Jachut

Weird things can happen too - I've had 3 babies but my lower abdomen is completely and utterly flat, no overhang whatsoever. What excess skin I have is on my upper belly, its really strange. My belly button frowns and the skin kind of droops in the centre of the upper stomach. But I was NEVER fat there. I need some sort of upside down tummy tuck. My stomach looks way better when I pull the skin up towards my breasts, not down as in a traditional tummy tuck.

OK - i'll bite and pretend that you're being serious. I think there's few long term at goal bandsters here because some pre bandsters think they know it all and dont want to hear sensible advice - even when they ask for it, they get shirty becuase they dont like the truth.

I'll never understand this, I'm 3 and half years down 2.7 cc in a 4cc band and I agree, food gets stuck when I eat it, not an hour later!

Reporting back - bandsters may have to double this: ie. 10-8-6-4-1 (10 Protein, eight vegies, six carbs, 2 sweet, 1 minute between bites) otherwise PB is sure to result, roflmao! Breakfast was either going to be a princely 40 calories or more bandster sized bites needed to be taken! 10 baked Beans, 1/w piece of toast and 2 cubes of watermelon doesnt go far when you're running 10k. OK, so maybe I ought to do some housework today instead of looking up this shite on the net.

Hmmmm, well that's one thing that probably WILL be difficult to eat after surgery. But you might find a window where you can eat things like that before you get proper restriction and I bet you'll find its hard and its not quite as good as it once was and then your love affair will die a natural death, lol. it is never as hard to give up those foods, you just dont want them anymore. I've not really had a burger or fries since surgery 3 and a half years ago. I kind of instinctively know what it will feel like - I've had tastes, not good, lol, it doesnt go down well. Even the thought of eating at Mcdonalds makes me feel sick.

Well, you'll look great whether you lose 15, 20 OR 30 in the next 7.5 weeks. Good luck!

So you've got thyroid issues and your doctor thinks JOGGING is making your hair fall out? I think you need a new doctor. You're not marathon training, you're doing a great amount of exercise that is necessary for a healthy body. You're doing it whilst not eating a lot of calories, just conceivably, the balance is out somewhere, sooooo the answer is probably not to stop jogging, its to supplement more and eat more. If that's the problem. I'd say that many suffer hair loss with losing weight that they never figure out. Nobody really knows what causes it but it sure as sugar is not simply a Protein thing. Its more likely hormonal/generalised nutrition. I've never read about anyone one here who's hair didnt grow back though, hard as it must be to see it coming out.

I agree, you need a slight unfill. You're too tight. I can identify with some of what you mentioned. The band has not cut hunger for me, not one iota. What it does do is make that hunger more easily satisfied. I cannot understand how people are just not hungry for hours, with the band, I get hungry between meals for the first time ever because I eat less - I get full, finish my meal but am hungry 2 hours later for a snack. So.... I just eat something, something small will fill me back up. I eat more regularly than I did and I think that's better. I also didnt have as much to lose but I lost well, probably because I exercised it off. I managed to lose on 1500 calories a day, I could make my band work with that level. But half a cup of food, 3 x a day, no way, I cant do that and I dont believe its necessary to do that to lose weight if you're active enough. I'm going out on a limb but I do not believe the only way to use a band is to be so tight that you just dont want to eat and to stick to teeny half cup servings. You can use it much looser and work with that if you're prepared to really put in on the exercise part of the deal. Its in you now anyway, why not give that a try?

Lol, it cant be very popular coz that one page is about all there is out there on it. I would personally count fruit instead of a vegie at Breakfast and then as a sweet. From what it looks like fruit as Snacks also and snacks arent counted? dont know, its just a good guide if you're eating out and have no control over what's served to you. I mean, breakfast for me is usually Cereal, so I couldnt do it, and lots of what I eat is all sort of mixed up together, and at dinner,there usually is no carb anyway. But counting bites is a good way to keep portions in control dont you think? In playing round reading about this, I found some other guy who lost weight counting 90 bites per day, lol. ROFLMAO - i nearly pb'd my dinner last night becuase I knew I was only going to get 14 bites, I made them REALLY big ones. This is kind of maybe not the same with tiny bandster bites!

