Jachut

I call 68 grams of carbs a day ultra low carb, given that I'd eat more like 150 grams a day. As would most people on "normal" diets, that is, not watching what they eat and eating packaged and processed foods like most of the population do. Its the low carb that does it - depletes your liver of glycogen. Low carb tends to be high Protein because what else can you eat, lol? You actually dont lose a lot of fat in 2 weeks on Optifast, you just lose tons of Water and dehydrate which is why you lose lots of weight on the scales and pack it on in 2 seconds when you first eat something.

I just bought moderately priced stuff that fit. I find tops fit for aaaaages, specially since once I wasnt roly poly round the middle, I liked them more fitted, and it was no great dramas to go out and buy 2 or so pairs of jeans as I needed to. I'm a sahm/student though, it would have been a bit pricier with work clothes, but then again, to a larger degree those types of things are alterable, unlike jeans and tshirts.

Exercise wont shrink them, time might to a small degree. At your age, I'd go for it, you've got lots of years to be young and show off your body and why waste them being sad about a part of you that you can change? I feel a lot differently about it for myself because the reality of sagging, wrinkling skin is a lot closer. I need a boob lift, but I kind of figure, what's the point. The rest of me will be heading south faster than I can blink!

Ah, gosh, I know JUST how you feel. Group assignments, I loathe them. Particularly since I am always the one mature age student with a group of 20 year olds. I naturally have a more mature perspective and in what I"m doing, that gets me good grades. I want my high distinctions and i've found that in group assignments that usually means doing all the bloody work. It drives me nuts. I always have to end up electing myself group leader, taking over the lions share and the younger ones happily go along, simply look to me to come up with all the ideas and never offer feedback, argument or input. I feel that personally, conceited as it may sound, I have single handedly dragged at least six reluctant groups of students up into High Distinction category through my own hard work, they've had a free ride. The rationale is that as teachers, we will have to work together. No shit sherlock. Working together in a professional team is a helluva lot different than trying to motivate a bunch of 20 year olds who are more interested in drinking and partying and thinking that you have soooo much time on your hands because you dont have a part time job. I hate it hate it hate it. But what choice do you have. You always end up letting others take the credit for your work. You can really only hope that it will be noted that if the buddies feedback for each other differs markedly from yours then it might be considered! Good luck.

At 8 weeks out, you're probably not feeling the full effect of a well restricted band yet, so dont panic. What you are saying is reasonable to a degree but be prepared, it DOES take quite a lot of work and for most people the band does not eliminate head hunger, that vague I just want to eat something even though I"m not hungry feeling. YOu have to learn to deal with that - but dealing with it means you deal BETTER with it than you did, not that you become some perfect eater. Near enough IS good enough over the longer term, as long as your habits improve in general, you'll most likely get results, then its down to you just how low you want to go, it takes more and more work the closer you get to a healthy weight but you get stronger and stronger. The band doesnt make it impossible to overeat and it certainly doesnt make it impossible to go over 1200 calories a day. You have to choose right, which you understand (no liquid calories) but you can snack, graze, nibble your way through a lot of calories in a day and you have to remain conscious of your tendency to choose foods you can eat more easily. Even when they're healthy ones. So often I eat yogurt, Soup, crackers instead of a sandwich (which takes WORK) and there I am 2 hours later lookign for something else to eat. The extra effort on the sandwich means I dont eat till my next meal, but you dont consciously think "I'm going to eat something easier becuase I cant be bothered with the sandwich", you just think "I feel like yogurt, dont really want a sandwich". Its not easy, its a habit you have to constantly be on top of. The band only makes it impossible to eat a lot at one sitting. There's a lot of user effort with this thing but surprisingly, most of us CAN do it even after a lifetime of failed dieting. Just dont expect perfection from yourself, it takes time to build new habits, I think it was an entire YEAR before I really could grasp what a proper sized dinner was for me.

Slime has no taste for me, its just saliva.

Yes, I was heavy and sore, although my BMI was only 35, I had a really bad ankle. I used the elliptical at the gym for a few months before surgery, I thought it really helped to get fitter and in good shape. I didnt diet, but I managed to avoid the last supper pig out thing, I just tried to eat well. I wasnt perfect, that's why we need bands. After surgery I started running. Well at first I staggered. I will admit I had a lot more fitness than many bandsters begin with, and have been fairly athletic most of my life. But it was HARD. It was especially hard getting back and doing it day after day after day. I dont have any advice for you on how to get started. I just did it. Its the only way. Pick your time - either get up early or go out late - and just do it, whatever you choose to do. if you work long hours then make the weekend count so you only have to maybe do 2 sessions during the working week.

I am not by nature a worrier or a panicker, but I was totally sleepless the night before my lap band surgery. Driving away from my kids after dropping them off at mum and dad's was torture, I kept thinking I'd never see them again. I was berating myself for being so vain! I think its because its the only surgery I've had that was totally elective - I mean all my surgeries have been elective but not so vague, there was the heel spur surgery, the caesarean, the wisdom teeth, a rhinoplasty and laser surgery on my eyes - all to fix real physical problems, I never gave them a thought, just did it and recovered. Lap band surgery in the scheme of things is a short uncomplicated surgery with low risk, so I dont know why I was so worried. But yeah, its weird. I think there's an element of its your own fault for getting like this, you ought to fix it yourself going on in our heads.

I know what you mean Green, I'm 40 and I have trouble differentiating between what is loose skin and what might just be natural aging. I mean I have no way of knowing what I would have looked like by now anyway, if you know what I mean. I think to a degree, looking clothed is a great thing, and there's no way we're all going to look good naked at 80. You cant fight it forever. I seem to look pretty much like everyone else, so I'm just going with it. I dont see the point in lopping off what I have. And my own personal motto in life - If you cant tone it, tan it!

One thing I have noticed, and this is perhaps why you get treated differently when you're thinner, but at a normal weight, bmi of 23, I'm easily far and away the thinnest person in a lot of situations. Easily. People are so darn fat these days that even what we call "normal" is really very chunky. I dont mean that to sound judgemental or nasty or anything, just our society is getting larger, and that to be a truly normal weight and healthy BMI does indeed often make you stand out. It does make you the object of admiration and/or envy, and it makes people assume you're one of those freaking annoying bitches who stays thin without having to do anything, so often I find I get treated accordingly too. I also find I dont complain about my mummy tummy or muffin top to people becuase really, they're tiny and other people get their backs up assuming you're fishing for compliments or are terribly insensitive becuase you cant know what its like to be carrying round a huge gut. Its really rather weird in some ways.

I think its just another one of those things that is nothing more than a surgeon's personal belief which has no basis in reality. Plenty of doctors dont ban caffeine, and I've never given it up. Most bandsters dont. I'd ignore that rule and just not tell him personally.

I'd be in a panic. But I have managed to avoid several episodes of gastro myself, not the fear that goes with it mind you, but the actual illness. Gastro seems to be one of those things that its not a given that you'll get it becuase you've been in contact with the kids before you knew they were sick. It seems to be more a direct handling of bodily fluids and close contact that spreads it. Unlike colds where once the sniffles start, you just know that in a day or two, you're going to come down with it too. But to me, a cold is a pain in the bum, vomiting and diarrhoea are terrifiying prospects by comparison. So..... when my kids have had it, I do not touch them, literally. I go through cans and cans and cans of Glen 20 (spray disinfectant), everywhere they sit, lie, pause, gets sprayed as well as taps, doorhandles, toilet seats etc. Every vomit is handled with gloves - like 500 pairs of disposable gloves over a couple of days. Bleach every freaking where. Even bleach the washing machine and dryer doors and buttons. Not a single germ to survive in the house. I dont touch the washing, their clothes, their bedding, towels, NOTHING without gloves on and I go through a couple of bottles of that hand sanitiser each time too. I dont touch my face without washing my hands first. Definitely dont handle dishes without gloves, wash hands before eating, etc. Its hard work, you have to be very vigilant but you can surivive puking pooing kids without catching it yourself. I also have anti nausea medication on hand in case I do get sick. I sound completely obsessive compulsive I know. But I am a big baby when it comes to stomach illnesses, its just horrid, I hate them and I dont want to catch them. I dont care about catching a cough or a cold but not a tummy bug!

