♥LovetheNewMe♥

Awesome job keep up the good work.

Some people just don't say anything our of jealousy or they may not know what to say. Now I find people ask me if I am sick. Just be positive and know you are losing and I know the results are there.

Thanks Alex, great post!

Awesome job wait till next summer you will look awesome in that two piece!

Great blog AJ, I am right there with you, it is so easy to slip back into old habits once you reach goal. You can get comfortable with the way you eat, what you eat and how you eat. I have episodes like this off and on and they are usually around a time when I do not take the time to eat my meal like I am suppose to. Example, today, I had a coffee from starbucks, no breakfast, no morning snack, finally got lunch around noon, (I had been up since 5am and this was my first bite of solid food) I got some salmon, a sweet potato and some grilled veggies. Two bites into the meal, I started to feel that feeling in the back of my thoart, tight and difficult to swallow. I knew I wasn't full so I had to lay down my fork and set back in my chair and take a break. Did I fail to mention I was on a conference call, So I was not really paying attention to my meal at all. I was able to eat about half of the meal and finally gave up and threw it away. I did manage to eat a tablespoon of peanut butter and a small banana this afternoon, than I ate some almonds. So yes band basics should never be far from our thoughts and we should always follow the rules no matter how long we have been banded. Old habits are always there and just waiting to come to the surface. Like I always say, that little fat girl is just sitting inside me waiting for me to screw up and I need to work daily to keep her in check. I think I broke lots of rules today. Thanks for sharing.

I have a fitbit also, it was the turning point for me and helped when I was stuck last winter. I wear mine daily, I even slept with it on in the beginning but have given up that obsession. When I looked at my poor sleep pattern it made me more tired. Enjoy!

I agree it is scary and a good message for all of us. Even though I am at goal, I realize every day that I must eat right in order to maintain this. I have not had a fill since Jan of this year. One because I was losing and two because I always seem to go through such a hard time after each fill. I do have days I am hungrier than others and that is why I am obsessive about counting calories and measuring my one cup of food. I know for me the fat girl still lives inside and I still have days as the old saying goes "my eyes are bigger than my stomach". As destynee said we can't allow this to happen to us and hopefully we can keep our goals and our lessons learned to the forefront of our thoughts. Good luck to you, sending strength your way, you can be successful, you have done very well to date and be aware and knowledgeable about your actions is a big part of the battle.

Sounds as if you are too tight. I do know from my own personal experience that when I was sick my band became tighter and I had problems but mine did loosen back up on its own, I have been too tight one time and your symptoms sound very similar to mine, I required a small unfill. Maybe call your surgeon or PCP on Monday and see what they see. Being to tight is not good for you or your band. Good luck and I hope things get better soon, it is miserable to be too tight. Some good medical info, I have used this site often. http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-made-simple/Lap-band-surgery-restriction-slips/Lap-band-surgery-restriction-slips.html

Wow are we a judgmental bunch! I read these blogs daily and daily I become more and more frustrated with the lack of sensitivity we show for one another. And I am sure someone will slam me today for this blog but honestly I really do not give a flip. We all come to this site for help, think about it ladies and gentleman none of us could do this on our own. Not one of us could lose weight and keep it off. Each of us has our own personal set of reasons as to why we are obese, read the paper, listen to the news, As a society we are getting more obese daily, our eating life styles have to change if we want to succeed with any WLS and face it this is HARD. Some of us have been very successful and some of us are still struggling. Some people may never be successful because they can't get the physiological side of this process hard wired. What do I mean by that statement, eating correctly is half the battle! I am fortunate, I have lost all my weight, well don't pat me on the back too fast. I still struggle daily just like I did at 252 pounds, I wake up every morning knowing that I have to work every minute of the day on eating right. The rest of the world is not on my plan, the rest of the world could care less that I can't eat certain foods or certain foods make me throw up. My point folks is this, we have to help each other. Some of us get this really easy and quick and some of us are really hard headed and may never get this. But honestly is it not worth trying to coach one another and having a little patience, compassion and human dignity. After all remember we were all once the fat person in the mirror and the whole world has been judging us for a long time, thinking we just sit around and eat bon bon's and stuff our faces. As we become thin, please don't let us become the people who have judged us for so long. In my line of work I am required to take sensitivity training, maybe we could all benefit from a little training! Sad we have to teach adults to be nice, no wonder our world is surrounded by so much evil and violence. So my topic who is to blame, only us and if we choose to fail we have no one to blame but our selves, just look in the mirror! Lapband is not for everyone, WLS is not for everyone, Surgery does not work for everyone and you and your surgeon can determine what is best for YOU!

So excited for you, and glad you didn't have to have an unfill, no point messing with something when it works.

Old habits are hard to break but you did not sabotage all your work so just put that day behing you and move forward. I am so sorry for your stress with your father, family being sick can way heavy on our hearts and bring back lots of feelings and ways of coping. Prayers being sent your way for healing and strength, believe in your self, we all know you can do this and this is just a Minor setback.

