Angie1985

In Toronto, at the SWLC it was $16,000 canadian (which is about on par now, was a bit lower when I had my surgery!) with aftercare FOR LIFE!

Support - for me that is from my blogging community. Having people out there who understand what the life of a bandster is like, who will celebrate my victories whether on the scale or over a bag of Doritos is totally priceless. Exercise - some people are able to lose without it, and I commend them. I need it, not just for the calories it burns but for the way it makes me feel and makes my body look. Perseverance - the knowledge that this weight WILL come off, and that slow little losses add up - for me, it's been 100lbs, and there was hardly a week where I lost more than 2lbs. But if you lost 1 or 2 every week for a year - you'll find yourself achieving great things.

I have had a pretty typical "success story" - 100lbs down in just over a year. That doesn't mean head-hunger doesn't get me down... This weekend chips and ice-cream binges have me up 4lbs from my lowest weight. It's an ongoing process. For me, I have to make one healthy choice at a time. For me, that means eating solid, real meals - I just had 2 soft-boiled eggs and a piece of toast, and am full. It's not a tiny meal. I could probably use a bit of a fill - but it's certainly not what has made me gain!

here's my latest during and... during. the first pic is from june 09, around 240 (down 30 at that point), the second one is current, weighing in at 168 (102 down)

I did a video blog on my website for the occasion and thought you might enjoy seeing! Hope everyone's doing well. I am in repair - Angie's Banding Blog: All Bonus From Here...

me me me me!!! I am so proud of myself and so excited! My band is very tight these days, with this level of fill I'm losing rapidly and have really had to re-learn how to eat, but I am seeing the most amazing results... YAY!

I didn't lose for the first week or so post-op, and then lost maybe 1-2 lbs in the week after that... it'll happen, but as others have said this time is about healing, not losing. you have the band but it's not filled yet - it's like a power-tool that isn't plugged in.

I have been cooking chili and bringing in single portions, i also like the roll-ups juno described. tuna and chicken salad work well for me, lately i've been making chicken salad with avocado instead of mayo - yummy healthy fat!

Had an amazing NSV happen recently! My mom is 5'0 and around 125lbs - not super skinny, but totally petite and cute! I have always felt giant compared to her. Well recently when I was home she was able to give me a jacket that she had bought that was too long on her AND a pair of her size 29 Hudson jeans that were too big on her now - i've inspired her to drop about 5-10lbs. Getting to share clothes with my mom is one of the most special NSVs yet!

Holy cow, today is my bandiversary. I’m just going to let my fingers do the walking and see where this story takes me, so try to stay with me if I get a little boring! On March 4th, 2009 I drove to my clinic with my mom so early that she had time to get McDonalds Breakfast. I was so glad the day had finally arrived, more than anything glad that pre-op was over and the medical issues I was going through weren’t stopping me from having surgery. I weighed 255lbs that day, down 15lbs from my highest weight of 270 which was recorded at my consultation for lap-band surgery, January 13th. What a year. I now weigh 90lbs less than I did when I started this journey at my consultation, 75bs less than when I had surgery. For those doing the math, that averages to just under 1.5lbs a week - slow losing IS STILL LOSING. That is probably my biggest piece of advice to remember, and surely advice I need to remind myself of. Even if you lose a small amount, week after week, when you don’t give up, those small numbers turn in to big ones. I had lost more most weeks I was on weight watchers. But I never stayed on a diet before. I was twenty-three years old when I had this surgery, and at that point was really wondering if I would ever be a normal weight. I had struggled with my weight since puberty, and could not remember a time past the age of seven where food wasn’t a crutch or a treat or a secret or a shame. I saw a nutritionist for the first time when I was seven years old, after all. To think that one year later, I’ve done it. Sure I am not at my ideal weight by my nor my doctor’s standards, I’m so freaking close. I’m close enough that I get to- Shop at any store Buy (overpriced) designer jeans from lines like Citizens of Humanity and JBrand Buy Hunter boots that fit over my calves... OK so there’s clearly a shopping theme here. I am fit. Or Phit, rather. I work out a minimum of eight hours a week, and I love every moment of it. I love that last night I did 144 push-ups - real perfect push ups. I couldn’t do five when I started seeing Julie in September. I struggle a lot still with loving my body - I struggle to see how different it is and how much closer to ideal than not it is. But after a workout, when my muscles burn and my hair is matted down with sweat, I love my body because it is strong and it is powerful. I didn’t start working out seriously until about six months post-op, for whatever reason it took that long for it to click with me. For those waiting for that moment, it will come, I truly believe that everyone can love exercise if they find the right workout, and in my lucky case, trainer for them. It is hard to say how much this surgery and losing weight has changed my life. In many ways I have not changed at all, and in others, I am becoming the person who I always hoped I could be. I am accomplishing the thing I knew I never could, and doing that is beyond empowering. I am more settled in myself, I can let my whole self just exist and not worry quite as much as to what I’m projecting. I am so grateful for the band... And so incredibly grateful to all of you for the support all my friends from my blog and here on LBT - I'd be lost without the support you’ve given me. I could never have come as far as I have without the support I get from my friends online, as well as a select few in my real life and my family. No one without the band can understand what we go through - the highs and the lows, the stucks to the the elation at experiencing a huge NSV. I have come so far in my first year with the band, and am so grateful that I get to spend the rest of my life with it. Lots and lots of love to you all, I’ll speak to you when I come back from Mexico with lots of pictures to share!