lellow

My BMI was 37 when I made the call to the surgeon, and 35 by the time I had the surgery. I'm 3.5 months out now and have lost almost 17kgs, with another 13 kgs to lose. I too thought it was best for me to do it before my BMI started to go up even more. I had no doubts I was heading to a BMI of 40 and beyond at the rate I was eating. I never really ate fattening foods, I just ate A LOT. Now I eat a fraction of what I used to.

Michelle, have you thought of exercising after your DD is in bed? I put my son to bed at 8.30pm, and two minutes later I'm on my spin bike. If he's around when I'm exercising on the bike, he wants to get involved too, so I don't bother trying as long as he's awake.

I try not to wait until my stomache is growling to eat, because that's kinda what happens, you're feeling 'full' because you can't eat anymore, but your tummy is still empty because all the food is above the band. It takes a while for the food to pass through into your lower tummy, and when it does your tum will stop growling. If you're feeling like it's all stuck in your throat it may well be that it's not passing through easily and it may take longer than 20 mins. After my first fill, I found some foods got stuck, even if it's soft. I can't have rice at all, even if it's been boiled to the consistency of porridge. It just sits above the band making me feel like it's all going to come out, even after a couple of bites. Fish is anotehr thing that makes me very full very fast, but I still eat quite a lot of fish. So try to eat before you get too hungry, and experiment with different foods as this one thing may be more difficult for you to digest compared to something else. Hopefully you're starting to feel better by now though.

I'm still a work in progress but have found so much motivation from the thread in the past few months that I wanted to contribute to it too. I'm only 3 and a half months out from surgery and still have 13kgs or so to lose (just over 28lbs) but am so happy with how the band has changed my life that I'm biting the bullet and sharing my progress pics. 3 weeks pre-op: 97.9kgs (about 215lbs) today 3.4 months post op: 81.1kgs (about 178lbs) And before anyone asks, I do have tattoos but I carefully photoshopped them out of my pre-op photos. But now I can't be bothered! Lol!

I am an at-home exerciser. I have two kids at home with me (a 2yo and a 14yo), I work full-time plus I'm at university part-time, so going off to a gym really isn't feasible with my schedule. BUT I do cycle on my spin bike at least 4 times a week (between 25-35kms at a time) and that raises a good sweat. I can do it in my regular clothes, too. And the bike cost me about $200 on sale. I also walk twice a week for an hour at a time. On Sundays I power-walk pushing my baby in a pram. On Wednesdays I walk with him (about 15kgs or 30+lbs) on my back in a sling. Now that raises a sweat! I agree that exercising at home requires motivation, but it can be done. So if anyone's reading and they're thinking 'I can't get to a gym/I can't afford a gym' then I want you to know that it's no excuse. You CAN still exercise if you wanted to.

I'm 3.5months post op and I want to let you know that I mourned food too. I looked longingly at fried chicken and ice cream and coke and wondered about the sacrifice I was making, and if I really wanted to make that sacrifice. Then someone said something to me that changed the way I looked at it: You don't have to give up the things you love, you just eat less of it. That means I even now still have fried chicken, but only one piece, and only once in a while. I find that because I get full faster, I don't crave deep fried stuff as often as I did before. But if I want it, I have it. I haven't had a coke since my op. I didn't realise it until recently. I just reach for Water everytime I'm thirsty, and not coke because I worry that the bubbles will make me feel gassy (and gassiness is always a problem) Next thing I know I haven't touched the stuff in months. I don't eat ice cream anymore either. Ice cream is a dessert, and I'm usually full after dinner, so have no room for ice cream. But if I really wanted some, I'd have some. I just don't want it anymore. I do eat chocolate. I have a little bit instead of a whole bar. I have some, savour it, then put it aside and tell myself I can have some more another day. There's always another day, and I keep the option open. The bar I started on a month after my op is still on my bedside table now, less than 1/4 eaten. I don't feel deprived because I don't deprive myself. And yet, I'm not craving anything sweet or fattening most of the time. And by allowing myself a little bit of naughtiness sometimes, it means I don't feel like I need to fight myself all the time. So you don't have to 'mourn' anything. You're not losing anything. You're gaining a whole lot!

