bambam31

Hmmm... don't agree with this at all... My doctor said the stomach is made of tissue and tissue has elasticity. So it can be stretched and then retracted. (Kinda like another elastic body part I'm rather fond of.... ) Anyway... Havn't you ever went on a diet and noticed your appetite shrank (when you were following the diet properly of course)... That's because your stomach was filling up faster - because it wasn't the same size as it once was. Brad

I love popcorn and have become accustomed to eating airpopped corn plain! Took a bit of getting used to but it's the most healthy way. It's also only has a glycemic load of 8 which makes it a low load food! Not to mention it's an excellent source of fiber! Brad

If everybody followed your example Beth religion would be seen in a much more positive light. Unfortunately though, many people who have deep convictions about something (religion) insist they must convert everyone to their thought process. . I have a Catholic friend who insists her religion is the only religion. All other religions and their followings are just misguided and floating around aimlessly, believing falsehoods. She is adamant that it is her job, and that of all Catholics, to convert people to Catholicism - one at a time. I was raised Catholic and it was crammed down my throat by a parent. I wasn't offered the chance to learn and explore religious beliefs on my own and make my own choice. I resent that to this day because it robbed me of my ability to keep a free and open mind to the topic. Now, no matter how I approach the subject it has a negative light at the outset. If I didn't go to church or to a special church event - I was grounded for the day. Religion isn't about putting your time in. You don't punch your card at the church door to prove you were there. You don't get credit just for showing up. You have to develop that core belief within yourself. My only religious advise to parents and grandparents - don't make this mistake! Don't indoctrinate your children - just guide them through the process - and the let the decision be theirs! Brad

I thought I read somewhere that this is coming in 2012? It's okay - we've got a few years... Brad

Try the warm liquid a short time before you eat tomorrow morning and see how it goes. Don't try to kill yourself on exercise right away. If you havn't been exercising start slow and incrementally increase time/resistance. What's hard this week will be much easier two weeks from now as you progress. You care and you want to make this work or you wouldn't be here! Good luck! Brad

Thank you for the kind words. I have lost a big chunk in a relatively short amount of time but in all honesty I pushed too hard. Early on I had way too large of a calorie deficit and I'm certain, ratio wise, that I lost a fair amount of lean muscle tissue along with the fat. Don't get me wrong, I've lost a lot of fat, but my body fat percentage is about 24% so I know a good chunk of what I lost was also lean tissue. Fortunately I don't have any hanging skin or Jello-type areas, but I think the gym has helped keep that at bay. Keep fighting the good fight! Brad

I am not diabetic but hopefully some diabetics will comment. I know there are bandsters out there who have been so successful that they have been able to reduce or even outright stop taking certain medications for diabetes. Being that a lot of diabetic complications are directly related to diet, I think it may be a tool to assist you for sure. Brad

Picklesix... I hope your approval comes fast. It's stressful waiting for it to arrive. In the meantime, though, I would still try to get any and all exercise that your are capable of. It's amazing how quickly the body responds to it. It will also make your surgery and recovery go much better. Just do what you can, and try to add small progressions. You can even do a lot while seated. Get a couple of Soup cans and see how many times you can lift them above your head. While seated, extend a leg out one at a time and see how many seconds you can hold it there. What is a challenge this week, will be easy two weeks from now. The absolute worst thing you can do is nothing. Keep up the good fight! Brad

OK... I caught up with you on this tread... It's typical for the band to be tight in the morning. Have you tried drinking some hot liquids before eating? Normally a good warm beverage loosens things up. If this isn't working - and you can't get a meal down before mid-late morning - then I would seek an unfill. Your extreme urge to eat in the evening is two-fold. 1) You aren't getting enough calories throughout the day so your body wants food (it's been proven many times over that small frequent meals results in less overall calorie intake than a few large meals)... 2) It is typical for the band to be the "loosest" in the latter part of the day. I would find a journaling program (I use Fitday - there are many different others that bandsters use) and track all calorie intake and expenditures. It will help you pinpoint the trouble. Brad

When were you banded and what fill level are you at in what size band? Did these problems start after the offending regurgitation or were then ongoing prior to? I don't know your lifestyle, but in my case I had to get moving. Exercise is an absolute must - it's not debateable. And when exercise is done, we have to keep moving and busy. I would start by trying to determine your Basal Metabolic Rate and other calorie expenditures - and then start journaling everything you eat. It will help pinpoint the problems. And you're exactly right - the band will not cancel out the need for proper nutrition and exercise. Anyone who said the band was the easy way out was never banded! Brad

Is it any wonder more wars were started and people killed over religion than any other thing? You know what they say... all's fair in love, war, and politics. Brad

Right on guys! Jerky is a great snack - and good food to practice chew chew chewing on. I do prefer the solid meat jerky like Jack Links over the more processed stuff like Slim Jim. Just make sure your drinking lots of fluids to flush out the excess sodium because all jerky is LOADED with salts. It would be one food to avoid for a few days ahead of a weigh-in at the doctors office. Brad

As food passes through the band I get a series of successive burps. I just have to be conscious of where I'm at when this occurs. My wife gives me dirty looks but I just laugh and say, "hey! it's a medical condition!" Brad

Kristen, we were banded one day apart and have experienced just about the same results! Our end goal is very close to each other too! Progress feels good doesn't it! Brad

