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I had to start doing this as well. I was very up front initially about having surgery (and really I still am), but I have arrived at a point where I am losing weight because of lifestyle changes and not because I had surgery. By saying I had surgery discounts everything else I have done to lose weight including all of the exercising. Now I am just as likely to mention MyFitnessPal and Zumba.

Hi All, I was banded on July 9 and lost 25 pounds by my first post op appointment on Aug. 9. At that time my doc said he didn't want to do a fill because I was doing so well without it. Well I thought I would up the stakes and I started working out 5 days a week. I work three days with a personal trainer and two days I do Water aerobics. So since my doc appointment I haven't lost any weight at all. I've been tracking my calories and it seems I average about 1300 a day. Is that too much? Also, I can drink about 60 oz of water a day right now but I'm concerned that might not be enough either. Tomorrow I start school and I take glassblowing glasses so with our 90+ degree weather and the heat from the class I'm really worried about not getting in enough water. Before my surgery I would drink at least 72 oz of water in 4 hours during class because I would guzzle down a bottle at time. With the sip, sip, sip method I'm worried. Any suggestions? Thanks for the info and thanks to my exercise buddy Val for telling me about this website. Great info!

I'm so glad that I'm not the only one with sweet tooth for ice cream. But the pre bought weight watchers and skinny cal things are great ideas. Think I will get rid of all the schwans ice cream cones and replace it with those, every once in awhile treat! . Thanks everyone!!

Hello to all; After years of being grossly overweight and going on diet after diet and losing weight only to gain it plus 15 pounds backs within the next 6 months or so, I decided to go the route of the lap-band. I was banded on 9/14 and am now 9 days into re-learning how to take care of my health. For some reason, they didn't weigh me before surgery on the 14th, but my initial visit with them was on August 14thish, and at my follow up two days ago, I had already lost 48 pounds. I am sure I will have questions as I get accustommed and hope I can count on some help from the experienced ones here. Happy Sunday. dab

My goal was set by my nutritionist. She asked me about 1000 questions about my weight history, weight loss history, activity level, etc. At first, I had hoped to get below 155, because that would put me at a "normal" BMI. I did actually get down to 153 at one point post-op, but felt uncomfortable there. So my nutritionist was right. 165 is my happy place!

Sleeve February 27th too. Yay. SW 266 today 232. 34lbs down I am a slow looser. I thought the weight will fall off like it did in the beginning. But I also was not exercising and I was eating slider foods like cracker and peanut butter daily Not getting enough water. I take my protein though. But I am not UnHappy about the weight loss. Looking at the positive I look good to me compared to 266lbs. From a 3x to a XL. Yay

:D :scared: :scared: Yep, I still Love my band.... ;) BUT, now I am learning more and more about it, like I just learned that while eating andd I hic-up that means to STOP eating cause the next bite will be too much and then it gets tough (slime-pain-ugly) very educational for me. Now I am beginning to deal with the fact that I can eat more than I used to in the beginning but I need to fill that space with GOOD FOOD and NOT JUNK, more education. Although I have not lost any more weight I have lost inches and as long as I am not gaining I really am fine for now. It's almost Christmas so here we go again on the food merry go round hopefully I can do the right thing. Merry Christmas to All...... 315/281/210

So Im a week away from my 6th month LapBand Anniversary, and I've lost 50lbs. I am so excited. I've gotten frustrated, thinking i am never going to lose the weight because it is a slow process but boy when you step on that scale and realize that you are losing and you've lost 50 lbs, its an amazing feeling. so totally worth it. :frown:

DenaBug! So glad to hear you're actually having FUN! I'm not banded yet, but am scheduled for June 24. My doctor keeps saying over and over that his goal is to make sure, after all is said and done, that I will have FUN doing this! I, of course, turned a very skeptical ear to him given, well, none of my other attempts to lose weight and keep it off could ever have been remotely classified as "fun"! But it's nice to see that potential really is there with this! Great job!

If you want to kick start your weight loss, you could try eating low carb. Or doing lots of exercising. Or you could just do things in moderation and be patient. I hate to answer some of these because the minute you say what is working for you, someone will come along to call you out and let you know you dont know anything. LOL I am 4 months out and have lost over 100 lbs., but I had a lot to loose to begin with. I eat low carb and exercise daily. I eat more than most, 5-6 meals a day because my hunger is just aweful. Of coarse, maybe that is why my weight is coming off so fast, my metabolism is causing both the hunger and the weight loss. I dunno.

