kagoscuba

You should ask your nutritionist what the Basal Metabolic Rate means in your particular situation. Remember, absent exercise, 1800 calories a day means you will not lose weight (nor gain). I believe it is something like cutting out 500 calories a day by either exercise or diet means you should "average" 2 pounds a week weight loss. Some weeks you'll plateau, but over an extended period of time, the losses should compensate for even or gains in weight. My rule is "never get addicted to the scale." I never weigh myself more than once a week, and I never get concerned until a second weigh-in gives me similar results I may not like. My nutritionist said to strictly follow the doctor's guidelines, until on solids. Once there, she suggested finding a web journal for calorie and nutrition logging. I use http://www.my-calorie-counter.com/Journal.asp I log every meal, and it not only give me calories, but it tells me sodium, fat, saturated fat, sugar, protein, carbs, and sodium. Using that tool I can pretty much custom create my meal plans. I rotate through four weekly plans I made up to "keep my body guessing."

use this BMR site as a starting point, rather than the "global guess" most nutritionists give: BMR Calculator According to the site, I should eat 2,057 calories to maintain my weight, not counting for exercise. So, I could easily eat 2500 calories a day and not gain/lose. However, I average 2,000 calories a day, and with the exercise I get (very rigid about my schedule) I continue to lose 2-3 pounds a week on average.

Tae Kwon Do will help immensely with toning, flexibility, and mental focus. Due to my wee-ones (three ages 5 and under) I no longer have the time for TKD, but when was able to attend regularly, it was definitely a wonderful way to get a good workout.

I went from 4000+ calories a day to between 1200 to 2000 a day now, and I have seen a HUGE change. I was banded 9/29/07 and so far I have lost almost 50 pounds and six inches off of my waist (from size 42 to 36). I feel better and I definitely look better. I constantly change my diet around, and I do not get down by gobbling down the worst food sometimes (ate a pint of Cookie Dough ice cream in one sitting last weekend). That was an aberration. My typical diet is vastly different than the one I had before, and I get to see the benefits every day. Results will come, whether you are eating 1000 calories or almost 2000 a day. Find your Basal Metabolic Rate, eat below that, and ensure you are exercising, and you can't help but lose weight.

I'm always a little shocked to see people say it takes, 3, 4, or even more fills before they feel proper restriction. For those of you who it took that many times, were you filled under flouro or "blind filled?" My experiece, succinctly, has been this: 1st fill was October 26th, under flouro, and I saw the opening to my stomach go from wide open to about 10% of it's previous side. I felt some restriction, but I lost a lot of weight during this time, so my port opened back up. 2nd fill was also under flouro, the port was wide open (doctor explained this was weight-loss related), and I saw him reduce the port size to what looked like a trickle. I REALLY have restriction now and have to be careful with anything I eat other than liquids. I can get down just about anything, but not if I'm forgetful and swallow too big of a poorly chewed bite. I don't even bother with rice, grits, bread, or Pasta anymore though. The only way I see me getting filled a third time is when I lose more weight the band adjusts on it's own again. How about your experiences?

luluc....LMAO....I have been accused of not allowing my Georgia roots to leave me while here in NJ. My NJ born wife just calls it my "Redneck Side" and lets it go at that. Besides, she has learned she can't argue with what works. She admits the mailbox may be ugly as hell, but we haven't had to replace it (or even pick it up off the ground) in 5 years either. It's a very Eastern philosophy..."let mailbox flow like water, not be stout like oak tree; when the wind blows the mighty oak will fall, while the mailbox will find it's own path." See, crap like that last sentence drives her nuts, but that's my job, right?

For those who decide to have steel pipes or brick mailboxes, they may be liable for a lawsuit for someone who hits those mailboxes in a pure accident and are hurt. If burglers can successfully sue for getting hurt while committing a crime, then anything is possible. I use a much more low-tech method. I bought a durable plastic mailbox and attached it by using two bungie cords (one in front and one towards the back) wrapped around the mailbox and supporting post. Here in NJ the snow-plows get going about 40mph down my street and when wet snow and/or pure ice gets propelled at 40mph, not much stands in it's way. This winter both of my neighbors' mailboxes have been blasted off and were laying in the lawn. Mine was just cock-eyed on the post, and a simple readjusment did the trick.