Its ridiculously simple isnt it? I've vowed to do this for the next month and see if I cant lose that last 4kg. Its also good incentive to cook dinners that can be easily separated - not like the lasagne I made last night (oops).

It actually is a suprising amount of food - I used to insist I ate WAY more than 1/2 cup, but in reality, when I have measured it, I dont. I eat a bit more but not a cup's worth. another way to do it, which I found just mucking round on the net today is the 5-4-3-2-1 diet plan Take 5 bites of Protein 4 bites of vegetables 3 bites of wholegrain 2 bites of sweets 1 minute in between each bite. Just a little thing to remember when you're not in control of your servings. So so simply but so sensible. And of course self adjusting because bandsters have smaller bites. If you're not having a dessert (and how many of us do?) take an extra protein and extra vegie bite. Dont fuss too much about condiments and sauces on the food if you're eating out, and if your meal is a mixed together one - Soup, a stew, a casserole, Pasta dish, then that meal may not be nutritionally perfect but keep it to 14 bites. Such an easy way to remember portion control and healthy choices.

Why do you need to lose it that fast? Truth is, if you manage it, you'll lose a lot of lean body tissue. Fat loss is a slow process and its much healthier (and you'll get a better end result) by taking it slower. Nevertheless to maximise your weight loss in the next 7 weeks, why not try some interval training. Take a 40 minute cardio session, whatever it us you usually do, and try adding intervals of very intense activity alternated with more moderate recovery - like if you're running, sprint full out for a minute, take 3 minutes to recover and repeat the process 7 or 8 times. Ten minutes of more moderate pace to warm up and cool down and you have a good routine. It might be a good idea to change what you do, just to shock your body - so if you like the elliptical, run on the treadmill instead, etc. Do that four or five times a week and 3 circuit training sessions - where you do your weights NON STOP, focussing on compound full body moves - squats, lunges, deadlifts, shoulder press, push ups, dips - using a barbell where appropriate. So you might do 40 squats with a loaded barbell, immediately followed by 40 pushups - this gives your legs a chance to recover whilst you work a different muscle group, but becuase you're moving continuously and doing it fast and hard, it burns mega fat. I like to do this interspersed with short 5 minute treadmill runs after every 4 exercises or so. I can promise a routine like this will give you really good results. but eating wise, I really wouldnt advise doing anything too extreme or faddish. You're in this for the long haul, to learn a new lifestyle and starving yourself to lose weight fast is kind of counterproductive to that.

My guess is that it would add some calories - on the bottle or packet you'll see the nutrition panel specifies what one serve is. Well, when you marinate something and take it out of the dish to put on the barbecue or in the pan, you leave half the marinade behind, dont you? so you dont ingest all the calories. So maybe, I dont know, you'd eat half the calories in *one serve* its probably not enough to make any material difference, but I'd just count the calories that the bottle says, if I was counting calories.

During pre op I was working out on the elliptical for 45 minutes, five times a week, doing interval style training. Post Op, I began walking outside, an hour after I got home from hospital. By 3 weeks, I was doing regular paced, 5K walks, and I went back to the gym, and started the elliptical again, by 3 months I began running.

Just to make sure my knee got better, I spent last night walking around in high heels, lol. I've got my bathers on, as soon as I drop the kids to school, going to the pool. Knee is nothing too bad but I'd better not run on it for a few days. I'm thinking my regular circuit will be fine with steep incline walking on the treadmill rather than running.

ROFLMAO Mac - its fartlek - basically sprints or intervals. I think fartlets are those little pops you do when you're trying not to fart while running! I ran Eliza to school today but got 3/4 home again of the way (about 8kms) when my knee started acting up. Darn step aerobics, I'm too old for stuff like that I guess. Its the outside of my knee, ITB. I guess I'll be in the pool for a couple of days :smile: I never get injured unless I do an aerobics class, lol. Every single time I do it, it happens.

