How is weight loss for people over 50?

[momlambert 77]

Three more pounds and you'll be there, Battleweary! Good for you. Keep up the good work--slow and steady wins the race!

[crazycibertalk 0]

Hi Everyone,

I haven't been here for a while. I was banded in January by Dr Kuri and have only lost 14 lbs. I am 55 years old and will be going for my third fill next week. The doctor I found in Sioux Falls to do my aftercare and fills

believes in only very small fills once per month until the sweet spot is found. I was very discouraged for a while, but now I am happy that I have stopped the upward spiral of weight gain and even if it takes several years at least the scale is going in the right direction. I was banded at 216 lbs and am now at 202. I want to get into the 100's so badly!!!

Congratulations,

I was banded with Kuri too about a year ago. You are a low BMI same as me and also over 50. You have done very very good. I lost 30 pounds in 1 year, that is SLOW, just got my 4th fill.

But it took a while to learn how this works and most of all how this works for ME.

We are all different, I have been at 1300 cal for a long time and lost with Lindora, but then I put it back, my YO YO dieting had brought my methabolism to a very slow mode.

I know that when I DO NOT count my intake, I ASUME;) that I am doing "good". Because the band only lets me eat small portions and 1 cup of food per meal, so I was thinking I am doing great but my weight is going down slow. Why?

Well, after looking at my intake, I see that I am above 100 gr. of carb per day. ( yougurt, Cereal, chocolate powder in coffee, fruits,margaritas, etc) things that are not bad ( except the margaritas :embarassed: ) but are adding my carbs even if I stay under 1300 CAL. The band will permit high carb to go in, but Thanks God, I can't eat bread and pastas.< /p>

I realized that as soon as I get my carb intake under 75 gr, I start loosing.

My conclusion is that being banded it is helping me NOT TO REGAIN MY WEIGH AND BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN, it will not help me with amount of carb intake, that has to be my job for life.

I am very happy because I have not gained and the 30 pounds are GONE for ever. Making better choices of carb intake it is going to be a lifetime efford.

Lidia

[Anniejo 0]

I was 70 Dec. 06. Banded 4/9/08. I have lost about 15 pounds in 6 weeks. Not as fast as many others...but BMI was 34. I feel great and am encouraged by clothes fitting, etc., and really try to not compare. Wish I could have done this 10 years ago! But got a new lease on ??? maybe 10-15 more years feeling better and looking thinner! Started at 200, weigh between 185-187 for the last couple of weeks. QUESTION: are you folks counting calories?? Hooray for us! jb

[BJean 16]

Anniejo: I haven't been counting calories for the past 4 or 5 weeks and that's when I stopped losing. I even got a very restrictive fill and didn't lose. I just ate chocolate and ice cream. So what I've learned is that counting calories does work for me. It helps keep me conscious of WHAT I put in my mouth. The band helps with HOW MUCH, but I have to make the decision about what I eat. I was hoping that the band would be such an appetite suppressant that I wouldn't be able to eat much of anything. At first that was the case but it didn't continue. I reached the point where I was just hungry, really hungry. And when I had the really restrictive fill, I could hardly eat, which was good at meals, but I was hungry all the time. That's when I began to forget about calories and carbs and eat what I could easily ingest. Chocolate and ice cream. (by the way, I'm not a chocolaholic - it was just easy to eat and satisfying)

To make a short story even longer, I am begining to count calories again and I'm doing way better.

Good luck. I still have 40 (at least) pounds to lose. I'm 8 months out from my surgery. It may actually take the 2 years that they told me about! But that's way better than the alternative life that I was leading! Fat and getting Fatter!! :tired

[DynamoMini 1]

Hi Everyone -

I love reading the posts here. So often people over 50 are discounted, but we are brave and working towards the healthy life we deserve.

BJean - so glad things are back on track for you! I was nervous about weighing today, but have lost 2 more pounds finally going the right direction. I agree that I have to keep it honest by writing everything down, because I am a calorienesiac. I'm not writing it down, declaring it, so it shouldn't count. What a silly game I play.

Have wonderful weekends everyone!

