gowalking

They seem to see cheaper at Walmart. They also have a better selection than some of the grocery stores in my area. saw your username and knew you were upper east side. I'm in the West Village. I had lapband a little over a year ago. hope you are doing well. I stay away from frozen meals...lots of sodium even in the 'healthier' meals. I'll tell you what I do. I go to Citarella or Westside Market and buy their prepared food...fish and chicken mostly. I freeze the Protein into 3 oz. portions. I also get veggies there as well and freeze them in 1/2 cup amounts. I add some carbs...potato or rice...not much...about 1/4 cup and I have several ready to eat meals that are better than the TV dinner type meals. I havent learned to put my own meals together yet, still trying to figure this all out. Mainly looking to avoid sugars and fats, also watching carbs too.Nice to have a neighbor nearby, perhaps I can learn a few things about your shopping in Manhattan. FYI: I left the UES for Wash Hts about 2 yrs ago, I just been using this username for so long, I can't get myself to change it. I've got a cousin in Washington Heights....easy ride up to her on the A train...LOL. I hardly ever cook...who does in this city, right? Anyway, it's easy to put your own meals together...and healthier too. You can PM me so I don't bore others on this thread and I can give you some of my personal experiences. I know everyone has their own way of doing things, but I'm finding it pretty easy to do it this way and it gives me a nice variety which helps not get bored with the same thing all the time. Oh and I also eat out regularly as well. I just make some better choices when looking at the menu and I do fine.

Why can't you eat halavah? is it just because it's too high in calories? I'd presume it wouldn't be difficult to eat. I love it too but it's like any sweet in that I try to avoid it.

I don't do cups...it's too hard to figure. I do 3 oz. Protein, 1/2 cup veggies, 1/4 cup carbs. I've been doing that pretty much since first being banded and it works for me. Check with your doctor to find out if you can try the same type of plan.

They seem to see cheaper at Walmart. They also have a better selection than some of the grocery stores in my area. saw your username and knew you were upper east side. I'm in the West Village. I had lapband a little over a year ago. hope you are doing well. I stay away from frozen meals...lots of sodium even in the 'healthier' meals. I'll tell you what I do. I go to Citarella or Westside Market and buy their prepared food...fish and chicken mostly. I freeze the Protein into 3 oz. portions. I also get veggies there as well and freeze them in 1/2 cup amounts. I add some carbs...potato or rice...not much...about 1/4 cup and I have several ready to eat meals that are better than the TV dinner type meals.

Hey kiddo! Exciting!! Onederland is so great. I was so happy when I got to that milestone. Yeah...I'm looking forward to our next get together as well...and to warmer weather. It's supposed to warm up mid week and I can't wait. Less snow here in the city than you guys got. I have tickets for Cinderella on Tuesday night but they are saying if it starts as snow, it will change over to rain early enough in the day so it won't be a problem for me. I went to the market this morning and I had to be careful...some of the store owners did not do such a good job of cleaning the sidewalks and there were spots where there was considerable icing. I'm sure alot of it melted since it's sunny today.

I've done step one in my transition to maintenance. I don't plug in my food into myfitnesspal anymore and so far so good. I've been weighing daily in order to make sure I'm not creeping up without realizing it. Now that I feel confident that I'm still keeping within my daily calorie count, I'm done with daily weighing...so there is step two on the journey. I'll go down to weighing in once a week with an eventual goal of once a month. I think that's reasonable in a maintenance mode. I'm not going to stop weighing my food though...at least not yet and maybe never. I can eyeball fine when I'm out to eat but not on a daily basis. I just don't trust myself yet to make sure I'm not overeating. I eat slowly and if I don't pay attention, I know I can overdo. Sometimes I feel that satiety right away, and sometimes not. So I'm very comfortable right now knowing just how much food is on my plate and knowing that when I finish a meal....I'm finished.

I started losing my hair about three months after surgery and another three months later, I really started to notice how thin it was getting. It was awful and I know how you feel It was at that time I started taking Biotin and uppped my Protein per my doctor's instructions. All summer long, I waited for it to grow back but all that happened was that the hair loss seemed to slow down. Then I had the hip replacement surgery and oh boy, did the hair start to come out again. In handfuls as a matter of fact. A month after the surgery, I swear I looked like my grandma...I could see scalp easily and I was horrified. But...I can say that I noticed about six weeks ago that it was really starting to come back and now, you can't see any scalp at all. Oh...and I'm wearing my hair shorter these days. It's a better style and now that I'm so much smaller, I don't need as much hair on my head anyway. Hang in there...as the other posters have said, it will get better.

