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Hi everyone! I am doing well! I have minimal pain! Thank goodness! I have virtually no gas pains just some pain and soreness where the port is. I haven't slept well because it is difficult to sleep on my side from the pain but I doze. Overall this is a walk in the park compared to my 3 previous c-sections! I have been moving around as much as possible. I have been sipping my water and had only 1 protein shake today. I am NOT hungry at all. I am unsure if I am supposed to eat (drink) if I am not hungry. I know my body needs the calories to help heal but just a little confused about that. Any ideas?

hi pam, everyone is different and what works for me might not work for you. As a nurse i see where u coming from with being tired after work all i want to do is take a bath and go to bed. I work 12 hrs shifts so when i work i do not work out but the days that im off i hit the gym. Do you have a gym memebership? the band alone is not going to workout if u dont excersice believe me i been there! start by walking 30 min a day and do light wts with time u can increase your intensity and time. right now im doing a lot of cardio and wts to tone up. Drink a lot of water i drink 3 to 4 32 oz bottles a day and dont forget ur protein and vitamins. it takes a lot of patience to get there but YOU CAN DO IT!!!! my main motivation are my kids! but when u can wear things that u were not able to before it feels sooo good! also looking at other people who had success with the band is a motivation

livi

shibalover I dont think I over did anything. I work out a few times a week and get my heart pumping for an hour at a time and before I had restriction I dieted and watched my calories but now I have restriction and am eating whatever I make my family but I just cant eat very much of it LOL. Ive come to relize I want to do this for life not like a diet. I dont get all my protein in most days but I try and I eat everything but the band helps with the amount. The only tip I have thats a for sure thing is DONT snack because the band wont help with that. I could eat a whole bag of reese cups if I want. so I stay far far away LOL I try not to have that junk in the house. It really is an awesome tool

I wish I were 250!!! Congrats to you! So far the weight has just been falling off. I eat mostly proteins, I do have carbs but no breads, sweets, sodas, or anything like that. Oh, and no crackers, chips, popcorn - you know, any of the things I would eat like, daily. LOL. I've been going to the gym maybe 3 times a week. But today I was beating myself up because the stupid scale said I went up 2 f'ing pounds. I'm still working on my emotional baggage that I carry!!! Take it easy Sister!

Hi, I'm Sarah. We have surgery scheduled for the same day. 8/9/10! I'm not on a pre-op diet yet. For one week prior to surgery I'll be on 2 protein shakes and a Lean cuisine/ day calories not to exceed 873. They want me to lose 5-10 pounds that week mostly to shrink my liver. I will do my pre-op labs and EKG this week.

Best of luck to you!

What protein shake are you on? I am having the EAS lowcarb drink and thank GOD I only have four more days because it really is starting to make me sick. LOL Can't wait to start real soft foods. Hope I don't over do it since there is no restriction right now since the band isn't inflated at all yet.

Have you lost weight? Right now I am down 11lbs.

I go in for my first fill on Monday the 13th. I am glad to get it done because it is too easy to just eat like I used to, I mean the quantity of each meal. It almost seems like I was able to loose when I was drinking protein shakes and no food and now the weight loss has slowed considerably. I still try to only drink a shake for breakfast and add frozen fruit to the blender. It does help to read that other May banders losses are comparable to mine.

Hope you get your fill soon.

The 29th? How fabulous! Good for you!! Yes, I am on a pre-op diet and I hate it. <> Liquids for 14 days! YIKES!! I have a good protein supplement and I am following the rules---it's not so hard to do...I just miss CHEWING! LOL I have found that I have zero energy at the end of the day. When I get home from work and have my 'dinner,' all I want to do is sit on the couch and go to bed early. I hope it gets better---I've been reading where people say the first 4 days are the roughest. How about you? Do you have to do liquids or just high protein?

Ack!! Sorry Mrs Smith, I just noticed your question in my notices about unflavored protein powder.

The only unflavored protein powder have found so far in Unjury (UNJURY is Medical Quality Whey Protein Isolate. Best Tasting Whey Protein Powder. Most Trusted Whey Protein Powder Supplement. Taste the difference)

I haven't tried too many though. I love Optifast and have been sticking with it.

Hi B... just wanted to send you a message to say I have learned a lot from keeping up with your posts here on LBT and congrats on your success! I am still in the pre-LB stage jumping thru insurance hoops but am confident it will all be worth it I would be interested in knowing the answer to Mrs.Smith's ? about the unflavored protein as well. God bless and keep it up!

Thank you thank you thank you for your kind words!!!!!!!!

I wish you the best of luck as well!! And im going first so I will let you know how it is lol Absolutely will keep in touch and thank you again, like you said only "we" know how hard it actually is! Off to drink my sugar free protein shake!

hi Zen...thanks for checkin in. Surgery went well. Everything is good except for the GAS PAIN!!! Last night I thought I was gonna die it was so bad. Glad I have my strong meds. for pain and my handy heating pad. I am getting my liquids and protein in. hope all is still good with you:)

Hi there....haven't been on in a while but wanted to let you know that I did get a fill on August 9. I had 3.5cc's and he added 3.5 more. I go back on August 30 for another one. I don't feel full, not enough protein I guess. Not losing as fast as I was prior to the fill. 22 lost preop 22 lost post op! How did your fill go? I'm looking forward to my second one...maybe it will be the one that tightens me up so I don't feel hungry! Take care!

