deckedout

Happy Thanksgiving to all. I am so thankful for this time with family and the focus on those we care about. If you are like me, and tend to PB make sure to go VERY SLOWLY with your food, spend the time listening to the conversation and talking with those you love!

Hi all, Chris you look great! Stephanie- I hope your review went well. I'm still swimming in the mornings but it is really hard some days to get up. I'm not losing much weigh, traveling between 166- 169. I'm starting to think I need another fill, but every time I think I'm just gonna call, something will get stuck and I'll PB. I can't need a fill if things still get stuck, can I?

Congrats Kari, You are doing great! :clap2: Today is my first day off, except for weekends in 10 weeks! Wow, I don't know how those of you who work year around do it. The pool is closed today, so if I'm gonna go in and work out, I have to do the threadmill, which I also like but the pool is better. Does anyone else find weekends to be harder than the week. During the week I'm so busy I can't think about anything. But on the weekends, I catch up on Tivo'd shows and sleep in late, wake up thinking about food and how i'm going to keep busy. Plus, the rain is pouring down is sheets here so it is dark and gloomy and just makes me want to laze around. For me, it has been 122 days since surgery. In that time, I have lost 30 lbs! I have gone from a tight 16 to a loose 12. I can now swim a mile in 50 minutes. I can walk for an hour at 3.4 mph. I wake up in the morning with energy, and sleep well each night. I feel proud of myself, and while I still don't think I look fantastic in the mirror, I am not embarrassed to see my reflection.I am much more confident in myself. I even went to speak to my principal about a new rule he had made for the school that I did not agree with, and while I was not able to get him to change his mind, I did let my voice be heard! Anyone else, we have been banded for 4 months. What has changed for you?

HI all, Beth, I am a 6th grade teacher of language arts and social studies at a middle school 6-8th grade. I also have 3 kids, 15, 18 and 21. Right now the 18 year old is at college, but comes home almost every other weekend to visit his girlfriend. My 21 year old joined the Navy and is living at home while waiting to be deployed. And my 15 year old is 15 and a boy, for what that is worth. Still swimming, ladies, join me, the second week was tough but its getting better Hubby is yelling be back later

Hi all, Well, I am extremely proud of myself! Although the weight is not coming off like I would like, I have REALLY upped my exercise level. I am able to swim a mile in the mornings in 45 minutes! I am really excited about this achievement as I used to swim all the time. I have been going at 5:30 am with my huge bag of supplies to get ready for work. I've been getting dressed at the club each morning after swimming. It really isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I roll out of bed and put my swimsuit and sweats on, jump in the car, and drive off. I have to plan my week's wardrobe on Sunday and have everything ready to go,but it is worth it. I have a friend at work who asks me every morning, "did you swim today?" and when I say yes she just gives me this big old smile and says, "good for you, your doing something for yourself." It makes me feel great! Anyway, just thought I'd share. I know I've toyed with the idea of working out in the morning for years and never done it til now, maybe someone else would like to give it a try!

I just got my first fill today from Dr. Fitzpatrick, and she is great. Both my DH and I went together, and she talked with us for a long time about what we were experiencing and what to expect as we travel on this journey. DH went first for his fill. He has a VG band which holds 10CC. Dr. Fitzpatrick does not use a flouro machine, although she kind of hinted that she wouldn't mind getting one at some point. So she had DH drink some Water, "to remember what it feels like" then started filling him up. They talked out what he was feeling and when he felt the water back up, she took some out and worked with it until he could feel the water go through the band. Then she had him drink some gulps of water and sit and drink water while it was my turn. He ended up with a fill of 4.6 cc. Next it was my turn. She had me lay on the table, I was quite a bit nervous and my blood pressure showed it. She didn't numb me, but found the port in 1 poke (same with DH). Once the needle was in, she helped me sit up and then started the fill, mine was done exactly the same was as DH, except that I couldn't feel it go through the port as much as backing up in the back of my throat. I ended up with 1.6 cc in a 10 CM band which holds 4cc. Since Dr. Fitzpatrick is leaving town on Sunday, she said she didn't want to be worried about us, so she gave us her cell phone number and asked us to call tomorrow, even if we feel great, just so she wouldn't wonder, isn't that great! Also, we had our bands done in Mx by Dr. Ortiz, and she was VERY impressed with how well they were done. The ports were easy to find (right below the port scar on the left hand side) and very easy to access. She said she would have to write Dr. Ortiz a letter and let him know what a great job he did! Today, we are on Clear liquids and tomorrow we start mushies for one day, then on to solids. The whole appointment took 1 1/2 hours, which I had planned on because she wanted to get through with everything. The filling of the port part probably took 10 minutes for me and 15 for DH. I think the cost is very resonable, and the care is excellent. The first visit was 180 and follow-ups are 165, plus if you have any questions at all we are supposed to call. I think that is great, since she is so close and our surgeon is so far away. all in all, it was an excellent experience. Both DH and I are doing great tonight and the poke didn't hurt anywhere near as much as I thought it would!

