darcalyna

I did chicken breast in crock pot and it was not dry and shredded so good! Easy to digest

Bluetigereyes,
I already have and he is EXCELLENT. He actually "talk" to you when you come in. Had a fill last week and have already dropped 6lbs in a week.
Thank you all so much for the support. He defitnitely won't be seeing or hearing the last of me. I plan to be his worst nightmare!!!!!

Superluli - you want to make sure you get your Protein though....it's very important for us!

http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-eating/lap-band-not-restriction/lap-band-and-restriction.html

In the beginning I counted calories, etc. That's all one can do at that point.
After I got some real restriction, and consistent in the Green Zone, all that changed.
Being in the green zone means that 1), my hunger-cravings are under control, and 2), the amount I can eat is very restricted-portion control.
So since eat so little and much less often, all I need to do is choose the correct foods. And by now, I don't need to be a rocket scientist to know wat is good to eat and what to avoid.
This is the easiest weight loss program I ave ever been on!

I have an app on my phone that I love! It's called lose it. It does all the counting for you. You can scan your foods and it will come up and enter everything. You can record your weight, if you want to keep track of your Protein and carbs you can do that....it's great!! You can use on both android and iPhones. It's also online too. It's very handy especally when out and about. Check it out. Deb

The important thing is that it does go down, noisy or not.

I had my very first NSV since being banded on 12-28-11! I got out of the shower this morning and my towel went all the way around me and closed in the front!!!! I just stood there and cried! It's alway amazing to me how it's the little things that make the most difference sometimes. Thanks for reading this! I just had to tell someone!

I have been in the same place many times! My last time was just 3 wks ago. The best thing is to try liquids & mushies for 2 days to reset. This always helps me. I tend to have my meat pureed or very moist as i am so tight. Right now i have 2 Protein Shakes a day & a oh yeah Protein Bar to keep up my Protein levels. cheese always works well for me too. I was thinking of geting an unfill 3 wks ago but i have now gotten my cals up to 1200. How many cals a day are you getting. Good luck & any assistance let me know.
K

I had my surgery in November of 2007. I waited a few months from the time that I met my surgeon and when I had the surgery done. I literally couldn't wait for surgery date because I knew that sooner I had it done, the sooner I would be on way to regaining my life. I was depressed and letting life pass me by. My job prospects were nil, dating prospects even worse and I was unhappy at the core. At that point, I couldn't even remember/imagine what a happy and healthy life was like.
I weighed in at 314 lbs on surgery day but had probably been as high 330-340 in the months/years prior. About a year prior to my surgery I was having issues with my heart and put on meds. Basically, my heart rate was accelerated and I had instances while trying to sleep that felt like my heart had stopped. It probably had. Surgery was done by Dr. Simpson in Phoenix and my understanding is that he is one of the best and most experienced. He is certainly one of (if not the best) the best in Arizona and most likely the nation. Surgery offered no surprises and I was off to recovery. I lost weight at an above average level for those first 3 months. I was doing very well and noticed a big difference. During this time, I was working out at a gym but not really pushing it. By that I mean I would ride the bike for 30-40 minutes and do the eliptical machine for 30 minutes. Enough to get a good sweat in but I wasn't pushing myself. I had experienced issues with my ankles in the years prior to the surgery. Arthritis in both ankles that took months to go away. This caused me to take the exercise very slow because I was afraid that if I pushed myself too hard, I'd be out of action for 3 months.
About 7-8 months after surgery, I had lost about 70+ pounds and decided it was time to take it to then next level. At this time I started running. I started out slowly by running for 1 mile on the treadmill. I then began to run outside, around the neighborhood of my home. I gradually added distance to my runs and would often run on the treadmill at the gym as well. After 3 months of running I had lost an additional 36 pounds and that's when I really started seeing my body change. I looked down one day and noticed that my legs (thighs) were noticeably thinner. They hadn't looked that thin in many years and it was startling. I remember staring at them in disbelief as I couldn't believe they were my legs!
I've definitely had challenges along the way. This isn't a perfect procedure. I had/have the usual productive burps and occasional vomiting. I still to this day eat too fast or too much and pay the price. The first time that I overate and had a serious slippage was scary. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. I was awake all night and paced around the house because that seemed to make me feel a little better. Sometimes, I think about having the band completely loosened because i really hate the limitations it puts on me 4 1/2 years later. But, deep down I know how easy it is slip into bad habits and be back where I started.
Today, I have settled between about 175-185 depending on my eating habits of that months. While I haven't weighed myself in a couple weeks, I'm probably about 175 right now and would like to get down a little further to look good for summer. I have a great job that I love and my new confidence has helped me to get noticed by management. I am single but took the step to join Match.com in the last month and have a couple possibilities. I went on my first Match date last week and it went very well. I still run and try to go 4-5 times a week for 4-5 miles. I have gotten into running races during the year. I've done numerous 5k's and 10k's and love the competition/adrenaline boost. Basically, I'm happier than I've been since I was in my mid 20's (41 now). Life seems full of opportunity and I'm starting to take advantage of its possibilities once again.
To those of you beginning or in the middle of this journey, keep at it. I don't really have any magic words of advice, except it's worth it! Set short term and long term goals. Reward yourself along the way. I'm a big believer that you shouldn't completely cut out the things you love. If you thing is chocolate chip Cookies, treat yourself to one (yes one) on a day that you've hit a short term goal. Be careful of the those trigger foods though. For me it was those mini chocolate donuts that you can get at every convenience store. While it might be ok to have those on occasion, they were your trigger foods for a reason. You all have made an excellent choice with this surgery and you'll be shocked at what it will do for you. Good luck!
Ken

Isn't it Crazy how much just a tiny fill can screw you up? I had my first fill last week and it's very restrictive 5 days later. (5cc) ...scrambled eggs today didn't make it down for very long.......
Hokiemma..I am just like you..I don't want a un-fill because I think I am eating too fast and not chewing and I am stuborn, but I am not eating much..my EAS Protein Shakes are yummy to me and I make sure I have atleast one a day to get the Protein that I need, but I think I am going to have to just figure out what I can eat and get the most protein for my buck !
It's a lifestyle change..thats why most of us have it ! I have to change my way of past eating and get my head on straight everytime I eat. Old habits are hard to break....But I will continue to get through this..since I made the decision to get healthy...I joined a ladies Boot camp 5 months ago, knowing that I was having Surgery to get a head start..I do 2 days of cardio for one hour and 1 day of weighlifting for an hour and I am feeling great along with atleast a 2 mile walk everyday and ofcourse 64+ oz. Water and Crystal Light.
I am going to stick to a well chewed diet and take my time,( I just love cold food )
Everyones body is different so What works for my 10cc band might not work for others..... Hang in there ....Let's get healthy !

Well, I think I may be headed for my first "unfill" tomorrow. I had a fill about 3 weeks ago. I'm up to 7.9cc in a 10cc band. I have been getting things stuck almost everyday. At first I thought it was because I hadn't followed the "chewing" rule well enough and that I just needed to slow down and chew better. But once I got stuck on a tropical smoothie, I thought "okay, maybe I'm too tight". I've put it off because I want to have the restriction but I hate the stuck feeling and pbing. It hurts! I swear my band actually feels like it got tighter about two weeks AFTER my fill. Now, I can't get down any meats without it getting stuck. I've gone back to Protein Shakes, Soups, and soft mushy foods....not healthy ones to be honest. So, then I beat myself thinking I just have "head hunger" and should be happily losing weight right now while I can't tolerate foods, but then I feel weak and eat the slidders to have something in my stomach. So I'm not even getting the benefit of losing weight even though my band is very tight?! I guess I will find out what my doctor says tomorrow.
Keep posting personal experiences. It's so helpful!

Journey4me::::: My first fill was in 2009 and I felt tight for about three weeks I got 1cc. My dr requires us to do four days liq,2 mushy then back to solids. Because people some tend to swell after a fill. Im one who does swell after a fill just how it works for me not everyone does that.
Dee Dee Dee. Nope not when u eat the wrong thing. When u eat the wrong thing and BP wich is pucking it up Its like u burp not bening to that a sighn of i went to far. Then i better run to the bathroom and up it comes. I don't do that very often. I know better that to skip my liquid stage after a fill.Your band gets tight because it swells when u barf.