Boy, that's a lot of exercise! I dont know, I'm pretty symmetrical - apart from my boobs, lol. Do you have any symptoms in the bigger calf? No pain or anything? If it feels OK, I'd just hope the other will catch up! If you notice anything about it, like even if it just gets a little more fatigued than the other, I'd see the doctor just to be sure.

Well, I never lost any hair although I did have a period where my hair was absolutely awful, ratty, dry, breaking. It was impossible to style, I had to get quite a drastic haircut but it turns out, I absolutely LOVE my shorter funky hair - at 40 a cute bob is perfect for me rather than longer hair anyway. And my hair is in the BEST health its ever been in, honestly, the attention to better eating, the daily Multivitamin, the exercise, I now have a head of really shiny bouncy healthy hair. Its never been thick, always fine and frizzy but these days I can even get away with not styling it if its a casual situation - like dinner at the pub after a day at the beach kind of thing - which is unheard of for me. Your hair will recover if you lose, its common to lose it, and its just one of those things, you dont know if it will happen or not. Some people lose as a result of anaesthesia, others due to lack of a combination of Vitamins and minerals or too little Protein.

The best treatment is the one that suits you best. Its like exercise - you can discuss the science of it all you like, in the end the best exercise is the one you will do regularly. I think a lapband is good because it still allows you to eat a normal diet in smaller quanities and it can be adjusted to meet your needs at any given time. There's no real risk of malnutrition if you eat carefully. But it can be hard to "work" it, you really need to be ready to make the lifestyle changes. the other options, for me personally at a BMI of 35, I wouldnt have even DREAMED about such drastic action, the risks to my health were not equal to the change to my life that such surgery would have resulted in. But that's my situation. I do suspect that if you've passed a BMI of 50, would really struggle with lifestyle changes, are older, in dire health situations etc then perhaps a bypass would be the more practical option. I dont know anything about the other two.

I think what you're describing is how I imagine the band is SUPPOSED to work and is definitely a reasonable amount of help to work with. I"m sorry to be blunt but yes you do have to change your eating habits, yes you do have to have self control and the band wont do either of those things for you. Nor will it make you exercise. You do sound like you could use more restriction, its not wrong to go seeking that by any means - but I sit here with 3 ml in a 4ml band able to eat ANYTHING and yet I've reached goal weight. I find the slowing down that the band enforces is enough for me to feel satisfied on ONE slice of pizza, not three or four. I do get full quicker, I can defintiely not eat as much as I once could andfor you that will come with a bit more restriction. But it is not necessary and personaly I think its not even desirable to have your diet drastically reduced by way of not being able to eat a ton of things. By andlarge you'll find the things you cant eat are healthy foods with lots of substance - fruit for example - whilst the Cookies and chocolate slide right on through. Calm down and relax, this is a tool that DOES work but you have to find your way and until you hit your groove, its easy to panic and think you cant do it, but you can!

I avoid those foods by not having them in the house. When I buy them I overeat them, simple as that. I cannot identify at all with bandsters who say they were ALWAYS hungry. I wasnt. I ate for other reasons. Now a lot of the foods I ate for those other reasons dont agree with me and I dont enjoy them anymore. I could still (and have) eat a big bag of m and m's. I just try not to do it often. I eat like a normal person now. Normal people eat badly sometimes too. But they eat fine most of the time.

