purplemonkey

Karen, Did your doctor say why no rice? Virginia

Oh that is so great Alexandra! I'm glad things went well and I'm sure you will be so relieved when your new band is in place. Good luck. Virginia

Alexandra, can you tell me when they are? I know there are two monthly in Florham Park...is it the first and third wednesday? And I think there was also a second support group that met at the inn where the seminar was? I'm a little foggy...I attended the seminar last August. I hope you are feeling better. I've been looking around to see how your surgery went. Were they able to replace your band? Virginia

Hi. I was just wondering if anyone has ever been banded and just lived with the band, as is, never getting a filll. virginia

Does anyone here go to the Dr's Abkin/Bertha support meetings?

I take a centrum chewable, 1000 mg vitamin c (1/2 with my multi vit and 1/2 with my iron pills cuz it helps absorb the iron better), 1000mg B12, Iron, Biotin and I really need to add a calcium supplement!

For me it's evening grazing. I have dinner about 5:30 and by 9 or so I'm wanting more. I'll have a mini bag of popcorn or a sf pudding cup or both sometimes. I hate that because it is adding about 160 calories to my daily intake that I otherwise wouldn't have. cheese sticks are a great idea. And those sf fudgsicles are yummy. Good Luck BetsyJane.

Thanks Sugarbear! Definitely happy about the now-44 pounds. I'm just so amazed. I've never had so much success. I went to work out at the gym for the first time today and OMG! I've never used an elliptical before and I must have looked like such a dork. LOL I spent about 10 or so minutes stopping and starting and I was going so slow that the machine kept thinking I was stopping and would pause itself. I was thinking oh brother! but I was trying to keep my heart rate in the 150's because that was recommended for people in their 30's. So...then I did a mile on the exercise bike. I hear you with the knee injury Karen. I have one too and it was a bit hard on the bike. I had to pull the seat close enough to follow through with the peddles but bending my left knee that tightly on the way back up is rough. It's probably best to get your strength back up before you do anything too strenuous. That elliptical machine was awesome. I hope someday I can conquer that and rage on it like the other gymsters do. My god, they go crazy on it and for a very long time too. Sigh... Soon, I hope. It's an icky day here in jersey...pouring rain and windy and cold.

Gosh, I'm sorry you were so sick! It does sound like it was a 24 hour bug or something. How awful. I'm glad you are starting to feel a little better now. Ha! You are so funny...allergic to exercise. Wouldn't that be a great excuse not to do it. I'll be starting excercising this week but I have tried to do more walking and moving in my daily life. Every little bit helps right? I can totally understand the soreness in your legs. Have you considered an exercise bike instead of walking. It's a little gentler. or an elliptical trainer?

One of my lean cuisine entrees had a little bit of rice and it didn't cause a problem for me. Today I bought those little Success Rice cups that you just microwave. I got the wild rice and brown rice. We'll see how it goes.

Thanks Karen!! Oh you will love your first meal! I hope those 10 days go really fast for you. What do you think you will eat? For me, I had a beautiful piece of salmon. I swear it was the best thing I ever tasted. :mad: I'm a lot heavier than you, and I'm figuring that's why I've lost more. Who knows. It's definitely not something I could have done without this glorious band though. No regrets, for sure! Keep up the great work yourself, Karen! How are you feeling otherwise? Have you started to exercise? Virginia

Hi everyone. Just checking in to see/read how y'all are doing. Sounds like for the most part you are all doing really well. Bravo! I'm doing pretty well. Like others who have posted, I have been able to eat anything I've tried without problem. I'm leary of bread, although I did have a lean cuisine pizza in an effort to satisy my pizza craving. I'm 43 pounds down since my surgery and boy would I love to lose another 7 pounds by one month anniversary on April 19th to make it 50. I'm not holding my breath though. :mad: Any amount of loss is great. Port pain still here too. The pain seemed more frequent this week but it could just be that I'm feeling better and doing more. I'm sure I still look hysterical when I'm "trying" to tie my left sneaker. At least it's not as painful as it was. Is anyone else using fitday.com to keep track of what you eat? I've been using it about a week and it is really helpful. Virginia

Salmon, pizza and yes, chocolate. creamy, delicious chocolate. mmmmm

When I saw my doctor for my post-op appt, he said it was ok to do weightlifting. I was so excited about that, I forgot to ask him about sit-ups. How soon are y'all doing ab exercises? Virginia

My suggestion is Protein protein protein. It keeps me full the longest...chili, cottage cheese, milk, fish, etc... http://www.womens-health-fitness.com/high-protein-foods.html http://heartspring.net/list_of_high_protein_foods.html Virginia

Hi Pam. I buy mine at the Vitamin Shoppe. They are called New-Whey liquid protein and come in 25g or 42g tubes. I've tried the grape, fruit punch and orange. Orange was by far the worst. It was just way toooo sweet. If the Vitamin Shoppe doesn't have them you can also get them online at http://store.bariatriceating.com/conewwhlipr.html The only thing is that you have to buy them by the 12pack, which you may not want to do until you've sampled the flavors. Hopefully your vitamin shoppe will have them! I get 'em for $2.99 each. Virginia

Women should go for 60grams a day? Is that enough?

