Candle

I need help in that dept too. My NYE resolution was to exercise more. I dream of becoming one of those people that gets addicted to exercise but I don't think it will ever happen - lol! I was walking a few miles a day with my dog but since the weather got cold, I've been slacking. I've been shopping for a used treadmill. I also just ordered some workout DVD's on ebay and bought some small hand weights at Walmart. I think some old fashion push ups and sit ups are in order as well. (my back and tummy are my big problem areas - stupid apple shape!) I'm still too chicken to join a gym :help:

How have you guys been going about setting and meeting goals? Do you not set goals? Do you reward yourself? How are we doing Crazy Ates?! Staying motivated? I've found that a big motivator for me has been having a vacation or big event scheduled so I could set a mini-goal and work really hard towards that date. Surgery in Aug: - vacation to FL in late Oct. That really pushed me to lose as much as I could before vacation. - Christmas. I knew that at the beginning of Dec I was going to be seeing a lot of people I had not seen since surgery. (I live in a different state now) That really pushed me to stay motivated after my vacation. - vacation to Vegas in mid Jan. Another vacation in a few weeks kept me in check over the holiday and has kept me motivated now. I'm scared ... I have nothing left after Vegas - lol! I think I'm going to hint to my BF that I want to go to Atlantic City for my birthday in April. I really want to be -100lbs by then!!!

I'm in!! name ...... starting# ....... current#.........goal#.......togo# Rainer...........264................264..............248.........16 wombat712....154.8.............154.8............140.........14.8 LessnLess......172................172..............164.........8 metawnny......252................252..............240.........12 Skinny_Jill......195.................195.............180..........15 Candle .........218.................218..............207.........11

Wow - you got me curious so I just checked out the Dec Forum.:faint: There's a 3 page thread (and a few others) of people eating solids 1 WEEK out from surgery!! I really had to bite my tongue. It really seems like a lot of people go into this blindly and/or not enough doctors are really educating their patients. Makes me wonder what the slippage, errosion, and complication stats are going to be like in about 2-3 years :straight

Walking has been my main exercise too and I've been slacking BIG time since the weather changed. I just got a DVD on ebay - Walk Away the Pounds by Leslie Sansone. Everyone swears by it. I'll let you know how I do with it. The Biggest Loser DVD's are suppose to be really good too. Keep up the great work!

I've been having a real problem the last month or two as well. I've been focusing on fiber! Fiber-One makes a yummy granola bar with 140 calories and 9 grams of Fiber. You can also get the fiber powder - 1 tsp is 5 grams of fiber. I use Fiber-Sure.

Welcome Pizzaman. I not only strictly followed the pre-op diet but I started it a few days early. (I had waaaaaaaay too many "last suppers") I did 12 days pre-op and lost 14lbs!! It was a great jump start on my weight loss and made the transition after surgery so much easier. I watched a few band surgeries on or-live.com and watching them move that big floppy liver out of the way was enough to scare me into following my liquid diet to the letter - lol! The first 3-4 days were hell. -lol I didn't do the suggested Medifast though. GROSS and too expensive! I used

I was just there for a follow up this morning!! I really like Dr Geiss - he's an amazing surgeon and has a great reputation in our area, having done about 2,000 bands. The only complaint I have is .... I haven't seen him since surgery and I guess shouldn't expect to. I know a girl well over a year out and hasn't seen him since her surgery either. The office staff does ALL the aftercare - just be aware of that. If you need anything or have any questions, feel free to contact me. <!-- google_ad_section_end --><!-- google_ad_section_end --><!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

I log my food on fitday.com but thedailyplate.com is a good site too. It's the only way I stay accountable. I usually average 900-950 calories per day. I was required to see a therapist before surgery and just scheduled some more time with her for this year. I think it's VERY important to work on the head issues for the long term weight loss maintenance. I highly suggest you look into it. Have you taken your measurements? Some people experience a stall on their loss when they start working out because they are building muscle but you could still be losing inches.<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

Everyone is different. Some people feel "natural" restriction right from the get-go but most do not. I got no restriction from surgery or my first fill. Right now, I feel the same as I did before surgery and can eat the same things. (but I don't)<O:p</O:p <O:p

Awesome!! Congrats! I hit the 75lb mark today too :whoo:

Happy New Year everyone!!! My resolutions are to exercise more and start therapy this year. I was hoping to hit the -75lbs mark by year end but missed it by 2 days. Close enough for me!!! I hope everyone is doing well and ready for all the challenges and sucesses of the new year.

I like the Special K - Fruit & Yogurt

I was also going to suggest a hobby to keep your hands busy. (knitting, x-stitch, etc) This is a problem for me too because I usually stay up well past midnight. What time do you eat dinner? I started eating dinner a little later. I know they say it's bad to eat late but eating dinner at 7-7:30 seems to keep me away from looking for Snacks at night.

