Jachut

I have 3 children. The oldest HAS become obese, he's almost 15, 5ft 9 and about 230lb. For an adult male that wouldnt be startlingly fat, but for a teenager, it is concerning. His main problem is that he has a large appetite (he actually eats mostly healthy because he's still under my control) and he is so lazy! He is asthmatic and although we never let it prevent him playing sport, he does obviously lack lung capacity and fitness to be as fit as other kids. Poor kid, he has absolutely no sporting ability whatsoever either, he's played basketball all his life, but it did finally get to the point last year where which his inability to keep up aerobically and his lack of talent, it just got embarrassing for him, he got dropped from a team, it was really just time to stop beating a dead horse so we finally let him quit. Since then, as I knew would happen, he's done very very little. He exercises his thumbs a lot on the Ps3 and that's it. We've banned that during the week, I try to encourage him to come to a circuit class with me but he just wont. There's only so much you can do. I look at him and I truly think its just a big combination of genetics and bad luck as much as anything. I do think though that once vanity kicks in (he hasnt really hit puberty yet) and the growth spurt happens, his weight will probably come a little more under control. Do you know, its actually not the fatness that worries me, its the complete lack of any fitness. I cant imagine going through life puffing going up some stairs, I was never ever ever like that even at my fattest, I could still run and do active things. Lack of fitness really does lead to a poor quality of life. Middle child, whippet thin, sporty, popular, outgoing. Youngest child, a daughter, she's 7, she's getting porky too. She's showing a very similar trend to my oldest. I'm cracking RIGHT down on her, she's on a 'diet' without me telling her so or raising the subject. The junk is just not coming into the house, nobody needs it. Like her brother, you can just see the body type, although she's never and he was never, been one of the "fat" kids at the school. You'd say she was normal weight. But I can see the pattern. Its exactly like me as a child. the difference is, as a child, I didnt have access to the kinds and amounts of junk that kids do now. McDonalds was a twice a year treat for me, my middle son (the thin one) considers it a daily event!

You could always swim if you have access to a pool. Also, you can do things like take a heavy weight (like a bag of sand) and do full body exercises like squats and lunges, its incredibly taxing and will get your heart rate right up there. I really try not to run *too* much but to do other things that build up other areas of my body so that I avoid injury and so far, touch wood, I have. Doing the same thing every day really does make you more injury prone.

Mine is like half a golf ball pasted on my abdominal wall. It is visible and very very easy to feel, you would only have to bump into me accidentally to notice I had a big hard lump there. My kids can feel it when they give me a hug, they dont even have to put their hands on it. It may sound awful, but honestly, it doesnt bother me at all. I'd change it for a low profile one but the scars have all healed and I dont want a fresh scar there. I want o wear my bikini in Thailand in 9 weeks time!

Perfectly said. Were I to really feel the need for any organised religion in my life, this is exactly how I would view it. I treat the PG's of the world just like I treat annoying telephone salesmen becuase I hate being told how and what to think!

I'm getting on for five years now. I've been at goal for about two and a half. I eat a very normal diet, people that dont know I'm banded do notice that I'm not a big eater and sometimes I get ribbed about that a little by people saying "oh, come on have some more". But overall, I eat every food there is and never feel that I am restricted in where when or what I can eat. I eat so normally, that I also eat all the naughty things that normal people do, in the quantities that normal people eat them and I dont gain weight. I guess the most abnormal thing about me is that I actually like exercise and do it five or times a week. Its probably not "normal" for a 43 year old women to be able to do full body pushups or run 10kms but it's healthy and it SHOULD be normal. Touch wood, but I've never had a single problem with my band.

Ah, yeah. For being THIN. Fat women can be real bitches when they think they're being outshone by someone more attractive than they are (note, that's not to say that I actually think I'm more attractive, or that being thin is the only criteria for being attractive, as I said in your other post about men). That's the honest truth. I got to a BMI of 35, so I guess I always looked "normal" fat, not "look at that lady mummy" fat. I was never a threat to anyone. But since I lost weight I have to endure nasty comments about eating disorders, anorexia and exercise obsession and people assume I'm vain and self absorbed. Oh, I get more male attention that I didnt get before. But that doesnt offend me becuase before I was FAT. I looked awful. I didnt look my best, I was bloated, puffy and probably had a negative vibe. I think its entirely natural to be more attractive when you're healthier and thinner. Its not meant to be discriminatory, its just how it is.

