niche

the cleaning process is Colonix by Dr. Natura. The system is supposed to be followed for 2-3 months and it consists of in the morning i take 2-4 pills depending on the phase then drink a fiber powder mixed in juice a few mins later. during the day you HAVE to drink 8-10 glasses of water or else the fiber will actually make you constipated. then at night i drink a cup of this laxative tea. i think that plus the bulk of the fiber is what really cleans you out. so the process is a bit involved but really takes less than 5mins per day.

i'm still not there on the icecream front. it's not so much that i will eat a whole pint anymore (don't get me wrong, that's good!) but i will eat 1/3 of a pint every day for 3 days. so the calories still take me over the daily limit and stall my weightloss. so to the icecream!

i've told all of my close friends and family and the people at work. i haven't told 'social friends' who all also happen to be a size 2 who have never had to diet or exercise. i haven't told my extended family. i am more categorically careful about my choices of who to tell. for me it's not a number of people, but whether i think they 'need' to know or will be supportive.

i have this tattoo on my lower back. the center is a chinese/celtic symbol (the symbol appears in both cultures) meaning 'all is one' and the circles around it are framing. hopefully you can see it... first time pic and all. i also plan to get a large tree of life from my right hip up my right back. i'm thinking that will be my reward for reaching goal.

exercise today so far: 30 mins of total body pilates tape. it was sort of a copout. but i had such low energy this morning. i wonder if it has to do with the cleanse... but i'm going to get back to the hi-energy workout saturday morning.

the cleanse is going ok. definitely more pooping (not to be gross but oh well.) prob 2-3 times per day versus once every other day before. i do have a low-grade headache in the mornings though. maybe it's the toxins coming out. already, my stomach seems flatter but i don't notice any weight loss yet (in my thighs at least) :heh: . i'm going to do this for 2 months so i'll keep you guys posted.

i second that! between you and tricia i've already added 15 mins to my workout. and damn i'm sore...

yay! you're back. hope to see you in the exercise thread. let's keep focusing on the positive!

my family (me, mom and dad) always sat down to eat dinner when i was young. i was 5 when my parents started having problems in their marriage and they began eating dinner separately, so i would eat dinner with both of them to recreate the family bond. food=family, right?

feel better tricia!

hi workout bunnies! i was sad to see my favorite thread on page 2! i hope everyone had a wonderful memorial day weekend (in the us) ) i had a big brunch on saturday wich consisted of eating rich quiche and drinking a lot of prosecco. so i'm sure that didn't help the cause. but i am determined to up the workouts and cook my own food and not drink (too many calories!!) for this week. i am also doing the colonix internal cleanse. i'll let you all know how that goes. i picked up the idea from a thread a few months ago. i also packed my lunch today and started the morning with a nice workout: - 45 mins @ 5.5%, 4.1 mph. this is .5% more than last week. i was sweating like a pig and had to cut up an old towel for an improvised head band. i'm sure i looked like a crazy wanna-be gym rambo - 120 arm curls, tricept, strongman and lateral raises - 300 crunches i'm also going to try to take a leisurely walk tonite while watching tv. let me know how you guys are doing! xo

i think everyone's 'friends' say 'just eat less blah blah blah.' that's why the diet industry is so successful. a whopping 3% of people keep 50+ lbs off for good. it's all bs the diet industry sells us. i'm not saying it's impossible. it's just unlikely.

i was a bmi of 35. i had no co-morbidities. but i was thinking of the surgery mostly as preventative and to avoid the diabetes and heart disease that my family has. i was also self-pay, but was part of a study to see what effect the band would have on those with a bmi under 40. ie to see if we would not develop the co-morbidities of the MO. i have been very happy with the band so far, although it took a bit of time to get proper restriction and begin losing weight (as you see below). that was the most trying part of the process for me. ii had the thought for a few months of 'my god i just had weight loss surgery and i haven't lost weight!!@!' but it did start working. as a low bmi bandster your loss is likely to be slower than for someone who has a lot to lose, so keep that in mind.

you go sammee! it's so good to see people near goal contemplating whether they need to lose more! i love it. enjoy your new tummy. keep us posted. the before and after pics are inspirational!

i actually do add in a 20 min pilates tape a couple of times a week... most weeks. i do the denise austin power yoga and pilates tape sometimes. more recently i have been doing the winsor pilates 20 min circle workout. that's a good one. the circle makes you work your arms, legs and butt while doing core exercises. so a good double duty kind of thing. what do you do? class or tape?

you look wonderful! you go! yesterday: hungover and did nothing. (part of my ongoing battle with partying and not losing) today: back with the program. - treadmill 45 mins, 4.1 mph, 5% grade - i think next week i'll go to 5.5%. i don't think i can walk too much faster right now - 120 arm exercises - 100 crunches on exercise ball

thanks for this tricia. i just did a bunch while on a really boring conference call at work!

