sugrbear

We are all working hard to lose our weight, and to keep it off, because yes we know we can cheat the band and put it back on if we really want to. So I say, take credit for the hard work we are doing, were exercising, were eating healthier, were improving our lives, becoming more active, helping others improve their lives by being supportive, listening, giving suggestions, having a good laugh together. Yes "WE" are working hard. Later if we tell others about the band it will be when we are ready or to promote the benefits of the band. I do that on the sites when people ask about my experience and are trying to decide whether this is for them. I give them my honest experience and answer any questions I can to help them. I think we all agree until you have a band, you can't quite fully understand what it will entail no matter how much research you have done in advance. It is definately more work than we anticipated even if knew and understood it was a tool and we had to do the work. Reality is a real eye opener. In this case a good one for me.

Caligirl626, total Protein intake each day varies by Dr. and study, most say anywhere from 50 to 70 grams a day, I dont think there is too much you can get, however, what I was saying is that you only absorb 20 grams at one time. So, if you are drinking a Protein shake that has 46 grams in it and you drink it all in one siting, you are only getting the benefit of 20 grams at that time. You need to take in your protein throughout the day. For example if I am busy, I will make a protein shake using 1/2 scoop whey protein =23 grams of protein in morning. Then for lunch I will have salmon salad and slice of cheese and few berries = 10 grams protein, Then dinner, tilipia, broccolli, hard boiled egg = 22 grams protein . So this day I have gotten at least 55 grams just with these meals, not counting anything else. So if you are using Isopur or any protein drinks you just want to remember if you drink all 50-70 grams in one drink, you are only absorbing 20 grams of it this time. You can still drink the entire drink. You'll just need to get more protein later in the day. I got this information from my Diabetic dietitian last summer when I was diagnosed with early diabetes and since my family Dr has also told me the same thing. We have discussed this at 2 of my support groups also and they found out the same thing either from other doctors or on the internet. If you can eat mushie's or solid food now, I would suggest using the protein drinks in amounts that are equal to about 20-25 grams each drink, then you could have as many as three a day if you didn't think you got all your protein in that day, and save money, Isopur is not cheap. Sorry, I didn't mean to confuse anyone earlier. I sure hope this has cleared it up for you. If not say so and I will either shut up or try another approach, LOL

ajoneen, your right, using free trial runs at a gym is a good way to see if they have enough variety of equipment, if the gym is cool enough, when are good times to come, how well do they take care of the equipment etc. Or just try out equipment you are thinking of buying for your home. I need to be in a gym to stay motivated. I like being with other people working out. When I used trainers before I used private ones, I had seen in the gyms I used. Only then they were 25.00 hr and she gave great massage's so if you were already a client it was 20.00 for an hour. You can't beat that. I really miss her. I upped my cardio today, longer time on elipTOKILL (haha) and more time on treadmill, with pace up a bit. and added 20 min on the bike, then did laps for 15 min. We will see how I feel in morning. LOL

We'll it could be that you need to diary your food intake and exercise routine for about a week and look at what your doing now. Possibly your calories have increased, your portions may have increased or it may be that you have become to use to your routine and it it is time to change up what your doing. A new cardio routine, or longer bike ride, or more challenging ride, or more variety. Maybe you need more calories to go with your exercise routine. I would diary for a week, and look and see what you can change up start with one area at a time, and see if you notice any improvement, then possibly change something else. Keep the diary while you do this so you can track what may or may not be helping. I know for me if I don't change what I eat and how I exercise on a regular basis I get to use to the routine and everything slows down. I seem to thrive on change. Good luck. I will PM you this also. Sugrbear

Hey Enjoylife, I checked out your urban rebounder, since it is a trampoline based piece of equipment I can not even try this because I suffer with early stages of menuars (veritgo) . sorry can't give you practical feedback, I would say however I would consider the following before investing in it, how good is your balancing, your knees and ankels? My grandkids all have trampolines but they were warned by peditrician that they see high rate of ankel injuries, knee injury from falls. My daughter in law works in ER and sees adults come in with injuries from people jumping and getting feet etc stuck in sides of trampoline. If you have a good balance center and are well co-ordinated go for it, otherwise I would think twice. If you get it let us know how you do with it. Good luck.

