PhotoNut

I recently saw a discussion in a thread about our attitudes toward the journey we are now on with our bands. Some agree that "dieting" is essential with the band, while others maintain that they didn't pay this much money and go through surgery just to diet again. Some call our eating changes a "new lifestyle" while others need the term "diet" to remind them that they need to be making good choices. I believe that we are all talking the same language and here's why: From food and drink regularly provided or consumed b : habitual nourishment c : the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or animal for a special reason Our daily intake of food and Water IS a diet. We either choose a diet of healthy foods and drinks, or we choose a diet of foods and drinks which provide very little nutrition and cause our bodies to be out of kilter, i.e. fat storage, liver problems, diabetes, heart disease, aching joints, etc. Society has taken the word "diet" and made it into a dirty word. It in no way implies deprivation, rather the opposite - habitual nourishment. We all have diets. And the fact is, that we are all faced with the task of choosing foods and drinks that make up a healthy diet in order for us to BE healthy. The silicone fist, so aptly dubbed by Jack, does not convert unhealthy foods into healthy foods. It is designed to limit the quantity of food that we can take in at one time. And, as many of you know, there are plenty of unhealthy foods that can be eaten in greater quantities because they slip right through that fist so easily. It seems that yet again we are faced with the truth that the unhealthy foods in life are the easiest to eat (and perhaps to some, more enjoyable), while the healthy foods are those which take time to prepare, chew and digest. So, like it or not.. we still have choices to make. And I think that is a good thing! As many have noted here, I prefer to be in control. *grins* Bon Appetit Everyone!

Mandy.. time's getting closer and closer! I'm getting excited right along with you. Love that Mickey tat! :confused:

Fun foods rob you of a fun life. Your band is going to protect you now by helping you control the amounts of food you eat. Take this time to start retraining your brain. Food is not fun. Living is fun. We eat to live. And in order to live well, we eat well. New band. New mentaility. New life! Aint it great!?

Heyas Laine, and a big warm welcome to ya. Where about are you from in the UK? My hubby (Dawg) is from Gosport but lives here in the states with me now. There is a growing population of folks from the UK here at LBT, I'm sure you'll run into them soon.

Hi Angela! Welcome to LBT. I've got my fingers, toes and eyes crossed for ya girl! Keep us posted!

- Tortillas (white, wheat, corn?) No idea. Haven't tried and don't plan to. - Salad (what kind of lettuce can you eat?) I eat Dole's salad in a bag, no problem. - Hard breads (pretzels, crackers, melba, etc.) Have had a few Ritz crackers. No problem. - "Fluffy" breads (pancakes, waffles, muffins) Wouldn't know. Avoiding like the plauge. - Ground meats (turkey, chuck, sirloin...) Hamburger in chili no problem. Have also had pot roast, cooked in the crockpot. - Shellfish/crustaceans (scallops, shrimp, crab, lobster, mussels...) I've had one or two shrim from Dawg's Healthy Choice meals. No problem. - Hard cereal (grape nuts, oat bran, etc.) I eat Fiber One every day. - Hard cheeses - Haven't tried any.

I have one! It's my favorites from a fellow LBT'er: http://www.myagb.homestead.com/index.html And here's another: http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=16050

