try to eat somewhere between 1100 and 1200 calories of healthy food a day. Every now and then, I will eat a little more especially when I hit a plateau and then I get right back to my 1100-1200 calories and it seems to kickstart loss again. When I do that, I keep a steady and consistent loss going. Also I am doing this for health not just to look good in a bathing suit, so nutrition is important. There is no way you can be getting everything you need nutritionally if you are eating so few calories. Eat more and exercise more. Good Luck!

Last summer was my first summer that i wasnt embarrassed on our family beach trip. I was able to wear the 2 piece tanktinis for the first time ever. The good news is that even with the little flab and extra skin at the top of my legs, the swim shorts are in style and they look great with the tanktini tops. The other great thing is i found a couple of tops that had ruffles which are a girls best friend when you have some extra skin or flab around the tummy area. I too got size 12s and boy was i happy!

My favorite breakfast is a piece of Jimmy Dean turkey sausage and a boiled egg. I drive a lot for work and usually have to be up pretty early so thiis is quick and easy to eat going down the road.On other days i eat oatmeat with blueberries and flaxseed in it. And last but not least sometimes I have a half of a sandwich thin toasted with some pepper jelly and a piece of turkey sausage or some scrambled egg. Like some others, occasionally i have to really eat breakfast slowly but i always eat breakfast. I feel it gets your metabolism going for the day and you should never skip it.

Good Morning Terry! I am with you. I love biking. Its not exercize to me either. Thats just an added benefit! A few years ago, my sister and I rode our bikes from Emporia, va to Williamsburg. 80 mile trip. It was great. Today I plan on riding my bike from my house to the lake. Beautiful 35 mile trip. Everybody needs to find something that they enjoy to get them moving. Then you will stick with it instead of dreading exercize. I do still go to the gym too but my favorite cardio is riding the bike and swimming. Happy trails to you!

Gosh I am the exact opposite!!! I love going shopping and being able to go to the "regular" side of the store instead of the plus side. I dont mind at all trying something on to realize i need a smaller size. I hated shopping before becuase no matter what I tried on, it didtnt look good, It wasnt the clothes-it was my body!! Now I look good in my clothes and I am loving it. My teenage daughter acts like she is my fashion consultant and she enjoys helping me shop as much as I enjoy it for myself. Just look in that mirror at the dressing room and be reminded of how far you have come on your journey!

I never thought I would be running unless something was chasing me. Now, I love it. I first started signing up for 5K and 10K runs just to keep me motivated to run. You have to train if you are going to do these things. It was too easy to skip days if i wasnt training for a run coming up. The more the weight dropped the easier it was to run, so I signed up for a half marathon. My first was the Rock n Roll half marathon in VA Beach. I was so proud of myself. I felt so accomplished. The good news was that all the training I was doing was making even more pounds drop. I completed another one in March. I am signed up to do another one in September and then I will be doing one in November in Outer Banks, NC. I love running at the beach. To train for it you just have to set mini goals for your self. I run as far as i can, then walk, then run, then walk. If you set goals and say that you will run for 2 minutes then walk for 5, then repeat. After you have that down, add another minute to the running, etc. Before you know it you will be running for miles. It gives you one heck of an adreneline rush. And you know what, even if you walk the whole thing, you did it!! That is an accomplishment in itself. I will never win a race but I just set personal goals for myself and work towards them. I am racing against my own time, not the other competitors. Good luck! you can do it!

I went for a consult with a plastic surgeon once when I had lost weight years ago. I am 5'4 and was weighing 180 when I went to see him. He said he could do the TT if I wanted to but he suggested I lose that last 20 pounds that I wanted to lose first for the best results. If you are still wanting to lose more weight, i would wait until then before I went for the TT. Its a lot of money to spend. You want to get the best possible results. I know its hard to wait though, You have done a wonderful job losing the weight and you deserve to enjoy the results. Good luck. Keep us posted.

