Jachut

Perhaps when you get closer though, you may find you want to keep going? When you're at your heaviest, you just cant imagine it can you? I'm not criticising it, but it just strikes me as interesting that 99% of people seem to say "my healthy weight is x but that's too skinny for me". I'm all for people stopping where they feel comfortable, its just an interesting phenomenon. Perhaps it speaks about how fat really does serve a protective purpose to many people.

I think I probably spend just as much time thinking about my weight and food as I ever did, its just more positive thoughts. But I do wish I could go a day without thinking about either. It will never happen though.

That's so true. I think whether or not you get a better fat burn from long continuous exercise sessions, its better to actually do it, however you do it. When you're talking about machines, boredom sets in very easily so two fifteen minute sessions is an easy way round that. What I'd probably do is just that, and also try to play for a few longer sessions in a week, even if its just a walk. Mix it up. But having a treadmill in my living room, if I"m having a day where I'm just at home, I often hop on it and walk a kilometre five or six times during the day. It all adds up.

I just had an apple and rhubarb yogurt - full fat, I hate low fat yogurt, so I dont eat tons of yogurt, as the saturated fat is not that great. That was breakfast. I was planning on a sandwich for lunch - probably ham and salad dinner tonight is a barbecue, got some nice lamb loin chops which we'll have with salad. Might have a small glass of wine with dinner. I try not to eat between meals at all. I do better on a 3 meal per day, no Snacks kind of routine, once I start eating at 4pm I cant stop kind of thing, so I just dont start. Thats an average day for me. I dont diet, I dont count calories at all and I most definitely dont do low carb. I just eat what I ate before in smaller portions minus all the snacks and crap in between. And whilst I dont do low carb, we have far far fewer Pasta dinners and much more plain meat and 3 veg type dinners now.

There's no point having had a lapband if you are in such bad shape that you cant head out for a simple walk and are smoking so much! You're still going to experience poor health and die early if that's the case. Its not about losing weight, its about keeping yourself alive and having another good, fun 25 years in you yet. I"m sure you'd like to live for more than another five or six years! You know the answer, stop smoking, start small with the walking but MAKE yourself do it.

Well the entire purpose of the pre op diet is to shrink the liver. Its very difficult to do the procedure laparascopically if the liver is enlarged. They may be able to do it by open surgery - but even then I've heard of cases where they were simply unable to get to the stomach safely around the liver. The only way to know is to see the surgeon.

Wow, that is awesome news. It actually bought a tear to my eye. Good for you!

The interesting thing with this is so many people who have been very obese say "oh, I should be x, but I'm going to stop at y. I know for me that x would be too thin". Of course, reality dictates that may lapbanders stop at a level that is merely overweight, something about having been very fat before makes it harder to get down to normal weight. But to me, overweight is still overweight. Its a darn site better than morbidly obese and if its where a healthy, moderate and liveable lifestyle takes you then so be it. Its a fabulous achievement. But to actually pick a goal there, I think is a little strange. I am certainly shooting for the mid level of my healthy weight range, I dont want to still be overweight. That comes right off a chart and also by memory, I remember how I looked and felt at that weight - and it wasnt model material, in fact I felt fat a lot of my life at a healthy weigth because I'm not built like a supermodel. But for a 40 year old with 3 children, I think it would feel and look pretty darn good. I'm almost there!

I progressed from walking to running on a treadmill, the cushioned surface made it easy to do at a higher weight without killing my knees and ankles, no embarrassment at being seen running in public, no excuses, it fit into my daily routine so easily, and a good treadie run is still my fallback when I'm too busy to head out for an hour. I can do it safely at 9.30 at night if that's the only time I have for it. I also have a few treadmill programs - www.treadmoves.com, these DVD's are AWESOME fun! I always use music if I'm just running and I can do an interval style program on my treadmill or just a long steady run. I run longer outside because the boredom doesnt set in so I try to do my 10km runs outside once or twice a week and am happy to do shorter ones the rest of the week on the treadmill. This all applies equally to walking of course.

The thing is, there's loads of people out there who will never be athletic. For many many people, the goal of exercise is to keep them out of the cardiac ward, not to make them look like a triathlete. Half an hour's walking a day, or something like curves will maintain your muscle, keep your heart healthy, and is wonderful for older people who are not so mobile, or for those who are heavier and cant do more without discomfort. For fat loss, you can get more benefit by working way harder and longer, but if Curve's is what you'll stick to, then its perfect. But I agree, I wouldnt go signing up for a year's contract because I think for the younger person hampered by weight, they're going to want a more challenging workout once some of the weight has disappeared.

Mine is squishy - its my version of excess skin. I am so wonderfully lucky to have undertaken this journey in my late 30's after having had 3 babies and not be left with hanging skin. but I dont. When I stand up, my belly looks completely flat, so clothed and in anything but a bikini (which I'm not planning on wearing), its jsut fine, fitted tshirts, everything. But its very doughy, that's exactly the right word. The skin just does not have the tone it had 25 years ago, but boy, that's aging, life, etc. There's nothing hard about my belly and it flops unattractively when I lie on my side. I am 32kg lighter than I once was, there's bound to be some effect of that. I think I'd be a candidate for a mini tummy tuck, but to be honest, I'm 40 in 7 months time, I look a darn site better than a lot of my peers, I'm not looking to be the world's next supermodel, I'm not coverered in stretch marks and a belly that flaps in the breeze, so I consider myself pretty lucky. I dont care about it enough to undergo surgery.