I have now lost over 70% of my excess weight, and I'm only 3 and a half months out of surgery. I think 60% of your excess weight is the average, but losing more than that is definitely something that can be done, but I suspect you will have to exercise and watch what you eat to get there. I don't count calories, I don't restrict carbs (though I can't stomache a lot of carbs now) and I exercise 3-4 times a week (up to a full sweat, not just gentle walking) and I'm still losing. So yes I don't think lapband surgery means you will ONLY lose 60% of your excess weight, it means that it's currently what most patients lose on average. Good luck, I think you're making a great decision. The only regret I have is that I didn't do this sooner.

I can eat 2 fried eggs but only about 3/4 of a hard boiled egg. Some foods are just natural 'sliders', so even at your sweet spot, you'll be able to consume some foods more easily as it slides past the band and doesn't give you that 'full' feeling. Other foods are the kind that get stuck (chicken breast, and anything made of rice for me) so it's about learning which ones will make you full but won't get stuck. I'm still in that learning process myself.

I've already pledged to lose 10lbs before my brother's wedding on the 29th of Dec, so I'm in. I've lost .5lbs since I made the pledge 3 days ago! So only 9.5lbs to go! Starting weight 181lbs ---> 171lbs

It sounds like for a lot of us, the weight loss has either slowed or we're plateauing. That it's happening to so many of us at the same time, you have to wonder if it's a stage that happens 4 months or so out of surgery. I've gained up to 3lbs for two or three days at a time too. It's so depressing. And I use one of those digital, gives-you-your-BMI-and-fat-percentage, really expensive ones too. I guess if you're eating well and exercising (even moderately) you'll eventually shift it. I usually do. If you're bloating or retaining Water for a few days, it may explain why your scales are reflecting that, too. All in all, on a month by month basis, the overall trend is for me to lose, so those days of gaining, while depressing, hopefully IS just a fluctuation. I know that for me, the weight loss is definitely starting to slow down, too. I think I'm going to have to increase my exercise and really watch my eating to ensure I keep losing.

my first fill I had a numbing needle, but the last two I didn't have any numbing beforehand and personally I think not having a numbing needle is actually less painful! And considering all three times weren't really painful at all, I think you'll be fine, nina. :tongue2:

I'm going to join in the Friday weigh ins again until my brothers wedding in December! Lol! Last Friday 82.9kgs This Friday 82.2kgs Loss 700grams (1.5lbs) Exercise: 2 x 1 hour walks 2 X 30min bike rides

I never have tried to cover up and be modest about it. I don't flash it to all and sundry, but I just as I don't cover my head with a blanket when I eat, I don't expect someone to expect me to throw a blanket over my child when he eats. I think part of the attitude that says women should be modest stems from society thinking breastfeeding is somehow an issue of modesty, when IMO it isn't. If breastfeeding was more normalised, it wouldn't be considered immodest. There used to be a time when showing one's ankles was considered immodest, but attitudes change, why can't this one? Anyhow, as they say, if my breastfeeding offends you, you should feel free to throw a blanket over your own head, because let's face it, I'm not the one who has a problem with it.

I think it must happen to a lot of us. After my last fill, I could have sworn he accidentally took some OUT because I felt less restricted than I did before I went in. Then this last two days, I'm back to feeling restricted and have lost another 1/2 kilo. Go figure!

OMG Gary I'm sooooo glad I'm not the only person who does that!! I usually move it around the bathroom floor and weigh myself a few times and then only accept the lowest displayed weight! Lol!

I posted in another thread last week that I'd been vomiting heaps lately and was worried that I wasn't yet used to the restriction of my last fill. I was really down as it seemed to happen all of a sudden, with everything going smoothly for a couple of weeks, then overnight, it felt like I was tight and everything I ate was getting stuck. Then as quickly as it came on, the tight feeling disappeared, and I'm back to eating almost normally (no rice and chicken breast though!), even feeling hungry faster and being able to burp fairly easily, which are my usual signs that I need a fill. I was thinking about why I had that bad week when I realised it coincided with my TOM. I know that some people feel tighter during that time, but in my case, it was a very very marked difference! I'm thinking that I'll still go in for my fill appt tomorrow, as I do feel like I need it. If I do I'm going to ask for a very small fill though. How many of you feel really tight during your TOM? What do you do when it happens? I'm actually thinking that if it happens again this month, I may regress to mushies or even Protein shakes for the week. Any other suggestions? Should I even be thinking of a fill?

