LapBandFan

I usually get a single hiccup when I have had just enough to eat. It is like a sign to stop eating for me. I have ignored it before and kept eating and been sorry cause then I developed a PB (painful and not any fun). I don't get hiccups every time, just occasionally.

Welcome to this accountability thread Cashley! Please post daily so we can keep up with each other. Photonut, LOVE that pic of your grandson. He is adorable. Today, Friday (TGIF) March 31st... I vow to exercise for at least 30 minutes aiming for an hour a day goal 2 miles walked per day. (20 minutes walking) I vow to follow the Weightwatchers Core plan. (Did okay and slipped up once this evening) I vow to drink 64 oz water per day, aiming for 92 oz.:spit: (got in about 46 oz - need to work on this one) I will NOT beat myself up when I have not lost yet:boxing: :ohwell: :frusty:(still not good at this yet) I vow to only eat core plan snack between meals.:hungry: (did ok till after supper, had 4 sugarfree graham cookies and 2 servings of fatfree/sugarfree pudding and a sugarfree marshmallow candybar - way too many snacks and NOT good snack choices) I vow to take my vitamins daily. (done)

Penny, I am from Tennessee so Ya'll or Yun's would be appropriate for me! Hope you survived lunch on your shopping trip today.... See ya!

Today, Thursday, March 30th.... I vow to exercise for at least 30 minutes aiming for an hour a day goal 2 miles walked per day. (done 30 minutes walked 1.36 miles) I vow to write down everything that goes in my mouth Did not do so good here yet, will do so before going to bed. I vow to drink 64 oz water per day, aiming for 92 oz. (drank 64) I vow to follow a lowcarb diet. (Done this) I vow to not snack between meals. (Had 1 cup air popped popcorn for a snack) Thanks for starting this thread... Walk across America Log - Daily Walking chart http://www.fitnessjournal.org/map/?see=scrappyethel

I found chewable Omega 3 fish chews made by Life Fitness at CVS pharmacy this week. Description Many doctors recommend at least 500 mg of Omega-3 in our daily diet to help maintain a healthy heart. However, the fishy aftertaste of fish oil capsules or liquid makes following this recommendation a bitter pill to swallow. Everyday Omega-3 Soft Chews offer a better alternative. Each orange-flavored chew contains 120 mg of EPA and DHA Omega-3 fatty acids, the essential ingredients that researchers believe help maintain a healthy heart. Best of all, Everyday Omega-3 Soft Chews have no fishy aftertaste! Take Life Fitness Everyday Omega-3 Soft Chews and support your active lifestyle. Research suggests that consumption of EPA and DHA Omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.*

skbishop, thanks for your kind words... I still have a ways to go on this journey, it helps to have this board to come to and have all you nice people to talk to.... Yes, Plateaus are inevitable.... sadly, but maybe I can push past it soon. No, you can get in that many points in weight watchers, but on the core program with WW you don't count points more less you are eating low fat meats, cheese, veggies and fruits. I am allowed 28 WW points on the points part if I choose to do that, and it is easy to eat 28 points. Thanks for responding and have a great night!

cashley, I completely understand about your job and entertaining the clients on your job (whatever that may be). It does sound like flex would work better for you. I am gonna try the core as it is very similar to the southbeach diet I had been following anyway but I get to have fruit finally! I will try core for a while and see how I do on that, if not results in a while, I will switch to flex points. I honestly think I just need to show up in front of people to weigh every week and be made accountable! I am like a kid, I need to be slapped on the wrist for goofing up..... but I have not come this far to give up now...Take care and thanks for responding.

I have been doing low-carb for a while and am burned out with it and wish to try weight watchers on my own again. I am a previous member of WW before my band surgery and have dug around and found some of the reading material and my WW points electric calculator but I cannot remember exactly how the plan works. I entered my weight in the calculator and it gave me a list of points, is this list of points what I should strive for each day and no more? The calculator is very cool and you record your daily wieght and water intake, activities etc. How many points do I get to add daily for exercise? Seems like it was you get one extra point for every 20 minutes of exercise? Is that right? Do I just look at the food label and find calories/fat/fiber for the point value of a serving of that food? I hate to be in the dark about this but I cannot find the main book that came with WW and don't have time to join the meetings locally. Thanks for any information.

Evening neihbors.....SORRY to just be reading your posts and answering, Yes, we have the world famous flea mrkt here, it and the Lost Sea are the only two things that puts us on the map. Oh well. Glad you all are posting here more often. Let us do keep the TN board active. I love talking to you all. Well, I have been at a plateau for a while and am over it and have not lost anything in about 5 months. I need another fill which is scheduled for next week (thank goodness) but I thought I needed to revamp my eating plan so.....I rejoined weight watchers today and got the information for both the flex plan and the core plan but I am aiming to stay on the core plan. Any of you on the core plan? I really think I am going to enjoy the support group meetings themselves. I live too far away from my surgeon to go to the lapband support meetings he has there. Please pray that I can get off this pleateau now!! Thanks.

Ok, I went and did it. I rejoined weight watchers today and got the information for both the flex plan and the core plan but I am aiming to stay on the core plan. Any of you on the core plan? I really think I am going to enjoy the support group meetings themselves. I live too far away from my surgeon to go to the lapband support meetings he has there. Please pray that I can get off this pleateau now!! Thanks.

I love this thread.....I too need accountability.... I vow to do these things everyday: I vow to exercise for at least 30 minutes aiming for an hour a day goal 2 miles walked per day. I vow to write down everything that goes in my mouth I vow to drink 64 oz water per day, aiming for 92 oz. I vow to follow a lowcarb diet. I vow to not snack between meals. Thanks for starting this thread... Walk across America Log - Daily Walking chart http://www.fitnessjournal.org/map/?see=scrappyethel

I am always struggling with exercise motivation and found the website www.fitnessjournal.org and it is a place where you can record you workouts, food intake, make a journal and all kinds of cool things. You can print out a stat sheet over a time period after you get workouts entered there. It tallys up your calories burned, etc., I love the Walk Across America map that is included, it tracks your miles across as you enter your daily miles walked, etc. I love it and it has helped me exercise every day, just being able to keep a log of my exercise that I can print off and keep up with. Here is my link to my Walk Across America map please bear in mind, I just started it a couple of weeks ago. My goal is to walk 7.5 miles per week and build up to 10 miles per week. Walk across America Log - Daily Walking chart http://www.fitnessjournal.org/map/?see=scrappyethel You can also make this link in your blog website or email signature line and others can see how you are doing on the map.

I had slippage and was rebanded. My symptoms of slippage were only lthe fact that I started having bad acid reflux at night when I would try to lie down and started spitting up black tarry looking material, not really vomit, just spit up. I still had restriction and was still only eating small portions. Some people have a loss of restirction with slippage, there are no true clear cut symptoms of slippage, the only way I knew for sure it was slippage was by fluoroscopy in xray. Go to the USA section of the forums and go to Georgia and post there to see if you can find someone who might can help you find a doc in the Atlanta area. Good luck to you.

Teresa! I am so proud of you!! you go girl. 399 will be here before you know it. You are truly on a roll and I am doing the happy dance while I speak for you! Keep up the good work!

In my opinion, it all depends how much you have to lose to start with. I had (embarrased to say) gotten up to 365 pounds and have lost 140 pounds thus far. I do have sagging skin, which my doctor warned me would happen. His description was "you stretched your skin out for so long with being overweight it lost its elasticity" He advised strict exercise as soon as able after surgery to help with it, but it is inevitable to have some sagging if you have a lot to lose. I am now anticipating plastic surgery to fix all my sagging skin. But overall, I would rather have some sagging skin and be a wrinkled skinny person than to be a fat, smoothed-skin person! You are younger, so it might play a good part in your case. The others (above) have given you great advice, especially about the exercise and the water intake. Good luck on your journey.

