StLouisGal

I started riding the bus last week (the price of parking has gone sky high where I work) and gas is another story. It's about a half mile walk to the bus stop and another half mile from the end of the train ride to my office.:smile2: My Curves is on the same bus route as my house so I hop off the bus, work out and hop back on the bus to go home. I am averaging about 10,000 steps per day (about 5 miles) and my endurance has really increased. Yesterday afternoon I decided to walk to church for choir practice instead of driving. It is about 3.5 miles and it was a hot day but I made it.:crying: I only had to stop and rest once the whole trip. I think I'll try it again next week. I didn't have to walk home because DH came for the evening service and we drove home together. Best of all, when I measured at Curves on Saturday I had lost 6 inches, mostly on my hips, abdomen, and thighs. Another plus, with what I am saving on parking and gas, I can buy new clothes.:rofl:

I lost the first 60 lbs pretty fast so I've changed sizes pretty quickly. I've gone from 26 to 16 in that time. Luckily I had saved some of my Skinny jeans (sizes 20 and 22) I bought a couple of pair of size 20 dockers when I had to get rid of the 24's and a few inexpensive shirts and that got me though work. I replaced them with size 16 capri's for summer. Luckily my sister-in-law lost a lot of weight several years ago and gave me a couple of nice "classic" dresses that have been my good clothes for the past couple of months. Clearance racks at Macy's, Penney's, etc are great, especially on "extra 50% off" days. I got a dress this morning that originally was $130. that I got for $40. It will get me through the rest of the summer. Goodwill and re-sale shops are great if you have time to look for just the right thing. Skirts with drawstring waists can go through several sizes before they get too big. Knit pants with drawstrings are also great for casual and can go a couple of sizes before you have to replace them. The key is you don't want to spend a lot of money on things you are only going to wear for a few weeks. By the time they come into season again next year, you will be in a whole different size range. Save the bulk of your clothes budget for that knockout outfit to Celebrate reaching goal.

Oh Gibson, I am so sorry your doctor is treating you this way. My doctor is the most conservative in this area but he fills ever 6-8 weeks and says you probably won't be at your sweet spot until you are at 4-6 fills at the minimum. He doesn't even weigh us until after the fill, just asks if we can eat bread, how long we are satisfied after a meal, etc. I didn't fit the mold because I am almost over tight at 3, but that isn't the point, you know your body and what you need. 8 lbs in two months is nothing, especially if you are hungry all the time. I would definitely look into other doctors in the area and at least get a consult. This one doesn't seem to be listening to you. You might also call your primary doctor and see if he/she has any pull with him. Slow and steady does win the race but at this rate you won't win for 10 years. Good luck and hang in there!

It's better if you mix half and half with Water and add a packet of crystal light. Raspberry lemonade perks up the flavor quite nicely. Good luck with your surgery.

My doctor says 15 minutes before and 30 minutes after before drinking. The few times I have slipped up and tried drinking too soon I have BP'd so I don't have much choice. My new committment is to walk more. I am going to start riding the bus to work instead of driving and that involves walking about 3500 steps so it will force me to do it. My goal each day is 10,000 steps. Good luck to everyone in their "back to the basics" committments.:tt2:

Congratulations. It's quite an accomplishment. I am right behind you!

I have had 3 fills for a total of 3ccs in a 10 cc band. I have great restriction. I am scheduled for another fill the end of this month but I may cancel that appoinment because I don't want to be much tighter than I am right now.

How much caffeine is in a regular cup of tea? I drink the peach tea all the time and it doesn't seem to be causing problem. I'm losing weight.

Same thing I was told when I had mine out about 12 years ago. It was about 2 years after the hysterectomy (another factor some Drs. believe) :thumbup:

My doctor recommends 15 minutes before and 30 minutes after. Sometimes I can't drink that quickly after or it comes back up so I usually try to wait an hour. It must be working because I am losing. Try as best you can to follow your doctors recommendation. He knows your history, situation, etc. Good luck to you! The band is great!

The liquids are very important so do your best. I get nauseous when I drink plain water on an empty stomach too. I put Crystal light in my water most of the time. I use 20 ounce bottles of spring water. I use the little packets first thing in the morning and then fill the bottle from the jug of crystal light I keep in the frig. (Cheaper in the bigger packages) I try to make sure I drink four bottles per day, one in the morning, one when I take my lunchtime walk (I eat at the desk early so it has been an hour before I leave the building) one after I work out in the evening, (by 6 or so) and one between 7 and 10 at night. You have to concentrate on sip, sip, sip, if restriction is a problem. Keep trying, it gets easier. Welcome to Bandland, You will love it here!

I didn't have to crush any of my pills because they were all smaller than an aspirin. I did open my prilosec capsules and swallow the contents in a spoonful of Protein shake for about a week but after that I just swallowed the capsule. My pain medication was a liquid. Every doctor has a different recommendation so it is best to follow your doctor's plan.

Congrats on Onederland! What an accomplishment! I have 23 lbs to go and can hardly wait! Hang in there and get plenty of rest to get over the UTI, glad the meds have kicked in.

Welcome to our group! Where are you having your surgery done? This board will give you great support. There are a surprising number of us in the St. Louis area.

After only three weeks you are probably still pretty swollen. It takes longer for the insides to heal than the outside incisions. Hang in there. I am 4.5 months out and still get stuck quite often. (Stuck means back and chest pain for me) I have 3 cc's in my 10 cc band and I have to be very careful what I eat, how fast I eat and how well I chew. I can eat pizza (tiny bites chewed very slowly I can eat about 1/4 of a personal sized pizza.) Yesterday I got stuck on deli ham because I ate too fast and topped it off with too much broccoli. It just takes practice to figure out what you can eat and how to eat it properly. I agree that you should probably give your tummy pouch a rest. It is probably irritated because it was stuck. A couple of days of liquids will calm it down. If you are drinking juice, cut it with Water since it can be pretty acidic and that can irritate also. Just remember that these first 4-6 weeks are for healing so let your body heal. You will love this band and all of the nsv's that you will have. :Angel_anim:

My doctor always has us drink some Water before we leave the office and make sure it goes down well. Even if they don't suggest it, drink some water to make sure everything is working before you leave. Gas is too expensive to have to drive right back. Good luck.

Glad it is over for you and glad it was not anything too serious. Take some time to rest. Remember to get up and walk around some so you don't get blood clots. :Angel_anim:

The only thing I eat out of a can is lima beans and refried beans. If I don't have fresh tomatos, canned tomatos are pretty good.:biggrin2:

Welcome to our Band! You'll like it here. The dreaded PB has probably happened to most of us. Just be careful how big your bites are and how well you chew. Some days I can eat things and other's the same thing doesn't go down so well. I think it just takes a lot of concentration and practice. 38 lbs in four months is great weight loss. Most doctors don't recommend losing no more than 1-2 lbs a week so hang in there, you are right on target. Exercise will definitely help but you have to start slow so you won't hurt yourself. Start walking around the block a couple of times and build up from there if you aren't in a routine already. When I had my surgery I had been going to Curves for three years so I was already used to working out pretty hard. For someone who isn't used to it, you will just get discouraged if you try too much too fast. Try to do a little every day and before you know it you will be walking miles at a time and enjoying it. Come back again soon!

I try to eat healthy but usually eat frozen veggies because I can't eat them fast enough to use the fresh ones. I throw a handful in a bag and steam them, one serving at a time. I also bake a sweet potato about once a week and eat it at about three meals. It doesn't take long to fill me up.:tt1: I am waiting patiently for my tomatos to ripen on the vines in my back yard. I tend to gravitate to higher protein foods since I really feel like I need to make sure I get my protein in every day. I usually average 80-100 grams of carb, 70-80 grams of protein, and under 50 grams of fat every day. That seems to work pretty well for me. I eat a lot of egg beaters, (lower in fat than eggs), cottage cheese, veggies, and cheese. I try to eat a banana every day. Blueberries, stawberries and cherries make wonderful snacks.

What a great thread!!! My bandiversary was June 15. As of that day I have had 3 fills, total of 3 CC's in a 10 cc band. I have lost 49.5 pounds post-op and a total loss of 62.5lbs. I am down 35.25 inches, from a tight 26 to a comfortable 18. :tt1:

Thinking about you today! Let us know how it goes.:tt1:

I told everyone I know and some I didn't know. I was excited and when I get excited everything sort of pops out. It is a personal choice but I am not a very transparent person so it is hard for me to keep secrets. My co-workers are very supportive and at lunch and things like that they make sure we go places where I can get a choice that works for me. It's been a great journey and I've appreciated the prayers and concerns of my friends and aquaintances and I enjoy their comments now that the weight is coming off. As far as the "easy way out", obviously the people who believe that have not really researched the band much, no carbonation, measuring your food so you don't eat too much, PBing if you do eat too much, not drinking during meals, etc. They don't equate to "easy" but they are sooooo worth it. If you go into this thinking that it will be easy or a magic bullet to lose the weight, you had better research some more. It is a great tool but you have to work with the band to make it work. I love my band and it has allowed me to lose weight that I thought I would never lose so I would say it has been worth every pain and problem. I have a couple of folks in my life that are so jealous they can't stand it. They think I took the easy way out. That is their problem not mine. Hang in there and do what you need to do to make yourself healthy and happy.

I weigh myself nearly every day before I get dressed. I only count as "official", the weekly weigh in at Curves. I go every Friday or Saturday morning before I eat anything and weigh on their scale. It keeps me honest. I have a tendency to look at my scale and say "oh well" if it doesn't say what I want. I write the Curves weight in my book and keep track.

Last night must have been the night for PBs. I ate too much at a pot luck dinner. It seemed to go down fine but in about 15 minutes I was headed to the ladies room to throw up. I threw up a little but not all of my meal, that stayed stuck for about two and a half hours and then it came up. Yuck! I'm going to have to learn to be way more careful. It hurt, a bunch!