In addition to what RM said, just know that you should be able to get more and more fluids in with each passing day. As your healing progresses the swelling from surgery trauma will diminish and you'll be able to get more of everything down... and then bandster hell will likely commence... be tough and stay focused! Brad

It's all good! Whole grain white rice is still a complex carbohydrate - allbeit not as good for you other complex carbohydrates. The glycemic index (GI) has quickly become antiquated because it does not consider food volume. The latest and greatest is the glycemic load (GL). Most all rices remain high on the GL and GI, but one must remember that these numbers are generalities - they will vary from person to person. The only way to know how different foods affect us is trial and error. And a testing with a glucose monitor may be necessary for carb sensitive people to avoid the huge spike and subsequent crash of blood glucose levels. And of course diabetics should avoid high GL foods all together. For those who are carb sensitive and need to watch carbs closely - this link is a good reference. http://www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm IMO our information sources are constantly bashing groups of foods and it annoys me. Any complex carb is better than a simple one. My concern here is just that newbies find this stuff and alter their eating based on flawed information. There are actually bandsters who's doctors refuse to allow them dairy products or any kind of nuts/seeds. That's insane if you ask me. Remember the war on fat? Then it was the war on carbohydrates. That only leaves one other macronutrient - so when will the war on Protein begin? People focus too much on trying to eat too little food and not nearly enough on increasing their calorie expenditure. So what they see is a big weight loss-followed by a slowing metabolism - followed by a plateau. Then they can't figure out why they havn't lost any weight in the past 6 weeks... Doesn't surprise me at all. Brad

OK... I try not to make it a habit to disagree with moderators...... BUT... I do have to offer another point of view on this. Everyone's carb sensitivity is different. A blanket statement that all carbs are equally bad is about as false of a statement as there is... Foods containing simple sugars are not the same as rice, which is a complex carb. These will most certainly solicit a different insulin response in most people. We should all try to limit our simple sugar intake - but complex carbs have taken a bad wrap! You should strive to eat healthy complex carbs like rice and oatmeal- they are a necessary part of a well balanced diet. Yes, I understand if you're diabetic - the rules change. Since everyone's insulin response is different, do some self-research to determine which foods are good for you and which ones aren't. Eat a meal with a serving of full sugared ice cream and an hour later check your blood sugar with a glucose monitor - record the reading. Then the next day do the same thing after eating a complex carbohydrate and note the difference. Not everyone is supersensitive to carbohydrates! Your addiction to simple sugars may or may not be triggered by eating complex carbs - you'll just have to experiment yourself because everyone is different. It drives me insane when people tell you that a certain food group is evil and must be avoided. I eat from every single food group - just some more than others. First of all, try to focus on eating when you eat. If you're being distracted, you'll forget the rules. For awhile, try not to read, talk, watch TV, work, etc. while eating - just focus on the task at hand. Do it slowly and methodically. Eat a bite, wait a few minutes (not seconds) to see how you react. Actually put your fork down and wait between bites. It can take a half hour sometimes to eat a meal properly. Next, the band is not a miracle. You MUST change your lifestyle to succeed. Do not plan on starving the fat off of your body. Your body is too smart to allow this to happen. You must BURN the fat off of your body, meaning you MUST exercise to meet your full potential. You need a calorie deficit to lose weight, but get that deficit by working out and eating more not starving and slouching. Pardon me if I seem militant, but when I say exercise I mean EXERCISE. This is JUST MY OPINION... disregard it if you choose - but MOST PEOPLE (not all... most) will have to do 3+ intense cardio sessions (40 - 60 minutes each) a week to get their metabolism cranking. Instense means getting well above your comfort zone. I do not buy into the low intensity, long duration, stay within your heart rate zone type of exercise. Doing so means your missing out on a huge calorie burn. Look into Spin classes, circuit training, interval training, etc. I consider walking a daily activity - not exercise. Now, if walking is all you can do right now, that's OK.... Start there and keep increasing your distance. Keep progressing your fitness level until you can do more strenuous exercise. You must keep challenging yourself to be successful. Now, if you're going to burn all of these calories through exercise, your going to have to eat more. Low calorie = slow metabolism. So if you need an unfill to be able to eat more healthy food - do it. The band is a great tool to keep you from OVEREATING and BINGING. It was not intended to be cinched down to the point that you can't eat. Good luck - we're all here to help you because we want you to succeed. Nobody would spend the time to type a response if they didn't care about you. There is, however, as they say, more than one way to skin a cat. This journey is tough - it's hard work - but we get through it together - day by day. Brad

This is likely only going to get worse before it gets better. Welcome to Bandster Hell... Do some "bandster hell" searches on LBT and you'll find lots of info - it's totally normal. Brad

Morning solids are tough here too. It gets easier as the day goes on and some nice warm coffee seems to help too. Brad

Hey welcome back! Now get back to the gym! Brad

Gilta, I hope everything went well for your husband. Keep us posted! Brad Start: 202 Current: 197 Change: -5 Left to goal: 10

That's true! I've walked past the mirror and thought, "Hey! WTH did that come from?" Brad

Ghosts? Did somebody say... Ghosts? :banghead: Brad

Have a great time on Kauai! What a beautiful place. Highly recommend the Waimea Canyon and a helicopter tour of the Na Pali coast and Mount Waialeale (sp?)... The latter is hailed as the wettest place on earth. Brad

I'm getting flashbacks of that show "Mama's Family"... Thelma Harper used to say that all the time... Brad