honk

35 pounds in a month with no exercise is fabulous. I am 6 month out and am just over 35 pounds lost. You should plan on 1-2 pounds lost per week any more is a bonus.

As a slow loser 10 lb a month is a lot. I lost a good amount after surgery and am averaging 1 lb a week. I do tend to lose several pounds after a fill because of the liquids and mushies for 48 hours. There are a lot of people that lose on the paced you'd like. However there are a lot of people like me who eat a conservative diet and exercise daily but lose slower. Good Luck with your Goal!

I just reread your post. I mentioned mushies. If your doctor has approved mushies by all means eat them. You may want to spread your food out at predetermined times. My doctor does not approve of "mindless" snacking but during the healing phase he was fine with a scheduled eating plan. This may help with urges to eat non approved foods because you won't be as hungry. You'll note I said as hungry because the mushie stage is very hard!

After two weeks you probably are feeling much better. You'll probably get comments that some doctors allow people to move to mushies and solids after a short period so physically you will be fine. Crying over spilt milk is pointless; I urge you to return to your doctors food orders. You can damage your stomach eating mushies and solids so soon after surgery. Once your swelling goes down you can physically eat food because the band is empty and is just sitting there. Should and Can however are different things. A huge part of being banded is mental. For now you need to create a new relationship with food. If the food can not be easily saved for another meal; throw it away. Wasteful sure. But is it worth your health? The other thing to consider is should you be giving your daughter smaller portions? I know I am being tough. People often stall or gain weight when they reintroduce solids to their diet. And that happens with non fat cottage cheese and canned chicken breast. I'm not saying pizzia is intrinsicly bad but even for a bandster who is fully healed it is a high cal/fat option. I had a longer journey from consult to surgery than most (7 months). One thing that I've finally been able to do is dispose of food that I don' like; or that I determine I should'nt be eating. I used to force myself to eat something because it would be wasteful to throw it away. I don't feel guilty anymore. Also I've made poor food choices at the store and proceded to eat something mindlessly. I've been eating it and said to myself "Why are you eating this?!?!?!!?" walked obver to the trash and thrown the whole package away.

As you can see results vary. My personal experience has been that I lost a lot of weight presurgery (50 lbs in 7.5 months presurgery). After surgery I have been a slow loser averaging 1 pound a week, even though I am very strict about my diet and do an hour of cardio every day. I just have reached restriction, six months out. I think some people start losing faster once they hit restriction. I'm hoping that will be true for me. I guess the moral of the story is you should prepare yourself that you may be a 1-2 pounds a week person. That way you won't be disappointed if that happens. I see many people on here that are very upset that they are'nt loosing 5 pounds a week.

I believe that I am at restriction. Everyday for lunch I make a chicken sandwhich using a romaine lettuce leaf as the "wrap". No stuck episodes. Never been told not to eat lettuce. In fact I've read on this site many people consider it a slider.

How many days post op are you? I only ask because clear liquids are very low in calories. In general my Nut says to shot for 1200; though the nurse says not to count calories.

You must tell your surgeon! I would see a neurologist to see if they can determine why you had it. The surgeon might insist on answers before going forward.

The band stays in unless you have complications. One such complication is where the band moves from the position it was placed in and now is preventing you from swallowing food or liquids. Yes it stays in place once you hit your goal weight. Otherwise you would be able to eat larger meals and would regain all the weight you had lost. Alcohol is a hot topic on this site. Run a search. Most doctors say not to drink carbonated drinks as it can lead to stretching the pouch of stomach above the band. In general alcohol has lots of calories so drinking it will have negative affects on your weight loss efforts.

I'm a slow loser so I never had a problem with not getting a fill. They ask me whether I am full from my measured portions (to which I said no), and if I could go 5 hours before being hungry (again No); and they give me a fill. I would stress that you can eat more than the bandster portions (though I would measure and when you are done no second); and that you are hungry before 5 hours. They should give you a fill.

I did take the poll. I said my head hunger came back at 1 week because I was sooooo bored of broth. I was soooo happy to move to puree soups.

The average loss with the band is 1-2 pounds per week. It's frustrating when you are on the low end of that loss (trust me I know!). When does your doctor move you to solids? My doctor does not want me drinking shakes once I've moved to solids. Think of your pouch as a funnel. liquids run right through but solids slowly slide through. So if you are cleared for mushie and or solids move to those. Soon enough you will be getting fills and will need to go back to liquids and mushies for a few days. So enjoy solids while you can.

