Jachut

Sorry, cant help with the link but just to encourage you to spend up on a good pair! I find that they really improve the quality of your running experience, they hold you in and reduce bounce and jiggle which makes running much more comfortable. I also really prefer a fitted top with a shelf bra, there's just no way I'd go running in old track pants and a big Tshirt, it just would be uncomfortable. I only have ordinary tights like Nike and Adidas ones but they're a massive improvement over Target leggings!

Both really, but I guess size is ultimately more important than weight. I am now a weight that I am not embarrassed to tell anyone, but I'd still like to be a smaller size!

I love Jamie, he's very popular here in Australia. His style of cooking really appeals to me too - rustic stuff that you chuck in your weber (kettle BBQ) and serve up on a big platter to your friends and family. His food Revolution would be an eye opener for many! To be honest, the move Supersize Me didnt put me off letting my kids have the occasional McDonalds so much - what I nearly barfed my dinner up over was the muck that serves for food in American schools! I was awestruck by the orange floppy pizza! We dont have school canteens like that here, you bring your own lunch or you have a "lunch order" where the canteen puts it together and brings it to the classroom where the kids eat. thank god my kids school has a healthy food policy and they cant buy anything like pizza, coke and other softdrinks are banned in our schools and we dont have vending machines in them either. However - it hasnt done much good. Australia is one of the fattest nations on earth, just like the US, and our kids are getting fatter and fatter each year. If they dont get that stuff at school, they just buy it elsewhere, even kids who have a healthy family diet like mine do. I dont like pizza much at all but I'm glad Australian pizza doesnt have orange cheese, and the slice stays horizontal when you hold it to bite, lol! Lack of exercise is as much of a problem I think.

Well.... lol, be ready because we do it a bit differently downunder. There's just not the focus on protein in Australia. A typical day for me is today I guess. I started the day with my regular "green smoothie" - which today was apple, peach, banana and silverbeet blended with water. Its disgusting! No seriously, tastes like the fruit, looks like what you clean out from under the lawnmower but I've been doing this for about six months and have never felt better. I have one or two a day and it takes care of my fruit and veg needs so that what I eat at meals is a bonus. By the way, that amount made up fed DH, me and my daughter, so I didnt eat a WHOLE apple, a WHOLE peach and a WHOLE bunch of silverbeet. But I just cant physically chew and eat that much fruit and leafy greens. It keeps me regular, healthy and full of energy. About an hour later, I had two sardines and some sliced tomato on a piece of wholegrain toast. I had a cup of coffee down at the shops and just got back and had lunch - two laughing cow wedges, the rest of the tomato sliced up on about six small wholegrain crackers. I'm trying for another small smoothie this afternoon. Dinner tonight is going to be zucchini slice - basically an egg/fritatta type dish with egg, zucchini, some wholemeal flour, low fat cheese and probably some chopped up dill I have in the fridge - we'll have that with salad, and I'll have a glass of wine. Yesterday was pretty typical as well - started with a smoothie, had a bowl of organic muesli, then picked at a cheese platter for lunch (cheese, olives, crackers, sundried tomatoes) and we had roast beef and steamed veg for dinner. I guess these days the only real difference from when I was losing is a slight increase in portion size - but still about half what regular people seem to manage to eat. My weakness is picking - lollies, chocolate etc if its around I'll have a bit of it. I'm better at just having a bit these days but pig outs are not unheard of! I guess my personal beliefs in nutrition are not focussed on protein but more on fresh fruit and vegies - I buy organic and I really believe we need TONS of plant foods in our diet, much much more than bandsters can eat. Its the one thing that worries me about life with the band long term, which is why I am motivated to get down a glass of green goop twice a day. For exercise, I run about four days a week - about 6kms usually, and I do an hour long bootcamp session twice a week, which has more focus on cardio mixed with bodyweight strength training.

Longer term, when you're not on liquids anymore, you might like to try a green smoothie for fibre and leafy greens. I usually start my day with a smoothie - I combine a couple of fruits and a few big handfuls of a leafy green - spinach, silverbeet, lettuce mix etc and blend with some organic fruit juice and a bit of water. It looks like lawnmower pulp and its actually fine in flavour (tastes like the fruit) bit still tough to get down, but its like a miracle in a glass - as a bandster I could never eat all that fruit and all those greens every day and the fibre in them really keeps me regular. Since I'm not tight and am maintaining not losing, half an hour or so later, I can quite easily eat a small breakfast as well. This also makes a good afternoon snack (I often have a second when I get home from work) as its immediately filling due to the fibre, but drains through quickly and doesnt spoil dinner. Other than that, I do add benefibre to foods and to coffee just when I remember (maybe once a day) and try to eat a couple of prunes every day.

