sawyer77

Go, Jen! WAHOO! I have 11 pounds to go to get to be just overweight. :confused: Wooooooo! I'm chasin' ya!

These first few months after banding are torture! I'm 4.5 months post-op and I've had 4 fills (total 6ccs in my 10cc band). I feel that I'm getting closer to restriction with this last fill, but I'm not there yet. The first three fills did N-O-T-H-I-N-G for me. Every little drop of my 28 pounds lost has been all me, baby! Exercise, eating right (protein first, and no snacking!), getting proper sleep (SO IMPORTANT!), drinking water, taking vitamins -- all those rules WORK. I have my Fill #5 in two weeks and I just know I'm going to have another "be careful what you wish for" episode. It is sinking in, now after 4 months, that it's for real, and I have to chew, chew, chew and make the right food choices. It's been a little surreal these last few months not having restriction, and I've had days where I have really regretted what I've eaten. But, as another poster said, forgive yourself and move on to a new day tomorrow. I'm on a "new day" today. :confused: In these first 4, 6, 8 months before you get restriction, you owe it to yourself to learn healthy habits, and figure any weight you lose during this time will be a BONUS!

At my one-week followup, my doctor gave me the okay to return to exercise, but only because I had already been running. I always think it's best to do what each particular doctor recommends upon seeing each patient. A friend of mine had a different surgeon and he told her nothing for 8 weeks, but she was not an active person before.

I had my first appointment there on July 6th, 2009. That was almost a year ago! Wow! I wish you good luck, but more importantly, I wish you good skill. It takes skill to succeed at this journey! You can do it!

I'm not a big drinker but when I go out, I tend to drink things like Mudslides and White Russians, or I'll have an Amaretto Sour or a glass of wine. I stay away from carbonation, of course. I'm curious to learn what your favorite alcoholic drinks are, post-banding. Whatcha got?! (I'm going out tonight, so I need ideas! Heh.:rolleyes:)

Thanks, all! I tried the Malibu Bay Breeze, and YUM! I love it! Love all your suggestions. Thanks, again.

I mix it up with the following: -running -weight training/strength training -yoga classes at the gym -body conditioning classes at the gym -bicycling -swimming I try to run 3-4 days a week, weight training 3 times a week, yoga once a week, body conditioning (which my friends and I affectionately call "torture class") once a week. I like to run one 5K a month. And I just started training for 10Ks! (I'm a graduate of C25K, and highly recommend it!) Also, one of my friends has talked into a 65-mile bikeathon for the American Cancer Society in July. Woohoo! Busy training for that!

My surgeon did a nicotine test well before surgery, but then again the morning of surgery. I think you better mention to your surgeon that you're struggling. (I quit in August, surgery was in January.)

I have been playing around with the same three pounds for a month now! C'MON! I just got my Fill #4 a week ago, and I feel the beginnings of restriction, so I *am* happy, don't get me wrong! Even though I believe slow and steady wins the race, I am just so anxious for that sweet spot!

Hey, all! I'm enjoying reading all your posts, and I wish I could reply to them all. I'm glad to hear all of your successes -- go, all y'all! I had a 1 cc fill (#4) on Thursday! Had some OMDog Moments in the last two days. One moment was trouble eating a turkey sandwich. I try to avoid bread anyway, but I was on a kayak trip & eating quickly at a pull-over beach stop. I had to walk away from the group. I kept it down but it was scary. REALLY learning how to eat now with this band (I'm at 6ccs). I felt lost for these last few months there, like I didn't have a band. Be careful what you wish for, right?!? I do okay for breakfast and lunch, but I do fall into ruts because I like EASY. I usually eat yogurt and cottage cheese for lunch. When it comes to dinner, that's where I lose control. Pasta still works for me and I have this feeling that I should enjoy it now while I can, so I eat what I KNOW I should not. :tongue2: I'm really letting myself down with the carbs at night. Anyone have some quick, easy dinner ideas to keep me away from pasta? Does anyone have a good quinoa recipe to share? I love quinoa and don't eat it enough!

Hey, everybody! I've been quiet, because there's not much to report on my end. I got my fourth fill yesterday, 1cc, and am now at 6 ccs total. The surgeon and nurse were talking about how much to give me, a whole or a half, and they said, "Ah, it's Thursday, give her a whole." Then they laughed and said, "If it were Friday, you'd get a half." I replied, "Yah, the service station is closed for the weekend!" Ah, Lap-Band humor. I'm still flirting with the same two pounds. It's aggravating, but slow and steady wins the race, this I know. I told my doctor I don't want to rush things, I'd like to slowly sneak up on the green zone, and he said, "That's why you're going to win this battle." I'm sure they get a lot of folks who push, push, push for quick and voluminous fills. I'm happy to take what they tell me every four weeks. They're the experts here, I'm just one patient. They definitely listen to what I'm saying and make judgments accordingly, so I'm pleased to have 6 ccs after 4 months post-op. Oh, and did anyone see Grey's last night?!?! OMDog!

