SuzanneG

Thanks everyone! You guys are all such inspirations. Used to I wouldn't even read this board, I guess I felt guilty. Now I'm so excited for it. Has anyone put the podcasts on an iPod Shuffle? My future son-in-law is doing it for me tomorrow. I'm new to this stuff. I was just wondering how many weeks will fit on there at a time. It's only 1gig. Tonight I'm doing Week1 Day2! Woot!

Thanks. I just got myself an iPod Shuffle so I can use the Podcasts too. I'm actually excited about this and mentally feel so much better already!

I <heart> my doctor too. I agree, it's all in the aftercare.

Jacqui, You're my hero. I hope some day I can be like you! I'm excited about the Couch to 5K and I can honestly say this is the first time I can ever recall being excited about exercise. LOL

Hey Guys! I did it, I did the first day! It wasn't too bad and I feel better mentally today, so I'm really glad I did it. I hope I can make a habit of it. I'm signing up for the Komen 5k walk for the cure in May. I'm going to use that as motivation and plan to run it with a timer this year! Thanks for the encouragement, it really helped!

Well said Jacqui. Katie, since you're new here, I'll tell you that Jacqui gives some of the best, and most straight forward advice you'll get on this board. To give you some hope, I lost 76 pounds with no exercise for the most part and just a little walking toward the end. I'm now 15 pounds from my goal and STUCK so I started the Couch to 5K last night. I finally decided if I couldn't beat 'em, I'd have to join them. So take heart, I took off the projected 80% of my weight without having to break a sweat. I do hope the surgery will get you back to feeling healthy again. Sorry to hear about your injuries.

Georgia Girl and RenewedHope - Thanks for the encouragement. I'm trying to get DH to do it too. He prefers randomness so may not do well with a structured program. Georgia Girl - congrats on moving the scale!

Hi Guys, I'm new to the exercise section of this forum. I just wanted to put it out there and say that I am giong to start the Couch to 5K tonight. I've been trying to psych myself up for it all day. Got a couple co-workers in on it and I'm trying to be excited about. I have been on a plateau for about 2 months now and I desperately want to lose these last 15 pounds. I've decide to fake it til I make it! LOL I want to be one of those people who loves to exercise and gets upset when they miss it. I'll be running on a treadmill until the weather improves. After that I have a very hilly yard and I like to walk/run around it when the weather is nice. Any suggestions?

You didn't mention protien shakes. Are you having any of those? They make a huge difference and should keep you satisfied. I like the Unjury unflavored added to Sugar Free Carnation Instant breakfast, mixed with skim milk. About 35g of protien, pretty yummy and should make you feel satisfied.

Exercise does not change your skin. You can change the muscle that the skin hangs over, but you can't make the skin shrink. That's mostly genetic. I've heard skim milk helps with elasticity and staying well hydrated as well. I have heard that the skin will continue to shrink up to one year after weight loss stops. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for mine, but not expecting a miracle. Wish I had better news.

So much good advice on here. I have to confess that I didn't exercise at all during the bulk of my weight loss. I'm now a size 8 and STUCK 15 pounds above my goal. I feel whiny and frustrated, but I know that I have to make some changes to break free of this plateau. Having said that, I discovered that I was eating carbs, lots of soft, easy to eat carbs and was STARVING. I told my doc I thought I needed a fill only to have him tell me he thought I was too tight. I asked how this could be possible since I was eating more than before and I was so hungry. He said it was because I was eating slider foods. That what people mean by eating around the band. I did it without even realizing it and once I tried to eat good lean solid protien, I discovered he was right, I was too tight. Got an unfill and doing better but still can't move the scales. Well I've decided to try to "fake it till you make it". I'm going to pretend I love exercise like so many I read about. Going to start the Couch to 5k TODAY! I also think I'm going to join WW this Sat. I need some new/extra accountability. My advise for you would be to take a serious look at WHAT and HOW you are eating. Dailyplate is excellent, makes it easy to record and see how much fat/carbs/protien your food choices have. I think if you are really honest about what you are eating you may find that you prefer carbs, (bread, Cereal, potatoes, pasta) I know I always have, but you have to force yourself to focus on good lean protien and veggies and the carb cravings will subside. Carbs make me CRAZY HUNGRY. Measure every meal and take bites no bigger than the size of a dime and CHEW CHEW CHEW. You can do this! I've read on here where people didn't lose for 1-2 years and then when they were ready to put the effort in and use the band as it is intended, they took the weight off. You can too and although it helps, you can even do it without exercise. The bottom line is calories in minus calories out, band or no band, carbs or no carbs. Count those calories and you will know for sure where your weight is coming from. I hope one of these posts has struck a cord with you and motivated you to give it another try! Keep us posted!

Jodi, I couldn't have said it better myself. I see you and I are very close the same size. I tried on a pair of 6's this weekend. They were tight, but I got them on. I didn't buy them as I'd like to lose 5 more pounds before trying them again, but it is so exciting. The other day I was wearing a pair of pants that were so baggy that I thought I had picked up the wrong pair and double checked the tag.

Thanks for the info Jacqui. dewl, you just put into words what I've been feeling. Now the question is, can we break out of this or is this as good as it gets? Of course this if amazing compared to where we came from, but I keep asking myself if I'm ever going to move the scale again. It's been since early December and I'm starting to have my doubts.

ShelleyB, congrats on your approval! Sounds like you are ready to take on this adventure! Keep us posted on your progress!

Thanks Jacqui. I'm having problems right now keeping my blood sugar stable while I exercise (I'm hypoglycemic). I stepped up my routine last week and had major bs problems over the weekend. I talked with my health and wellness rep at work and he suggested I see a diatician. By the way, what are your thoughts on treadmill vs. real running? I was thinking about trying to do the couch to 5k, but outside is not an option here for a few more months. I've heard some say that running on a treadmill is nothing like running outside, that treadmill is more like jumping jacks since you aren't truly propelling your body forward.

Hey, I posted this in the "At or near goal" section as part of someone else's thread and thought I would put it out here too. I'm stuck, 15 pounds from goal. Doc say's he considers me a success story and is happy with my current weight. However, I picked my goal weight based on BMI, I want to be toward the middle of the normal range. Right now, I'm just a couple pounds above, so I'm technicaly still overweight. For me, it's not as much about how I look as it is about finishing this thing. I'm actually pleased with how I look in my clothes, I'm a size 8 right now and I'm OK with that. I can NOT get the scales to move for me all of a sudden. :tt2: The first 76 pounds really came off on their own. Yes I followed most of the rules and made a conscious effort to eat the correct foods in the proper amounts. Although, I've always allowed myself the occasional glass of wine, chips, candy, etc. I figured if I had to do this forever, I wanted it to be doable and fit in with my lifestyle. I feel like I've run a marathon, only to fall on my face within sight of the finish line. I don't want to quit and go home, I want to finish the race. Having said all of that, I work 82 miles from my job and consequently spend a LOT of time sitting down. I get up at 4am and get home at 7pm, I just don't have time for big workout sessions. I do however, walk the stairs at work (I'm on the 10th floor and walk them 3-6 times a day) and have started trying to do pullups at home. These are things I can do whenever I have a minute and don't have to schedule an hour for working out. Jacqui, I know you are going to get after me for this. I know what an exercise buff you are and I envy you, but is there anything I can do to get this train rolling again? This week I have charted my food on DailyPlate and kept my carbs and calories low and this morning I was UP 1/2 a pound! I feel all my old diet frustrations boiling to the surface again and am becoming concerned that I may not jump this hurdle. I haven't lost weight since early December. Any suggestions?

Thanks guys. I am trying to bump up my exercise, but like so many times in my life, my reward is blood-sugar problems. I'm hypoglycemic and it hasn't bothered me much this entire past year. Yesterday I had a really bad spell and am still feeling it today. I went to see our health and wellness rep here at work and he suggested I see a diatician. I'm going to call my PCP and start there. He said if I can get my blood sugar under control, then they will help me increase my exercise without paying a price for it. I'll keep you guys posted on how I'm doing. Like I said before, I'm not trying to get into a certain size or anything. I did do this for my health and I want to be in the healthy BMI range. My mom has had 2 heart attacks and 2 open heart surgeries. 1 in her 40's and the latest 2 years ago at 64. I'm really trying to NOT following in her footsteps.

Mine was fixed during surgery too. I had a big one and was on high dose of Nexium. Heartburn and refulx are 100% gone!

For me, it's not as much about how I look as it is about finishing this thing. I'm actually pleased with how I look in my clothes, I'm a size 8 right now and I'm OK with that. However, I picked my goal weight based on BMI, I want to be toward the middle of the normal range. Right now, I'm just a couple pounds above, so I'm technicaly still overweight. I can NOT get the scales to move for me all of a sudden. The first 76 pounds really came off on their own. Yes I followed most of the rules and made a conscious effort to eat the correct foods in the proper amounts. Although, I've always allowed myself the occasional glass of wine, chips, candy, etc. I figured if I had to do this forever, I wanted it to be doable and fit in with my lifestyle. So here I am, 15 pounds above my goal. Doc says he's happy and that I should reconsider my goal. I feel like I've run a marathon, only to fall on my face within sight of the finish line. I don't want to quit and go home, I want to finish the race. Having said all of that, I work 82 miles from my job and consequently spend a LOT of time sitting down. I get up at 4am and get home at 7pm, I just don't have time for big workout sessions. I do however, walk the stairs at work (I'm on the 10th floor and walk them 3-6 times a day) and have started trying to do pullups at home. These are things I can do whenever I have a minute and don't have to schedule an hour for working out. Jacqui, I know you are going to get after me for this. I know what an exercise buff you are and I envy you, but is there anything else I can do to get this train rolling again? This week I have charted my food on DailyPlate and kept my carbs and calories low and this morning I was UP 1/2 a pound! I feel all my old diet frustrations boiling to the surface again and am becoming concerned that I may not jump this hurdle. I haven't lost weight since early December. Any suggestions?

Not sure if exercise causes tightness or not. My band always makes that bubbling noise, I actually love the sound. I guess it is a physical reminder that the band is working for me. I've heard a lot of people say that stress will cause your band to tighten significantly. Could that be an issue for you?

The stuff I had to swallow after surgery was prett gross too, but the stuff they give me after a fill isn't the same thing (thank goodness). It does cost more. I pay a co-pay for the x-ray ($40 for my ins) and a co-pay for "surgery" since it's a needle entering the body ($100 for my ins).

I stay full about 3-4 hours after a meal. I've been so careful this week, only to be rewarded with a 1/2 pound GAIN this morning! Grrrrrr I'm thinking about going to WW this weekend.

He is a sweetie. I'm 100% happy with him. I'm going to see Erin on the 13th for followup. I like her too and hear that she's really good with fills.

Fluro is when they use x-ray and barium and can see exactly how tight you are.