Pnw_Red

First of all, I'm glad you're feeling restriction now! But as far as your meal plan goes, where is your Protein? I'm not sure what your doc's guidelines are, but I don't see any protein in that other than a VERY small amount in the yogurt. My doc said to eat 3-4 oz solid protein plus 1/2 cup veggies at each meal. I'm supposed to target 60 grams protein. Can you eat chicken, fish, beef, shrimp, Beans, tofu? Are you vegetarian? If so, you need to get some other protein sources in there! It sounds like you have plenty of restriction if that's all you can eat in a day. I think if you try to eat more solid foods you'll find that you have plenty of restriction. Yes, yogurt and bananas and even avocado can be classic slider foods--they mush down to nothing. Even crunchy cracker type foods mush down to nothing. You need some solid foods to a) get in your nutrients and make use of your restriction to get some lasting satisfaction. Personally, I'd stay away from the avocado while you're in active weight loss mode. Yes, the fats are "good" fats, but if you're actively trying to lose and aren't getting in your protein, you need to save that pouch space for more protein-rich, nutrient dense foods, not high fat foods. I hope you find this restriction gives you the kind of progress you're looking for.

Congratulations! You look amazing. What a great accomplishment. :drool:

I think we say "only" to help people realize that the band doesn't do all the work. You have to make good food choices. You have to keep up on your follow-up visits and monitor your fill level. The band really does help--it diminishes hunger and makes it easier to do all the weight loss work that has to be done no matter which route you choose. I sometimes think of all this weight loss as a moving sidewalk. Weight loss without the band felt like trudging through the airport going the wrong way on a very fast moving sidewalk. Every time I stopped for a second, I’d get swept backwards. The band slowed the sidewalk WAY down. Not to a stop, but WAY, way down. I can take a break and stroll for a minute (or a month) and not lose ground. Or, I can kick it in gear and actually make progress. BUT . . . I can't just stand still. If I don't work at it, I don't lose, band or no band. The tool needs an operator. The hammer won't pound the nail in all by itself. :drool:

Those conversations never end well. Sadly, you're probably never going to change anyone's mind. I tell people that sticking to a good eating plan is ABSOLUTELY easier with the band than it was without. If not, why bother to get the band? But eating right with the band is still WAY more work than not dieting and eating whatever, which is what I used to do after I got done with my latest diet attempt. So I'm still working harder most days than I used to. The easiest thing in the world to do is agree--with something slightly different than they intended. Yep. It's easier to walk around weighing 100 pounds less. Yep. It's easier to stick to a 1,200 calorie diet with the band than it was without. Yep. It's WAY less effort to run a mile or two than it used to be to WALK the same distance. If I'd known how much easier you skinny people had it, I would have requested the band YEARS ago.

I guess I'm going to disagree and say I think you're right on track! Most people are told to expect to lose between 1 and 2 pounds a week (roughly 0.5-1 kg.) You've lost 18 kg (or 40 pounds) in 20 weeks. That's 2 lbs a week! That's right on schedule! If you keep this up, you will lose almost 100 pounds in a year! That's a fantastic result! Txspatter also has a truly amazing result, but those results are not typical, nor what I've ever been told to expect. (But congratulations on that loss! ! !) I was banded almost a year ago--April 22nd 2008. I lost 32 pounds the few months before surgery and 68 pounds since surgery. I'm hoping I'll lose another pound or two before next week and make it 70 pounds for the first year post-op. I was told to expect to lose 50-100 pounds in the first year. I've lost about 70 AFTER losing another 30. I think that's pretty good and totally in line with the norm. I'm sorry you're disappointed, but you're doing JUST FINE. You're totally on track with a good rate of weight loss. Based solely on that information, I think your band is just fine. Hang in there--I know it feels really, really slow some days, but you're making progress just like you should.

It is very possible to get tighter up to two weeks after a fill. Some are tight immediately and loosen up. Others seem to feel nothing and then gradually get tighter over the next several days. At my surgeon's office, they say we have good restriction if we can eat a bandster meal (3-4 oz lean Protein + 1/2 cup veggies) and that lasts us 4+ hours before we start getting hungry. So, based on what you said, then it sounds like you're just fine, as long as you're able to choose the right foods and be satisfied. Some people like to run tighter and feel their restriction more. My doc's office likes us to think of restriction as an absence of hunger rather than a feeling of tightness. When you FEEL tight, you're at a higher risk of getting stuck. The band doesn't have to be TIGHT to help you do your job. Just tight enough to help you not feel hungry all day long. If you're losing weight, I say wait! Ride it 'til the wheels fall off! Best of luck!