I only told my husband, after all he did pay for it, but I decided for now I dont' want to tell anyone. My family and I are very close but live 1700 miles away and I feel like this is something I want to do myself. Unfortunately my husband forgot this agreement and told 10 women that work for him, so on a recent visit I was sort of at odds when I got" how do feel", and "oh you look good", and realized why I got a few stares I wasn't use to. I later realized someone spilled the beans. I now find myself not wanting to go back in because I don't want to be scrutinized just now over whether I have lost weight, how much etc. It might be ok, might not, but it was what I was trying to avoid. It is very different when you just lose it and someone says something, but when they know you have had surgery they expect stuff from you that may be unrealistic because lets face it, unless they have had this procedure they won't understand it.

Casargirl, for me, my cravings disappeared the first two months, then I had them hit mon/tues, not the same as before, so I had a cookie, a small pc choc, a few nuts, the craving went away, but then I got a headache, now I feel like, I dont want those things. The craving when it did hit was nothing like in the past. In the past I would have had a whole bunch of Cookies and the entire candy bar and lots of nuts, this time a few bites satisfied the urge right away. As I right this I have no urge for them. Not so in the past. I also dont want food all the time like in the past. When I eat my meals, small as they may be, I am satisfied, I can walk away and dont need or want more. Its a great feeling. As far as pre-op diets, not all Dr's put their patients on pre-op diets. I know many bandsters with different Dr's in my area that did not have to go on pre-op diets before surgery, including myself. I guess it depends on the Dr. and the patients condition.

Fenton, sounds like you have a plan, and understand your current limitations but have goals in mind and are walking towards them not away. Luluc, your right, I also worked with a trainer 13 yrs ago had her for 2 yrs and it went really well, she was an independant, and took more of a personal interest in what was going on and what I needed to reach my goals. You took an interesting approach, waiting and watching for the right trainer, good for you. There are plans out there for all of us, I think just by posting these several threads we are helping each other better educate ourselves on what to look for and how to find the best help out there. Thanks for all the additional input. Good luck to us all.

Sharon, I would definately call your Dr since you are diabetec, but have you been checking your glucos lately?? I ask because I had mild food poisoning last week and felt queezy all week long, since I had only been banded since march I called Dr to be sure I wasn't having symptoms of band complications. They didn't think I was, and I have had food poisoning before so I was pretty sure I was correct but, they did say I should chk my glucos because the extended queeziness could be due to a lack of protein since I couldn't eat and a low glucos. I am borderline diabetec and have to keep a ck on mine. When I started cking I found I was very low,, so I made an extra effort to get more protein in (shakes, cheese) til my levels came up a little and I felt better. I am doing fine now. But since you said you are diabetec, I thought I would just pass this on. I hadn't been eating since I had been sick and it really dropped my glucos, I also had tingling fingers which is another sign for me. Good luck

BeverlyDiane, I just found out a friend of mine uses her baby fork at meals, she showed us at our group meeting, then she told us she also uses a sippy cup so she doesn't drink too fast, well, I am sorry, we all cracked up and had the best time laughing with her over it. We all use small restaruant side bowls for our meals and small plates but none of us had seen anyone use the tiny fork or a sippy cup. It is a great idea. She uses her fork when she goes out. I do use those long handled Ice tea spoons because they are so small and honestly my grandkids all live 1700 miles away and don't use special utensils anymore. I say if it helps, I'm game. So its off to buy a pickle fork. LOL

Rugmanforvever, good for you, you know that really is the trick I think, especially as you get older or if you have or have had specific health issues, go talk to your dr.s that deal with your issues and ask their advise first. We often feel like we have to push harder or we are not really trying when in fact we are. We're not kids anymore, we can make decisions for ourselves and they have to respect that. If you have a good trainer that respects that go for it. I plan to keep working out, and improving, I have 6 fantastic grandchildren that are always on the go and when I spend the summer with them or get them for long visits we don't sit around watching tv. I need to stay active and healthy. Its all about taking care of ourselves isn't it. We deserve the best. Good luck with your workouts. Oh yeah don't forget to stretchhhhhhhhhhhhhh. hahaha

Well I will say after being on this site in particular, the one thing I think we can all agree on is that there is a great extreme on what Lap band Dr.s do pre and post surgery with respect to diet guidelines. With all the research I did, the one thing I can honestly say I missed is how different all the doctors are with respect to diet guidelines. I only visited one site before banding, but I went to several seminars in my area and most of the initial information seemed to be the same. However, since then being on 3 different sites, now only 2, I have seen such extremes. I will say I am very happy with the process my Dr. used which seems to be very different than most of yours but has worked well for me and many others I know who use him. I only hope all of you out there have been as happy, I know some are like Indiogirl55 because I have seen her posts. I just wonder if some of the more extreme measures are as necessary as some of the Dr may feel, especially when I read how much more bandster hell those patients are going thru compared to others. Please do not take this to mean they are not good Dr.s , I just wonder why such extremes exist? Wouldn't you think the guidlines would be a little more consistent? At first I thought maybe it had to do with the amount of weight to be lost or the BMI levell, but it seems to be more Dr related. anyway, just wanted to share my thoughts on this. I pray we all do well with our Dr and choices. We deserve the best all the time.

beckn, I have a friend that was recently banded and similiar symptons, but worse. Turns out due to lack of any solid in her stomach she devleoped too much acid in her stomch and it caused her nasuea, pain, couldn't swallow, etc, (no history acid reflux) Our Dr had to give her Nexium and a liquid stomach med to take for several days, as she was able to get solid (mushy in) symptons died out. I would definately have your Dr check you out just to make sure everything is ok, You could be the same way. Our Dr puts us on mushy by 4th day, but wasnt soon enough for her. She is doing much better now.

Focus on healing right now, Protein amounts will vary with each Dr. but know that you can only absorb 20 grams at a time, so make sure you spreading out your intake, I'll assume your on liquids right now. But as an fyi, later many of the things in our diets have protien, like eggs, bean Soup, squash soup. cheese, etc, read the labels to see. But you are swollen and gassy so don't get on the scale right now. You probably aren't having bowl movements either. Let your insides heal, swelling go down, all your bodily functions return, and start walking around every day and you will start to feel your weight moving. Be patient. Like the other post said, hide your scale for a few days. Good luck

Great Job Tonya, your story is the kind we need to see more of on these sites. I've only been banded since March but I am constantly saying, I want to learn to "live" with my band, not be consumed by it. I feel like a positive attitude really helps, and for me slow and steady and being able to eat with no bad side affects so far has been a real plus. I do workout, but I like it so thats all good. Keep up the great work and keep us up to date. My port is just below the center of my breast bone, so sleeping on my stomach has never been an issue. In the begining I did have to be carefull when I leaned into the washer or counter, but that seems to have worked itself out now.