In the end, its how much you eat. You can be thin and eat a diet of only rubbish. But you wont be healthy. You know that. I have lost weight eating pretty much what I ate before being banded, including some bread. But I didnt eat entirely rubbish - I ate a good healthy base diet and then shoved in a lot of sugary carb foods on top of that. I've personally never had much of a problem with junk foods like Mcdonalds and KFC, I've never overeaten them or craved them unduly. But muffins, cakes, biscuits, that's another story. So yes, I cut out those foods for the most part, but I do still eat them on occasion. If I go out for dinner, I'm not going to piss fart around ordering sauces to the side and quizzing the staff about whether there's butter in something. I just have what I fancy, and I dont eat a lot of it. But my basic, everyday diet, what I eat 90% of the time is healthy. Its healthy, but I really dont believe in low carb atkins style diets. I do eat bread and cereals and I eat good amounts of Protein but not HIGH protein. So again, the next person here will tell me diet contravenes all their rules and I'll never lose weight. But I did and kept it off - so it comes down to calories in/calories out, I think. Post op, I did exactly what I was told to do and ate really healthy foods too. I actually find it really hard to understand how just after surgery you can not be so bouyed up by enthusiasm, hope and determination that you find this period difficult. I found it really very easy. The hard part of wanting bad foods again came a lot later on. But everyone's different I guess. After the post op period, my doc actually HAS no real rules, the m.o. here in Australia tends to be eating a very normal everyday diet but only a lot less of it. Its about integrating the band into normal life, not about a bunch of rules that really swaps overeating for a life of imposed rules.

Yeah, looks matte - for about ten minutes. What appeals to me though is not male model looks. I find quirky things attractive, so never assume you're not attractive to anyone at all. The men I find most attractive are usually a little overweight, actually, I like a man who looks like he could give me a big bear hug. I'm tall and not really petite and I like big men. So weight is not generally a factor, although I'd have to say 400lb might not attract me. Even height, I usually like tall men, but I can think of several men I know that I think are masculine and attractive that are shorter than me. Strangly what I find the most UNattractive is men that look like they spend hours in the gym honing their bodies. I'm not into muscular physiques really. Brad Pitt is a sissy looking girlie boy, too pretty, too vain, too manufactured cheesy looking. Vince Vaughan is SEXY, yet he's not conventionally good looking and he's actually a little pudgy most of the time! Also, that attraction thing is only what makes you look twice at someone. I would always be polite and open to anyone who spoke to me (barring obvious leering creepy types). Although I met DH at 16 and have never actually been on the market, I know that to me, its what's inside that counts, truly. I might not see fireworks at first, but I could get to find anyone attractive who genuinely had a nice personality that was compatible with mine. Looks really do not matter to me once I know someone. Perhaps I'm weird, but the point is that everyone will have a different opinion. Its just a matter of meeting the right person for you.

Perhaps change your cereal. Anything that is in flake form is basically rubbish - no matter how many health claimes it makes, its an overly processed grain product. Proper oatmeal - rolled oats (or steel cut I think you call them) is a good choice or any good organic muesli/granola with nuts and seeds and some fruit in it. Not toasted, processed stuff. Those are cereals that contain a fair bit of Protein and a LOT of fibre that will stick with you for the morning. I dont like bacon at all, disgusting fatty meat, ugh. And I dont fancy eggs every day. I wont eat cooked breakfasts like that, dont have time and dont have the appetite for them. I do fine on oatmeal or muesli, or the occasional fruit smoothie - banana, skim milk and Peanut Butter is a good one, and I guess you can add Protein Powder if you're into it.

