Gaffer

I think the big thing in the States is that many people have been banded in Mexico, and the US Dr.s want to take advanatge of the fact that they cant get aftercare. I see some of the prices paid by people in the US and I cant believe it. It must be a realy deterant for some people to get filled and take full advantage of the band. I dont mind paying the $99, I feel that I am getting good value with the body analysis that I get with it and the potential to lose more weight. Andrew

I shared a Kit Kat blizzard with my wife and I must say that it was a big dissappointment. You really not mission ou that much. Andrew

Yes with that price it all kinda comes out better in the end. I can understand your Dr. charging the $30. It may deter people who are taking advantge of the free fill policy. Andrew

The Sugical Weight Loss Clinic also has free fills for life, but as I am not lilving in Toronto I cant really take advantage of that. My fill Dr. in Calgary charges $99, no flouro. I know the other Dr. in Calgary charges 150.00 I can see both sides of the coin with having to pay, but $30 is pretty minor. Maybe a better way to go would have been x number free and then a nominal fee after that. Andrew

Sounds like a Robert Desowitz book. He is one of my favorites. As for the butterfly, I am not sure which it is. Andrew

Pre-op pickles are a lifesaver. Andrew

They made us do it in high school gym class. Anyways, I relpied but my post must have been lost in the ether that is the new LBT. I would be up for some informal type meeting somewhere sometime (My wife says I have a fear of commitment, can you tell?) Andrew

From my personal experience it easier to keep it a secret, You cant "un-tell" people about it. I chose to tell those that I knew would be supportive, and although I have many people in my life, very few of them know because I did not think they would understand. Do what is right for you, but dont beat yourself up over whether people know or not. You are entititled to some privacy in the matter, and it is much easier when you are not worried about what others think. Andrew

My condolences. Hopefully one day help for people in his, and all our situations will be more widely available. Andrew

I know what you are saying. Really the "free" fills for life only applies to those around TO. It would have been nice to get a break on the surgery because I am pretty sure I will never be going back to TO for a fill. I guess I should be thankful though because it sounds like some people are having difficulty getting fills in their area. Andrew

There are 2 that I am using right now. Why 2 you say? Right after my surgery I was using NxCare IsoXP Whey Isolate which was pretty good taste, maybe a little sweet but had a whopping 45 grams protien per serving, this was before adding milk about 60g by the time the milk was added. That is really too much protien for the body to absorb at one shot, but I liked it. It is pricey, but I really think it helped me with putting on lean muscle mass as measured by my last body analysis (6kg). I also ordered some of my old standby that I used when I was buff in University, Optimum Nutrition Classic (Whey blend). It was on wicked sale, I got 5lbs for $26.99. I started to use the Optimum after I finished my last jar of IsoXp, but it started to give me gas so I had to go back to the IsoXP which is pretty pricey at 40.00/2.5lbs This week I have started to mix the 2 together to make 1 serving to see if the gas goes away. I want to use the Optimum but the gas was too much so hopefully the 2 mixed together will work. With mixing the 2 in milk I am getting about 45-50 grams of protien for Breakfast. Since you are in Edmonton, I would recommend going to the Popeye's chain of supplement stores. Ask the person working there for a low/zero carb protien shake that mixes well. They may even have some samples they can give you. You can also order off the website http://www.supplementscanada.com/. They will send you a free T-shirt (Fruit of the loom), samples, and some other crap too so that is nice. Good luck and let us know what you find. Andrew

It is natural to be nervous about the whole thing, whether it be the pain, the concern about how it will work after your surgery and every other little detail that you can fret over. Dont worry, it is not as bad as you could possibly make it out to be in you head. Andrew

Thanks, they are something that I take alot of pride in, and I have a knack for the mounting and happen to know how to frame as well. I know what you mean about the entomlogy. My first love was parasitology, but there is no work in that field, even less than in the entomology field. I am lucky to have my business, as well as a fulltime career in entomology. Andrew

Thanks, I dont know what happened but she went hula crazy last week, she was working overtime for sure. I think she is going to need a break this week though. Seem to be the new pattern lately. Andrew

I would have been livind. Good thing they were able to do the fill for you. Andrew

I have some Cohibas that I gotta get through, but I cannot smoke them tinight as the Flames are losing to Detriot as I type Nice ones. I prefer the saying... I have they body of a God, too bad it is Buddah. Thanks Becca. I am a little worried that CanMac is catching up to me. I better get one of those Pilates balls. Do they come in vucalnized rubber. I dont want to have a blow out.

I have the large AP band. It was put in by my surgeon in Feb., who has been using them exclusively since Nov.2006. They are already in use in Canada (where I am from) and Australia. Canada has many choices for band, but they are by no means getting cheaper with all the options on the market. Andrew

Since Mr.Yoda called me out, here we go with some comments as well Google Brazilian Wax, just dont do it at work. I really dont think you want one, and you may not be able to find someone who wont do it without danger pay. :heh: Amen, I hate being called big guy. My friends dont do it, why the hell does the guy at the Future Shop think it is okay. I dont call him pencil neck. Refer to my Christmas hot tub thread. They were giving these out at the DVD release. I wanted one in the worst way. Allllriiiiiight. I still have to resist the urge to go into George Richards to see if they got anything new. I am not fond of the Repp B&T. This is really what it is all about for me. I want to be there to see the milestones in my children's lives. Grads, weddings, grandchildren. This is my strongest motivator. Some more less important ones for me. - I want to be able to shop in normal stores. B&T shops for me are like highway robbery. Why do they think that they can charge so much for crappy quality. - I want to be able to get in the pool without being self concious of my size. I think this is a remnant from my fat childhood but I will work on it. - I want to be able to have people treat me the way they do everyone else and not look at me like some sort of leper. - I want to be able to look good in a suit with my shirt tucked in. I always look like a sausage with my shirt bunched up in the middles. There are others, but I cant reallly think of them now Who thought I would still be running snow tires at this time of year. Global warming my ass. Andrew

I have the Inamed AP Large band which hold 14CC total. I had 4CC for my first fill and 1CC for my second. It seems my second fill has faded somewhat but I will live with it for a couple of weeks and go from there. Andrew

That is way better. My eyes have stopped bleeding. Keep up the good work. Andrew

The jury is still out. I am waiting for more opinions, but they consensus is leaning to me being out of my mind. Andrew

I am already on the protien drinks for breakfast. I am using the NxCare IsoXP Whey Isolate which has 45g protein per serving mixed with milk which will bring it up to 60 grams for my morning shake. Even with the intense cardio I have managed to add 6kg (~13lbs) in a month in between getting my body analysis. I am not stranger to the protien. Thanks, Andrew

Jessie, Your story sounds alot like mine, and my band journey began after my son was born and I realized that I wanted to be around to see the milestones in his life. I have a question. Do you have a hard time putting on muscle with the limited amount of food that we bandsters can eat. Right now I am doing major cardio, but eventually want to start lifting again and putting on some more lean mass. Congrats, Andrew

Will you take your cut in cottage cheese & yogurt? Andrew

I am going to write a book called "Dr. Gaffer's Miracle Cottage cheese and Yogurt Diet". Like all weight loss things it will sell millions. Grapefruits & Cabbage Soup got nothin' on me. Great work on the weight loss so far ladies. Keep up the good work. ps. There are some glitches with the site since the upgrade.