I walk on the treadmill for anywhere from 15-30 min at 3.5 mph at level 1 incline, 5dys wk, I do eliptOKILL, (haha)15 min 3x week, I usually do that the days I do shorter treadmill, eliptoKILL gets heart rate up faster than treadmill, some find it easier, some harder, also swim laps for 15-25 min 2-3x week,, and I do resistence machines for lower body. I am adding Water aerobics 2x week this week, I have a freind who only does this and just started a few weeks ago, and it knocked 8lbs off after she had plateau'd for awhile. No offense but, given your age, let me add this warning, I am a young 52, I got a trainer for 5 sessions, 3 were actuall working out. I am now on 8-12 weeks of no upper body workouts per my orthopedic surgeon. The routine they started me on was to help build up my small muscle groups in my upper arms, shoulders etc, the problem is they didn't take into acct that I hadn't worked out in a gym in 12 years and they pushed it too fast too hard, and pulled every muscle in right shoulder, neck,. My dr. said they should have started much slower, no weights for quite a while, I wasn't ready for the intensity they were pushing. You don't necessarily feel it the first few sessions and thats when you can do the most damage. The trainers are not trained to work specifically with older people, understanding their muscle needs. They push us like we are still in our 20's. I am not a quitter, and many people don't think I am in my 50's when they meet me, but I am and yes I am out of shape and need a slower pace when it comes to building muscle tone and balance . I did tell them I had not been in a gym for 12 years and needed to start with the basics again. Just take it slow when it comes to using weights and repettion of movements. When you have built up your ability to move up certainly challange yourself more. I love working out, I just won't be using a trainer to do it in the future. My Orthopedic surgeon gave me some great tips and moves to use once he releases me to work on my upper body again. My cardio has helped me lose more steadily, have better energy, and sleep better. This isn't to say you can't find a good trainer, just know most of them are trained to work with you the same way whether you are 20-30-40-50 yrs old, and I do believe there is a substantial difference in how that should be done. Good luck

In the begining I weighed every day to stay on track, but then I cut back to 2x a week, now I try to stay to 1x week, and usually on home scale or Dr. scale. I found between home dr and gym I would get 3 different weights within 2 hrs with no eating or drinking, was really confusing. I decided mine and the Dr were the most similiar so I use them to make sure I am staying on track, but I use my tape measure, and my energy level as a better way to measure my success. I have learned that when I do a longer more intense workout on M,W,F, taking off S,Sun, and lighter workouts T,TH I do really well. If I skip Friday and go 3 days with no workout at all, my monday routine it harder to get through. I remember about 7 yrs ago, I got sick with an intestinal blockage and later complications, that resulted in inablitliy to hold down food and I started losing weight, funny thing was I didn't own a scale and didn't even notice the weight loss so much until my husband called me baggy butt one night because my underpanties were so big, I had been so busy trying to find out what was wrong, and getting through lots of test, and staying busy keeping my spirits up that I had lost 30lbs and not realized it since I wasnt jumping on a scale. I knew my clothes were loose but it just wasn't registering because losing weight wasn't what I was trying to do at that time. I guess its like anything else, it can work for the good or bad. We just have to choose which one we will let it be.

I was worried this might happen, but I love fresh fruit, and eat strawberries and black raspberries, fresh ones, I take small bites and chew real well, knock on wood so far I havnt had any issues with getting stuck or throwing up. I put them in my protien smoothy on the rare occasions when I use them. But using the fresh fruit as my snack, or a few after the protein part of my meal, has kept me pretty regular. I also use mangos, pineapple, and peaches. I don't what I will do if I ever have a fill that wont let black raspberries go down. I even chew the little seeds really well. So, fresh fruit and water has done it for me, and I have just steadily lost so far. Good luck. Sugrbear

I just had my 2nd fill yesterday, I was Fluid yesterday, mushies for 2 days, I have heard every response there is to this, some say they felt restriction, others were too tight, some felt the restriction weeks later, others felt no restriction until their 3, 4 or even 5 fill. Many of them still lost weight, some slowly, some didn't, etc so you are going to have to wait and see what your body does and it reacts. I now have 4cc and I don't feel any tightness, restriction or as some say, the feeling of food going down yet. But I am losing and I am eating the way I should be and feel great. My belief is that if I can lose steadily, have my fills to keep from feeling overwhelming hunger, stay on my food plan portions, and "not" be tight, restricted, throwing up or uncomfortable that is the ideal way to live. I have read post and met one person who has lost over 80 lbs with no fills at all. So you see it is all in your body, how you use the tool, and manage your new life style. Some of us will have to work a little harder at Portion Control, some at regular exercise, some at good choices, etc, I would exercise patience and don't live on your scale. Look for all the victories you will be achieving. Lost inches, better health, a glow on your cheeks, a happier outlook, less meds. New clothes, the power you have gained from taking control of your life. Good luck.

