Nyt

The consensus is DON'T STOP weight training. All the benefits have been stated already. I prefer weights to cardio because it feels like a sense of accomplishment and gives me a confidence boost. If you are afraid of "bulking up" then use light weights and do longer repetitions. Example: 5 pound dumbell curls 5 sets of 6. If you don't want to get weights, then use your own body weight. (If you have a lack of balance I suggest using a pool; less impact on joints and easier recovery if you fall.) Doing simple things like pushups, knee ups, standing crunches, plank positions, yoga, and pilates will all help you gain strength by making you manipulate your own body weight. If you don't believe me, do 1 hour of yoga... you're muscles will be tired. Kudos on liking cardio, but you do need to change your routine every 4-6 weeks to keep from hitting a plateau. If you want to tone up quick, do circuit training. I was dropping inches like crazy last summer when I was doing 30 minute circuit training sets. Keep up the good work!

***CORRECTION*** You can change the calorie goal per day. After wandering around on the site for a while, I found that it can be changed. Sorry for the misinformation, just had to wander around the site for a while and investigate it more.

Dr. appointment on Thursday morning to add fluid to the band. YAY! I'm excited about this. I'm trying to eat less but seem to be failing right now. I've understand the first 6 weeks are for healing after surgery and I'm still shy of 4 weeks. Doesn't mean I'm not irritated. I'm doing my part of choosing healthier alternatives but having trouble with the smaller portions right now. Just trying to substitute fruit for sugar cravings and vegetable juice for salt cravings. Still eating protein packed foods and making good carb choices. taking vitamins too to help me continue healing and getting better. Okay I'm listing out what I had to eat yesterday maybe that will help me see that it wasn't as bad as I thought: Burrito bowl (spanish rice [brown rice, enchilada sauce], ranch style beans, fajita beef strips (4), cheese, salsa, guacamole), water, mango and strawberries, water, Pringles (maybe 8 total),V8 Spicy Hot (12 oz), Goldfish crackers (1/2 cup), water. uh oh... not enough protein yesterday. Then again it was a busy day and I had only made dinner. At least tonight will be different, Making meatloaf, potatoes, and broccoli. Made pancakes this morning for breakfast and had a strip of bacon. Took my vitamins. Grrr... Have things to do. ***UPDATE*** Started a myfitnesspal account last night and logged my food. So far I'm not doing too bad, according to the site I'm not even hitting my calories for the day that they have alotted for me. Going to check with the doctor's office to see how many I should be getting a day, then adjust the settings as needed on MFP.

I started a myfitnespal account yesterday and logged this list of food. Total for the day: around 800 calories. WAY less than I would have thought too. When I go to the doc's office tomorrow I'm going to ask the nutritionist how many calories I should be getting a day. According to myfitnesspal, I should be getting a little over 2,000. I'm not comfortable with that at all. That seems like too many. Anyway, if you look at the foods it's a lot of carbs, some protein, fruits, and good fat (the avocado). I think knowing what foods go where in the food scheme of things helps (ie the food pyramid). The worst thing I ate this day was the crackers. Portion control is the hardest part of all this. My tastebuds are saying "give me MORE" but my stomach says, "no way! I'm done."

*limited. You are limited on the amount of food you can consume is what I meant. Sorry for the confusion.

Depending on what you are supposed to do post-op and for how long determines what you should do next. I felt like I was starving on day 3 post-op. I kept trying to do the Protein shakes but I couldn't deal with the sweetness of mine anymore. Only being able to have either sweet or salty was driving me nuts. I started on soft foods early. I made an omelet from 2 large eggs, some fat free milk, and 1 slice of cheese. I ate it VERY slowly to make sure I could eat it at all. It went down fine. So I kept eating the omelet. After I had 1/2 of it, I was able to throw it away. (Proudest moment ever!). I slowly started to eat soft, mushy foods the rest of the week. Mostly I have a 1 egg omelet and that's it for Breakfast. Tuna or chicken salad for lunch. Chicken, ground beef, ground turkey for dinner. I keep soft foods in the house and stick with those that have lots of protein. I go for my first fill on Thursday and I'm practically eating normally now. If I find that I'm still hungry, I try to figure out if it's head hunger or real hunger. At the suggestion of someone else from here today, I started a myfitnesspal account to track my food. The thing to remember is, that site (from what I've seen so far) does not factor in that you have a band so your food level is restricted. I was shocked that according to the site that I am not eating anywhere near enough in a day. I'm not even hitting the minimum of 1200 calories. Myfitnesspal will help you track your calories and your protein. Bonus tip: DO NOT EAT FRUITS WITH SKINS! They do not digest and could cause more harm than good. Making healthier choices is what all this is about. Concentrate on that and every time you have to eat, make the best choice you can. You will have moments where you slip up, recognize that you slipped up and what you can do about it in the future. Also, listen to your doc. If you are comfortable with trying soft foods early, stick with stuff that is protein packed. It will help you stay fuller longer, help you heal faster, and will help you feel included. Try to keep down to the appropriate portion size too. Best of luck to you.

I love spicy foods. I love restaurant style foods. My recipes are for things that I make at home that I would like to share with others that like to eat out. I find that my recipes at home are generally better than what you can get at a restaurant anyway because I know what's going in them. Typical things I substitute: Rice=brown rice Sugar= Splenda, Sugar in the Raw, Equal, Truvia, I generally omit things from recipes because I generally don't have them, find them unnecessary or don't like them. Whatever works you know.

I got the recipe from allrecipes.com, it's called Slow-cooker buffalo chicken Crockpot/Slow Cooker Chicken pieces (thigh, legs, wings, breasts, etc) 1 oz. dry ranch dressing mix Buffalo Chicken Sauce (12 oz. bottle) 2 Tbs. Butter/Margerine (optional) Put the chicken in the crockpot/slow cooker. Sprinkle 1/2 oz. of the dry ranch mix on the chicken. Cover the chicken with the entire contents of the buffalo sauce. Optional: Add the butter to the sauce Turn on to Low heat for about 5-7 hours, the chicken will come apart easily the longer you cook it. For a faster cook time and more firm meat, cook on High heat for about 3-4 hours.

I'm going in for my first fill hopefully at the end of the week or early next week. I'm nervous about the amount of food I'm eating. I'm eating frequently but it's still small amounts of food. More than a 1/2 cup but less than I used to eat before the band. Is it because my stomach is no longer as swollen as it was when I first was banded? Is there really anything to fear? I went to a friend's bbq yesterday and found that I was grazing most of the time. I ate some cut up melons (honeydew and watermelon), some goldfish crackers, a few raw broccoli florets, a couple baby carrots, a bbq grilled chicken thigh, one jalapeno sausage wrap with salsa, and a couple spoonfuls of ranch style Beans. (okay writing it out doesn't seem so terrible). And 1 small slice of chocolate cake with a strawberry. Maybe I'm freaking out about all this in vain but I'm still nervous. My friends know that I can't eat like I used to and I didn't for the most part. I think I'm not used to the volume of food being what it was compared to the past couple of weeks post surgery. Also I'm still finding bread is real hard to get down. Can someone please clue me in to what's happening?

I have been thinking about how I got to where I am now. How I got to be so unhealthy. I love food and food is a big part of socializing in American society. I was talking to a college friend of mine and they are big too. We came up with the following explanation. It doesn't fit EVERY situation but I think it is possible to sum it up for most bandsters. We are "Food Aholics" (FAs).We love food and like to socialize with others. The main difference between FAs and alcoholics and drug addicts is that you have to eat in order to live. We can't just abstain from alcohol or illicit substances. It's not possible for us to step away from our "drug" and continue to live life. We have made the conscious choice to make changes in ourselves and our lives by getting banded. We want to live our lives and be happier than we were. I think that some of us are "wired" for tastes of food. I love the taste of some foods. I love it so much that it goes to excess. That's how I got to where I am, I know it. I read a lot in the forums and my heart goes out to those that are chastised for getting the band or making choices that they are being judged for. I would advise that you focus on you and to hell with the nay-sayers. At the risk of sounding uneducated, "Haters gotta/gonna hate." There are some people that want you to stay bigger so they can feel better about themselves. You don't need those types of idiots in your life. If someone asks you how you are doing, and you told them about getting banded then educate them on how it works. The best remedy for ignorance is education. Good Luck!

