MellieW

I hope you feel as good as you look, Jamie! Congratulations! :laugh:

I made Orange chicken from a recipe that I found on http://www.bariatriceating.com and it was absolutely wonderful! And so easy to make! I made a salad for both of us and a side of wild rice for my husband. We agreed, this one's a new favorite. :thumbup:

Put me down for every day, too. I only do it first thing in the morning and I only record it on Tuesdays.

I eat low cal/low carb, too. I have found several wonderful recipes at http://www.bariatriceating.com. The ones I've tried have been very good and very tender. I made the beef roast recipe from there in the crock pot on Sunday and it was very moist and tender and went down a little too easily. (Even though I was no longer hungry, it was so good I had a hard time stopping myself at just 3 ounces. lol) You can also talk to your butcher. He can certainly help you pick out cuts that are the most tender and best used for the meal you're making. But, Elfiepoo is right, you can turn any meat into leather if you cook it too long or too quickly.

I'm noticing my face is thinning out already. I'm so glad to see the definition return to my chin line! :blushing:

When she posted here I went to see what she was talking about and saw that you guys started out nicely informing her that she was in an "off topic" thread and what that meant. That's the reason I told her it was never a good idea to tell other adults what they should and shouldn't be discussing. I don't know what she said in her PM's, but I think some of the things that were said to and about her in the thread was uncalled for. Maybe it should have just been handled in pm's instead of out in the open. But either way, I think this whole post is silly. I'm not a fan of the "Goodbye cruel, cruel forum" posts. I think if you're unhappy and want to leave, then just leave. I don't see the point in the all the theatrics, personally. :blushing:

If the topics discussed in the Rants and Raves *OFF TOPIC* section aren't something you find tasteful or even interesting, then I'd suggest you stay out of there. But to go in and tell other adults that they shouldn't be discussing such topics is NEVER a good idea. While I agree that the language used toward and about you was unnecessary and inappropriate, to be fair, none of them told you to leave lapbandtalk altogether, they just strongly suggested you leave that particular board if you found it wasn't suited to your needs. Maybe you'd be better suited to the main boards or, as kll724 suggested, the 50+ board. I hope you stick around, but if you plan to follow through with the "Goodbye cruel, cruel forum" (:blushing:) stance then I wish you luck finding a support group that better meets your needs and in your weight loss journey in general.

I weigh mine just as Leigha does, although, at this point, I'm only able to get the Protein and veggies in before I'm full. I allow myself between 900-1200 cals/day (depending on type and length of exercise) but I don't break them down the way Leigha does. I just make sure all three meals (+ snack) stay within my daily limits. I do allow a snack between lunch and dinner because I'm only 4 1/2 weeks post op and, with an empty band, I'm only staying satisfied for about 3 hours.

I made a low carb/high Protein personal pizza tonight using Flatout Light Original Flat Bread and it was so good I had to share! This is definitely a new favorite. I used; 1/4 cup of Ragu Homemade Style pizza sauce 1/4 cup of crumbled Feta cheese 17 pieces of Hormel Turkey Pepperoni 2 tbsp chopped onion 42g fresh sliced white mushrooms 1/4c of diced red and orange peppers 4 low fat Mozzarella slices Serving size~ whole pizza! *If you can eat it all. It's not very big but even with an empty band I wasn't able to finish the last couple bites.* Calories~ 530 Carbs~ 26 grams Fat~ 28 grams Protein~ 50 grams(!) Enjoy! ETA; This was my first non-mushy meal after surgery. =)

Yeah, I like to skillet fry mine, too. :wink2: Thanks for the info on the Smart Ones.

I agree, the Jimmy Dean turkey sausage links and patties are very good. I haven't tried any of the frozen dinners, but know many people who agree that the WW Smart Ones are pretty good. Do you know how many carbs are in the one you tried?

Y'know, I was pleasantly surprised with the Ragu sauce. Since is wasn't a "light" product I thought it would be pretty bad, but it was only 30 cals for 1/4 cup and that was more than enough for my pizza. But, like everyone else, I'm always looking for foods that have great flavor with fewer cals, so I'll give Trader Joe's a look, too. Thanks for the info, HHM!

My Dr. allows fluids 15 minutes prior to eating but no sooner than 30 minutes after. I started this prior to being banded because I knew it would likely be the hardest habit to break...and it was! Now, I don't even think about it unless I've had something spicy like LF refried Beans with jalapenos. I agree with trishfish, don't even take a drink to the table with you. For me, it reduced the temptation to drink while I was eating.

