luluc

The problem I see w/a >500 calorie a day diet is that it is just not sustainable long term, especially if you are working out regularly. I too did not have a pre-op diet and 100% of my weightloss took place "after" band placement. This is a first reading such low calories - the average I've read has been around the 800 cal per day. I believe that one has to take will power to task - just because you can eat 3 slices of pizza, doesnt' mean you should....and I LOVE pizza .., it was my breakfast/lunch/dinner MANY days...but ya have to learn some discipline if you want this to work. For example - I am at my sweet spot, and I take in approx 1000 calories a day...some days more/ some less - but this is the average. I am also working w/a trainer 2 days a wk and at the gym 3/4 days additionally. I burn between 325-425 calories while working out. If I only took in 500 calories - well yeah your now on your way into starvation mode; and your body just shuts down. My trainer wkly is on my A$$ to get more calories in - so I add a shake "sometimes" ...& have added more carbs. I've said in another thread I shock my body wkly by changing up my protein & workout program - so not to get in a rut. I had a habit of eating the same thing, and jogging to the same songs - and I didn't see the scale move much. The changing of things up - got the body to behave differently.

i thought this thread "apple bottom jeans" was for apple shapped bodies....so i never poked in - because i'm a PEAR through & through. small waist / tummy - but LOTS of hips / thighs / butt. i LOVE these jeans....FINALLY someone gets it....btw: song in the head for at least 24hrs.

the good ole' texas boy i married believes queso is a food group to it's own & the spicier the better! i will happily pass on this version - but my guess he'll just have to throw chorizo into it:) ps - laundry still stinks....2 person household, just not right to do 8 loads a day.

complaint - Laundry. i absolutely hate drying / folding / & PUTTING away laundry - i rather clean toilets...ok done complaining - off to do MORE laundry, but some queso sounds really good about now.

yesterday - b- eas carb control chocolate shake l- 1 steak / pork shishkabob & 1 grilled veggie 'kabob d- 1c squash spaghetti / spinach risotto s- fresh strawberries w/ a spoon full of low fat cool whip

My Dr said to shoot for 140, I said 125 because I remember how I looked at 125 & at 5'1 that seems totally realistic. My last visit, he agreed as I'm pretty close to the 140 mark, he just didn't think I could get "there" w/out plastic surgery early on. I've been lucky not to have any sagging skin, my tummy went flat, and the thighs / butt are "starting" to firm up decently. There are a lot of threads that talk about goal weight - In the end you set whats right for you....and you may change along the way - there is no absolute & btw I hate those charts!!!!

congrats txf on the race!! went for a 2hr mountain bike ride yesterday.....had forgotten how many hills were around lake grapevine, i was saturated by the time we got back to the car. i think dh and i will plan on doing this one day a wkend vs the gym - we both like the outdoors much more, and it's not 100 degrees out >>>YET!! took a early yoga class & had to be back home for my painters - so i'm hoping to get a walk in tonight w/hubby if possible..

QJ- Personally, I think self control is needed till you get proper restriction. Then you don't have to think about it - And even though you've lost before, the Band will help prevent the regain. I too was self pay $15k & I SO know what your saying as far as thinking you may have wasted money, but I look at this way .... I bought a 10cc band, and if 10cc's is what it takes to get to my sweet spot....then filler up!!. You have 2 more CC's to work with & it might only take .2 to get you to restriction. Talk to your Dr - let him know you need his help , be strong...tell him your still needing additional fill. I had the same doubts , thinking I would never get to my sweet spot in the 10cc band, and when I approached 8.5, I realized what everyone had been talking about...Good luck to you!!

congrats stranger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wombat i agree w/you the pavement is hard on the knees - but i'm finding the treadmill sorta boring. great job on finnishing wk8!!!

bbk you look GREAT!!! love the red shoes:)

Juli - I've always been a big fan of wine:tongue: & good food. I was never one to hit fast food, usually every wkend we have a bunch of company and DH and I made HUGE meals w/lots of wine! Since we both got banded we're at our Farmers Market every Saturday after the gym, buying our Fruits / Veggies for the wk - and try to come up with meals w/variety; compared to my meals that always had Pasta / bread. Last night I took spaghetti squash, baby spinach, parmesan cheese and made risoto. Hubby grilled a filet, but I was too full w/the above:)

Oye....:regular_smile: I"m dying to hear this menu!!!! If there is a Knish there - get it , soft / mushy...So miss Jewish food living in TX after born/raised in NY...Have a great date BTW..that's most important!!