I had my 3rd fill today and found out something I honestly did not know - I already had some fill put into my band at my operation! Apparently it's routine for my surgeon pre-fill 2.5cc into a 10cc band at the time of the surgery. It was only when he was saying today that my 0.5cc fill would take me up to 6cc altogether that I questioned what he meant. My first fill was 2cc and my second was 1cc, so with another 0.5cc today I should only have 3.5cc filled, right? That's when he explained that there had already been 2.5cc in the band to start with! No wonder I'm on my third fill and already am feeling quite good restriction! In fact I am not due to see him anymore until at least Feb because he suspects I'm either at my sweet spot or very close to it now, seeing as I'm losing a minimum of 3kgs (6.6lbs) a month now without counting calories or even exercising that much. I will now only see him before that date if I start feeling too tight or if I plateau for more than a month despite eating well. I also was weighed today officially and have lost 15kgs altogether! He thinks I'm doing marvellously, and even said that he thinks I look fabulous. He also said that he thinks I only need to lose another 10-12kilos (20 - 25lbs) from here on in, despite me wanting to lose 18 more kgs to get to my own personal goal weight. I actually can't believe that after only 3 months post op, I'm halfway there and can see the finish line happening sometime next year. I can't believe after years of battling my weight, that I am no longer a slave to food. I can't believe that now, I know will NEVER put the weight I lost back on. I can't believe that I finally feel in control over my body. I know this has turned into a full-on hallelujah moment, but I FREAKING LOVE THIS BAND!!!

I can only eat about 200g of anything in one meal (I think about 4oz) usually, though foods I can no longer tolerate, like rice and chicken breast, can make me pb after just a couple of bites. After my fill yesterday, I'm struggling to finish a banana, but I know it's early and I probably will lossen up a bit in the next few days. I marinade my chicken with soy sauce and some honey, and that seems to be quite moist. Or chicken with american mustard and honey - yum! You can pan fry both of those too in a non stick pan with no oil. And if it starts getting dry, just add a bit of Water to the pan.

I like that theory, Ro! Lol! I agree though that whenever I see that I've 'only' lost 14+kgs (31+ lbs), I remember that I only had 30+ kgs to lose all up, which means I'm almost half way there already. Got to be happy with that when you're only 3 months out from surgery. My short term goal is to get to under 80kgs (176lbs) by Christmas. I'm 3.5kgs (7.7lbs) out from that still, but I reckon I should be able to get there no problems if I keep losing at this rate. So I can't slow down too much!

It didn't strike me at the time either, accountess, that the TOM might be why I was so tight. It was only because the tightness stopped that I looked back and realised the two events coincided. Take it easy hun. I too didn't lose weight despite PBing everything. But right after that week, I shed a kilo (2+lbs). I reckon I wasn't losing because of all the bloat that was happening.

Jachut, I'm glad I'm not the only one! It's so frustrating isn't it? Last week I honstly felt like I was too tight, and this week I feel too loose. I too worry that another fill will mean that my next TOM, I'm not going to be able to eat at all! But I guess the best way to find out for sure is to experiment and see how I go. And as you say, it might mean I modify my diet for the week and try to get through it. I'll cross my fingers for both of us.

Hi there lovely August All-stars! From the 1st of Oct to the 1st of Nov, I've lost 2kg (about 6.6lbs). I only record my weight monthly. Quite happy with that loss as this month as I've not exercised enough due to work commitments, and even spent two weeks not exercising at all because I had the flu. I'm due for another fill tomorrow too. :thumbup:

I weigh myself every morning too (also can't help myself) but on the first of every month I record my weight for that day and take measurements. That way in my records I can see how much I've lost over the course of a month, which means I don't stress as much over the daily fluctuations anymore.

I'm due to see my Dr for a fill next Thursday (the 6th of November) but I'm not sure I actually need a fill again yet. I thought I did a week ago or so, which is why I made my appt. I was getting hungry again more quickly, and seemed to be able to eat more. But this week has been a bad week for me. I've had a bad reaction to two meals - a vietnamese spring roll, which I think was wrapped in a wrapper made of gelatinous rice, and a pork chop that I too fast. I ended up vomitting copiusly both times and since then, it seems I can only eat a tiny bit before feeling tight in the chest and sliming. In fact this morning I had one egg and was spitting up saliva for 1/2 an hour. I'm stilll getting hungry between meals and I'm thinking that if I ate slower or avoided certain foods (rice and chicken breast just doesn't agree with me anymore, and maybe egg too now) then I should be okay, but I'm wondering if I should put off my fill until I've mastered this restriction a little more?