Well, I guess that depends on a couple things; 1.) the amount of calories you consume for the day. (I aim between 900-1200, depending on type and length of exercise) and.. 2.) how you choose to live with the band. I'm not looking to live on a diet, my goal is to eat in a healthful way that I can sustain for a lifetime. The biggest portion of the calories was in the feta (80cals)(1carb) (4fat) and mozzarella (240cals) (0carbs) (16fat) cheeses. I'd imagine you could get less calories from lower fat cheeses, but I'd rather sacrifice some of the calories for better flavor. Overall, considering the amount of Protein and fat, I'd say it's a healthy meal and one that fits nicely in my day. My totals for this day were; Calories 980 Carbs 63 Fat 45 Protein 88 And that includes BBQ ribs and citrus carrots for dinner and an EAS shake and 1/2 bagel and cream cheese for Breakfast. :wink2:

I'm one month post-op and will, from time to time, feel my port when I'm slouched on the couch. I have a habit of sitting with my feet pulled up on the couch and will occasionally get a "pain" from what feels like bending or moving my port. When I saw the PA a couple of weeks ago at my two week post-op appointment, she said that was fairly normal during the healing phase and assured me I'm not damaging my port in any way. Since you're going to be there tomorrow anyway, I'd just let them know what you're feeling and make sure everything is okay.

Because every Dr recommends something different for their patients, I'd recommend you call your surgeons office and get clarification on what they want you to be doing pre and post op. Good luck!

I only averaged about 500 calories per day during the liquid diet. It's really hard to get in a lot of calories during this stage. I used Adkins Advantage Protein shakes (purchased at my local Walmart) to get in my 60 grams of protein and just ate what I could of Popsicle's, broth, and thin Soups when I felt like I needed to eat something. I'd suggest talking to your Dr if you're really concerned, but I think it's fairly typical to get limited calories during this stage.

After the initial 1 month of liquids and mushies, my surgeon recommends 3 small meals a day consisting of Protein, vegetables, and a small serving of carbs twice a day. (ie; 1/2 of a potato, 1/2 an ear of corn, 1/2 cup of rice, Pasta, or noodles or 1/4 cup of granola, grapenuts and muesli/rolled oats) He also recommends 2 servings of fruit and dairy a day and suggests we have those as a snack if we need one between meals. I've found I'm only able to eat about 1 cup of food per meal (consisting of my protein and veggies only) and that keeps me satisfied about 3 hours between meals. I don't even bother putting the carbs on my plate at this point (other than what is in my veggies) because I'm not able to get to them before I'm full. It seems every Dr. has their own preferred diet for their patients so I'd check with yours to see what he wants you to be doing. Good luck!

I can understand that. It was always easier for me to lose weight when my hubby was TDY, too. He's a 3 real meals a day kinda guy with a metabolism I can only dream of. So, I can understand wanting to take advantage of the time he's away to jump start your loss or break a plateau. As long as you are getting enough Protein, and feel satisfied with the shakes, I don't really see anything wrong with it. Keep me posted if you decide to try it, I'd like to know how it worked out for you. :thumbup: ETA; **But I'm not a Dr. so I'd suggest running it past your Dr or Nutritionist first.** :smile:

I think it'll work. Diets like Slim Fast and Medifast seem to reduce weight, but is it really a diet you want? Are you stalled and just wanting something to jump start weight loss, or are you just wanting to dump a large amount of weight while he's gone for that month? I understand just wanting to get the weight off, but be careful about "dieting". I know for me I got the band because diets never worked long term. They were so restrictive that eventually I'd want something not on the approved list and end up binging on it. Just be careful that doesn't happen to you. As we know, binging with the band isn't a great idea. One other thing you might want to consider; if you aren't getting enough Protein per day you may risk losing hair. I don't know how important that is to you in the big scheme of things, but it's something to consider. But, if it's something you want to try to break a plateau, I say, go for it. You have nothing to lose but time and weight. :thumbup:

I agree! Lane Bryant is ridiculously overpriced and has poor quality clothing. I refuse to shop there. I figured if I had to buy lower quality fabrics I'd pay less for it at places like Fashion Bug. And, believe it or not, I've had many items purchased at Fashion Bug and Kohls outlast items from Lane Bryant. Kohls is another place that you can find items regularly on sale. When I can get a couple new items for a few bucks I don't feel as badly about spending money on clothes I know I'll likely to be out of in a couple months.

Cleo's Mom, I'm so sorry the band isn't working for you as advertised, but I'm so glad you're on this forum. I think your experience is probably more common than most of us would care to admit. Unfortunately, not everyone who follows the rules has an easy road and/or happy ending with the band. Too often those people are made to feel guilty with comments like "stop whining" or "the band didn't fail you, you failed the band". We need to realize the band isn't a one size fits all solution to weight loss. Sadly, for some, it just doesn't work. I think, for many of us, we believe the band is our last resort to lose and keep the weight off, and experiences like yours feed into our fear that this won't work for us either. I think it may be easier, for some, to blame those people with less than optimal results than to admit the band just doesn't work for everyone. So, for those who are doing everything right and still struggling, your voice is an important one. It's important that they know they didn't fail their band and they aren't just "bitchers and moaners". And for those of us newly banded, hopefully your voice will serve as a reminder that there are no guarantees with the band and to be kinder to ourselves, and each other, as we go through this journey. Again, I'm very sorry for your experiences, but I'm so glad you're here. :thumbup: