Dragonwillow

I was banded on the 13th, and I guess I was one of those that bounced right back. I'm back to all my pre surgery activites except weight lifting pretty much and eating :straight of course. Make sure you are getting in enough protien a day...I think that helps alot. My nutritionist told me I had to get at least 45 grams of protien minium in...and I've managed it everyday except the day of the actual surgery. Also walking helped me alot. I got up the first week every two hours at least and walked even at night. I've been sleeping in my waterbed since day 4 and now sleep pretty much on my tummy/side without discomfort. You will get there. Melissa

Congrats :banana:banana:banana:banana:banana:banana:banana

Which Y do you go to? Do they have one in Lake Wylie now? Melissa

Glad you had a good time. And that is so funny about your panties falling. LOL Can't wait to see ya Nov 5th for lunch and hear all about the cruise...I so want to go on one. Melissa

Thats great, you'll have a date before you know it. Just get those other appoinments out of the way and they will have no reason not to send to insurance...then you get a date quick usually. Melissa

The thing to remember with exercise is do something you like, if you hate it you won't do it. If you are going to the gym don't panic if you can't do as much as you like the first day or even the second. When I first started going to the gym two years ago I could only do about 5 minutes on the elliptical. I thought my legs were going to fall off. It's my favorite now. I also recomend that you buy a heart rate monitor...those machines ones aren't always accurate. Proform prand is a good brand. With weight lifting don't worry about becoming bulky....not likely to happen...at least not easily. The best way to work your weights up to be able to lift heavier weight is to do decreasing sets. Say you leg press 250...do 12 at 250...then drop it down to the next level which is 230...do 12 more.....then drop down to 210 and do 12 more. When those start getting "easy" up your first weight. You will be amazed at how fast you will progress. At the end of your last set you should feel muscle fatigue...basically don't think you can do 12 more. If you feel like you can do more...then its probally time to up your weights. Also with weights how fast you do the motion has alot to do with how good a work out you get. Try to take 1.5-2 seconds on the upward or outward motion and do a very controled 2.5-3 second back down or in. The absolute best thing for toning and sculpting is pilates. I hope to get back into it in the next couple of months. The first couple sessions will be terrible! I know the first time I did pilates, my abs hurt for 4 days! Angie...you are doing great with the weight loss. Just step up whatever exercise you are doing...add 10 minutes a day...or up the intensity a bit. I bet your body is just adjusting...mine seems to do that about every 20lbs when I'm dieting. I've lost 21lbs since my consult with Dr. Bauman....and 13lbs since surgery (Thats my scale...since i forgot to pay attention to what it said at the dr. office when i went...lol). Melissa

Thanks Dee I was at the gym alot BEFORE surgery....I can't recomend it enough. I think I've had such an easy recovery from surgery simply because I had exercised before surgery. I was up exercising (slowly of course) the night of surgery...I kept telling the nurses because I was going in circles around the floor that I was doing qualifying laps. (we are in nascar country! LOL) After I got home I was walking every 2 hours for 10 minutes then working up to 35 minutes by 4 days out. I say to all of those that are looking to be banded in the near future...start your exercise plan now you won't be sorry. I"m itching to get back to the weights. I did start doing some arm exercises with my 3lb hand weights...but it doesn't seem to do a thing. Melissa

i think Fuze drinks help with appetitate supression....and they are tasty too. check them out at www.drinkfuze.com I drink one almost every day. 16 oz bottle, 2 servings per bottle Per serving calories 10 fat 0 sodium 5mg total carbs 2 sugars 1 protien 0 vitiamin c 100% Chronium 20 mg (for boost of energy) Citrimax 200 mg ...known to supress appetite , reduce conversion of carbs to fat and promote weight loss L-carnitine- 20 mg an amino acid that boosts energy My favorite flavor is the fruit punch, but they have straberry melon, tangerine-grapefruit, and rapsberry-cranberry. Melissa

Congrats! :banana:banana:banana:banana

Yes Vines, please let us know...as I'm very interested in knowing what happens at a fitness evaulation? And what exactly they determine from it. Melissa

Oh Kim....poor babe another surgery. You know we will all be here for you if you need anything...even if it's just to vent on the unfairness of it all. It really is unfair that some have to such a struggle of things so young. But he will come ouf this like a trooper. I mean I've seen him move, he will be recovered and on the run again in no time I'm sure. Try to stay away from extra food, if you find yourself needing to munch unneedlessly give one of us a call and chat away the emotions instead. I hope you can make it on the 5th too, but if not you will be in our thoughts and prays...you and your sweet little one. Melissa

Got my staples out today....yah. I've lost 10lbs since the morning I went in the hospital...not shabby. While waiting for my visit there was a lady that had gastric bypass four weeks ago and has lost 30lbs. They have us following the exact same diet. She said she had to do puree for 2 weeks after liquids? Yuck...I guess I'll find out my fate next week when I go to the nutritionist for sure. Or Angie might jump in and tell me. I've done good so far on the liquids...haven't cheated yet. I did buy me some gum today...I know I know I won't swallow it...but damn this girl needed to chew. Melissa