"Do you have have do just liquids after you get your first fill?" Like others have said, every doctor is different. My doc says three days of clear liquids, one week of full liquids, one week of mushies, then back to regular food. It is overkill, but it does help to curb hunger by the mental game of "well, my doctor said I had to." This band is 80% mental and 20% physical.<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

Mr. United States, United by Christ, is surging in the polls...and to think, the following is what he believes (he does not believe in evolution): The Bible teaches (in Genesis 1:29-30) that the original animals (and the first humans) were commanded to be vegetarian. There were no meat eaters in the original creation. Furthermore, there was no death. It was an unblemished world, with Adam and Eve and animals (including dinosaurs) living in perfect harmony, eating only plants. Sadly, it did not stay this way for very long. Adam rebelled against his Creator, bringing sin into the world (Genesis 3:1-7; Romans 5:12). Because of this rebellion, Adam, and thus all of his descendants (you and me), gave up the right to live with a Holy (sinless) and just God. God therefore judged sin with death. The Bible plainly teaches from Genesis to Revelation that there was no death of animals or humans before Adam sinned. (Consider just a few of the many passages, such as: Romans 5:12; Genesis 2:17; Genesis 1:29-30; Romans 8:20-22; Acts 3:21; Hebrews 9:22; I Corinthians 15; Revelation 21:1-4; Revelation 22:3.) This means there could not have been any animal fossils (and no dinosaur bones) before sin. After Adam’s sin, animals and people started to die. It was now a different world, one of death and strife. A world that was once beautiful now suffered under the curse placed upon it by the Creator (Genesis 3:14-19). But a promise was given (Genesis 3:15) that God would provide a way for the penalty of sin to be paid so there would be a way for man to come back to God. Why Do We Find Dinosaur Fossils? In Genesis 6, we read that all flesh (man and animals) had ‘corrupted his way upon the Earth’ (Genesis 6:12). Perhaps people and animals were killing each other; maybe dinosaurs had started killing other animals and humans. In any case, the Bible describes the world as ‘wicked.’ Because of this wickedness, God warned a godly man named Noah that He was going to destroy the world with a Flood (Genesis 6:13). God therefore commanded him to build a great ship (the Ark) so that all the kinds of land animals (which must have included dinosaurs) and Noah’s family could survive on board while the Flood destroyed the entire Earth (Genesis 6:14-20). Some people think that dinosaurs were too big, or there were too many of them, to go on this Ark. However, there were not very many different kinds of dinosaurs. There are certainly hundreds of dinosaur names, but many of these were given to just a bit of bone or skeletons of the same dinosaur found in other countries. It is also reasonable to assume that different sizes, varieties, and sexes of the same kind of dinosaur have ended up with different names. For example, look at the many different varieties and sizes of dogs, but they are all the same kind-the dog kind! In reality, there may have been fewer than 50 kinds of dinosaurs. God sent two of every (seven of some) land animal into the Ark (Genesis 7:2-3; 7:8-9)—there were no exceptions. Therefore, dinosaurs must have been on the Ark. Even though there was ample room in the huge ship for large animals, perhaps God sent young adults into the Ark that still had plenty of room for them to grow. Well, what happened to all the land animals that did not go on the Ark? Very simply, they drowned. Many would have been covered with tons of mud as the rampaging Water covered the land (Genesis 7:11-12,19). Because of this quick burial, many of the animals would have been preserved as fossils. If this happened, you would expect to find evidence of billions of dead things buried in rock layers (formed from this mud) all over the Earth. This is exactly what you do find. By the way, the Flood of Noah’s day probably occurred just over 4,500 years ago. Creationists believe that this event formed many of the fossil layers around the Earth. (Additional fossil layers were formed by other floods as the Earth settled down after the great Flood.) Thus, the dinosaur fossils which were formed as a result of this Flood were probably formed about 4,500 years ago, not millions of years ago. Somehow, believing the crap above makes me worried about his ability to be the President. Call me kooky.

The minimum stay for me was 24 hours (that's how they got me to pay so much), but I walked out 12 hours after I walked in. If you are ok and want to leave, all you need is a release to do so. There is no reason they can make you stay, unless they think there is a risk.

Depending on the doctor, I would say about 8 weeks. It took me (I am a self-pay) a month to get all of my pre-surgical tests/tasks done, and once those are done my doctor can usually schedule within 2 - 4 weeks, with 2 weeks being the norm.

