downsdc

I had my third fill about two weeks ago and it has made a difference. I have lost 4 pounds since then. I'm going to have a fourth fill in two more weeks.

Hi everyone, Back from vacation. I gained 3 pounds that week but have already lost it since getting back Sunday nite. I had my second fill Tuesday afternoon and I can now feel some restriction, but not a lot. My third fill is scheduled for April 21. No other weight loss, but when I had my fill they did a body fat analysis, and my fat-free mass (FFM)(muscle/bone/water) had gone up 3 pounds. I have lost three inches so far on my waist. I'm back to my normal routine now and should be back to losing some weight. Craig

Very little restriction for me at this point. Leaving for vacation in Florida with my wife Sunday. We will have to walk a lot on the beach to keep me from gaining weight. I get my second fill two days after I get back.

My fill was just a slight prick when the needle went in. I'm a diabetic so I'm used to giving myself insulin shots. It wasn't any worse than that. I'm not really feeling much different than before the fill, but my doctor warned me that I wouldn't feel much restriction until after the third fill. Now that I'm back to solid food I'm having to watch my portion control. Craig

Had my first fill today, so I'm on liquids the rest of the day and then on soft foods tomorrow. Almost painless and very quick. Mr surgeon added 6ccs to my 11cc band. No problems afterward and my next fill will be in four weeks. He said that since I have the new Realize-C band that he is adding more saline than he would to the old Realize band. Craig

My first fill is Tuesday 2/24. My doctor does all of their fills with a fluroscope and they explained the procedure at the support group last Tuesday nite. They put the needle into the port, have you stand up, and then have you drink some strawberry flavored barium. They watch you drink the barium while they fill the band. The plan is to gradually fill the band over three adjustments (1 month, 2 months, 3 months). They told me I probably wouldn't feel much restriction until the third fill. Sometimes they said people can drink during the procedure but a couple of hours later they have swelling which tightens the band too much, so they have to remove some of the saline. Hopefully that won't happen to me. I haven't PB'd yet and don't plan on it if I can help it. I'm staying steady at 21 pounds lost since starting pre-op. I was told by my doctor that I might gain weight about now, so I guess I'm doing pretty well. I'm still not in the habit of exercising everyday. If I could do that I'm sure I would still be losing weight. My wife and I are splitting meals when we eat out (a lot), so I know I'm not eating nearly as much as I used to. Craig

27 pounds is fantastic! You are doing well on your protein. Try to get your calories up to 1100 or so per day and you won't be as hungry. A good thing I found to eat at mushies stage was Hormel Turkey Chili. Low fat with lots of protein and very filling. Craig

A follow up on my original post. I was banded on January 24th by Dr. Jamie Ponce in Dalton, GA. My surgery was scheduled for 7:30AM and I was on my way home at 11:30AM. The actual surgery took 1.25 hours and my hiatal hernia (which they found during the pre-surgery upper GI) was fixed also. I had no incision pain except at my port incision when I coughed (putting pressure on the incision helped). No problems sleeping on my side. I have lost 20 pounds so far since I started my pre-surgery diet and will have my first fill on 2/24. My surgery is almost healed now and my hunger is starting to come back, but the fill will help with that. Other than some short bouts with hiccups when I eat too fast, I have not had any problems eating at all. Last night (Valentines) my wife and I split a 6 oz steak filet, a baked potato and a salad. I also ate one piece of bread. No problems swallowing at all (I cut my steak into tiny bites). My only issue is with myself, not enought exercise. My Realize Band-C is great so far. Craig

Ideal Body Weight Calculator - MyDietExercise.com This is a decent ideal body weight calculator because it allows for different frame types (and how to determine which type you are). When I go to my Gastric Band followups, they have me stand on a Tanika Body Composition Analyzer and record the results. My FFM (Fat Free Mass - muscle,bone,tissue,water) is 155 pounds (I weighed about 160 pounds in high school). Per their chart, ideal percent fat above the FFM for a male is 14-23% (female is 17-27%). So my ideal weight would be 177-191. I chose 180 pounds but that is probably a bit low. I'll probably have to adjust as I get closer to goal. Tonite my wife and I split a 6oz steak filet, a baked potato and a salad. No problems eating anything, so it looks like I'm pretty much healed. Now I just have to keep from gaining weight before my first band adjustment in 10 days. Craig

I basically don't have any pain at all - just some itching at the incisions from healing. I started putting Mederma Gel on the incisions two weeks after surgery to minimize scarring and they are looking much better. My port is just left of center right below my ribcage. I mainly sleep on my side and back and have not had any problems sleeping - even the night after surgery. I was expecting to have to sleep sitting up for a few days. I start solid foods tomorrow! (Valentine's Day) Craig

Great Julie! Was this your doctor follow-up? I would really like to lose a few more pounds before my follow-up on 2/24, but I've lost 20 pounds so far (8 pounds since surgery), which I'm happy with.