I was very much the same. I didnt need food education or to be taught how to eat, I knew that, I just had to stop shoving junk down my throat. Previously, what I'd do is be "good" most of the day and make it to 3 pm and then pig out. Then I'd ruined it for the day so I'd have junk for dinner, not exercise and go off on a bad eating bender for days. Binging for me was not stupendous quantities of food (and I didnt get o a BMI of more than 35), so I'd maybe not call it a "disorder". I've never eaten till I was sick but it was definitely inappropriate behaviour. Have I beaten it? Well, ....... no, not exactly. I just ate half a bag of M&M's. I've been so good all day and I'm going out to dinner and they were there and I just wanted the sugar after a long and stressful day at work. I ate past what I really wanted too. But that's that. I ate them, its done. I wont now follow up with a packet of biscuits, pizza and ice cream for dinner like I would previously have done becuase of course I was "starting a diet tomorrow". Its just M&M's. My attitude has totally changed. I'm not even trying to lose weight anymore so it doesnt even matter, but I still would love to be a person that just didnt do that. I have accepted that I do have this problem and probably always will but I feel in control of it now. I worked very very very hard not to diet with my band. I believe dieting is what sets me off. If I'm not on a diet then half a bag of M&M's is not breaking my diet, is it? Its not a great choice, but I havent 'failed' at anything. I know I can have them whenever I want, so the frequency of these episodes is much much much less as I really am able to say "do I really want this?" and most of the time decide I dont, much as I would like the instant gratification. I also now no longer link exercise to eating and being good. Just because I ate the M&M's doesnt mean its a waste of time to exercise today. I'm still going for a run before I go out. These changes - working not to diet and not to see food as "good" and "bad" and exercising daily regardless becuase how you exercise has little to do with what you eat, have meant I lost weight and lost a lot of weight and have kept it off for well over 2 years. Restriction is a big factor. I cant put my finger on why it helps, but I've noticed that with 18 months since my last fill, this need to eat crap is escalating in me, its time for a top up, which I'm having on Friday. At times of being REALLY well restricted, this behviour is really nonexistant, I'll still have that Homer Simpson "mmmmm, donuts" mindless reaction to stuff, but a small handful of M&M's would do it, not half the bag. You cant eat as much rich food, you're fuller and much more satisfied from regular food, so the urge doesnt arise so often. I have to say though that I dont think my eating issues are at all emotional. I never eat to fill a void, I eat sugary foods becuase sugar really DOES settle and calm you when you're stressed and I also think that when I eat healthy, I actually undereat for my calorie needs and I really need food. the signal gets mixed. I should have had a proper healthy snack but I didnt want to do that becuase that would be 'eating between meals' where apparently M&M's snuck in dont count! Go figure. That's why restriction works for me though, if you're eating is not hunger based at ALL, then it may not be the same.

Actually, carbs dont strictly HAVE to be low to lose weight, in the end, its calories that count. I think a carb modified diet is probably healthier, we overload our bodies with easy sources of energy that provide little true nourishment, but you dont have to do an atkins style diet either if its not your thing. I disagree totally with keeping your body in ketosis by lowering carbs that much and I also disagree totally with eating a lot of animal products for Protein. That's just my personal opinion. I think you'll find though in any successful weight loss diet there's a notable absence of junk food which is - you guessed it - processed carbs and saturated fat. Good healthy diets are usually higher in lean Proteins too. And the reason you gain weight so easily when you go back to carbs is that you are keeping your body in a semi starved state that is not really natural - your liver is totally deprived of glycogen and the FIRST thing it is going to do is replenish itself, becuase the function of this is to have a ready store of energy if you cant eat for a while. The only fuel our body runs on is sugar, everything we eat is converted in the end to simple carbs and glycogen is one of these. When your liver fills itself up again because you ate some bread and potato, back comes a whole lot of Water - because carbs bind to water in the body. So bang! Up goes your weight, mainly becuase you've rehydrated. High protein weight loss consists of a lot of water loss. But for a WLS surgery to actually get protein poisoning - whatever the BALANCE of our diets, we cant eat that much! I think the greatest danger is ingesting so much artificial sweetener in protein shakes!

Eat more, hungry more often and for me, I get blocked a lot - because I can eat faster and am hungrier, I start to forget to chew well and get a lot of stuck episodes. I dont get them when well restricted! I'm actually having a teeny tiny fill on Friday despite being at goal and not having gained because I am starting to have to work much harder to stay at this weight and am getting blocked all the time due to eating way too fast.

