megster27

Believe me it sounds difficult to give up soda now, but once you start loosing that weight..there is no way you will ever look back! It has been 1 year 1 month & 21 days since I have had soda & I have to say, you loose the taste for it. I don't even think of it anymore & I used to be an avid coke drinker. I do still ocassionally have a carbonated drink like Red Bull or a beer, but never any type of sode- diet or not. There is just WAY to much carbonation in it & I don't want to chance stretching my pouch out.

Well Boston, I just lost consistantly. There wasn't really a month that it kicked into upper grear. I went on the pre-op diet 3 weeks prior to my surgery & lost about 16lbs then. Once I had my surgery I lost 6-8lbs a month, every month. It doesn't happen quick with the band, which i great b/c your body doesn't go through so much stress.

26 pounds in 2 months- I'm kind of confussed, because that is amazing weightloss- even above average. Your Dr. may not even give you another fill if you are showing that great of progress. I wouldn't worry until you stop loosing weight- I am 10 months post-op, only had 2 fills & can eat bread any day & still got to goal. Your doing fantastic- keep up the great work!

I have been banded since March 2009 & I consistantly ate about 900 calories a day- I do feel 700 is a bit low, I think you will probably stall weightloss eventually at that amount of calories. At around the 3 month mark is when your body will start to go into shock & that is why it is important to be consistant with a healthy amount of calories that alows to to loose at a steady rate. My typical diet consists of:

B- Weight Management oatmeal & 4 pieces of turkey bacon (260 calories)

L- 3 Light Wasa Crakers (they are really large & have protien!) & 3 slices of lowfat turkey meat & 2 oz. 2% cheddar cheese. (280 calories)

S- small apple (80 calories)

D- 4 oz. baked chicken & a cup of "steamer" broc. & cheese. (210 calories)

Dess- 1 low fat Jello pudding (70 calories)

I typically stay away snacking, because it can easily place me over my 900 calories a day. I have also learned to adjust- for example, if I know I will be going out to dinner at a resturaunt, I wont have the apple or desert that day- in order to make up for the extra calories that I will deff. consume at dinner.

Good luck on your journey! You will figure out the right pattern for you- everyone is different. :confused:

You will not be able to drive home the same day- you will be lucky if you can see strait. You are going to be WAY too sleepy for one! PLUS all the pain meds they put you on, honestly you can't drive for SEVERAL days. The hospital may not even let you go if there isn't anyone to be with you. If you can't arrange to be picked up, I would reschedule. It isn't worth getting into an accident and really hurting yourself or even worse, someone else.

WOW Meagan 100 pounds in 6 months is phenominal! AMAZING is all I can say! Good for you!

I too am about 6 1/2 months out and have lost 71 pounds (17 pounds from goal), not as much, but I still look at it as above average. I on the other hand sometimes do cheat, BUT not often. I DO have realistic expectations- IF I cheat, I won't loose. On average I try to eat leass than 900 calories a day, with less than 60 grams of carbs and more than 70 grams of protien. If I cheat, typically it will be on the carb part, not the calorie part.

On a daily basis I eat the following:

Breakfast: 1 packet of weight control flavored oatmeal & 4 pieces of turkey bacon OR 1 4oz. fat free yogurt.

Luch: 1 lean cuisine under 220 calories OR 1 4oz can of tuna & 4 oz. frozen veggies.

Snack: low fat string cheese

Dinner: 4 oz. lean hamburger patty OR 2 low fat turkey hot dogs

Dessert: 1 4oz cup of lowfat Jello or pudding.

Excersizing... I do it 5x a week, religously. I run in increments for about 45 minutes. Interval training is GREAT for weightloss and it helps build stamina! However, at this time I do not do strength training, as I am waiting until I get to goal to do that.

Congrats on your choice to get banded- you will do wonderful!:cursing:

I can SO agree with the feeling of discomfort now that I have lost weight. I critisize EVERY part of my body now. I believe it has everything to do with, when I was heavy I consentrated on my makeup & hair (shoulders up). Now that I am thinner, I look at everything and find myself thinking, "geeze, I have big thighs or a loose tummy". I have considered going to a shrink to find my self acceptance again... I just hope it goes away when I get to goal.

As for the sex life. Gosh yes it gets better!!! I am 24 and completely lost my drive with my husband the fatter I got. Now that I am smaller than when he met me, I feel like we first met again. It is great & I am sure you will be the same!:confused:

I have to admit I am speechless. Getting LAP-BAND® at 166 lbs. You did so great losing so much weight before the band why did you not keep it up? And, your insurance paid for this when you could have only been 30/40 pounds overweight at that point? What insurance do you have?

Good Luck!

I thought the exact thing when I read that!! I mean thats wonderful success on your own- why go through surgery when it is obvious you could accomplish it by yourself? Either way you should be very proud of the weight you lost!

I'm 7 months out and am not far from goal weight. The more I loose, the more I can feel & see it. I can only imagine what it will look like the flatter my tummy gets. It isn't painfull, but my port is right at my bra line- really high up! So, it sometimes rubs by under wire. I just get reminded that it is there, but not enough to be painfull.

I was 218 LBS & 5'1 with a BMI of 42, just 6 months ago. Now...BMI of about 29 and I am at 151 LBS. I have lost 67lbs in 6 months and am just 21lbs from goal. I have gone from a size 18 to a 10...in 6 short months! So, yes even though you may have a smaller BMI, you can do it!! If you feel deep down that this time is your time to change, anything is possible. Good luck! :thumbup:

It happened to me at about 3 months out too. I tried everything from Biotin pills to Nioxin shampoo- nothing would work! Trust me, I too was taking in a TON of protien and it still happened! It did stop thouhg about 2 months after it started...once I began eating an all around diet. This includes the dreaded carb every once and a while... I used to NEVER eat carbs, so maybe it has something to do with the lack of everything thing else other than protien- who knows! It will stop though, good luck!

