puddin

Tuesday, 6/27 B: None L: Tropical chicken salad on pc of cabbage: 295 calories, 28 g Protein D: Grilled Pork Souvlaki Kabob, salad, dressing: 592 calories, 69g protein Totals: 887 calories, 97g protein

Back from the evil scale at the gym: I gained 3 pounds on vacation!!!! Damn! Well, I'll just have to REALLY watch what I eat this week. B: None L: Stuffed Pepper (448 calories) S: South Beach Oatmeal Cookie (100 calories) D: Chicken & veggie kabobs; loaded salad (432 calories) Totals: 980 calories, 54g protein

I got on the scale today at the gym after a week in Vegas where I threw caution to the wind. A 3 pound gain. I'm surprised I didn't gain more than that, actually, what with 2 trips to the Cheesecake factory, a Bellagio Eclaire and Caramel Brownie, and every meal being some sort of restaurant food. I was honestly terrible. I TRIED to work out, but the gym cost $25/day and I'd take a 3 pound gain over a $150 gym bill. In addition to that, it was the temperature of the sun outside so walking around was kept at a minimum. So today I was supposed to present the new website redesign to the directors. I was NOWHERE near ready to do it and I wasn't able to work in Vegas like I'd hoped. So I called in sick!!! I still can't believe I did that. I just wanted to escape reality for ONE MORE day. But then I got 2 more calls today that we're doing a shoot early tomorrow and I've got to be there with all my gear to film the thing. I was REALLY hoping to pass this off to my intern, but I can tell he's not quite ready for that yet. I do think he'll be able to handle overseeing the special effects, though. He's good at that. And my other intern, Traci, I'm sure will have everything organized for tomorrow's shoot. She's the most organized person I've ever met. I'm just trying to take life one day at a time at this point. I feel so incredibly overwhelmed during my day job, my personal business, and my life! I need to make some goals and set a schedule for myself. If I don't pencil in "read your scriptures" at this point it doesn't happen. You'd think I'd be burning more calories with all the worrying I do! SCALE: 237 at gym (gained 3 pounds on vacation!) (233 at Doctor's office) EXERCISE: Length: 20 minutes Time: 12:30 (entered gym) to 1:00 (left gym) Intensity: HIIT (level 12 on machine at 10 intensity) Activity: Elliptical Calories burned start to finish: ~160 Calories burned 1 hour after activity: 145 (but I made lunch & did laundry) FOOD: BF: None (woke up at noon) L: 1 homemade stuffed pepper CALORIES BURNED: 2,346 CALORIES CONSUMED: 980 CALORIE DEFECIT: 1,366 NSV: Resisted a Wendy's fix 'n mix frosty that I SOOO craved

I got on the scale today at the gym after a week in Vegas where I threw caution to the wind. A 3 pound gain. I'm surprised I didn't gain more than that, actually, what with 2 trips to the Cheesecake factory, a Bellagio Eclaire and Caramel Brownie, and every meal being some sort of restaurant food. I was honestly terrible. I TRIED to work out, but the gym cost $25/day and I'd take a 3 pound gain over a $150 gym bill. In addition to that, it was the temperature of the sun outside so walking around was kept at a minimum. So today I was supposed to present the new website redesign to the directors. I was NOWHERE near ready to do it and I wasn't able to work in Vegas like I'd hoped. So I called in sick!!! I still can't believe I did that. I just wanted to escape reality for ONE MORE day. But then I got 2 more calls today that we're doing a shoot early tomorrow and I've got to be there with all my gear to film the thing. I was REALLY hoping to pass this off to my intern, but I can tell he's not quite ready for that yet. I do think he'll be able to handle overseeing the special effects, though. He's good at that. And my other intern, Traci, I'm sure will have everything organized for tomorrow's shoot. She's the most organized person I've ever met. I'm just trying to take life one day at a time at this point. I feel so incredibly overwhelmed during my day job, my personal business, and my life! I need to make some goals and set a schedule for myself. If I don't pencil in "read your scriptures" at this point it doesn't happen. You'd think I'd be burning more calories with all the worrying I do! SCALE: 237 at gym (gained 3 pounds on vacation!) (233 at Doctor's office) EXERCISE: Length: 20 minutes Time: 12:30 (entered gym) to 1:00 (left gym) Intensity: HIIT (level 12 on machine at 10 intensity) Activity: Elliptical Calories burned start to finish: ~160 Calories burned 1 hour after activity: 145 (but I made lunch & did laundry) FOOD: BF: None (woke up at noon) L: 1 homemade stuffed pepper CALORIES BURNED: 2,346 CALORIES CONSUMED: 980 CALORIE DEFECIT: 1,366 NSV: Resisted a Wendy's fix 'n mix frosty that I SOOO craved

