kelly111

May I make a suggestion? You need more calories. You need 1 gram of protien per pound of body weight. I weigh 180 so that s how many grams of protien I must eat to maintain lean muscle mass - which is key for a good metabolism. As you can see, you need more calorie intake. Guessing, you need around 1700. Add weights to your workouts if you havent already. Heavy weights. Dont worry, you will NOT bulk up from that! You're also eating a little too many carbs. Make sure you are eating your carbs from fruit , veggies and 1 whole grain per day (like brown rice). You need a good MUFA ( monounsatuarated fatty acid) with 3 of your 6 meals. I eat a handful of nuts or use olive oil on my chicken or veggies. Trust me, you do this and you will see the fat melt off again.

I am banded and I absolutly disagree with keeping your band filled. I did that thinking the weight would come off quicker. It did not. What did help, however, was learning that I need to eat GOOD food 6x a day and get some exercise and weight training in. I was working out very hard and barely eating cause my band was so tight... nothing was happening. I hired a nutritionist and trainer - boy, I learned very quickly how wrong I was. Truth is.... eat high protein, low carb and good oils with every meal, 6x a day and do some light cardio and weight training 4x a week and the fat will start melting off. If you dont believe me, do some research. I struggled for a year with not much weight loss at all. Now... in just 3 weeks the FAT is coming off and my body is not burning muscle because it has no food. True sttory

Careful there! Your body will naturally burn protein first if it doesnt have food as a contstand food source. You need to eat much more than that - always making sure its good food, though. Dont be proud of yourself for barely eating.... thats horrible. I have been there, trust me. Educate yourself on how to burn fat and gain lean muscle mass that burns fat all day. You will see what Im talking about. With that knowledge and understanding, you will see why what you are doing is much to your detriment.

It's very typical to not feel restriction until your 3-4 fill. Dont rush it. I have made the mistake of going in to get fill after fill because I just wasnt losing weight fast enough and could eat more than I though. After a full year of learning about this band and the TRUE way to lose fat and build muscle, I learned I MUST eat the RIGHT foods and exercise and the fat will melt off SLOWLY. Im going in to have all of the fluid removed from the band next month. What a disservice I did to myself. With the band, Im not able to eat all the meals of lean proteins, carbs and fat that I need to eat in order for my body to melt the fat and gain muscle. I hope people read this and do their own research on FAT LOSS. Its one thing if you just want the scale to go down and look thinner. But, for me, I wanted to be healthier, look fit and lean. That is not possible with a tight band around my belly.

Be very careful eating that low of calories. Its just simply not enough. Sure, the scale may go down but your body will burn up muscle as a fuel source instead of fat. The more muscle you lose, the more fat you store and the more likely you are to keep storing fat when and if you do eat something like pizza or ice cream. I did exactly what you are doing until I really educated myself on losing fat and building muscle. You NEED to eat!!! A LOT. You just need lots of protein with a complex carb and good fat in every meal. This way, YOU WILL LOSE FAT and retain your muscle.

No need to be confused. After your surgery they tell you to go on a liquid diet. I did that for 3 days and then went on to mushies. If, at any time, you get sick, go back to liquids. If you feel fine, its ok to advance your diet. This is what 6 bariatric surgeons told me in a conference. You should stay on each diet for at least 3 days. You dont have to eat all the sugary stuff on the liquid phase or mushie phase. I always opted for protein shakes, eggs, cottage cheese, refried beans, split pea soup. All of these things are good for you. Always eat a high protein food with a complex carb and a little fat. I recommend taking 1 tbsp of flax seed oil. If you do your research on that you will see why. Its hard to get down but I usually "chase" it with cold green tea and its not so bad. Best to you!

DO NOT make the mistake of thinking you are just going to drop all of your fat. It will NOT happen. In fact, if you are losing more than 2 lbs a week or 3 of you are extremely over weight then you are losing muscle. Do some research on that topic. Ive been studying this for a long time and have many post about it. I have only lost 46 lbs in nearly a year. But , I know every one of those pounds was FAT. You must weight train in order to keep your muscle ( which burns fat all day) and lose fat. You must also feed your body. You must eat a good protein and complex carb 5-6 x a day. Dont restrict yourself to the point where you cant eat enough. I have dont that and today I just scheduled another un-fill because I cant get enough food in to lose fat. Be very careful with that band.! If I were you and knowing what I have learned over this past year I would keep your fluid in your band where it is and educate yourself about your diet. Losing fat is 85% about your nutrition and only 15% about exercise - weight training. I hope this helps. I would like to keep others from making the mistakes I have made.