We've got family friends in Healesville, we all grew up together as kids and our parents were great friends. Recently, their daughter bought the maze and tearooms in healesville. Her parents helped finance her by remortgaging their home in Blackburn, recently sold and moved to Healesville to be near her as she had 3 children, pregnant with a 4th and her husband is a surveyor, works 3 weeks on, one off up in Mt Isa. Her second son has just been diagnosed with Tourettes and her fourth was stillborn about 2 months ago. Now her parents new home has been lost to the fire as they were some way out of Healesville. Its so sad. I'm hoping like hell the maze doesnt go up because you dont just replant a maze. It must have been hard enough what with the drought, now this. Boy, when they catch those who have lit fires they're going to have to hold the crowds back, they'd be torn apart.

What worries me is that slight unfills can often be anything but uncomplicated, you may find yourself STARVING and giving into temptation and gain a ton of weight. I cannot believe the difference removing 0.2cc made to me. Personally, i would never touch my band just for the sake of a vacation. I can eat what I want to in small quantities anyway and I'd rather the joy of coming home the same weight as i left than sampling food that I just dont really care about. But if you are experiencing tighteness, that in itself might mean a small unfill is prudent.

Its so awful isnt it? We had fires streets away (our washing ont he clothes line got burned) and we're in the suburbs! we had the cars packed, ready to flee but the wind changed, which was fortunate for us, but was what caused the fires to really take off. And sadly today we've had news that family friends have lost their home. Its awful, their daughter bought the maze and tea rooms business in Healesville and they sold their home to put money into her business and have just moved from Blackburn to Healesville to be nearer to help her out. Their new home has burned, and we're just praying that the maze doesnt burn because the business will be ruined if it does. Poor girl, her second son has just been diagnosed with Tourettes syndrome and her fourth child was stillborn a few months ago. I resolve to stop complaining, bitching and moaning about living in Narre Warren and not being able to afford Camberwell. I've got nothing to worry about compared to some. My son went off to school today with his whole months' pocket money to donate to a school effort and I'm donating blood this afternoon.

THis thread has been going for ages. I've now shrunk to a C cup at 5ft 10 and I love it. I will ONLY get an implant if I really really have to when I have a lift - which I wont be able to afford for a year or two yet. I dont want big boobs, I prefer smaller ones, I like the way they look and I love the way they dont get in the way of anything. I've played around with padding up a bra with bust enhancers, and it doesnt really improve the look of my bustline, it just makes me look beefier all over. and I can run now without having to wear a bra that rivals the Syndey Harbour Bridge as a feat of engineering.

Perhaps its more like how the PS told me that I'd have to go with a lift and an implant because although they can remove some loose skin and improve the tone of the breasts with just a lift, the tops of them will remain flabby unless the skin is actually filled out again. Without an implant I will have a higher, firmer breast, smaller too, but still with that ugly skin that puddles up. So if your skin is in really poor condition and you have a reduction the result might be quite disappointing?

I was going to log on and say I"d eaten any number of packets of twisties, but not at 3 weeks. But they really ARE a slider food, highly unlikely to cause you any damage, but yeah, you feel bad enough, you know it was a mistake. But in your defence, you cant NOT eat twisties if they are there. You just have to!

Thank you, its been fairly horrendous. We live in suburban melbourne but fire took off here on Saturday (t was horrendously hot - 118 degrees F), and six homes were lost - very cose by, we had the cars packed, ready to flee. Our suburb turned into a nightmare of grassfires and spot fires, as we're on the very outskirts of the city - the sky was dark, we were under ember attack and the stuff on the washing line got burned!! But that's nothing compared to people living in our rural areas, its absolutely tragic, and the hugest loss of life we've had. And they're saying now that a good deal of the fires were deliberately lit. the weather's also not on our side, the fires are still going and likely to pick up again the coming weekend.

I just cant understand why your FIRST priority after your OB woudl be to see your band doctor once you knew you were pregnant! The band needs good aftercare to work well, it is not a good plan to not have checkups and touch base with your doctor at least once a year. You're really lucky you had no complications, but i agree, you definitely need an unfill now.