Frangipani

Hi Nip50, Thanks :laugh:! Congratulations on losing 114 pounds in seven months. That's amazing!!! Insurance is not covering my plastic surgery -- I wish!!!! I didn't even try because I really don't have any medical issues related to my excess skin. However I am saving about 2K on hospital fees because health insurance is covering my gyn surgery, and the hospital has a policy where they discount their fees when a second procedure is done -- so that helps. Also, my three night hospital stay, medication, etc., will all be covered by health insurance. I don't think health insurance is covering Becky's either, but correct me if I'm wrong about this Becky.

More great ideas Becky, thanks! Ice packs, hadn't thought of those either Karey, thanks!

Kat, I am amazed at how quickly you rebounded from this surgery and you sound so happy and excited -- Congratulations!!! Don't go too crazy on clothes right now because if you can fit into a 10 snugly now even with the swelling and compression garments, you might actually drop down to an 8 by the time you are completely healed.

Wow Kareyquilts, what great suggestions, thanks a lot! I can tell that you are a very organized woman who thinks of everything! Lots of great suggestions that I wouldn't have thought of, especially the toilet seat riser -- that one would have never occurred to me, but I'm sure I will really be glad that I have it. Thank you :smile::thumbup:!

Hey Wonderful Workout Buddies! We made it through May -- Woo Hoo! Great job everyone!!! :thumbup::thumbup: Jody and Becky I agree, strength training is a very important thing! Unfortunately I sort of petered out on it this month because I was focusing more on the running plan, but watch out when I return from my plastic surgery! I plan to hit the strength training very hard and regularly. I just got back from doing another session of my Couch to 5K running plan. Have a great night everyone!!!

Happy May Everyone! Time for a new exercise challenge thread. This thread is open to anyone -- you don't have to be an August 07 bandster to join us. I have two personal goals for May. Number one is to finally join the rest of you "speedy banditos" in the 100 pound club. I am only 5 pounds away, which means that if I don't make it, something is definitely wrong. That said, the pounds are coming off much more slowly nowadays, so I will need to work hard and stay very focused. This brings me to goal number 2, which is to start running this month. I bought myself a comfortable pair of running shoes while I was in Miami, and will begin the Couch to 5K running schedule in the next few days. I don't see myself ever running a marathon (I have too many other interests to distract me from doing that much training), but perhaps at some point I will do a shorter race. Also there is always the 8 Tuff Miles on St. John, which I plan to participate in next year. Good luck with your goals, and have a happy and healthy month!!!!

I have a question for the plastic surgery veterans.............. I will be in the hospital for three nights because of the open gyn surgery, and then will be in a hotel for approximately 11 days after I'm released, and I was wondering what types of things I should stock my hotel room with. Any suggestions? I have stayed at the hotel, and know that they have extremely comfy beds, but they don't have recliners. I do plan to request extra pillows and hopefully that will make the sleeping arrangement comfortable enough, but I'm just wondering what other supplies I should have on hand.

Hi Sue, Thank you so much for the nice message and the well wishes! And with all that Trikking you're doing, the plastic surgery might be happening sooner than you think :thumbup:! Have a great and fun weekend!!!

Becky, LOL at your title for the thread :cool2::wink2:! So true what you said about all that have gone before us. This area of the forum is just about 100% responsible for giving me the confidence to go through with all of this. Thank you so much to all that have so generously shared your journeys. I've mentioned this in the forum before, but I'll be having a full tummy tuck, breast lift with implants and some GYN surgery. The GYN surgery is something that I have been needing for some time, but the plastic surgery is the thing that gave me enough motivation finally go ahead and get this taken care of. Becky, I have to say once again that I am so happy and excited for you!!! :thumbup::thumbup:

Val, welcome back!!! Good grief, it's been SO long, I was wondering what happened to you, but I know you have a lot of things going on, and I figured you just got really busy. I am in awe that you managed to keep up with your workouts!!! I doubt that I would be able to do the same in similar circumstances -- that takes a lot of dedication on your part for sure! Congratulations on dropping several sizes too:thumbup: :thumbup:!!!

Daddy, Why on earth are you worrying about that? By then you will have your promotion that will allow you free access to the corporate jet -- and of course you will also have that meeting scheduled down here as well. :w00t:

Hi Kat, Thanks for the very detailed info! Seeing that you have had a problem with this in the past makes me a bit less concerned that it will happen to me, since I don't have much of a problem with this, pre or post band. Thanks again, Kat :thumbup:! Dannygirl, I don't know anything about LapBand International -- sorry. Perhaps you might want to post this query in the "Doctors and Hospitals" section of this forum. Good luck!

Hi Kat, Glad to see that's there's been some improvement for you :thumbup:! Have you ever had anything like this happen before since you've been banded? Has refluxing been a problem for you in the past? I know that you said you were unfilled prior to surgery, and I'm going to try to get through my surgery without an unfill. However, I sure don't want anything like this happening, and in fact, you've almost got me wondering if I should stay on liquids for a week or two after surgery. Good luck with the Dr. this morning and keep taking good care of yourself! :tt2:

Stranger, the people who run it tell me it's really, really TUFF, hence the name. They tell me that it's a lot more challenging than many longer races, in part because of the 1000 foot elevation gain on the course. BUT a lot of people walk it too, and fun is had by all. It's a gorgeous setting and there are huge crowds of spectators to cheer the (huge crowd of) participants on. I truly doubt I will run it. I like challenges, but that's just way too, well.....Tuff.

Good grief Kat! Take good care of yourself and I hope you're feeling better very soon.

