JosieK

hi i ate everything that didn't eat me.....i thought i would never be able to eat anything again. BUT...to my surprise many foods are ok for me...if i eat slow and small bites. i happened to be in Target the day before my surgery and proceeded to say goodbye to all my friends...Peeps, Twizzlers, etc...ha!!! i had a good laugh for myself. a last pig out meal didnt hurt me at all...and maybe helped me to get the cravings under control.

hi donna, i didnt have bloating after surgery but i did have pain in my left shoulder. i would say i felt like myself after 2 weeks. each day got better. are you going to dr spivak's support meetings what his staff gives?

hi, i will start off saying the choice of doctor is truly personal to what someone prefers. i went to dr spivak and the surgery and the aftercare has been amazing (not sure how someone who hasn't gone to dr spivak can say his aftercare isn't good.) in fact i would say aftercare is just as important as the surgery it self. and his was top shelf (he has renewed my faith in doctors) he is available whenever i need him. half the time i didn't need him and worked with his truly amazing staff. i was self pay and it cost 12,900. his experience with the FDA trials and the fact he trained many of the texas doctors was a factor in helping me to make my decision to go with him. since they both give seminars maybe go to both and see which style you like.

hi lakeisha i have to tell you this was one of the best decisions i've made in my life. i live in the katy area. where do you live? i hope you get approval soon and are on the "lapband road" please let me know if you have any questions. you can private message me and we can exchange info thanks

hi fit, for me...the only way to get sober was to: 1. not drink and go to AA meetings 2. contact another alcoholic each day 3. read the big book and the 12 steps/12 traditions i know how you feel...i was there and it is a pretty miserable place. but once you make a decision to get sober and follow the suggestions of AA....the promises will come true. good luck...PM me if you need to talk

Hi I use a Protein shake everyday and bought several kinds until i found the one i love,. it's Isopure. it's the one in powder individual packages. i buy them on A1supplements.com my favorite one is the chocolate but they have about 6 different flavors. i mix it with banana, ice and Peanut Butter...yum... the vanilla one i mix with berries. good luck

one last thing...i would have plateaus for 3 weeks and then drop a large amount....so dont give up with these either. this is why i stopped weighing myself. my clothes fit better before it showed up on the scales

hi everyone i can totally identify with what each of you are saying. i experienced this along my journey in losing weight. the first thing i started to do when i was eating more candy then healthy food was to start journalling my food. i did it on sparkpeople.com but there are many sites ie. fitday.com, etc. it doesnt matter which one as long as you do it and it calculates the calories, Protein, carbs, etc. the key is to be TOTALLY honest. this tool is just for you. it really helped for me to see what "licks, bites and snacks" amounted to. the other thing i did which was key was to get moving. i started slowly and then built myself up. this helped me to think twice about eating junk. i would say "if i just exercised for 1 hr......why should i eat junk". i also didnt want to eat as much junk i also got rid of my scale. i found when i weighed myself continually....i cheated more. lets face it...we know when we are being a healthy eaters... i would measure myself 1X a month and weigh myself 2X a month at the gym or doctors office. anyway you guys can definitely get this under control. and the good news is...once down to where you want to be weight-wise...you can pretty much eat anything you want in moderation. anyway i hope this helps...i have to say i know how hard it is but the band definitely helped to get this under control. we are so lucky to have this opportunity to have one. good luck!

hi wasa...glad you are doing well. i want to commend you on taking care of yourself in the way you need to. i have to say i have issues with this board and the way people attack other on "what's right for them" the fact is....the band is great for some, great for some for sometime and not so good for others. i am on a similar path as you. i was told last week by the PS to gain a little weight (it felt good for someone to say that ha!) i also am all of a sudden having trouble eating. in fact i never even think of eating. i am going back to my lapband doctor to check it out. i am glad you are doing well and have adjusted your WL program to meet your needs.

hi brandy since our surgeries are close in timing we can coach each other. i'm acting like "no big deal" because it is so far away. as we get closer.....i'm a scaredy cat. in fact i always say i'm like a man when i get sick or in pain ha! the one area of question that bugs me is my tricep. so i am going to work out this area with weights (i hate tricep exercises) and see the best i can get it before deciding if i need to do it in phase 2. i really dont want that scar...so i will try my best. anyway...keep me posted on your second meeting.

hi before i was banded and reading this website i noticed there were 2 "camps". one were the people banded that weren't losing much weight. many talked about how the band wasn't working. they ate taco bell, mcdonalds, drank alot of alcohol and didnt exercise. this scared me because i thought...here i am going to have surgery and not get anywhere....YIKES!!! i then read about a group that were really focused on the totality of what is needed to be successful with the Band. these people tried to eat well nutritionally, journalled their food, exercised. when they "fell off the wagon" they caught themselves quickly and got back on the program i decided if i was having this operation i wanted to be in the second camp. it hasnt been easy.....there were times i had to jump start my program since getting surgery exercise has been key on several levels... first it helped me to make better food choices. if i spent 2 hours in the gym busting my butt...i was less likely to eat the junk that was easier for me to eat. it also helped me mentally. lastly it really helped to give shape back to my body. i do 2 total conditioning classes, 2 kickboxing and 2 spin classes a week. during cycle season i replace spin class with outside riding. i also switch it around not to get bored. i just hired a boxing trainer to replace 1 kickbox class. this has been the experience of countless people that have gone before me as well as my own experience.

hi i booked my PS with dr lo. i wasnt sure if i was even going to proceed but after doing research with a few doctors...i decided on dr lomonaco. i like his methodology and approach towards the surgery. also he really guided me on what i DO need to do and more importantly DONT need to do. he was the only surgeon that gave me guidance in the "dont need" area i also got a great feeling from his staff. they remind me of Dr Spivak's staff which have made this journey much easier. i will do TT, breast lift and bootie augment.... timing is still up in the air...my niece's wedding is in august and i go to NY for 6 weeks sept/oct. so i am scheduled for nov 11...however if they have a cancel within the next 2 weeks i could go then.. i want to be healed for the wedding

hi linda if you go on the main lapband website Home you can put in your zip code and a whole list comes up. thats how i started my search. i ended up finding spivak on lapbandtalk.com but i did go to another meeting from info i got on the other website joanne

hi here's my update Name............Current............Goal..............Lost........Still to Loose... Jennifer..........188................183................7............. .0............ KarenG...........174................169................0.............. 5............. Luvinke...........213................205...............0.............. .8............. Tracy.............271................265................0............. .6.......... Suzie..............221................210...............0............. ..6............ Shampoo ........162................155................0..............7....... ...... Mary...............177................170................7............ ..0............ JoAnne............155................155................9............. .0............. Syndy.............240.................230...............0............. 10......... i would love to join another challenge...they really help!

hi i paid $12,900 in texas. this included 1 year of doctor visits and fills/unfills. each person's insurance depends on how their employer set up the plan. it is not decided by the insurance company.

hi i have 2 "best" NSV's 1. a regular size towel fits around me. i love this to this day 2. the seat belt on an airplane no longer cuts off my circulation nor do i have to ask for the extender. that was the most embarrassing thing in my life.

hi tracy i use Isopure whey Protein shakes. i like the chocolate best which i mix with Water, Peanut Butter and banana. i also use the vanilla which i mix with a variety of berries. it comes in pouches and also already mixed in bottles (i dont use these) i get them on a website called A1Supplements.com - Wholesale supplements to Build Muscle, Lose Fat with EAS, MuscleTech, BSN and more!. for Vitamins i use Centrum chewables. the liquid vitamins made me sick from the taste. i also take caltrate with Vitamin D for Calcium. they are also chewables. target has all of the chewables. i still use Protein Shakes to this day because i'm not hungry in the day. so they give me the nutrition i need and i have so much energy from them. good luck

hi karen, how did you do on the ride? i am originally from NY living in texas now. i plan to do the MS ride in october in NYC. when i lived here i hated when this ride occurred due to the traffic....now i'm planning to ride it. ha! i'm sure you did fine on the ride with the spin classes. like you i spin alot... i just did the MS150 in houston and only trained 5 weeks. however all the spin and kickboxing classes i did beforehand helped. how were the hills throughout the boroughs?

2 weeks post op my doctor cleared me to do abs. i was surprised....he told me to hold off weight training a little longer. i was cleared to spin and do classes at the 2 week mark as well. exercise has been key to speed weight loss for me....great that you are getting off to a good start good luck

hi here's this week's update: Name............Current............Goal..............Lost........Still to Loose... Jennifer..........188................183................7............. .0............ KarenG............174...............169.................0............. .5............. Tracy..............271...............265.................0............ ..6.......... Suzie.............221................210.................0............ ...6............ Shampoo .......162................155.................0...............7....... ...... Mary..............177...............172.................0............. ..5............. JoAnne............162...............155.................2............. ..7............. Syndy.............240................230................0............. ...10...........

hey tex i'm heading to LA for the rest of the week. i wanted to wish you good luck on the MS150. i met quite a few people on my ride last week training and going up to dallas for it. cant wait to hear how it is may the wind be at your back....

thanks jennifer for starting this. i seem to do well when i join these challenges. Name............Current............Goal..............Lost........Still to Loose... Jennifer..........188................183................4............. .1............ KarenG............174...............169.................0............. .5............. Tracy..............271...............265.................0............ ..6.......... Suzie.............221................215.................0............ ...6............ Shampoo .......162................155.................0...............7....... ...... Mary..............177...............172.................0............. ..5............. JoAnne............164...............155.................0...............9.............

hi i agree with jachut...if we were able to do these "diets" before banding....why would we need the band. i was lucky to have a doctor that didn't require it. i probably would still be almost 100 lbs overweight if he did. in the scheme of things......i hope you enjoyed the movie and the treats. after banding you will have plenty of time to fine tune your eating plan good luck

hi cajun i have had spurts when i would eat junk because it was easier and my weight loss stalled. i sat down and asked myself questions similar to the ones you asked yourself in your email. i was also pissed at myself. i said "i cant believe i had this surgery and i'm eating junk" 2 things that helped me 1. journalling my food on sparkpeople.com 2. exercise. i made myself go to a week long bootcamp to ramp up my endurance. and then i just stuck with a 5-6 day a week routine. when the weight started coming off...it was easier to maintain this and it helped me to stay away from junk i still struggle with ice cream...but i keep trying. good luck.

my initial response was "yes people are definitely treating me differently " but after reading reading ranier's response and getting a different perspective...i think maybe it might be also due to me having more confidence, different attitude, etc. i might be inviting better responses from people. all i know is...this is the best thing i ever did for myself. thanks