Something to eat to keep your protein up. Hormel Chili Turkey with Beans (98% fat free). A 15oz can is (2) 1 cup servings (21O calories/3g fat/6g fiber/17g protein). I don't normally like canned chili, but this is pretty good (maybe because there is not much fat, or maybe because I've been craving chili). It costs a dollar a can at WalMart. I've been crushing up some boiled eggs in my albacore tuna with some fat-free mayo - delicious and a lot of protein also. I have found that I can eat cornbread muffins (Cracker Barrel) and oatmeal bread toast if I eat it slowly. Macaroni & Cheese is fine. I haven't tried rice or yeast rolls yet. We are going to eat Chinese tomorrow nite so I'll try some fried rice and see (not brave enough to try sticky rice yet). I lost the pound today that I had gained over the weekend. Still not exercising enough, though. Craig

After gaining a pound over last weekend I've hit a plateu and I'm staying at the same weight. It is entirely my fault however, since my band hasn't been tightened yet. I haven't been exercising and I've been eating more (I tend to be a grazer, which is bad news for bandsters). Going to get on the treadmill today (I promise) and I'm going to limit what I eat a bit. I've been eating about 1800 calories a day. I'm going to get back down to about 1500 calories a day. The good news is that my doctor said I would probably gain weight when I went to soft foods. Only a pound has come back so far. Hang in there, everybody. Craig

I actually ate a tuna fish sandwich (on toasted whole wheat bread) today, but I ate small bites and didn't have any problem getting it down. By now our swelling from surgery is probably pretty much gone and we won't have much if any restriction until our first fill. My first adjustment is two weeks from tomorrow (Tuesday). My doctor warned me that I might gain some weight back before the first fill and to not worry about it. I did gain a pound back over the weekend, but we mostly ate out and I didn't track my calories Saturday or Sunday. What I'm doing is trying to make healthier choices (no fried foods, etc) when we eat in a restaurant. During the work week I'm on more of a routine and I eat most meals at home, so tracking calories isn't a problem ( I actually kind of enjoy doing it - it's a challenge to stay under goal). It would be too hard though without thedailyplate.com. Pretty much everything I eat is already in their database. I was told not to snack, but if I start getting hungry I eat a few almonds or some sugar-free Jello. I don't want to be starving and cause my body to shut down my metabolism. So far, so good. I had a friend bring my weight bench up from the basement this afternoon, so I'm going to do some light weight training (8lb dumbells) tonite. What I'm not doing yet is walking everyday on my treadmill. Gotta get in that habit. We did walk some over the weekend (it was almost 70 degrees here in Chattanooga) and it was nice to get out in the fresh air.

Christy, you probably aren't getting enough calories and you body is fighting back by slowing down your metabolism. I was trying to keep my calories under 1100, but when I increased them to about 1500 calories I started losing consistently (21 pounds so far since pre-op). You also need to keep you protein intake up (about 50-60 grams per day). The protein should be easier at this point, but up til now I've been supplementing with a protein shot in my water. I had the chest pain also this morning. We went out to eat for breakfast and I ordered a cheese omlet. When the omlet came it also came with a side of toast. After I had eaten about half of the omlet, I mindlessly picked up a piece of toast and ate it without consciously trying to chew it into small pieces. OH MY GOD. Fortunately all I got from it was a bad case of hiccups. The good news is that I ate less than I normally would have, since I had to immediately stop eating (and I know for sure the band is working, even without an adjustment). This is the band telling you that you are eating too fast or too much. I used to have this problem years ago due to esphogeal spasms, and you just have try to relax and let the food that is "stuck" go down. Worst case, you have to PB (productive burp), which means you regurgitate the food back up, but you don't get any stomach acid with it (since it has never reached your stomach). If you start feeling pressure in your chest, STOP EATING. Usually water will just make things worse.