The people I was working with would genuinely be concerned with me if I was sick. So being out of the office for a couple of days would have been noticable. I told people that I trusted, not people I didn't. If word got around, oh flippin well. I ate healthier than most of them any way. For me, my band is about helping with portion control. I was eating pretty darn healthy any way. Don't get me wrong, I love the occasional cheeseburger but who doesn't? No one ever said anything to me about "should you be eating that?" because I would say something right back about what they do. I agree with a previous post about people need to tend to themselves instead of you. We as (what I'm going to call us, if you take offense sorry) "food Aholics" (FAs) don't need to be chastised for any small misstep we may have. We FAs chastise ourselves enough and don't need others making us feel worse. The main difference between FAs and alcoholics and drug addicts is that you have to eat in order to live. We can't just abstain from alcohol or illicit substances. In order to live, your body needs fuel. Pretty soon we'll be told we can live on the nutrients in the air alone. Everything is bad for you, regardless of what it is. It's all bs, in my opinion. If you know in your heart that you have made some positive changes in your eating habits then $crew the rest of them. If you start doubting yourself, I recommend a food diary. Sucks to record everything but it shows proof of what you are doing to you.

Where are you from? Killeen, Texas When is your surgery? July 12th What excites you most about the surgery? Getting it done What scares you the most? failure

I found out that I was denied unemployment assistance. I was expecting being denied but it still hit me like a ton of bricks. I cried and sobbed so hard last night. My poor husband didn't know what to do. I was so upset that I didn't even want to get up this morning. It was like, "What's the point?" But like this journey, I got up anyway; one step at a time. I found myself wishing for things to be different so much last night. I was wishing I had never gotten my band. Mostly because it's another bill to pay. So long story short, my depression started to take over and make me feel hopeless. Didn't help that I ate most of a bag of Munchos yesterday and 2 turkey soft tacos last night. Trying not to dwell on the mistake since it WILL happen. Found out about the rejection letter after dinner though. I'm better today. Not 100% better but still okay. Going for a walk, just like I'm supposed to. *sigh* Hard to deal right now. I can do this. I know I can do this.

Being steadfast and unwavering to cheat will help you get through it. When I was going through my pre-op diet I was on Adkins phase 1. Not hard to do but when you're at a bbq and they have cake, hamburgers, and chips and you can't have any of it... I went to the store and bought some salad mix. The hardest part of the get together was staying away from the bread and cake. So I took myself out of the room. I went and sat outside to chill away from the temptations. If you have the resolve to do this, you will do it and be successful at it. I strongly agree with removing temptations from your home. Easier not to eat it if it isn't there.

Thank you all so much. I love this site for the purpose that it was designed for. To talk to others that aren't going through this journey it seems harder because they can't quite understand completely. The support that we all give each other is great and helps so much. I'm better today and know that it's a new day. Every day is a new day. I think I found the reset button... it's called midnight. =)

Well you're in the right spot for starters. You should be getting a guide on things to do from your doctor or the surgeon's office. Make sure you follow their guidance on what to do. Drink Water. You will make it through this and you will have some jitters. This is a great site with awesome support from members that are pre-op, post-op, and life beyond. Expect that after the procedure you will not be 100% for a while. I'm still struggling with this and I was banded almost 3 weeks ago. Remember that this takes time. The band is a tool, it won't do all the work for you. Drinking water is good for you to start doing now (if you don't already). Good luck and ask away! Congrats!

