Terry Poperszky

Nice article, but it is true? I notice that she doesn't quote any sources, are these "facts" a product of her own research?

I have been fat all of my life, I remember as a freshman in High School wrestling varsity heavy weight which had a top limit of 230 and how I had to struggle to stay under that limit. I fought my weight all through my adult life finally ending up at 324 in my early 40's. Finally joining WW and getting back down into the 280's in the late 90's. In 2005 I had knee surgery and was back up to the wrong side of 300, so I went back to WW and after 8 months of hard work I got down to 250 where I stalled. I finally got down to 249.8 and then started putting weight back on. That number 249.8 has always been a magical number to me since then, but I have never been able to come close to it, let alone pass it. This morning the scale read 249.4 (even got on and off the scale twice because I couldn't believe it). My next goal? Under 230 so that I can qualify for Heavy Weight high school wresting again! For people who care about the particulars, I am shooting for 1300 calories a day, although that fluctuates. I am exercising 3-4 times a week, I am eating (for the most part) my exercise calories). I am not tracking my carbs, but I am not eating a lot of them. I still have a Protein shake (with blended fruit) for Breakfast each day. I am avoiding bread, Pasta and rice, not because I can't eat them, (My band doesn't prevent me from eating anything) but because I view them as empty calories. And I generally eat 4 1/2 - 3/4 cup meals a day. So I am basically following the rules my Dr. laid down for me.

Forgive me in advance if you feel this post is judgmental, it is meant to be. But not of you, it is meant to be judgmental of my own life. There have been numerous threads from people who want to lose their fat, but don't want to give up a particular food or habit that helped contribute to them being that way. Each time I see one I think to myself "you really don't want to be thin, do you?" then I think "If I only had to give up <Insert food item here> or start doing daily <insert healthy habit here> to be thin, I would do it in a heart beat". But the truth is, that is a lie. I have been fat all my life, I have lost hundreds of pounds, and then found them again and while the LB is a fantastic tool, unless I am willing to make changes that last the rest of my life, the fat it helps me to loose will eventually come back. So the question I have for myself, "today is how badly do I want to be thin"? What am I willing to do (or not do) to make that happen?

****Caution Personal Opinion**** I tell anyone who notices my weight loss and asks how I did it that I had WLS. My reason? I struggled and failed for so many years trying to do it myself that I would hate to add to the guilt of anyone else when they failed at doing what it took surgery for me to do.

Leslie, everyone here can lose weight with diet and exercise, I did it for 40 odd years, until i couldn't. I would loose weight and then the knee replacement sidelined me and I gained it back. I would lose weight and then I ripped my achilles in half and gained it back. I would lose weight and then my testosterone levels got low and sent me into a deep depression and I gained it back. Until this last year when I worked my butt off but didn't lose weight. That is when I got the band. The band is a tool that studies show not only will help you lose weight, but it will help you keep it off. Would you rather do that when you are younger, or are you going to waste all those years like I did. Regardless, you have the tool, now please use it.

Very common symptom. Some people blame it on the hormone released by the fat, others a morning or grieving period over changing your lifestyle.

I want to be thin, today I had a fill and I WILL follow my Dr.s orders and do liquids today, and mushies tomorrow. I HATE liquids

As my boss says, "That was yesterday, what have you done for me today?"

Umm Jean, you may want to edit this for readability.

My Dr. considers it a liquid.

Switch to Red wine. How do you feel about flat beer? Many of us can't handle carbonation in any form. I was a diet coke addict for decades, I decided that I wanted a rum and coke the other night, and even though I tried to reduce as much carbonation as possible it still made me uncomfortable.

Jennifer a word of caution about this subject, this can really be a downer if you aren't one of the fast losers. This is not a race, and if I have only learned one thing, it is that everyone reacts to the band differently. With that said, as far as I can see the ones that have lost consistently from the start, are the ones that logged what and how much they ate.

High heels and nails, what is wrong with you women Life is hard enough without add additional hurdles

Scamp, fantastic change. I had my wife start putting money away in dedicated CD so that when I reach goal, I will be able to do this as well.

Man, you are my hero!

May I respectfully disagree with you? If I cook ground meat, there is a substantial amount of fat left in the skillet after I drain it. Same with other cuts of meat as well. My personal belief is that the supermarkets add Water to increase the profit margin, which is one of the reasons I grind my own. As for volume vs. calories, different Dr.s have different rules. Mine uses both, no more than a specific volume, and heading for a specific calorie range.

To be technically correct, muscle is denser, and as such weighs more by volume (A cubic inch of lead will weigh more than a cubic inch of feathers.)

Excellent Lee, this topic has been on my mind as I continue my journey as well as watching the journey of so many others on the board.

If you are building muscle, it CAN make the scale slow down, but you will still be losing fat. But, you can do strength training with an eye toward toning instead of building massive amounts of muscle. The key is low weight, lots of reps. BTW, while building muscle will slow down the scale, it will help speed fat loss.

22 Days post op, red wine

If you are on day 3 of no DC, then you are all most over the hump. Tough it out.

I agree with Lauri, especially the learn from it part.

Well, all I can tell you Jean is that he had done that to me, I would have been totally wierded out! Seriously, I remember reading a study that found that when a waitress touched the customer (shoulder, hand etc.), they got higher tips on average.

Preach it Sister!

Ohhhh.... I love that mixture!