Miss Meg

Wow wow wow wow wow.... You have just given me the extra motivation I needed to keep going and get to the end to hopefully achieve those results. Good for you...

Down here in Australia, winter is starting to set in. One thing I do love about winter is a great soup!!! Last night I made a delicious chicken noodle Soup which will see me through for my work lunches for the next week at least. Can you share any of your warm, hearty soup recipes with me please?? I have a few in my arsenal, a pretty good vegetable soup and an amazing curried pumpkin soup, but would like something new to try. Give me your best....

I've just done a quick conversion from metric to imperial, and realised that if I was one of my fellow bandsters that live north of the hemisphere, I'd be celebrating Onderland!!!!!!!! Happy days everyone xxx

It sounds like there is no definite right or wrong answer - we each have our own limitations. I hope it continues to work out for you...

Lisa, I think you have just answered my question... It's a pretty cold winter here downunder and last week I was pretty sick with flu. Even though I am feeling much better, I am still finishing my course of antibiotics and still have a dry irritating cough. It totally makes sense that this could be why my band is a little tighter at the moment. I will take your advice and stick with more liquid foods for a couple of days. Thanks.

Can anyone explain why some days our band feels tighter than others?? I've been going along just nicely for s fair while... Smaller portions, chewing more, stopping at full... Today though, I just can't seem to eat and have had a few stuck episodes.. I am much better now and just happy to call it a day on the eating for the day... Obviously still not used to the little surprises we get along the way.

I've had some what of an epiphany this week!!! Last week I posted about a bit of a light bulb moment about needing to change things along the way to make the most out of my band. In that, I decided to do a lot more research and re-educate myself about how the lapband works. This week I've realised that I've been eating too much slider foods and not enough of the stuff that will send the signal to my brain that I am satisfied, being foods that need to be chewed well and pass through the band at a steady pace. I'm nearly 8 months out and I've just had this realisation now. I have to say though, that I really need to give a huge big shout out to @Bandista. I've always seen the articles at the end of your posts and have sometimes gone into them but haven't really read and understood them. This week however, I took the time and read and re-read and really took the time to let it sink in and fully understand it. Thanks so much, you've made a huge difference to my understanding and I will be forever grateful

Hey there everyone. So I am at 23 weeks post op and have lost 22.2kg in 26 weeks (including the pre-op phase). I was going along merrily for a long time and losing weight at a steady pace and I have always been pretty careful about what I eat and the quantities of it, I seem to have hit a bit of a wall. The southern Australian winter is starting to set in thick and fast and the warm and fuzzy food is all that is really appealing to me at the moment. I've posted about this before and was given some wonderful tips on how to maintain the focus when all I really want is comfort food, and was given some great advice from other members (loved yours especially @Bandista). I guess I just want re-assurance that as long as I keep my head in the game, I'll get there in the end. It's keeping my head in the game that is feeling a bit difficult at the moment. I'm going to change things up a bit and try and go back to basics with my food and maybe do some different exercise other than walking. Does anyone else have any advice??

Whilst we are all trying to include exercise in our weight loss journeys. There is plenty of incidental exercise ideas that we can and should add to our daily routine. One of my girlfriends and I have today come up with the idea that every bathroom visit, be accompanied by 10 squats and we will increase that number soon. We are keeping track of them and texting each other the number of 'toilet squats' we do every day. With all of the Water that I drink, I'll hopefully have an amazing backside in no time. Apart from the obvious house cleaning, can anyone offer a suggestion of something that we can all add in to our daily lives without even really thinking about it??

So I have 5ml in a 10ml lapband (ml's are the same as cc's). I really thought that when I had my last fill 2 weeks ago that this would see me perfectly to the green zone... For the first 2 weeks I've eaten a lot less but here we are 2 weeks down the track and I can still eat way more than I would like to. Don't get me wrong, I do make every effort to lessen the amount of food that I eat, but when I am feeling hungry, I fit in way more than I wish I could. I always stop when I feel my soft stop signals (runny nose or a burp) and I know I'll get there. I have another appointment scheduled for 3 weeks time and hopefully I'll get there soon. At what level did you find your green zone?? - Patience is key!!

It really is a huge adjustment, I have 42 years worth of bad habits to lose. Sometimes it's really difficult to not get too bogged down in the idea of dieting when I still have a lot of weight to lose... Just gave to remember to let the band do it's thing first and foremost...

Hi everyone, today marks 31 weeks since my lapband surgery and I have lost a total of 25.7kg in that time. It's taken me a while to feel any real restriction, although I have had my moments of stuck episodes here and there. This morning however, I decided that my usual Cereal and fruit, or yoghurt or a shake were not going to cut it for my Breakfast, so I decided to purchase myself a toasted ham and cheese sandwich, something I have not gone near in a very very long time... Well.... Said ham and cheese sandwich was not going to go anywhere - not at all!!! The way I eat has changed and will continue to change and I need to remember that with every single mouthful. It was at this moment that I realised I actually do have the restriction that I need, and I need to work more with my band. I really thought that I was working with it, but I realise that every single stuck episode or feeling of discomfort that I get means that I have to change something. Light bulb moment!!!!!

Wow... I've never thought about that. I guess it would be a very real issue and possibility for some people. I suppose your personality type would have a bit to do with it, whether you have an addictive personality or not which I know a lot of people do. Thereapy is always great when it's needed so I really hope that anyone who deals with this seeks the help they need.

I have a top that I bought on holidays in Greece over 10 years ago that I never wore because it never fit. I need to dig it out of my storage unit and try that sucker on!!!

My tummy has never rumbled so much since I've had Lapband Surgery - and yes it is extremely loud. There is no hard and fast rule as to when mine erupts... Sometimes it is when I am hungry, sometimes it is when I am full, sometimes it just happens for the sake of it. A really very odd sensation but very funny at the same time - the looks that come my way are hilarious...

Yes absolutely, that's how you know that you have restriction. Take smaller bites and really chew the heck out of everything and you shouldn't feel it as much. It's actually a great feeling because you know it's working...

I am 18 weeks post-op and 100g away from obtaining my first real weight loss numbers goal - the elusive 20kg!!!!!! (44lb) I've been reflecting on my life pre-surgery and what things I have noticed that have changed - the things that I didn't realise were hard to do, until they weren't so hard anymore... Getting in and out of the car is probably the biggest one, getting up off the ground, getting out of bed, the airplane seat belt!!!!! All of those things have become so much easier to do... What have you noticed??

Absolutely none, zero, nada, zip.... Except of course that I didn't do it years ago...

$130k??? that surely can't be right??? My private health is with HCF and they offer very little coverage in the area of plastic surgery... I am considering a trip to Bangkok when I am ready for that step. Not sure if that is something for you as it is definitely not something everyone would consider, but the cost difference is ridiculous.

Once when I was a teen, I did an orange diet - all I ate every day for a week was 9 oranges (I can't believe my Mother let me do it - it was the 80's though) - my skin turned orange. I'm now 42 and although I love all things orange flavoured, I can not eat an orange!!!!!

I have 4.6ml in a 10ml band (apparently ml's the same as cc's). I have had 4 fills to get me to this point, but I am not yet in the green zone. I know I am close because there is a small amount of restriction, but I am still able to fit in more than I should in a meal. I will hopefully have my next fill this week or next and I am going to ask to take it to 5ml. I am hoping that will see me there.

I also weigh myself daily, and same as JamieLogical I do it first thing in the morning, naked after a toilet visit - religously. Some days I weigh myself every time that I walk past the bathroom. However, I only record my results every Thursday. The reason I do it daily is the same as everyone else, just trying to see how my body deals with things on a daily basis, and to remind myself constantly why I am doing this. Throughout the day, I can go up and down as much as a couple of kg's, but I fully believe that my morning weight is the most accurate. I've just been through a bit of a stall with not losing anything for a couple of weeks, and I really believe that because I weighed myself daily, was part of the reason that I was able to make it eventually shift...

After 2 weeks of my scales saying 'thanks but no thanks' I finally have a shift after my weekly weigh in.. Granted, it's only 1kg, but I'll take it. It's a real motivator to finally see it moving in the downward direction once again - now to just keep it that way. Even better than the scale moving, my BMI is now below 40!!!!