I was off my pain meds by day 2. Surgery day didn't count since I would expect ANYONE to be on the pain meds for that. Next day, I was on the pain meds again to help a bit. Saturday, didn't take any at all. No pain. I do have a high pain tolerance though. so take what you want from that... The day of surgery when I woke up though... I swear I thought someone had been practicing boxing on my insides. That hurt! And a 2-3 hours ride home from the clinic in 5:00 traffic... I don't wish that on anyone.

I may be asking a dumb question, or maybe I'm just stubborn and being impatient. I have low energy and I don't know why. I had surgery almost 2 weeks ago. I went out running errands and other things yesterday for about 10 hours. I was almost constantly moving all day. Drove husband to work, went grocery shopping, loaded groceries, took groceries home and put away after unloading from car, went to visit a friend for a few, took husband dinner at work, ran tools I had borrowed back to the owners, picked up husband from work, and made him drive home. I was tired last night and went to bed early. I slept all night and now that I'm awake... I'm tired. Does it sound like I overdid it with all the activity and I'm still not 100 %? Normally, that would barely phase me. I started off my day with a scrambled egg with cheese for Breakfast (which was around noon). I didn't eat again until around 5:30-6pm and that was half a turkey-cheese wrap (which might just be about a 1/4 the size of a normal one). I finished it off about 8:30pm. Went to bed around 1am. I feel like I'm worrying too much and I'm trying not to. Please help.

I am having trouble eating slowly and taking smaller bites of food. I don't know what to do to try to get this under control. I just bought some toddler utensils because I figured the smaller size of the utensils would help me control the size of the bites of food I'm taking. Good idea? Bad idea? Any advice? Any other ideas?

Take a deep breath and let it out. Don't panic. I agree with what some of the later posts say and that it's all about Protein. Try to make your meal atleast 50% protein then add in the other stuff. I haven't had my first fill yet but I know enough about nutrition to know that protein is your friend right now. Are you walking/doing some type of fitness activity? I keep the following in my house right now, protein shake mix, fat free milk, cheeses (string cheese, babybel cheese wheels, cheddar, swiss, laughing cow cheese), tuna, chicken, fish, ground beef, ground turkey, lunch meats (ham or turkey), bacon, eggs, yogurt, and juices. If I want a snack, I grab a piece of cheese (I love cheese). It's a small, dense snack that's got some protein and Calcium. If you want to put it on celery, or something crunchy go for it. Apples and strawberries are my fruits right now since I'm still on soft foods. Peel an apple, slice it up, good to go. One the nurses where I went suggested I keep sugar-free gum on hand so that if I feel like my mouth wants something but I don't want to eat then I have something to do for it. Congrats on making better choices for food! Celebrate that victory. Someone also mentioned that after your first fill, you might still get hungry. This is normal, since every body is different there is no set amount of Fluid in the band. I was told they filled mine at surgery with 2 cc's. When you go for your fills it will be about trial-and-error at this point. To get you the right amount of restriction they aren't going to want to over fill the band so that you get sick. I think this whole journey takes something some of us lack (myself included) and that's patience. You will succeed and you know you will succeed. Just let them know that you're hungry often right now. It will pass. Write out why you feel hungry, if you need to. Keep a food journal to help you keep on track. Whatever you need to do, aside from eating more. Good luck!

After not being allowed to have fruit for WEEKS.... I bought some fruit yesterday. Strawberries! drizzled in balsamic vinegar. I'm more happy about eating the strawberries than what's on it then again I'd never had strawberries in balsamic before. The vinegar is slightly sweet and seems to bring the natural sweetness of the strawberry out. Yum! I'm just happy to have fruit right now. Means I can have natural sugars to cure my sweet tooth. Any other ideas on great fruits and recipes for them? I'm open to suggestions.

I seem to be having trouble with that. I don't mind drinking water it's just I keep forgetting to drink. I get sidetracked and just flat out forget. If I get thirsty, that's something different all together, I'll grab water no problem at that point.

