2muchfun

You need a fill or two. It's no longer a diet for me. I'm satisfied eating as much as I can and I don't feel deprived at all. But I didn't feel this way till I entered the green zone which was fill #6. I've heard several LB veterans state that the ones who fail at the lapband are mostly the ones who walk away from the process. They never go back to their doctor and never consult a nutritionist. You seem to be falling into that group? Don't let food control you, see your doctor and dietician and take control. You've taken the right first step by coming here and pouring your soul out on a public forum but don't stop here. Make that call! You can be a loser too! Just make sure it's the right type of loser, K? tmf

Pink, I want to ask your permission to plagiarize your comment, "I 'm so stinkin' thrilled with my weight loss i dont even care about what i cant eat !"? That is so me and I want to put that in my signature at the bottom of my posts. tmf

I only lost 12 lbs my first 3.5 months. Then I had a nutrition meeting with a nutritionist/dietician. Cost me $40 but it was the best $40 I ever spent. I told her what I eat a day(I had to be honest) so she dissected my diet and found about 400 calories a day that I didn't need. We compromised on 250(couldn't give up all my lattes and one beer on weekends). I started losing immediately. I ramped up my exercise routine and in the last 3 months I've lost 25 lbs. See a nutritionist!! And exercise even if it's a 30 minute walk a day. tmf

I may not stop at 80 lbs then

60 miles of cycling a week & 5 days of 20 minute intense workouts a week. The 20 minute workouts are designed around P90X type exercising. Rapid strength and aerobic exercising for 20 minutes gives me a metabolic boost for hours and into the next day. The cycling is broken up into about 30-40 miles on weekends on a mountain bike, not a road bike. That's about 3.5 hours on weekends and then another 3-4 days midweek avging 40 minutes per ride. Walking is fine and for post op patients it's about all one can do. But I'd recommend you mix it up after you heal. Your body will adjust to doing the same routine day after day and you will eventually only burn calories during your walks. That's why pushing yourself and your muscles with some strength routines give you a lasting calorie burner. Oh, and I play racquetball once a week. tmf

Go to the bottom of this page and look for contact us and lodge a request? tmf

That's funny. I've weighed myself with and without socks, underwear, pre potty and post potty, with hat, without hat. I pretty much know how much everything I wear weighs including foods that I can visually weigh now. I don't do it constantly but I refresh the memory on occasion. tmf

What does " having a hard time losing" mean? In numerical terms? Over the last week and month? Some people expect to lose 10-15 lbs a month so it would be good if you could provide this info? Numbers at surgery and how much lost in first month vs now? tmf

Once you get past the liquid and mushie phase of post fill, try to note how different foods interact with your band. You may not feel a thing like me till fill 3 or 4 but we're all different. By fill 3 it was a learning process for every fill up to #6. Some foods seem to stay in my pouch longer and don't get stuck as easily. Like tuna, salmon, freshly cooked chicken and salads. Just remember the band is a tool and it's your job to find how it works best for you. Sounds like you're already successful. tmf

Is this twitter for the metabolically impaired? tmf

Jo, you do understand how awesome you have done right? 75 lbs is super. Keep it up, and get back into it. tmf

I've always been addicted to the scale. I still am. I weigh myself at least twice a day. They're just numbers and it helps keep me in line with where I want to go. How can you get to where you want to be if you don't know where you are? The scale lets me know every day if I made good or bad choices in physical activities and food choices. Did that package of sunflower seeds make me gain 2 lbs of Water due to sodium? Did my 20 mile bike ride correct that mistake? If I cut out carbs for 3 days does it reflect in the scale? Did I reach a new low so I can change my ticker? I pine over my ticker running to the right. He can't run to the right if I don't know where he's going. Don't sweat the small daily setbacks unless they turn into larger weekly setbacks. No one wants to wait a week to get on the scale and find out they gained 7 lbs? Make the correction before it gets out of hand. Use the scale as a tool to help you manage your food choices. It works for me and I've never understood how or why people obssess over gaining a few lbs over one day. It's just water weight. No one gains 2-4 lbs of fat in one day and no one losses 2-4 lbs of fat in one day unless you're a marathon runner. tmf

Ask about nutritionists availability after surgery.

You can't out-train a lousy diet. Stop buying and cooking slider foods. Make a vow to throw them out or at least eat them all up and don't buy them again. Physical exercise is very important but it's not the end of losing weight. Google other gyms in your neighborhood. Buy a bike, get a tae-kwon-do or other martial arts membership. Join a spin class. Pilates. Stop whining and get your butt out there and work it off My version of the half-time talk to Dallas Cowboys players. If you live in the Dallas area there are so many things you can do other than sit around pining over a silly workout session. I highly recommend martial arts. It's a great workout and you learn so much about yourself. Good luck. tmf

Nervous over the surgery or nervous that you're leaving the love of your life, food? Well, if it's the food, remove that thought from your mind. In time you'll eat what you want to eat, only this time you'll be the one in control. tmf

Tennis, racquetball and cycling. Mostly cycling at this point since my knees are shot. It's so easy to jump on my bike and go out for 30 minutes to 1 1/2 hr. You can push it or just cruise and still get your heartrate up. tmf

If you're still losing weight, what's the rush. If you're gaining, maybe a little .25 fill? tmf

Not me, and good hook in the thread line. I went 3 months with no weight gain or loss. Not until I got a fill that gave me restriction did I start to lose more weight. I was OK with that since I wasn't really dieting very hard up to that point. I've been on diets for years and was waiting for the band(my tool) to do it's job(I paid for it damnit). tmf

I think the size was always there, it just has less fat pad to hide in now. But, yes, I've noticed the same phenomena. tmf

Once the food leaves your stomach it shouldn't matter. Don't know why Dr would object? tmf

You won't feel a thing unless you eat something that gets stuck due to the extra restriction. And usually you don't find restriction with a first fill. But you could be one of the lucky ones? tmf

I'll pile on. food log definitely. Then, see a nutritionist. This is very important. At 3.5 months I had only lost 12 lbs(all the first 2 weeks). I sat down with my nutritionist($40) and she noted that there was about 250 calories a day I was consuming that had no nutritional benefit. I compromised and went back to 2 lattes a week, no beer and a couple of other indulgences. 250 X 30=7500 fewer calories per month. That's 2 extra lbs lost. I ramped up my exercise routine and have now lost 25 lbs in the last 3 months. You admit you don't exercise? In my opinion, that's a must. But you can't out-train a lousy diet. See a nutritionist. It's worth every penny if losing weight is at all important to you? btw-at 6 months I was only down 32 lbs so it's not too late. tmf

1. Is there any specific foods you can't eat because you can't tolerate them? (not because they aren't good for you) None. I can eat most meats as long as I make the bites small and i chew adequately. Bread can be a problem if I wolf it down. But nothing that is totally non-tolerable. 2. Very random, and may sound stupid, but can you do all the rides at amusement parks, I mean before the band my tummy use to feel all funny (in a good way) so just wondering because I love park rides! I hate amusement parks! 3. After reaching your goal weight, have any of you thought to either completely unfill your band, or have it removed voluntarily to avoid future issues? (erosion, slippage etc) Maybe unfill one notch! 4. Is there something I should be asking that I am not, or something that you never thought about that you couldn't or weren't able to do? Are you kidding? Look at your list? 5. Is there anyone who didn't have to get a fill ever? I mostly see people with anywhere from 4-6 fills, and I am self pay and that cost just freaks me out. Yes, not me, but I've seen some who didn't but it's rare. 6 fills for me. 6. After getting a fill, how long are you on the liquid diet again? Just 48 hrs for me. 7. As of now it is very painful and uncomfortable to cough, let alone throw up, so anyone who has vomited is it painful, or just how it use to be before getting banded. I am terrified of throwing up! I've never thrown up and I fear it too. 8. What exactly is a PB, I know it stands for 'productive burp' but what does that mean?!? A PB is a burp that includes some foods that may have become stuck in your pouch. You want to spit this crap out. 9. What is slime or sliming? Sounds nasty. I would be so embarrassed if that happened at a restauraunt...I think? When you eat too fast or get some food stuck your body secretes a lot of mucous that looks like the slime you may have seen in Ghostbusters. It's there to help your food pass through your esophogus and band but with we bandsters the slime can back up into your upper sphincter and bubbles up into your mouth. Spitting this out will help reduce the pain of being stuck. Swallowing it again will only increase the pressure in your pouch and can be very uncomfortable. I slimed at Carrabas last night and had to go into a bathroom stall for 5 minutes to spit up the slime and some bread I had consumed. Yes, it's gross. 10. Is there anyone else who only had around 50-55 lbs to lose? At what rate did you lose your weight? And what was your diet and exercise routine? I have about 75 lbs to lose and I've lost 37 so far. I lose an average of 6-8 lbs a month now that I'm in the green zone. I don't count calories but I'm aware of how much I eat and I keep it around 1200-1400/day. I exercise heavily. Cycling about 60 miles a week and working out in my gym 5 days a week with a very intense 20 minute workout each time.

Honk, I was on soft foods at day 8 till day 30. My doc also didn't have a pre-op diet for me except one day before I went on liquids. tmf

You may want to wait till your 4-6 week checkup to make that decision. If you don't need a fill, don't get one. But if you are trying to be macho and plan on doing this alone without the help of your newly installed tool, reconsider. If you're like most of us you'll be entering bandster helll soon and that can make a huge difference in your thought process. Check back in two weeks and let us know how the "diet" is coming? One more item? If you fear the needle, let that thought go bye-bye. Fills are not anything like getting a shot or drawing blood. It's like having your 2 year old niece pinch you. tmf