mousek

That is hands down the best explanation of the band that I have ever read. THANK YOU!!

I was told that I could have a bit. When drinking from bottle for me it seems to come back up if I try to gently guzzle. If I drink from a glass seems to be no problem. I enjoy several freezing cold pints of coors light draft once in a while and doesn't really effect the weight loss but i do count it in as far as carbs and calories are concerned. For me it keeps me grounded to know what's going down the hatch. :Banane34: :cheers2:

"could get ugly" I believe it. I may try some of the other remedies such as pear a few times a week to keep the flow going so to speak. i will be going back on atkins as soon as my jaw can move a bit more and i get the ok from the surgeon. can't chew anything at the moment. However i have pureed a ton of vegetables and some meats into soups the last few weeks so they had to have stored up somewhere.

I have definitely experienced that tear inducing back pain and yes it always ends up being gas. It really does sound like you need a slight unfill. Hope you'll be feeling better soon and can resolve the problem, have you spoken to the dr's office? I'd be in in a second to get a slight unfill if it was me.

perhaps a slight change in the foods you eat? maybe just liquids for a day or 2 to get the ball rolling?

No, haven't but will look at it on internet. Similar to atkins? Noticed your surgery is tomorrow! Good luck! and be sure to come back the site to let us know how are you doing or if you have any concerns; it will really help to have the support.

http://cauk.atkins.com/ lots of recipes, carb info, the works

:thumbs_up: No problem with salad. Love Greek salad with crumbled feta on it and black olives,or caesar with homemade bacon bits, parmesan and some croutons for a treat! I find the crunch of a salad very satisfying as well in addition to the health benefits of fresh greens. I also happen to love the taste of a fresh salad too so I'm glad i don't have a problem eating it. :thumbup: p.s. I'm running on a bit about the food as I am so tired of my liquid diet that is now over 3 weeks because of my jaw surgery. I would so love to have a salad or something crunchy.

yikes, thank goodness you were at home eventhough you had that unfortunate accident. yes milk of magnesia is pretty good but in my case it didn't work as well as the beets. I have been taking tylenol with codeine for over 3 weeks because of the serious jaw and chin surgery I had 3 weeks ago. codeine constipates me like i can't even explain and it really relaxes your muscles. I tried to take it a bit less but the pain is so severe and still acute especially in my altered chin that i can't do without the med for now. I wanted to try something natural for a change because i've been taking so much strong prescription medication which was also making me dizzy so i didn't want anything else with commercial medicine in it and then remembered this remedy.

My pleasure! I was really severely backed up and tried 5 or 6 commercial products with very mediocre success. went down about a pound or more instantly from all the garbage cans that were piled up at the curb finally being emptied.

Did either of you check out the link with the other natural laxatives?

Well said Ellisa, unfortunately some people get too defensive and go into attack mode - i am very against that type of debate. I think to give an opinion on an eating plan one should have read the entire book, evaluate it, think about it with an open mind, then form an opinion that doesn't sound so biased. I've been dying to say what you did but as when i joined the forum last year and got scared away i don't want that to happen again. I need and enjoy the support of this forum for the most part. I don't want to feel bullied again. I'm glad to hear OWL mentioned - i've heard no mention of it from the opposition which leads me to believe that they don't know much about atkins.

you sound just like me - i love a small plate and a small fork. at pot lock or buffet i have also have problem with portion control and leave a lot and that makes me feel wasteful too.

After a year of observing trends what i've found about eating out at restaurants is that they always always use a lot of salt. Every single time I eat out, the next day my eyes are hooded - i am retaining water from the huge amount of sodium that restaurants notriously use to pump of the flavor of the food. When I cook at home which is 96-7% of the time - I watch how much salt I add. I don't measure but i watch how many dashes I put. I am so used to doing this that I immediately notice how salty food is in restaurants. To counteract the effect I have to drink almost twice as much water to flush out the salt and get rid of water retention. The weight always comes back down.

TONS MORE ENERGY!!! BEAUTIFUL hair (at least for me that's what it does) and shiny too! LOADS OF INCH LOSS GO ON VACATION - DON'T COME BACK 10 POUNDS HEAVIER. p.s. My band is not at restriction. I was in Puerto Vallarta last month at a resort that had the most delectable food. I didn't want to gain weight so I didn't have any bread, Pasta, rice or refined carbs, no fruit either. I know from low carbing in the past that this was the only way i could not come back with an extra stomach roll and I certainly wanted to get my money's worth and enjoy somebody else cooking for me. I ate like Henry VIII - I mean tons of bacon in the morning with eggs, salsa, guacamole. I think you get my drift. large greek salads with a good amount of feta on top and olive oil. or salads with creamy dressing, bbqd meats, deep fried fish that was lightly battered, deep fried chicken wings, duck, huge salad everyday - you name it - every conceivable decadent food. The only thing I left out were the refined carbs and fruit. I packed in about 2500 calories a day including about 7- 10 alcoholic drinks a day. I came back 2 pounds heavier after that completely indulgent pig-out week. I did drink about 8-10 glasses of Water as well which was easy because of the heat.

My absolute pleasure! I posted some of my favourites and some suggestions on another topic "What are you guys eating for protein" My mouth is watering!