Way to go Suzanne! I think the first few weeks are really difficult and then you start to believe you can do it. I'm finally back up to week 6 after a few setbacks. I came down with a couple bad colds, then experienced knee trouble, then finally got started again. I started at the beginning and got up to week 4 again before starting knee troubles again. :biggrin: I have a PT session scheduled, but in the mean time, I'm giving myself two days between runs and doing the ice/rest/stretch in between. Anyway--I did the 20 minute run the other day and managed to do it without stopping! Yeah! I did week 6 day one today and felt lousy the whole time (tired, unmotivated, not injured), but I did it. I travelled the local 5k course (literally a mile from home) that I'm going to run in April. It's a bit farther than my workouts haven taken me so far (usually about 2.5 miles--I'm slow.) It's really hard to believe that I'm going to RUN this thing in a matter of weeks!

Whatever the actual reason, the band literature (ie, the owner's manual that comes from the band manufacturer) states that you should avoid carbonation. Good enough for me.

Getting stuck IS a type of restriction--more specifically, TOO much restriction. I know you say you think you aren't tight enough, but sliming and getting stuck--especially when eating appropriate foods and small bites chewed well--is the very definition of too tight. My doc's office would tell you to come in for a slight unfill. It's a vicious cycle when you get stuck--it can irritate your stomach and make everything swell up and get tighter. A small unfill will let you eat the proper foods in proper amounts. Good luck!

Sugarbean-- CONGRATS on onederland! Woohoo! That must be an amazing feeling. :thumbup: Add me to the list of the walking wounded. A few days before my 20 minute run, I came down with a cold. The day of the run, which I intended to try, the cold moved into my chest. :cursing: After a week with no running, I went back to week four today and went out. It felt good to go, though I can tell I'm going to be sore tomorrow. I debated how far to backtrack and a week sounded about right. I think I'll do one more day of week 4 and then move up to week 5 again. I hope everyone who is sick and/or injured feels better soon!

Hey Beanie--I'm a newbie too! I started the C25k in October and today I finished my Week 5 Day 2 workout! I ran two 8-minute intervals! I can't believe I've gone from gutting out 60 seconds to being able to run (albeit slowly) 8 minutes. Today was the FIRST day I felt like I was just cruising along. I went very slowly to make sure I could finish it and when the eight minutes was up, I felt like I could have kept on going! IT was astonishing. I never thought that day would come. I found myself wishing today was the twenty minute run (scheduled for Friday) because today, I KNOW I could have done it. Wish me luck for the twenty minute jog on Friday. I think I'm going to hit the local high school track so that my feet have some nice cushion and I have a good concept of the distance that I cover. TWENTY MINUTES. Seems impossible, and yet . . . it's only a few days away.

Congrats on 100# lost, and renewed, congrats on surgery recovery and running again! You all have come an amazingly long way--I've been scanning back through this thread lately. Question for you all--did you find that you got REALLY hungry when you started running? I've got the munchies like crazy, and pretty much just on the days I run. I don't think it's a fill issue because my small servings take care of the physical hunger part, and I'm borderline tighter than I like to be. But man, there's a difference on the days I run! I did week 4 day 2, but accidentally hit the emergency stop button with my hand during my first 5 min run on the treadmill. Ack. Oh well, I finished it up anyway. I can already tell a huge difference in my body in just a month or so of this!

Thanks for the welcome ladies! I did week 3, day one today and actually made it through the 5 minute runs! Wow! My asthma kicked in a little and my foot was hurting a bit during the first 5 min run, but I made it! I went to the local track--trying not to run on concrete more than one day a week. It felt a whole lot better on the feet.

Hi ladies--I've read through your thread and I'm totally impressed with all you have accomplished! You're all amazing! I started the C25k a few weeks ago--4-5 weeks I think. I did week 1 a few weeks in a row, then finished weeks 2 and 3. My feet hurt this week, so I'm trying to be careful that I don't injure myself and set things back. I'm just under 240, so I'm still pretty heavy for a starting runner. I'm excited though, and you all are inspiring. So far my favorite part of jogging is . . . stopping. LOL So intervals works well because I get to stop a lot. Congrats on all your progress and races!