Ok, of course I am not a Dr. but when mine told me, first 4 weeks, walking was fine, near the end, swimming was ok, but no lifting, weights, etc. I mean you are still healing inside and want your port and band sutures to stabilize and heal well in place so your port does not tilt or flip. You are still also a little swollen inside and strenuous exercise the first few weeks could irritate you. I would use common sense and stick with walkng, swimimng (if outside healed) til you have your first post op check up/fill. But that is just my opinion based on the way I understood my instructions. Be careful out there. OK

Sorry to hear your story, makes a good arguement for having a Dr that uses flora scope/xray every so many fills to make sure things are still going smoothly. I just had my 2nd fill, and we did flora to make sure when I swallowed everything was in good shape, I have my photo's from day of surg, today, and will reguest this in future probably every other fill if Dr doesn't automatically do it. I didn't even have to ask for it today, they let me know when I arrived we would be doing one even though all has been going well. I am glad. Good luck I hope all works out well for you. Now does that fall under the warranty card you fill out and send in for your band?? I guess it depends if the locking snap was defective or someone just didn't properly close it . I think I will put that on my list of questions for my next Dr visit. ( I keep a little notebook to take ) All good wishes and prayers to you.

willsmommy, if by today you are still feeling this badly, I would highly recommend calling your Dr's office and having a heart to heart with him or his nurse's about what "you" are going thru and feeling. Because the fact of the matter is, "you " don't feel right, you don't seem to feel they are giving you the support you need right now, and that is what is important. We all take this journey in a different way, ups and downs, goods and bads, there are so many different philosophies on who, what when and how to do each step depending on the which Dr you have. What is working for some of us may not work for you. What you may need right now, we may not be able to help you with just because you may need your Dr's care, so sweetie don't be afraid to ask for it, in fact demand it. Sure it could be that your just going to have a rougher first few weeks than some of us ,but that doesn't mean you have to just accept that. There may be something else they can do to make you more comfortable, or at least set your mind at ease. We all know you will eventually feel better, and adjust, but there are those times when things are going on that we won't know about and your Dr can tell by seeing you etc, . Odds are you are fine. I really feel we are here for moral support and to help guide you, share all sorts of information, experiences, tips etc, but also recognize when to say, call our Dr. I posted to you earlier when it seemed you just needed some information to compare, but advised you may need to call your Dr then, since you still seem to be feeling badly I felt the need to repost to you. Good luck.

Congratulations to you also photoegor,, didn't mean to leave you out. Same goes for you,, take care of yourselves these first few weeks. Good luck

Hey, Jfert1, congratulations, I am a Spivak patient too, March 28, I am going in for my 2nd fill thursday, I guess thats today, haha, Do make sure you get your rest, the most important thing right now is to heal properly, your insides will take longer than your outside will and you are still numb from surgery, you don't want your suctures inside to pull or your port to shift, so go rest,, and walk, rest, and walk, Hope to see ya at the support meetings. There is one this Tuesday night, 6:30 his office if your up to it,, If you have already been coming we may have already met. I didn't make the last one, was sick, but was at the one before that. Anyway, congratulations again,, and remember gas x and heating pads are your best friend if the gas pain kicks in.

Those are the types of things that you really need to go in and see your Dr about or get back into a Dr for. So many different things could be going on. I notice from these sites people that have had their bands longer forget to get maintaince checks on their bands every 6 months after hitting their goals. We're not Dr.s and this sounds like a Dr type issue you should have checked, as well as probably just needing a maintance check. Good luck.