Wheetsin

Breakfast was a Protein drink w/ low carb FF milk & a dab of Peanut Butter. lunch will be a half of a baked cajun fish fillet and one tiny, grape-sized baby potato. Snack, if needed, will be Protein Drink. dinner will be diced Chipotle chicken w/ refriend Beans (mix in lime, chiles, and tabasco) and just a dab of sour cream to keep it wet.

The space-time continuum must have been breached the day I had surgery. I'm 3 weeks post-op on the 22nd. I feel like I've been doing this for *months*. Wha-happen? I was trying on some pants the other day, just in case (they're ONLY 3 sizes smaller than what I'm wearing now :confused: ) ... and they were still pretty snug, so I was like, "Oh chit in a chingle, will these EVER fit again!?" My husband just looked at me like I had a third head. What? I asked... and finally said, "Honey, you haven't even being doing this for three weeks yet..." And I started to argue, and tell him it had been WAY longer than that, and then I realized he was right, and he's never right. It was a huge epiphany, like I had just learned the meaning of life. See - it FEELS, mentally and physically, like I've been doing this for MONTHS. Sometimes... actually quite often... I forget how newly banded I still am. I look at my poor red incisions and curse them for not scarring over yet. I look at my big wobbly tummy and curse it for still blocking my view of my toes. And then I look at my food journal and can never figure out which months I forgot to log, because there's only 3 weeks' worth of entries in there... :faint: :biggrin1:

It's that time of month for me to start retaining Water, and I typically retain about 8 lbs, so I know I won't get anywhere near an accurate scale reading, but I weighed this morning anyway. Today is my 3 week-iversary and I'm down a total of 44 lbs (hopefully in another week or so my Fluid retention will drop and I'll have a lower number!). I was a BIG water drinker pre-op (160+ oz per day) so that's where a lot if it came from me in the beginning, and I can see it in my dry skin, but I do have on pants today that were too tight to wear pre-op. :dance: Do any of you think of your weightloss in terms of going back in time? This morning, when I weighed, I thought - "Wow, I now weigh what I did this time of year on 2004, I've taken off 2 years' worth of weight!" I do that all the time. I have a mini-goal set for mid-May, and I think, "Wow, the last time I weighed that was February of 2005!"

Hi rharriet, with that type of workout regimine, I bet you are losing fat. The scale just tells us how much our skin & everything inside of it weights at any given point in time. Something like body fat or FFM analyzers, or even a tape measure or pants size, will show you much more accurately how much fat you're losing. A workout like that is going to build muscle, which weighs a lot more (3 or 4x) than fat!

Wowzer, I missed the "7 days post op" part! You're going on week 2 without any ignificant hydration? Have you been having headaches?

Water never caused me pain. Maye your drinking it too cold if it's hurting you? Have you tried drinking it room temperature? I too keep water with me everywhere. Literally. A liter bottle in my car and DH's. Water filter at work. First thing I do when I get to a store is buy a bottle of water to carry in my cart with me. Remember to drink before you feel thirsty. If you feel thirsty, you're coming up on too late. Best of luck, I hope you can get this figured out!

Surgery on sale? Limited time, priced to move! That would scare me!

My surgeon and nutritionist both say no. I'm a Water drinker anyway, so it has yet to bother me. Although I do crave carbonation. Even a carbonated water... Outside of water I'll have Fruit2O. So far that's it. I did buy some Crystal LIght 2 Go flavors, and some Wyler's. I'm allowed juices but the ones I like have too many carbs or are citrus, which I can't do yet. If you like tea, add just a bit of peppermint extract and some lemon juice. May sound like a weird combination, but it's divine.

You got the link. All I'll add is that you should let your doctor's post-op diet determine what food/drink you get, and not someone else's list.

I just turned 30 and do not have kids yet, though I plan to. The idea that 30 is too old to have kids is pretty much out of date. Most women I know who are my age do not have, or are just now trying, to have kids. I always figured 30 was the perfect age to have kids. The 50 - 20 ratio just seemed right to me. I have been married over 8 years. At first neither DH nor I were interested in kids, we were both pursuing careers, building our house, in school, etc. Also, and this is just my personal opinion, I think it's impportant for a couple to get to know who they are, as a couple, before a baby is introduced. When you go from "me" and "you", and then "me, you and baby" there's no time for "us" to form in between. People don't have the opportunity to form their identities as a couple (married, not married, whatever). My parents are still happily married, and not many people I know can say that. I always told myself that my child would not be raised in a split household. That meant I had to be sure I was with the right man before we conceived, and I think a relationship needs time beyond vows or promises or whatever you use to help be sure of that. Just a few years ago we really started talking about it, really talking about it. I went off contraceptives and although we didn't try, we didn't try not to either. We figured we'll take it either way. Then I started gaining more weight and decided it wasn't the right time. Even though we both have great jobs, a house, etc. - for me weight was an issue. I was not willing to conceive/carry a baby and jeopardize it or me to the greater risk of complications that come with carrying a baby when you're MO. For DH - he felt someday, but not today. We've talked about it and decided to give the band a year to work. I know losing all of my weight will take longer than this, but I'm hoping that within a year I can get to a healthier weight, that I feel comfortable carrying a baby at. Of course, just because we start trying in a year doesn't mean it happens in a year, and we both accept that. I'm not letting my age drive this, but it is a factor. I think that the role of women in society continues to change, and as long as it does, birthing ages will continue to get older and older. We're establishing careers, becoming professionals, getting our lives settled, etc. before we look into that next step. We're also living longer, so IMO there's no need to rush. Now if I'd just turned 40 instead of 30, I probably wouldn't be saying that... but 32, 33... not an issue for me. With professional women, this is becoming the norm. I turned 30 last month, and DH turns 33 next month.

Banded 3/1. Out an about for short spurts 3/3. Out of town 3/4. Walking around w/o pain 3/6. Now almost 3 weeks post-op I feel nothing. The only thing that ever hurts is if I bend over too far or too quickly, like toda when it was freezing rain and I tried to get in my car too quickly... and that's not a hurt so much as a slightly uncomfortable feeling that reminds me something was sewn into my muscle fascia just a few weeks ago.

Ok, I'm truly sorry b/c I hate raining on parades, and this is such a great ting for you, but were you given any particular limitations for the last 12 hours before your surgery? This could vary, but I was told nothing except 1/2 cup plain Water 12 hours before my surgery, and nothing at all 8 hours before my surgery, or they would have to reschedule. I'm so so sorry to have to ring this up. I don't want it to be a downer. I just want to make sure you're good to go.

So you're that lady... I'm only about 3 weeks post-op, but still have no appetite. I've started eating fish in the last few days, though, telling myself I really need to eat *something*, especially something with high Protein b/c that's my biggest challenge right now. I hope this continues!

Mushies were OK for me a week post-op. They haven't given me any problems. It sounds like you got something stuck, but don't be afraid to try mushies again b/c of this. What did you eat?

BMR (basal metabloic rate) is an important factor, fer sure! Basically - how many calories do you need, in a day, to lay in bed and do nothing other than exist. Calorie intake matters. You can diet and exercise, but if you're still not urning more calories than you consume, you'll ge hungry all day at not lose any weight. (Hmm... I wonder why so many diets fail...) It's actually easier for the body to break down & metabolize muscle than fat. That's why you have to exercise/move when you restrict your food intake. You want your body to surrender its fat reserves, but if you don't do anything to maintain or improve your muscle mass, it will be the first to go. And puddin is right. Muscle burns calories like nothing else. That's why body builders can eat 4,000 calorie diets and have 5% body fat. It's so damn complicated. Can't we all just get thin?

Does it feel like a muscular hurt, or does it feel like when you turn your head too quickly and get a pinched nerve? Have you tried heat while sitting? We have "stick on" heating pads here that you can use on the go... don't know if you guys have them or not. Would it help for you to recline your seat back a little? Have you tried a muscle relaxer, or just painkillers? Something like Flexeril might help you, 'cept you probably shouldn't drive with it. But you could try something similar at home in a sitting position and see if it helps. The location of the pain sounds like it could be the trapezius. I had a tear in my trapezius once. It was literally crippling. I coudn't turn my head. but it was definitely a muscular pain.

That was inappropriate of her, especially if the information was unsolicited. Take it with a big grain of salt. Everyone on every diet is "right", and too many feel the need to educate the ignorant masses who don't do things their way. There are pros and cons to every procedure out there. The "right" one is the one that you feel will work for you.

Not looking to pick a fight. Not my style. Just clarifying. Too many people take what they read on the Internet as the truth. Might want to read around a bit before you jump to "denial" in Vinesqueen's case.

I live in Missouri, about 30 mins from KS and I chose Dr. Hoehn to do my surgery. This is after 3+ years of researching surgeons, and several personal recommendations for him from people I trust. I didn't pick him because he was local, I was prepared to fly to CA for my 2nd choice surgeon. It just so happened he was local. His website OH info page

Umm... when most people come off sugars they can see a dramatic initial loss on the scale. Doesn't have to be "very fat" people. DH has maybe 30 ls to lose and lost over half of that (and 2 pants sizes) within his first week of ketosis. The cells don't have to be in someone of any paticular weight. 30 lbs isn't very fat IMO!

The other thing to keep in mind is the addition of your exercise program. Miscle is denser (heavier) than fat. If you're working out, it's entirely possible to lose fat but gain weight.

What did I do to prepare: Get housecleaning and misc. errands taken care of. All shopping for everything I would need through day 7 including pill crushers, Vitamins, etc. Made sure a recliner from downstairs was brought upstairs. Made sure groceries for DH were stocked (he HATES grocery shopping). Anything I wish I'd done beforehand: Not really. I started preparing at least 4 weeks in advance, and think I covered most bases. I do kind of wish I'd spent more time educating the people i work with about my eating, because my first day back they wanted to take me to PF Chang and had my favorite Cookies to say welcome back. Exercise: I'm fortunate in that I've never lost mobility. DH and I just joined a gym with an 8 lane lap pool and I'm really looking forward to that, esp. since I have a torn ligament and any impact can cause it to re-tear. I would check at the gyms near you. Many, especially Ys, offer Water exercise classes, aquarobics, etc. You could also try something that doesn't put any added strain or stress on you, like a Gazelle.

I'm an avid scuba diver. Scuba now, you don't need to be thin! Diving in Cozumel is soooo great. Anything in Cozumel is soooo great. Go now! 1. I will shop until I drop. Maybe I'll go to the MOM because they have great stores and no sales tax on clothes. I will spend all day at Cache, Anne Taylor, and J Crew. And when I'm not there, I'll be at banana. And if I get bored, I'll go to Mark Shale. Buying all those clothes I could only look at for so long, because I had to buy what fit, not what I wanted. I reminded my husband yesterday that when I hit goal I'm going to literally shop until I drop, and he said, "I know, and I want you to. You'll have earned it." Woohoo! We'll have to use our luggage to pack bigger luggage, so I can bring my new wardrobes home wih me! 2. Parasail 3. Take a trip here. Maybe for our 10th anniversary, in 2008. (Can I reach goal in 2 years? hmm....) 4. Ride the MS 150. 5. Walk at my Master's graduation (2007), which I will fly my entire family to. I didn't walk for any of my undergrad degrees, partly because I didn't want to be seen. My parents have always said they missed seeing me walk. 6. Wear shorts! I haven't worn shorts in 5 years, at least! 7. Be comfortale on July 4th. It's always a big family day, and it's always 100 degrees and 90% humidity, and I always have to stay inside or not go out for long because the lightest, airiest clothing I have is still a big huge tent compared to what all the "normal" people can wear. 8. Victoria's Secret is also on the list. Huby has already told me he's taking me there and buying me whatever he wants. 9. Go to the doctor when I need to, not grin-n-bear it because I don't want to have to be weighed. 10. Get pregnant (at a healthy weight), hopefully!

I'm completely hooked, and I didn't even know the show existed until yesterday. I'm not a big TV watcher, and what I do like I TIVO... which means I need to know it's on, so I don't even know what 95% of the shows out there are. Pure coincidence yesterday -- I was flipping through channels trying to find a weather update and came across a "behind the scenes" for Prison Break. Figured whattaheck, watched an episode (there was a marathon) and I was instantly hooked, and there really aren't many shows I like, let alone that I'm hooked on. My last hook was HBO's Carnivale, and it hasn't even aired a season since January last year (still keeping my fingers crossed that they release season 3). Oh, and "Dirty Jobs"... hooked on that like a bad habit.

A lot of threads have come up lately on this very topic. Poke around and you'll find *lots* of people who posted their experiences, and I'd guess they're pretty truthful - don't see any reason for anyone to embelish or exaggerate. I was banded in the morning and released around 2pm. We came straight home and I pretty much just dozed off and on until the next morning. I slept well the night before, and initially shook off the anesthesia quickly in recovery, but it must have crept back in. The next day I had a hard time moving around. Incisions, esp. port, were extremely tender and it was more pain than it was worth to get in and out of the recliner any more than I had to in order to walk around. As the day went by I felt a little better and that night I was able to take a very slow, very careful shower. Friday I was still pretty sore, but felt well enough to get dressed and do to the store, just for a place out of the cold to walk around. By saturday I felt pretty good and we were able to go out of town to visit my parents. I still had to use a pillow to keep the seatbelt off my incisions, and bumps in the road still hurt, but getting out of the house felt great. I could do some walking around, did a little shopping, but did need a nap that evening and I *never* nap. I started feeling a little etter each day - there would be something I could do each morning that I couldn't do the morning before... walk down stairs w/o pain, walk w/o having to support my stomach, get uo and sit down, sleep on my sides, etc.