For the below food suggestions - add salt/pepper to taste. I experiment as far as quantity goes and kind of eyeball most of it. I cover everything to be baked to keep moisture in and keep foods as moist and tender as possible. I check on the things cooking frequently to check for readiness. baked chicken wings with a bit of garlic powder and paprika, once cooked i toss in a bit of bbq sauce that I make from low carb ketchup, bit of worcestshire sauce and some hp steak sauce, i then sometimes put hot sauce on top. I also dip in blue cheese dressing. I am returning to atkins low carb diet and saw weight loss eating this type of food. I generally before the band had 5-6 wing pieces. Probably with the band 3-4 would be a stretch. Instead of baking though with such a small amount I spray some pam in a frying pan and slow cook the wings until almost fall off the bone - yummy. slow cooked spare ribs in the oven using same ingredients additions as above except for bbq sauce which i put on right at the end. i slow cook on 300 for about 2 hours or till falling off the bone and have them covered with tin foil. i broil for a few minutes to get a nice coating. i put the bbq sauce mixture once they are cooked and then broil. take small bites and chew very well. baked or slow pan fried hamburger patties using either lean ground beef, pork, chicken or turkey - i put some chopped onion in or some onion Soup mix, garlic powder and a tbsp or two of bbq sauce (bbq sauce keeps them nice and moist) tuna with mayo and chopped onion and some chopped dill pickle, i smush it very well so it is smooth and easy to swallow devilled eggs pan seared fish - any kind steamed seafood or boiled, lobster, crab, clams etc. soft rib eye steak on the bbq - one of the tenderest steaks i've ever found - i'm still very careful to take extra small bites and chew a lot. cheaper cuts of steak that i have marinated overnight with some balsamic vinegar a bit of olive oil and steak spices plus i usually pound it like anything with a tenderizer - i'm very careful with steak though as have had several stuck episodes boiled chicken legs with some bouillon cubes added to the Water - chicken legs come out very soft and what's left (the bouillon once strained) is pretty good too perhaps with a bit of salt and pepper stuffed green peppers using ground meat and prefried mushrooms onions - baked in oven covered in watered down tomato paste and low carb ketchup to taste. i saute meat as well. they are done (i cook them at 350) when the peppers are very soft when poked with a fork and green color has faded. stuffed cabbage (cabbage rolls) , cabbage needs to be precooked and peeled leaf by leaf - this takes time and some patience. with same ingredients as stuffed green peppers, i cover the cabbage with the biggest leaves i took off at the beginning and cover the rolled ones to keep in the moisture. I use 1 big cabbage and i do smother the top in tomato sauce mixture. I bake for about 1.5 hours on 350. cabbage should be easily poked with a fork when done. meat and all ingredients should be precooked and then stuffed (rolled) into the cabbage. eggplant parmesan - prepared as if making lasagna (substitute thinly sliced preferrably oven baked with some olive oil and salt and pepper until pretty soft but not falling apart) and use what other ingredients you normally would to make a lasagna - tomato sauce preferrable low carb, mozzarella ( i prefer a lower fat one) low fat ricotta cheese, baked at 350 covered for approx 40 minutes - give or take. no bean chile prepared the same as regular but without Beans. I also included this link that i quickly looked up under low carb recipes for lapbanders - i haven't tested any of them though. http://recipes.spark...cookbook=347266 hope this helps

Sounds terrific! Thanks for the great recipe!

Congratulations on your fabulous weight loss! Would you consider posting what an average low carb 1000-1200 calorie day looks like in the way of a meal plan? If not, would you consider emailing me? Thank you so much in advance. p.s. and if you do post or email, could you include weights, portions. Thanks again.

Hello, that is a great weight loss, sorry but I am a bit confused as just starting to get back into low carb, is 70 grams about 2 t bone steaks or could you give me a rough idea in meat that 70 grams would be? thanks so much.

Hello all low carbsters, I am feeling really ill from my jaw and chin surgery and the medication i am taking upsets my stomach so i was perusing the internet to see some before and after pics with Atkins to cheer myself up . I'm finding the atkins before and after forum particularly encouraging and inspiring to look at, and it is nice also because the posts are current. After reading through many posts, I think it is probably a good idea to have a band to maintain the incredible weight losses these people have had as some did regain their weight. The posts that I read indicated that they returned to Atkins to yet shed the weight again. I am so in fear of yoyo dieting as I think and have read of the stress in takes on your body and heart especially. http://www.atkinsdie...ore-after-pics/ a particularly inspiring story in the following link: http://www.atkinsdie...t-done-yet.html

Super WOW weight loss! Congrats on your marathons as well! :drum: Drum roll please! Your :clock: has come!

Just took a look at your progress pictures. You've done incredibly well!:waytogo: :welldone2: :drum: Drum roll please!

Thanks Sue for your kind words. won't avoid meds again - just didn't seem to have the proper dose - it's very scary to black out. However, last night I took 1 pill of a pain medication and it was okay. when I awoke to make a trip to the washroom i didn't feel like i was going to black out. I woke up though really because the pain medication had worn off after about 6.5 hours of sleep. I've just taken 1 pill again and the pain is at bay as you say. I think I had some demerol left over in my system and then alternating with this tylenol was too much for me. I've put the demerol away for now. thanks for your advice.

I like that part about the numbers don't lie. I think journaling should be the number one part of weight loss. :Banane31: