lekanto

When my band is tighter, I have more trouble with thin liquids than anything. For me, it's because I swallow more air with them. It works better when I drink warm drinks slowly, and pay attention to bubbles.

I'm really working on internalizing the idea that "I could eat" is not the same thing as "I am hungry." Seems simple enough, right? I realized today that, if the above is true, then "I could eat more" does not mean "I need more." This also seems simple. If only simple things were easy!

"Satisfied" is a perfectly cromulent word, and happens to mean exactly what I want to say, whether it is on the official Green Zone list or not . I agree that my new idea of what it means to be satisfied can't be what it used to be. I hope I reach that low-appetite point that you have. Giving up sweets has helped a lot, but I still think about my next meal more than I should, and snacking is easier to start than to stop.

That makes sense to me. I spent years working at a job where I had to eat what I could when I could, and never knew when I might get to eat again. I'm in a better situation now, but that's a hard habit to break. I always had the appetite of a lumberjack anyway.

Ha, I did that one in 1987.

I am signed up for my first Color Run 5K in June. I want to learn to ride the unicycle I bought last year. When my BMI gets below 30, I plan to donate a kidney. I am going to wear a slinky dress to the holiday party at work this year.

I recently discovered a powdered peanut butter called P2. They press all the oil out of the peanuts and grind it to a powder. You can reconstitute it with water to make peanut butter, but that's not really very good. It's excellent for mixing into things, though.

Here is how dumb I am: I went in for my third fill on Monday Feb. 11. I was at 5cc in my 10cc band already, having previously had two fills of 2.5cc each. I would say that I was this close to the Green Zone. The nurse put in 1cc. My first mistake: I didn't feel the squeezing sensation that I had felt with the other fills, so I thought it wouldn't make much difference. My second mistake: I barely sipped the Water I was supposed to drink and was in a hurry to go. My third mistake: Even though I was having trouble with liquids and pureed foods, I wanted to give it a little more time. By the time it was well over 24 hours past my fill and I realized that I was having way more trouble than I should and it wasn't going to improve, the doctor's office was closed. That was my day off, of course. As long as I can get in enough fluids to get by and a minimal amount of nutrition, I don't want to miss work to get this fixed. That means I am on liquids, which are still a challenge, until I can get unfilled a little on Monday. I had an 8 oz bottle of Boost for lunch today. It took most of my 40 minute lunch break to drink it, and I was absolutely stuffed. Ugh. On the plus side, this has gotten me off of a plateau. I have also gotten a crash course in all of the "you are full now!" signals.

I got 0.7cc removed today, putting me at 5.3cc. I have never been so excited to have tomato soup and tuna salad for lunch! I had lost 9 lbs since my fill last Monday.

It sounds like you're doing great. As the post-op swelling goes down, you have less restriction. Then you are pretty much doing it on your own until the band is adjusted to a point that it can help more.

I don't have as much of a problem with gas when I am careful to eat and drink slowly to avoid swallowing air. Drinking, especially, has taken some practice.

I usually have a snack before. I carry a large container of almonds in my car for that purpose. It's also the one situation in which I don't wait an hour to drink.

You should be able to get all your records sent from Dr #1 to Dr #2. Check with your insurance to see whether they cover Dr #2 and what hoop-jumping you might have to repeat.

I have been drinking Boost high protein shakes. I think they're pretty tasty, but my banded friends don't.

Could it be that you are eating more than you think you are? I got a food scale, and found that measuring cups can be pretty unreliable. I was also just reading somewhere today that restaurant nutrition info is off by 18% on average! You have also probably gained some muscle. I just got banded on 11/14 and I have had a couple of plateaus of 2-3 weeks already. I try to just keep at it, and after a while I drop 2-3 pounds at once.

You wouldn't want to do such a low-calorie diet on your own. It's different when you are working with a dietician and other medical staff. I assume they have you on vitamins/supplements and will be doing bloodwork periodically to make sure you don't develop any nutritional deficiencies. That's what makes it safer than a crash diet.

I did it a few years ago. I had thought that I couldn't run. I was heavy, I was still getting over plantar fasciitis, I was (and am) very chesty, and I have always sucked at things that require stamina. I got a good sports bra (Enell brand), some good running shoes, and a stopwatch. I was amazed at how I progressed. I never got very fast, but I was running! I am getting ready to do it again.

Yeah, I'm thinking I'll be good if she takes out 0.5cc. I promise I will stay in the office until I'm sure, though! In the meantime, I am sipping as much water as I can.

Yeah, you are definitely in the Red Zone. I'm there with you at 6cc after my 1cc fill on Monday, and the only reason I have waited this long to get it taken care of is my work schedule. It may be exciting to lose weight fast, but you need to be able to eat solid food.

Congrats on getting your gluten issues diagnosed! I know (secondhand) how much that sucks, especially when you don't know what's wrong. I have been looking into Paleo cooking recently so when I host the family for Christmas this year, the banded person (me), the gluten intolerant one (a sister) and the "normal" ones (ha!) can all have the same food as much as possible. I know that's not quite what you were asking about, but that's my experience with dealing with a band and gluten intolerance. I hope your family takes your celiac issues seriously enough that they are careful not to accidentally ninja-gluten you.

That sounds like my experience (I am three months out). I'm still working on translating my stomach's new signals. I agree that "lap-band full" does not feel like "full-full."

I had my surgery on a Wednesday and went back to work the following Monday. Even with a job that doesn't require much lifting, I really could have used a couple more days.