I've maintained my current weight, well its dropping v-e-r-y slowly at about 2lb per month, for months now and its effortless. I do it just by eating what I want, when I want to and I exercise six or seven days a week - an hour's running or something equivalent. Due to the exercise (and I've found this several times in my life before when I've been a regular exerciser) I dont even go up and down by a few lbs, I stay absolutely steady even if I have a big night out with a few drinks and a high calorie meal. I dont find it the least bit hard, what is hard is I'd like to lose a bit more weight and pulling my finger out and actually dieting to get it off is always going to happen "tomorrow". I'm no better dieter than I ever was pre band, but I'm a much better more moderate eater overall. I dont fear in the least regaining weight, I just cant see how it could happen. I have no desire to absolutely pig out or chug down milkshakes or the like, and physically, I cant eat enough solid food to gain even though I dont have good restriction.

It will rip the weight off you and skyrocket your fitness to the next level! The whole theory about long and slow for fat loss is true to a very large degree but there's something about high intensity training that they just cant explain - but it is known to give you a far greater afterburn. And of course, if you train at high intesnity you get fitter and fitter so that eventually something like running is a low intesnity fat burning exercise, not a form of cardiovascular torture that has you collapsing after 2 minutes. For example, previously I could have maybe walked 6kms in an hour, a few times a week. Now I can run 10 to 12kms in that hour six times a week at a fairly low heart rate. So I obviously burn far more fat and calories from having taken on higher intensity exercise till I became fitter, than I would be burning if I just did the walking. What I really find works best for me is a combination. Adding those loooooong sessions of about an hour to an hour and a half of running got my weight moving again, but the high intensity stuff that I do once or twice a week keeps me getting fitter and fitter. Of course, if you work at a harder intensity for the same period of time, you will burn less of a proportion of fat as fuel but you will burn MORE fat overall. That's where that long slow theory is bollocks. But of course if you can only keep going for 5 mintues at a high intensity versus an hour at a lower intensity, its not that beneficial.

I think Heathergurl has this - its a thicker solution isnt it? Some people for whatever reason just tend to leak and evaporate fluid very easily, and for these people they can use this viscous fluid.

More aerobic exercise, the only way to get a flat stomach is to burn the fat. But it will probably come off there last. I swear I dont ahve anywhere else left to lose weight except my upper abdomen, and since I havent been thin since I had babies, I'm not sure whether the pocket of fat I have there is a legacy of 3 pregnancies or not. But it will be getting sucked out if it doesnt disappear soon, lol!

I dont really think I"ve made any terrible mistakes - I'm not a perfect bandster and I do drink alcohol and occasionally eat fattening foods etc but then I think of this as a lifestyle and those things can be part of a healthy lifestyle, in moderation. I guess the worst thing I tend to do is start eating too fast - especially where company and alcohol are involved. That can be uncomfortable but thankfully has only once resulted in a PB for me.

For me it was - I had to do clear liquids on day 1 only and since I was done at 8.30 in the morning, day of surgery was day 1 for me.

Its so weird - must be a cultural thing. To me flu is influenza which is a respiratory illness and has nothing to do with gastro - gastroenteritis, which is where you throw up and get diarrhoea. I cant get over how you guys call that flu! To me you dont throw up when you have the flu, you get a raging fever and aches and pains and a horrid dry cough and headaches and runny nose. Anyway, that's irrelevant, I've been most lucky to avoid it since banding, but its one thing I'm terrified of. I know one friend who cant vomit since being banded and spent the time dry retching and in agony without the relief of a good chuck.

About seven times a week at the moment. I really want to run, but my husband wants companionship and support in exercising too. I was building on my distances, going on 10km + runs, and sometimes we go where he walks really fast and I jog beside him - he has much longer legs than me! But often I do a short 5km run on the treadmill to get the hard aerobic part of my workout done, and then we might walk 8kms or so later than night when Doug's home. So its at least seven "sessions" per week, although I might have a day off here or there but I've often done two sessions in one day.

The trouble with macadamias is I can eat about 2kg worth at a time! They're even expensive in Australia and they're native to here, $25 a kilo or something like that. But goooooood.

Hi Gretchen, I really feel for you, that's how I was. I was living in utter chaos, I was just so lazy and tired I never did anything around the house. Looking after 3 kids was just a huge task. I reckon it got better almost immediately becuase my attitude was so positive following that first quick weight loss and that made a big difference. I had about 35 kg to lose (80lb or so) and by the time I"d lost 10 of those I was feeling really good. Once I started running and got really fit - look out! I'm a human dynamo now :-)

Wow, simply amazing. YOu must not be able to stop looking at yourself. What a transformation, you truly are an inspiration.

Oh paper undies are a fashion statement, but have you seen those lovely mesh numbers they give you after childbirth to hold the big maternity pad in place, lol? Those are truly a contraceptive in their own right. Not only do you get to wear a loaf of bread between your legs, but you get to see all your white flabby bits and shaved off pubic hair poking through the mesh. Noice.

Hehehe, I cant WAIT to see how you look now because you looked pretty awesome before! But I'd wait too until you're feeling a bit more your best.

Best thing I ever did, its worked really well for me. I have had to work with it, but I wanted to change my lifetyle and it helped me to do that. One thing I will point out - a lot of general practioners have sketchy knowledge of the lapband at best, so do your own research, make up your own mind and dont be discouraged by her views on it. The only person to really advise you is the surgeon. My GP was supportive and thought it was a good idea, had to look up bariatric surgeons to find one to refer me to. When I went back a year later for a renewed referral (necessary after 12 months in Australia) he asked me if it was time to have it removed! I was a little floored, to say the least, how could he have been so supportive if he knew so little?