LOL...Thats the plan this weekend...clean. It may not be spotless, but I at least want the kitchen cleaned and the floors vacuming. A week without vancuming and my floores look horrible. Mostly because I have a 70lb long haired white fluff ball of a dog, and he is currently in shed a rama mode. I got to the gym today...felt good, though I only did 40 minutes on the treadmill. Going to try and walk outside for a bit later to get the other 30 minutes in my Dr. wants us to do. OH and I start working at the Y next wed! Right now I'm just filling in and such...so will work the next three wed. for someone that is out. Well off to warm up some broth...YUM! :Bunny

I'm just glad hubby can stop "taking care of me". You know...I busted but trying to get everything organized and ready for him before surgery....and today I get up to get the kids ready...can't find a clean uniform shirt for the little one. Conviently he used the last yesterday? Basically other than the first day or maybe two home from the hospital I haven't needed hubby to take care of me...and he hasn't....but he didn't do anything else either as far as the house goes. He got the kids up and ready and took them to school every morning, but thats about it. I think his computer got some extra care! LOL The house is in shambles, the sink would be full...but I finally had enough and loaded the dishwasher myself yesterday morning. Can't walk through the game room...thank you 5 year old. I'm sorry, I should be grateful my hubby took off a week, but I guess I'm just venting. It doesn't help that I feel I have a solid week of house work ahead of me and it still hurts to pick things up off the floor. Melissa

I have united health care...at the seminar when everyone was going up afterwards with the insurance card to see how easy are hard their company was, the lady looked at mine and said...Oh good insurance. LOL And I was approved within a week of the doc sending in the request. Melissa

I personally don't care how Kristi alley is loosing the weight...but I'm pretty sure she isn't be honest about how much she has loss or has to lose. One magazine article said she had lost almost 50lbs...and had 30 more to lose to get to goal. COME ON...so she at her heaviest was only 80lbs over weight? Give me a break, the gal is tall, so she would be able to carry her weight better than a shorter person. She was pretty heavy...I'd say at least 100lbs overweight if not more. Melissa

Vines, also why men get to eat more calories is based on muscle mass mostly...they have more usually. I would argue I have more than my husband who doesn't work out and is the wirey type...though it does seem he can eat more crap than me. LOL Also did anyone know that it takes more calories to digest an apple than an apple has? Some trivia that was given to me by a personal trainer that I thought was interesting. So if you are hungry and want to be good, eat an apple...no one ever got fat over eating apples...except of course when they were in a pie . Medical conditions can contribute to slow metabolism too. I'm hypothyroid...so that can effect my metablism and weight loss. Doesn't make it impossible, but just that much harder. Other deficients to look for vitiamin B 12...especially if you tire easily or even Iron. When I did my testing for surgery all of these were going on with me. It was no wonder I was draggin like an old women in the evenings. I'm taking suppliments now and feel much better. Melissa

Gosh that would certainly liven up a cruise! Hope you guys stay safe, and don't eat too many Desserts girl, you'll only regret it later . Melissa

When I did weight watchers....weigh in night was always chinese night. As soon as the meeting was over I'd run by and get chinese takout..lol. It took me almost a week it seemed to get over the amount of sodium that was in that MEAL LOL Melissa

Vines I've read similiar information but it was in fitness and weight lifthing books most likely. Though I have read nutriton books too. Basically the less you eat and the longer you stay in "starvation" mode the more effeicent your body gets. That is why the best way to loose weight is to reduce your calories somewhat..but not too much...and to exercise to increase the amount of calories you burn. You should get a metabolic study done, I've never had one done either but want to. In a metabolic study they can find out how many calories your body uses at rest. Then based on that they can tell you how many calories you should eat a day to loose weight safely without slowing your metabolism down. Good news is exercise can help your metabolism, especially getting more muscle mass. One of the reason most of us have yo yo ourselves to such heavy weights is that we have done this. We diet hard....our body adjust to the new calories and become more efficient, so when we stop loosing weight and slip we gain back weight...usually faster than it came off. The next time we diet we do the same thing...over and over. One of the best ways to trick your metabolism is to not eat the same calories day in and day out. Say...one day eat 1000 calories, but then the next eat 1300. Make sure you alternate so you don't eat too many high calorie days or too many low calorie days in a row. Start researching metablolism, you will be surprised how we have tricked our bodies over the years and actually made it MORE effecient so that we can eat 2000 calories and gain 10lbs while someone who has never dieted, can eat 2000 and maintain. It sucks how effecient our bodies are made sometimes. Melissa

Heck only 12 oz...wear heavier clothes and down continueous Water before consult! LOL Melissa

Congrats1!! :banana:

It is also possible to slow weight loss down without eating enough calories too. 1200 sounds about right, though not sure I'll be up that high at 3 weeks. I'm one week out and yesterday only had about 500 caolories. (first day I had kept track) Today I shot for a little more and will probally end up with like 700 calories. I don't know if there is a calorie range, I just got a protien range to shoot for 45-90 a day. Yesterday I got in 59. Today will probally be about the same I think. Melissa

Kathy went with Dr. Kuri in Mexico and had no promblems, I think her sister is planning to use Dr. Kuri as well. Kathy where are you???? LOL Melissa

Is this your highest weight? If not make sure you have a 5 year weight history from your pcp or gynocologist to help. Even if it is your highest weight I'm betting the weight history would prove that its going up slowly but surely. I mean everyones weights can very a few pounds from day to day. Even from scale to scale. Also get documatation about your back pain from the doctor you saw for that. I don't think you will have a promblem. Melissa