Hmm, since this was a journey and not a diet i would say anyone who says they never ever ate anything they were not suppose to is less than truthful. I was good but not perfect, today I am good but not perfect. I am disciplined and I do know when to stop and I make healthy choices 90% of the time. This is life and parties, family gathering, and basically **** happens. I do not overeat becasue it makes me feel aweful but I do have a drink, I do have an occassional piece of chocolate and I do love my popcorn and nuts. My difference now is that I count these things in my daily intake of food, the one thing I have consisitantly been honest with is my calorie intake. If I go over one day I go way under the next. If I chose to make a poor choice of a high calorie food, I may joke about it but I do not obess about it. This is my life and I am carving it out one day at a time and I will Bee"Successful!

I also at goal was able to give up my BP meds all of them for 6 weeks, but I also went back on one medication. Yes it was disapointing but genes are genes and I we unfortunately got bad genetics but I sure look good in my skinny jeans, how about you!

I don't think you are having a pity party, I think you are asking a good question. When do we take charge of the food instead of the food taking charge of us? To put it bluntly the holidays just plain suck if your a lap band person starting out. I wish I could say it doesn;t and say the holidays are all about being with family and being together, etc, etc etc. But lets be realistic, most of our favorite times were spent around the dining table visiting with family enjoying food and drinks. I was banded the first year two months before Christmas and one month before Thanksgiving, and had my first fill 3 weeks before Christmas. It was the most stressful holiday of my life, my second Christmas (last year) I had been stuck for about 5 months at the same weight and continued to be stuck until after the holidays. Patience is hard, we all want that brass ring and that wonderful feeling of success and it comes at different times for all of us. Why am I telling you all of this, well I reached the brass ring and food no longer controls me or my life, but it was not easy. My journey had ups and downs, set backs and obstacles all along the way. I got frustrated, I cried, I hated my band, I hated what I ate, I hated what I thought I was missing, but the one thing that gave me hope was knowing that there were people that were successful and I tried to learn from them. I often e-mailed people and asked, tell me about your journey, was it hard, did you get stuck, how long did it take you, when did you stop feeling fat, when did you stop thinking about food. So when did I know I was going to make it and know that I was going to no longer allow food to control me, I can tell you exactly when and where I was. It was 8 months ago and I was at work. I was getting ready to get on an elevator and caught a glipse of my reflection in the long mirrored elevator door and honestly I was shocked. I was thin, not only was I thin, I didn't even recognize the person in the reflection. Food had always been a big part of my life, I am a very social person so parties and families and food all go together. I am still a social person but have found that I can be social with out food and drink, I no longer have to carry my food, I know what I can eat and how much and I know when to say no. I won't lie, I do have occasional days that I feel less in control but I just look up from my dest at the fat girl on the bulleton board and know for sure I do not want to be her again. So your question was when do you finally allow food to stop controling you, my answer is when you can finally start thinking like a thin person. When I was fat I always thought about food and the preparation of food and what the next meal was going to be. Now food is just that food, yes some of it is very yummy, and I love to cook but food made me fat and I prefer to be thin. There does come a time when you control the food and you control the band, for me it took almost 2 years and daily I remind myself of the fact that there is still a fat girl living inside me and she would love to come back if I gave her half a change. So yes be patient but you too can be successful if you just Bee "lieve" Good luck to you in your journey.

You are an inspiration Floridays, glad to see you blogging and i totally agree the forums are trying my patience. I have been here for two years and patience are running thin with stupidity. Also just think how hot you will look holding that glass of water!

Just thought of something, you know what amazes me. The size of my underware, I wear panties now that would not even have covered my boob let alone my butt cheek. I know TMi but my hubby says, when did Hannah leave her panties at the house and I just smile and say sily those are mine.

Wait till you get that TT you will be one hot mama!

Weight lose does stall with the band even when you are doing things right. Couple of questions, you say you are eating a calorie restricted diet but are you eating enough protein. If you read some of the research with lap band they have found that people who eat a low calorie high protein diet lose better. Now I am not talking about a low carb diet but a balance of carbs and protein with the protein intake being higher than the carbs. i know it may be silly but sometimes you have to eat more to lose, if you eat a too restrictive calorie diet your body can think you are trying to starve it and can go into hibernation mode and hold onto every little fat cell we have. You may want to keep a food diary for a week or so and figure out your BMR so you know how much your body needs everyday. I was really surprised when I calculated mine, I myself stalled for over 7 months. Did not drop not one pound, I was eating to little, i had to increase my calorie intake up to 1250 and my protein up from 60-70 fms per day to 90-110gms perday. Once i did this combined with cardio in the form of walking on the road or treadmill 5 days a week with 2-3 days of weight training I started to lose again. It took me several months to figure out that I was not losing because my intake was not enough deficit of what my body needed to lose a pound of fat. I hope this all makes since, a good nutritionist or trainer could help you figure this out so you don;t feel so frustrated with the process. Good luck and hang in there, It can and does work just slower for some than others.