I eat cereal with fruit every day. The key is to see if it sticks with you. For some, cereal acts like a mushy food and doesn't keep them full long. I tend to split my breakfast up into two meals because when I work it's a long day. I drink a latte when I get up at 6am (1.5 cups milk) and cereal with fruit for "breakfast" at 9am morning break. Just watch your calories and try to pick something that has a good amount of Fiber in it. I eat smart bran or kashi good friends cereal and those easily last me three hours until lunch.

The best thing to do is to follow the guidelines that your surgeon gave you for post-op eating. My surgeon's office recommends Protein, produce, and whole grains and two cups LF milk a day for Calcium. For me, Breakfast is usually a NF latte, a couple hours later, I have a very high Fiber Cereal with berries. lunch and dinner are 3-4oz lean protein (chicken, fish, lean beef or occassionally beans/tofu option) and 1/2 cup produce. Usually some Water takes care of any late afternoon hunger. Congratulations on the weight loss! You're off to a great start!

Yes, PLEASE call your surgeon! NO way should they have let you leave with your fill if you threw up at the office!

You need to follow your surgeon's instructions. But generally, no, a liquid diet does not work well with the band (post-healing phase.) The purpose of the band is to dim hunger when you eat small portions of solid food. Protein and produce. liquids won't fill the pouch or give you any feelings of satiety. In my opinion, with a diet like the Master cleanse, you'll just be starving on yet another diet that only works as long as you stay on it. The band is supposed to help us step away from all of that. If you're really interested in trying it, you should talk to your surgeon's office and see what they tell you. Congratulations on your weight loss so far! Good luck to you.

That's fantastic! 1-2 pounds a week on average are the magic numbers. Anything meeting or exceeding that is fantastic!

I guess I would say just watch it and eat as carefully and mindfully as you can. If you're pb-ing a lot or have any reflux, I think and unfill is absolutely the way to go (I've heard the nurse at our office say that over and over and over and over again.) If you're just tighter than usual but can control the pb's by chewing carefully and can get in your Protein . . . then I guess it's a comfort level thing for you. Personally, I got tighter about a week out after my last fill, but I think that varies a lot. I'm glad you were able to get some food in though!

My nurse would say that you are too tight and should get a partial unfill right away. PB-ing puts you at a great risk for complications. You should be able to eat solid foods. How long ago was the fill? If the fill was in the last couple days, you may well end up TIGHTER in a few more days--happens with some people. If it was a week or two ago and you're still on mushies and can't eat food, then you're too tight. Any reflux?

Just an FYI--my doc had me on solid foods by 3 weeks. I don't think I tried steak for a little while, but I was eating chicken and fish by week three with no trouble.

You may have had one piece that got stuck this morning and then irritated your stomach and it swelled. Try taking it easy for a day or two--take a step back on your food and go with mushy stuff or liquids for a meal or two and then gradually add things back in. It doesn't take much for some poeple to irritate things. Even if you haven't had a fill, some docs put Fluid in the band right away, so it's very possible that you have some restriction already and getting stuck just irritated things.

I think that the "easier to cheat" isn't all that wrong actually. High calorie liquids usually go down easily for many--ie icecream, sugary drinks, etc. and if you want to get unfilled and/or just not keep up on your fills, you can. SHOULDN'T, but can. Heck, my surgeon's office has told me at least a dozen times that it is very easy to cheat the band and that I have to do the work to make it work. I don't think there is ANYTHING wrong with saying, "Yep, I can cheat the band if I want to, but I don't want to." The same features that make it easier to pick unhealthy foods also make it easier for us to have a wide range of healthy foods and not be limited in our choices. Sorry you're getting so much grief though. I hate the whole "my surgery is better than your surgery" attitudes that I hear so often.

I eat MUCH more than 1/4 cup a meal, but my calories run right around 1,000 a day. I eat 3-4 oz of lean Protein and 1/2 cup of veggies for lunch and dinner. Breakfast is usually a high Fiber Cereal with berries. Instead of focusing on how much you can eat compared to others, try focusing on eating what your doc recommends and then stop. Wait 20 minutes. If you're not hungry and your meals are lasting you 3-4 hours and you're losing 1-2 lbs a week, you're at the proper level. Different offices have different instructions. Frankly, I don't have the "restriction" that I had right after surgery where the band literally stopped me from eating. I eat small amounts, I'm satisfied, I'm not hungry until my next meal. There's no hard stop at the end of a meal other than my own knowledge of what I should be eating. I've averaged over 2 lb per week weight loss since surgery, so I'm right on track. You don't have to eat 1/4 cup of food per meal to be successful.