btrieger

The going price is $199 at bodybug.com. It has been the best investment I have made in years. Counting calories makes a lot more sense when you know what you are burning as well as consuming.

Nope. I Started the process in September and am hopefully being banded in February. I have absolutely no desire or intention to continue doing what got me to this point and could possibly cause my surgery to be delayed. It's referred to as "Last Supper Syndrome" and there is nothing constructive about it.

I'm shooting for the moon and a BMI of 25 or less. The quotes below, say it all: David J. Schwartz "Think little goals and expect little achievements. Think big goals and win big success." Charles C. Noble "You must have long term goals to keep you from being frustrated by short term failures."

It depends where your fat is located. My 200 pounds is all located in my midsection and the only extra skin I plan on seeing is my do-lap (it do-lap over my belt.) Others have it through out their bodies. It is most noticeable when it is under the arms (bingo wings) or in the boobs. Who said you can't learn anything watching reality TV? I got this on The Biggest Loser.

Welcome and here: BariatricEating.com Health & Nutrition - Bariatric Recipes Someone posted that the other day. You'll never need another recipe.

Contact a local bariatric surgeon in your area and make an appointment for a consultation. There is a link for surgeons at the top of the page here. The visit should only cost you a copay. The surgeon will give you a high level description of the process and what is to be expected. He will also tell you if you are a good candidate for the lapband. Their will be a specialist(s) in the surgeon's office that will be familiar with your insurance company and they will tell you exactly what needs to be done. Usually a 3 - 6 month supervised diet where you log everything you eat; log what exercise you do and meet with a nutritionist once a month. The nutritionist should give you pointers on eating right and how you'll have to eat once banded. See a psycologist for a psyche evaluation. Participate in a sleep study. It's a little overwhelming but the supervise diet period gives you plenty of time to think it over. I'm in North Texas so I can't give you any recommendations for surgeons or shrinks.

Great site. Thanks!

I started at 365 and come Hell or high Water, I am going to reach my 170 pound goal. The surgeon gave me the same spiel about losing 50-60% of the extra weight but that is the average. That includes the people that think the band is a magic wand and only lose a couple of pounds or even gain weight because they don't follow the rules or give up. I can't speak from experience yet, I won't be banded until February but check back with me at this time next year. :thumbup:

That is what is scaring me. I know have that relationship with food. I don't eat just to get full. I eat because food is delicious and I can't get enough of it. Not only do I love to eat, but I love to cook. Thank god my roommate is a human dumpster and will eat anything I don't finish. Needless to say, he doesn't gain a pound doing it. I'm a meat and potatoes guy and have cut down my portions in preparation for banding. So far, so good.

Ground turkey is still cheaper than quality ground beef but the jury is still out on whether it is better for you or not.

Thinking about changing my name to "The Bitter Bandster"

I have my final pre-surgery nutritionist appointment on Wednesday and my paperwork is being submitted to Aetna after my final pre-surgery consult with the surgeon on January 6th. I have been reading these boards almost religiously since September to get an idea of what to expect. Surprisingly, it seems that many of the people that been banded have more questions than I do. I've put together a list of pet peeves I have on this site. If one or more of them sounds like you and you are offended; frankly, I don't care. Save your breath. :thumbup: 1. The following 3 questions are asked all of the time and there should be a canned response: Q1: I've had my band for a while. Why I am not losing weight? Q2: Will I lose weight after I get fills? Q3: How long after I get banded will I start losing weight? The band and fills do not directly affect your weight loss. If you don't change your eating habits and start exercising, the band probably won't work for you. 2. This is the latest I have been seeing and I just want to strangle the posters: "I'm afraid I will have loose skin." Yo! You are morbidly obese and looking at an early grave. Do you really think that "bingo wings" or saggy boobs are any less attractive than blubber? Worry about the weight first. The plastic surgeon can fix the rest afterward if need be. 3. Another favorite: "I was recently banded and can still eat as much as I want." Perhaps you should have done a little research before having surgery and a foreign object implanted in your body! Little or no restriction is realized until you have a fill or 2. Meanwhile, just because you can eat everything in sight, doesn't mean you have to. Try using just a little bit of willpower. 4. "I cheated on pre-surgery diet" Do you understand that you're undergoing surgery that will require you to modify your eating habits for the rest of your life? If you can't control yourself for a week or two maybe you should rethink getting a LAP-BAND®. 5. Women replying in the men's forum. Ladies, when a man asks a question in "The Men's Room"; he is most likely looking for advice from men. If not, he would have posted it in the general discussion forum. I better quit before I get in trouble O.K., one more and perhaps the most minor of them all; we do not "loose" weight. We may have loose skin after losing weight but we do not "loose" weight.

Before I started losing weight prior to banding, I confirmed that the starting weight would be what was sent to the insurance company. I wanted to make sure that if I lost a bunch of weight on my own it wouldn't be held against me. He said that losing weight ahead of time is great because it shrinks the liver and shows that you have the attitude required for the lapband.

It takes time to stretch your pouch. One meal isn't going to do it. Check out these threads: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f178/how-can-does-pouch-stretch-64748/ http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f78/possible-pouch-stretch-104800/

Think of it this way: for every extra calorie you eat, it will take that much longer to burn it off. I wasn't tempted on thanksgiving and I don't think xmas will be any harder.

My insurance company paid $480 on top of my $20 copay. So $500. I'm in the wrong business :biggrin:

It's not all about what or even how much you are eating. How much exercise are you getting and how much water are you drinking?

Just go to weather.com and look at the records for any area. The high and low temperature records date back a hundred years a lot of the time. Global warming is just the latest fad. When I was a kid we had crying indians.

It worked and we all could have replied but we just would have been repeating what Tina said. :sad:

To each their own. If I didn't watch stuff like TBL, I may not have found the motivation to go for it myself. I sit there thinking, "if they can do it, I can too!"

Go to your insurance company's website. It has to be there somewhere. That comorbidity stuff is usually for those under 40 BMI. Have you had your sleep test? Are you sure you don't have sleep apnea?

Her second November should have been a December. Making it 5 weeks after surgery.

Not banded yet but it's looking like it will be 5 months. Initial consult was September 18th and I am hoping for surgery in early February.

3 ounces of 99% fat free turkey breast is only 90 calories and contains less than 1 gram of fat. I like the taste of turkey more than beef and the only time I have ground beef is when I am at a cookout.

I am obsessed with counting thing things. Whether it be calories; the number of traffic lights I pass every day on the way to work; the number of days I've been alive; etc... This is why the Bodybugg intrigues me so. OCD doesn't always mean washing your hands a thousand times.