Search the Community

This is a really good habit, not a bad one. If you want to stay at your goal weight or where you are right now the best way to do that is a daily reminder. I am 28 months post-op, I have been at goal for 10 months and the only reason that is the case is because I weigh myself every, single day. It is a way to be accountable to yourself. If I know I don't have to weigh in the morning, I eat way worse than I do if I know that I am going to have to answer for it on the scale in the morning. I also know immediately if I start to gain and I can make the corrections required to drop back into my goal weight zone within a few days. In October I started eating more junk and I watched the scale hit 134, then 136, then finally the morning after Halloween, 137. My comfort zone is 128-132 and once I start seeing 133 I start paying attention to what I am eating again. It took me almost 2 months to lose those damn 6 pounds to get back to my mid-range weight of 131, so if I had waited and gained 10 or 15 pounds, it would have been massively demoralizing to have to lose it again. I write down my weight everyday in a little pocket calendar so I can see trends. For example, usually on a Monday morning I am at my heaviest because I work a 16 hour day on Sundays and snack the whole time, however by Wednesday if I am not back in the 131 range I know I better go for a run and eat less. If I wasn't weighing I would have no idea how much I weigh and I would not be able to make corrections immediately. This past Monday I woke up at 133.4...so I ate less Monday and Tuesday and by Wednesday I was 132.0 and today I am 131.8, which is fine with me. Weighing everyday is one of the few proven ways to ensure long term weight loss maintenance.

There's nothing innately "wrong" with weighing daily. Many experts actually recommend weighing daily once in maintenance to make sure your weight doesn't creep back up. But if the numbers on the scale are adversely affecting your mood, that's a different story. If seeing a small fluctuation up causes you panic and a small fluctuation down causes you joy, then you probably are doing yourself more harm than good and should cut back to just weighing weekly or even monthly. You need to be able to embrace and accept the daily fluctuations in weight that are completely normal. If you can't do that, then you should protect your sanity and stay off the scale.

Hi Yana, I live in Ireland and looked for ages to find a good european/english support group - wlsinfo is pretty good - they are really helpful - also there is a good yahoo group called European Bandsters - but I haven't "been" there in ages! In all honesty, I find this one the best even tho all weights are in pound and I don't know a tenth of the food they recommend!!!! Still the best and friendliest people on the www! best of luck anyway xx

That makes complete sense to me! You put it in words much better than I would have done. I agree with everything you have said. I think a lot of people who have never worked out before look at people with toned muscle and think you have to go in a gym and work out with all the "crazy" weight lifting people and lift really heavy weights. But, like you said, results are different for each person. I also love what you said about going to failure. I think this is where a lot of people give up. Those last few reps of whatever exercise you are doing mean the most. They are the hardest to do and we want to give up and not push the little extra but the little extra is what really makes the difference.

that's what I thought guys, thanks for clearing out my doubts. Doctors aren't always right that's for sure. I think he had good intentions, but I have always been a believer of strength training (whether its low weight high reps or high weight low reps). So from now on, I can start doing at least some weight training at home, I have some limitations from my knee injury for lower strength training, but i can do some weights at least for my arms and some ab working so i can prevent some of the saggyness LOL thanks again

Mike - agree whole heartily with your points. I wish the average WLS Center program did a better job at emphasizing this. Mine did not mention this at all, but I eventually figured it out after reading posts like yours and many months ago from Susan (Admin). There is a time and place for extreme caloric deficits that help many succeed (including myself) on the post op diet. However, do try and advance out of the extreme caloric deficits after month 5 or 6 in order to not kill your metabolism. It is a gradual ascent and may take a few months of tweaking to get your eating and workout plan to a happy equilibrium. It is *so* much easier to achieve the weight and physique goals if eating enough calories from a set of well balanced meals, focusing on the macro nutrient ratios. Without the calories, you are constantly fighting your body for measurable progress. My calories are currently at 1600-1800 and I hope to raise them even more based upon TDEE to achieve some specific body transformation goals over the summer months. Unfortunately I did not learn and embrace this until after weight loss finished a!nd lost a lot of muscle as a result. My progress crashed and burned for a couple months as metabolism was in a state of decline. Fortunately, I have turned things around in the last few months and am continuing to going forward. I enjoy not having to stress at all about eating or really having to pay attention to "dieting" in order to achieve weight lifting progress. It feels so natural. Learn from my mistakes people!!!

