PJbanster

Awesome I hope it all goes well for you!

<P>I had surgery on a thurs and took off the next week. Total was 7 days missed from work. I think a week was good some people take like 3 days and are good. After 2 weeks I started to feel much more normal. I remember feeling uncomfortable in the chest area and my back being really achy from the air that gets in your body from surgery. Just a little uncomfy nothing terrible. Don't push too hard take slow walks when you're feeling up to it, the movement helps honestly.-<BR><BR>My pre op diet was:<BR>Breakfast - 1 egg<BR>Snack - 4oz no sugar added apple sauce & 4 oz protein shake<BR>Lunch - 4 oz of meat & veggies<BR>Snack - 4 oz protein shake<BR>Dinner - 4 oz of meat & veggies<BR>I think I had another 4 oz protein shake after dinner<BR><BR>The only time I was really hungry was between work and dinner when my husband would eat a peanut butter granola bar in the same car with me. I treatened his life! lol The hardest part was going to my nieces bday party in the middle of it and not touching anything. Was tough being around pizza and cake when I was pretty frigging hungry. The only veggies she had were things I wasn't supposed to eat like carrots and tomatoes. I only had to do the diet for 2 weeks and when it was all said and done it wasn't all that difficult. </P>

I feel like I'm a stalker in the bushes spying on onederland! I'm at 201.2. I'm VERY happy because I started out at 346 but of course since I want to be under 200 my body is not coopearting...YET! The scale keeps reading 201.6, 201.2, 201.8, 202.2, back down to 201.8. AAAARG just get there! When I think about it, it does seem silly because who could see the weight differnce of 1 or 2 lbs. Still! I've gotta see that 199.9! I don't plan on stopping after I get there but it's sure gonna feel good when I finally make that milestone. The last year I have become so OCD about the scale and myfitnesspal. It is amazing to see to see the difference between how I am now and the 346 person who had given up. I just keep telling myself everyone has their struggles in life, this just happens to be mine. I'm gonna keep pushing and I hope all of you guys do too!

<P>I've always had a pretty good knowledge of what to eat health wise. I could do well for weeks and months at a time with my well rounded healthy meals, but because of my body and some health issues one bad meal would cause MAJOR weight gain for me. I have never believed in getting your band so tight you can't swallow your own spit lol. If I can't fit in 1200 healthy calories each day I would get some fluid taken out. I do know a lot of people who only eat 700-800 calories a day and it really is not enough to realistically be healthy. You're body needs nutrients to survive and THRIVE. I use my band to keep me from being hungry between meals so it's easier to stick with the plan. It also keeps me from being as bad as I want on days where my will power is not so strong and when I do have a treat day with something not so healthy I don't pay the price I used to. It's funny now a "bad day" is eating 1500-1800 calories lol. Not that it's a lot but probably once a week I treat myself with higher fatty foods. I know before a bad day would be SO MUCH more than that.<BR>It's great that you've found something that works for you. Good job and keep at it!</P>

The only thing lapband does for me(once I was filled to the level I needed to be), was make me get full faster and stay full longer. I still count all the calories I put in my mouth. The closer I get to my goal weight the more I have to be careful about what types of food I eat. I've tried calorie counting in the past but the only difference now is I'm not feeling so hungry that I cheat all the time. The band does not work by itself but it is an amazing tool. I have done a lot of experimenting with what works for me in the last 14 months that I have been banded. Different foods can have different affects on everyone. I am 5'8" and 201 now. If you're around that you're going to have to calorie count and eat the right kinds of food. One step to take is try to keep your sugar intake down. That was the main tweak I made the closer I got to 200 that has helped. I switched to a soy milk that has less sugar than 1% milk. Little things like that go a long long way. It really is a journey. I've had my struggles a long the way and at some point it just hits you what you need to do for you and to really buckle down. No one can do that for you. Also, don't forget the exercise! Real exercise to get that heart rate up!

That's awesome!

I personally don't do well when my calories get too low. I eat my 3 meals a day but i also have 2 protein shakes a day. I had stopped doing the shakes for a while but recently started them back up to help me lose. It is funny how different things are now. Before we thought we were eating low cals and eating more than we thought. Now we think we're eating really well then when we calculate it up we're like 800 calories? Felt like I ate so much!

I was eating right and exercising, my weight was barely budging, and it was SO frustrating. I guess a break and relaxing was just what my body needed. I went to Daytona for 2 weeks and ate whatever types of food I felt like. I was afraid I'd gain but I still managed to lose 1 pound because of all the wakling I did at Disney, the zoo, and on the beach. Now that I'm home I've been really strict on my eating again, drinking plenty of water, and bumped up the incline on my jogs. So far and I've lost 3 lbs over the last 2 days. It feels good to see the scale move at a quicker pace again I will enjoy it while it lasts! Almost 133 lbs gone in 12 & 1/2 mos!

That is so awesome!

All interesting facts! It's amazing how out of wack our ideas are about what portions should be! Healthy carbs in the right portions are great for our body especially the whole grains. It's bad bad to completely starve your body of healthy carbs. I mean you can drop weight pretty quick without carbs but your body needs them and you can baloon out quick the second you have a small amount. I find myself loving to learn about stuff like this lately. It just seems like the more science you learn behind this whole weight loss subject the more it FINALLY makes sense!

I have been banded almost 11 mo and at mo 9 the weight loss slowed majorly. I was still eating the same calories and still exercising 6 hours a week. I went from losing 11-12 lbs a mo to 5 lbs. What i discovered was that I was sticking mostly to cardio so with all the weight loss I wasn't maintaining my muscles. Anytime you aren't maintaining your muscles weight loss will be slow because your muscles burn more fat. I have no idea what your exercise habits are but weight loss focused only on eating less with little to no real heart rate increasing and sweating exercise will always be slower. I can tell you that if I hadn't been doing as much exercise as I have the weight loss would not have been as successful for me. I'm almost 117 down and still a week shy of 11 mo. Now there is nothing wrong with the slower weight loss. If you're losing that's great! But if you're confused as to why it's not faster a good place to start looking is the exercise routine. Everyone is different and everyone has to start somewhere. The key is figuring out what works for you.

I had the same problem. Doc took out half a cc and BAM all the sudden i could drink water again. I know mine was so bad I couldn't really eat and really hardly even drink for 4 days. I felt like warmed over death by the time I got to the doc.

AWESOME JOB! I remember I used to sit in a theatre and like squeeze in to the seat and be like it's cool as long as I don't move the cup holders don't dig in to my thighs. lol now I go in and get comfy and I can even prop my legs up under me and STILL have wiggle room. I did a little dance to celebrate that. Every victory is something to celebrate!