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Anyone in these areas? Who was/is your surgeon? Which hospital? Are you following any local support groups? I'm in Ellenton (very near the outlet mall that will become my best friend in about 6 months!!!). My surgeon is Dr. Rehnke and I'll be at Palms of Pasadena on the 19th - one week from today. Yay!! Looking forward to meeting more from this area. Rosie

I found my speed tends to match the beat of the music I'm hearing. It has made me replace my Josh Groban & Bread for CCR, CSN&Y, and Steppenwolf!

We have friends in the last ten days and I haven't had a bike ride in the last 5....I miss it. We have, however, spent a considerable amount of time fishing this week (in the Gulf of Mexico) and have landed some pretty awesome red grouper. 21 keepers this week and probably 100 undersized we threw back. I'm feeling a little like Bubba Gump - we have fried grouper, grouper oscar, broiled grouper, blackened grouper, grouper fingers, grouper tacos. . . . . I am NOT complaining!!!!

Sunday starts our new week and new goal. We are all so excited about doing 38 miles in January that it keeps us motivated to go every day. Well, almost. Yesterday afternoon we had one of those infamous Florida thunderstorms, leaving everything wet, hot, and steamy. 7 pm came - our Sunday riding time - and half of us were ready to chuck the whole deal! Nine miles was the goal. I clocked home at 9.98 miles in 56 minutes. If I had looked down at my program before I clicked "STOP" I would have dozied around my driveway for the extra 0.02 miles!!! Damn! But, we surpassed our 9 mile goal, still did 30 minutes of strength training in the gym en route, and did it in the worst heat and humidity of the week. We are warriors!!!

Thanks for the encouragement. I hadn't meant to sound like I was belittling our accomplishments, though I can see how it looks that way. Neither was I boasting about our workout schedule - just reporting. I have to remember I am among like-minded people when I post here and not subject to the scrutiny of ignorant people who don't understand the struggles of a fat girl and the joy in becoming "normal." Lesson learned! :wub:

Wow, I'm thrilled to see this thread!! One of my NSV goals is to ride the Pinellas Trail in St Pete, FL - 38.2 miles. I've never been an avid biker but I enjoy it immensely. A couple of friends have hitched their star on my wagon and we started training just after Mother's Day, riding 5 miles/day, adding a mile each week. Doesn't sound like much when I see all the stats above but for us - none of us in great shape - it's a thrill. We'll be at 34 miles by the second week of January, then we'll hit the P-trail. Three days of the week we bike our miles, swim 45 minutes, then do aquarobics for an hour, all before 11 am. The other days, we hit the gym for strength training. I don't ever see a day when I will love doing the gym thing but training for this ride with my friends has made it a lot of fun. I use AllSportsGPS for tracking my rides/progress and Pandora is a MUST for the ride! I finally figured out how to make my smart phone do both at the same time!

My doc said six weeks, also. Walking every day from the beginning, but no strenuous exercise for six weeks. MyFitnessPal is a great program for tracking food intake and exercise but I know there are others out there that people like as well. It has been said over and over again and I agree: writing down every morsel you eat every day is the best food management tool you can use. Not only does it make you accountable, I believe it lessens the guilt from having so-called "forbidden" foods. No food item is verboten; quantity is key.

You make such a good point! However, not everyone can be a spokesperson, a visible champion. Reading all the different responses to this thread, most come around to the idea that it really isn't anyone else's business so it doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks about our decision to have WLS. We choose to live with others' ignorance of how hard this path really is because there is no way to explain the agonies that brought us to this point or the elation we feel at having found the tool that makes our new life possible. How long we each get to that point is as personal as our reason for having WLS in the first place.

Kris, have you had your hormone levels tested? Being in your late 30's would SEEM to be too early but it is possible a hormone imbalance is preventing continued weight loss. Just a suggestion but I speak from experience. Might be worth the needle-prick to see your levels and make adjustments as needed. Good luck!

Hence the reason I let HIM go golfing and I go fishing!!!! LOL

Please don't tell my husband! He golfs regularly and wishes I would join him. I just don't have an interest and this would give him the ammunition he needs. . . .

I don't know of any Tampa doctors. I was at Palms of Pasadena, too. Great hospital, really loved it. My surgeon, Dr. Rehnke, not so much. I don't DISlike him, I just don't feel very warm and fuzzy about him. I was spoiled by the primary care doc I had for 20 years before I moved. Now I can't find anyone who measures up.

When I had my psych eval and the Doc asked me if I used any recreational drugs I said, "Yes, about once a month, if that." She said, "I appreciate your honesty but I'm not going to put that in my report. I consider once a month use to be medicinal, not recreational. And I'm telling you this so you don't mention it to anyone else." I had to laugh at that! I was glad to be honest and happier that I was rewarded for it!

It's the time of year in Florida when we get a lot of company. Spring breaks up north drive them down here. Others just come down because they are sick of the cold! Also, I just finished finals from one semester, had a quick week of time off, and now back into another semester. So my time has not been my own as of late. I pop in once in a while but don't have time to keep up with the conversations. Think of everyone here often during the day - like between meals when I'm struggling with hunger pangs and I imagine the encouragement each of you would give me or when I accomplish a NSV.

I have a friend with the same problem. She doesn't seem to realize the impact the munchies have on her daily food goals (wonder why!). Everything in moderation in life.