Cindi that's how I feel, where would you stop? I have been lucky to not have much excess skin on my stomach, but boy, it would look perfect with a tuck, I'd have six pack abs and I'd have seriously great boobs too with a lift. But I have your typical female pear shaped figure - nicely in proportion, I dont have a size 8 top and a 16 bottom, but I have thighs and a bottom and they're where the loose skin is. Much harder to fix, my thighs are wobbly and dimply. But overall my shape is nice, long and slender and female looking. Looks great clothed. I just cant conceive of a full body lift and all that you'd go through just to look good naked when the only person who sees me that way doesnt care about anythign except boobs and for the amount of time you spend in a bathing suit, is it worth the expense? I just think at some stage, and this is a generalisation and not directed at anyone who HAS or IS having surgery, we have to accept the body we have and learn to love it unconditionally. Its part of the process. You cant just nip and tuck it into oblivion and remove everything you dont like, that's not healthy either. Big sagging stomachs are a different matter, a health issue as well as a cosmetic one, little pooches and saggy boosies are quite another. I feel that way about faces. You start off wanting a little work on your eyes and you end up looking like Nicole Kidman - once a seriously beautiful girl in a quirky red headed way before she hit Hollywood, now she looks like something out of a horror movie. All just one procedure at a time. I find it really hard to know where I'd stop, overall I'm just me and I dont really want to change any of it, unless i develop a really horrid feature like a huge turkey gobbler, normal lines, wrinkles, aging and cellulite are part of me!

Mainly I run, but I try to limit it to 3 8km runs a week because I'm old and my body is battered by it to some extent. So two other days I do a treadmill circuit at home - which involves a bit of running, or incline walking, and lots of weighted squats, lunges, push ups, tricep dips, arm and shoulder exercises with dumbells and abdominal work. I do them fast with pretty heavy weights and it keeps my heart rate up for an entire hour, strength training and cardio combined. But basically, whatever you will actually DO regularly is the best exercise. I think all the info out there about how to exercise in your fat burning zone, or how lots of cardio burns up your muscle, or how you should ONLY do strength training or how circuit is best etc, its all intimidating. The basic fact is for a fat person who has been sedentary anything will work. You may wish to get scientific about it when you want to win a bodybuilding contest in 2 years time, but until then, just get out there and do it and you'll be thrilled with the results.

A glass of wine a night is GOOD for you. Its a positive health habit. One standard drink. Particularly red wine, its full of good things for your heart and my mum's cardiologist has told her to tell her three daughters to start the habit now and KEEP IT UP for life! Lucky I've been doing it for years. Red wine (and to a lesser extent white) is NOT empty calories, its full of health giving anti-oxidants and flavanoids. Other booze is best left untouched, doesnt do anything much for you, but anything is reasonalbe in moderation too if its a pleasure in your life. And at the last lapband seminar I was at, the surgeon speaking said that their patients that drink wine regularly for some reason tend to do better than the non drinkers.

I've had a couple of colds, such a joy having young kids yourself and teaching young children, both in a classroom or a pool. I'm constantly snotty! A bad headcold or even a flu type virus generally makes me feel unwell and unhungry and I lose weight, but it doesnt really affect my band at all. I just dont eat becuase I dont feel like it. I've had a real flu (gosh, I really HATE it when people who have a bad cold claim they have the flu) easily the sickest I've been in my life. But again, not a gastric illness, so no vomiting. I dont vomit from just having a fever or feeling unwell like my middle son does, I have to have actually contracted a stomach bug for that to happen. I have been lucky enough not to catch any gastro type bug involving vomiting or diarrhoea, I seem to be very resistant to those. When everyone else in the house is lying around groaning and heaving, I'm there to do the washing, lol.

There's enough pleasure in eating now and then to make it all feel not too bad. We had a devonshire tea on the weekend - scones with jam and cream and a big pot of tea. Yummy. Of course 1/2 a scone and I was BURSTING to the point I couldnt even drink. They dont agree with me. But man the little bit I had was good. Then I've had a week of barely being able to eat. Everything feels yuck going down, nothign goes down smoothly. I havent PB'd or even slimed, just felt EVERYTHING. Can be bothered eating. Dont care. I've eaten what I need and nothing else. That's the thing. food becomes just food. Its not much more than fuel. If it doesnt want to go down, you eat what you can, make sure you're nourished and forget about it. You dont miss gorging yourself in orgasmic pleasure at every single meal. Every now and then is plenty. You really cannot know what that's like till you've experienced it, you cant get your head around it pre surgery, you just have to close your eyes and jump.