I'm having issues with how many calories my BodyBugg says I'm burning in a day. It says, on an average day with exercise, I'm burning like 2,400-2,500 calories. On a good day it's 2,800 calories. Eek! On a day with NO exercise, it's like 2,100 calories. I honestly thought I was burning tons more than that. I'm going to have to exercise twice a day to meet my goal now. My trainer wants me to burn 2,800/day and eat 1,300/day. While the calories part is totally manageable, the activity part is ROUGH! He keeps saying he doesn't want me to meet my 1,500 calorie/day defecit by cutting my calories to 1,000. That would be a WHOLE lot more manageable for me than by actually burning 2,800/day. I got back from Vegas today. I'm not even going to go into detail about the food I ate there, but let's just say that there was more than one trip to the Cheesecake factory and if I could eat those Bellagio eclairs every day I wouldn't have to date. I'm scared of the scale tomorrow, but I gotta face it sometime! Maybe all that walking around and oppressive heat will make a difference on the scale. I probably lost 10 pounds in water weight alone, so maybe it evened out.

Today: B: None (up until 5 AM, then slept in until 11:00) L: South Beach Kung Pao - 300 calories, 32g protein D: Stuffed Pepper w/ tomatoes - probably 350 calories, 30g protein Totals: 650 calories, 62g protein

I'm not saying EVERYONE will have a complication, but there was a woman from India who had posted some information on another board. She says they've had the band there for quite some time now, and nearly everyone who's had it there for a significant amount of time has had some type of revision or removal of the band. Hey, maybe this is your complication and you're through! But really, I didn't expect this to be permanent, to be honest with you. I just hoped it would last long enough for the next big medical miracle to come out. Heaven knows there's enough research being poured into it, with the new numbers on the lifespan of our children because of obesity.

Hey, no problem. I paid $495 for the sucker. Yeah, it's pricey. But it's super cool! I figure I paid $13,500 for the surgery, what's another $500 to round it off, right?

Sure, I can explain a bit more... I paid $495 for the expensive little sucker! Yeah, it's a pricey mother. But I pay $35 each time I want my base metabolism (BMR) tested and I do that about every other month, so I sort of justify it by saying that it can calculate my BMR anytime I want and I don't have to pay extra for it... plus it can do a lot more! The actual unit slips onto the back of your right tricep and it looks like an mp3 player. There is a wireless receiver you plug into your computer. When you're ready to "upload" your caloric expenditures for the day (including how many steps you've taken) you log into an online application, push a button on your BodyBugg and it uploads the information wirelessly. The web application itself has SO many uses, and it calculates everything in conjunction with the stats that come from your food log and your BodyBugg. When I purchased it I got 4 BodyBugg training sessions with my personal trainer (one fine fox of a man who I don't mind spending extra time with AT ALL), who, in 4 sessions that built on each other, explained exactly how to use it and make the most of it. Really you could argue that the BodyBugg does nothing but state what you're already doing. But knowing is half the battle, don't you think? If I know that two 20-minute workout sessions are better than one 40-minute session then I'm going for the two 20-minute sessions! I'm more likely to walk than drive fairly short distances as well because I know that later that evening I'll be able to see exactly how many calories I burned doing it. It's very motivating. I believe you can buy this at 24-hour fitness. I got mine at my Crossroads Fitness gym. Anyhow, you do what works for you. And if this tool is too much money at the moment, at least meticulously logging a food journal and getting your BMR tested will help you to estimate how much weight you can lose.