Hi all, I guess I haven't posted in a while, at least the computer said so. I have been doing pretty well. Friday was bad, we have breakfast every Friday morning and I have been avoiding it. Well, this week I decided to go. Big mistake. I was PBing for about half an hour. even had to run (really just a really fast walk) out of the classroom to the restroom. It was just scrambled eggs, but it did not work. I have to stick to my morning coffee. I am down again, have to update my ticker. I hit 168.0 this morning! Yeah, I have been stuck in the 170s for weeks. I am now my lowest in 10 Years! Oh, and last week I HAD to go buy size 12 dress pants for work cause the 14s were falling off. Now, mind you, the 12s are a little tight, but as I told my DH, no tighter than my 16s were before wls. I have been exercising about 4 times a week. This week, my plan is to add a morning swim at least 3 times a week and still do the afterschool workouts. Wish me luck. I am not a mornin person and I'll ;have to get up at 5:15 to do it!

Desiree- WOW! You are doing great! You're getting some nice curves goin' girl! Chris- you are really looking good too. You go! I got my fill yesturday. 1.0 so now I'm at 2.6. Still on liquids. It is getting close to TOM so she filled me a little tight to compensate for it. Dr. said I might have to spend a little extra time on liquids to make sure that it is still nice and snug after the bloat is gone. We shall see. I certaining hope so. DH got an additional fill also. He is now up to 9.9 in a VG band. Crazy. But the dr. said it can actually hold between 11 and 12 cc and this should make him nice and tight. I hope everyone is having a nice restful weekend.

Hello all, Life has been crazy busy for me lately. Went to the mountains last weekend to celebrate the 19th wedding aniversary. It was great fun. We went hiking and soaked in the hot tub. A family of 5 elk walked right next to our cabin! this week was really busy at work. I do great with eating all day, then night comes and I eat too much. DH and I went 3 days to the club and worked out walking and lifting weights. I have a fill scheduled for 12:30, but the strangest thing happened yesterday. This has NEVER happened before. When I ate lunch, everything was fine, but about 15 minutes later I noticed that it felt like food was in the back of my throat! I drank a little water but the feeling didn't go away. I lasted for about 5 hours! Like I said, I can usually eat anything. I've been wide open until yesterday. I have even put ON a little weight in the last couple weeks. I was 174 this morning. So I don't know why that happened but I'm going to talk the the doctor about it. I really think I need a fill, but yesterday was strange. On another note, my eyesight is getting better after the lasik surgery. I went for a check up on that and I am now seeing 20/20 with both eyes. YES! Keep up the exercise, it looks like everyone is doing great. Water exercise is exhausting. You can count it as 2 as long as you don't skip a class! I think housework and yard work qualify as exercise. Have a great day everyone.

How is the exercising going all? I walked two miles yesterday with DH. We walked down by the river, it was a beautiful day, about 80 and we celebrated our 19th anniversary! I need to go walking tonight. It is still warm out today so I think I'll take my puppy and walk for a while. Work has been keeping me incredibly busy. I worked 14 hours on Tuesday because of open house. Still, I am behind in all my grading. It seems to never end. I've read a great book called "Good in Bed" by Jennifer Weiner. Excellent story about a larger lady dealing with her issues about being big (she is a size 16 which isn't allthat big, but whatever). I highly recommend it. Our book club read it this month. "Marley and Me" is another great book for animal lovers. And, I love anything by Janet Evanovich. Funny, sexy, and interesting. Welcome to the newcomers! I've scheduled a fill. Stopped losing any weight and back up to 173 this morning. The Panda Express Experiment was a terrible failure. AVOID PANDA EXPRESS! Tastes great, but not worth the weight! It's almost October! Almost 3 months out for some of us. I'm a middle of the month baby bandster so I' currently at 2 1/2 months. Have a nice evening:nervous

Oops Stephanie, yea, I did think you meant physical shakes. sorry, I won't be so worried about you now though. Kari, sure enough I'm 5' 1 1/2 " so i'm into 14's. Actually, something great happened this morning. I went to put on a pair of 14s that were brand new, and they are too big. Actually, I don't remember when or where I bought them so I'm hoping that they shrink a little in the wash. Today's exercise was being a ref for 2 volleyball games. It took about 2 hours and I walk in between games. So, I figure I must have a half an hour of good exercise inthere. No sweat, but itdid tire me out. Got to go, good work ladies.