Thats a good question. I wouldnt use those protein shakes with all those carbs and sugars. I know a great way to make a protein smoothie out of fruit and egg whites, its also a great antioxident. I would use frozen strawberries and blueberries with 2 teaspoons of egg whites. You can add more egg white depending how much protein you want. Then I would add 1 or 2 splendas for flavor along with some vanilla extract. To make the smoothie smooth you can add water or a bit of soy vanilla milk.

Hello!! Yes, I am very excited!! I am on day 10 of my pre-op diet and to my surprise, I feel great!! My doctor does a modified liquid diet, he allows us to have one meal a day along with the 2 protein shakes.

ya its really hard in the mornings but i just drink my herbalife for breakfast and lunch cuz that has protein in it so i dont have to worry about what has protein in it and stuff i really like herbalife alot its really good you should try it! i go to the doctor on the 5th! so we will see how im doing i will let you know let me know what they tell you k

Gurl,thanks...because this band can be confusing!!! I'm soo worried about the diet stages...i dn't want to drink alot,but i know protein is a must!!! I'm glad to hear n time it will change..thanks so much for ur advice..u have a blessed week...gwen

Thanks for visiting my blog. Its really interesting to learn you follow a high protein diet. I have so much conflicting information regarding what one can and cant eat. I am a total carnivore ( I live in the Scottish Borders where we have the best meat in the whole of the United Kingdom) Even the info my hospital gave me is conflicting! One section says dont eat chicken or beef for 3 months afer surgery, another section which covers 2wks + suggest eating minced meat. Guess its going to be trial and error! You look fab a great inspiration :0 )

Hello,how's it going?? I'm sooo excited n nervous!! I get banded on wednes(9th)...is it hard getting to drink 64oz n get ur protein in and still lose weight?? Keep me posted and i'll do the same...i would love to know how everything went!!! Thanx n good night...ms.gwen

Hi Geri, really glad to hear from you as I'd been thinking of you. Have you been getting plenty of protein? Which food stage are you at now? Geri, did you get plenty of info to help with food choices for the different stages, healthy choices + ideas for snacks etc? I could make copies of my notes for you.

Geri, would love to meet up sometime! It would just be fab to have a friend whose going thru this as well. we could support each other.

Geri, hang in there, you have done the right thing! It does get easier as your understanding of how the band works grows!

take care,

Maree

Hi,

Sorry...been a long time since I've been on here. I have lost only 55lbs since surgery. I was 289 before surgery and am at 233 now. I am sort of disappointed because the Dr. tells me that, that is a little slow...but I also have to admit I haven't been following all the rules either. I just cannot find a protein that appeals to my taste buds....they all make me nauseaous (sorry for the misspelling). So, how are you now? Did you meet your goal yet? Do you have a lot of lose skin or any advise on how to keep it tight? Any advise on anything? I need all the help I can get. Not sure how to move this along. I work out at the Gym 3 times a week for an hour ... but I don't do protein drinks and don't drink much water.

Hi there! Just wanted to see how you're doing after your Dr. visit? I agree with the others that you were/are too tight, but I'm sure your Doc figured it out and you're back on track. They call what you described 'soft food syndrome' and it's typical not to lose weight when you're eating sliders as the Band is meant to work with solid protein/etc.

Hope the Doc got you back on track and thanks for the lovely comment/info. -BG

OMG! Congrats on graduating!! I have one more year to go..smh...oh well im getting there.

A typical day for me would be a slim fast shake. (they have a high protein one 20g with 2g of carbs) Those are wayy cheaper than the other protein shakes. So its the shake for bfast then a small snack a couple hours later..maybe a banana or strawberries. For lunch I almost always eat a lean Cuisine..the steak tips with veggies! its soo good..with only 160 calories. A few hours later another snack..some yogurt or another shake..I always go to the gym after work..My PT has me doing resistance every other day and cardio on those other days. Then when my bf gets home I cook dinner always under 500 calories but it varies what it is...Thats my day...sounds healthy right?? Yea still not working..lol

Hi, Cynthia! Yes, I got a meal plan from my doctor. It's very, very simple.

For the first 2 days, it's clear liquids. Then:

Weeks 1-2: pureed protein, 3 Tbs 3x/day; bariatric vitamin

Weeks 3-4: 1.5-2 oz. of soft, moist protein (meat, eggs, fish, poultry) 3x/day/ bariatric multivitamin

Weeks 5-6: All protein allowed--2 serving 3x/day; bariatric multivitamin

Weeks 7-8: 2-2.5 ounces protein 3x/day; bariatric multivitamin

Week 9: 2.5 ounces protein 3x/day; bariatric multivitamin

Week 10-11: 2.5-3 ounces protein 3x/day, add 1/2 cup nonstarchy veggies 1x/day; bariatric multivitamin

Week 12: 3 ounces protein 3x/day, 1/2 cup nonstarchy veggie 1x/day' bariatric multivitamin

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Well for my meals i do make healthy food choices, and as for my protein intake i make sure that every meal i have has some type of protein, so that does include 2 protein shakes a day, but if i don't drink my shakes i get tempted to eat more during my meals... i feel i have no restriction though so i cant wait till i get a fill. My weight is still the same for past two weeks i also workout 3 x a week on the elliptical for 30 min and do weights as well... so that is why i am getting a little discourage...so will see i am hanging in there!!