BDS_Geologist

Thinking twice, three, or a hundred times is worthwhile. It's a life-long decision. It's not the right decision for everyone. You've got to be committed and stay committed. It's not the easy way, by any stretch of the imagination! Bryan

On the positive side, now I'm comfortable in hot weather. Last week I was cutting the grass when it was 92 degrees, and I was sweating, but comfortable. It's nice not having all of that extra insulation. Bryan

Well I'm finally off of my two month long plateau and firmly into One-derland. It's been a good weight loss week with lots of yard work, Tai Chi, and gym workouts. Last week 196 This morning 193.5 Bryan

I'm so happy that you're ok and still among the banded. I was feeling like I might have had some slippage after being too tight, but I finally feel like I'm back in a sweet spot after losing a few more pounds. I was really fearing having to have the band removed altogether. Bryan

Well, I didn't hit my July 4th goal either, but I'm down to 196. I seemed to have been stuck in 201-204 land forever, but I'm finally losing again. Keep Trying Everyone!!! We're weight losers and life winners!! Bryan

One thing that surprised me was that it is now much harder to swimm without my built-in boyancy compensation. I sink instead of float!

I'm very happy for you! It's a shame that you had to go through all of this for the revision. Bryan

Last Friday: 202.5 lbs This morning: 201 lbs Down anther 1.5 lbs. 200 lbs is getting closer and almost within reach. Yesterday morning I got on scale and it read 200! I went to grab the camera and when I got back on to take the picture it read 201. It's a cruel cruel scale! Bryan

I guess that my first response to someone claiming that they lost 100 lbs in a few months would be skepticizm. Add on not having a fill, and I'd be even more skeptical. It's not impossible to lose 100 lbs in a few months, but even with the band, it would be an incredible effort. It's most definitely possible to lose large amounts of weight without of WLS, lots of people have done it, and I have too. I just couldn't keep it off. My learned eating behavior always derailed me, and the weight came back with a vengance. I think that one of the reasons that I've been obese for my entire life is just the way my brain is wired. I know that eating too much is bad for me. I know that it's caused health problems for me and members of my family. Intellect has very little to do with the problem. I'm an overeater, and I need this band as a tool to make me uncomfortable when I try to overeat. Whether to have WLS is a personal decision. Each of us have to weigh the risks, benefits, and the potential for success or failure. Your friend has to understand that in order to be sucessful with banding, she needs to be committed to that success. It's no magic bean. Bryan

I had to complete what seemed like a 500 question form that had questions like: "Which statement best describes your feelings?" a) I feel indifferent toward my family:bored: :smile: I love and support my family:tt1: c) I want to cut up my family with a chainsaw and eat their corpses:eek: Then I had a 5 minute chat with the psychologist about sources of stress and coping. It was a piece of cake. Bryan

Well, I feel like I'm back on track and have cut back on snacking and alcohol. I lost 2 lbs this week. Last Friday: 204.5 lbs This morning: 202.5 lbs Slowly losing my way to 200 lbs

Well, it's been an up and down last 3 weeks with a net loss of 0.5 lbs. That leaves me 4 lbs short of my Memorial Day goal of 200 lbs. I've kicked up my workout frequency and intensity, so I can attribute some of the "plateau" effect to gaining muscle mass. Altogether, I'm pretty disappointed in myself that I couldn't lose 4.5 lbs in 3 weeks. Time to focus on my 4th of July goal of 192. Now it's 12 lbs away instead of 8. The next 6 weeks will be knuckle down time. Bryan

My favorite "band friendly" fast food is a naked burrito at Qdoba. (no tortilla and served in a bowl) I ask them to hold the rice and limit the cheese and sour cream. It's very tasty as well a pretty good food choice. High in Protein and low in carbs, maybe a little high in fat, but WTF; there aren't many band friendly fast foods out there. Bryan

Yeah, what she said! Try to be disciplined about your food intake. Try to eat like you do have some restriction, otherwise you'll be in for a cruel lesson when you do feel it!

I getting a bit frustrated with myself. Two weeks ago I was 204.5, last Friday I was up 1.5 lbs to 206. This morning I'm 208. I convinced myself that the bump from 2 weeks ago was muscle mass from upping my workout schedule and intensity. I'm not convinced that my 2 lb bump from this week is muscle. I guess my mind set has really changed. I wouldn't even blink at gaining or losing 3.5 lbs when I was 285. Now, it's bugging the shit out of me. Bryan

It's perfectly normal to feel nervous about the surgery, but once it's done, you'll be amazed at how easy a recovery you'll have. I was up and walking 1 hour after coming out of recovery. Pain was minimal, and the drugs were great! You'll come through it just fine. Most people have their band inserted empty, I've heard of having a minimal amount of Fluid in the band when installed, but I think that's pretty rare. Good luck tomorrow!!!!! Bryan

Never have, never will.

I've experienced the same positive result. ...and, things are "working" better than they have in years!! The wife is very happy about it! Bryan

Congratulations!! That is awesome!! Bryan

You will still get hungry. You will still get ravenously hungry too, but the band will only keep you from eating large portions! One bite past your limit, and you'll feel very uncomfortable. It's a little like punishing yourself for eating too much by wacking yourself with a big stick! I'm surprised how often I still punish myself. Lifelong habits are sometimes lifelong habits. Bryan

I wish that I'd known many of the things that I've had to learn through experience. Steve mentioned the moisture content of food, which is dead on! I wish that I'd known about how impossible it is to eat bread. I also wish that I had known how hard losing weight still is, even with the band. I heard the "it's only a tool" banter a million times, but it's absolutely true. The band doesn't make food choices for you or make you go to the gym. Bryan