Bandista

Hi Nenny and happy new year -- here's to getting off that next chunk and feeling great! We can do this thing.......

Way to go!

Ouch, hope the ice is helping -- two toes in a few months....painful! Are you rolling over as you run? Husband has a dropped foot and there are amazing orthotics out there. He has a brace but there are much subtler devices. May be worth a trip to the podiatry unit.

Hi Pagon, thanks for sharing this -- transference of addictions is so easy to fall into and very hard to climb out of again. Know that there are lots of people just starting and lots of people starting over. It doesn't matter where we are on this new day because we are all at the beginning of it. I am hoping to trade in food obsession with a healthy attachment to exercise so I can be one of those people who can't wait to work out, has to get my walk in each day, etc. For now I am kind of faking it (doing it anyway and telling myself how great it is) but then once in a while I find myself thinking about getting to exercise, how good it will feel, and I realize the rewiring is starting to happen. Good luck to you and know that you're not alone -- so glad you're here.

Powerful post! That fierceness is just what we each need to face up to our addictions and make our lives work for us. Here's to 2014 -- so glad you are here on the forum. Your absolute determination comes through every word.

Hi Sandy -- you have been a wonderful cheerleader for me. Thanks for all the support and here's to the upcoming year! Best wishes to you........

Hi Erica, 9/27 is my real-life birthday -- happy band day! Even though I knew it would take a while to get into sync with the fills, I'm feeling the length of the journey now. Maybe it's the whole holiday thing, too. I don't even know how much I have in my band (three fills so far) and I suppose it doesn't matter as it's just a number. The surgeon mentioned it was a small fill last time, and the band was not primed (I asked that at my previous visit), and I missed an appointment due to snow. I think I will be more forthcoming at my next appointment -- Monday -- to let him know I'm having a hard time and I'm feeling impatient to get there. Meanwhile we keep the faith. Thanks so much for posting 927 Bandit -- good luck to you in these coming months. 2014 is going to be a brilliant year for health and happiness!

How about trying it with Quinoa -- finally something yummy to do with all that Quinoa in the pantry. I love black Beans, garlic, etc. Thanks for this little inspiration. One thing I've noticed in these early days of being banded -- I love beans now. Crave them. Throughout the holidays at every party there has been some kind of bean something and that has become my go-to food at an event like that. Happy New Year all you cooks out there! Now if we could just get Terry to deliver the Kale smoothies and Cheryl this casserole we'd be all set.

Name, real or screen~ Bandista Goal weight for January 31st~ 219 Weight on January 1st~ 225.5 Age~ 52 City/State~ New Hampshire Dietary goal for January~ Find the Green Zone Exercise goal for January~ 80 minutes four days per week, add in one to two walks, three days PT exercises with husband and four "stretches" on the floor per week (could lead to yoga).... Personal goal for January~ Get rid of all the projects I have for other people and get busy with my own new work. Date banded~ 11/5/2013 Total weight loss since banding/pre op diet~ 24 pounds New Year's Resolution~ Be Resolute. Keep Choosing Myself First. See this through!

I've been trying to figure out my morning mode -- happy to be a little tight and definitely not hungry. I drink tea, work out, etc. and recently I've been doing protein shakes with frozen fruit. Yummy! And I like the idea of already being ahead protein-wise.

This is a difficult time -- we have had our bands installed and healed up from our surgeries and now we are in the process of getting fills in order to get to the green zone. Until then we are basically just dieting, and if we had been successful dieters we wouldn't need the bands. The beauty of the band is the adjustability but getting to the proper adjustment is a process. Ugh. We will get there, however!

Happy new year!

Got my 80 minutes in this morning; that feels good. It's very sunny here today with freezing temps. True Winter Wonderland. Considering getting a friend to walk with me at a nearby lake. My goal is to seek out additional exercise on days I have worked out -- not to just feel like I've done it already and that's enough.

It's difficult to convey that after getting a band people may not be able to tolerate certain foods but also that they may not even want them -- that their desires may change or what seems like will really matter does not anymore....I think as people consider their futures they are nervous about potentially having to forfeit something, whether bread or meat or however it may shake down -- when in fact the idea is that our appetites will be dimmed and we won't be ruled by food desires the way we once were. Or that our bodies are rejecting something as it won't go down well, and that's why we are doing this, to be well. The difficulty is in finding out what those things are for our own bodies. Last night I had sushi and was nervous as I have not even tried rice. It's so glutinous and I don't need those carbs but the sushi was there and, well, no problems at all. But I'm not at the green zone yet so I know I may need sashimi next time -- fish pieces with no rice -- and I'm okay with that. And I am avoiding shrimp. Nervous about that one.

Hi khelm, congratulations on your surgery date -- coming right up! I was banded 11/05 and I am very happy with my decision. What a great way for you to begin the new year! Best wishes...

Happy first day of the new year! Looking forward to celebrating our successes together and offering support and encouragement......let's have fun!

I'm in! Four 80-minute workouts per week (20 recumbent bike, 20 treadmill, 20 BowFlex, 20 more treadmill) Four stretching sessions per week -- Somatics, floor work.... One to two impromptu walks at lake or elsewhere with a friend. Three days per week doing my husband's PT exercises with him. Work on Mindful Meditation and breathing.

Hi Heccat, glad you're back! I have had to get some things out of the house to reduce temptation while I'm still in the process of first fills to get to green zone. Look forward to having the appetite monster off my back! So glad you have your appointment. Mine is next Monday so this week my focus is exercise and protein, Ra Ra Ra! And loving/forgiving myself, not depriving but making good choices. Here's to the new year.

Hi Lovebug, Nov 5 for me so we are two weeks apart....the Bandster Hell we have heard all about! But we have got this -- timing for New Year is pretty nice. BlueGirly, too! Let's be fierce.

Thanks so much for this. I have been in a slump and really struggling with food. I know from reading posts for so long that this period is the hard time -- I go next week for my fourth fill and I'm hoping that will get me there. Really working on listening to my body so I can listen to the band but until there's real restriction I am not hearing much back. Unless I totally screw up, which is not really my mode. My problem is the grazing and going back for more because I deprived myself earlier on -- round and round I go. That said, I managed to lose three pounds in the month of December so I am doing alright. But he's this is the hard part. I have a lot of enthusiasm and energy but bootstraps are needed right now. Pulling myself up, up, up.....and grateful to every one here for the support.

Hi Breanne and Jennifer -- we are all picking ourselves up wherever we are -- don't worry about the past because you're catching this now. So happy you're here! Bye bye sliders, hello slimness.

Hi Christine, I'm sabinadublin -- come find me! There is a group of LB MFP-ers very motivated. Great place to track easily, encourage one another, etc. I'd add you but can't from iPad without your email, etc.

Hi Terry, read this aloud to my husband this AM while he was doing his PT exercises. I already worked out earlier. Did I want to? Well, no, not really, but I am doing it and pretending I love it. Hopefully this faking it 'til I make it is going to take hold one of these days but until then I'm doing it anyway. Thanks for the article!

December 1 - 227 December 7 - 230 December 14 - 224 December 22 - 223.5 December 31 - 224 Well, I did not make my goal but that's okay -- looking forward to January. Plus I think I may be in one of those places where my body is about to let go of a few pounds. I seem to hold then drop, with a little up and down on the scale in-between to keep things interesting. Overall a three pound loss in a month when I might have seriously gained is pretty great. Also I am in the process of getting fills to find restriction and I know in this two-month post-op phase prior to green zone I am basically just dieting. I did not exercise every single day of December as I hoped, but I'm doing pretty well with that.

Hi there, so glad you found the forum. Welcome aboard! You will find people at all stages -- and what a great time to recommit for getting the next chunk off. I am two months in and trying to get to the green zone. It's a process but I know I can do this. Best wishes to you!