I go for the Wendy's plain baked potato three times a week. It only costs $1.06, and contrary to popular belief potatos are actually quite healthy in moderation.

"If it is so easy why don't they do it?????????" Most people who are insensitive enough to say things like that are at least aware enough not to say it, if they are overweight. So, they get to preach from on high, without the experience of having to do it themselves. That's why, if I was Catholic, I'd laugh if a priest gave me marriage advice.

Very nice!!! Way to go!

In the best NJ tradition, I am now totally at ease with saying, "Kiss my ass," whenever someone starts going on about the ease of the surgery. I then follow up with such gems as, "If you are so worried about cheating in life and doing it the old-fashioned way, please feel free to sell your car, grow your own veggies, slaughter your own meat, and go back to church every Sunday, until you hear the sermon about judging people." Jeez, I'm only 38 and I'm already turning into a curmudgeon. I think getting older is part losing your physical abilities and part losing your physical ability to not to tell people to shut their pie-hole.

So, yesterday I was doing my laundry (yes, ladies, some married men do their own) and while I was picking some up out of the basket, my wedding ring fell off my finger. It didn't get pulled off; it just fell off. So, now I have a new errand of getting my ring resized. That is a great errand to have. :woot:

Hey there New Me 2008 Just curious...are you filled while utilizing a flouroscope, or is it a "blind" fill?

"Hey how did your wife convince you to do the laundry?" It wasn't her, it was my mom. My mom got sick (almost literally) of washing my football uniforms, so she mandated I learn how to do my own laundry. Between her and the military I learned perfectly how to do my own laundry and cook for myself. Truth be told, I actually now prefer I do both for myself. It works for my wife, as she does the kids and her laundry (enough of a job) and she doesn't have to worry about cooking for me, especially since I get home about 2 hours after the kids eat dinner. Thanks everyone for the kind words!

Oh, and just another fact from the Delaware Constitution: §2. Religious test for office not required. Section 2. No religious test shall be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, under this State. I got this from the text of the official Delaware Constitution Frisky...where did you get your unconstitutional piece from?

"In God We Trust" That means in God we trust, not in the Trinity, or in the fallibility of man. I have no trouble trusting in God; I do have trouble in trusting in a Presidential candidate who believes the Earth is 6,000 years old. Oh, and by "trusting in God" I do not mean blindly trusting to the point of delusion. If faced with a perilous situation you can trust or you can act. The truster will normally not survive.

I eat about 2000 calories a day and am now averaging a weight loss of 2 pounds per week. In addition I am doing .5 hour cardio 5 days a week and lifting weights for an hour 5 days a week. I can literally feel my body morphing.

The yogurt is the Dannon Light & Fit. The fruit is blended, so you do not have to worry about being stuck. However, once you are optimally filled, you cannot eat it too quickly, or you will get that uncomfortable, "Oh this is going to take a while to get down" feel.

"I think my biggest problem will be when I go back to work next week. What will I eat for lunch? In the past, I would just hit a fast food place or Subway." I was in the same boat as you. KFC 6 piece dinner, Subway Cold Cut Combo: foot long of course (with chips and bucket of soda), a whole Papa John's medium pizza with pepperoni, extra-cheese, and some onions and peppers for being healthy. Oh, and I could always go for Mickey D's. Now, I pack Breakfast, lunch, and afternoon snack and bring it to work every day, and I rarely deviate. Here is a typical sample: Breakfast (may take a couple of hours to eat all of this): 1 Yogurt 1 Hard Boiled Egg 1 coffee 1 Bottle of Water with Crystal Light 1 small can Diet Red Bull Lunch: Protein shake sugar free pudding 1 bottle of water with crystal light Afternoon Snack: Muscle Milk - Protein Pudding Bottle of water with Crystal light 1 coffee (long ride home) Dinner can be Soup or tuna or any of a myriad of other protein rich foods. I hope this helps.

I have a beer or two occasionaly. Two is pretty much my limit, and it takes FOREVER to drink one, due to the carbonation. It's a lot better than the 6-12 I would have typically drank for a long football Saturday or Sunday.

You give up caffeine to stop possible dehydration. I never did and never will give up caffeine, unless my ticker is in trouble.