StartingOver

I love it! Throw apples at her. 10 points if you hit her in the head and 50 points if you hit the food or beverage out of her hands ! Do it! Do it! Throw those apples!

Gosh Eileen I'm blushing. Actually you all have motivated me! I made a goal to be 200lbs by the time I leave to visit my inlaws in Mexico which is Nov 12th. As my timeframe gets shorter I realize that my goal is becoming more and more unrealistic. I just want to get rid of as much weight as possible before I see them. They saw me at my heaviest, and not since, and I already feel like a bit of an outsider being American and being so fat that I just want to feel a bit more normal and relaxed on this trip. Plus, it's only me and my son going, DH has to stay home and work so it'll make for an interesting trip. Can I lose 43.5 lbs in 5 & 1/2 weeks???? Well, I haven't lost weight at that rate since being banded, so I don't expect to start now, but I'll take as much as I can get. I'm headed back to the track now.....

No doubt about it, sugar is evil!!! I was losing weight at a pretty good pace, following the bandster rules, then I came down with a cold a few months back. The first thing I did was stop at the store and buy a gallon of orange juice and a box of bon bons. Well, that surely did me in and even to this day I'm struggling with sugar cravings. When I think of my post op days prior to the OJ incident, I did not crave sugar, and now not only do I think about food constantly, but I am craving carbs like crazy! Right now I have a bit too tight of a fill and I'm waiting for my doctor to get back in town to take some out, so I'm just drinking Protein and maybe eating a little food (salmon or tuna) late in the evening when my band opens up. I know I can't live with my band this tight, but I am grateful that it is forcing me to give up my carb/sugar addiction. I even PB'd on icecream. Who knew that was possible? My advice to you is to stay strong. You obviously want to get the sugar demons out of your life, so that is a start. And starting back with the Diet Pepsi is a great proactive step. Regarding your coworker, well as my husband would say, "take her outside and slap her around". I guess you'd have to know my husband to get the humor in that, especially with his Spanish accent trying to inpersonate an Italian mobster. She is 300 lbs for a reason. Do you want to become like her? Of course you don't, so as was suggested before, when you're drinking Coke or doing any of the other "Erin" behaviors see that soon enough you will have completely transformed into Erin. Stay busy, stay strong, and keep us updated as to the evil actions of Erin.

This morning I jogged 5 laps (1 & 1/4 mile) at the track, then I also walked 3 more laps and to and from the track, so that's a total of 2 & 1/2 miles for me. I am going to visit my inlaws in 5 more weeks, so I really want to lose as much as possible before I go. I've made it a goal to exercise every day and not make excuses! We'll see what happens......

This morning I jogged 5 laps (1 & 1/4 mile) at the track, then I also walked 3 more laps and to and from the track, so that's a total of 2 & 1/2 miles for me. I am going to visit my inlaws in 5 more weeks, so I really want to lose as much as possible before I go. I've made it a goal to exercise every day and not make excuses! We'll see what happens......

Congratulations Margo. What a great accomplishment!!! And just think, this is only the beginning of your journey!

Welcome Kim! I am a frequent visitor to your website and to OH, although I've never posted there. I just wanted to welcome you to LBT. I wish I had some words of advice for your situation. I know that Tricare no longer covers banding, but is it possible for your physician to repair the slip or reband you using a surgical code and diagnosis that would be covered? I'm sure you've already looked into this. Just wanted to let you know that you have really inspired me in my journey, and there is no doubt that you have inspired many others.

This week I"m down one more pound to 245.

Here's today's stats: weight: 245 bust: 42 waist: 48 hips: 50

Welcome Kira. I too hope that you get a favorable response from your insurance company soon. I live near Seattle (in Des Moines) and have been banded for 6 months. I'm happy with my progress thus far in my journey. If you need any advice or support, let me know. There are several support groups that meet around the NW, if you want some info on them please let me know.