This is good advice, but I don't think it's entirely accurate. You may burn 3X more percentage of calories as fat calories during the second 15 minutes, but you're only burning a few more net calories than the first 15 because you usually workout slightly harder the second 15 minutes (because the first 15 included a warmup). Anyhow, my point is that if 30 minutes is too hard right now then maybe you can break it up into two 15 minute segments. Actually, there may be some caloric benefits to breaking up the sessions because you burn more calories after a workout, so you could be getting this benefit twice a day. I'll try to find more information on this to post.

Do your fingers ever get tired typing in all Title case? LOL. I just noticed it and had to comment. As for the weight loss "plateau"... I felt the same way 2 months after being banded. I actually gained 3 pounds the 3rd month. It'll pick back up, don't you worry.

I'm not Dr. C., but I have found something that may help you. See, the only thing that seems to work for me is actually counting calories in-calories out. I log EVERYTHING that I eat and calculate the calories the best I can. But anyhow, to calculate calories I burn I wear this thing called a BodyBugg on my arm. It calculates every single calorie that I, personally burn every day. I can isolate activities and determine the best way to burn the most amount of calories. It's not only motivating, it tells me, without fail, how much weight I'm going to lose in a given week if I log my food. I can also tell the application what my weight loss goals are and in what time frame and it will suggest a workout and eating course of action. I just upload my calories burned each day before 6:00 PM and then I know how many calories I can eat for dinner, or how much more I need to work out if I eat a few more calories. Heck, I even know that if I take the stairs at work each day instead of the elevator that translates into an extra .9 pound loss for me each month. Anyhow, you don't necessarily need a BodyBugg to count calories in-calories out. I did it for a very long time with a fair amount of accuracy and was usually able to determine how much weight loss I'd net in a week. So there's my two cents. Good luck to you in finding what works for you! I know weight loss is frustrating, and on top of that I'm sure the band just isn't working the way you'd hoped it would. Hang in there, girl! I know you can do it.

Weight Watchers Salisbury Steak & Asparagus frozen dinner!

I want a really nice street bike so I can ride to work in the summertime, but I think they're like $700-$800. OUCH! Maybe I'll have to settle for my bargain mountain bike.

I love this thread! I love actually seeing people and the people they love instead of the anonymous replies to posts! Here's one of me and my BF on our cruise: (we'll see if this works, my photo tool isn't displaying) http://static.flickr.com/75/169266850_5e4bd9d40b.jpg

I can see not drinking milk if you're lactose-intolerant, but the lactose in milk actually SLOWS down the quick breakdown in your body. Plus, if you get 1% or 2% or whole it's even slower (though you'll get more calories), so it ends up being a lower-glycemic food choice and you won't trigger that quick insulin response (that fat-storing hormone) that your doctor is talking about. Milk has carbs, but despite that it does NOT quickly break down into sugar. Soy milk has just as low glycemic index as cow milk, also.