Stephanie- I don't know why you would be having shakes. Are you diabetic? I did TERRIBLE yesterday with my eating. I did go on a walk, which was great and got me to my 3X exercising this week. But, I tried Panda express, and sure enough I could eat the whole meal. My son, who was impatiently waiting for me to say I could eat no more was saddly disappointed.:nervous So, I guess I do need to schedule that fill. Although today I feel tighter than I did yesterday. Most likely I am a bit bloated from all the MSG. Congrats to all who met this weeks challenge. Should we try again for this week? 3X movement (I think shopping counts, as long as it is power shopping:biggrin1: ) for at least 30 minutes between 9/25 and 10/1! For me, I know I would have just sat on the couch instead of going for a walk if I wasn't reporting out to anyone. Today, I emptied my closet of all my size 16 and 1 and 2X shirts. It looks kind of bare in my closet but I'm hoping I'll be to 12s before I break down and buy too much.

I'm not doing so well. 173.1 on 9/22/06!

Today I went for a nice long, 1 hour, walk. It was great to get out after all the rain the last few days. Plus, it counts as day #2 of working out this week! We all still have2 more days to meet the challenge. Come on, Let’s go. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p> </o:p> Kari, Glad to read that you are feeling better. My DD has been sick the past few days. She went to the dr. and discovered she had a fever of 101. I’m a terrible mother, I can never even find a working thermometer, I’m one of those people who never gets a fever. One time my son was not feeling well (the one in college now) and after about 3 days I finally took him to the dr.; turned out he had a fever of 102, the old back of the hand or lips on the forehead strategy does not work with him, I had forgotten because he is so rarely sick. :sick <o:p> </o:p> He has decided to do the RANGER CHALLENGE at college. <o:p> </o:p> For me, the challenge today was jogging across 6 lanes of traffic as the light was turning red ( I made it) That is another word for interval training. When you are walking up to a walk light that is about to change and you jog across to make the light! <o:p> </o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Leona- 16 lbs in a month! That is great. You probably don’t need a fill yet.:biggrin1: <o:p> </o:p> I have lost 6 lbs from my last fill. Last night I was able to eat about 6 oz of roast, ½ cup carrots, and a baked potato. I think I need a fill. Sometimes I still feel things starting to get stuck, especially at lunch time, we get a half an hour to get the kids out of our room, cook the lunch, and eat. I think I eat too fast. At dinner I can eat a lot. I thought I would try Panda Express Orange Chicken, which gave me a lot of trouble before. If I can eat that, I need a fill! <o:p> </o:p> Ruthie, no exercise yet this week, that’s okay. Maybe tomorrow, otherwise, next week is a whole new week. Walking was nice for me this week (the 2 times I actually did it) I had time to think about things, and I felt really good about myself when I was done. However, some days, I just can’t get myself to do it. I think that is okay. Don’t add more stress to your life! <o:p> </o:p> Stefani, Two gold stars for you. The treadmill and the bike in one night! Excellent!

Well, I haven't moved much today or yesterday. We discovered yesterday morning that my DS had taken ALL of his brother's jeans with him to college:speechles So, after working all day I got to go shopping, but it was just a quick trip into the store and out again. So, since it was raining, and late when I got home I didn't make it out. Today, I tried to enroll my puppy in dog obedience classes, but they were full! THen I had to go shopping, and again it was pouring ( I love Washington in Fall!) so I didn't go out again. Tomorrow, I am the lineman Ref at the school volleyball game. Do you think that will count? I'll have to see how much work it is, I've never done it before. On a good note, I found some great fish to make for dinner. I got the Herb and Garlic Talipia at Walmart. Yummmmm. It was great. Anyone else moving? Except those of you who are sick, you should be resting!

Hubby needed to go back in on sept. 11 for additional fill, he could still eat too much. We had to take our son to college over the weekend so Hubby went to Eugene to get his fill. He is now up to 7.1 in a VG band. Dr. Fitzpatrick said if he was over full she would meet him in Portland VERY EARLY on Friday morning because we had to drive our DS to college and leave early in the morning because we were going all the way to cheney, WA almost 6 hours away. We didn't need it as DH feels his restricition is perfect, but just thought that she would accomidate her schedule to ours was fantastic, I plan on another fill aroound the 7th because I'm not losing weight, but DH only had to pay 30 for a refill, I'll be at 165 for mine because I had restriction but need a new fill. Hubby is really restricted and I can eat more than him! that is embarrassing.

Bummer, the computer is showing you that I am cheating and using word to spell check my posts before I post them. And here I thought I'd trick you all into think I was really smart!