I've been thinking about this thread for days. And I wasn't going to post anymore after my initial post, but... Ok, get ready for some straight talk now. I don't think you're a bad person at all. But I think you're perspective might be a bit askew. It is good to find strength and confidence within yourself, but please be careful about ego. Before you lost weight, you were thankful to have this man's love. Now that you are losing weight, you think you deserve better than him. This is a mindset that will cost you much in life. Trust me - been there, done that. Don't you think that he's picked up on this attitude and that he feels let down and upset at the thought of his whole world crumbling around him? Sure you do.. you said yourself "I have talked to some male friends about this too and they agree with you that he may be very threatned, and now it is my feeling that he should be." Honestly, it sounds to me like you have already made up your mind.. and based on that, his behavior doesn't surprise me at all. Put yourself in his shoes. Would you be happy? How easy would it be for you to compliment him on the very thing that's changing him into someone who wants better than you? This man is your husband. Not a friend you can choose to be around or avoid. For better or worse.. until death yadda yadda. Just words? Is he abusing you physically or mentally? Is he sleeping around on you? Is he an alcoholic or drug addict? Is he spending all of your money and running you into the ground financially? So far all you've told us is that he doesn't compliment your weight loss and he gets upset when you tell him about others complimenting you. Grounds for divorce? Reasons for ending a 21 year marriage? Hm... (those were all rhetorical questions - please don't answer them) You can count on him to be by your side in the bad times. You've said that "When the chips are down, there are none who step up to the plate better." Would you rather be dealing with a man who is only there for you when you look good, or when things are going well? How about you? Will you be there for him when the chips are down? Or will you decide that now that things are better for you.. you deserve someone better than him? What has suddenly made you better.. weight loss? Hm... Say you do leave him in search of something better. Do you think that there are men out there that don't have something wrong with them? Giving up a 21 year investment in a relationship just means having to start all over with someone else who will have faults that bother you. These probably aren't things that you want to hear. Especially if you have it in your mind that life without him is going to be so much better, and if you are already excited about what you'll find once he's gone. But I can't in good conscience read this thread and not say these things to you. I pray you take what I've said and just think about it for a while. And please, I'm not telling you that you don't deserve to be happy. But I am telling you that we often make big mistakes when we focus too much on what WE DESERVE. I offer you my thoughts as a possible help to you. I don't expect you to defend yourself or even provide more personal information about your marriage. I'm not judging you, so please don't take it that way. I'm speaking from my own experiences.. if they don't apply to you, then just forget my post. Best of luck to you in this situation. I mean that sincerely.

Much love and many prayers just for your Emily and your family. Love you, Sis. Hang in there. *hugs*

The heels, the dress and the mask.. remember? She's been getting ready for this weekend for a long time. She mentioned being sick before she left. Hopefully, she's feeling better and having a great time.

I will walk a minimum of 1/2 mile every day. (Every go shopping at WinCo? It's a warehouse grocery store, where you bag your own groceries. Well, I walked until my fat little legs felt like they were going to fall off. PLUS I bagged and help load $300 worth of food, mostly frozen and canned! Yup, I got in my exercise today.) I will drink 64 oz. of water every day. (So far so good.) I will write down every bite I put in my mouth - quantity, calories, protein. (Yup, keeping up on this.) I will take on one achievable project in my house per day. (Two for one special today - grocery shopping/exercise.)

Last I saw of her, she was going to New Orleans for the Slumber thingie.

OMG.. should I delete this thread!? *panics* hehe Seriously though.. I can't edit the first page of the GFG Club either. I noticed that Robin was having the same problem on the 100 pounds gone thread. I want my journal! *whines*

Hiyas Leener, I'm about two months out now and it's starting to get a little easier to discern between the head stuff and the real stuff. But it's taken some serious retraining. What I do when I have the initial thought of "I'm hungry" is focus on my stomach. Am I really hungry? Do I feel anything coming from inside my stomach that would indicate true hunger? If I think about my stomach and can say I'm not really hungry, then I try to identify where the signals are coming from. Typically, I find that if I'm bored my mind comes up with eating as somethign to do. I also focus on my mouth.. am I thirsty? A lot of times, we mistake thirst for hunger and drinking Water will take care of the thoughts. Since you are on liquids, I wouldn't be too worried about how often you need to eat. It's only natural that this stuff will be going right through you. Eat when you need to. Just make sure you're drinking good healthy stuff, watch your calories and focus on healing right now. I was supposed to get 600 calories a day on liquids and 800 on mushies. I don't think I ever accomplished either one, and I think I was "eating" about every two hours. I hope this helps ya sis. *hugs*

Holy smokes, Robin! So sorry you went through such a hard time, but very glad your home. Keep an eye on the blood pressure! Did they get it back to normal before you came home? Good grief, you poor thing. *hugs* Well, welcome to bandland.. and honey, 28 pounds is 28 pounds.. no matter what you had to do to get it! What a headstart you're going to have on things when you get going. Keep us posted on how your feeling, ok? *more hugs*

DeeDee.. Delicious Diva Dee! A very happy birthday to you my friend! Did you get any special gifts this year? :happybday: *wink* :happybday: *wink* :happybday:

Not sure Leener.. give them a call on Monday and verify?

All I get is a blank page. Is it just me, or is something screwy going on?