I gained weight while in the hospital. Had RnY on Monday, 4/24. Still sore and full of gas. No nausea but struggling to get my fluids in. Going for walks and taking gas x but the relief is minimal.

HI there! I'm just wondering if there's anyone in the Las Vegas area that wants a workout buddy/someone to commiserate with about their weight loss journey? I don't have the opportunity to make a lot of new friends and working from home makes it hard to leave my house. I want to maybe try some beginner classes...I've always wanted to try an aerial fitness class, but am nervous going alone. I was always too heavy before to even attempt one of those classes (I think their weight limit is 250). I have a treadmill at my house so even just doing at home work outs is cool with me. Let me know!

I just got mine a week ago but I gotta say this is the piece of the puzzle I have been missing. When I am working hard at weight loss I always log my food. The part that i couldnt ever figure out was how much am i really burning. I always obsess over ALL of the numbers and i think this helps me to obsess way less. I lost 3.6 lbs in the first week. I do not think that will continue as a constant however I now I feel like i have more flexiblity now that I can SEE the actual numbers. I do not think this device will work for people who do not log or keep a realistic log of their food. I do not think their web app is as good as it could be. It's a bit klunky and could be improved on. However, I am just sitting patient to see what happens when they release the next version. I do wish it would take the heart rate, however I have heard that will be in the v3 model. I am a swimmer so it would be fantastic if i could wear it while I swim. I read somewhere that they are having problems with that feature because of the usb port. I also saw a thread where a guy had a waterproof sleeve made so that he could use it with his water sports. So I may look into doing that. I have been wanting one of these since last year but because of the cost, I didnt want to buy a new toy that i may not use. I got lucky because one of the guys here at work was selling his used one, so i got it for $120. We based that number on the numbers we were seeing on Ebay. Apex has the subscription right now for $99 and that included a 3 month subscrition to the site and 1 session with the coach. Then after that you can renew for a much lower cost. They also have different eating programs that you can select from. Which gives you more options when you hit different goals. Anyway, for having used it a week, I gotta say this was totally worth the money and I love it.

Workout as you're losing and be very faithful to it, it will help tighten as you lose. I think too, it depends on how you're built. Some women didn't start out with a lot of weight in their arms and are spared of the "droopy arms". My tata's were in the 50's DDD, so you know those went to SAAAAG LAND However, once you hit your goal or are within 50 pounds of hitting it, the insurance will pay for your breast reduction and lift. YES, I came back to LIFE!

Hi fellow banders: I have been exercising for the last 9 days and have gained 4 pounds. At first I started out and could only do 20 minutes of cardio...by the third day I pushed it up to 40 minutes with the last 3 days at 45 minutes. I'm eating healthy; following the rules! :eek: I was banded in Oct. 08. I have lost 41 pounds and this is my first time really exercising since surgery. Can anyone share their trials of just starting out exercising and did this happen to you? How long did you exercise and what types of things did you do? Do you think it is ok to do cardio everyday? In desperate need of motivation!!

I am in the process of "working my way up" to P90X. I currently do an advanced Tae Bo tape 3 days a week and the treadmill 2x per week. My question is, does anyone have decent long term experience with P90 X? I have a naturally higher muscle mass (according to my docs) than the average woman, so I don't want to bulk up...yuck! I still need to lose more weight, and wonder if I should focus on losing more weight first. In short, is it any good for real weight LOSS, or just extreme toning? Thanks!

My name is Kenneth and I am currently 3 days post op after a Lap-RNY. My preoperative weight was 298 and now I sit at 293. I'm sure it's mostly water weight. I have had no issues so far and overall feel pretty good for 3 days postoperative. The majority of the pain I am feeling is from the remaining pockets of gas from insuflation but it's not completely unbearable. I'm supposed to start puree foods today but I am hesitant. The thought of puree food makes me ill. I almost want to just stick to protein shakes, jello, broth, and popsicles until I can eat solid foods. The only craving I have so far is coffee. I miss it so much. Lol. That's about it for now. I look forward to reading and learning from this forum. ????

