MeredithMcFee

Chrissy, you are doing fabulous, congrats! How did everyone do over the 3 day holiday weekend? I survived for the most part. No major issues. I had a wonderful NSV that I didn't expect. After doing errands and cleaning yesterday, it was hot and I just wanted to sit in the backyard and get some color. We opened our pool yesterday and was not able to go in as it needs to be shocked, etc. I decided to look for some old bathing suits I had stored away knowing full well I wouldn't be able to wear last year's suits as they would be swimming on me, no pun intended. I found a tankini from NewPort News, a good 6 yrs old, still in good condition and size 14/16 {last year's was 20/22}. It fit and looked really good on me! I couldn't believe it! My husband also commented on how good it looked which was an added bonus although he's been very supportive all along.

Both my husband & I have been banded this year and have no problem telling people. I'm an open book for the most part and was happy to tell family & friends. These were people who were concerned with our weight and were happy to hear we were doing something about it and encourages us every time they see us. We even shared our surgeries with the restaurant we frequent. Reason being, we use to get everything from soup to nuts to dessert and even a drink or two before dinner. Now we get a bowl of french onion soup or a salad and a burger without the roll! No alcohol, no water, just soup/salad and a burger. If we don't finish and ask for a doggie bag, they're concerned if something was wrong with their food. Ha! So, we shared with a few of the wait staff who know us and told them the other night. They were releived to hear it wasn't their food as well as being happy for us despite losing some of our business!! It's ok, they won't starve, and neither will we. :-) Like someone else said here, if someone disagrees or thinks we took the easy way out, that's their problem, not ours.

Denise,what a great sense of humor your husband has. I love it. He can probably make some extra money by "selling" them to some of us. When I'm home alone and have gotten stuck, I do the heimlich on myself with the top of the back of our kitchen stool. Perfect height and it works. Not that it happens often thank God but it helps me.

glad to hear you got in to see the Dr., n2A. I'm sure you were relieved to get some of the fill out. And kudo's to losing 3 lbs. Not the best way to do it, but since you lost it, don't let anyone take it away from you! It's yours! :-)

Kath, it's not a small achievement at all. That's awesome. Congrats to you and all the "small" NSV's you {and we} get as they all amount to one big one in the end!!

N2Animals: don't wait for the weekend like I did. My 2nd fill {water} went down with no problem also at the Dr's office. I waited for the whole weekend thinking it was just me and it needed to adjust.Wrong! Same thing, PB's etc. Awful feeling. I finally called 5 days later and they took the whole 1cc out and I was so glad. Good luck with that. ValAnn/ChrissyLu - You're correct going back a year.We've come far haven't we? It feels so good. Hot summer months, uncomfortable airplane rides, sweating.... I put the founder of Spanx, Sara Blakely, on the map and where they are today! I should've bought stock in them. Been wearing them since the beginning of time! and before that, lycra stockings from hip to toe!! Didn't know what it felt like to put on a pair of slacks, capri's,sweatpants, etc. without them. Shorts? What were they? Broomstick skirts were my "shorts" but still wore the damn sausage casings in the heat and humidity!!! I am lovin' the freedom of NOT wearing them, however, I did wear one of my older panty girdles recently under a broomstick skirt just to hold me in and look tighter but that was too big and didn't do anything so I took it off. Perhaps I'll buy one in a smaller size just to have on hand as I tone up, but not an everyday occurance. ValAnn, thanks for reminding us where we were, where we are, seizing each moment and looking to our future of good health and living life to it's fullest.

I got a shock of my life this morning when I got on the scale. I lost 3lbs! I finally broke the plateau and I'm 1lb away from losing 40lbs! Was it that I go off my butt after 3 weeks and did a 5 mile workout yesterday, I highly doubt it but it didn't hurt. After eating those tortilla chips with cheddar cheese, peanuts and fiber thins for the past few nights I am in shock. So, now my question is, what IF I hadn't eaten all that junk? Would I have lost more lbs? Damn!! LOL Seriously, I'm fine with the 3lbs Also, I had two NSV's this weekend. Sat night we had dinner at my sister's and one of her friends told her how great I looked. The following day, I bumped into one of her other friends {both gals I haven't seen since last summer}, who texted her saying how great I looked. Mind you, my sister is a size 7 and her friends are even smaller then she is! And the fact that my sister shared that with me was priceless as she's so happy for me. And guess where I'm going after writing this, back upstairs to the gym and working out! The Memorial weekend is upon us, I need to get in some exercise to keep the weight down.

