Saraboo

Hmmm, sweet stuff. Depending on what you do for protein shakes, you can play with those a lot. I make mine with a scoop of whey protein, ice and milk, then stick it in the blender. I like to add a scoop of peanut butter for extra flavor. With vanilla, it tastes like a nutter butter almost, and with the chocolate powder, it's a new take on a peanut butter cup. If you have a pinkberry around, or something similar, a small size ith fresh fruit and yogurt/carob chips are great too. I like adding sliced almonds to mind. Helps satisfy the sweet tooth, and I don't feel guilty about it.

The best thing you could do is call your doctor. Everyone is going to have a different opinion. All I could say is try and make sure you can get in as much nutrients as possible. Try and get your protein in. I ended up getting really sick a week after my last fill, and liquids is what I was stuck with, I was so tight. I made chicken broth, and just tried to stay hydrated.

You would know it if you were sliming. What you are is stuck. Try raising yoru arms above your head, or walking around. You're not going to get relief until whatever it is comes back up, or finally moves down. If you were sliming, you'd have stuff coming back up, but not the food.

It sounds like heartburn to me. Have you tried Tums, or something similar?

I tweaked the recipe some, and used the same basic idea, but used buffalo sauce instead of tomato sauce, and topped with a little bit of provolone cheese. Baked at the same time and temp, and my family loves it too. Yummmy

NSV means Non-Scale Victory. Like when the scal doesn't move but you drop a pants size, or you can cross your legs normally when you couldn't before, you don't have to use a seatbelt extender on an airplane anymore, etc.

My Dr. had me taking pills the day after surgery. the pain meds he rescribed me were pills. Even on my tightest days, I can usually get a pill down. I even just strated taking fish oil pills, and those suckers are huge!

Asparagus I can do-had some for dinner actually. Potatoes are kind of a hard one for me, i usually can only do them if mashed, and only then in a small amount. French fries are a no go for meat least from white potatoes. I do a little better with sweet potatoes. Corn and peas are big NO's for me. Makes me sad, lol. I tend to do ok with apple chips, oranges are eh, pineapple is a touch and go one for me. Meat wise, i CAN NOT do ground hamburger. In any way. I switched to ground turkey, and had no problems with it. Other than the ground beef, I don't really have issues with meat, unless it's really dry.

You know, I really don't do anything extra special. I eat the same things the rest of my family eats, for the most part, just in a lot smaller ortions. With the exception of the nights they have a rice based meal, or something else my band just doesn't tolerate. If I'm cooking, I'll try to get healthier food in to the meal as a whole, but generally nothing extra special. I do have to admit, I am a total foodie. I love to cook. I'm fine with having just a small taste which is great, but doen't work for everyone. I love finding new recipes to try. It's getting me to try more vegetables, which is good. Asparagus is my new fave As for working out, personally I hate cardio, and do the bare minimum, and lately I've been focusing more on weights. That's been one of teh big things for me; I always do better when I'm going to the gym regularly. Other than that, I do everything the same it seems. What about you? Have you done anything extra special?

For me, it's corn, and peas that give me the biggest issues cooked. Lettuce is now a no for me, which sucks because I LOVE salad, and I can only do celery if it's been peeled. Suprisingly, I don't have too many issues with asparagus, and it's become my new favorite veggie. And I've done broccoli in soup, and it goes down fine. Yummm. Lol.

TaxasNurseMom is right. You don't want to eat until you're full. We, in general, don't have the correct conect of what full actually is, usually. Right now is going to be one of the hardest parts of your journey. You have yet to get restriction, and you're going to feel hungry. Portion out your food ahead of time. Take time when you eat your food. Stop when you don't feel hungry. By full, what do you mean? Do you feel like you can't eat another bite or you'll burst?

Tuna is a great thing to have on hand. Have you tried the starkist flavored ones that come in the packets? At my last job, I always kept a couple at my desk for in case I needed a small snack, or I would have it for lunch. The lemon pepper is my favorite, and I can eat it straight out of teh pouch with a fork. Had that for lunch today, actually. Lol. Low fat, high Protein, and it's convienent. I'm not sure what your restriction level is, or what you can eat,but here are a couple more of my favorites- lunch meat with cheese rolled up- turkey with provolone is pretty good. if you have to do fast food, a small chili from wendy's Egg Bites- the recipe is here http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2009/10/party-time-confetti-bites.html her low carb izzas are pretty awesome too. Actually, pretty much any recipe on her blog is awesome. Everything she does is WLS friendly. If you can do salad- green leaf lettuce with toasted almonds, a sprinkle of cheese, and a squirt of lemon juice. You get texture and flavor without the fat. Hard boiled eggs Homemade soups-you can control what goes in them, and put extra veggies in for the nutrition when i'm really craving something salty and crunchy, I'll bake some pepperoni slice on foil- usually at 375 for like 8 minutes-i blot them after too- Baked asparagus with garlic and lemon. Yum. Gladware also makes some containers that are a 1/2 cup with a twist on lid. Perfect for portion sizing when taking your lunch to work. Try walking on you lunch break, and you can use to 16 oz Water bottles as free weights. That way you can work your arms at the same time. You can try the 5 day pouch test- I'm not too sure on teh exact details but if you do a search on it, it should pop up. Make sure you are getting your water in. Rocco DiSpiroto (sp?) has a cookbook called "Now Eat This" It's pretty awesome. He took a bunch of comfort/favorite foods, and made them healthier. As in, almost all are 400 calories or less. There is an awesome coconut shrimp recipe in it, and a mac and cheese recipe.

