John337

Still holding my own @ 223..........I hope this continues......Little anxious about Thanksgiving :bored:, but the band will keep be in check...... Everyone is doing an incredible job...........Keep it up........ ***** HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL *******

You're probably getting to the sweet spot. That's the way I felt when I hit the sweet spot. Feels like the food perculates down thru the band especially when you first start to take a few bites. When you get near the sweet spot - very little adjustment needs to be made for you to feel a difference. My "fine tuning" was .25CC or .5 CC - that's it..... You must remember to CHEW, CHEW, CHEW........and EAT SLOWLY. This will prevent you from getting stuck........Also, when you first feel that you had eaten enough - stop. You need to get used to that new sense of full when you're in the zone..... GOOD LUCK - YOU ARE DOING GREAT.....67 LBS IS AWESOME...KEEP IT UP.... !!!!:bored:

Wednesday was my 6 month bandaversary..........One of the best decisions of my life. This has been truly a life changing experience. Since I started this journey, I lost 114 lbs and am at goal. Went from 48 pants, XXL - XXXL shirts to 36 pants & large shirts. It is truly a new me...... I feel fortunate to have my immediate family as well as my extended family ( Mayo Banditos ) to help me through this process and to share all of the ups and downs that go along with this decision. Only fellow Banditos can relate to WLS and what this journey is really all about. To my family and Mayo banditos............THANK YOU......

I can eat just about anything. But once in a while chicken or beef gets a little stuck and I get that bug eyed look on my face. CHEW-CHEW- CHEW.......is the name of the game......

Weighed in this morning @ 223. So far, able to hold on while eating a little more....Back in full stride at the gym........ Everyone is doing fantastic..Keep it up.........

David - Why are you being so hard on yourself???? YOU ARE DOING GREAT. :smile2: You are down 84 lbs. That's an achievement. So it takes you a little longer - BIG DEAL. This isn't a diet. It's a life changing journey that we will ride till the day we die.....( Very old I hope...lol.) :thumbup: I really pushed the pre-surgery dieting and lost 50 lbs. Post banding I lost 64 lbs. I owe it to my Doc for allowing me to be aggressive on my fills. DO NOT be discouraged........You are doing great and will continue to lose.

Hi Dan, Sounds like you are really mentally ready for the band. Great weight loss pre-surgery. I started the process @ 337 and lost 50 lbs pre-surgery. Lost 64 post-op. I was banded 5/11/09 and just reached my goal of 223. Would be glad to help you through the process. I'll send you my email address. John

Port replacement went well. :thumbup: Weighed in today @ 223....

Hang in there...........I also had my port replaced. It was done on 10/26/09. This past Monday the Dc tried to add some fluid to get me back to my sweet spot. Made me too tight. Throwing up just to have Soup.....not pretty. Went back yesterday and .6 was removed. Net affect was to add .4cc. Total 5.4cc. My new port is smaller and required less fluid to achieve the same result as the old port. I hope you're able to get good restriction on Friday when you get the fill.:drool:

Went back to the Doc's office yesterday and I was right. The new port which is smaller has less capacity therefore I need less fluid to get me back to the ("sweet spot") level I was previously enjoying. Removed .6cc's. The end result was adding .4cc - new level 5.4cc's brought me to the same level I was at with the old port ( 6.15 cc). Was able to eat last night. ( First time in two days).....Felt sooooooo good. Back on track and feel great. WHAT A JOURNEY !!:smile2:

Went back to the Doc's office yesterday and I was right. The new port which is smaller has less capacity therefore I need less fluid to get me back to the ("sweet spot") level I was previously enjoying. Removed .6cc's. The end result was adding .4cc - new level 5.4cc's brought me to the same level I was at with the old port ( 6.15 cc). Was able to eat last night. ( First time in two days).....Felt sooooooo good. Back on track and feel great. WHAT A JOURNEY !!

Insurance paid for the revision and I have the LB 10 cc. AP Band.