Poblanos typically are not hot. I have never eaten one raw before, so perhaps they lose some spiciness when cooked??? If the person at the store said his wife uses them for stuffing then I bet you were looking at poblanos. They are dark green, darker and longer than a bell pepper. Here's a picture I found on the internet: http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:tWaUYaeYQIsJ:www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/484770/2/istockphoto_poblano_chile_pepper_484770.jpg Hope this helps. What are you cooking??? I use them for chiles rellenos (stuffed chiles dipped in egg batter and fried) and sometimes I roast and peel them and add them to enchiladas. I stuff them with either Monterrey Jack or a mexican cheese called queso oaxaca. I'll look up some of my recipes and PM them to you.

I used Dr. Arturo Rodriguez in Monterrey, and I highly recommend him. If you have any questions about him or his staff and service please PM me.

This morning I jogged 1 mile (again-nonstop), then walked with a mixture of jogging for another 2 & 1/2 miles.

Monday I jogged 1 mile non-stop, then continued walking for another 2 & 1/2 miles. This morning I jogged 1 mile non-stop, then did a mixture of walking & jogging for another 2 & 1/2 miles. I feel great!!!! Who knew that exercise would make me feel this good?

I am in complete shock and disbelief! This morning I headed to the track for my ususal exercise - walk and jog a total of 2 or 3 miles. Lately I've been jogging one lap non-stop then walking with a little bit of jogging mixed in when I felt I could do it. Well, this morning when I got to the track I started jogging right off the bat. I was just finishing my lap and I decided to keep going, next lap same thing, then again and again. In total I jogged 1 mile (4 laps) non-stop!!! Then I continued to walk another 2 & 1/2 miles. Never in my life have I jogged a mile! I feel amazing knowing that I am getting stronger; my heart is stronger, my lungs are stronger, my muscles are stronger, and my determination and belief in myself is stronger than ever! I can't believe I did it! And I can't wait to do it again tomorrow!

I held steady at 246 this week. Same measurements.

I held steady at 246 this week.

Saturday: 3/4 mile jogging + 1 & 1/4 miles walking = total 2 miles. Sunday: 1/4 mile jogging + 2 & 1/4 miles walking = total 2 & 1/2 miles.

For those of us banded in March, September is our 6 month bandiversary. Congratulations to everyone on their achievement thus far in their band journey. I just wanted to check in and see how everyone is doing. Have you seen the results you thought you'd see at 6 months post-op? I am down 60 lbs so far. My band date was March 30th. I definately have not been the "perfect" bandster. I could eat better, eat less, exercise more, but heck, 60 lbs lost..I just can't believe it sometimes. It was so easy for me to set goals pre-op, you know just choose numbers, like "at 6 months out I should be down 100lbs" or "i'll be at goal by my 1 year surgery anniversary." I don't even consider those to be my goals, since I was just randomly picking numbers and thinking, okay by this date I want to be X number of pounds lost or whatever, that sounds good. I am just happy to be losing weight, in fact, more weight than I have ever lost before-even if you add up all of my weightloss attempts! I have more energy, more confidence, for goodness sake I can JOG!! (yes it is quite a sight, and my boob popped out of my bra on the first try, but a new bra and many miles later I'm still going!) I haven't exercised this much since I was in physical education class in highschool, and even then when we were supposed to run a lap or a mile or anything, I quickly became winded and started walking - and I weigh 25 pounds more now than I did back then! Getting banded is the best decision I've made thus far in my relatively short life. I am very proud of my accomplishments, and I can't wait to see what the next few years have to bring my way.

I made it to the track tonight. I jogged 3/4 mile and walked 1 & 1/4 mile for a total of 2 miles.

Gosh, I really feel lousy. Perhaps it's because I haven't exercised for several days now. Or, it could be all that microwave popcorn I've eaten in the past few days as I've sat on the couch instead of getting outside and moving my body. Today is a new day though, and I'm determined to make it to the track! I'll let y'all know how I do.

No exercise for me yesterday. I'm planning on making it to the track this evening. I know it's only a matter of time before the sun will set before 5pm, and it will be raining, which means no more evenings at the track for me. Plan B?

No exercise for me yesterday. I'm planning on going to the track tonight.

Yesterday I walked (jogged a little) a total of 6 miles for the day (1 in the morning, then 5 last night) Today I walked 2 1/2 miles at the track. I'm exausted! :dead

I just got home from the track. I walked/jogged 2 1/2 miles. After all of the exercise I did yesterday I am just exausted. We'll see what I feel up to tomorrow.