AmyBee

I first place I noticed my weight loss was my boobs. I was banded in July and have gone down from a DD to a D already. I will definitely need a lift in a year or so once I have lost all my excess weight.

I normally buy wild caught sockeye salmon from costco. It comes already cut up in 5-6 oz portions. When I cook it up I only eat half of the portion for that meal and save the rest for lunch or dinner the next day. I buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts and haven't had a problem yet with it being too dry. Since being banded I marinade my chicken breast in a little olive oil, lemon juice or balsamic vinegar and spices. That keeps the chicken from drying out when I cook it on my gril panl. I also buy rotisserie chicken which is moist, easy and convenient.

I have several different varieties of Beans (canned and dry) in my pantry such as garbanzo, kidney, black and pinto beans. They are a great source of Protein and Fiber. I throw then in salads or Soups. I always have fat free milk, fat free greek style yogurt and low fat cottage cheese in my fridge. Great source of protein and Calcium. I always have chicken and fish packaged in individual size portions in my freezer (I use a foodsaver to package all my frozen foods). I just pull out a piece of chicken or fish in the morning from the freezer and thaw it in the fridge. It's ready to grill or bake when I get home from work. I carry a snack size bag of almonds in my purse whenever I am out running errands so I can snack on a few if I get hungry (instead of pulling into a drive-thru and ordering something I will regret later on) :smile:

Protein packed fruit smoothie/shake: I have fruits like strawberries, raspberries, peaches, blueberries, cherries, blackberries, pineapple and mango on hand in the freezer so I use whatever sounds good that day. 1/2 cup frozen fruit 1/2 cup of skim milk 2 - 3 tablespoons of plain fat free yogurt 1 scoop of protein powder (I use Pure Nutrition's pure vanilla bean whey protein...1 scoop has 115 cal, 0 fat, 2 carb, 26 g protein) It only takes 10 - 15 seconds in a magic bullet blender to blend. You can also add honey or a sugar substitute/sweetner if you like it extra sweet. You can also use flavored yogurt if you don't like plain yogurt.

I had my first fill this past Tuesday...(I was given 1 cc in a 10 cc band.) My doc said to come back in 6 weeks for another fill. I did feel some restriction for the first day or so. I am going to ride it out for another week or so to see what happens with my restriction before I call the doctor's office to get in sooner than 6 weeks. Good luck to you.

I had regrets/doubts my first week or so. I think I had "post op blues" or something. I thought "oh my gosh...what have I done to my body?!" I would cry for no reason at the drop of a hat. I was very emotional the first few weeks. I felt much more confident of my decision once the pain and soreness diminished. I am almost 2 months post op and doing well. The only regret now is that I didn't have the surgery done sooner.

Every doctor is different on what they allow but here are a few things on the list (in addition to the items you already mentioned above) I was given by my dr's office also included yogurt, blended veggies, oatmeal, cream of wheat, blended low fat soups, mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs, low fat cottage cheese, water packed tuna and water packed chicken.

I was banded on 7/11/08 and have not had a fill yet either. I am also tired of eggs. I have started eating greek style yogurt as it has more protein than regular yogurt. I doctor it up with fruit and/or flavored Torani sugar free syrups. It seems to keep me full for a few hours.

Susie, The first couple of days were hard on the pre-op diet. I am now used to it. I have lost 12 lbs in 8 days (I think it's mostly Water weight.) So sorry to hear about you having to do a 3 week pre-op diet. Keep up the hard work!

My name is Amy. I will be banded on July 11. I am so excited! The entire process has gone by fairly quickly for me. My initial consultation with the surgeon was approximatley 1 month ago. I had all my testing done within 2 weeks and am now starting the 2nd week of my pre-op diet. I just wanted to introduce myself as I have been "hiding out" reading everyone's posts over the last month. I look forward to talking with all of you in the future.:thumbup: