JulieNYC

Exactly. Now when I struggle with weight, it's a 5 or 10 lb issue, not a 200+ lb issue. Definitely a priceless impact on my life. As I tell people all the time, "you'd have to fight me for my band!"

WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!! You're a rockstar!

Meg, You are going to have so many wonderful things happen to you in this journey. Put Onederville out of your mind. It's just a number. Make a list of all the things you want to do along the way and tick them off as you can. Maybe you want to ride a jet ski, or go parasailing, or ride a rollercoaster, or fly to Europe, or sit on the inside seat of a bus, or walk 5 miles without stopping, or walk up 3 flights of stairs without being winded -- whatever your goals are. That said, before you know it, you WILL be in Onederland. The first year being banded flies by. Sitting here today, I can't believe this is my 4th year bandiversary. Four years! I checked off all the things on my list nearly 3 years ago! I had my tummy tuck more than 3 years ago. Wow, that's amazing to think about. I've been gone from LBT for a long time, so today is the first time I'm really thinking about these issues in a while. My advice to you is to cherish the experience. The 200s are full of great joys. You rediscover your physicality in the 200s (at least I did). Everything becomes easier. Then when you get to 249, you think to yourself "gee, I can't BELIEVE I'm closer to the Ones than to the Threes!" As for plastics, Sandi is absolutely right that most doctors recommend waiting 6 months at a stable weight before having them. I'm a perfect example of why. I had a tummy tuck at 195 lbs. I didn't think I'd lose much more weight, but I was wrong. I went on to lose 60 more lbs and I had some loose stomach skin that I had to have revised. That said, I don't regret the first TT when I had it! I always tell people anecdotally that I lost 200+ lbs in a little over a year, but I went from being a "fat" person to a "thin" person in a 6 hour surgery. It's AMAZING what a TT does for your body after 150+ lb weightloss. The need to wait for 6 months (for most people at least) is at least two-fold. First, MONEY. Plastics is expensive. Most people don't want to pay for it twice. I have the very fortunate circumstance of having a dad who's a plastic surgeon. That is rare, but obviates the financial concern in my case. Second, and more importantly, surgical risk. Two surgeries are riskier than one surgery. I did have a complication with my second surgery (I developed seromas in my legs and had to drain them MYSELF for about 6 weeks - it was awful). I wouldn't change the way I did it, but my circumstances were somewhat special (it being free and me being in "marathon" shape and in my 30s, thus, fairly low risk as far as surgery can ever be low risk). Waiting for goal does make sense 99/100 times. Hang in there. Time is going to fly, I promise.

I'm one of those obnoxious bandsters who runs marathons. I run marathons because I want to be a size 4 and I want to kick my brothers' butts in family sports like I never could growing up. But that is IRRELEVANT to band success. It's completely relevant to health, but in the words of my band surgeon, the band and weight loss in general is about eating less. It's not about exercise. It takes about 3600 calories of exercise to burn one pound. At my size, I can run an entire marathon (26.2 miles) and I will only burn about 2700 calories. A whole marathon and I don't even lose a single pound!! Yet, if I was eating 3000 calories a day, if I cut back to 2000, I could lose 2 lbs a week. See, it's MUCH easier to lose weight through portion control than through exercise. Portion control gets you to a healthy WEIGHT, not exercise (at least not exercise alone). Now before I get yelled at (haha), clearly I advocate exercise. There is so much more to a healthy life than weight. And exercise will speed weightloss -- it's just not the primary contributor (portion control -- fewer calories in is the primary). Exercise makes you healthy, makes you feel good, makes your body look better, etc., etc., but you WILL lose weight with the band, whether you exercise or not. So, don't let that deter you. Worry about exercise later. Get the band now. Even if you only get 2/3 of the way to goal because you never set foot in a gym, think of how much healthier you'll be than if you do neither. (And, of course, you can do both! I'm just saying don't postpone for fear that you'll never be one to exercise). I hope this post comes off the way I mean it to. It's meant to be band-positive, not exercise-negative.

I think my favorite day in my entire weight loss journey was the day I hit 299. It was better than 199. It was better than crossing the finish line of the NYC marathon ( and any of the 3 times I've done it since, haha). There is something MAJORLY special about being in the 200's. That's when I quit feeling so self conscious. Sure, at 5'1 I was still quite heavy, but I could buy clothes at the mall, go on a bike ride, sit in a bus seat, walk in winter without sweating, the list goes on and on. And when you get below 250, just wait - WAHPOW! There are so many people who weigh 250 - you feel completely average, yet you know you'll still get healthier and healthier! Congratulations, Kathy. Welcome to Twoterville.

I'm so proud of you all!! I've had those same moments, including now being sure to leave the bigger chairs for other people who may need them in a waiting room. But my biggest thing is that even though I'm more than 4 years out and nearly 3 years from having reached goal and I fly several times a month, I almost cry every time I sit in a coach seat and the seatbelt clips and I pull the strap to tighten it to my size. Or, if there's a larger person next to me, I lift the arm rest without saying a word, in case they're more comfortable with a little extra room. I love my band.

Hi Sandi, I had been working with a personal trainer for about 2 years before my surgery (I'm 4 years post-op) but we couldn't do much cardio because of so much weight on my knees. Still, I had good muscle tone under all the weight and I think that helped both my surgical recovery as well as my ultimate weight loss. I didn't exercise much -- maybe a couple of walks a week - for the first 100 lbs, which poured off me in about 5 monhts (I'm only 5'1 and my body was dying to shed some weight once I was eating proper quantities with the band). Then I started walking longer lengths (maybe 3 miles) about 4 times a week. When I got to 200 lbs, I started running small spurts within my walks and got really excited about having a tummy tuck (I'd been told I could have one at 180), so I started running more and walking less, probably working out 5 times a week. Once I recovered from my tummy tuck, I trained for the NYC marathon back in 2007, which took me below my goal weight! I've had some health problems unrelated to the band (a miscarriage) this year and have gained about 25 lbs. My band is perfectly adjusted, but now that I'm out of the depression that goes along with that experience (I'm 37 and have no children), I've signed up for the NYC marathon again and I know I'll be back to goal weight in no time. I'm so thankful for my band. Without it, I know I would have gained 100+ lbs while I wasn't "minding the store." I'm so glad I have this adjustable tool and a body that craves exercise and responds to it. Thanks for the question. It feels good to own up to what's going on with me. It's been a while since I've checked in with LBT and it's a valuable support tool. Take care, JulieNYC

Happy 4th year to all of us. Telly, did you have your baby? How life has changed, no? Hugs to all, JulieNYC

Very generally speaking, no, I don't think most people who lose 100 lbs "need" a TT. Add 50 lbs to that and I think the numbers change dramatically. As everyone has already said, height, age, skin elasticity, personal satisfaction (clothed/unclothed goals) etc. all factor in greatly. For me personally, TT was the best 5 hours I ever spent!