Its not about a weight program or diet its away to get all the vitmins I need but I feel the negativity here. I have accomplished my goal and the wls was a great success for me. And it had nothing to do the zeal.... but I'm glad I found zeal for the vitamins and nutrition.... I have used this forum many times through my success but o sure dont feel any positive vibes here... so sorry for taken your time because I don't want negativity on my life.. I wish you all well on your journey

I would do things slightly differently although my friend DanaC84.did not give bad advice. Was your EKG/ECG done through your bariatric clinic or hospital or did a cardiologist do it? If it was not done through a cardiologist, I would consult one. Explain to them you are seeking Bariatric Surgery and this has come up, that you are wondering if this will bar you from your surgery? You may have to go through heart ultrasounds, not bad , I had one myself 2 days ago, maybe even a cardiac catheterzation, not as much fun, but I have had 2 full ones. This is your life and future we are talking about, and , Darlin', you are well-worth it. And then I would also speak to my surgeon, if I were you. If you are curious where I am giving this advice from, I will explain. I had my surgery , an RNY, a little less than 8 months ago. Because I have many 1st and 2nd degree relatives with cardiac issues and also because of my AGE (73) I had to go through more extensive testing before clearance. But I got it from Dr Karve, my cardiologist as well as all the others I had to see. In January it was time for my yearly, she asked if she might send me for a MRI, there was a blip on the radar, you might say. When I got paperwork to fill out from the consulting hospital, she's in a different healthcare system than my bariatrics, there in black and white was the reason she was sending me. She had not spoke of this, nary a clue . To Rule out expansion of Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm, OMG I had no idea! It is even more frightening, my Middle child who was also my oldest son, died suddenly at 31, he also had an Aortic aneurysm, his was in the Ascending Arch, very much closer to the ❤but it exploded and he was dead in the blink of an eye. Took a long time for my late husband , myself and indeed all that knew and loved my Kevin. It was our belief that it was just a freak happening, now with my diagnosis, it is more likely it had a genetic basis. Me, a mother who loved and would given her own life up to save him, may have instead been the instrument of his death. Talk about a never- ceasing Guilt Trip.Well my MRI shows at this time, mine is stable, if you have to have one, mine is the better of the 2 kinds, a fusiform , a uniform widening,if it had been saccular, like berries on the side, they rupture quicker so I would have had open surgery by now since I live 50 miles away from my specialists. Now as to why the latest ❤ultrasound , I have a murmur, it was being watched by my PCP and me, we thought not that uncommon. Well as part of my healing from surgery, I have frequent endoscopies, my pouch developed a stricture, and I have healing ulcers in my jejunem, the part of small intestine my pouch , the Ms Precious Pouch, so named because I fought a 3 year uphill battle to even receive her, attaches to. Well the anesthesiologist assisting had a tantrum fit, well that's what it seemed like, over degree that she was picking up with her stethoscope. Finally allowed the endoscopy to proceed but this time she was there to monitor and faxed my PCP before I could tell him at my next appointment. So that was Wednesday, praying it is either simple aging or a minor functional one, not a valve defect. Along with the other congenital problems, Kevin had an Aortic valve with 2 not 3 leaflets, hopefully I didn't give that to him as well. Funny that of my whole family he always seemed the healthiest, but I guess You Can't Always Tell. So you can understand my cautionary tale, but Bueno702, I am praying yours works out perfect and you do get your surgery. I will never, even with the bumps I've had along the way, regret having mine. At my heaviest I was 365+ unhappy pounds, now I am 224, hoping in a few months to break the barriers and be in Onederland, when I broke 300 I was so happy but it won't compare to writing my weight with a 1 in front!

So personally I don't think you are asking too much at all. When my mom and I went on a liquid diet to lose weight, it was hard because we were trying to make this HUGE lifestyle change while the other half of our family carried on as though it wasn't a big deal. Which, looking back, hindered the progress we made. Because if your family is not supporting you by still going to fast food restaurants while you are there and not empathizing with you and your struggle, what's to stop you from easing into old habits. That's not to say tell them to stop altogether, at least not at this point, but asking them to be more considerate and maybe let you know if they are going to a fast food place so you can opt out. I've also been on the side where I wasn't dieting and my some in my family were. I made the accommodations because I loved them and wanted to support them on this journey to be the most successful they could be. If it meant not eating taco bell in front of them I gladly did it, because I stood by my support of them. I think you should have a talk with her and just explain how you need to be supported to have the best possible success because maybe she doesn't see her actions as unsupportive. Also if the whole family is trying to eat healthier why is is she going to a fast food joint anyway. I think you guys should probably sit down and have the talk again so as to clear the air and pave the way for a healthier life.