I wanted to post something about all the folks out there getting fills thinking thats what will cause them to drop weight. It's been almost a year for me and I have only lost 45 lbs ( I really only had about 65 to lose). I had fills and fills until I just couldnt keep anything down. I thought I could drop the weight that way and then just have an un-fill after the weight was gone. Boy, was I wrong! After many struggles this year I have learned a few valuable facts that I would like to share with you: Dont get your band filled past half way. This is true for most people anyway. We need to EAT in order to lose fat and gain muscle. I went to a nutritionist last week who does training for body builders. I was eating far too few calories. I was working out very hard at about 10 hours a week and getting no where! Exercise is important but its only 20% - the other 80% is the diet! You must eat lots of lean proteins, no sugar substitutes, no sugar and only natural carbs that are in fruits and veggies. You must get about 1500-1800 cals in for women if you are doing exercise 4x a week. Now, those calories must be the good kind. Losing 1 lb a week is awesome! Losing much more than 2 a week is a sure sign that you are losing muscle. Thats not a good thing. Your body will respond if you follow some of these things. I love to eat and I love to workout. So I was killing myself working out so I could eat a small sugary treat every day. I couldnt understand why the fat wasnt coming off. Now, I understand. It's ALL about the diet. DO NOT GET OVER-FILLED THINKING YOU WONT BE ABLE TO EAT AND THE POUNDS WILL DROP. you may lose weight on the scale but you will be losing your muscle first and not your fat. HUGE mistake. Im finally losing the last 20 lbs of fat that I have. With this knowledge, I will be lean and buff in 6-7 months.

It is truly all about the diet. I have been studying this for months now. Wondering why I was working out so hard and having 1000 cals a day and nothing was happening. I had it all wrong. I dont need to train so hard; infact that was to my detriment. I just needed to perfect my diet and eat clean!!!! That means good protein, complex carb and a fat in every meal - 5-6 meals a day. You must consume at least 1500 cals or you will end up losing your muscle. Yes, pounds drop - but you would be loing muscle weight. Thats no good because muscle is what keeps your metabolism going. And when you do eat a slice of pizza or have a piece of cake - it will be stored as fat. This can be very complicated - I know! Bottom line: EAT CLEAN, exercise at a low intensity 3x a week and lift heavy weights 2x a week. FAT will melt away. Who cares about the darn pounds on the scale! Losing FAT is where its AT

I've been there. I have always encouraged people to NOT chance getting filled past 6 or 7 cc's. Most of us cant handle it. I thought by being filled tight I would drop the weight and then have it removed later. NOT the case. I did exactly what you are saying. That, by the way, will start to deminish over the next week. Its been almost a year for me and I decided to go to a nutritionist. As it turns out.... I needed to eat waaaaay more.

For what its worth - I would not recommend the surgery to you. Certainly its better that your insurance is paying for it. I paid 15K for this and its been almost a year. I have lost 45 lbs total. I work out like crazy and stay at about 1500 cals. Still the weight loss is incredibly slow. You seem to be doing all of it on your own and thats wonderful. The band will not help you keep the weight off - not much anyway. All it does is not allow you to overeat in one setting. If you eat slowly or snack throughout the day the weight comes right back on. The band is a tool that give you about 15% boost. Diet and exercise do the other 85%. For you... I would say NOT to do it.

The docs only tell you to go to liquids then soft foods to make sure nothing gets stuck after the fill. Sometimes the fill causes the stomach to inflame which makes you feel really tight and things are prone to get stuck. I never had to go to liquids. I went right back to eating normally since my fills were all small. The fill is saline solution into your plastic band. There is no way to "ruin" that. Docs are overly cautious about patients having "stuck episodes"...because.... they are horrible!

WOW Michael. I could never eat just 700 cals a day. I work out 2 hours a day and burn about 1000 cals. Im eating about 1500 cals - high protein, fiber and nutrients. I also must drink with my meals or else I would only be able to eat a few bites. With working out so hard, I need to be able to eat 5 meals. I need to keep my body in shape so not working out or just walking isnt an option for me.