Wow Stephanie, <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p> </o:p> You are looking great. You have beautiful blue eyes and great teeth. I’m stupid because I always notice those things. I’ve got brown eyes, which aren’t’ bad but event after 3 years of braces My teeth aren’t straight and I am missing one. Your smile is Wowwzers! You are looking sooooo good, and HAPPY! Congratulations! I love your outfit in today’s picture, you are so confident looking

Okay, how is everyone doing with the exercise challenge today?:guess <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p> </o:p> I walked for 40 minutes with my Boston terrier. My puppy, Emma,( a Lhasa Opso), wanted to come too, but if I walk the two together they try their hardest to trip me up. Anyway, I could hear her barking and whining as I walked K.C., so I might have to take her for a short walk to make up for it. <o:p> </o:p> Stephanie- my hubby has 7.1 in a VG band, and he is really restricted, which he really likes. He needs the negative reinforcement when he eats something he shouldn’t, like nacho cheese flavored Doritos. <o:p> </o:p> Michelle, break out the tape measurer, it is very encouraging, just don’t compare yourself to ANYONE, hide the list if you have to. :eek: When I realized I had lost 5 inches off my belly, wow! That made me feel great, it didn’t matter that the scale wasn’t moving. Okay, I’m a liar, it mattered, but at least I could say to myself that I had lost 5 inches. <o:p> </o:p> I always wonder why the inches go away faster than the pounds. You know how they say when you exercise and don’t lose weight that you are gaining muscle. Well, I must be the most muscular person in the world because I rarely lost weight working out before the band. :biggrin1: (Well, to be honest, if I burn 250 calories working out, that means it is okay to be extra hungry and have a second helping at dinner, right?):omg: <o:p> </o:p> Chris, sorry, it appears you are the only male currently posting. I know we did have more. What happened to Fisherman? He was banded the day after me (or maybe the day before, I was drugged at the time) :faint: by Dr. Ortiz and he was posting. I know there were others, probably they have already lost all the weight they needed to, like you Chris, so they no longer feel the need to post. That is how it is with guys!:heh: <o:p> </o:p> Ruthie, I hope this caregiver works out. I can only imagine how difficult it must be for you. I have a friend at work who is caring for her 91 year old mother. I don’t know how she does it either. There is a special place for those who give so much of themselves. I will pray that you have the strength to last 363 days X what ever you need. <o:p> </o:p> All right ladies, let’s get out an move!:clap2:

Hello to all! Well, I just got back from dropping off my son. yuck, I got misty eyed quite a few times, but did not totally break down and cry, yet. The worst part is walking around the house and seeing the stuff that he left, and baggingg it up. I know he'll be back at Thanksgiving, but man, that is a long way away.:faint: Anyhow, we (DH) and I did a terrible job of eating on the trip, although DH got a fill last Tuesday, up to 7.1 in a 10 cc band:nervous , and is now experiencing restriction. I think the travelling messed with weightloss. Right now I'm waiting for TOM to start so I can start loosing weight again. I think I'm gonna schedule a fill for Oct. 7th. I can now eat a least double what Hubby can, and that is embarrassing! Challenge: Everyone should try to get in SOME exercise at least 3X this week of at least a half an hour. Let's keep track, if I'm not accountable in any way, I won't do it, especially cause the rain is coming back here too.

Sherri, Wait til then end of your TOM then the weight will probably be gone, and maybe even more! Remember the bloat! I know my friend is about to visit a well, and I can tell. Plus I'm craving salty things and I'm sure that is helping the bloat. This too shall pass. Well, this week has gone pretty well. I went for long walks on Monday and Tuesday after work and yesterday the whole family went bowling. I bowled a 76! yeah Tomorrow my DH, son, and I make the 5 hour one way drive to drop the boy off at college. Presently, his sister is in the process of moving back home (her roommate stole the rent money and took off!) so things are crazy here, but if it wasn't for all the excitement life would be boring! Hope everyone had a good week and is planning on doing something fun this weekend. We'll be going to a football game between my son's new school and and DH and my almamater.

Stephanie, I just noticed, you've lost 51 lbs! WOW. Not only do you never have to say 300 again, you don't even have to say 290! Way to go girl!

OMG, Michelle that is soooo funny! You must be a hoot to be around on a regular basis. I went for a long walk today with my two dogs. Neither walks well at all on a leash, so I couldn't walk very fast or risk death as they both worked their hardest to trip me up, or stop and smell every blade of grass in the city. Indian, sorry about all the family and job stuff, that is tough, why does everything bad seem to happen at the same time. But the shorts, wow, 2 sizes, excellent.

I'm in too, I was 173.3 this AM.

Kari, I went for a nice long walk this evening. About an hour and a half. Had to wait for the rain to stop but at least it wasn't 100 degrees. Bought myself a new outfit from the mall. I went down a full pant size, so that is very exciting. Thought I deserved something new to wear to work. Chris, way to lose the weight. My DH has "only" lost 40, but he is getting a refill on Tuesday, so hopefully he'll start losing like you are.