B-52

Never gave it much thought....I have a drink now and then, especially when we go out.... a glass of wine most nights at home, and on occasion, like last weekend, a few beers.... I also go to the gym 5 days a week at 5:30am....run 5 miles, do weights but not as much as before....THEN I have my Breakfast which is a high Protein smoothie.... Sit in the sauna for 30 minutes, then whirlpool for 15.... I do not have any significant sagging skin issues... What it all came down to is that I used to overeat, could not control myself... and was unable to be active....that's why I was Obese and very unhealthy.....now I eat about 1/3 of what I used to, and exercise often....I don't count calories, don't measure portion sizes (let the band do that) My Dr. informs me there is no weight left for me to loose...if I did it would not be the healthy kind.... I'm 61 years old, had one heart attack a few years back, resulting in cardiac surgery....WAS a diabetic, HAD high blood pressure, cholesterol, you name it....ALL that is behind me now.

What do you mean when you say " You had fluid in the band when there should be none" ?

How deep can he go? Generally it is attached to the abdominal wall muscles....below all the skin and fat layers...deeper than that would be very painful indeed when getting a fill.... When all the belly fat is gone, and there is nothing left but a thin layer of skin, then it will be very noticeable. Especially if you belly is tight and hard from all those crunches.... My port is so noticeable...it is large lump...looks like a horizontal lollipop, the stem being the tubing which you can also see very clearly....a one armed blind man can do an adjustment....

When I used to get stuck, which was sometimes 2-3 times per day during that learning phase....I would go into the bathroom and sip warm water...since I was stuck and nothing is going to pass, sipping water results in it all coming back up.... I know a lot of people who carry papaya enzymes with them...I never tried it. BTW, I have never vomited from being stuck....

Any meaningful exercise is hard....otherwise what's the point....you just have to get it into your head how beneficial it is fr you to get out there and do it...then after a spell, you will begin to see the amazing things that are happening to your body and your health...both physically and mentally...then you're hooked, cannot get enough, which only brings about more amazing results...which means you want even more....and so on and so on.... There's a reason you see people out running or cycling everywhere you go......

Can't speak for other people, and won't guess your situation..... I have been in the Green Zone for 2 years now, No Hunger, Portion Control, Steady consistent weight loss till nothing left to lose....no additional fills needed since that 2 year mark.... I speak and listen to people who at some support groups and many people have said they thought they were there only to find they did need another fill....then eventually it became fixed, and a every day part of life.... The band is a constant...it does not change, does not get tighter or looser....but our body's fluctuate all the time....

I drink the same as I did before being banded..which means anything I want.........except for beer or anything carbonated...I waited over a year before "Learning" how this is done and getting to know my band well enough..... Memorial day Picnic....I drank maybe 4 beers??? Incidentally I did not eat anything either, nothing there that was band friendly for me.....except chips and dip. I always get a cocktail before dinner when we go out....NEVER drink while eating or soon after, learned that lesson the hard way...... I never drink to the point I'll vomit...sorry, those days are over...... And of course, there seems to be many people on this forum who are very much into dieting and calories counting....so you all need to know how drinking can de-rail your diets....

True...unfortunately there are people who will argue with the "Life Experiences which are more fact based"....it happens here on this forum all the time.....maybe people just refuse something could possibly be true....or they don't like their views being challenged by other peoples even if it is fact based upon personal experiences with successful outcomes....

That's how it was for me in the beginning...I would crave something, say a dough-nut, buy one, take one bite, and thanks to the band realize I really did not want it...it was just something in my head telling me I needed it....after about a year of this...throwing food away I thought I wanted but didn't, the cravings went away altogether....

These are the vitamins I take every day....plus I take some liquid proteins not pictured.... I'm NOT saying this is ok to do....like everything else such as eating and drinking, you need to get to know your band, learn to listen to it to know what you can and cannot do. read this forum enough and you see some people can tolerate some things, while others cannot.... / /

Initially, when you start strenuous exercising, you get muscle pains, which in fact is millions of micro tears in your muscles, etc....which is in effect a injury, very widespread...When you have an injury you have inflammation - swelling...where you have inflammation you have Water retention....= weight Thats the quick short term explanation....after that other factors come into play....but your goal is to always burn fat! As hunter gatherers we store energy/food away as fat for periods of famine, when there is no food to gather...that's how we are designed before there were A&P's and Shop-Rites...........WLS, exercising and burning fat means it's Famine Time! The whole point behind losing weight is to burn more calories per day than you consume per day....exercising speeds up the process.