Your weight loss is great! 25 pounds in a month is awsome! Sorry to say, your first fill probably won't make you feel any different. For a lucky few it does. It took me 3 fills to feel any restriction. As far as the procedure, it's fairly easy. The doc. (or nurse if that's who does it at your office) will inject something to numb you, then use a needle to access the port. The needle is kind of long, but don't worry, you won't feel anything. At least that is my experience. Good luck and please don't be down on yourself, you are doing just great.

Today's humidity was good cause for a water work out. Water jogged for 15 minutes. 100 tricep reps and 100 bicep reps with water weights.

It might be roseaca. I have that and I have the bumpy kind - the other is brokem caperlliaries under the skin. My bumps are mainly near my jaw line and some on the cheeks. It comes out in teams of stress and I could literally scratch my face off. I have a special soap and metrogel that I use. Metrogel will calm the inflammation and redness. the sulfer soap reduces the bacteria on my face (yikes) Good Luck in determing what this is. Good Luck on your weight loss!

Can you guys give some encouragement? I'm only 11 weeks out and down 14 lbs...I was 16 lbs but gained. Now I'm trying to lose it again but I still feel like I'm fighting a diet! When did you start seeing the weight come off and what changed? What did you do differently? anything?

I haven't noticed any change in my dream state as a result of surgery. But on the other hand: As you lose weight, the chemicals and hormones that were stored in your fat cells are being released into your body. These will pass through your kidneys and are expelled in your urine or through your sweat glans. But they can generate a flush of hormones during the weight loss phase. They should simmer down once you transition into maintenance. It is important to meet your daily fluid requirements, because it take fluids to flush these hormones from your system.

I went to a weight loss surgery meeting last night and met a girl who was 3 years out. She has gained 40lbs back from eating the bad things she knew she wasnt supposed to eat. Not encouraging but a warning. It can happen. She ate a whole black forest cake on Valentines day just grazing on it all day. You know what you have to do, you didnt go through all of this to slide backwards. You had a few bites. no big deal, you are human! but dont let it be a habit. get out of the house, go for a walk, join a gym, start a yoga class. change something little and it will help knock you out of your rut. You worked really hard to get where you are now, keep up the good work and keep on going!!

Just wondering for those that have more to lose how do you go about walking so soon? Maybe it is just me, but right now (pre-op) I can barely make it to my mailbox and back without passing out...from my weight and the heat (tx). Does your body really adjust that quickly? I would LOVE to be able to go for a walk the week after surgery...but I just can not see this happening. I will still be morbidly obese and then I think about when I do any physical exercise how thirsty I am. I am still trying to sort it all out in my head I guess. If we can not gulp down some cold Water after a workout/walk, etc. Im not sure how I can do it. I can usually drink a 20 oz bottle of water without stopping till its gone. Wont be able to do that after.....how do we stay hydrated in 100 degree temps and trying to walk outisde?

My dad had lap band in March of 2008 great results with weight loss but has always had throwing up problems. Recently over past few months developed a problem swallowing. Last Thursday he had a Brain Stem Stroke (minor) and is now lost any ability to swallow. When the surgeon went to put in the stomach peg it was unsuccesfull he was unable to scope past his esophagus. The had to go the alterate route and it was succesfull. The speach Therapist mentioned that Lap Band patients have developed swallowing problems and have had to have espophial dissolution. Obviously the stroke can also cause the problem I am wandering since he had trouble prior to the stroke if it is possible to be a side affect of the Lap Band. He is still in the hospital and has no other side affects that are major from the stroke. Sorry for my spelling and grammer. Any advise or feedback is apreciated.

I was sleeved with dr kelly on 09/02 and like you I carry most all my weight in my stomach. My legs and arms are small, and my butt if you could call it that (lol) not really much there at all. I remember when I wanted to tone up and lose weight I worked on the stair master and elipictical those were so good for toning. Plus I use to love to run on the treadmill and my belly fat seem to melt away. I am just now trying to get back to the gym every other day, because I am in no way ready for running. I will have to work at that, but I have never seen the weight fall of so fast as I did when I got up to running. Each day I would run for as long as I could and then rest and before I knew it I could run for an entire hour. Talk about over all toning that made everything tight. At a year of working on the treadmill I was up to running at 7speed for an hour, wow that felt good. Then I became pg, had my son and haven't been back to the gym consistently in 4 years. Also, gym people tell me to add 15 minutes of weights everyday from the beginning, but for some reason I just couldn't get into weights. All though they really do the body good. I just found it boring. but seriously running will melt your belly. Let me know how it goes... Good luck! Laura