Congrats to all of you who have lost more weight, have had NSV's, etc. It's a wonderful thing! I'm in a downword spiral at this time myself .Fortunately, not gaining but plateauing like some of you out there. Perhaps the newness has worn off for us January bandsters and it's now down to blood, sweat and tears! I have stopped exercising for the past 3 weeks for one reason or another. One, having some work around the house and have to be up early for that and when they're not here, just being lazy. Finally, work is finished and I have nothing on the calendar in the morning {I'm a morning exerciser when I exercise}. I am now in my work out clothes and ready to get up in the gym after my tylenol kicks in! No more excuses. I'm still at 2.5 in my 10cc band. Have been stuck at least once a week but I think it's due to me not chewing enough. The past week I've been consciously chewing and haven't had a problem. I go next week for a fill although I can go tomorrow but fear I might have a problem like I did the last fill and don't want to have a problem over Memorial Day weekend. {my dr only does fills on Thurs nights which I'm not crazy about but have to go along with it}. One more thing, this weekend is my "phantom" time of the month {had hysterectomy at age 36 but still get all the symptoms despite no ovaries} so I've been finding I'm eating my go-to junk food at night. Salty nachos and melted cheese and fiber thin cookies. I think I'm ready for that fill! And on that note, I'm going to work out before I find an excuse not to!! Keep the faith, we will get there with one another's support.

Eyeononderland: I'm sure I can speak for many on this website, you are NOT alone! I just put some photos of myself taken 2 weeks {vacation cruise} before my surgery in January up on the gallery here. There's still one that I haven't put up but keep on my desk to look at from time to time. It's me in a bathing suit on that same cruise. It's awful. Like other's here, many questions I asked myself. When did it happen, Why did it happen and how come I never noticed how bad I looked but other's could? It happened now I'm doing something about it. As are you. When is your surgery date? Don't get discouraged. Put those pictures away, find a more positive photo of you and use that as your inspiration. We're all here for a reason and it's giving hope to one another. Good luck!

Hi Everyone! Hope all had a great weekend and Mother's day. I've been in a slump if you will, with exercising for a good 3 weeks. With the sunny days in between the rainy weather here in NJ, I've been working in the yard and garden. Lifting, cleaning leaves out, being extremely active. Thought I didn't need to work out since I was active outside. Duh! I've been on a plateau for a few weeks now, not gaining, not losing, teetering under 200, which I'm not complaining. Realizing I need to work out even if I'm out working in the yard. Since most of the heavy clean up is done, I'm not burning too many calories, watering the gardens and power washing. So, today, I got my arse up in the gym and on the treadmill and did some floor exercises too! I felt sooo good afterwards and syncing my fitbit up to see all that I've done. Need to remember that feeling and get back to my 4 times a week of working out in the gym, not only the yard. Hoping I'm getting my mojo back again.

Yes, Need2lose. It's a gurgling sound. I get it if I drink water too fast or even eat to quickly. I liken it to filling a funnel up too much, and too fast and it bubbles and gurgles. I'm learning even though I'm out 3.5 months. I still have a hard time not drinking liquids when I eat but after a few stuck episodes, I think I'm getting it. Not a good feeling. Chew chew chew,,,, small bites & eat slow and no liquids. It's becoming my mantra these days. Good luck to you.

This is awesome and you deserve that beautiful smile. Much continued success!

You gals are doing great! Nicole, hope you make the Onderland mark by your goal date. I never heard of liquid fiber and interesting, my husband & I take the gummy bear vitamins and he gets gassy but never thought it was from them. We're almost finished with them so might look into some other vitamins. I have learned so much on this site, it's just amazing. Love you guys! I am still at my first fill of 2.5 cc's. They had to take out the second fill {1cc} as it was too much for me.{10 cc band}. I still find myself not eating for hours at a time and doing fine. I can't imagine another fill just yet although my next appt is May 30th. I guess I'll see how things go within the next few weeks.

Nicole, glad to hear your feeling better. Good luck getting back to the groove of working out. I took a week off for no apparent reason. Weather was lousy last week & I had no energy. Got back in the gym Saturday & Sunday & working in the yard the past two days which was a work out in itself. I had an NSV this weekend. Since gaining weight the past 5 yrs, I haven't been able to wear knee high boots of any kind as my calves are too large. I bought those high knee rubber boots from Costco a few years ago as they do expand a little. Well, they've been sitting in the garage forever as they only go up to mid calf. Finally, I tried them on the other day to clean the dog poop {now designated for that and only that} and they slid on with no problem! I lost 3 inches in my calves. Can't wait for winter, well, I can, however, can't wait to buy some stylish riding boots that I've been wanting for years' now.

Erica, congrats to you. Don't forget to change your ticker to show it. You worked hard, now show it off!

I'm in between jobs right now so clothes haven't been a real issue for me. Like most of us, I have clothes in my closet, attic, stored away just waiting for that day to be able to wear them again. Right before contemplating on the lapband surgery, I almost gave them away to GoodWill as I knew that day was never going to come. Fortunately, most of them are classic clothes so I have a lot of trousers/slacks that are still in style if I need to wear them again. Right now, I'm wearing yoga pants as it's cold and raw here in NJ for the past few weeks. I was never able to or shall I say feel comfortable wearing Yoga pants before with my saddlebags and derreirre as big as it was. Due to a smaller top, I never wanted to wear real big shirts to cover the bottom as it just wasn't me. So now, I can wear the yoga pants with tank tops and sweat jackets and feel comfortable running errands, etc. My mainstay typically are jeans and long broomstick skirts. Winter with boots and summer with sandals. The only real expense I bought so far since the surgery was the 7 jeans from Lane Bryant. They were pretty expensive but they felt and looked so good on me, I said the heck with it! Surprisingly, when I got to the register, a woman gave me her coupons, {I threw mine out since I was never going back there again, ha, the laugh was on me} and I basically got the pants for free! So naturally, I bought some khaki cargo pants too that I always liked to wear but never thought I should. It's a good feeling. Like Valerie Bertinelli says in her Jenny commercial, I too was an urban hermit for the past year or so. Now, like Helen Reddy's song, I am Woman, hear me Roar! I am baaaaacccckkkk! And lovin' it!

NJ2NC- That had to be an awesome surprise for you. ChrissyLu- Can't wait to see a picture of you in your new outfit. I have a good friend who does well with coupons, sales and such, like you. I am so bad when it comes to sales and coupons and getting good deals. Since most of my weight is in my bottom, if I find a pr of slacks/jeans that fit, I just buy them no matter how much they are. Hopefully, the smaller I get, I'll be able to get better deals in places like Marshall's and TJMaXX where I always seem to find a better selection of clothes in smaller sizes but could never wear. JDI130: Good luck finding those smaller size dress slacks for a good price.

JDI130: Thank you so much! I thought there was a way. I just did it! Love this feature!

Just wondering if you can scan food info from my Android smart phone? If so, how do you do it?

Hi All. Looks like we all had a busy weekend. It's that time of the year. Congrats to you Nicloe for thinking out of the box and mixing up your workout and calories. Being in medicine, I've always learned "medicine is not an exact science" and neither are our bodies when it comes to losing weight especially with having the lapband! As long as we keep on trying. Speaking of which, I lost my mojo this past week and haven't exercised all week. I still watched what I ate, was working around the house and backyard but was also busy with doctor appts, etc. and just couldn't find the time to do it. I'm working myself up to working out this morning, put my workout clothes on after getting up, had my cup of coffee, and still haven't had the energy to workout. It's rainy and cold here and I just don't feel like doing it! And that's my story!

Thank you all! Yes, it is a great feeling. Kudo's to all those here who have met their small goals along the way to getting to the ulitmate goal. It doesn't matter if it's onderland, or any other "land", it's our unique goal to acheive.

Mary, apparently you've hit a few milestones seeing you've lost 60lbs already. That's awesome! 16lbs is just around the corner. You can do it.