In Florida, if you want to exercise outside you have to be flexible (and I'm not referring to limber limbs!) I have been riding my bike a lot lately. A couple of friends and I are training to ride the Pinellas Trail in January - all 37 miles of it! We have started at 5 mile a day and will increase one mile each week. That will put us to the date we wanted to shoot for - mid-January - riding 34 miles. We have found the 7 pm hour is usually pretty nice for riding in May. By July we'll have to switch to early mornings when it isn't so hot. We have a gym in our community, albeit a very small on, and we have started going on off-cycle days. Need to train the upper body as well.

How are you doing now?

I've been reading through this forum's posts and I don't see anything current about ChampVA. Since I wasted four months going through the hoops my surgeon's office put me through because they didn't understand what ChampVA wanted, I'd like to post the information that may help others. This is directly from a current letter (February 2013) from ChampVA. In most cases WLS does not require preauthorization. Coverage is provided for lapband (Lapband brand, btw), vertical banded gastroplasty, gastroplasty (stomach stapling), Roux-en-Y, and revision of gastric restrictive procedure. "Surgical correction of morbid obesity benefits may be extended only when one of the following conditions is met: 1) Patient's BMI is over 40 or, 2) BMI over 35 with serious medical conditions exacerbated or caused by obesity or, 3) Second surgery (takedown) due to complications of previous surgical correction." Billing for surgical treatment of morbid obesity must be accompanied by medical documentation, which includes: At least 18 years old Documented attempts (at least 2) of failed non-surgical medical treatment for obesity (Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, or similar plans are acceptable as long as you have at least monthly clinical encounters with you physician that documents weight loss efforts). BMI greater than or equal to 40 or, BMI 35 - 39.9 with one clinically significant comorbidity (cardiovascuar disease, Type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, hypertension, etc.) Bottom line: You do NOT have to wait for approval for surgery provided you have at least two documented attempts at physician monitored weight loss and a BMI >40 or <40 with co-morbidities. When I spoke with ChampVA directly (which I should have done four months earlier than I did), I was told the surgeon must submit this documentation with the first billing. There is no approval process. If you submit the proof they will pay according to their benefits (currently 25% of allowed amount). If the surgeon's office submits documentation asking for approval, they will get the same letter I (and the surgeon's office) received stating pre-authorization is not required nor will it be granted or presumed from the documentation the surgeon's office provides. ChampVA will only review the information when it is submitted with the first bill. I'd also like to say that some surgeons require the nutritionist, psych eval, and other medical tests for their own edification in deciding if you are a good candidate for surgery but that is not the requirement of ChampVA. Always, always, always, check with your insurance company yourself and first (wish I had). Document what you were told, request written clarification and keep that documentation safe in the event there is a problem later down the road. It is not uncommon for two different insurance reps to provide different information from the same question. If need be, ask until you get a consensus and there is written documentation to support what you've been told. Then, before you make a date for surgery, make sure you absolutely know, with documented proof in your own hands that you give to the insurance coordinator at your surgeon's office, that you have complied with the three simple rules above. Hope this helps.

Oh man! You mean she wasn't interested in just me???? LOL. I knew as soon as I began reading it this was another of those scam emails. Her grammar gave her away.

HOw'd you do? Easy, right? Thinking about you!

Just back from my first fill. Piece of cake....ehm, that may not be the best example here, huh? NO pain, a LITTLE pressure, but quick and easy. Now, let the games begin. . . .

Sorry, they would have to knock my ass OUT for that!!! The other day I had the strangest sensation. I don't know if I had gas rumbling around in my stomach or what but it was reminiscent of when I was pregnant and the baby was kicking inside my stomach. I could feel the port moving around a bit. VERY uncomfortable. I can feel that port right under my skin and at times it protrudes a little, too. I go for my first fill tomorrow and am hoping it's all normal. Scary, all these new things....

That's good math and good advice. I searched for 'how many calories to maintain weight.' I found a million sites, I went to the first ten: Site 1: Fit Magazine, 2294 Site 2: Calorie Control, 2171 Site 3: WebMD, 1600 Site 4: Free Dieting, 1914 Site 5: Cancer.org, 1500 Site 6: Calorie King, 1850 Site 7: Walking.com, 2150 Site 8: Fat Burning Furnace Reviews, 1911 Site 9: WL for Women >40, 1992 Site 10: Mayo Clinic, 1650 So the range is 2294 - 1500 calories each day. That's the difference of a meal a day. Mind you, I used 'sedentary' as the lifestyle, assuming I would not get much exercise in each day. More logical to assume none than to estimate (over-estimate?) a level of activity. So using the formula for losing 1 lb = a 3500 calorie deficit each week (I just LOVE math word problems, can you tell?), the range for me would be: (2294 x 7) - 3500 / 7 = 1794 to (1500 x 7) - 3500 / 7 = 1000 Wow, talk about an inexact science. That's enough to drive me right to the cookie jar! I think I lost a pound just working my brain that hard!

I so agree! I do not particularly care for my surgeon. He is not warm and fuzzy, seems to not understand sarcasm or satire, and I always feel he's rushed to get out of my room and into the next so he can squeeze in as many patients as possible that day. I looked for others in my area but didn't find but a few - and after meeting with them, all they wanted to recommend was a sleeve. I felt stuck with this guy but resolved that I could do this without the kind of support I thought would be available from my surgeon and his office. Then I found lapbandtalk.com. All of YOU have been what I needed to get through the ordeal of waiting, healing, and losing. Yes, you need a qualified surgeon. Find the support where you can (and where it doesn't cost you by the hour - )