After my surgery on the 12th, I was pretty weak and in some pain for a few days. I took my pain meds the day of and the day after surgery only. I was a little less sore the next few days and have had little to no pain since. Woo hoo for a fast immune system and for vitamins! I have been taking my One a Day Gummy vitamins with Immunity Support to help me out. (hint hint, awesome for the immune system). I was on to eating soft foods within a few days after surgery and I wanted to start walking the day after surgery. I rush things, I admit it. The moving on to soft foods was due to I was so tired of feeling hungry all the time and there was only so many sweet things I could handle consuming. No I'm not the model patient. I've learned how to make an omelet and that's what I have for breakfast. I've had to learn that I can't eat a 2 egg omelet anymore, so I moved down to a 1 egg omelet. Then I know I'm getting a protein packed start to my day. Tuna salad and Chicken salad have been helpful for lunch or dinner. The walking I think has been the hardest part. Not because I'm lazy but because I was still pretty easily tired. My husband and I went on a walk Tuesday afternoon at a nearby park. We walked over a mile in 30 minutes and I was pushing hard the last about 10 minutes. I had to slow down a little too but I kept pushing myself to finish. Sadly, when we got home and were cooling off, I fell asleep for about an hour. Just tells me that I'm still getting used to what my body has to do. I went to the gym Saturday for nothing more than to walk on the treadmill for 30 minutes. I got that done and was not as tired afterwards. I'm really into being healthy and fit, just frustrated that it's taking time to get back to my 100%. Went to my post-op appointment on Thursday. I went dressed in what I would normally wear to work, slacks and a comfortable shirt. (I quit my job on July 5th and have been looking for other employment). My pants fit a little loose at the waist. That made me feel good. At the appointment, I found out I'd lost another pound since surgery. A small victory is still a victory. My nutritionist and I discussed the "soft foods" phase of the diet and I admitted to starting soft foods early but I've stuck with protein packed foods instead of not. Eggs, tuna, chicken, yogurt, and V8 V-fusion juice were helping me. I can now have anything that I can get through the tines of a fork. What's upseting to me is the lack of fruit that I can have. I really want fruit, especially cherries. The nurse was a bit disappointed that I wasn't feeling more active yet; I was disappointed too. Since the appointment, I have been walking a few times and have had my cherries. A friend threatened to come hurt me because she explained to me, the skins of my cherries are not easily digested. So I gave the rest of the cherries to my friends. Something I'm noticing is that I am unable to digest breads or carbs yet. Yes I've tried and I've gotten sick a few times. This is overly frustrating. I hate the feeling of pain that comes with it. I wish I could get myself under control. I feel hungry sometimes and I try to focus on if it's head hunger or real hunger. I'm still trying to figure out how to deal with it. I have been dealing with multiple life changes all at once and it's tough. I have depression. I am medicated for it. Yeah, I quit my job a few weeks ago. It was best for me to do so to take care of myself and heal properly. I have been pseudo-actively looking for work this past week. Last week I was more focused on healing and getting back to feeling like my old, energetic, motivated self. It didn't work out that well. I'm trying to keep myself in check and positive right now regarding all the feelings from my depression and the surgery and lack of success with it. I'm glad I've done the surgery and I'm making some mini-goals for myself. I think I will make my first goal of 25 lbs lost, I will get a new tattoo. Found out recently that a family member has throat cancer. I'm okay with it seeing as how they asked me to help them. I do crochet and they asked me to make them some hats. Fair enough. Now cancer is no stranger to my family. This member now makes at least the 4th person in my life that has been diagnosed with cancer. The awareness ribbon for cancer in general is the color purple, one of my favorite colors. I think my tattoo reward will be a tribal butterfly with a purple cancer ribbon. Lots of things in my world, lots of small changes. The good thing, the nutrition is not that difficult for me. I was eating pretty healthy prior to surgery and my band is just going to help me be my ultimate, thinner, fitter self.