I have to weigh** (no pun intended) in here for a minute... 1500-2000 calories a day is a lot- even for a male. Now everyone is different, but I think anyone will say that to loose weight consistantly- you would be anywhere between 800-1200 calories a day. Typically, I try to not consume more than 700 a day, but some will say that is too little. When it comes to maintaining, maybe that amount will work, but I just can't forsee taking in 2000 calories a day would put you loosing a steady 2lbs a week.

Try to consintrate on 70 grams of protien a day and you will probably be way too full to even think of wanting more.

Thats a lot of sugar, you may want to be careful & stick with what your doctor recomends.

You WILL be successful, don't wonder because it leaves the oppertunity for failure- believe in yourself and that it will work & it will! I have also been over weight my entire life, granted I am 24, but even as a child I was always heavy. In just 5 1/2 months, I have lost about 65 pounds. I am not in a rush, I still have 25 or so to go, but I believe it will come off and it will.

Let your band work for you & you will do great! Congrats on your decission to change your life!:sneaky:

Girl, I know exactly how you feel! It is almost like the "ugly duck" syndrome. You feel so "yuk" for so long, it is really hard to get past it! I have made it from 218 to 155, so far, but I still feel 218! I pick every little thing out about my body that I hate, where as before I just choose not to look at it!

It is tough, and at a young age like I am, 23- looks go a long way, unfortunatly. I really believe that time will make all the difference, I am just affraid that I wont be satisfied when I get to goal. Good luck & if you ever need anyone to relate to, please email me!

I too have a tat on my foot, I got it preband about 6 months ago and I will tell you that the weightloss hasn't changed it a bit. The reason I choose my foot at the time was b/c that was about the only area that I didn't feel bluberish! :bored: The tat I choose was a piece of wheat. My husband and I got married in October and had a harvest wedding, so I felt the wheat not only symbolized our wedding, but it also symbolized life in a plant that may not be considered to be gorgeous...ie: me at the time.

The next tat I get will probably be words of some sort, maybe "conqure*" or "prevail", for the way I feel about my weightloss- probably down the side of my ribcage- like under my arm.

I also can not feel the band, just the port. The port is actually more noticeable now that I have lost 45 pounds, than it ever was before. I really only feel it tugging if I am lying on my tummy.

Totally agree!! I find when I eat around 1000 calories a day- that works best for me. If I eat around 700, which I was doing for a long time, I would loose, but only about 1 pound every 7 days. However, now that I eat a little more, I loose more like .5 pounds a day equaling to about 3 pounds a week! Try to get a few more good calories in and see if that works a little better for you.

Just a little hint for the "poop" problem...I find that our typical high protien diet does not contain much Fiber at all. If you choose good dietary Fiber, this will drastically improve your bowel movements. Many people have it in their head that carbs are bad bad bad, in which many of them will slow down weightloss. This can be true, but carbs are divided into subgroups and "dietary fiber" is mostly insoluble fiber- which isn't included into net carbs. For example, if you eat a cracker that has 5 carbs total, but include 2 dietary fiber carbs- then it is only 3 net carbs. My point is choose your carbs wisely with high dietary fiber- this will help your "poop" problem and your wont absorb those carbs.

I normally start my day with a bowl of Kashi Go Lean Cereal..it has 13g protien and 10g dietary fiber then I eat it with a cup of Silk Light Soy Milk, which as 6g protien! So, my Breakfast has 19g protien, which falls under my doctors requirements and I get fiber...which makes me go within 1-2 hours!!! One more plus...its only 220 calories, including the milk!

As for the other issues you are experiencing...you really need to give this process time. It isn't over night & it will get better with fills. However, between now and then you really need to put in a lot of effort to continue to strive & loose weight. Good luck!!:ihih:

I have the AP and have had 3 fills since surgery- I "believe" I am at the sweet spot and I have 6.8 cc's in a 10 cc band.

I had my 3rd fill yesterday and was on liquids all day yesterday and again today. My issue is, every time I go on liquids I gain 1-3 pounds. Does this happen to anyone else? I am sure it is Water weight, but I am curious if this happens to many people.

Thats so funny! When I was in the preop diet stage for 3 week, it was the toughest for me! I actualy wanted a ritz cracker so bad that I chewed it up (after my husband went to bed) and spit it out! It was shamefull now that I look back at it, b/c I was so sneaky about it. I wasn't even hungry- I just wanted it!

I am from Nashville too, so my first step was going to my surgeon. Dr. Morton at Baptist is one of the best in the area and he has an insurance team that walks you through everything!! I went to a free insurance consult with a girl named Ebony in their office. It was quick and she explained everything I needed to do and she took it all out of my hands. I was approved within a week and my surgery was about a month and a half later.

Everywhere is different, but it is worth calling his team to find out if you like them.

There isn't any reason you can't have a steak- infact I eat one about every other day. It is a great source of protien! If you are PBing after every meal, then it seems you might be too tight. It shouldn't be that often that you PB. The band isn't torture, you should be able to have things you love in moderation and small amounts.

I never fluctuate in weight, so for me to gain a half a pound worries me. However, I got on the scale this morning after being on liquids for 2 days now after my 2nd fill on Tuesday to find that I had gained 2 pounds! How could this be? All I had yesterday and the day before was 2 protien shakes & chicken broth with pureed chicken! I am frustrated for the first time in the process and just cant understand how this is possible. Has this happened to anyone else?