Everyone's experience is different - like someone said above, the main problem with juice is calories/sugar, most of us know its usually better to eat the whole fruit, but like anything, if you dont overdo it and its a part of your calculated daily intake, AND you're not low carbing, then its a healthy source of a lot of Vitamins and minerals. Personally, I like the "taste" of fruit but have never really been big on actually eating it, there's just something about the texture and coldness about it that I dont like, I never fancy fruit. Since being banded, if anything is going to block me up and give me discomfort its fruit. Interestingly, I cant get a glass of juice down to save my life, it blocks me up horribly. I've no idea why, it makes no logical sense. I compensate by eating a lot of vegies - I love raw cucumber and red capsicum, raw carrots (why those dont bother me but fruit does beats me) and I do enjoy a crisp peeled apple too. You've no way of knowing how eating fruit and drinking juice will be for you after banding, its one of those leaps of faith you take.

Everyone's experience is different but I got a good 8 weeks post op where I just wasnt that interested in food. I really had no trouble sticking to the routine and lost huge amounts of weight.

No, the only time we've ever fought about online stuff is when I've gotten a bit obsessed with it, lol. Like spending 4 hours a day chatting to other mums and THEN going and meet for coffee that very afternoon, wasting the entire day on socialising, forgetting to pick up the drycleaning or do any housework at all. And even then its not a case of him telling me I cant do something, I wouldnt tolerate that and I wouldnt be with a man who thought he could tell me what to do. Rather the deal being that we work together to bring money into the home, maintain the household and raise our children and we both do our share. Socialising ALL day isnt really part of that if its happening nearly every day. I dont do Facebook becuase I just dont have time anymore. I'm working full time now. The internet is dangerous and I do have concerns about sites like Facebook, the forums I was involved in were only ever private and you had to be vouched for to get in - it was people I already knew for the most part which is why I was happy to meet with people as well. It would never enter DH's head that I would get into a "relationship" online, that's pretty stupid and paranoid unless there's reason for him to believe that it will happen. I dont think even a husband has ANY right to ban you from visiting whatever sites you want to.

Foods that are not breakfast foods work well I think. Over time, I find that even with a band, my tastes have changed and i've really gone off carby things like toast. I jut dont fancy it anymore. I've never been huge on bacon and eggs types of breakfasts either, so I do often eat things like soup. I mean, why not? The one thing I'm pedantic about is eating enough vegies, so if you can get it in at breakfast time, then you should. I like sardines and tomatoes on Ryvita crackers too! Vegies AND oily fish, and not a single calorie wasted on crappy Cereal or bread.

I've been eating 1/4 cup of pumpkin seeds a day for the past couple of weeks, they are MARVELLOUS for your bowels, high in protein, low in carbs and a great source of quite a few important nutrients for about 200 calories. I've been having bowel issues for reasons other than my band - a lot of low grade diarrhoea, constantly needing to pass tiny quantities, bleeding etc. I was taking lots of benefibre etc, but not to much effect, the pumpkin seeds have not only provided a lot of fibre (which I was already getting) but have added a lot of bulk to the stool, sorry, I know that's TMI, which I really really needed. I cant tell you how good it feels to pass something that is actually satisfying, lol. Sunflower seeds are brilliant too. Just plain, not salted, flavoured or anything, they're really really good for you.

If its already hanging, then it probably always will. Most loose skin is already there before weight loss, just disguised by fat. There isnt a lot you can do now. Its so disheartening, but you're going to be loads healthier, you ARE going to look a lot better, tummy or not and there's plenty you can do about a hanging belly at ANY stage of your life - it doesnt have to be done the instant you get to goal.

Well, I'm not going to stone you, I didnt even claim half of those things anyway. I am merely making the point that a diet full of salami and cheese is an unhealthy diet even if it is high Protein and low carb. A diet full of salmon, spinach and avocadoes on the other hand IS healthy. Like the low fat high carb diet, the way you interpret it is what matters. Both diets can be horribly unhealthy and both diets can be very healthy. It just depends which foods you choose. Fat is not the enemy, I totally agree, but I think its best to get your fats from olive oil, fish, nuts, avocadoes and not ALL of it from animal sources. Overeating saturated fat is implicated in heart disease, that much is pretty irrefutable - but so is sugar and a diet high in refined carbs.