When I started this journey, I wasn't sure what was enough food or what was too much. I hadn't learned satiety yet. So I went with what I knew. I did a basic weight watchers plan. 3 oz. protein, 1/2 cup veggies, 1/4 cup carbs at lunch and dinner. Breakfast is often cream of wheat, oatmeal, or a toasted half a bagel thin with a little Peanut Butter or cream cheese. I have a piece of fruit, or even a 100 calorie snack/SF pudding or Jello as well. I also made sure to plug everything I ate/drank into myfitnesspal and tried to stay between 1,000 and 1,200 calories daily. The only supplement I take besides my Vitamins is unjury Protein powder. I needed to add it because of hair loss and I included it as well as it's 100 calories a packet. I also stay away from fried food, fast food, etc. I'm eating alot more chicken and fish. I also try to stay away from foods that have alot of sodium. So...not much Soup or processed meats, bacon, etc. If I want any of those things, I do eat them...but sparingly. And no, this does not come effortlessly. Every day I make the choice to eat well. I also make the choice to treat myself to something I want once in a while. As long as you don't go overboard, you really can eat anything. For those who say this is not a diet...well, I actually disagree with that. It is a diet but it's a diet I hope to be able to live with the rest of my life. Once in a while, I eat a little too much when I'm out to dinner and I know when I've over eaten...because I feel a little uncomfortable and that's when I know my band is there and telling me to stop before I go too far. Otherwise, It's just me and the choices I make. Hope that helped Bandista.

No..it's not easy but you will get through the pre and post op liquid diet and once you start eating mushy and then real food, you'll feel better. I can only tell you of my experience. I was at good restriction right away while for others it takes time to get there. It's still a mostly mental game but having your appetite tamped down helps alot and allows you to make good decisions in terms of what you are eating and how much you are eating. So...follow your doctor's instructions, don't focus on the scale, and this I can tell you...as you lose weight, feel and look better, the food will become less important. Congrats and good luck with your procedure.

Does this person have weight issues? Often it's jealousy because you are doing something to change yourself while they are not. If it's not about that, you have a couple of options. You can bring this person to your doctor appointments so he/she can feel more comfortable that you are getting the finest care and doing what the doctor instructed. Or...if it's just a case of yanking your chain to upset or sabotage you...tell this person to shut up...that the comments are not appreciated and to stop them. I know...easier said than done at times but if you can't actually say that, then just think it and try to ignore what is being said. Good luck!!

I think what may be happening is that folks are used to seeing you a certain size and since you've lost alot of weight, they are just doing a compare. You look like you are eating nothing because compared to what you used to eat...you are eating nothing. Same for your size. You look so much smaller than you used to...therefore...you are too thin. I hear the same thing...yet I'm still clinically overweight. I'm just so much smaller than I was so people think of me as thin when I am far from it. Just let those comments roll off your back...they really are compliments so think of them as such. Congrats on your success.

I'm sure you're feeling both excited and sad at the same time. I've moved a few times over the years and I know how difficult and exhausting it can be even if it's a move you are looking forward to. Here's wishing you health and happiness in your new home.

I saw your post...glad you are feeling a little better. I'm banded but I had bi-lateral hip replacement surgery in October. When I got on the scale about a month post-op, I was about 12 lbs. up from the weight I was prior to the surgery. My hips were still so swollen that I knew it had to be Water and general Fluid retention. It took about another four weeks or so but the weight came off and now four months out of the surgery, I've lost all of it plus another 15 lbs.

Don't watch TV. Read a book...better yet, read a good book while taking a hot bath. I love doing that. Knit...do a puzzle, play solitaire... Just do something that's not passive. It will help. And yes...keep healthy snacks around so you have something to go to that won't do much damage. Almonds...lo-fat cheese, SF jello, pops, pudding. Those things work for me. Good luck!!

Give her some time Frank. You are literally unrecognizable and maybe that's where the problem lies. It might also be an option for you both to see a professional to discuss these issues.

I started a thread yesterday about using food to self soothe when we are under stress. Now...I'm not talking about tricks to avoid things like head hunger...I'm talking about how to handle major stresses in our lives. I've seen posts from folks who've suffered the loss of a loved one, who are dealing with serious illness, who have issues with partners and/or children...major issues, not just day to day stuff, and many of these folks revert to overeating or eating poorly again and I was wondering what it is that we can do to deal with very stressful periods in our lives without reverting back to destructive food habits. Any suggestions? What works for you? Please feel free to share.

No...your struggle lets us know that if we're in a better place, we need to be grateful and if we're also struggling, we're not alone. I thank you for letting us in.

Woo hoo!!