Nope, I was always fixated on a number. Its silly but simple - over 70kg (154lb) = fat, under = acceptable weight for women to weight. Its cemented there somewhere in my psyche. Dont know why, perhaps it comes from always being the "big" girl - at 5ft 10 and in the 170's and now and again into the 180's during my teens, people expressed concerns over my size - my mother worried about it, I worried about it, I was teased for it and adults had endless conversations about it - "she's not fat, she's just a big girl" (lordy how I loathed that one!). Looking at photos of me now - I really WAS overweight at that sort of weight. 150 and under is perfect for me, I could easily weigh into the 130's and not be underweight, just my body type. So when I did hit the 170's again, I didnt even think about stopping there.

I'm a scale whore too, always have been. I dont see it as a negative thing - because if I'm away and cant weigh, I dont stress, I dont stress if I'm up a teeny bit because I know that's normal, but it reminds me to stay on track. If I'm down, then that also motivates me to keep doing well. My weight fluctuates by about 2 lb from morning till last thing at night and it fluctuates by about 2lb across the month, I tend to gain that 2lb or so of Fluid in the days before my period. The few days after I am the lowest I will see, usually a 67kg - mostly I weigh between 68 and 69 and fluctuate by that pound. I've never seen a 66 yet, lol, although I'd love to. I just take note of the trend over time. I havent been over 70kg now in about six months and am mostly 67 something in the morning and 68 something in the evening. So in the last year I've maybe lost 3lb lol. I'm lucky, my weight remains very stable really, as I'm not prone to fluid retention and I eat very much the same amounts every day - not like a pig out on weekends and eat nothing all week kind of eater.

Slider foods, slowing metabolism, reduced activity, it all adds up. Conversely, I've been away on a school camp this week and fed so much food I felt like I had to poke it down with a stick, and was embarrassed by how much I left on my plate. Come home to not one ounce gained. Your body uses a lot of energy to digest food. (obviously I still never ate as much as I would have pre band, there's only so far that theory will stretch, lol).

Firstly I'll say that I do understand that many people really NEED that tight restriction to lose because their bodies require very very few calories to run and thus calories must be extremely low for weight loss and also because some people really do have such issues with cravings and lack of ability to control their intake. But I tend to agree with my doctor that the band is safest with less restriction and that the high levels of slippage and erosion you read about are in large part due to poor band management - over restriction, and more pbing and stuck episodes than is ideal - once in a blue moon is normal, several times a week isnt. that said, I'd be the first in for more fill if I gained even an ounce! However, my band is fairly loose and I like it that way. I seen to actually have a pretty fast metabolism in that I can eat WAY more than most bandsters both to lose and maintain but on the other hand I've been away on school camp this week and eaten with five other adults for three meals and two Snacks a day and I'm quite literally reeling in disbelief at how much food some normal to only slightly overweight people can put into their bodies!!!! Nonetheless, I was able to eat what was put in front of me - including sandwiches and hard foods like muffins, fresh fruit etc with not one single problem. I can eat enough to nourish my body properly - plenty of leafy greens, two fruit and five veg per day etc. I dont need Protein supplements and shakes. My issue in particular though is we've got a lot of bowel issues in my family, and several are starting to become apparent in me as I get older, i've had some issues over the last six months. For me a very high fibre diet containing loads of fruit and veg and wholegrains is imperative and I would never follow the lower fibre, higher protein type program, as I have a very irritable bowel!. Having my band loose, but filling up with more volume of those good foods keeps me healthy and prevents the awful cramping/constipation issues I can get if I dont eat right. And it never stopped me losing. I also notice if I eat too little and too little good carbs, I just slow down. I cant exercise as hard, I dont feel as good so I burn way less energy, so it seems to me better to eat more, burn more. So i tend to err on the side of loose. I can eat a Big Mac, yes, but I just choose not to most of the time.

Well, I'd definitely up the exercise from walking to far more vigorous cardio, things that are more interval style, with bursts of REALLY hard activity. Anything like circuit training, bootcamp etc would be great, with gentle running/walking on easier days. Make sure you're eating how you know you should - calories, fat and carbs havent crept up etc. Everyone loses that vigilance and motivation over time. Other than that, stay true to your goal and wait it out. It took me an entire year to lose the last 10lb. My weight loss just got slower and slower and slower till it stopped.

Well, that's how I started pretty much and it worked! I "ran" on the treadmill at 4.0 and a small incline, it was a very slow jog but it built up my running muscles, lol, so that eventually I was able to run outside. I'm not sure walking would have been quite the same.