I dont find I'm treated very differently, obviously there's more blatant male attention at times, I do get gawked at in shopping centres and particularly, honked, whistled at and tooted whilst I'm running. But then again, I'm also a uni student, at the ripe old age of 40 and hanging around with tons of gorgeous young things who never knew me fat, so that brings me down to earth, I'm more like someone's nanna in that crowd! My friends are my friends, that hasnt changed, I still have the same joys and problems in life that I always did. My DH has been somewhat inspired, he's getting banded himself. I'm not sure how he truly feels, he keeps making jokes when folding clean laundry about whether those are my undies he's folding or Eliza's (she's 5!) and he really appreciates the new me, lol, but he also resents my running a bit I think. He has his hobbies, fishing and golf, but we had a spat tonight because I took off after dinner for a run and he made some snide remark about how it was nice for some. Apparently, he wanted to walk but then he started the martyred "dont worry, you just go, dont worry about me". Grrrr. As if he was EVER going out for a walk, he's lazy as and he will make the excuse every time. I figure the dishes can be done at 9.30 but my run cant, so the run comes first, he takes it as an opportunity to do said dishes and then be bitchy about it. Not exactly sure what's going on there, but its been a bit of a thing all along. And he also has accused me of being too into the running so I wont be there to support his getting fit when he gets banded, yet where the fark was he when I was labouring along the footpath with my lungs on fire at 100kg? I did that on my own, without any help, but apparently, its solely down to me whether he's successful in running himself! Argh! Obviously there's iss-ewes, but not serious ones, just daily bickering stuff. He's 100% behind my self improvement plan. He's also vain enough to like the fact that I look better than most of his work colleagues wives, lol. There's regular little thrills - like this weekend I discovered I can still swing myself up onto the monkey bars like I could at 8. I can hold on one side, swing a bit, bend in the middle and hook a leg over the opposite bar, pull my knees through and sit on top. I can also turn over upside down and do the cradle, roflmao! And I can cross the bars hanging by 2's and 3's!! But overall, my life is just the same, just that I'm now thin and can buy good clothes.

If you're happy with your weight now, I'd agree with considering a slight unfill, perhaps only VERY slight. That's if you feel you're just doing without too many healthy foods that you'd like to eat. But the ability to just go out, eat whetever's put before you, well I miss that too and I have had a remarkably easy journey for a bandster. But you just never know when something's going to get stuck, when you're going to just have one bite too much and I really do miss this type of normality sometimes too. It can just be such a pain in the bum to have to think so carefully about it all the time - and I'm one who in general CAN eat everything and hardly EVER PB's, so I can imagine its worse for others. The other thing I struggle with is feeding my family. Doug's asking what's for dinner, when are we going shopping (its Saturday afternoon here). I cant be bothered, I really dont CARE what we have for dinner, I really find my cooking mojo has gone. I'll just have a bit of whatever is lying around the house, which is not good, I tend to eat rubbish rather than making the effort to cook properly at times becuase its just not a joy to me to eat it like it used to be. I'm not hungry, I'll only eat a small amount so why bother. I've thought about it and decided I want tandoori chicken tonight. But its taken me 3 hours to decide that. There's lots of things I do like and want to cook, but the kids wont eat it - I like my lentil burgers, or various pastas (with healthy vegies and Protein in them) etc and the kids jsut want kid food which kind of repulses me now. Bleurgh. I wish I could just stop cooking for kids!

OK, so when I'm at goal weight - at the very bottom of my healthy range and with wash board abs (OK, no reality checks here, a girl can dream cant she?) will the port "show" ? Its about half an inch thick right? When there's no fat there and perfectly toned skin, is their going to be a visible lump? Lets ignore the fact that I've had 3 babies just for the moment and the likelihood of ever having a tummy like that is non existent.