Okay, I bought the coolest thing at the gym on Friday. I initially went in for a metabolism test. What I REALLY wanted was just to know how many calories I was burning while doing what I normally do at the gym. Anyhow, after a series of tests, my trainer told me about this thing called a BodyBugg. It's something you wear on your arm (looks like an mp3 player) and it will tell you EXACTLY how many calories you are burning each minute. It's 98% accurate. So I know now that I burn 650 calories when I do 50 minutes of Turbo Jam, and I burn 400 calories when I do 25 minutes of High Intensity Interval Training and I burn a WHOLE lot more more calories for the time afterwards with that than when I do steady state for a longer period of time. I'm finding that what the experts have said is true: You burn more calories in a 4-hour span with 20 minutes of high intensity training than you do with 45 minutes of a moderate workout. Anyhow, I think this will be useful in determining how beneficial weight training is and also how much my metabolism has lowered since losing weight. About 50 pounds ago I had my Resting Metabolic Rate tested. This AM I did the same test, only to find that I'm burning 235 fewer calories now each day than I was 50 pounds ago. I can see how this is going to be a very motivating tool. I'll be able to actually see how the little things like taking the stairs add up. And I love numbers so I'm sure I'll be crunching them and figuring out how many flights I have to climb to burn an extra pound every month. Anyhow, this little tool is pretty cool and you upload from the BodyBugg wirelessly, so you don't even have to take it off. The application for it is on the Internet and it has MANY useful tools, too. It'll even suggest a workout plan for ME to help me accomplish my weight loss goals (based off the food intake that I log). This week: M: 40 minutes ARc trainer & treadmill T: 4 hours walking around theme park W: 30 minutes HIIT Arc Trainer Th: 20 minutes HIIT Arc Trainer, 15 minutes steady state treadmill F: V02 Test at Gym for 1 hour S: 20 minutes HIIT, 50 minutes Turbo Jam Cardio Party

Thanks, Carol. I just looked at the exchange rate and it aint what it was 3 years ago when I lived in Canada! I used to get $1.38 Canadian, on average, for every US dollar. Now it's only $1.12.

Lisa Your whole fiasco really sucks, but did you end up having to pay less because you only had a kink? These little problems that happen so often with people's bands is one major drawback of having this surgery, ecspecially as a self-pay patient. I'm mortified for the day I have a complication (because, let's face it, one day I WILL have a complication) because I used all the money I had on the surgery. Short of taking out a second mortgage, I'm S.O.L. if something goes very wrong.

6/16/06 B: Metagenics shake L: Staff appreciation luncheon: BBQ chicken, sausage, brisket, cobbler, veggies D: Stuffed pepper w/ tomatoes & cottage cheese 6/17/06 B: Water L: WW Salisbury steak & 1/2 tomato: 220 calories, 20g Protein D: Maybe BBQ chicken & veggies

I'm 5'8" and I'd LOVE to be 185 pounds. Once I'm at 185 pounds I think I'll go for 160 pounds. I was 160 in parts of high school and looked good, but I've found that what looked good going UP doesn't look as good going DOWN. For some reason I thought I'd lose all my fat in my stomach first and be perfectly shaped, but I'm just a smaller size of the same shape I was 75 pounds ago!

Ohhhh, thanks Teresa! I actually just cut myself out of my formal night cruise pic. Here's the WHOLE picture: http://static.flickr.com/64/154871472_0dfff9a760.jpg And you can have that brownie if you're willing to walk your butt over here and get it! B: Metagenics shake: 150 calories, 15g Protein L: Held captive and forced to eat Chinese buffet with boss: probably 600 calories, 20g protien??? D: Grilled tuna steak w/ grilled zucchini & 3 slices of tomato: 281 calories, 40g protein S: South beach cookies: 100 calories, 1g protein Totals: 1,131 calories, 76g protein

Woo Hoo! That means it's like $3,000 U.S.! I love Canada. Except you probably have to pay PST and GST tax, which ends up being like 17%. I think you can get your GST tax back when you cross the border again, though. I'll check into it. Looking forward to seeing the website when you list it.

I'm all about natural medicine but there are some things that just require technology and not-so-natural methods. Like Penni said, you don't HAVE to have a fill under flouro. My doc doesn't unless there's a problem.

Take it and run with it, girl! Even if he's inexperienced and you have complications and have to have the surgery done again someplace else, you won't have lost out on a ton of money because your insurance is covering ti.