I have not been able to eat anything solid in the morning, for about 2 years now....too tight when I wake up.... I do have a coffee or 2, along with my "Gurgling" sounds..... Every morning I make myself a smoothie in the blender wit fresh fruit, and a LOT of Protein..... The band loosens up as the day goes along.....I could have Breakfast at 9-10am for instance, but why bother...I'm am not hungry nor interested in food by that point....

If you're going to snack, make it something healthy......also you will find eating close to bedtime will result in some unwanted side effects..... For myself, and some other people I know, it all comes down to the fact that since being banded, we lost weight because we eat less than we used to.... I do not diet, count calories, etc.....been there done that...... In my case, because of the band, I eat about 1/3 of what I used to eat. (sometime less) ..and it is not something I have to struggle with or work at..it's just how the band works........so it is not so much what times of the day I eat, it is the fact that on a given 24hr period, I eat only 1/3 of what I used to.... then I exercise to work a lot of that off also..... I am unable to eat anything solid early in the morning, and because of adverse side effects I am cautious not to eat close to bedtime time.... So yes, I can snack at anytime...IF I was hungry.........but add it all up and it does not make much difference....

I had a long talk with someone at the car wash this morning.....he saw my license plate.... I'm sorry, but 45 years later and people will never understand or "get it" But I can walk up to any individual (vet), (some very scary biker types that freaks my wife out when I do it) and say just 2 special words.....and we both know and accept each other........ So if you see a Vet today, don't just say "Thank You"....say "Welcome Home".....

I have had many "moments"...but, and I will try to put this in the right words and sound too much like I'm full of myself....so I apologize but I need to say it... I have an overwhelming feeling of self confidence...I feel there is nothing I cannot do....and believe me I'm doing it all...I'm not holding back.... I never get tired, I have more energy than I know what to do with....I go to the gym 5 days a week, run every day...I look around at the other people I am keeping up with and realize I am now in "That Category"...I'm one of "Those People" who has always been athletic and never fat a day in their life....(if they only knew) It spills over onto other people....I have developed new relationships with all kinds of people, many new friends....and I'll just say it, I can tell people like me being around me, and enjoy my company... Whereas before, my self image was low and I stayed mostly in the background, or blended in....but now people are more friendly, and I am sure I am also to them.... Bottom Line....I am enjoying my new life! It doesn't get any better than this...I only wish I did this 20 years ago. BTW, been in the "cardiac wing", and also cardiac surgery (I should be dead).....but even my cardiologist says that is all behind me as long as I continue to eat healthy and stay active....

I do not condone it, it is always between you and your Dr.'s treatment plan.....I know what your friend did, and she did it wrong....like eating solid food, there is a technique to everything you swallow....we simply cannot do it the way we used to....

My tastes have changed dramatically...it is typical, plenty of people tell me this......foods I used to love I no longer have a taste for....eventually, I have developed hardly any interest (Lack of hunger) in food in general, thanks to the band...there are days food does not interest me the slightest, or you can say I have no "taste" for it... As a characteristic of the Green Zone"....NO HUNGER.....for me, that is not between meals as some say...it is 24/7...I mean the band is there 24/7 so why would it not send signals to my brain 24/7....??

I cannot exist without my coffee....the more the better....BLACK!

Speak with your Dr.....I am 2 1/2 years out, drink carbonated drinks all the time...no problem but you have to know what you're doing....I had 2 beers yesterday, and plan on quite a few more at the holiday picnic Sunday.....(doubt I will any food) I don't drink everyday, but when I want to nothing stops me....but then again, I know how to "Listen" to my band, and work with it....and my Surgeon is fully aware... I have not drank soda in over 3 years purely for health reasons......

The port is attached to the abdominal muscles, on top, under the fat...the more fat you loose, the more visible the port becomes....I now have zero belly fat..you can see every nook and cranny of my port, and can even trace the tubing under the skin till it goes deep....I can grab my port between my index finger and thumb and move it around a little.....if it were to ever flip, I could probably flip it back myself....but it is still attached and the skin also holds it tight so I don't see that happening.... Also, as my abs got tighter and harder, there was pinching and tearing pains which my Dr. told me is was normal...for me...even congratulated me that I was getting those pains...which have stopped a long time ago... I do all kinds of ab exercises....one I'm doing now is I am horizontal to the floor on this apparatus, only supported only from my lower waist down....holding a 35lb weight behind my head I flex down till my head just touches the floor, then extend up and arch as high as I can go...3 sets of 24..... I do other types also, never afraid of complications to my port.....it seems to me, that peo[ple who have issues with ports flipping, are those with a great deal of belly fat...but that's my own observation....

