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Ya'll are doing great guys! Alicia - congrats on your clothes NSV. THats awesome! Drews - Glad the knee is better. Paladin - Good luck with your upcoming move. Edmond is nice (at least 13 years ago when we lived there And Myra - 14 pound in 2 weeks is incredible! Congrats. I can't beleive how great we are doing as a group.

Wonderful, just absolutely WONDERFUL! I can't think of a better NSV!

I forgot to report my NSV: At the doctor's today, my BP was 110/51...I think that is good?

That's one of the coolest NSV's I've heard yet!! I have a 16 yr old myself so I understand the significance of her words for you. I'd probably frame that letter!! You DO have so much to be proud of and I am really, really happy for you....and your daughter! :love:

:angel: I had to share a great story about my 16 year old daughter. Let me start by saying that she was very nervous and against the surgery from the start. We have a few friends who had gastric bypass and have had major issues ever since. So she was afraid that lapband would cause some of the same issues. Even after all the information and talking it didn't ease her mind. But I did what I thought was best for ME. I was banded in June 06. To date I have lost 54 pounds. Slow but I am ok with that. This morning I took her to school and she gets out of the car and hands me this note and said dont read it til you leave. I waited til she walked away and pulled into a spot to read the letter.:kiss OMG, I sat in the parking lot of her high school with tears in my eyes. This is the letter: :angel: Mom, I want to let you know that I am really proud of you. You've done so much for everyone else, it's nice to see you doing something for yourself. I've noticed a big difference in you since June. You are more confident and you've lost alot of weight. Even when times got hard with this & after everything everyone has said you kept going and you have succeeded greatly. I also want to say I love you and no matter what I believe in you!!! You look great and I am proud of you!! Let me just tell you even though others have told me the same things Nothing means more than hearing it come from her. Thanks for letting me share.

Awesome NSV's!!!

These are really fantastic NSVs. Congratulations, folks! I think the NSVs are interesting because they show things that the scale alone does not show, like the difference in the clothes sizes and blood pressure. And getting compliments is always an excellent NSV, too.

Well, it's March but I haven't been able to post for a while because of work. When I'm on my dayshifts, I just don't get a chance to get on the computer because I just come home, eat a little and go to bed. Then everyone in my house has been sick with the flu....my youngest son sounds like a comsumption patient.....and I have been trying to deal with that. Luckily, all I got a running nose and a bit of a cough, but that's about it. I did have a GREAT NSV this weekend. I decided to "Clean Sweep" my bedroom. And in the great purge I found a set of chaps that my DH had bought me last summer in hopes that I could wear them this summer. So I got brave, slipped them on, buckled up and they fit!!!!! They are a men's size M and a bit long (everything I own is a bit long anymore) but they fit in the legs and around the waist. So now I can be a WARM biker babe when the snow melts enough to go for a ride. It's funny, clothes still catch me by surprise. I put on a pretty salmon colored sweater the other day, thinking it was a nice spring sweater and it was just hanging on me. Made me happy, but also a bit sad because I REALLY need to get some new nice weather clothes. Marz - I'm so glad to hear about your nephew. Hopefully things will continue to go good for him. OU - you look great! Linda - you have lost an amazing amount and you do so much more exercise than I do! You are my inspiration to get "back in the groove" with my walking. For all of you that are still sick.....Get well quick!

Can I add an NSV? Actually 2 of them. On Friday I went to the nursing station for a pinched nerve in my back, and the doctor said to me... you have the vitals of an athlete... bp was 117/75 and resting pulse was 51. Wow... I can't belive that. And to top it all of, on Saturday I ran a 5 k in under 40 mintues... which has been a goal of mine for a while. Just thought I would share. Dawn Banded April 4th, 2006 Montreal 358/ 197/ 179

What great nsv's! Those are the best ones!

I took my 6 year old to a birthday party yesterday and we had to walk up 2 flights of stairs. Normally I would have had to go really slow or look for an elevator and then take a break at the top until I could talk again. But I got almost to the top and relized I did it without even losing my breath! I tried to control my excitment because not many people would understand. Then we went to the movies last night to see that new move called Wild Hogs. Awesome movie by the way. But I had not been to this theater in about 5 years because they do not have the arm rests that move up and down. Last time I went I killed myself getting into one. Well last night I had extra room. It was so great. I just wanted to share. I am in love with my band. Good thing its not a man becaue my husband would have some heavy compatition. Just kidding. But it is great. Thanks for letting me share.

Dionne, For mushies, start on a consistency like pureed fruit (like you get into the pre-prepared cups, I think they are cottees of something?) or mashed potato with a fair bit of milk in it. And thicken things up as the days pass. Omelettes might not be ok until the last few days of mushies (depends what you are going to put in them), but scrambled eggs are fine. Eat slowly. Have a spoonful and rest for a minute or so. Do this until you feel full. It won't take long. Aim for 1/2 to a cup of food at one sitting. The amount you can eat typically increases as the day passes (more in the evening than in the morning), but no 2 days will be the same. You'll quickly learn to gauge when its time to stop. If in doubt stop before hand, cos eating too much hurts!! As for eating apples, you could stew some now and have that if you have a craving (put some cinnamon on top Mmmm!). But it is unlikely that you will be comfortable taking a bite of an apple and chewing it skin and all swallowing confortably ever again. I peel my apples and cut it up into small bits. Apple skin, or anything thick like that is a no go for most bandsters. As for exercise, work at what you are comfortable with. I built up to about a half hour walk for the first 6 weeks and then decided to join the gym after that. The first day I went to the gym, I could only do 3 minutes on the cross trainer and walked for half an hour (slowly!) on the treadmill. Just do what you can manage and then try each day to do a little more, 30 seconds or a minute until you are doing about 45-60 minutes a day. But at this early stage, while you are still healing, don't push yourself too hard. So I just had a lovely weekend away at the coast with my fiance cos it was his bday. Had a couple of great NSV's while there - I bought an XL t-shirt at jay jays (a NORMAL clothes shop!! woo!) and new undies from Kmart - size 14, and I'm down another bra size too :faint: I'm feeling pretty darn good today with that! How is every one, its been quiet around these parts lately!?!?

I remember when my weight finally matched my license. I also posted it as a huge NSV as I had lied about my weight to begin with. I recently moved and had to update my address so again I lied and listed my goal weight. So once again I am trying to match my license weight. LOL. ~Mandy

Jacks that is great! You are doing so good. Keep it up! Today a coworker brought in some Breakfast burritos, and I didn't have one (NSV for me)!! Sunshine- I'm in for the challenge. Excited about starting! I'll be pushing myself to do my treadmill daily for the 45min walking and jogging. I want this to turn into a healthy habit. Last night I did 25 minutes...boo hiss...I'm a slacker.

Today I'll be doing some walking outside. I have to go to court for talking on my cell phone while driving :faint: so I have to park about 10 blocks away to get to the courthouse. That's about 5 miles roundtrip probably in high heeled boots, that'll be fun! Oh a NSV, my cousin and her husband came over last night and we were goofing around taking pictures, I can definetely tell I lost weight in my face it's weird!

Green!!! Congrats on your weight loss and the great NSV Cloe, 2.5ccs hope it all goes well.

Thank you, my sweeties. Because I was and still am phobic about the scale thing I can't tell you guys about all my details on the weight loss stuff. You must know that I chose not to weigh myself after I turned 25 and now I am an ancient fart of 57 going on to 58 years old! Ugh....... All my weight experiences over the years have been NSVs - the good, the bad, and the very ugly! I gotta tell you that even though my husband has been telling me that I have been losing weight, I was afraid to jump on the scales today. I was terrified and came close to opting out of the experience. For me this bizness of a weigh-in is not only a question of learning about personal weight loss facts but about conquering complicated personal neuroses. Oof! You have no idea how afraid I have been to deal with all this scary stuff of getting weighed and knowing just how fat a grrl might be. Why, I've been avoiding all of this crap for decades. I still don't know whether I am happier about weighing in at 170 lbs or having the courage to allow myself to be weighed in the first place. Weird, eh?????????

Yeah. Ok. I suck at journals. It has been AGES since I made an entry - but since have passed my first year, I thought I would make some observations and mark some of the things I have learned: 1) I am incredibly spoiled and lazy. The urge to continue on letting my band do all the work is strong - but my inclination to immediate gratification is leading me toward a better path. Exercise will have to be more frequent and desserts will have to be more infrequent... The same old crap I have been hearing since birth... but for the last few weeks, the scale has been rewarding me for good behavior. I can't knock it if it's working. Between February 6, 2006 and my annual appt on Feb 6, 2007, I went from 331 to 295 - a loss of 36 pounds. Since my annual follow-up in 2007 - I have lost another 5 pounds. My unofficial weight this morning - 290. 2) I used to eat a HECK of a lot of food... I had somehow convinced myself that I wasn't eating much more than your average joe - but I know now that I was. I had no concept of what a portion size ought to be... and really, I am still struggling with that - but I am getting closer. It has taken over a year - but my eyes/head are finally starting to sync up with my band. Now, I only think my portion should be twice as big as needed... LOL! I find that if I plate up HALF of what I think the portion should be, I am satisfied and don't need to eat more. 3) I am starting to recognize the point at which I should just set my fork down and stop eating. Now, this doesn't mean that I actually DO stop all the time (Damned Pizza!) but at least I can tell when I should. At this moment, restriction is not such that I am forced to stop, or that I have pain or anything like that if I eat past the satiation point - but I am hoping for a more punative effect with my next fill. I am not very disciplined. (see #1 - spoiled and lazy) 4) Exercise is really not optional. If I don't go to the gym, I don't lose weight - or at least not much - even if I am trying to "diet". For me, eating perfectly is much less important that hitting the gym for 30 minutes at least 4 times a week. 5) I need to figure out how to eat more Band Effectively in restaurants. I travel for a week every month - so I spend the week of travel eating like a huge monster pig - and the following week (or TWO) getting back to where I had been before the trip. That means that AT BEST, I am only working toward goal for two weeks of the month - and I don't really do well on the weekends - so that means about 10 days a month of active dieting. It's not exactly shocking that my loss has been slow. If you factor my loss into 120 days instead of 365 - it makes total sense. I lost about a 3rd of a pound for every day of active dieting in my first year - very much what my docs told me to expect - a 3rd of a pound a day, or about 2 pounds a week. I guess that is about all that I have learned so far. I know I still have a great deal of learning to do. I also have a great deal of work to do yet. At a third of a pound per day, I still need to do 375 active dieting days to get near to goal. But my goal has actually changed a bit. My doc referred me to the "Aftercare" program at AIGB. The gal there measured my body fat on her little magic zinger scale and found that I have a body fat percentage a bit over 56%. (ICK) According to her calculations, I need to lose another 125 pounds. I was thinking 140 lbs - but if my lean mass is anywhere close to what she calculates, I would be beyond skinny with only like 5% body fat or something like that. I am never going there. So, my new goal is to weigh 168 lbs - and as ever, I will be happy with anything under 200. My true goal is to wear a size 14, or *gasp* maybe even a size 12. It doesn't sound very ambitious - but I haven't worn anything from a "normal" store since I was 18 yrs old. For now, that's the most that I can imagine. We'll see how it goes when I get there. The other part of the After Care program was exactly what you would expect - grilling on my daily & life habits with some gentle persuasion to reform. I guess it was more a way for me to focus in on what I need to do. If it keeps me from totally losing control - then it's worth taking one afternoon a month off. Besides, I had pretty much already come to the conclusion that reform was necessary to satisfy my Immediate Gratification urge. I am ready to work the band, again. NSV's: 1) Airplane travel without extenders - not always - but sometimes. 2) Wearing clothes that have been hanging in my closet for months or years cause I loved them, but they were too small. 3) Walking without pain & with no trace of the fat lady waddle. No longer uncomfortable or afraid to swing my hips and walk like a girl. 4) Fitting into chairs - mostly. I still hit the side of the chairs at the theater - but at least it doesn't HURT anymore. 5) Not choked by my seatbelt anymore. I can actually pull a good foot of excess belt away from my body! So, after a year + 23 days - that's all I know. Onward! Maybe I will journal again a little sooner. We'll have to see how that goes, too.

Yeah. Ok. I suck at journals. It has been AGES since I made an entry - but since have passed my first year, I thought I would make some observations and mark some of the things I have learned: 1) I am incredibly spoiled and lazy. The urge to continue on letting my band do all the work is strong - but my inclination to immediate gratification is leading me toward a better path. Exercise will have to be more frequent and desserts will have to be more infrequent... The same old crap I have been hearing since birth... but for the last few weeks, the scale has been rewarding me for good behavior. I can't knock it if it's working. Between February 6, 2006 and my annual appt on Feb 6, 2007, I went from 331 to 295 - a loss of 36 pounds. Since my annual follow-up in 2007 - I have lost another 5 pounds. My unofficial weight this morning - 290. 2) I used to eat a HECK of a lot of food... I had somehow convinced myself that I wasn't eating much more than your average joe - but I know now that I was. I had no concept of what a portion size ought to be... and really, I am still struggling with that - but I am getting closer. It has taken over a year - but my eyes/head are finally starting to sync up with my band. Now, I only think my portion should be twice as big as needed... LOL! I find that if I plate up HALF of what I think the portion should be, I am satisfied and don't need to eat more. 3) I am starting to recognize the point at which I should just set my fork down and stop eating. Now, this doesn't mean that I actually DO stop all the time (Damned Pizza!) but at least I can tell when I should. At this moment, restriction is not such that I am forced to stop, or that I have pain or anything like that if I eat past the satiation point - but I am hoping for a more punative effect with my next fill. I am not very disciplined. (see #1 - spoiled and lazy) 4) Exercise is really not optional. If I don't go to the gym, I don't lose weight - or at least not much - even if I am trying to "diet". For me, eating perfectly is much less important that hitting the gym for 30 minutes at least 4 times a week. 5) I need to figure out how to eat more Band Effectively in restaurants. I travel for a week every month - so I spend the week of travel eating like a huge monster pig - and the following week (or TWO) getting back to where I had been before the trip. That means that AT BEST, I am only working toward goal for two weeks of the month - and I don't really do well on the weekends - so that means about 10 days a month of active dieting. It's not exactly shocking that my loss has been slow. If you factor my loss into 120 days instead of 365 - it makes total sense. I lost about a 3rd of a pound for every day of active dieting in my first year - very much what my docs told me to expect - a 3rd of a pound a day, or about 2 pounds a week. I guess that is about all that I have learned so far. I know I still have a great deal of learning to do. I also have a great deal of work to do yet. At a third of a pound per day, I still need to do 375 active dieting days to get near to goal. But my goal has actually changed a bit. My doc referred me to the "Aftercare" program at AIGB. The gal there measured my body fat on her little magic zinger scale and found that I have a body fat percentage a bit over 56%. (ICK) According to her calculations, I need to lose another 125 pounds. I was thinking 140 lbs - but if my lean mass is anywhere close to what she calculates, I would be beyond skinny with only like 5% body fat or something like that. I am never going there. So, my new goal is to weigh 168 lbs - and as ever, I will be happy with anything under 200. My true goal is to wear a size 14, or *gasp* maybe even a size 12. It doesn't sound very ambitious - but I haven't worn anything from a "normal" store since I was 18 yrs old. For now, that's the most that I can imagine. We'll see how it goes when I get there. The other part of the After Care program was exactly what you would expect - grilling on my daily & life habits with some gentle persuasion to reform. I guess it was more a way for me to focus in on what I need to do. If it keeps me from totally losing control - then it's worth taking one afternoon a month off. Besides, I had pretty much already come to the conclusion that reform was necessary to satisfy my Immediate Gratification urge. I am ready to work the band, again. NSV's: 1) Airplane travel without extenders - not always - but sometimes. 2) Wearing clothes that have been hanging in my closet for months or years cause I loved them, but they were too small. 3) Walking without pain & with no trace of the fat lady waddle. No longer uncomfortable or afraid to swing my hips and walk like a girl. 4) Fitting into chairs - mostly. I still hit the side of the chairs at the theater - but at least it doesn't HURT anymore. 5) Not choked by my seatbelt anymore. I can actually pull a good foot of excess belt away from my body! So, after a year + 23 days - that's all I know. Onward! Maybe I will journal again a little sooner. We'll have to see how that goes, too.

Tracy - yep, we're all facing the same problem. I was a little bummed because the last 2 weeks, I have not lost. I was losing so fast, and now, notta, nothing, zippo! I have actually GAINED - Even though I am still eating probably around 1000 calories (if that many). But I do feel skinnier, so I'm really not worried. I go to the doctor today. I am hoping he will say I can have a fill! Just a remeinder to everyone - we have started a January Bandster Exercise challenge thread - so come join us! The thing that I am starting to really realize is this is going to be a long journey for me, the losing weight that is. I know that I knew this before, but I don't think it really sunk into my head. I lost really fast the first few weeks, and I think deep in my mind I was thinking - oh, this is going to be easy. But now, after working out, sweating, dealing with head hunger, trying to avoid chocolate, eating slow, chewing well, turning down ice cream (yesterday's NSV), reading everything I can on Lap-Band, I think it has finally sunk in, this is NOT going to be easy. This is going to take a lot of work, and I believe it is going to be a long journey to get to my goal weight. But thats okay, I know I will do it. I believe we all need support and should come back to the thread often, even if we fall off the wagon, we need to fake it until we make it!

Hi everyone, I went to see the surgeon today - he was happy with my progress since the last fill, so no new fill for me today. Hooray! It is our 10th wedding anniversary, so it meant that I could enjoy dinner out without having to stick with soup! LOL! Also had some major NSV's with clothes shopping today - I went to Big City Chic to get a party dress and some new tops. So I march into the change room with an armful of the usual sized 24's, 26's and XL items. ALL TOO BIG!!! Most of the dresses and tops I grabbed off the rack were too small!! One strapless size 24 top FELL OFF TO MY WAIST!!!! ROFL!!! HOORAY!!! YIPPEE!!!:sun: I ended up buying a dress (size 22, AND it needs taking in a bit around the top), a top (both size 22), a second top (SIZE 20!!!), and the best bit - a bolero cardigan - SIZE M!!! That's right, M for MEDIUM!!! WTF!!! HOOOPLA!!!! :rockon:GOTTA LOVE THIS LAPBAND!!!

I'm battling that right now. 3 ccs was too much (4 cc band) and even liquid struggled to get through. I've got 2.5 cc now and as long as I behave myself and chew, chew, chew, I'm fine. Like many, I've eaten on the run and on the go. To me eating was a sprint, not a marathon. I rarely have a day where I don't have something stuck. Somedays are better than others. Some days, it seems like every meal, I have an issue. I'm not sure if it's a good thing or not, but I've always had the ability to vomit on command. Even as a baby, I'd have "projecticle vomiting" out of the bassonette. When something is stuck, I simply "dislodge" it and move on. It's easier than putting up with the pain. Now if I could just convince myself to slow down. I'm getting better and it's happening less frequently, but still more often than it should. I can tell as soon as I swallow that it's going to be an issue. Sometimes, I can feel it going through, ableit painful, others, I need to remove it. On the positive side, last week was a good week scale wise. I only made it to the gym once but I did LOTS of work on the barn so did get plenty of exercise. The scale was down 5 pounds since last week. I'm now down 47 pounds in 17 weeks. I'm 18 pounds from my original goal but I think I need to reset that. I'm in the top size slack I wanted to be but I still see WAY too much of me. I figured with my body structure, which is large framed, I couldn't get much lower than a 38 waist slack. Rethinking that now that I'm there. And another NSV. I had to buy new underwear and I bought L. Not only not multiple X's, no X at all! Maybe I'll switch from boxer briefs to thongs! Tom

I'm ba-a-a-ack! I have tonight and tomorrow to get to 16 workouts. I won't make the goal either, Julie. That is why I think we should have a few levels of achievement, bronze, silver and gold!! Then we won't feel like "losers" if we only fit in 16 workouts. So I have been looking forward to this little jaunt to Mexico as I have not had a fill in nearly 7 months. Over the weekend I ate candy, ice cream, and prepared for total deprivation. There was NO way I would run in the snowstorm, so when I gingerly lifted the other leg onto the scale I winced at what number would be my fate. I actually lost .5 a pound. NOT RIGHT!! In Mexico, I got only .2 cc additional fill. So I'm at 1.6. The doctor knows I am conservative and terrified of a slip from PB's. So he gave the most minute amount. I don't even feel it. Oh, please let it tighten over the next week! I warned him that I am ravenous 30 minutes after eating. He told me that it is caused from the exercise. One NSV is that the nutritionist was sharing with me that she could walk/run 5K in 45:00. "YES!!" I pumped my fist and bragged that four months ago I ran it in under 34:00. hahaha! I hope to beat that time next week.... Blue, you might be too weak to post, but we are all thinking of you just the same. Julie, I'm so glad you are back from your trip and moving ahead with the surgery! We'll all see how you do, then follow....Hey, isn't that what we have been doing all along?? Thank you for being our pacesetter, even though you couldn't fit it in. We are all working through stuff this month! Hugs to ALL!!!!

Big NSV tonight for me. Had to shop for business pants cuz mine are too big. I have dropped not one but TWO pants sizes!!!! I am sooooo excited about this. The scale has been moving very slowly for me, but this is the positive re-inforcement I needed. I can't wait for the day I clean my whole closet out and drop it into a donation box. This is too cool!

NSV today... Co-worker: Are you getting skinny? Me: Trying!