I've posted before about this, but with new folks on the forum all the time, I thought I'd mention it again. I'm not thin...I'm not slender. I wear a size 12/14 pant and mostly L (sometimes XL or M) tops. I'm still overweight per my BMI. But...what I am and how I feel is summed up in one word. NORMAL. I'm normal. I look like everyone else...I'm invisible but now in a good way. This is still new for me and I'm always amazed by the things so many people totally take for granted. I not only had all the room in the world sitting in an airplane seat recently, I even crossed my legs. OMG! I crossed my legs in an airplane seat. Amazing. People sit next to me now on the bus or train because they can. I don't spill over into the next seat. Heck...one day I even said to a woman standing in front of me to sit down...I knew it would be tight but I also knew it would be OK...and it was. I still have the cane...for support while I continue to heal from the hip surgery but people are kinder now. I wish that wasn't so but it is. They don't think I did this to myself because I'm overweight...they think I'm recuperating from surgery or maybe have something congenital. And truthfully...I'm not ashamed to use the cane any more for those very reasons. I can't wait to get rid of it though... I don't have to shop in Avenue or Lane Bryant. I can go anywhere as long as they have a misses department. I forgot how much prettier smaller sized clothes are. I'm not self conscious when I eat out. I know that no one is judging me..looking at me...and wondering or even knowing if I'm aware that the crap and amount of crap on my plate is the reason I'm fat. Now I still have a ways to go in that my head has not always caught up to my body. I still feel like the biggest person in the room. I still think I won't fit into the restaurant booth or that awful gown you have to wear when you're at the doctor for a checkup. I still say sorry when I think I'm invading someone else's space...another hold over I guess. Anyway...this post is long enough. I just want people to know even if they are not there yet...this too can be your story one day. Have a great Sunday everyone!

Can you perhaps get a sitter or a 'mother's helper' for maybe an hour to help with the little guy so you can try to get in some exercise? You wouldn't even have to go to they gym if you can work out with a DVD or something like that? Perhaps you have a treadmill or something else in the house? Just a suggestion... And bless you for taking in your nephew. My son and daughter-in-law took in her nieces and they have given these girls all the love and support they didn't get at home....

Yeah...I miss that stuff too sometimes...but again..it's not that I can't eat it, I just chose not to. Just you watch...when you lose enough weight to not miss things like wearing smaller sizes, fitting into spaces you couldn't before, walking without knee pain, and all that other good stuff, you'll find you don't miss these foods as much as you think you will.

I'm banded so I hope you don't mind if I comment. We go through the same thing us bandsters...to tell or not to tell and for me it was my embarrasment over needing surgery to lose the weight that kept me quiet. Even as the weight has come off, I find that I am more upset with myself for getting into a situation where I needed the band to make this work than anything else. I've lost alot of weight in one year and some of my coworkers know I've been banded. I suspect alot more presume I had surgery again, because I'm literally half my size. They are just considerate enough to not ask me directly. That and they're also not supposed to ask anything personal or they can get into trouble with HR. At this point, I'm just hoping no one else asks and a year from now, no one even cares because they will just get used to seeing me this size.

We have a Chinese stir fry a couple times a month. It's good but OMG I loved Chinese buffets. Scary to think how many calories were in those 3 plates of food I devoured? And all the deep fried wings, rolls, crabcheese wontons? If you think you can handle the numbers TMF, plug in all that food into myfitnesspal. I did that several months ago just to get an idea of what I was consuming pre-band and I was horrified...though not surprised to find out that I was eating sometimes 3,000+ calories a day. Actually...it's a damn good idea for people to do that. It's not just a great way to track your eating habits now, but to come face to face with just how much we were eating before being banded. There's no way you can whine and say, 'but I don't eat that much' when you see it in black and white so to speak....

I'm like Mrsto. I eat everything but would love sometimes to eat alot of it...especially Pasta. Thank goodness I don't but there are times I pass an Italian or Chinese restaurant and want to have a whole baked ziti or pork lo mein. So because I can't do that, I don't want to bother with a few spoonfuls if I'm by myself. If I'm with others, then I can try a taste of what they ordered and I'm OK.

That's great -- you are going to have a blast! Check out Vionics shoes. Imagine an orthopedic insert, like a custom orthotic, made into a strappy little sandal. That's exactly what these are. They even have dressy ones with a slight heel. Company used to be Orthaheel and now called Vionics. I also just ordered sandals from Sole, the company that makes those red inserts. So great for lining up foot with knee and hip. Essential! The Sole inserts are great in sneakers and "whole" shoes, etc., but they also make a flip-flop. Not as glam as the Vionics line but the footbed is a teeny bit higher, more extreme for getting that arch arching right. I know, I sound like a shoe salesman. I'll check them out. I have inserts in my sneakers and heel wedges for all my shoes...when my hips were replaced, I wound up with the right leg a little shorter than the left. The surgeon said I'd get used to it but right now, I notice it alot so I wear the wedge to balance me out and the insert because of the lower back/sciatica issue. Thanks!