I wouldnt get another fill. Ive been there. I thought the tighter I was the more weight I would lose and that just wasnt the case. I had to end up getting an un-fill. I found I wasnt able to get enough calories in to substain my workouts let alone lose fat. Its been 10 months for me and I just hit 45 lbs lost. For many of us it is a VERY slow process. If you are one of those people you must just learn to accept that. The band does about 15% of the work. 70% is your diet and te other 15% is your exercise. 5 bariatric surgeons told me this in a seminar I went to before surgery. I didnt believe them. I really thought I could work out hard and lose weight quicker. NOT true. I lose maybe half of a pound a week and I do all the right things.

Ive been over-filled due to MY choice and it was horrible. I couldnt eat or drink before 1 or 2 pm and I could barely get down most foods. I would throw up 4-5 x a week. Its just not worth it. I had fluid taken out. I told the doc I wanted my band 1/2 filled. He said that is where most lapbanders live. If your band is a 9 or 10 cc band that means you may be comfortable at 5 cc's. You need to find out where you are. I, too, can eat whatever I want. Sooooooo...I restrict myself. I realize I will be on this diet for the rest of my life. I must make good choices for myself. Ive been banded almost a year now and I have said the same thing on many people's posts. If you are extremely overweight - you will lose weight quickly just by cutting calories and walking. If you are like me and only had 50-60 lbs to lose to beging with it is MUCH harder. Ive only lost 45 lbs now. Losing the final 15 is ridiculously hard!!!! The band helps me maybe 15%. The other 85% is diet and exercise.

Been banded nearly 1 year now and I can tell you that after many fills and un-fills I am at a good place. I eat slowly, but I find I dont have to eat as slowly as I did when I was filled tighter. I eat anything - there is nothing off limits to me. Im at 6 cc's and I dont get anything stuck anymore. However, I spent 8 months getting stuck and throwing up. Dont thinkk going tighter means more weight loss... it didnt for me. Like others have said, not allowing anything to pass over your throat until its mush is KEY. So, no matter what you eat, IF YOU ARENT OVER FILLED, it shouldnt be a problem

Hair is comprised of a lot of protein. If you are not getting at least half of your current weight in protein you are not getting enough. For instance, if you weigh 300 lb you need a minimum of 150 grams of protein. I know it sounds like a lot but it is very essential. If you get your protein, your hair will NOT fall out!

My doc cleared me for food after 7 days. He explained that if your body heals well and the swelling goes down it is ok to eat. He told me to "try" very small pieces of food and if its ok than its best to get your body acclamated to the band. If it hurts or something bad happens you would want to go back to liquids. But if things feel ok.... its ok to eat. CHEW, SLOW and SMALL

I totally relate. Its been over 10 months for me and Im at 45 lbs. If I may offer a suggestion...start lifting heavy weights in your workouts. It will NOT make you bigger. The muscle building increases metabolism and burns more calories. I think you will see better results. Do that 3x/week. That being said....I have been lifting heavy for many years now and I still will only lose half of a pound a week.... maybe. Its very frustrating. I had no idea how hard , how much exercise and how much dieting was involved with this. Basically, I think the band contributes 15% but the rest is all up to us. I can eat whatever I want and if I sit there long enough....I can continue to eat. Im done with all the fills and un-fills. Im staying where Im at. I must now do what it takes on my own. Soooooo HARD!

The surgeons said if you are extremely overweight - like over 400 lbs... that may be true. They need to give you a reason, they cant just say you are doing it for insurance purposes. There is some truth in what they said about the fat around the liver.

I know you should do what your doc says...but if you understand WHY you are doing the pre-op diet and realize that it has nothing to do with your surgery... you may feel better about eating. Just choose good foods.

Dont get stressed about that. Its normal. Im 10 months post op and I have only lost 45 lbs total. Im losing half of a pound a week - working out very hard and calories at 1000. Its a very slow process for most of us.

Good for you! Its crazy how different our bodies are. Im 50 lbs heavier than you and Im a size 10 also. Weird

I have posted the same comment on several people's posts about the pre-op diet. That is strictly done for insurance purposes. It does NOT need to be done for surgery. This is what was explained to us by the bariatric surgeons. They just need to document that they told you to do the diet and you are able to lose weight- meaning you are committed. That is the only reason. So dont stress out about keeping an all liquid diet like that.

The pre-op diet is usually for people who are using insurance to pay. In a seminar with 6 bariatric surgeons I learned that one only needs to do this diet if insurance is paying for the surgery. The docs just need to document that you are able to lose weight. So - dont stress yourself out thinking you MUST do this for the surgery's sake. It has nothing to do with that.