Both of these were taken in August of 2009- on a cruise for my Dad's 50th birthday. THis was at my highest weight, about 3 months before surgery Easter of 2010- down about 60 ish lbs at that point January 2011- down 85 lbs at that point I'm about to take some during pics for my dr's office so I'll post those when I get them So far, down from a tight size 26, to a comfortable 16

I'm somehwre between 5'9" and 5'10" (all depends on who's measuring). I origanally had a goal set of 150, but I never set it in stone. I always said that I would go by where I was most comfortable. I have recently raised my goal weight to 160, so I have a number to shoot for. It's in the healthy BMI range which, other than feeling better, is my ultimate goal. I started in a tight size 26 loose 28, and I'm down to a size 16 in most clothes-14/16 in some, and mostly L tops. I'm lucky enough that I have someone who is going to pay for my plastics, and I know that if I had a TT now, I'd probably drop 2 pants sizes due to wear my excess skin hangs, Goood Luck!!!!!!!!!!

For me, it's definitely a day to day thing, and how long it's been since my last fill. In general, I can't do normal sandwhich bread. Too doughy, and my band does not like it at all. I very rarely go for bread products now, but if I do, it's usually part if a biscuit, or splurging on the top part of a piece of garlic bread. Pasta for me depends more on the type. i can do angel hair better than spaghetti, and ravioli is one of the easier ones. The last time I had pasta, I made it from scratch and rolled it out extra thin so I could enjoy some with my family. They didn't mind, and I was able to enjoy too.

Here's my question for all of you, do any of you have issues eating when wearing tighter clothing? Or issues just in general? I bought one of those "skinny" tank undershirts-you know the kind, the ones that smooth you out. I've discovered that if I'm wearing clothes that are a little bit tighter, I have issues. I can barely eat if I'm earing it, or any type of pants with an elastic wasteband. I wore the skinny tank, and after a couple hours, I had to take it off. It ended up making me feel nauseus. I think it has something to do with the loose skin and fat being pressed in where it's not any longer. Any one else experiencing something similar?

There is no way I cold wear Spanx everyday. I only wear my control tanks if whatever shirt or dress I'm wearing is too form fitting. I tend to wear ribbed cotton tanks, or shirts that cover my sag. Because of the way my stomache hangs though, I can't get away with low-rise pants. Yet.

There is no way I cold wear Spanx everyday. I only wear my control tanks if whatever shirt or dress I'm wearing is too form fitting. I tend to wear ribbed cotton tanks, or shirts that cover my sag. Because of the way my stomache hangs though, I can't get away with low-rise pants. Yet.

I've also found that pants that are loose-like falling down loose- can cause issues depending on how i''m sitting. I can sit at a table fine, but once I switch sitting positions, for example sitting in teh car after dinner, I have issues. I can go out to eat, eat an appropriate amount and be fine, but once I sit in the car, because the way my seat is I guess, My pants always shift and press into my stomach. Grrr.

Have a couple more to throw out there I went to a family party last weekend, and my Aunt didn't recognize me at first Most of us were wearing Sherrif Stars with our names on them (Wild West Theme) and my cousin told me mine should say Skinny Minnie. FIrst time someone has said that!!!! I am now only "Overweight" Back in Dec of 2009 I had bought a pair of Capri's from Torrid in a size 12 to wear at some point in the future. I tried them on yesterday, and while I am no where near being able to zip or button, I actually got them past my hips!! 6 weeks ago they wouldn't go past my thighs! I have a "friend" who has seen me at my heaviest, and has seen me now. Even with my saggy wrinkly skin, he calls me sexy :wub: He's a great ego boost for me. I can bend over and tie my shoe like a normal person None of my rings fit anymore. I have a pair of rings I got the christmas I was 13. I got them to fit on my ring finger. I now have to wear them on my middle finger because they are too big. My ring size on my ring finger is down to a 5 1/2. (I've always had pretty small hands though) My 12 year old sister now wears a larger ring than I do, and she is skinny for her age The pair of skinny jeans I got in Jan in an xl are bagging on me I ow no longer have to unbutton my pants to get them off. I fit into a size L dress from Kohl's :Dancing_biggrin:

Dr. Sal is amazing!!!. I was banded by him nov 12, 2009, and I absolutely love him!!! He is one of the best Dr's I have ever met, and I have met a lot of Dr.'s. I have had a few issues with my band-totally my fault, and I own up to it-and Dr. Sal has been so understanding and supportive. At one point I was in the office every 2 weeks because I was having issues- I had been overfilled at one point, and my stomach is now very sensitive to fills. Not only has he been understanding, but he also asks after my my mom and sisters whenever I see him. Whenever I talk to someone about getting banded, and they express an interets, I recommend Dr. Sal.

If you're gaving issues with reflux, I would stay away from things that are acidic like grapefruit. It will only aggravate it. I've been having issues with reflux for the past couple months, and when it flares up, I have trouble eating all day. I'll wake up at night choking if it gets really bad. But what I've found that really works, is I take a Pepcid AC at night, and then one in the morning before breakfast. It has made a world of difference. And I try to stay away from anything really acidic

If I eat too much, I get a feeling like a lump in my throat. It's not comfortable at all. If it's something my band doesn't like, I'll get pain in my chest; or, if it's really bad, my mouth starts filling with saliva, and i know to head for the bathroom because I know taht whatever I ate is not going to stay down. YOu do not want to get to that. Bad for your band, and you.

Nov 12, 2009 (day of surgery) 298 lbs- BMI 44.1-Morbidly Obese This morning March 5th, 2011 201 lbs BMI 29.7-Overweight