Thanks Jonathan, Cashley and Donna for all your pointers. I have found a local meeting here for this Thursday that I plan on attending to get me refreshed on the WW Points program. Again, good luck to all of you on your journeys and good job on your losses so far. I have been at a plateau for so long it would scare me to death to start losing again..... Have a blessed day!

Praising the Lord with you girlfriend!!! Woo Hoo! Hold onto something tight while BigEthel here does the happy dance for you!!! Way to go!!! I am sure that it means so much to you. I need to be like you and focus on NSV instead of the scales. You are a true inspiration and your bible verse and you giving God the glory tells me we are sisters in Christ. I love your bible verse in your signature line. With GOD ALL things are possible!!!! Have a blessed day!

Good idea, I might just join the local meeting to get the information and then do it on my own after that with the Etools. What do you do to become lifetime member? Once lifetime, meetings are free right? Just was thinking that was what I remembered them saying but was not sure. Thanks again for the info. I will call my local WW meeting and find out when and where they meet.

Thanks for the input! I am struggling with looking and making myself read the food labels. I have done lowcarb so long I was just used to knowing what I could eat, but I really really need fiber in my diet and hope the WW points program will work for me. I know it will if I MAKE myself do it! ha ha! Cashley, is use of the etools WW online free or only free to current WW members? What is the website link? Thanks again.

Megan, YEAH For you!!! that is great news. I have been on the band journey two years since February. Keep up the good work. Do you have any before/after pics to see? I would love to see them. Take care and God bless!

Good Luck Crystal! Today is your BIG DAY!!!! WOO HOO! Please keep us posted here how you are doing as soon as you feel like it! We will pray for a speedy recovery! Take care, Brenda

Oh, I am so glad for you! I was scared you had slippage as that is what I had, the black tar with acid reflux, when I had slippage. The Good Lord above is watching out for you and your band! I will continue praying the swelling and inflammation get better soon. Take care of yourself!

Welcome Carol. I am close to where you live. I live in Sweetwater TN about halfway between Knoxville and Chattanooga. Good luck on getting your surgery. Please post here anytime for any questions I might can help you with.

