NWgirl

Flavorless protein powder is not really flavorless, it just does not have extras added. It still smells and tastes protein-y. Nectar makes protein powders that mix and supposedly taste like juice and not the traditional types. There are also protein shots available, which are usually a berry flavor.

It's always exciting when you get that final confirmation!

Have you tried adding a Protein drink or such after your workouts? I am guessing maybe (I hate to say this because I don't really know what you're doing and not doing) you are not eating enough and so your body is holding on for dear life. You said you ate bad last week, but lost weight. How many more calories do you think you ate? To test the theory, I would add in a healthy 100-150 calorie snack and see what it did over the course of a week or two.

Only you can decide if this is right for you. The "expected" weight loss of excess weight (anything above BMI 25) is about 50%. I remember seeing a thread a while back about lower BMI candidates and a good point was made about excess weight (http://www.lapbandtalk.com/topic/144303-bmi-27-and-considering-the-lapband-depressed/)- If you are currently at 170 and a "normal" BMI for you would be 25 at a weight of 135 on the high end, would you be satisfied with getting surgery and only permanently losing 20 or 25 pounds (which would be equivalent of the 50% of excess weight)? I love my band and wish I would have had the option of getting it when I was only 40 or 50 pounds overweight, but it is not a magic bullet. As a lower BMI person, you would also probably take longer to lose the weight as you don't have as much to lose. Please read through the forums and gather some more info. This gal http://www.lapbandtalk.com/user/242962-lellow/ was a low BMI bander and lost all excess plus some. You can definitely be successful!

Maybe it is free for your Dr, but I have read of people who are using insurance and the surgeon will do it if they pay extra. You're right in that there probably is not a billing code for it yet. I would have paid extra if my surgeon was doing it, but she is not.

If it's free, I'd do it. It supposedly is supposed to pose less of a risk of band slippage and the band shouldn't need as many adjustments. You should come out of surgery only physically able to eat a small amount. It does not actually remove any part of the stomach, but the risks are that the folding can cause death of tissue.

I read this article on another post a few days ago and it is only something related to band or bypass. The cause is that alcohol is metabolised differently after those surgeries, so people can drink and drink and the effect wears off quickly, so they drink more. It's not necessarily a replacement of a food addiction, just a thing with how it runs through the body.

The band won't stop you from buying ice cream or eating it. Just don't even go down the ice cream aisle.

You'll be fine. It's pretty quick and painless.

You need to go have fill removed from your band. These are symptoms of being too tight. It's extremely important that you not get dehydrated.

I should have taken another photo of the other flip page, but the surgeon came in too fast I don't know what study they did for the bypass, but on the long term outlook page for bypass it said 33-86% of excess weight lost, so the average in this photo must have been the average from that study.

Saw this while getting my fill the other day. Interesting comparison.

I think these ladies problem was they could not tell they had to pee, not the lack of urination. You are not drinking enough fluids.

Call your insurance and find out their policy on bariatric surgery. It looks like you're BMI is closer to 38, and usually you need a 40+ if you don't have any other health issues. Research the procedure a lot and read the ins and outs. Also, research the other WLS options just so you know the differences.

I agree that you are eating too many calories- I aimed for approx 1200-1400 pre-op and tried to eat less processed stuff. Also, you want to do low-fat, so I would try to eat basic, lean items without added sauces or oils. It sounds like you are eating the Safeway pre-packed salads, and those do not have enough protein- buy extra meat to add to them if you need to or just find something else entirely- some stores have the salad bar where you're in control of how much of what goes on. You want to aim for 60g+ Protein per day (or body weight x 0.3 to get total protein). I didn't see you saying how much Water you are drinking, but this is important too- try to get 60oz or more per day.

It depends on what you are putting on the sandwich. I would say as long as you are staying to a good calorie range and you are not overeating, then you should just eat (slowly) til you are feeling satiated. If it takes you a whole sandwich to feel satiated, then so be it, but watch for head hunger telling you to finish it...

Since you are relatively new to banding, you are probably still experiencing swelling. I used a CamelBak water bottle post-op with a built in straw to make sure I was always sipping away.

I have hypothyroidism and have done well so far. I haven't lost weight in the past couple weeks, and it all comes down to me and some bad eating I've been doing. I have to be honest with myself about what and how much I'm putting in my body and pull in the reins. I also walk on a nature trail most days of the week, total distance 3 miles. I find I can listen to my favorite radio station and walk and I enjoy what I'm doing. I'm looking into finding a strength training class, I wil probably do aqua class a few times a week. As for the thyroid problem and weight loss, I have read if you are properly medicated, then your body is getting the proper hormones and your body should be operating like someone without a thyroid problem. If your numbers are out of wack, it can be hard to lose. I don't know though, there seems to be so many differing opinions about if the thyroid is really the problem in weight loss. I would say it is, but I'm no medical doctor.

I was really sedated from all the anasthesia meds when I came home that I crawled into bed and slept normally. I would wake up every hour or so, walk around and drink some liquids, and then go back to sleep. I am usually a stomach sleeper, so I had been "practicing" sleeping on my back the week or two prior to surgery. I also had one of those pillow chairs to sit up in bed with.

Hi Erica! Hopefully we can answer any questions you have! My biggest advice is to immerse yourself in the forums so you find out about everything- some people get the surgery before they really read what it's about and how it works. Have you gone to a seminar yet?

Remember, if you cannot stand the taste of whatever brand you're drinking, you can always drink regular milk. I also read about people doing regular milk with Carnation instant Breakfast powder. Even Slimfast has a higher Protein, low carb shake that would be okay. I know my nutritionist said to add powdered milk to things to so I got enough protein. I would recommend the costco Premier Nutrition shakes- they're nothing special, but they don't make me gag like a lot of the others on the market. EDIT: Also remember you want to find a shake you can tolerate well enough because you will need to do liquids for a day or two after every fill appt.

People all vary and so do the diets required by Dr's. I lost about 15 to 20 pre-op by following low cal/low fat for two weeks and then doing one week of two protein shakes, two Greek yogurts, and one protein bar daily. I did cheat occasionally on the liquid portion as my Dr only required low fat diet. I also started exercise, as I had read of people who lost little in the first couple months and wanted to at least get some weight off if I was going to fall in that category.

I walk 3 miles on a local nature trail. I also have Xbox Kinect with the Sports game, but don't currently have enough space to set it up

I would focus on liquids before foods, that's a pretty quick progression to mushies. I know I had no appetite the first few days because of the swelling, etc. I also was on full liquids, which allowed for puddings, yogurt, Jello and found that I felt extremely nauseous when I ate some of those foods. Do you know if you received a fill at time of surgery? This could also be a problem if you have a fill

I bought the white Ninja Pulse at Target (700 watt version) and LOVE it! It came with three smoothie cups, one large blender canister, a canister storage cover, and dough paddles. It is extremely quite and fast! I paid $80 for mine. Walmart sells the Pulse as well (same price as Target), but their version is black and 500 watt with only two smoothie cups.