LoseIt!

You are doing great! I know it is hard to be patient, but it is so good to be going in the right direction. Keep it up!

I'm back in town after visiting family since Wednesday. I'm proud to say that I lost 3.6 lbs this week...yay!!! So, I am averaging 1.95 lbs lost per week since the surgery. I'm SO happy for that! I thought being away from home would be more of a challenge, but it wasn't bad. Wednesday, I flew into Indianapolis and then drove to Louisville. I had a smoothie before I left and ate about 2 oz of chicen and some cheese and pita chips on the plane. For dinner we had ham steak and potato casserole. I also worked about about 40 minutes on the Wii Fit. I enjoy the Wii a lot, but I don't get my heart rate up as high as when I work out in other ways. Still, exercise!! Thursday, I woke up VERY late (yay, vacation!) and drank a smoothie. My SIL came home from work and we had some homemade chicken salad on crackers. Then we went the YMCA to work out. I did 25 minutes on the stairmaster, then 20 minutes on the treadmill. I would walk one song (3.0 mph) then jog one song (4.0 mph). Not too bad! Dinner was smoked sausage and leftover potato casserole. I also had some ice cream before I went to bed. :smile: Friday, I had another smoothie when I got up. There is a really cool 2.0 mile outdoor trail near my brother's house, so I went there. I walked one song/jogged one song for 1.5 miles. Then I was pooped. I walked to the 1.8 mile marker and challenged myself to jog just one more tenth. I made it! Then walked the last tenth. Excellent! I had a Deli Creation Cracker Combination for lunch, then some ground beef & bean nachos for dinner. Saturday was my grandmother's funeral. ALL of the family was there and she looked lovely. I'm sure she would have been quite pleased. After the service, we gathered at a nearby hotel. The kids were playing in the pool and I notice an exercise room that overlooked the pool. I put on my workout clothes and did my first "Couch to 5K" podcast. I had tried it before a few weeks ago, but I just wasn't ready. I think I am now. My SIL challenged me to jog a 5K around Labor Day, so that is my new goal! That day my walking pace was 3.5 mph and my jogging pace was 4.6 mph. Hopefully I can increase those as I go forward. At the very beginning of my exercise commitment (almost 3 months ago), 3.0 mph WAS jogging!! I love my family, but one thing I noticed this weekend is that we are a BIG family. My brother and one cousin are what I would call thin. Another girl cousin is "normal", but I know she REALLY has to work at it. A couple of my guy cousins are chubby. The rest (including me) of us are huge. it puts things into perspective for me. I believe that I was dealt these genes and it does make things more difficult. But I know that just means that I have to work that much harder. Did I want to eat a cream cheese danish for breakfast yesterday? Hell yes! But I know that I can't and so it made it easier. I told most of my family about my surgery. I think that many of them could benefit from it themselves and I thought I could be proof. I hope that next time I see them, I will be one of the skinny cousins! :biggrin: Have a great week, y'all!

Last week I was completely grumpy and in a bad mood. I had several pity parties and woke up with a lovely pity party hangover on Monday. Monday is my official weigh in day and although I lost .8 lbs, I know that without caving in to feeling sorry for myself, I would have done better. I realize now, that journaling is what I do to motivate myself. If I write several days in a row, I'm psyching myself up. If I don't write at all, it is because I'm down in the dumps. I don't like to write when I'm sad because it makes me face my demons. Ha! Last week, my grandmother passed away, my uncle was hospitalized, my cousin was arrested, work was tough...all which caused a lot of stress. I think exercising each day kept big emotions at bay, but I could tell that I was cranky. And that just isn't like me. I finally got over it this weekend and yesterday I started to feel better. Plus, I had my support group meeting last night and it ALWAYS inspires me. It is nice to learn these things about myself. This process has been about MUCH more than weight loss! AND...yesterday was picture day. I have attached two original pics and two current pics. I love these little motivators!!

It does get better! Hope you feel better soon! :cursing:

That is fabulous!! You should be so proud.

I didn't cheat. I think that grizzlyrider is right, maybe it was that particular thread. Congrats to you for sticking with it! It is totally hard and knowing that you can do it should fuel you the journey ahead. Go you!

It is always great to figure out the "whys". Good luck to you!

How exciting! Good luck to you. I know it will go great!

CONGRATULATION!! THAT IS AWESOME!! YES, I'M YELLING BECAUSE IT IS SO AWESOME!! Ha! I absolutely LOVE to hear about successes like this. You must feel GREAT!! Have fun shopping at the "regular" stores. I hope to be there myself soon! Keep it up!

First of all, congratulations!! You have done great and should be so proud! I've only been banded for about 3 months, so I can't help you much with questions #1 & #3. But for #2, I'm am quite open about my surgery. When people ask I tell them. I find if I am positive about it (and they are seeing the postive changes in me), then usually they are positive too. But I know that a lot of people don't feel comfortable talking about private things about themselves. So, everyone is different and I think you just have to do what is right for YOU!

I felt exactly the same way as you. I remember everyone telling me to be patient and being annoyed. Ha! But here I am telling you to be patient. Once it comes, it will be easier to make good choices. Keep up the good work!!

As we all know, Snow White had seven little friends...Sleepy, Sneezy, Bashful, Happy, Dopey, Grumpy, & Doc. Early this week, I felt like Snow White. I was feeling thin and pretty and generally princess like. Yesterday, I was definitely Grumpy. Today, I'm deciding between Dopey and Sleepy. Which dwarf are you today? Or maybe it is a Snow White day for you!!

As we all know, Snow White had seven little friends...Sleepy, Sneezy, Bashful, Happy, Dopey, Grumpy, & Doc. Early this week, I felt like Snow White. I was feeling thin and pretty and generally princess like. Yesterday, I was definitely Grumpy. Today, I'm deciding between Dopey and Sleepy. Which dwarf are you today? Or maybe it is a Snow White day for you!!

It takes a lot of strength to say no when things are offered to you. Good job!! Good luck with the remainder of your diet. Just remember that eventually it will get easier!

You can do it!!

Congratulations! Take care of yourself during the healing process. And good luck!

I always have a little bit of fear about the anesthesia, but honestly, I'm always out so quickly that it doesn't matter in the end. :thumbup: I don't think it is silly at all. Good luck to you! Take the time to heal and take care of yourself. Everything will work correctly in time!! Good luck!

I agree with ghs, protein should help. Also, if you can get yourself to exercise a little, your body will start to adjust. That may not be possible, but it's another idea. Good luck!

I was banded by Dr. Smith in Ft. Worth, but I can give you some info. Banding should not affect your breathing. If you are too tight, you might not be able to eat, but you can certainly breathe. Bandster Hell is that time after Banding but before you get restriction. It is called Hell because it is frustrating. You have taken this BIG step and you feel like you are not getting anywhere. But with fills, it passes and you hit your sweet spot. I am just over 3 months in and I'm finally at or close to my sweet spot. I have lost 40 lbs. and I feel great! I know that it isn't the right choice for everyone, but getting the Band was a GREAT choice for me. Good luck!

Yes, it is DEFINITELY normal! Most likely you have no (or negligible) fill in your Band. This is the time to heal. It is a good time to practice Band rules, but having no restriction is very normal. As you get your fills, the restriction will start working. Good luck!

I have a couple of tasks at work that I am responsible for each week. Then there are a few each month and so on. Sometimes, like today, it comes time to do these tasks and I can't figure out where the time went. How could it possibly be time to do this when I feel like I just finished it? It's a never ending circle. Dieting is a task. Quite frankly, all my life, it was a task of low importance. At the beginning, I would plan my entire week of food, exercise, etc. It would go on like that for a few weeks, until I wouldn't have the time and then suddenly the diet is over. With the Band, I have found that I can break that cycle! Life is getting in the way of my tasks (exercise, calorie tracking, etc.), but the Band is still there for me. Right now, I'm in a great place! I still got myself to work out at lunch today, but I know that there will come a time when I won't. Something will get in the way. And it will be okay because I have my Band and it will keep me enough in check that I will be able to take a pause and get back to it without failing. That, my friends, is an amazing feeling! Side note: my mom has been diagnosed with glaucoma and is having a procedure today to help with it. So, I'm praying extra for her today. Also: thank you to you all out there for your posts. Each and every one of you are inspiring me to get where I want to be and I can't possibly thank you enough. You guys rock!