Well here I am, losing weight and seeing this port starting to stick out. Well, went in on 10/26/09 for a Port Revision. All went well. Went home and dealt with the pain as I didn't take the pain meds that were given to me. ( The same one gave me a bad reaction for the lap band surgery) So I just dealt with it for a few days, then worked out of the house for the remainder of the week. On 11/2/09, I went i to the Doc for a post op visit and found that I was down to 5 cc. Lost 1.45 cc due to the revision. I had a 1.3 fill and couldn't even drink water. The NP removed .3 cc and I felt better. HOWEVER< when I got to the office and had soup......my trouble began.....I was sliming soup just after 3 oz.....Same for dinner. Had chicken broth and after 3 oz I was sliming. Caled the Doc's office and am scheduled for an unfill this afternoon. Probably .5cc -.7 cc. Need to find that sweet spot again. I need to maintain now. Lost 114 lbs. Down to 223 which is where I wanted to be. I think what happened ( just guessing) was the new port is alot smaller so to fill me up to my old restriction would really require less volume to give me the same effect. In other words with a smaller port, 5.5cc would get me to the sweet spot. We shall see...........

Well here I am, losing weight and seeing this port starting to stick out. Well, went in on 10/26/09 for a Port Revision. All went well. Went home and dealt with the pain as I didn't take the pain meds that were given to me. ( The same one gave me a bad reaction for the lap band surgery) So I just dealt with it for a few days, then worked out of the house for the remainder of the week. On 11/2/09, I went i to the Doc for a post op visit and found that I was down to 5 cc. Lost 1.45 cc due to the revision. I had a 1.3 fill and couldn't even drink water. The NP removed .3 cc and I felt better. HOWEVER< when I got to the office and had soup......my trouble began.....I was sliming soup just after 3 oz.....Same for dinner. Had chicken broth and after 3 oz I was sliming. Caled the Doc's office and am scheduled for an unfill this afternoon. Probably .5cc -.7 cc. Need to find that sweet spot again. I need to maintain now. Lost 114 lbs. Down to 223 which is where I wanted to be. I think what happened ( just guessing) was the new port is alot smaller so to fill me up to my old restriction would really require less volume to give me the same effect. In other words with a smaller port, 5.5cc would get me to the sweet spot. We shall see...........

Monday I had a port revision and have been a little sore this week. Not really eating much. Weighed myself today and lost 4 lbs. Now 223 lbs.:sad: Feel good, can't wait to get back to the gym.

9 lbs in a little over one week........AWESOME......and HAPPY BIRTHDAY......

I'm always tighter n the morning. I first have a cup of coffee, then wait 10 minutes and have yogurt and a banana. The coffee relaxes the band. Try having coffee or tea first and see if that helps. Also if your last fill was recent, you can be actually very tight and as you lose a few lbs, it will feel more comfortable. Keep up the good work.

Linda - You look FANTASTIC ..........................:w00t::thumbup: Keep it up........... I love these before and after pictures..........What transformations..............:closedeyes::biggrin:

Have been holding my weight @ 227 for about 3 weeks now which is great. Went to buy jeans last night and actually went down another size to 36. I think the last time I wore 36 jeans, I was 25..........:thumbup:

Weighed in this morning @ 227 lbs...... Good luck to all. I'll talk to you next week after my port replacement.

Here's a new after picture taken Saturday 10/17/09. I threw my wife a surprise 50th B/Day party.....

I stay away from bread as well. Once in a while I'll have a toasted english muffin, very well-done. What I do enjoy are italian bread sticks with the seeds on them....mmmmmmm good. I try and look for the well done ones simply because I prefer it. The crunchier the better. I still remind myself to eat slowly. I start to get a pain the the chest area if I eat too fast. It passes in a minute or so but it's my warning alarm sounding.......

Hi Ann - At work, I try and walk 20 minutes during lunch. 3-4x at night I go to the gym. 10 min warm up on the eliptical machine ( heart rate 100), 30 min weights, 20 minutes on the treadmill ( H/R 130). I'll email you a link to view the oics of the 55 Chevy.

Weighed in this morning @ 227 lbs. No loss / No gain......Eating more and so far able to maintain.:scared2:

Ann - Thanks for the encouragement. My exercise consists of walking every day and going to the gym 3-4 x p/w. A little cardio and weights. No golf. We're boaters. So during the summer, working and cleaning the boat is my exercise. Now I tinker with my 55 Chevy that I take to car shows once in a while. My port revision is still on for 10/26/09. I should only be out from work for a few days, Will weigh in the morning. Hopefully I am able to maintain. Certainly eatinga little more at lunch and dinner.