Awesome, enjoy the bike, I bought myself a treadmill last year and it was a great investment, really gave me the motivation I needed.

i often get asked how do you stay so focused and positive. The answer easy, I look in the mirror every morning and I love what I see, I stand on the scales and I love what I see, I get to go shopping and wear pretty much anything I want! So I ask Why would I not stay focused and positive when this process has worked so well for me? Has it been easy NO!!! but what is worth achieving with out hard work and dedication? I will tell you something that has helped me and that is my positive outlook and commitment to this process. I have learned from both my positive experiences and my negative experiences. I have learned that I am far from perfect and can learn from everyone, even the ones who are struggling. I am just Polly Anna enough to believe that anything worth achieving is worth working hard for and I also believe that most people are good. Now I have been burnt a couple of times in my life but this does not prevent me from still believing in people. So I share with you this morning some positive affirmations for a healthy happy weight loss journey. I write them on my mirror, I post them in my office and on my refrigerator and share them with my friends. This is my trick for staying focused and realizing my dream of a thinner, healthier me. A list of positive Affirmations for Weight Loss I achieve my weight loss goals Losing weight comes naturally to me I choose nourishing, healthy foods I think before eating I drink lots of water Losing weight is fun Healthy foods taste better I am motivated by both successes and failures I accept and love my body as it is, and work to make it better I love challenges and embrace them I lose weight systematically and I keep it off permanently I am losing weight I exercise because it makes me feel good I respect my body and treat it with respect I do everything I need to do to achieve my healthy weight I am encouraged by every success I am motivated by every shortfall Losing weight and I are one I dissolve all blocks to reaching a healthy weight I forgive myself I learn from my mistakes I fill all physical appetites in physically healthy ways I am aware of my eating habits and how they affect my weight I am willing to change my eating habits and I do so easily I build lean muscle and I lose fat I enjoy the process of reaching a healthy weight I see myself at my healthy weight and I achieve it I have non-stop daily determination to reach my healthy weight I like long walks It is easy for me to stay on my plan to obtain my healthy weight I picture myself at my perfect weight I have a positive attitude about what I eat, how I eat, and when I eat My body burns fat like a furnace Developing healthy eating habits becomes easier each day I stay on a healthy eating plan and maintain my healthy weight easily Each day, I automatically and successfully get healthier and healthier Happy Sunday all and wishing you continued success to achieving your goals!

You rock! I do understand what your saying, everyday people always want to comment about how I look and i am just not use to all the attention. But looking in the mirror the person who looks back at me is foreign and only a 1/3 of the person I used to be. So proud of your continued success, you look amazing.

Amy pre-op diet does suck and evenings are always the worst even after banding. I am one of those banded persons who always saved some sort of a very small snack for after dinner. Not sure if it was a physical need or just a mental need but it worked for me. May have been something as simple as a SF Popsicle or SF pudding but it worked to calm my need for eating. As for fruit after surgery, yes you should be able to eat after surgery, I struggled my first year with fruit, it was one of those foods I never seemed to have room for in my pouch and I worried about not eating a balanced diet. Since that time I have learned to eat apples, but now I have to peel them, I can eat some of a banana, I love the "Cuties"(perfect size for us) but you have to be careful with fruits with membranes they are the hardest to macerate and membrane can get stuck.(Berries, like blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries work well with the band for most) Of course there is always the purred fruits but chewing is much more satisfying. You will just have to experiment once banded and once allowed regular diet again. They say shrimp and nuts are hard for banded persons but I had not problem with them but chicken and eggs were difficult. Sounds like you are doing very well with your pre-op and learning to discipline your self, this will help you through your pre fill days after surgery. Good luck next week, hope all goes well and please let us know how we can support you through your journey.

Awesome job, congratulations on your success to date!

I love my fitbit, it also made me realize what I slug I was. My daily goals are greater than 10,000 steps and take the stairs. I was amazed that once I started weeing this how competitive I became with just my self. lol

Congratulations on losing 18 lbs, it is not expected that you will lose a significant amount of weight during the first 4-6 weeks after surgery. You have not had a fill yet so you do not have the benefits that the band gives you with making you feel less hungry and satisfied.. I caution you to not become discouraged this early in your journey with not losing every day or every week, this takes time and a lot of hard work. It took me 2 years to reach my goal and I had many "stuck" periods along this journey even doing the right thing. Your question is not stupid, no question ever is. Patience is my advice, I know we all want quick results but remember none of us became obese over night so the weight will not fall off over night. As far as eating to lose this is correct, it you have a large amount to lose 100-150 plus pounds during the early days if you eat 1000 or less you may lose weight, but it is very difficult to maintain a healthy body on that few calories and also very difficult to get in all the protein that your body needs. I stayed between 1000-1200 calories for my entire journey, I occasionally ate below 1000 but only on days when I was not hungry or when my band was adjusted. I will say the closer I got to goal the harder it was to lose weight, I had to eat more and exercise more for those last 30 lbs and it took me 7 months to lose. My advice is focus on getting your protein in, drinking your water and exercising. I wish you much success.