I totally stink at diets....that was why I was referred for surgery....to correct my eating habits... Pre-surgery, I was told that I would need to loose a certain amount of weight within that 2 week period, in order to carry out the surgery on the scheduled day...otherwise it will be re-scheduled. I was NOT told to go on a full liquid diet, I was simply told to loose X # of lbs..... having said that, the most efficient and quickest method to loose the weight was to go to liquids.....but in my case, I was keeping my eye on the scale first, then on what I was eating.... I jumped through too many hoops, the waiting, the anxiety, and most of all the opportunity to be a normal weight once and for all, to let 2 weeks get in my way.....I would have gone all Water and Vitamins for 2 weeks if that was what was required...this surgery was, AND STILL IS...that important and life changing for me...my last chance, my last resort.... I still have that energy today when I exercise, like a person obsessed....no going back for me...the day I quit is the day I remain horizontal and room temperature... 2 weeks? What is 2 weeks in a lifetime??? But everyone needs to follow THEIR Dr.'s instructions....NOT what people on the Internet tell you....

I have a low profile and it still looks looks like a 1/2 golf ball...can even see the tubing running under my skin a few inches long......can't imagine what the old standard one looked like....

My insurance would not accept Weight Watchers, or any of the other dozens I've been part of...they required a Dr. supervised program, complete with progress notes, graphs, charts, etc....which we did submit, and inch thick! And I was told it was not necessarily about loosing weight, although thats a good thing and I should do my best......I was told the insurance wanted it for the record, to prove I have attempted, and failed, at traditional weight loss programs...and a Dr. supervised one made it official....for the insurance record... Needless to say, like every other diet I have ever been on, I did very well for the first 4 months, then began to gain it all back...no one seemed to care, my Surgeon even said all that did was reinforce my need for WLS....diets do not work for me....been there, done that, and failed...100 times.

Wall, Nj...2 miles from the beach! Friday all the Bennies start invading our towns, restaurants, roads, so our summer is not the same till they leave at Labor day.... But us locals know the good beaches and places and keep it a secret.....

For the first six months, I had to go to my surgeon once a month....this was crucial, because it takes a few visits and a few adjustments to get the band properly adjusted to where it is functioning efficiently, and I am also in sync and adapting to a different lifestyle with the band...it took me 4 months to get it adjusted, and maybe another 2-3 until I got my new routine.... After the first six months, I went to my Surgeon once every 3 months, and now I don't have to go back for a year.... I have never had any complications with the band at all.....a little reflux, which can be normal, but again that was due to the foods I was used to eating before WLS. We discussed other alternatives of WLS, but like you said, I only needed to loose 100lbs for my absolute "Optimum" weight...which I achieved in one year....my issue with being over weight was that I could not control my eating...I simply ate too much and needed WLS to put a end to that....I did not have the resolve to diet, tried every one under the sun... I was once on this diet similar to Nutri-system where they gave me my pre planned meals every week....I would have it all finished in 2 days....then be back at McDonalds after that.... But for me, lap band surgery took away my ability to over eat, took away my hunger and desire for food.....I had to change to meet the bands requirements...or I could have asked for a un-fill and eat what I wanted...the choice was mine.... As far as long term maintenance, life with the band has become an every day natural thing for me....my eating habits have changed to where I do not have to think about it all the time...I eat, exercise, and do all things my "Skinny" friends do....they do it naturally, (maybe their upbringing) I do it with help from the band.... Having said that, living a regular lifestyle, my body continued to loose weight, change it's shape and composition, until it all leveled out on it's own, exactly where it should be..reached a equilibrium so to speak......my Dr. says I am complete, and that there is no more weight I could possibly loose....(that would not be fat, meaning an unhealthy weight loss) I know many people who are in the same boat as I...and most, if not all, choose to no longer come to this website for various reasons. They did as newbies. It is my belief only, and speaking with others, that there is a high failure rate with the band because the end user has too much control over how it is used....my Dr. tells me funny stories all the time about the crazy reasons people ask not to be so restricted and want a looser unfilled band....I thought they wanted to loose weight? he says, But they want their cake and eat it too.... With something like the sleeve, it is what it is...no adjustments...you HAVE to live with it....