The advice I've had and I've heard it corroborated by a lot of other people is that lift AND augmentation will give the best results for a weight loss patient. Reason being, there's virtually no fat left in my breasts, they're just skin. A lift will put the nipples back where they should be (and have never actually been!) but it wont give any projection at all - I'll still have the flatness I have on top - seriously I lie on my back and you can see my sternum and ribs in minute detail, its disgusting. What bothers me about it is that I still have a good C cup, and I like the size of my bust - it looks absolutely fine with a good bra on and even in a bikini top. I dont WANT huge boobs, I dont want to go up in size and I'm not really that into the look of fake breasts. So I've kind of dithered and done nothing and probably never will. But either way, an augmentation will not give you what you've looking for if your breasts do need lifting. You'll hve to do both. The only procedure you'd do alone is the lift, so you're looking at that scarring either way. You really have to weigh up the pros and cons - my stomach for example, pretty good, but not perfect. A tummy tuck would give spectacular results but it will also leave a horrid scar, which in my case would be just as bad as the minor flab. So its a case of how bad are your breasts, is it important that they look stunning naked or is looking good dressed enough for you?

Oh, gosh, I so know what you mean. My BMI is under 22, my weight is in the healthy range but I would like to be a little lighter. I do still ahve fat I'd like to lose - saddlebags and a bit of flab on the thighs still. Just 10lb more would take care of it, but I've tried for 2 and a half years - correction, I've thought about trying for 2 and half years. I cant exercise more than I do, I'm doing a great variety of strenght and cardio, its calories plain and simple. But like you, I know my band so well now. i dont slime or pb in public, I can eat any food. I know a tiny fill would get me there but I just havent gotten to the point where I want to pay that price. There's also a part of me that believes that if this band is going to be forever, I cant abuse it be being overtight when i dont need to be. Its meant to make you healthy, not make you into a supermodel. But I've made one appointment and cancelled it so far....

Good luck with it all - actually your tummy looks a LOT like mine, maybe its a little more severe but not by much. I also have a big lump where my port is. How did you find the port replacement- easy to get over?

No, a pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat! A pound is a pound. A pound of muscle takes up less space than a pound of fat though. If you have more muscle and less fat than another person of the same height, you will be smaller but heavier. You also do not gain anything appreciable muscle wise from a couple of exercise sessions. For a woman, its a long hard slog to gain muscle, and gaining a couple of pounds of muscle over a period of months is really good going. When you suddenly increase exercise you damage your muscles and they retain water, you gain a pound or two.

I know that current exercise theory says that long slow cardio like running isnt the most efficient way to burn fat and many "experts" say it makes your body burn muscle too. BUT - I think you're doing a great thing. At this stage of the game, running ISNT long, slow cardio in the low fat burning zone of 65% of your max heart rate (a theory that's pretty much debunked anyway). Its HARD work. What you're doing now is interval training, which is a great way to TORCH your body fat. I really really love running. I eventually worked to the point where I could easily run 10K and it wasnt super hard or super intense and I lost all my weight mainly running. I have to say, I could have more muscle but I really really dont believe I burned my lean muscle and got 'skinny fat' as a result. I think running shaped me the exact physique I was after, long, lean and feminine. I rejoiced my shrinking boobs too! And I dont know what it is, but there is NOTHING like the achivement you feel when you can run a long distance. Its like moving meditation, you get into that trance like state, the rhythm is hypnotic, you can let your mind drift away, I come up with all my best ideas out running, lol. Perhaps the thing I value most about my own weight loss journey is the fact that I became a runner. It really is a defining part of me now. I hope you love it as much as I do.

Personally, for the pre op diet I would only consider a proper Meal Replacement programme like Optifast. Protein shakes are a dietary supplement, not a meal replacement 3 times a day for weeks on end. If you read the labels on a box of Optifast, you will see that all your Vitamin and mineral requirements are being accounted for. Protein shakes often contain nothing but protein, and a lot of thickeners and sweeteners (although some are full on meal replacement products, which is different). You're going to be much better off reducing calories but not pretty much cutting out ANY nutrition for this two week period. Protein isnt the only thing you need. Same with after the surgery. I dont know why doctors recommend protein shakes and not Optifast because they're not really going to provide complete nutrition.