Look at you Becky! You're doing a great job this month -- as usual!!! The plastic surgeon will have a lot less work after all this exercise you've done -- maybe you should ask him for a discount :thumbup:! I did a 30 minute pilates abdominals class and a one hour Yoga class. I wanted to mention to all participating in this thread that I will not be starting a June exercise thread, since I will probably only be working out during that first week in June. So if someone wants to start a June August Bandster exercise thread -- feel free. Have a great night everyone!

I would absolutely love to find a Dr. in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area that does fills under fluoro at a reasonable cost. There are a few Dr.'s who will do fills on patients other than their own that I know of, but their prices are ridiculous -- $800 - $1,000. It's not worth it to me to pay that because I can fly to other places, and have it done much cheaper than that and the savings will more than cover my travel expenses. That said, it sure would be nice to find someone to work with in South Florida. I consider "reasonable" to be $200 - $300 for fills with fluoro. If anyone has any info, let me know!

Daddy, LOL :heart::lol:! Thanks for the offer, and you might want to wait until the dead of winter to do this -- so it will truly be a "win-win" situation. Thanks for the encouragement too -- you have been a huge help as well as a true inspiration :thumbup::biggrin:! Stranger, Yes!!! You did tell me all of this!!!! And honestly I didn't believe you :wink2:! But now I do!!! Thanks for confirming that I wasn't imagining this -- although I'm not going to get complacent, because last week Day 3 was my hardest day, by far........... You rock C to 5K buddies -- and thanks for all the encouragement!!! You're going to make a runner out of me yet! Hey why don't you guys come down to St. John next year for the 8 Tuff Miles event. Wouldn't that be fun????

Hi Dr. Schulman, Thank you for the info on buttocks augmentation. I am having some surgery in a few weeks, but it won't involve the buttocks at this time. However, I am planning to have the buttocks lift ASAP after my first surgery, so now you have me thinking about some issues (i.e., the possibility of needing augmentation along with the lift), that I hadn't thought about before. The procedure you did on your patient looks good, I like the way her skin is so smooth and youthful in the after photos. I have never really thought about PS in terms of taking years off the "backside," but you managed to do this with your patient.

Hi BBK, Glad to hear that the belly button turned out to be a fairly simple, pain-free issue to deal with. Keep the Neosporin on it and it should heal up pretty quickly -- that stuff is amazing. Have a great day -- you look marvelous darling! :wink2:

Okay Guys, I am both pleased and bewildered -- let me explain........ I did session one of week four which I figured would be the most challenging yet BUT it turned out to be one of the easiest sessions for me (including comparing it to week one). How can that be? Did I do something wrong? My only concern is that I somehow unconsciously, drastically altered my stride to make it easier on myself, but then again I was running on a track, and I ran the same distance on the three minute interval as I did last week. Has anyone else had this happen, where one of the harder sessions actually turns out to be a little easier than the week before? Weird -- huh?

Jody, I hate the temporary weight gain from the TOM, but since I usually drop 3-5 pounds after, it always works out in the end! You're doing great, keep up the good work!!!:scared2::thumbup::thumbup: I got another Couch to 5K session in tonight. Have a great night everyone!!!

Hi, I updated a few others as well, but double-check my math everyone :scared2:! Name: Frangipani Weight loss from day of surgery: 101 lbs Total weight loss: 107 lbs Name: Candle Weight loss from day of surgery: 102 lbs Total weight loss: 116 lbs Name: Salsa Weight loss from day of surgery: 100 lbs Total weight loss: 100 lbs Name: Pammycakes Weight loss from day of surgery: 94 lbs Total weight loss: 96 lbs Name: Ceradad Weight loss from day of surgery: 85 Total weight loss: 105 Name: KarenG. Weight loss from day of surgery: 85 Total weight loss: 85 Name: NanaRenan Weight loss from day of surgery: 52 Total weight loss: 72 Name: TexasBecky Weight loss from day of surgery: 102 Total weight loss: 112 Name: SPEBSQSAlady Weight loss from day of surgery: 57.8 Total weight loss: 57.8 Name: Brandottie01 Weight loss from day of surgery: 23 lbs Total weight loss: Name: Bergdorfblonde Weight loss from day of surgery: 32 lbs Total weight loss: 32 lbs Name: Gometros Weight loss from day of surgery: 52.9 lbs Total weight loss: 74.9 Name: Pizzicato66 Weight loss from day of surgery: 75.5 Total weight loss: 87.5 Name: Valstar Weight loss from day of surgery: 52 lbs Total weight loss: 57 lbs Name:Gweniper weight loss from day of surgery: 50 total weight loss: 84 Name: purplegirl1818 weightloss from day of surgery: 73.5lbs total weight loss: 90.5lbs Name: LessNLess weightloss from day of surgery: 59.7lbs total weight loss: 65.7lbs Name: JudiM weightloss from day of surgery: 62lbs total weight loss: ?? Name: hf2havefun Weight loss from day of surgery: 35 lbs Total weight loss: 50 lbs Name: Nikki S Weight loss from day of surgery: 102 Total weight loss: 102

Hey Candle, Thanks for the well wishes :thumbup:! You'll be the lucky one with all of this because it sounds like if you wait just a little longer, insurance will kick in for at least part of this, which makes me totally green with envy :scared2:!

I wish Candle, BUT in some ways we have it worse here. Our antiquated power system is highly inefficient and therefore our electric bills are ridiculously high -- and this despite the fact that they can only manage to keep the power on about 85-90% of the time!!!! Also gas here is nearly $4.50 a gallon for regular. Grrrrr.......... So we are definitely feeling the pain here too.