I hate this! This is a late reply but how rude of those women! I cop it all the time being a teacher in the public education system. Here in Australia, teachers are very poorly paid, compared to other professions. Having a husband who earns well over $200,000 a year, I consider my $60,000 or so as a graduate teacher a very nice little second income. But if you have to support a family on that, its not a lot of money. So teachers tend to live very simple lifetyles, wear old clothes, drive old cars and many are renters, not home owners (particularly for male teachers who are primary breadwinners). I dont flaunt my own circumstances, in fact with 3 kids and me home for the last 15 years, we're not that well off. Its been a struggle. But I cop crap all the time because of my (I think pretty ordinary) car, my so called "expensive" clothes - I'm a Target and chain store shopper, no designer wear in my wardrobe but I do get new clothes regularly I guess, my "fancy" hair - its just not long, uncoloured and ungroomed, but short and sassy and the fact that I like to get my nails done. People are REALLY resentful of it and behave like I shouldnt have the temerity to work and earn more money than I strictly need to! Jealousy is a curse, and envy is an ugly emotion.

Yes, being a large back size/smaller more moderate cup size is pretty difficult! But you wont be a large back size forever. Also make sure you get fitted and experiment, very often you can wear a back size one or even two sizes smaller if you go up a cup size, and the bra will fit MUCH better as well. If you are concerned with breastfeeding then dont have breast surgery. Honestly, I know that they say its often successful but in my general everyday circle of acquaintances, three people I know have had breast augmentations or reductions and none have successfully breastfed afterwards. Its just not worth the risk if it means a lot to you.

The thing about Curves that annoys me is that they claim you cant outgrow it but I think that's complete rubbish. I was fit when I joined and there was no way I could get any kind of valuable workout from it - there's only so fast you can work those machines without sacrificing form and safety. I am also very cardiovascularly fit and a workout in the "target heart rate" zone for me is no workout at all, it does nothing for me, I need to work at a much higher level. So you CAN definitely outgrow Curves or be too fit to benefit from it. Trouble is, I think most gyms with their almost untrained "personal trainers" are very similar, well, they are here. You get a cookie cutter workout designed to target the big muscles in fairly sedentary people. You need guidance or knowledge for gym to be really beneficial and the formula of a walk on the treadmill and an hour of throwing machines around works well at first for the out of shape and then you outgrow it like you do Curves. Both are FANTASTIC to start with, it just depends if you want the more woman friendly environment or not. Longer term, I've never had exercise results like I've had from bootcamp which is a workout on another stratosphere of difficulty, but again, you have to get to the point where you can do that. So easier things are much better for you at first. They get you to greater levels of fitness. My body overall though responds to lots and lots and lots of cardio. I think everyone's different in that regard. I am not a muscular person (I am toned and have muscle but not bulk, and I dont desire to be any different) and lots of running keeps me trim, very long and slender rather than bulky, and it enables me to just eat and eat and eat (well, it feels like it anyway). Cardio like this isnt really fashionable now, it gets a bad rap, but that's not my experience. Four runs and two boot camp sessions a week is my routine. I think find your niche, the environment you like and what YOUR body responds best and that will be YOUR best exercise.

The band works for me that way. I still eat some carb foods like oatmeal, wholegrain bread etc and LOTS of salad and vegies precisely because of the bulk, it keeps me full, satisfies me quickly with few calories. I actually dont really even think about Protein, we're just not told to do that here. So, really, I count NOTHING. It never worked for me and to me is a dysfunctional behaviour that I wanted to give up.

I still drink coffee, I'd rather die before giving it up. I dont go in for fattening confectionary coffees though, I like it plain with a dash of skim milk.

I used to think when I was 25 that if DH didnt come around to the idea of a baby soon, I was just going to be too old to even enjoy it. The truth is, I could have a baby now at 42 and enjoy it just as much - well MORE because now we're financially secure and could really just relax about the whole thing. My sister just had her first at 40 and is loving every minute of it. I know I was very lucky but I got pregnant first try at 35 for my third. Not that I'm discouraging you from trying, not at all, more saying just dont stress over the age thing, you're far from old. You've got years to have a couple of kidlets yet. There's so many pluses and minuses when you're considering when to have a baby, but whether you're 25 or 35, its pretty much the same experience, its the other elements of your life that can make it more enjoyable or more stressful. But I really dont think 15lb of weight one way or another is important, you're ready when your'e ready and you've got years afterwards to focus on your weight.

You're unlikely to hurt anything, there's no reason not to go on them if you enjoy them. However, what I've found since I got banded is I now get motion sickness, car sickness, sea sickness etc. I'm much more delicate than I used to be lol, I could always go on rides and such, now they make me feel awful. I dont enjoy them at all.

I thought I was really fit till I started boot camp, lol. After 3 years of regular running and sometime circuit training, I really WAS pretty fit. But that added intensity of being trained by a trainer and pushed and doing really hard bodyweight stuff has surpassed any results I've EVER seen from pushing machines around in a gym and walking on a treadmill. So yeah, basically what's mentioned above - interval training with bursts of intensity and hard bodyweight strength training, balanced out by slower sustained cardio on other days. I now run three or so times a week and do two bootcamp sessions and I'm in the kind of shape I could never dream of, and I can do things I could never dream of! My abs are washboard flat, my ass is the best it can be (sigh), and my arms and shoulders and back are nicely toned with visible muscle. I also find I can eat whatever I want these days and never gain a gram.

Either work for me. I dont eat a lot of cheese, not as a daily food, I lean more towards the more gourmet cheeses on a nice platter, with olives and stuff, lol. Love that sort of thing and usually if the kids get a pizza or other take away for dinner (rare treat!) doug and I will have a cheese platter. I also take small amounts to work for lunch. Everyday cheese, I dont eat a lot of. The smell of cheese grilling makes me want to vomit, I cant bear it, which is a new phenomenon since banding, that has develped over the past year or so. Nuts I eat a fair amount of. I love cashews, almonds can be very hard to eat and I use a lot of pine nuts too. Macadamias are also a favourite.

I still have it, I'm sorry to say. I'm not BADLY afflicted with cellulite, but my family does run to loosish thighs! I have much less than I had and its restricted to just below the buttocks, and on the buttocks. I have an awful ass, plain and simple, but the afflicted area is now fairly small, I can definitely wear running shorts and such. Its why I'm still confident to wear a bikini and such at 42. I mean, nothing I wear bathing suit wise is going to hide my upper thighs! So I just let it all hang out and dont worry about it. I have much better shape and tone than I used to and than almost anyone I know my age who's had 3 babies, so I feel very blessed. for a while though, I think it actually was WORSE. Then it improved.

I'm much further out at four years, but these days it feels like my body is really wanting iron, I'm craving red meat. Everytime I've been out lately, I've had a steak, like a good eye fillet or filet mignon, I can eat it easily when its well cooked, and I dont cook red meat well!

I would always choose the real thing. Just in moderate amounts. I dont really believe in substitutes.

We share similar stats Ohm, I'm 5ft 10, 69kg, 42 and as a runner also, I find I need a reasonable carbohydrate intake. I feel CRAP when I eat a diet low in wholegrains. I've tried the whole Protein thing, several times in fact, because a lot of the arguments ARE convincing (especially when you're trying ot lose the last few pounds) but it simply does not offer me any advantages weight loss wise and I feel revolting. Not to mention stinky horrible farts and painful bloating that make life a misery - shakes and me do not get on. "Protein farts" are a recognized phenomenon, google it. My take on it, my view only and not intended to be expressed as fact, is that protein is important, yes. So are vegies, fruits, and wholegrains. I highly doubt many bandsters could ingest enough protein to cause protein related health problems. But I'm absolutely convinced many of them ingest a horrible amount of saturated fat, additives, chemicals, hormonal compounds - enough to cause problems - meat, deli meats, lots of cheese, protein shakes, all fine in moderation, but not as a major proportion of the diet, however low calorie that diet is. And I'm absolutely convinced MOST protein focussed bandsters are ingesting little enough fibre and bulk to risk bowel health consequences, and most of them dont eat anywhere near the 2 fruit, five half cup veg servings recommended in a day. I also believe protein shakes are not food - they are a processed supplement which are not an adequate replacement for meats, Beans, pulses and legumes. Shakes also are often full of artificial sweeteners, not something I want to ingest in any quantity. I also am of the opinion, well supported opinion, that supplements of Vitamins and minerals are good insurance but are not the same as eating a wide variety of foods containing all those compounds which work together in natural harmony. In short, I think best health/weight balance is achieved with a loosish band, a wide, varied diet that includes wholegrains, fruit, vegies AND protein and is low on processed foods like shakes - and the calorie deficit made up by lots of exercise. I think it quite strongly, but I have been lucky in that I lost weight effortlessly. I can also see that many people simply dont seem to handle the carbs the way my body does, they couldnt lose if they ate what I eat and I'm the first to admit that I'd do what I needed to in that situation. I'm just glad I can eat the diet I do becuase the alternative doesnt appeal to me much!

I actually prefer my spag bol on zucchini - I shave off some zucchini slices paper thin with a vegie peeler and stir fry them in some lemon juice, garlic and olive oil and serve the bolognaise on that. I usually end up just eating the sauce off the top anyway because the Pasta fills me up too much, so may as well get some vegies in (even though I hide them in the sauce too). I've never seen spaghetti squash anywhere here in Australia.