LemonZest

Hi all, I am 2 months post op and I have to admit that my excercise plan has been close to non-existant. I have 3 days off a week but on the days I'm at uni, I get home so late after an hour and 20 mins commute that I'm too shattered for anything else. I usually have assignments to do during the evenings too. I know I'm making excuses but up until now, I've been kidding myself that the 10min walk from the train station to uni to in the morning and then 10mins on the way back (20mins in total) is enough. I've been understandably disappointed with my weight loss so far and it's not difficult to pin point the reason. My fitness levels are pretty poor, I don't think I've run for about 7 years and I get out of breath from two flights of stairs or if I'm walking somewhere with even the slightest inclination. I'm hoping to join up to the gym as of tomorrow so I was wondering if anyone could give me a little advice about where to start. I keep reading topics about 5k runs and even the beginning stage where you run for a minute and a half and walk for 2mins I don't think I'd be able to manage that. As I'll only be going to the gym 3 times a week, I want to be doing twice the normal workout (time-wise) to compensate for the days where I can't fit it into my schedule. What's a good excercise workout for someone of my level of fitness (taking into account I'd like to build in some weight training to reduce the loose skin after weight loss)? I carry most of my weight around my hips, bum, thighs and arms (not as much in the upper half). Would be really grateful for anyone who could offer some advice!

That's really good maincat. I wish I could have more will power. I wanted to ask you about soups if you don't mind. Don't they pass through the band easily and so in theory don't keep you full for long and therefore it's best to avoid them? As it's a sunday, had a lie in till 11 so all my meals were all shifted forward. Had breakfast at 11, skipped lunch and then had dinner at 5pm. Breakfast: Fried egg (with a very small amount of olive oil) with a slice of toasted wholemeal bread. Snack: Apple & 5 dates. Dinner: Rice, half a medium sized boiled potato and a peice of chicken in a spicy chicken sauce. Evening: Very small slice of birthday cake and a pack of skips crisps. Then felt a bit peckish at 9pm and had a drumstick with a little bit of leftover rice.

I know there is a topic like this in the main forum but our diet is slightly different to the average American. I've never even heard of some of the things they eat; for example what are refried Beans? It would be great to log our progress by posting in what we ate that day and also stating how long we've had the band for. It'll help those of us who aren't doing so well to get motivated and also compare what we're eating to those at a similar stage to us. I'm 2 months post op with a fill of 3cc. I don't feel any restriction yet. I will post what I had yesterday: Breakfast: boiled egg, 3 low calorie crackers Lunch: 5 low cal crackers with 5 thin slices of double gloucter cheese, apple, ski yoghurt Snack: Apple, 5 dates, 4 cadbury hereos chocolates Dinner: Medium sized steak with boiled potatoes Snack: 3 low cal crackers with 3 thin slices of cheese Liquids: 1 litre Water That's a lot I know!

I feel for you amonroy; we're in the same boat. I think I'm going to contact my doc. I've been reading on the forum about a "Delayed Action" meaning it can take a while before you feel the restriction from a fill. Has anyone experienced this? And could someone perhaps explain how that works?

I was banded a month ago and had my first fill a few days ago. 3ml in a 9ml band. I haven't felt any restriction yet and in fact I feel less restricted than I was before the fill. Is this normal? How many ml does it take before you reach a sweet spot on average?

I know everyone is different but is there a rough list of foods that don't go well with the band? I understand that carbonated drinks, high calorie beverages, ice cream and anything soft like chocolate should all be cut out. But what do the docs mean when they say no fibrous food? Can someone give me a good list of fibrous foods because I'm a bit confused. What about things like spicy foods? Also, I am 3 weeks in and if I chew well, I can eat bread ok. Will that change or am I going to be of the few that can tolerate bread?

I keep hearing about people talking about their port site....some people complain that their port gets in the way of their clothes or that it portrudes out in an obvious way once you lose a significant amount of weight. Where exactly is it? Is it at the site of one of the scars or is it located at the point about 5 finger breadths above the belly button where theres a hard area about the size of half an outstretched palm?

I'm not sure whether I have the right attitude to PB or not. I am 3 weeks out of my surgery and I am adjusting to eating slowly and chewing properly but there have been times where I've completely forgotten and leapt into eating quickly and sometimes there have been no "full" warning signs...one or two bites can literally set it off. And because the golf ball feeling is painful and so frustrating (it feels like you've choked on something except you can't drink water to help it go down so you resort to waiting for it to go down or come up whilst sliming). Sometimes its so discomforting that I rather it came up than wait for it to go down so I find bending over helps to bring it up. Does anyone else feel like bending forwards makes it come up? Are there any negative effects from PB (I know vomitting causes slipping of the band but does PB have the same effect too?). I am worried I'm doing myself harm by bending forward to bring the food back up. I tried the chewable papaya enzyme and it worked once but the rest of the time, all it does is aggrevate it and I end up PBing the remnants of the chewable tablet which can't be a good thing! Can anyone advise me please?

Hi everyone, I was banded three weeks ago and was wondering if anyone could explain to me why we are not allowed to drink with meals? Also, how long should we wait after eating to drink anything? My doctor has told me 30 mins on one occassion and 5 mins on another so I'm getting conflicting messages. Also, advice for the first few weeks was to sip water slowly with breaks in between each sip. Is that just for the first few weeks or for ever because sometimes I find myself very thirsty and can't bear to sip slowly.

Hello everyone, I was banded a few days ago and I've been feeling down over the past few days. I was in pain after surgery and I am still in some pain. It is bearable but I am feeling a lot of regret about it all. Dr Chris said this was to be expected and at the moment, that's the only hope I have....that it will get better in a few days and that I will be able to start doing some excercise and adjusting to life with a band. At this moment in time, it all seems like that I'm very far away from that. I am also having difficulty knowing how much to eat. Because I'm still sore, I can't distinguish between fullness and soreness. I don't know how much food I should be eating in one sitting and even the advice from the doctor was pretty vague. Can anyone give me some ideas as to what they ate in the first 10 days? By no means, I don't want to put anyone off the surgery...I just want to e frank about what I'm experiencing so that others are better prepared for what is to come. I've read on this forum that even after 2-3 weeks, people are still sore and are constantly feeling hungry, is this the norm? Just looking for some advice and for someone to tell me it will get better soon :S

I checked and my hotel is uncancelable. How easy are the trains to navigate? Also, in the price that Dr Chris quotes, does that include the pre-op blood tests and electrocardiagram as well as the TED stockings, heparin injections and barium swallow post op?

I've already booked my hotel :S Oh well. It said the city centre was about 5miles from the hospital? Is that wrong? I figured it would cost around £10 each way to the hospital. What did you pay?