Carolyn, having been banded for little over 2 years here is my take on it. It was the best thing I ever done. The good Lord above and the band have allowed me to lose 140 pounds which I could never have done on my own. I would do it again in a heartbeat. To answer some of the other things you are concerned about.... 1). Being "gassy" and having persistent gas pains I never have gas, I had a little after surgery but it only lasted about a week, took Gas-X tablets for that. <O:p</O:p 2). Becoming a burper (I'm not a burper now and I don't want to be!) This is not a thing I do, I never have had a problem with burping all the time since the band. <O:p</O:p 3). Throwing up - period! This is not part of my life either, never has been and we are actually discouraged from making ourself throw up, not a good healthy band thing, too much throwing up could cause slippage.<O:p</O:p 4). How long after surgery until I am ready for hot sex with my new boyfriend? (I am serious about this!) My doc said wait about 4 weeks to get over the soreness and so as not to pull anything loose (sutures, etc) <O:p</O:p 5). Is choosing to do this surgery going to make me consumed with "what and how and when and with who and where and how much" to the point of distraction where I'm no fun to be with or like a "special needs" friend? Definitely not, You are more aware of what and how to eat, but you only obsess about it as much as you let yourself. Do I need to blender foods and take a broccoli-shake-on-ice (example) if I am going to be out all afternoon with the girls? No silly, after you get back on regular food (after going through surgery and doing the liquid diet/ soft diet etc, you will be able to eat most normal foods (although I had to give up rice, Pasta and breads - they hurt to eat them got stuck in pouch). I do however keep a highprotein bar or beefjerky strip in my purse all the time though. 6). That I will regret having this done because it altered my life so dramatically NO, definitely not, not if you want to lose weight and have a new, better, and healthier you.... Yes, you will go through a time of "what in the crap have I done?" right after surgery and I went through a time of mourning of my old eating lifestyle and the food portion size you can no longer eat, but hey is it SOOOOOO worth it. Your lifestyle will be pretty much the same, just you will make better food choices, eat less and know you are doing the best thing for your health. <O:p</O:p 7). That I'll have ugly scars (I already have tiny lipo scars that don't bother me but I don't want to look like I've been butchered - which brings me to my next point) Well, scars are gonna be there, that is just normal. You can get that scar cream to help reduce the signs of the scars. No way out of this one... <O:p</O:p 8). I think (I am sure if you want to look like I want to look) that more surgery to remove excess skin is going to be needed (more scars and now I am looking like a pin cusion when naked Sure, plastic surgery may be necessary for sagging skin etc, but hey at least it is just skin and not fat as before. I am currently waiting on insurance approval for a tummy tuck, which in my opinion, another surgery is worth it to get rid of the sagging skin and feel better about myself. Again, scars are inevitable. <O:p</O:p 9). That this is just another drastic measure that I take that is not really necessary in the big picture... the side effects were not worth it. What side effects? I only see GOOD from it all. 10). That there is life altering stuff (either gross physical stuff or lifestyle changes) that I don't know of or can't imagine right now that are going to further be a problem or issue, etc. .Everyone is different and experiences are different, but I, myself, have only had the great life-altering weight loss that came with the surgery. Yes, I have sagging skin, but I knew that was expected. Erosion and slippage are risk factors that can happen which your surgeon should go over with you, that is just a chance you take. I personally had a slippage 10 months after the band and had a replacement surgery with a new band and I feel it was worth a second surgery and would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Just gotta decide on your own if that risk of slippage, erosion or port leak is worth it to you or not. To me, it was and those risks are small compared to other types of weight loss surgery or the risks of NOT losing the weight with poor health inevitable in the future from being obese (heart attack, stroke, diabetes, etc) <O:p</O:p 11). Dramatic weight loss causes wrinkles Wrinkles.... well, hey they are gonna come eventually, weight loss or not, we are human ....it happens....That is what plastic surgeons are for....I would rather be a skinny wrinkled woman than a smoothed-skin obese woman!!! <O:p</O:p I can really go either way at this moment. I waiver between this a the best option to actually lose weight and this is not necessary and I should accept myself, work HARD to lose it and deal with the health problems that have already begun to surface due to weight (diabetes for instance). Time and again, if you search the boards, you will find that so many people have got to get off their diabetic medicines and arthritis medicines after they have lost their weight, mind you, it is not everybody that will, but your health improves to drastically with weight loss that you won't need as much medications. I feel the that why not do the surgery if it will help prolong your life and better your health. I understand the fear of it all. But weighing in at 365, I felt like such a loser and slob that I was so ready to try anything to lose the weight and am SO GLAD the band was there for me. <O:p</O:p <O:p Who has had a easy, great experience and thinks that this is the best thing that they ever did --- and never threw up or embarrassed themselves as a result of this? Like I said, best thing I ever done....I don't throw up hardly ever, yes, I do have the times when I eat too fast and the food gets stuck but it passes over time, but I try to tough through it and wait on it to pass, but It teaches me a lesson on slowing down when I eat and chewing and not swallowing until the bite of food is mush.....Live and learn experiences... I don't know about everyone else, but I can sleep on my side just fine. Hope you will think about the band, it is one of the best things I have ever done in my life, but I realize that others on here have been there and done that and have had lots of problems/complications, but I can only say for me....love my band and grateful for it....Take care. Brenda<O:p</O:p

Sounds like you have acid reflux. I had slippage and the only symptoms I had was the spitting up the black tar with really bad acid reflux. Please call you doctor and demand to get in immediately! I will pray for you! Take care, Brenda