ElfiePoo

This is too funny! I don't own any sweatshirts and needed something warm to wear outside this morning to shovel snow. So I raided my husband's closet hoping he'd have an oversized sweatshirt I could squeeze into. Not only did I find a sweatshirt but I didn't have to 'squeeze'! It fits me 'perfectly' (but it is a bit big on him). Ten or 15 more pounds and I can fit in his heavy flannel shirts. Woohoo! The look on his face when he finally 'noticed' I was wearing his shirt was priceless! .

What restrictions do you think you can't live with? .

I just thought I'd put this out there for any interested. A few years back I had great success with this very simplified version of the Rice House Diet. Obviously there are many many more choices you can make regarding food, but this is what worked best for me. I know 'rice diet' sounds like a fad diet but it's really just a very healthy vegetarian way of eating. It's a low fat, low sodium diet and the calories run roughly 1200-1300 per day. Breakfast -2/3 cup of rice & Beans 2 small fruit OR 3 cups of low carb vegies (raw...half that if cooked) OR 1 fruit and 2 cups vegies (raw) lunch and dinner are the same thing. I usually would save one of my fruits and eat it mid-meal as a snack. I lost 9 lbs in one week and 5 lbs the following week. I was never hungry, most likely because the beans and rice make a complete Protein. Here's my bean & rice basic recipe: Saute 1 med. onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic in 2 tsp olive oil. Toss in three 15 oz cans of beans (rinsed) and 3 cups of cooked brown rice. Pour in enough low sodium chicken broth to cover. Add spices and bring to simmer. Turn off and add any additional ingredients you'd like (e.g. cilantro) From here you can get adventurous depending on your mood of the day. Here are some varieties we've tried: Southwestern: 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp cumin. Add a handful of chopped cilantro after it comes to a simmer. Spanish: Before adding chicken broth, toss in a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes (we puree them because my son hates tomato bits). Then add chicken broth to cover and 1 tsp oregano, 2 tsp basil or just a tablespoon of McCormack's Italian seasoning. We like to mix up the beans as well. I'll use 2-3 different kinds of beans in a batch which might include pinto, red beans, kidney beans, black beans, garbanzo beans and, when I remember to make them ahead of time because they're dried...Jacob's cattle beans. .

I decided to start this tonight and am here to say I had 'no problem' eating the rice. What I do is take a slotted spoon and scoop out 2/3 cup of the mixture *without* the broth. The broth is just flavoring. As I took that last bite, I reached the point where I felt full. Good timing. As I did in the past, I'm not going to eat my vegies or fruit with my meal. Instead, I'll wait for 2.5 hours and have a whole pear (sans skin since I have problem with the skin) which counts as two fruits (which I'm allotted with my meal). We'll see if I'm able to eat the whole thing. I have to say I'm looking forward to this since I feel so much more energetic even by the 2nd day. .

Susan, Hang in there. You can push your doctor for fills every 2 weeks. I had my surgery on 11/3/09 and my first fill of 3cc exactly 4 weeks later. Then another 3cc fill two weeks after that. another 1cc over the next two weeks and then they started doing .5cc since I was getting close...but again every two weeks. I had my 6th fill last Thursday, only a week after the one before because it was apparent I had no restriction again, and am now at 8.5cc and <knock on wood> have hit the sweet spot. Over the last two weeks I've lost about 8 pounds and it's all due to the band stopping me from eating to excess. You'll get there but you have to be patient *and* make your doctor do fills every 2 weeks if you need them. .

As a diabetic, I was a bit worried about the carbs as well, but surprisingly, they weren't an issue. I didn't get that carb overload feeling that I normally would get after eating this many carbs and I my sugar readings didn't spike like I thought they would. I think we each have unique nutritional requirements which is why some people do well on a low carb and some don't and why some do well on a high carb and others don't. The trick for each of us is to find a healthy pattern of eating that we can stick with...a lifestyle change rather than diet. I agree it is very restrictive which is why I didn't last beyond two weeks the last time. The difference for me this time is that I have restriction and couldn't quit and eat out now even if I wanted to. Which brings me to a possible dilemma. I haven't yet tried eating the rice or Beans since my last fill and the only reason I'm considering it at all is because my 17 year old wants to go on it again and won't without a 'buddy'. Here's hoping I can still eat the rice. Oh and by the way...rice and beans when combined are a complete source of Protein...or so I've read.

I was told not to eat for an hour after a meal. Again, you don't want to help your food slide through too quickly, but also your pouch at that point should be full and to add liquid in on top may be enough to start you PBing and sliming. Not a nice end to a meal. .

I read somewhere that stress also causes your body to deposit your fat in your belly...something about cortisol, I think. I know I'm going to need a tummy tuck...I'm just not sure I'm going to do it. I'm 53 and it's not like I ever plan on wearing a bikini (or even a bathing suit) in public so I'm thinking one of those body shapers. I've heard good things about them. .

Awwww...that is so cute! And much nicer than a 17 year old son who tells me that if I could staple my arms to my sides, I could do the whole flying squirrel thing. :rolleyes2: .

Up until the last week or so, it was all in my boobs, hips and legs. I'm *finally* losing the stomach. I don't know how much of that is due to my insulin resistance. I know when you're insulin resistant, you tend to hold a lot of belly fat and it's only in the last month that my sugar levels have come down to the point where I'm becoming less insulin resistant. .

I use brown rice. Right now I have something I bought from Trader Joe's that's organic, but I've used regular Uncle Ben's brown rice...not the instant stuff. I just take small bites, chew well and then put my fork down and wait a minute or so between bites. .

Yep, it's normal. My port 'bothered' me in one way or another for about 8 weeks. Then, just as they predicted, it no longer did and I barely remember it's there. .

Todd, the fill isn't awesome...*you* are. Your progress has been amazing! Keep up the good work! .

Yes this is normal. It's not the band that gives you restriction, it's the fill. You may not even have restriction after your first, second or third fills, depending on how much/little your doctor puts in. I have 12cc band and had no restriction after my first fill of 3cc and a second fill of 3cc. In fact, even at 7.5cc I did not have restriction. Now, at 8.5cc I do. You should be able to go in every 2 weeks for a fill until you get to restriction. How soon you get to restriction is up to you. Don't let it be up to an arbitrary schedule set by the doctor.

Running at 225 pounds would cause far more harm to my joints than any benefit I could get out of running, but I'm up for 'walking'. My husband and his 80 year old mother have decided they want to walk the Mackinaw bridge next Labor Day (5 miles I think) and, as much as I intensely hate crowds, I'd like to do it with them. So I'm in. .

Here's the website. As for should we be doing it...the first line on the site says it all: Have you lost control of your weight loss surgery tool? Generally when it is suggested that someone does a pouch test, it's because that person has fallen away from what they're supposed to be doing and this is just a good way to get them back to it. When I found myself losing my way, I did a cleansing fast for 3 days. I think it's whatever works for you. .

Welcome to the club. But you have to admit, the pain is a great reminder to chew, eh? :thumbup: .

Prior to my last fill...tacos from Taco Bell. Now ground beef gives me difficulty so it's a baked potato with broccoli and cheese from Wendy's. I'm with Jachut though. Lately, when we've been out during mealtime and my husband asks if I want to eat at one of the fast food places, I decline. I'd rather go home and not waste my calories on something that's just way inferior to what I can make myself. If I'm just patient for half an hour, I can make a small baked potato with broccoli and cheese (and it's real cheese!) at home. .

Yes, I get full from slider foods...but it's the kind of full I got preband. In other words, I'm only full after I've eaten way more than I should have. I bought some Gorton seasoned fish fillets and I just pop one in the oven when it's just me. It's a simple enough thing to steam some broccoli (just do extra and you can heat it up for another meal) or open up a can of vegies or even have some type of salad for the vegies. A baby yukon gold potato is the perfect size for us and cooks quickly in the oven or microwave or even boiled. Small skillet steaks, thin pork chops...all cook quickly in a pan. My favorite is to take a chicken breast and slice it in half horizontally so it's thin (or buy chicken tenders - a filet of the best part of the breast), brown it up quickly, pour a bit of salsa over it and let it simmer for a few minutes. I find it helps with the dryness of the chicken so it goes down a bit easier. No, slider means exactly that. It's sliding through your band and that's why you're 'famished' when you eat them. You need to stay away from them. I find that I need to avoid casseroles because they're slider foods for me. Actually, anything with too much liquid is a slider. For example, I mix a bit of lite mayo with chopped up chicken or tuna and make tuna salad. A little moistens it and makes it taste better. Too much and it becomes a slider food.

When I forget, my husband very quietly leans over and slides my glass of water to his place setting so I won't forget and inadvertently sip the water. .

I am a diabetic and have been giving myself injections for a couple years (but soon to be a think of the past...yeah!) so the *idea* of doing my own fills isn't a scary thing. I know where my port is and I'm sure they could train me to do it. That said, I'm not interested. Mainly because as someone else said, the temptation to 'tweak' so I could have a day of eating or 'tweak' so I couldn't eat anything (to make up for it) would be too great. I'll let the professionals do what they do best. Love this thread. Some of the responses have been hysterical, although I admit that those who took them seriously were even more so. :thumbup:

OMG...ROFLMAO!!! Best response yet! This one is going to keep my snickering all day! .

Sometimes we even have to 'fire' friends and family. I had to do this with a friend of 25 years (completely different reasons) and for a long while I was so depressed at the thought that I had been misled for so many years by someone who wasn't really a true friend. I finally realized that they were, but people do change and sometimes that green eyed monster of jealousy can grab on to someone so tightly that they become a completely different person than the one you were friends with. I am sorry at the loss of your friendship, but glad you are confident and strong enough to recognize an unhealthy relationship and move on. :thumbup: .

LOL...sitting home and eating out of boredom *and* not burning any calories is definitely worse. We're having another snow day today because it snowed through the night. My exercise this morning is to shovel my way through a foot of snow to my car, clean off both cars, shovel two car sized spaces in the back of the drive and then move the cars so the plow can make it around our 'long' horseshoe shaped drive. Fortunately, the snow is somewhat light still so it shouldn't be overstrenuous. Not even a snowball's chance in hell of going anywhere and wouldn't matter if I could. Everything is shut down due to the storm. .

Most likely a combination of both. There's nothing people find more attractive than a self-confident, happy person. Ever notice that when you walk around with a smile on your face and a skip in your step (figuratively), you get more people saying 'hello' or giving you a smile? I have a bright yellow (crayon yellow) pair of Crocs that are my favorites and when I put them on, they make me smile...and I've noticed that, on those days, I get far more smiles and nods from strangers. As for not going out...c'mon...are you going to let a 'little' snow keep you from your city tour? Get out the snowshoes! :thumbup: .