Keep in mind that doctors, as a general rule, know next to nothing about nutrition. Come to think of it...neither do nutritionists. They're just spouting the same 'ol, same 'ol party line about the food pyramid...whatever it happens to be at the current time. Bottom line...you need to find what works with you and what you can live with. Otherwise you won't stick to it. I was on Atkins for 5 months and lost 70 pounds (from my top weight of 330). I've kept it off for 6+ years. No, I haven't been eating low carb all that time but I'm aware of the carbs and so my diet tends to be lower in carbs these days than it was prior to losing the 70 pounds. I do better on a low carb diet because I'm a diabetic. I eat carbs, my body kicks out insulin which it's unable to use and I end up with these major sugar swings which send me straight to the fridge and more carbs and the vicious cycle continues. .

hello, to everyone! I am new to this forum, please be patient with me. I had my band surgery june 22, 2006. my start weight was 207 and now after 1 year, I am at 166. my goal is to get to 135. does anyone know of a dr. who does fills in mexico? a dr. that is near the texas/mexico border?

I was banded on Friday - not nearly as bad as I had anticipated but having a few problems today. I have a lot of neck pain - like a very stiff neck - some folks says it's the gas. I thought I escaped the gas problem in the shoulders but ended up getting it higher. It was really bad on Saturday and minor today. I also experienced pain after taking a 1/3 of a pill - like I was stopped up. Again folks said it is just that full feeling. It went away in about 20 minutes. I guess this is normal? I'm fighting congestion - not using my machine enough so my bad. I am going to start trying to walk more today. The only time I can sleep is after taking the liquid vicodin. I took a shower today and haven't put the corset back on - not sure if it helps or not, but it's not as itchy without it. I guess I should put it off if I do any walking? My PA said the opening is only 1.2 CM or 1/2 inch which is alot smaller than I thought it would be without any fills - I can't imagine how small it will be with fills. I feel right now like I am 20 lbs heavier because of all the bloating but my weight only went up 2 lbs and that's without taking a Water pills. Any suggestions or confirmations would be appreciated. I'm pretty excited but scared at the same time. I'm currently taking 8 pills a day and hoping to drop them as soon as I can - which my GP says is definitely going to happen. I noticed that after 2 weeks off of my anti-inflamitory I am doing ok in that area - which really surprises me. Unless it gets bad I'm not going back on that one because of the damage it causes. Woohoo! The beginning of the rest of my life which hopefully will be longer than it would have been prior to Friday! Good luck to all of the other August All-Stars!

I am so happy with my sleeve!! That is an understatement!!!! --Surgery with Dr. Garcia on 4/2 --starting weight preop 238.8 --surgery weight 228 --current weight 1 month out 204.6 --34.2lbs one month out plus preop --I'm mainly concentrating in low carb/high protein and liquids... Not so much on calories but still only eating 600-800per day per fitness pal......As far as exercise I have started the gym yesterday at one mile and light lifting will increase to 2 miles in a week and so on.....will go 3-4 times a week is goal.... My fiancé has now booked a date on July 23rd with Dr garcia for sleeve surgery!!! She is tired of yoyo dieting and over being scared as she has watched and taken care of me on my recovery she is amazed and inspired!....she also wants to do this lifestyle change and commitment with me and feels like we can help eachother through it!! I told her to just be aware as everyone's experience is different...my recovery has been smooth and uneventful and I am very thankful/grateful for that! --Things I'm eating daily... These three items alone guarantees 72g protein per day... --Two protein shakes a day pre made pure protein from Costco... will continue until I'm able to get more from foods in a few months then will I probably will have one a day eventually...30g protein each! Two=60 --Dannon light and fit Greek yogurt 12g protein!! (One a day for me as the protein is awesome--only 80 calories and low in carbs....vanilla strawberry and blueberry best!!) --Snacks I have on hand at all times.... String cheese, SF Popsicles (2-3 per day and they help with liquid intake), flavored water crystal light bottles, eggs for eggs salad, tuna salad, chicken canned for chicken salad, shredded mexi cheese as its lower in fat, refried beans, plain greek yogurt as sour cream substitute... Sliced turkey and deli meat from deli, Cracker Barrel light cheese squares, sf jello, sf pudding, peanut butter, stuff for ricotta bake in muffin tins recipe, babybell cheese circles, Gatorade, cream soups, Lipton chicken noodle soup....today...I'm going to start on soft/solid food and look into emilybites.com for the wonton recipes that are sleeve friendly! Pizza bites, lasagna bites, taco bites, BBQ chicken bites, Hawaiian chicken bites, buffalo chicken bites etc.... I'm also go to try crab this week and ground beef to see how I can do with it!! Anyway just wanted to give an update as I used this site preop and post to get me through!!! It's important to me to give back, so if it can help even one person, it is worth it!! I am committed to this forum and to myself for making this decision and promise to follow up as I progress!!!! Happy Sleeving!!!! No regrets!

I DONT WANT TO SCARE YOU BUT I HAD MY SURGERY ON SEPTEMBER 9 2010 LOST 30 LBS I WAS A STRICT DIETER FOR MONTHS AND DIDN'T LOSE A LBS. I HAVENT GAINED ANY WEIGHT BUT I AM STILL STUCK TRYING TO GET TO THE SWEET SPOT. I AM AT 7 CC AND I AM FEELING LIKE THIS IS THE SPOT. AS YOU CAN SEE I AM ALMOST HITTING A YEAR. IT TAKES TIME FOR SOME PEOPLE AND IT IS HARD NOT TO GET DISCOURAGED I HAVE CHEATED SEVERAL TIMES CAUSE OF DEPRESSION OF NOT LOSING. JUST HANG IN THERE

I have watched hundreds of videos by doctors and patients and haven’t heard of this outside of bites or gulps that are too large, except for one person. I know her personally. She had the Lapband, but she had swallowing issues her entire life. It got worse with the band, so the had to loosen it. My mom had to have her esophagus stretched after getting a piece of steak caught in it recently. She has not had weight-loss surgery. The cause for her is being overweight, so I wonder if that might have been the precursor instead of the surgery.

Has anyone noticed weight gain while using symbacort?

Hey 👋 how is everyone doing that had surgery in July I’ll be 3 months post op October 18th I’m down 30 pounds from my heights weight 287 I’ve been between 258 -260 for about a week now...I don’t know about any one else but I still have some cravings and hunger...my sleeve is still pretty tight and I honestly never ate to be full before surgery and it’s the same now I literally take 2 or 3 bites off everything and that’s it’s...i can get through about a liter of water a day hoping to be back to gallon within a year...I’m still doing one protein shake a day I really should do 2 but I sometimes think I’m lactose now my stomach I kinda sensitive to dairy products...I’m still struggling with gym I’m still shy to work out in front of other people and I still don’t have confidence...some days are better than most especially having depression..I knew the surgery wouldn’t cure depression so I still go to therapy once a month..I still haven’t been transparent with my friends and family about having vsg and I don’t even think i need to I went through this entire process by myself and I just can’t handle the negatively..

I have a Weight Watchers scale and it has been accurate. I weigh pretty much the exact same as the doctor's scale. I would just go with what your scale says now. It should be able to track the loss. I used to have a horrible scale before, so I know how you feel. It is so frustrating to have fluctuations!

Hi Debbie: I was banded on June 8, 2009 and am so glad that I did it. I had to pay for the procedure as well and had some of the same conserns as you, but what got me throught the jitters is that I would rather be alive in 10 years than dead from my weight. The money became a small price to pay. I hope this helps in some way.

LOL! I second that! My cramps have been awful too, and I usually don't have cramps. I'll have to look up that whole thing on estrogen. But, if I have to put up with this to lose weight, I'll do it. I won't like it, but I'll put up with it!

What is the longest you have gone without loosing any weight. At present I haven't lost any weight for the last month. I was sleeved 6th Sept. in total I have lost 42 lbs so not concerned

Hi all, Ok so I'm 4 days Post-Op. I am almost 100% healed up, I mean the scabs over the incisions are already falling off. I have absolutely no appetite at all I mean "Zero" I don't even think I coming near 200 Calories a day, if that. I don't feel weak, I feel normal as always. I still can't seem to keep much liquid's down, nothing painful, but I Burp and up it comes. I was told I was breathing in to much Air, so I've been very careful with that, makes no difference, it still comes up. I can go more than 2 hours without any sort of liquid and start developing the "Foamies" as I guess there called? The weight seems to be Melting off, as far as the scale keeps telling me, I still can't really see anything! I was Weighed in the day before my 2 week Opti-fast Diet (3/12) at my Surgeons office at 341lbs. The day of Surgery (3/27) 322lbs Today's Weight 313lbs. Since the day of Surgery I'm dropping Approx. 3lbs a day, but like I said I'm hardly hitting 200 Calories a day. So is this Normal? Is there any reason to call the Doctor Monday Morning? I mean I feel good, healing up great. I'm trying to just take very little sips when I do drink, but then...Foamies! I'm out and about everyday doing my normal things, no problem. I am taking my Vitamins, and my Meds, they seem to stay down with no problem. So do I have a problem? Or not? I also found out why my Ear was Plugged up, went to my PCP and he put me on a liquid Antibiotic (Keflex) He said my Middle Ear Drum had an Infection. I'm having no pain, started on the Antibiotics yesterday morning, but still can't hear anything, my left Ear is still Plugged shut. Which is just annoying as hell... Look forward to all of your impute! Much Thanks, Rocko~~

I am 13 days out and have been at the same weight now for 6 days! Ive increased my walking, my water intake and i too cant' seem to lose! Is it possible to get a stall this early out?????

hot and humid here in Jacksonville, FL too. I am sorry to hear that you are feeling down. My surgery is Monday and I am looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. My doctor says it is totally normal. Our body issues didn't start with the weight (at least mine didn't). Most of us let our happiness be dictated by our expectation of perfection....I am sure you look beautiful to those that matter and the rest, oh well. Your pic is beautiful and hang in there!