When I am thin I will: 1. Remind myself daily that just because men look at me, it doesn't mean bad things are going to happen. 2. Buy my dream outfit - faded jeans, white cotton button up shirt with a collar (tucked in), a navy blue blazer, and some boots with a heel. (a bit odd but very me) 3. Go camping 4. Go hiking 5. Take my grandson to the park - and PLAY with him 6. Attend a week long outdoor photography workshop in Yellowstone Park. 7. Go back to my home town and shock everyone (they knew me skinny and fat) 8. Sit on my husband's lap, facing him with my arms around his neck (I've never sat on his lap) 9. Wear shorts in public 10. Ride a horse again 11. Go on snowshoe trips with my mother (yes, she can outdo me!) 12. Attend a week long Portrait Photography workshop with Monte Zucker 13. Go to England to see my husband's home, and make him take me to France and Ireland too! 14. Wear a really great hairstyle 15. Get a set of nails 16. Buy a fancy red bra with matching panties (ok, maybe a different color for each day of the week) 17. Get another dog - has to be a Golden Retreiver. 18. Have a family portrait done - with me in it! 19. STAY THIN!!!!!! 20. Go stand on a tall mountain, take in a long deep breath of fresh air, close my eyes and thank God for letting me live.. I mean really live! (not listed in any order of priority)

Happy Bandiversary Corgi! Grats on your weightloss and your positive, forward-thinking attitude. You rock!

I'm laughing to hard to even try to think of a name! LOL

Good gracious, Five! You haven't even been banded a whole month and you've lost 20 pounds. That's fantastic girl. You are doing everything right except being patient. I know, because I suffer from the same thing. I've lost nearly 50 pounds in the last 3 months and I feel like I'm not doing as well as I could be. How strange is that? I see people who have lost 80 pounds in 7 months and I marvel! I tell my husband, 'Wow! If only I could do THAT!' and he points out that I'm ahead of schedule for THAT. The mind is an odd thing to figure out, isn't it? I would suggest that you up your Protein and calories just a bit since you are doing so much at the gym. Each time you do circuit training (I assume you mean resistance training of some sort - weights or machines), you are breaking down muscles and need the extra protein to repair them, while maintaining enough to provide your body with the necessary fuel it needs from being on such a low carb diet. I would suggest upping that to about 100 grams per day - but ask your doctor to be sure ok? I had a blood test to determine my short term and long term protein count. My short term was great, but the long term was low because my body was repairing itself from two surgeries and a serious burn while adjusting to a low carb diet. They advised me to up my protein intake to 100. My son is a personal trainer and he tells me that serious weightlifters should be getting 1 gram of protein per body pound. So a 200 pound man who is lifting should be consuming 200 grams of protein per day. The protein is used up quickly - no long term storage - and its good to consume this right after you get home from working out so the nutirition for the muscles is there for immediate use in the repair/rebuilding process that starts right away. Now... Forget the scale - Remember that fat weighs less but takes up more room. Muscle weighs more but is lean and takes up a much smaller amount of room in your body. Tell us how do you feel physically. How are your clothes fitting? How is your energy level? You have to be noticing the changes in your body. Girl, you are an inspiration to me. That's it.. I'm going to the gym starting on Monday come hell or highwater! Dang.. Thanks for posting!!

Wonderkidsmom, I am wondering if maybe, and please don't take offense at this, maybe in his eyes you are really obsessing about the weightloss and he's getting tired of hearing about it? Or maybe he really is just feeling threatened by all of the changes in you. I have heard from two pyschologists now, that WLS can put an enormous strain on marriages and many fall apart if the couples don't seek counseling to help them work through the emotional upheaval. Now, I'm not so sure that counseling can make or break any marriage (I had one fail in the midst of counseling) but I am sure that if the two of you don't sit down and address the issue together, it will only get worse as you get to looking even better. When you do talk, really listen to him. Don't be busy trying to defend yourself - when we do that, we aren't really hearing what the other person is dealing with and therefore we won't be able to help. Anyway, I hope you two get it worked out. I'm sure it will take some coaxing on your part to get him to really open up about it, but it will be worth it. Now, about your signature line. The reason it's broken is because you have to copy everything from the first [ img] through the last [ /img]. Leave off anything about the url, and then it should show up up correctly.

Heyas Heth! I'm glad you came out of Lurkdom and decided to join us. Welcome! And you sound exactly like everyone else who's decided to get banded! Isn't that great?! You're perfectly normal! And guess what? You will be after banding too! Only then you'll be normal as in eating like the "normal" folks do, rather than overeating and being unhappy with the results. Tilly's post was so funny about the weightloss menu. So, so true, Tilly! LOL

My port is just under my ribs on the right side, and I'm typically in the drivers seat (usa - left side). The seatbelt hasn't been a problem for my port at all. Now rubbing on my neck is a different story! I hate that! I'm just sure I'd be beheaded if I were in an accident!