Janine, I also just started on regular foods. I try and eat things with lots of protein and it keeps me full for a really long time. Today I got a small Wendy's chili with cheese and onion and OMG it was SO good and filled me up for about 4 hours. Maybe if you went with more beans, cottage cheese and skim plus milk, which has extra protein, it might help your hunger cravings. One thing that has helped me in the morning are the 42g protein test tubes. I've never been a big breakfast eater, so on my nightstand i keep one of those protein test tubes and before I even stand up I drink half of it. This gives me about 90 calories and 21 grams of protein right off the bat. While I'm getting ready for work I try to drink 16oz of water and then I grab a yogurt of a smoothie on my way out the door. Dannon light n fit strawberry smoothies are great and are only 60 calories. For lunch I'll usually have one of those soup at hands and an applesauce. For dinner a lean cuisine meal. For a snack a sugar free pudding cup and then the rest of that protein test tube. It really seems like all I do is eat or drink. I love the pre-measured stuff because then I really can't overeat. What do you typically eat in one day? Virginia

I was told that our bodies can only absorb 20-25 grams of Protein at a time, which is why i split those 42gram test tubes into two doses, one in the morning and one in the evening... My question is this: if on day one i get 30g of protein and the next day I get 90g...does it all equal out in the end? will my body be negatively affected by not getting enough protein on day one? or will it not matter as long as I get it all in within a few days? ...hope that makes sense. Thanks, Virginia

You can also find the test tubes at Vitamin Shoppe. They sell them individually so you are not stuck with a 12pack of the same flavor you may not like. So far I've tried orange, grape and fruit punch. The orange is wayyyyy too sweet for me. I like the grape because it's more dulled down...not as sweet.

Don't worry! When I had my surgery a few weeks ago my stomach was swollen and I was not hungry at all. Really over the course of the first week it was all I could do to make sure I got enough Water. I was a little hungry for the second week but broth and Jello and Protein supplements were more than enough to satisfy. I bet you'll be fine! Good luck with your surgery. ...the waiting really is the hardest part. Virginia

After I eat I'm full for 4 or 5 hours so I'm having trouble getting in more than 800-900 calories and 65 grams of protein each day. I read on other threads that calorie intake doesn't matter so much as long as you are getting your protein. Do you think that's true? Since I'm going to start cardio and weight lifting on Monday I figure I'll need more calories coming in but not sure how to do it. I don't want to overstretch my pouch and eat when I'm not hungry...Any suggestions? My typical day of eating is: Breakfast: Dannon light n fit smoothie or cottage cheese and a cup of skim plus milk Snack: natural applesauce cup and a cup of skim plus milk Lunch: soup at hand creamy chicken soup Dinner: Lean Cusine entree Snack: sugar free pudding cup I supplement my protein with a 42gram protein test tube, and drink at least 64oz of water. Mini Victory on April 5th! Saw my doc for my post-op appointment and in the two and a half weeks since surgery I've lost 38 pounds. I've been dancing on air every since. Who would think someone could be deliriously happy to weigh 351 pounds! Thanks! Virginia

I've just been allowed to go to soft foods, so for me I'm going to have scrambled eggs for breakfast and a beautiful piece of salmon for dinner. Can't Wait!!

Hey all. I'm due to be banded on March 19th, God willing. :girl_hug: The nutritionist at my preop class stressed the importance of getting the required protein and vitamins but never made any mention of how many calories we should be aiming for. I'm more concerned with getting ENOUGH calories than too many. Should I aim for 1200-1500 per day? Is it hard to get that many in during the full liquid stage? Would appreciate any input or guidance. :cake: Thanks!!

I'm sitting here studying the nutrition facts on my 16oz container of Friendship whipped cottage cheese. If you ate the entire container it would be 360 calories, 12 carbs, 12 grams of sugar, and 64 grams of protein. I guess if you just spread one container out through your day that would take care of all your protein requirements, without a gazillion calories either!