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

I try to count calories very realistically but it's really hard when I eat out. It's so much easier when it's on the box and you can read the portion size etc. I bought a book, The complete book of food counts. It has restaurant foods in there too.

[BJean 16]

calorienesiac... perfect term for what I am!!! Glad you've coined a word for my malady.

Denise: I agree. I love the boxed foods that come with the nutritional guide. It's a quick jolt to the memory bank. I've bought several calorie content books over the years and I even seem to have amnesia when it comes to picking them up and checking for the calories in whatever I'm about to eat. When it's conveniently on the box or wrapper, it is right there, hard to ignore.

[Devana 0]

The doctor I found in Sioux Falls to do my aftercare and fills believes in only very small fills once per month until the sweet spot is found.

This may not be a bad thing, battleweary. It's my understanding that early aggressive fills sometimes lead to problems. And we're all in this for the long haul, right?

[Devana 0]

Right now I'm just generally pissed off and discouraged. I'm so busy at the moment that it's difficult for me to get the time to go over for a fill. And the last one I had scared the hell out of me. I was so tight that I woke several times that first night, choking on my own saliva. But fortunately or unfortunately it was only swelling. I feel like I'm wide open again. I can eat any bloody thing I want and I do. I have not one modicum of self control. I know the whole thing about the band being a tool, definitely, however, I was hoping it would be a tool for enforced control.

It will be another month before I can get over to the mainland for a fill.

[Devana 0]

Hi Everyone -

I love reading the posts here. So often people over 50 are discounted, but we are brave and working towards the healthy life we deserve.

As I said in my earlier post, I'm pissed off at the moment. I will NOT be discounted. Just let someone try!

I would insert some appropriate facey thing here if I knew how.

[kareyquilts 1]

I'm doing better and feeling better. Check out my before and after pictures in the before and after thread. Will be gone for a week. Talk with you soon.

[kareyquilts 1]

Here is the link for my before and midway pics. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f17/before-after-pictures-pix-only-4642/index47.html

[Devana 0]

I remember a few years ago a friend, who is about 10 years older than me, told me that she felt she was becoming invisible as she aged. She was single, by the way, and was definitely looking for love in her life.

I'm determined not to become invisible by the shear force of my personality. Stroppy bitch that I am.

However, as one who put on a huge amount of weight in a few short weeks, due to a drug reaction (thankyou asshole doctor) (who, by the way, patted me on the head and told my I was eating too much due to cabin fever! I had Cushings syndrome for frick's sake!).....anyway, I experienced an amazing difference in the way people treated me. I think that if my weight had just crept up it wouldn't have been so obvious to me.

I have been in so many situations where I have been ignored. Then there would be surprise when I opened mouth and said something intelligent. I've actually had people say things to me like......ah never mind, you can tell this is a rant.

[green 6]

calorienesiac... perfect term for what I am!!! Glad you've coined a word for my malady.

Denise: I agree. I love the boxed foods that come with the nutritional guide. It's a quick jolt to the memory bank. I've bought several calorie content books over the years and I even seem to have amnesia when it comes to picking them up and checking for the calories in whatever I'm about to eat. When it's conveniently on the box or wrapper, it is right there, hard to ignore.

Up here in Canada every item of food that is boxed, canned, or bottled is required by law to provide the nutrition facts as part of the label. This includes calories per serving as well as a breakdown of the fats - saturated and trans - cholesterol, sodium, carbs, fibre, sugars, Proteins, Calcium, Vitamins, and Iron. Some of these numbers are expressed as a percentage of the total in-take needed by the average adult per day.

Before I was banded I used to ignore this information but now I do read it carefully and it does contain some surprising news. Many if not most of the vegetable Soups we eat in fact contain surprisingly little Vitamin C. eggs are loaded with B vitamins but few other foods seem to be except for such things as whole wheat Pasta and bread. Most processed foods have tons of salt.

This has turned into a longish post and the real reason I started it was to ask you if American law requires that all the nutritional info be listed on your packaged food, not to yap on about my discoveries. :straight

[Devana 0]

Karey, good work! You look wonderful!

And you look really good for over 50, girl. Are you sure there wasn't some mistake on your birth certificate??????