I was banded in August of 2011. I lost 90 pounds, gained back a little when i got complacent and now am losing that back down to where i was again. I really want to get a tummy tuck when I get back down to my goal size again and maintain that for a year. I love reading your posts. You are a true inspiration to us all. Your bravery for posting these pics is to be commended. When i was going through that complacent stage and not using the band as I should i wasnt coming to this site. When I came back to the site, you had begun posting on here and I am certainly glad because you keep me motivated. Keep up the good work! You look great. Lets see some whole body shots after you go on that shopping trip and get yourself some new clothes. Also how much weight did it drop when they removed all that extra skin and flab and what kind of difference did it make in clothes size?

I love turkey sausage patties, jimmy dean and Bob Evans makes a ready to eat one that I just pop in a frying pan for a couple of minutes on each side to warm it up and it is delicious. HIgh in Protein and low in fat and calories. Very filleing also. I travel early in the mornings for work so I take a sausage patty and a boiled egg to eat on the road. I too find that breakfast could be difficult to eat so I drink a cup of hot team eac morning before I start to eat.

If you had asked me a year ago if I was a runner, I would have told you "Not unless something big is chasing me". After being banded and learning to eat right and exercize, I am now going to run a half marathon in September. That's right, after losing 75 pounds I can run!! I ran a 10K in April and have been training for the half marathon ever since. I cant wait. I amazed even myself the other day on the treadmill. I ran an entire hour without stopping!!! Amazing! Keep up the good work. It gets easier with every pound you lose! Keep at it!

Wow. All of your symptoms describe me to a TEE! That being said I am going to give you my theories on each of these issues. First, I have been banded for a year on August 11. When I first got banded I was the lapband poster child! I was so adamanant about measuring all my food out to the exact portion sizes that we are supposed to eat and was phanantical about eating only healthy foods that are good for me. I lost 90 pounds pretty quickly getting me to a low of 163. I exerized religiously at the Y without missing a day! I never had a single issue. My only "stuck" experience was when i first got a fill and ate something too fast and it hung up for just a moment. Then IT happened. I started becoming complacent.. I stopped measuring the foods, started overeating and eating junk that i know is not good for me. I would miss a day or two at the Y, then next thing you know I was missing a week or two. I was full of excuses as to why I couldnt keep up my healthy living regime. I weigh every day so I would get on the scale and say to myself "Well, a couple of pounds is ok. The next thing you know that couple of pounds turned into 20. That is also when I started having those symptoms that you describe. I know exactly what you mean by the "Water cooer effect". Also I experience more of what I refer to as "semi-stuck" situations than I ever did before. I tell you all that to get to my theory of what is going on with my body. When i am back on track and following my healty regime, i dont have these symptoms. I believe the biggest factor is the water intake. When I am drinking plenty of water and eating healthier, I do not experience these symptoms. So the very best thing I can do to prevent it all is to stay strong on my routine. To answer question #1- My doc also stitched around the band, so yes other docs do this. Question #2- I also experience that same phenomenom of being able to eat certain foods and quantities of foods more so on some days than others. I think the biggest contributor to that is my Fluid level. If I drink plenty of water and keep the fluid moving out of my body, my band seems to do so much better. This may sound crazy but I have tested it and found it to be true. I make sure I drink a couple of glasses of water or some hot tea before I go to bed every night. Yes this does make me have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the nite usually but when I do this the next morning I can eat Breakfast more comfortably than if I didnt. My band seems to be tight in the morning but keeping that fluid moving seems to really help. Thanks for posting this. Seeing your post made me realize that I am not abnormal. Others have the same issues. It also made me really analyze my situation and come to the conclusion that i can control my own destiny on this. If I want to continue to experience all these symptoms that you speak of, I will keep overeating, not exercizing, and not getting my fluids in. If I want to be comfortable, and feel good I will stick to my healthy lifestyle. I guess the band is doing what it is supposed to be doing. I think I will stick with the healthy and happy and keep myself on track now.