i'm definitely going to check out these sports bras cause i have 2 leperous looking scabs on my inner arms from my underwire. and i'm looking for the ones that don't give you uniboob. but today i'm really proud of myself. i walked another 4.5 miles last nite while watching tv! that is a total of 8 miles for the day. i am determined to get off 8 lbs this month!!! i got my lil friend last nite as well. i hope i don't get saddled w a bunch of water weight... today (so far): - 45 mins on treadmill 4.1 mph 5% grade - 10 min pilates - 300 leg lifts (thanks tricia for that idea!)

tricia, what are the toe raises? i am always looking for new resistance exercises. and thanks for explaining the leg lifts. i did them on fri and sat! so awesome that i no longer have the feeling that i need to join a gym. i already have a big fat treadmill in the living room, so adding these new resistance exercises is wonderful. thanks for all the good ideas guys!!!

telly - love this thread! keeps me accountable. you're really kickin ass! you go with your 40 lbs in 5 weeks. today: 15 minute pilates tape for upper body 50 mins walking on treadmill 4.2 mph 3% grade 120 arm curls, lifts and tricept things.

- i did 20 minute windsor pilates tape - 30 minutes on the treadmill, 4.1 mph, 5% grade. i'm also going to try to do some relaxed walking while watching tv tonite. maybe another hour at 3mph.

1. how long have you been banded? 6 months 2. rate your level of restriction: moderately high A. NONE (fill or no fill you can eat whatever) B. Little (occasionally you will have a hiccup, your eating the same or a little less than pre-op) C. Moderate (have some restriction but not much!) D. Moderate/CLOSE to sweet spot (have good restriction but still need a little more) E. Sweet Spot!!! (perfect restriction) yeah, this one. F. Too Tight (need/want a unfill) G. Too Tight (DONT WANT a unfill eating mosty liquids) 3. how long after you wake do you drink your first liquids, are they hot or cold: i drink right after exercising, which is 1.5 hours or so after waking. but if i don't exercise i drink Water about an hour after waking and i have to be more careful b/c the exercise opens me up and i can pretty much guzzle. 4. how long after you wake do you eat your first food, is it solid or mushy? if it is mushy, when is your first dense protien solid? i usually eat lunch 4 hrs after waking. and it's usu solid like fish and spinach. 5. does your restriction change throughout the day? a. slightly tighter in the AM looser in the PM - yes b. pretty tight most of the day- small SOLID breakfast and lunch, loosen up solid dinner c. pretty tight most of the day- small liquid/mushy breakfast and lunch, loosen up for a small solid dinner d. tight all day, if you dont make sure you are constantly drinking you will get tighter, have to REALLY work at getting food down. loosen up slightly with a careful mostly mushy dinner 6. how often do you PB? about 4 times a week 7. is it mostly Slime/Saliva or is it the offending food or liquid that comes up? half the time slime, half the time food. 8. why are you PB'ing? a. i forget i am banded and try to swallow stuff whole (oops) b. i ate something dry c. i didnt chew good enough - yes d. i chewed good but the texture didnt agree e. i sometimes do with first liquids of the day f. i am eating beyond the pouch capacity

- 1 pkg mrs. callender's piie crust (2 crusts) - 1/2 lb pasteurized crab meat - 8oz mushrooms sauteed with 4 shallots and a pinch of thyme - 8 eggs - 1 pint half n half (can use the fat free one) - 1 lb swiss cheese (i used half emmenthaler half gruyere) grated - 2 tbl sp chives - 1 tbl sp worstershire sauce - salt & pepper directions: - in blender blend together eggs, half n half, worstershire sauce, a little salt n pepper (be careful cause cheese has lots of salt). set aside. - take crusts out of freezer, layer in one layer of cheese, one layer of crab, one layer of cheese, one layer of sauteed mushrooms on top. repeat in other shell. - pour the egg mixture over ingredients in shell, then sprinkle the chives over the mushroom layer and egg mix for color. - bake at 350 for 50 mins - 1 hr. center should be wobbly but a knife inserted should come out clean. - let quiches rest for 15-20 mins before cutting, or else it will run. this recipe is basically a method. you can substitute any ingredients for the cheese meat veggie parts. there's no way to go wrong, you layer the fillings and add the egg mix till it's at the top. so the proportions will always work. you can substitute the salmon and spinach for the meat and veggie parts but be careful of the smoked salmon bc it is very salty. i wouldn't put that with feta cheese cause that is very salty as well. you may consider goat cheese (which is hi Protein and much lower in fat) or cream cheese which always tastes great w salmon. just cube either one and layer with the salmon and spinach. i made the crab n mushroom version on sunday for my mom on mother's day and it was a hit. good luck!

i may be slow... what are the leg lifts telly and tricia are doing? are they standing or laying down? thanks! i have to get my strength training mojo back. i am a master at avoiding anything with weights etc. i just love zoning out to the tv on the treadmill. tivo is great for that. if i want to watch gray's anatomy or america's next top model, i have to wait till the next morning and watch while on the tm. it's a great way to motivate myself. it would also work with on demand i suppose.