Matzaball soup!!!

i took the other half of spaghetti squash today & made a spinach rissoto. steamed fresh baby spinach w/garlic EVOO & green onion....Mixed in a bowel w/the squash w/ 2/3c of parm cheese....spread on a pirex pan, added another 1/4c of cheese - baked @ 350 for 25min. my brother and DH ate it all....i'm guessing it was good , they made sandwiches out of it w/the baguette i bought - so it's salad for me tonite::::regular_smile:)))

bit of advise - egg drop soup. i got so satisfied (probably the protein) on this soup for the first 3wks of post op, that the hunger pangs were easily met. i did move onto solid earlier - but after a meeting w/my dr. i had already healed, the hunger had kicked in - and it was then time for the diet & exercise program to start... it's NOT easy - don't EVER hesitate to contact your Dr on your progress or concerns, - they are there to help guide you through each stage, till you get to restriction...chin up!!

I change my protein choices & exercise routines up often. Don't give my body a chance to get "use" to one single thing - before I jerk it off in another direction. "For me" this works, for the first 3 months I slipped into a rut of food choices and the same cardio....Once I got into mixing things up - I noticed the scale and body adjusting nicely....

some good choices, especially for cardio - via Ipod (artists): madonna eminem franz ferdniand queen van halen alien ant fram beastie boys billy idol fergie - black eyed peas bon jovi nelly / christina aguilera delite - grooooooooooooooove:) the ramones duran duran fall out boy foo fighters inxs james brown janes addiction jay z joan jett justin timberlake timberland kanye.....& so much more

i look at apologizing as empowering. i get to state my misgivings before someone points them out.....SOMETIMES, I'm early to the punch:) i'm more charmed by those that take reflection to task; and even more so when they're tolerant....happy wkend all!!!

Boy I would LOVE a slice of pie - NY style; but I'll use the word that Sweet pea used, willpower. And mind you I hate that $%^&*&^%^&* word - but yeah, ya know you need to make good food choices ; at least while your in weight loss mode. If your able to eat 2 slices - I say you need a fill ... FAST. You were banded about a month after me, and I've had 7 fills now. Stay on top of it; you want to eat 3 healthy high Protein meals - be filled enought to eat those w/limited snacking inbetween & start moving; exercising. The band is the BEST invention in getting the diet & exercise program going - it won't do it all for ya.....

Treat your Divorce as a business transaction. Really sounds odd but the more you can remove the emotion out of the equation - the better this will be for you. I am the only one of a close knit of 6 girl friends that has not been through a divorce - but have lived it w/all them as if it were mine...Be smart - Document, Document, Document. One friend never had a phone conversation w/her future EX w/out a bug in her cell phone to record the "chat". Another used her EX's (who refused to leave the family home) toothbrush as the toilet cleaner, she also took pens & broke them & placed in his dressed shirts to have the ink bleed (she was BRUTAL)....I got a whole lot more. The one caution I would throw out is your daughter does have 2 parents. I think you will have a lifetime of hurt if you strip your daughters dad from her life. Granted he does have to get his s$%t together & should not have visitation w/out supervision - but as someone active in Fathers for Equal Rights, she can turn on you as an adult if she is completely isolated from him....Let her make the decision when she's old enough if he's someone she should be around - right now, your job is to protect her - guide her, teach her to make good decisions as she grows up. If he's a shlub as the yrs go on, she'll have nothing to do w/him, and you can rest well it won't be because of what You did rather Him... Good Luck~~

baby hijak - kat, i think you have to be one of the kindest individuals on this board....always direct yet comforting w/your advise. there's not many threads i read when someone is truly looking for advise & don't see a response from you. thanks!! jlobyxmasm, as a happily married person - not sure how much i can comfort you other than saying, i'd personally much rather a saturday night alone, that w/someone who did not accept me warts & all. i bet you find that perfect companion when you least expect it:smile:

The surgery center I use has a clothes swap each month. At my last fill I donated 3 leaf bags of size 12-16's. I've not attended one of these & not sure how they actually operate but I think it's a great Idea for those who are still loosing and don't want to spend a bunch on "transition clothes".

It sounds like your too tight (acid reflux). Personally I don't like to drink my meals & my Dr is not a fan either - that and soft foods (all except day or 2 after a fill). I gauge my restriction by how much I can eat solid protein. Do I have to slow down & chew chew chew vs being able to eat fast? - Does it keep me satisfied, so not to snack between meals? I would suggest reaching out to your Dr to check your band & reflux issues - From all that I've read, you don't want to be as tight as you describe. Hope it all goes well~~

Dr Felts did mine on 10.12.07 - Very kind surgeon, he and his staff care a great deal about your success. Good luck w/your surgery!!!

yesterday - b- 1/2c smart start cereal * 2% milk l- 1c chicken pot pie s- handful of bagel bites d- 1 stuffed pepper w/1 vegetable shish kabob s- fresh strawberries