If you don't mind the carbs get the baked potato when you eat out; but instead of butter or sour cream ask for salsa. Gives the potato lots of flavor. I don't have potatos at home so it's part of the eating out treat.

One question I have is did you doctor give you requirements for the Protein shakes? Are you making your own or buying ready to drink? The whey isolate powder that I use ranges from 110-120 cal, 2-3 g cabs, 24-28 g Protein, 1-2 g fat. Some protein powers have a lot more cal and or fat for the same amount of protein. Depending on your powder if you make the shake with milk the calories can vary a great deal. I would look for shakes made with milk to be at around 200 cal. I also use Premier ready to drink which is 160 cal for 30 g of protein. Also the thicker Soups are they a low cal/fat variety? Yes this period is largely about healing, but eating cream based soups are going to be high in calories. I personaly liked tomato, or sweet red pepper puree soups; to which I would add Mrs Dash non salt flavorings (add before heating so the spices reconstitute).

I put benefiber in my morning yoghurt. I also take 2 fiber gummies in the morning and usually 2 more at night. I also eat a lot of carrots. I tend to be a very regular person. There are times though that I get less regular and I take a gentle laxative. The instructions say to take up to 2, I usually take one and that helps the next day. Also are you exercising? That can get things moving often immediatly following a good cardio work out. I read in an article that if you do a strenuous cardio workout your body thinks its in Flight mode. Animals in flight mode vacate so they weigh less and can run faster.

Well I guess I would say no use crying over spilt milk. That however does not mean you should not follow the pre op diet today because you messed up yesterday. Post Op however you MUST (Yes all caps) follow your doctors orders. You can do yourself serious damage up to and including needing to have the band removed if you eat foods not approved by the doctor. I highly recommend watching a surgery on YouTube. Not gross at all there is no blood. It shows you exactly what will happen to your stomach. How they stitch sections of your stomach above and below the band to keep it in place. You do not want your stomach moving which happens whhen you eat mushies and solids. It might be in your best interest to tell you mother that so she is less likely to offer you food that is not on your plan.

Until you get some fills the band isn't really doing anything to prevent hunger. So I don't think it's broken.

I went back to work on day 10, but I work on a computer from home. I was fatigued for a while. There were days that I would have to lay down for a short nap so it was a good thing I worked from home. I would take liquid tylenol and take it every 4 hours for now if you are in so much pain you can't sleep.

On day 9 I was allowed water, blended veggie soups (tomato, squash) and protein shakes. I was not allowed cottage cheese until day 15. I would ask if you could have a blended veggie soup and your mushie protein. Other than that I would return to your doctors orders. I know it's hard. When I moved to mushies I bought a digital scale. I measured out my food and that was it, no grazing. Again, I'm not saying it's easy but this is a will power diet for now.

Years ago I was putting together a piece of exercise equipment (my "I'm turning 30 diet") and I was having a lot a trouble and got super frustrated. Suddenly this though popped into my head "I want to go eat potato chips!" What? Where did that come from. I new at that moment I was an emotional eater. Now that I have restriction I do get help stopping eating at the approved amount of food. Sometimes I get full while eating, others I feel full a few minutes after I stop. Having a full feeling helps me to ignore food triggers. Like being at costco and not stopping by the food court for a frozen yoghurt. It also helps with Head Hunger (when you are not physically hungry but are board, sad, lonely). When I feel the urge to eat something I ask myself are you seriously hungry enough to eat something? Usually the answer is no.

I have a Hamilton Beach single serving blender. The mixing cup is a travel mug so you can mix and go. $15 at Walmart works great with ice.

I used a coffee cup (which is 8 oz vs mug which is much bigger). Since I was having tomato soups I also would have a protein shake an hour later.

Probably not. How many days to surgery? Go back to your doctors orders ASAP. Don't tell yourself I've already messed up the pre op diet does'nt matter.

Call you doctor ASAP. Dry Heaves is very bad for your band. You may have some fill in your band. This could be causing your problems. If so having it removed could help you.

You mentioned having 4 oz of Protein and 1/2 cup veggies and being able to go several hours with out being hungry. How many hours? If it's close to 4 or more then they probably won't give you a fill. The nurse at my doctor's office askes if you get hungry between meals (less than 4-5 hours), feeling full when you stop eating. If you can go 4+ hours before you are hungry and feel full after eating your measured out food then you don't need a fill. I couldn't tell how long ago you had surgery. My doctor does'nt give fills for 4-6 weeks. Some people don't need fills until they start losing some of the fat that sits under the band covering the stomach.