I hope you are now on the road to a successful and complication free band journey. Definitely try and get some help from the hospital, at the very least maybe you could get them to only charge the amount they would have been paid if you had insurance. (insurance usually only pays about a 1/3 of the actual billing amount!) What did your band surgeon say about the erosion speculation? How can this other doctor predict an erosion?<!-- google_ad_section_end --><!-- google_ad_section_end -->

Stretching your pouch is serious business because that can lead to a slip. I think you'd have to have a barium swallow to determine if you truly stretched your pouch. Most doctors do a complete un-fill for a period of time (2-6 weeks?) to let everything calm down and shrink back down. You might have to do liquids for a period of that time. Most likely you have not stretched your pouch. It sounds like you need a fill. I think there are 2 sizes of the 4cc band - 9.75cm and 10cm. (referring to the length) When you get close to "full" or your "sweet spot" even a tiny tweak can make a big difference. (.1 or .2 cc's) I've also heard that the 4cc band can be over filled to almost 5cc's. It sounds like you have plenty of room for adjustment still. If you search first bite syndrome you'll find a few threads about it. I don't know that much but that may be what is going on. You should analyze your exercise routine and what (solid Protein, veggies, Water, etc) & how (chew chew chew) you are eating and talk to your doctor about your concerns. A plateau of 2 months is not uncommon but I know it would drive me crazy! Good luck

Very minimal. A 3 at most. My port was tender but I kept ice on it for the first few days. I never needed pain meds once I got home. I took liquid Tylenol a few times and a sleep aide the first few nights. Getting comfy at night was rough at first.

Your doctor will tell you what he wants you to do. They all seem to do something different when it comes to the pre AND post op diets. Mine required 1 week of liquids. I did 2 weeks and I'm glad I did. It detoxed my body of the carbs, sugar, and crap, jump started my weight loss (I lost 14lbs), and just made the transition after surgery so much easier. <O:p Best of luck to you!<!-- google_ad_section_end --><!-- google_ad_section_end --><!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

No, he's gained a little actually - lol. I feed him all the extra food to get rid of it. He's 5'10" about 185 and when we met he was 170. He thinks about 3-5lbs of that gain is since I was banded. If he cut out beer or switched to lite, I think he could drop 5lbs easy. I'm not taking responsibility for his new little tummy - lol! W/He is eating a lot healthier now though! <O:p</O:p<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

PS. Fear has worked well too - lol. I followed the pre and post op diets to the letter! (I even started my pre op liquid diet a week early) I worry about damaging my band. I always have that in the back of my mind when I feel the desire to over eat.

I guess I am one of the people you speak of. I've had 1 small fill of 2cc's in my 10cc band. I did not have any restriction after surgery and still don't now. I've never been stuck or slimed or felt any different than before surgery. Your questions are good ones and I really don't know the answer. I really made a dedication to myself when I started this, I was going to succeed. I'm in uncharted territory right now - I've never been able to lose this much weight at once on my own. Maybe the liquid/mushies/restrictive diet at the start got me into a routine and detoxed me from all the sugar & crap in my system? Maybe my stomach has shrunk, my tastes have changed and my body feels so good right now - I just want to keep it going! Maybe there's something to the theory that for some people the band alone effects their appetite? Maybe it's a combination of these things? I eat 3 small meals and 1 to 2 Snacks per day. I don’t drink any Protein shakes or supplements. I track my calories and plan my meals. I drink a lot of Water. I take Vitamins. I exercise. I've thought a lot about this myself. I wish I had a better answer for you - lol. <O:p</O:p<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

I weigh myself almost every day. I also keep a chart of my weight loss based on my weight every Sunday.

Pure Protein Bars are good and 20 grams of protein!!! (WalMart) I like the Luna Bars the best but they are only 10 grams. Both under 200 calories.

Will power, baby!! My doctor does the first fill at 6-8 weeks and since I was going on vacation* a few days after my 8 week appointment, they wouldn't even discuss a fill with me. My doctor is very conservative and bases fills mostly on weight loss but does ask about hunger and eating patterns. I had to BEG and really convince them to give me a fill at all because of my loss! My next appointment is next week BUT I'm going on another vacation a week later so I won't be able to get fill # 2 until probably Feb - if I decided to do it. My weight loss has far exceeded my expectations at this point. I'm comfortable for right now and have stopped obsessing about if I need a fill or not. Like Longhorn, my hopes for the band are to help me keep the weight off long term! * My doctor follows the manufactures guidelines about no fills for 1-2 weeks before a vacation. Especially if you are traveling far, just in case you have a complication. It seems for some reason that sometimes fills don’t kick in right away.

I kind of went through the same thing back in Oct. We went on vacation 2 months after my surgery. I'd lost 45lbs and was feeling great! I hadn't tried a lot of the "no-no" foods like bread, steak, chips, etc. On vacation the flood gates opened and I realized I can eat ANYTHING! And I did – lol!! 2 weeks after vacation I had a doctor's appointment and begged for my first fill. My doctor is conservative and since I had been loosing consistently, didn't want to give me a fill but they gave in. I got 2cc's in my 10cc band and physically it did nothing for me but mentally I think it helped. It made me feel better to get it over with, since I was a little nervous about the fill process and I just wanted to get the ball rolling. Plus, worrying about damaging my band really keeps my eating in check. Here I am 4 months later, still with only 2cc's and no restriction. I have not had a back slide and still been loosing very consistently. It's starting to slow down but I expected that. My next appointment is in Jan and since we're going on another vacation a few days later, I know they won't give me a fill. I'm going to re-visit thinking about a 2nd fill for my Feb appointment. Bottom line - don't panic. Just keep doing what you've been doing! Be glad that you have been successful without really using the band too much and know that it's there for you when you need it. Personally, I think I’m just going to stay on this track for as long as I can. It's nice to not have to worry about PB's, sliming, my fill level being too tight or too loose, etc ...