daisychains7

Totally normal. I gained 7.5lbs when I switched to soft foods. I am on regular foods now and have lost that 7.5 plus a few more. Keep sticking to the plan and things will stabilize.

I have many of the already listed songs. I choose different styles of music so I don't get bored some days rock does it for me others hip hop is necessary! Lots of base give me a much needed push and random songs that revive my motivation and make me go "Oh yea!"
A few I didnt see mentioned that I use are:
Workout Plan- Kanye West (a no brainer he even counts it off for you "1 and 2 and 3 and 4 get those situps right yea." haha)
Gonna make you Sweat- CC
Jump Around- House of Pain
Good Vibrations- Marky Mark (if the beat doesn't do it for you, jus picture Mark Wahlburgs Calvin Klein ads from the 90s. haha)
Breath, Stretch, Shake- Mase (Made for a warm up/cool down!)
All I do is win- DJ Khaled (motivating)
Go Girl- Pitbull (also motivating)
Break Stuff- Limp Bizkit (angry beat good for a jog)
Last Resort- Papa Roach (angry beat)
Vivrant Thang- Q tip (dance song)
Rock that body & Boom boom pow- Black eyed peas
Hell Yeah- Rev Theory (great jogging song)
Thunderstruck- ACDC
Testify- Rage against the machine
Enter Sandman- Metallica
Bawitdaba- Kid Rock
I can transform ya- Chris Brown ft. Weezy
Right above it- Lil Wayne
Im going in- Drake ft Weezy
Welcome to my hood- DJ Khaled
Intergalactic- Beastie Boys
You can do it- Ice Cube
Hot in here- Nelly
Get me bodied- Beyonce
Get outta your mind- Lil Jon (no better hype man than Lil Jon!)
Walk it out- DJ Unk (perfect for the cardio)
Run it- Chris Brown (RUN!)

I have been trying to incorporate walking and jogging into my workout. I like reggae, hip hop, pop, dance... Current faves:
What a Feeling - Alex Guadino ft. Kelly Rowland
Gimme Gimme Gimme - Beenie Man
P.Y.T. - Michael Jackson
Ima Boss - Meek Mill ft. Rick Ross
Faded - SoulDecision
The Motto - Drake ft. Lil Wayne
End of Time - Beyonce
Starships - Nicki Minaj
Million Dollar Bill - Whitney Houston
Glad You Came - The Wanted
Survivor - Destiny's Child
Part of Me - Katy Perry
Do It Like You - Diggy
My Prerogative - Bobby Brown
And it's cliche but you gotta have Eminem. LOL. "Lose Yourself" and "Till I Collapse" are oldies but goodies.

I reached another milestone last night and a couple this morning.
We went out to dinner last night to Gringo's Mexican food. This is the first week of no real food restrictions other than the carb laden foods. I ordered the Fajita salad without the flour bowl. I had them bring me diced fresh jalapenos and onions with a side of the amazon sauce for dressing. I had 7 chips with red and green salsa. I had to. The salad was good. 30 mins after we got our meals, I was only 1/3 done with my meal. I was the only one eating at that time. The rest of the family had finished 10 minutes before me. I brought the rest of the salad home. The fajita meat is really good at that place
I took my blood sugar fasting this morning and it was 118. That is a little on the upper end of the normal tolerance. But the milestone was that I have not been taking diabetes meds and that was a great level for me!
I weighed myself this morning and I was 267. I haven't been that weight in years. I am also able to run at 5mph on the treadmill for a couple minutes now. I am going to increase the running time during my 2 mile treadmill workout.
I am very glad that I made the decision to get healthier. It is not real easy and it is a little struggle at times, but as long as I keep my eyes on the prize, I can run this race!

For me, the pre op and post op liquids were the hardest part of this process by far! I was constantly irritated, anxious, hungry or crying. LOL. What you are going through is normal. You may want to stay away from people at meal time. Go for walks, look at skinny clothes online, journal. Remind yourself it's only temporary, and soon you will on the road to meeting all your goals. If you have the self control to do this, you can do anything!

I agree with what's been said. Also - flip flops so you don't have to bend over to take them off at security. Trust me that is the LAST thing you want to do a day after surgery!!

Wow. So toxic. While the people in my family were not quite that extreme I do relate to what you're saying. I basically grew up in a single parent house with my mom and sister. My sister has always been petite, but would love and treat me the same if I was 90 or 900lbs. My mom on the other hand is very superficial. I was made to feel I wasn't good enough or attractive constantly. "you would be pretty... If you could just lose weight", "no one would be attracted to a heavy person.. You can't blame them"... "you could find a husband if you'd just lose weight". Unfortunately, the way she felt about me really became the way I felt about MYSELF. I still battle it DAILY, despite having lost a ton of weight. At 23 I'm trying to build my self esteem from scratch.
It sounds like therapy may be a good idea. Don't let the weight hold you back like it did all those years. That's no way to live. If you are anything like me the relationship you have with your parents only makes emotional eating get worse. You need to create some healthy boundaries between yourself and your mother if this is going to work. You have the power now!! If you ever need support we are here for you.

Next time she drives somewhere you should suggest she walk instead of taking the easy way and driving her car!

my neighbor (who is over weight) said you look good you have lost weight I said yes i have and i had a lap band she said oh you took the easy way .I said it is not really easy then she said her sister had gotten banded so she must have heard how fun it is hahaha .I knew i would run into one of these people someday i asked if she had seen me on my bike or walking she said yes she sees me alot exercising so i said the band is a tool it takes all the tools to get results i walked away smiling.

Just curious, who said you shouldn't eat Pasta, bread, and rice? Who said you couldn't eat those things and still lose weight?
The one and only thing we can't have after being banded is carbonation.
I still eat bread, pasta, and rice daily. Potatoes, too. I just am just careful to eat them in moderation and within the guidelines my nutritionist gave me.

My apologies to those who have seen this post before but it seems to fit several folks on this topic. I found this comment somewhere and can't recall who it is or where I copied it?
"In my case, the most fearful thing I had to do in order to succeed with my band wasn't switching to skim milk, surviving a liquid diet, or giving up bread. The most fearful thing was giving up my emotional attachment to food. In the nearly 5 years since I was banded, I've made a lot of progress with that, but the attachment is still there. It forms one of the innermost layers of my turtle shell. Working on that layer will probably be a lifetime job for me. At times I'm not even sure I truly want to get rid of it altogether. At times I'm afraid that if I shed my shell completely, I won't be able to survive. On the other hand, I seem to be doing fine without that thick old b***h layer. So I'm going to pay attention to my dreams rather than my fears and pray for a miracle. And why not? It can't hurt to try!"

I'm sorry you are going through that Erica. I doubt some of the complications you went through helped in your weight loss. I am not judging you, but you said you are eating the wrong foods and not sticking to the advice you were given. Why? Fills won't do anything if you are drinking while eating, snacking or having slider foods. The cycle of guilt, overeating, then hating myself because I "failed" is what made me fat to begin with so I am trying not to be "perfect" this time, but eat in a way I can live with long term. Willpower is difficult but necessary for ANY type of WLS.

That is why losing weight is so hard compared to other types of addictions. E.G if you are a drug addict you are not surrounded by drugs you have to make plans to see your dealer, if you smoke you can give them up cold turkey but with food it is everywhere and you cannot ignore it completely , you need to eat to survive. I am sure people who have never struggled with their weight do not understand how hard it can be.

OMG! You look awesome!
I recently donated 4 trash bags worth of my "fat clothes"... It was kind of cleansing knowing I will never wear them again. I did keep my jeans from my heaviest weight and do the cheesy weight loss pose in the mirror. LOL

You won't feel up to it most likely so it will be easy to beg off.
If she's your best friend, why worry that she'll spill the Beans? If she's that good a friend she will understand.
Now if you do have to go, eat egg drop Soup, or hot and sour but don't eat the meat. Order a big bowl and just take your sweet time sipping it. Do not have any adult beverages or you could be very sorry.
My best advice, tell her you can't make it. This surgery and new life style is much more important than one birthday party. And if she's a good friend, when you see her again and you're 50 lbs lighter, she will understand.
You're very young, there will be so many more parties to go to. Skip it.
tmf

You know, I figured the current gf was overweight. There's always an underlying reason people are threatened by our success. Pray for her, move on, and focus on you.

Cruel yes. Hurtful yes. Mean spirited yes. BUT common lets all admit it yes we get the band for better health to be off of meds to be physical BUT also BECAUSE WE ARE TIRED OF BEING FAT ! Now atleast we have a surgery for that but really what type of surgery is there for a wretched disposition do not let it matter to you what mean people say. Start your journey you will be better for it.

I don't consider myself a "success story" yet, because I have a long way to go until my goal, and a lot to learn. But I wanted to share one way in which my life has completely changed since my weight loss.
I stopped going to theme parks about 4 years ago due to being repeatedly turned away from rides because of my size. However, yesterday I went to a theme park for the first time in years and was able to fit on EVERY SINGLE RIDE! I rode a rollercoaster!!! No more panic attack waiting to see if the bar would fit over my stomach or if I could squeeze into the seats. It was a dream come true for me. Here I am yesterday:

Little things like this make the hard work worth it.

I spent the last couple weeks before my pre-op diet eating my way through town. Literally. Pizza, burgers, pancakes, french fries, burritos, etc. I don't recommend it, because personally I think it made the mental cravings worse. But my last supper was lemonade, chicken wings, steak with mashed potatoes, and a brownie with ice cream.

Alright... I tried it a few times on a treadmill using the app. I was DYING by 10 minutes in. :/ it wasn't so much being out of breath but it felt like my entire body was being jostled inside and my abdomen started hurting.
But... Walked my dog the past 2 days and attempted to mix slow jogging in with walking and found it way better. I will walk a block, jog half block or til I can't go on, and repeat. Made it 30 mins. I guess that's progress? Will revisit the program in the future.

Congrats on your surgery! It's cliche but take it 1 day, 1 meal, and 1 lb at a time. Your health comes first now.

YES. I still can't believe that I've lost as much weight as I have. I still have that voice of doubt in my head sometimes that tells me I can't succeed at this. But what I've learned from successful Bandsters here is to Celebrate the little things. Success isn't just reaching your ultimate goal weight. It's getting to the gym on a day you don't want to, tracking your food, fitting a little better into your clothes, 1 lb, and 1 day at a time. Try to set realistic, small goals and you can't fail.
Sorry if that was a bit of a tangent, ha.

My ultimate reward will be having the confidence to date again

Sorry, I didn't see this post til now! Happy your surgery went well. Pain meds are a beautiful thing! Haha. I love my band and am pretty much used to it now. I have good restriction quicker than most, am exercising, sticking to small portions, have more energy and am losing at a good pace for me. I have some days I forget I even have it, and other days are harder. The hardest thing for me is having to plan all my meals and not having the freedom to eat whatever. I am still trying to find my groove as far as eating schedule, but i hear it gets easier in time. Also if I'm not careful the constipation is a nightmare!! A lot of Bandsters deal w/ it so remember to drink tons of water. Still, I would do this again in a heartbeat because I feel the best I ever have. It just becomes a way of life.

I don't consider myself a "success story" yet, because I have a long way to go until my goal, and a lot to learn. But I wanted to share one way in which my life has completely changed since my weight loss.
I stopped going to theme parks about 4 years ago due to being repeatedly turned away from rides because of my size. However, yesterday I went to a theme park for the first time in years and was able to fit on EVERY SINGLE RIDE! I rode a rollercoaster!!! No more panic attack waiting to see if the bar would fit over my stomach or if I could squeeze into the seats. It was a dream come true for me. Here I am yesterday:

Little things like this make the hard work worth it.