In an effort to be a well-rounded academic, I'm bringing you some math after my recent Bandster poem. I want to make sure I'm entertaining all sides of your brain. :thumbup: Play along with my fun math games below. I had my surgery on 1/20/10. I'm constantly searching for ways to keep myself motivated, and it always helps me to see my successes to keep my mind off of any times I've stumbled. I'm including a picture of my Weigh-In Notebook, just to encourage you to do a weekly (not daily!!) weigh-in, and track your SUCCESS! The highlights in the notebook are my fills. I go for my fourth fill in two days, but I don't note it until it's done, until it's IN MAH BELLY! :biggrin: I started my pre-op diet at 197 pounds on 1/13/10. My weight on 5/12/10 was 170. So that's 27 pounds lost in 17 weeks. If I divide 27 by 17, I have an average loss of 1.58 pounds a week. THAT'S AWESOME! How could I possibly be discouraged with those numbers?! (I'm doing a lot of self-talk here, folks!) Even if I don't have a loss on the scale tomorrow (my weigh-in day), 27 pounds in 18 weeks is still an average of 1.5 pounds lost per week. Another fun math game is this: Divide your lost weight by your original excess body weight (EBW). I just use 117 as my goal weight because it gives me an even EBW of 80. (I may amend my goal as I get closer. That will come in time.) So, I've lost 27 out of 80. That means I've lost 33.75% of my EBW in 17 weeks. How could I be unhappy with THAT?!? C'mon, folks, get with me here. Let's do some math! Look at the GREAT stuff we've accomplished and stop beating yourselves up! Who's with me?! Let's hear your average pounds-per-week and your EBW percentage lost! I bet you'll surprise yourself!

Also, if you have google account, and you go to: http://docs.google.com/ it will be listed there.

I've had three fills and go for my fourth in four days. My doctor has me on the table, I have to do a crunch while he circles the port with a pen for a guide, inserts the needle (no numbing -- I'm getting a needle either way) and inserts the saline. My port is a little tilted, so my third fill was a little more involved than the first two, but I'll remember to tell him this Thursday for my fill that my port is tilted. I'm so ready to keep the fills moving because I feel nothing resembling restriction. Though, I did have a hard time eating rice yesterday. Very exciting! Heh. Every time I go for a fill, I make my next appointment on the spot, four weeks to the minute!

Wonderful! I love hearing this stuff, especially from the folks my height! Go, you!

I'm here in same-runner-girl-ticker-land to say congrats! What a nice idea for a reward for halfway! :redface:

Great work, everyone! :crying: In 8 days, I'm going for my fourth fill. So far, I have 5 ccs in my 10 cc band. I am at that, "Did I actually have surgery?!" phase, because I feel nothing at all close to restriction. I'm doing my own "no bread" rules, but I could eat it if I let myself. I'm trying very hard to make good food choices, but I'm in a rut, I think. Yogurt, granola, cottage cheese, yogurt, granola, cottage cheese, yogurt, granola, cottage cheese for lunch all week long at work for months now! I'm looking forward to getting closer and closer to restriction. I've been flirting with the same 169 - 170 - 171 - 172 for a few weeks now. I still have a good 50 more pounds to go, but these few pounds are trying to drive me crazy. All in all, though, I still love my band. Before I had surgery, I knew it would be slow weight loss, but it's now the reality and I'm frustrated at how slow it is. Hahahah. It's funny how our minds work. I'm about to go closet shopping! I have some clothes that I haven't seen in years! :drool: Even my brand-new jeans are falling off of me. I love it!

WOOHOO! :scared2: Exciting!

Banded Bond I am the one who had the courage to start something big. I am the one who wakes up early to go for a run. I am the one who eats yogurt with granola and cottage cheese instead of a fried meal. I am the one who chooses to turn away cake. I am the one who quit smoking because it was the right thing to do. I am the one who drinks Water like it's going out of style. I am the one who chooses wisely, every step I take. I am the one who takes my Vitamins every morning. I am the one who eats my Protein first at every meal, skipping my beloved carbs. I am the one who keeps going back to the gym. My friend, The Band, is the one who helps me along the way. But The Band can't taste success. The Band can't look in the mirror and giggle in disbelief at the new person there. The Band can't register for a 5K and get me there on race day. The Band can't hang smaller-size jeans in my kitchen for visual goal-setting. I am the one who can succeed. And I do succeed. And The Band helps me along the way.

Aw, thanks, gang! I wanted to share because I figured it would apply to other folks here. I told my surgery secret to another person on Saturday night (I'm pretty secretive about my band, and only maybe 10 people know) and she responded very favorably, so that made me feel great. But I still feel like I have to tell everyone about not having restriction yet. I feel like I want every bit of credit I can get, because so many other folks out there will assume it's the easy way out. Needless to say, I'm still wrestling with the emotional angle of surgery. Heh. :biggrin:

I lost 1 pound of my 10-pound goal. I'm happy I went down, but a slight bit disappointed I didn't see more movement downward! C'mon Fill #4 -- Ten days! I gave myself the same 10-pound goal for the 8-week-long July 4th Challenge. I better be able to do that!

Good for you! :-) It's such a good feeling, and you had a great race time, too! :biggrin:

Okay, I'm in! I did not meet my Mothers' Day Challenge goal, but I still lost 1 pound! It's in the right direction, anyway! I'm in for 10 pounds in these 8 weeks. I was too ambitious last time, and want to set an attainable goal. Fourth fill in ten days. C'mon, baby! :biggrin:

I will think the best for you, but I'm feeling that this is way early to catch anything, and this can only turn out for the best! :thumbup: