Jenn

I eat mainly Spanish rice or brown rice with chinese food

My restriction for rice was to wait 12 weeks - i eat it about once per week and have had no problems

Wow Chow! You are doing great! You will start noticing changes soon in your clothing - as you get smaller, it takes fewer pounds to move down in size. I was stuck at size 22/24 for a while and now I'm finally getting ready to move into size 18s. My body seems to be firming up a bit! Congrats and KUP!!

I forgot to mention that I used Unjury unflavored protein powder quite a bit in the beginning months. I added it to yogurt, cottage cheese, mashed potatoes, etc. It is a good way to get in extra protein. It's not flavorless so I only used small quantities. If you go on their website, you can order samples so I recommend doing that so you can try a variety of powders. Also, I don't really get hungry but I have more of an empty feeling. I never feel voraciously hungry like I did before surgery, even when I was banded I would get very hungry. I am actually a bit emptier in the morning and like to drink 1/2 a protein shake in the morning on my way to work. This is very new to me, because when I was banded, I could never eat in the morning - so I'm enjoying eating a bit of protein in the morning! I also wanted to add that I really don't have very many cravings anymore. I was a big sweets eater before WLS and even after being banded, however, after plication my tastes have changed a bit. For example, when my children wanted cupcakes I bought them some Hostess cupcakes, which I used to love, and I took 1 bite of my daughter's cupcake and it tasted horrible!!! It just tasted fake and nasty - bleck! :/ not sure what happened there, but my tastes are definitely changing. I still like chocolate (a lot!) but hardly ever eat it. I bought some 100 calorie packs of cookies and will have 1/2 a pack of those every once in awhile. I think because I track my calories and my exercise that I am very aware of how much I have to wog (walk-jog) to compensate for "junk" food The only other thing I would add would be to make sure that you measure your food especially in the beginning. It is hard to eyeball 2-4 oz. of food especially when prior to WLS we probably tended to fill our plates with food. I also bought some smaller fancy plates and always ate off of those in the first couple months. I'd put 1/2 a stick of low fat string cheese and 2 thinly cut slices of turkey on a fancy plate and enjoy my food so much more!!! Good luck to you!

Thanks just wogged (walk-jogged) 3 miles today feeling great!!

I was on liquids for 2 days pre surgery then liquids for 1 week after surgery then mushies like yogurt, egg salad, apple sauce etc for 2 more weeks I am almost 4 months out and still drink Protein drinks in the morning My doctor gave me a binder with food guidelines I think I scanned it on my computer so I will post it for you

It depends - during the week I'm a bit more mindful of my calories and tend to stay between 900-1100 calories and burn about 350 calories with my daily exercise. On the weekends I eat a bit more, and eat out more often so I probably eat around 1200-1400 calories. I don't usually workout on the weekends either. I workout at least 4 times per week and wog (walk/jog) between 2.5-3 miles each workout. My doctor recommends staying around 1,000-1,100 calories during the losing phase. Following this guideline, I've lost about 10 pounds per month. I'm hoping to be 239 by June (about 2 more pounds) and closer to 235 by my 4 month anniversary on June 7. Take care,

Hi Nikki Sorry I didn't see this until today. I had the band for almost 10 years and after about 7 years, I started having lots of complications. I always had difficulty with fills and unfills because my port flipped almost immediately after surgery. I did fairly well with the band and lost about 100 pounds. However, I regained almost all of that weight after 2 children, 5 months of bed rest and an injury from running. I started looking into revision mid-2010 and was given the choice of RNY (which I found out I couldn't have due to my severe anemia) or sleeve. I wasn't happy with either of those choices so after about 6 months of research I found out about the plication. I was going to go to Mexico but ended up finding a doctor here in Southern California who had just started doing plication. I was his very first banded plication patient, which was scary but somebody's gotta be first!! Anyway - I've lost a bit over 42 pounds in 15 weeks. I'd like to lose about another 50-60 pounds. I started at 283 and am now at 240.5. I am actually surprised that I've lost as much weight as I have considering I'm a revision patient. I track my food but not religiously. I ensure that I eat 50-70 grams of Protein and drink about 60-80 oz. of Water. I do exercise almost everyday and walk/jog about 2-3 miles per workout. I completed my first 5K a few weeks ago and am planning on wogging (walk/jogging) a 10K July 23. I have averaged about 10 pounds per month and have lost 42% of my EWL (excess weight loss). I've gone from a 22/24 (26 top) to loose 20s and almost fitting into 18s! My goal is to be around 170-180ish which for me is a size 12/14. I don't want to be much smaller than that as I prefer that size on me and so does my husband! PS-I have not had any fills in my band and I plan on leaving it completely empty.

I agree that most people don't even notice what I'm eating, they are usually too concerned with what they're eating. However, if there is a potluck or buffet type meal, I will usually put a variety of food on my plate. Most people at work know I'm trying to lose weight (but don't know about WLS) so they don't usually ask questions. I wouldn't worry too much about it - just choose a variety of protein and veggies and you'll be fine.

Oh no!! The 3 week stall is extremely common. I experienced it. I think it's your body adjusting to the new diet and starting mushies/pureed foods. I lost another pound so hopefully, my weight loss pause is over. Take care, Jenn

Of course after I wrote that I was in a stall, I lost weight!!

I'm in a stall right now. This seems to be my pattern: Lose about 2-3 pounds one week, then stall for about 3 weeks. Then lose 2-3 pounds again, then stall again. My body takes time to adjust to weight loss I guess....I have gained weight also but it's usually 1 or 2 pounds and it quickly drops off again.

Hey Diva, You are doing great!! I am actually surprised you are eating fruits though. Can you tell me what kinds you are eating? The reason I ask is because I was not allowed to eat most fruits until about 8 weeks out and then it was only bananas (at 3 weeks), blueberries and strawberries (6 weeks) and soft fruit (8 weeks) like peaches, nectarines, etc. I was released to eat apples and most vegetables at 12 weeks. What is your work out routine? And drink more water woman!!

I am a bit different than others because I was banded in 2001. I did fairly well with the band but ended up gaining almost all of the weight I lost for a variety of reasons. I revised to the banded plication in Feb, 2011. I researched the sleeve but settled on the plication after speaking with 4 doctors and doing about 6 months worth of research. RNY or bypass was never an option for me because I am severely anemic. My doctors at Cedars-Sinai do not recommend the sleeve mainly due to leak issues but they will perform it. I was leaning towards the sleeve but I just could not get over the idea of discarding 70-85% of my stomach. However, I do think the sleeve is a great option for some people. I started at 281, gained a few pounds in the hospital and came home at 283. I'm bouncing around 245-247 so I've lost about 36ish pounds in 3 months. Of course, I wish it was more but I am ecstatic with my weight loss. I do follow my doctor's guidelines and try to eat protein first, get in 64 ounces of water and I exercise almost every single day. I started at a size 22/24 (26 shirts) and am wearing loose fitting size 20s. Most of my size 18s fit but are still too tight to wear comfortably. My first big goal was to reach 250 and I did that about 9 weeks after surgery. My next goal is to be at 225 and I'm hoping to reach that by June. **As a side note it took me almost 1 year to lose 50 pounds when I was first banded in 2001.** I will include a sample meal from today to give you an idea of what I eat. Bfast - 1/2 a GNC ready to drink protein shake (about 85 calories), Water Snack - 1 low fat string cheese, Water (70 calories) Lunch - about 1/2-3/4 of a lean cuisine (about 300-330 calories) *We had snacks in the teacher's lounge today and I ate 1/2 a brownie - yum! (about 100 calories) Snack - Water and/or the other half of my protein shake (about 85 calories) Workout - 2.5 miles on treadmill, 1 mile on elliptical Dinner - Blended protein shake (200 calories) **I don't normally have a protein shake for dinner but I was too tired to cook anything tonight! Snack - later tonight I will eat 1/2 a yogurt (3 oz) with 1/4 c. of Kashi cereal and 1/4 c. of blueberries blended This is what my food looks like during the week. My DH is also trying to lose some weight so that makes things easier for me. On the weekends I rarely deny myself. We usually go out to eat for breakfast and I will order whatever I want but I do eat eggs or protein first. I had margaritas last weekend and try to live my life in moderation. Please remember that I lived with the band for almost 10 years so I have a lot of practice living with WLS. My goal with plication is to live and eat how naturally thin people do and I think that has helped me adjust well to the plication.