catfish87

Today is my only day off work this week, took the truck to the shop for a service call, they said they'd need about 3 hours.....so, I got in a 6 mile walk while they were working on it. Got home and got in a leisurely 35 mile ride in some windy conditions. It wasn't fast, but it was fun....And burned right at 1500 calories between the two. Happy Hump Day everyone! http://connect.garmin.com/activity/495144298 http://connect.garmin.com/activity/494979385

I seen this on FB this morning and wanted to share...

welcome back @@oreo4972 I remember you being on here last year. Glad to see you're back! Congrats on the skating!

Came home to 88 degrees and sunshine galore this afternoon. Did a 5km run with "hill repeats", That'll make ya sweat! Great job everyone on your exercising!! Nice shoes too, CG

@@HarlynsMom I'm almost 5 years postop ( lapband ), so my choices may not work for sleeve patients. I do quite a bit of cycling and enjoy it! Hydration, hydration, hydration....can't emphasis it enough. I don't have any issues being able to drink enough fluids....just gotta remember to do it. I got dehydrated a couple of years ago and I don't ever wanna go through that again...a fall, concussion, etc....NO FUN. Calorie consumption: If I'm going on a short ride of say less than an hour and half, I just drink Water or Powerade zero/gatorade type drinks. I do one bottle ( 20 oz ) prior to riding, and then aim for a bottle every half hour of riding. If its an early morning ride, I will usually have a small bowl of oatmeal or other higher carb "breakfast" prior to starting. Then will have a Protein shake or something high in protein AFTER riding....the protein AFTER the ride works best for me on these shorter rides. If I'm gonna do longer rides, say 2-5+ hours, I'll still try and have carbs before riding, but will usually do some Clif bars during the ride. ( 44g carbs/ 10g protein ) Usually one about every hour while riding. I like the taste, and the carb/protein seems to work well for me. Also, chocolate milk, which I don't really care for or drink, is supposed to be a good balanced post workout. Lots of people I ride with drink it. For me, the carbs are much more important than protein, for the short term....thats where the energy comes from. Protein actually can cause me some upset stomach if I try and have too much prior to riding. Yesterday I rode about 3.5 hours (53 miles). I had coffee and a bowl of cereal prior to starting, one sports drink during the first half, stopped and had half of a turkey/cheese wrap along with a G2 at mile 28, then had another G2 on the ride home. And two extra bottles of water during the ride. YMMV.....Happy riding!

I couldn't/wouldn't go to a Doctor that thinks "the band is too ineffective, has such small results and is too much maintenance". Maybe he's trying to sell you another surgery..... Why not go to a surgeon who DOES believe in the band? Just a thought.

Congrats....and You're fast! 8.0.....Thats a 7:30 mile! Just curious, how long do you stay at 96% max HR? I haven't been able to sustain that zone for long and am envious.

I started running just last July, so I'm still a relative newbie, but here's my take on a couple of suggestions. Take them as an opinion only.... 1. Go to a RUNNING store and get the correct shoes for you. This has got to be the most important thing. I heard this over and over, and should have listened...running shouldn't physically hurt. 2. For me, it's about 95% mental. By that I mean that whatever you think you can do, you really can do more. Just gotta have that desire to push yourself. 3. I started out doing 5k, but had been cycling quite a bit prior to that, so you'll have to access your cardio level and start out at a pace/distance you can do. Don't make the mistake of trying too much, too soon....THAT can be disheartening and cause for quitting.....DON'T do it! 4. Just my opinion, but go SLOW at first. This should allow you to go farther distances and that's motivating as heck! 5. How about those new shoes? After a couple of weeks, you'll probably know if they're right for you. If you went to that true running store, if they're not correct, take them back. You should have 30 days at a running store for returns. I progressed from 5k to 5 miles, to 10K, to 10 miles, to half marathon in 8 months......that worked for me. I usually ran/run 3-5 times a week, either a 5k or 5 miles...with one longer run per week now. Congrats on your desire! See you at the finish line.

@@Anume 937 Congrats on your weightloss! YOU can do it! Just find the pace thats comfortable for you, and one step after another...WHEN you get to the end, be proud of your accomplishment! How much walking/running do you currently do? What are your plans for training? Remember, you'll only ever do your 1st HM once, so enjoy it! You and I started at the same weight......Isn't it exciting to even be thinking of such things?!?!?! Congrats again and best wishes! I'm so excited for you!!

While I'm no expert as per my friend TMF suggest, I advocate Fluoro, and not just to find the "perfect" fill volume. It can show other things besides restriction level. My surgeon uses it for all adjustments now, and I'm thankful for that. I've never been overfilled. I agree with Shel though, sometimes my restriction seems to reach its maximum effectiveness/tightness about two weeks after the adjustment. I think my surgeon still is a bit conservative with fill level, even using fluoro. Possibly to help with longterm health of the band and to allow ME time to adjust to the restriction level. As others have said on this forum recently, including some on this thread, there is a VERY fine line between close and "perfect" adjustment for me. As a recent example of this: I made the mistake of taking some pills about 6 weeks ago, probably containing some NSAIDS, due to sinus congestion/etc. Not sure if it caused some inflammation or just irritated the band area, but I ended up being too tight and hadn't had a band adjustment in almost a year. Tried liquids/mushies for about 3 days over a weekend and it really didn't get better....so, I went in to see my dr. He did the fluoro as normal and seen I was too tight, and had some slight refluxing of the barium. He removed some, and all was better......EXCEPT, I was hungry. Therefore, I ate too much. I didn't know how much he had removed...but at my appt last week, found out it was .8cc's, and I had gained 9 pounds. YIKES! He just kind of chuckled and asked me what did I expect......I suck at dieting. He added some Fluid back and said see you in a couple months. Hopefully, I'm back at perfect adjustment for me....we will see.

Great Job everyone! @Mikee57 nice pic! I got in a nice long bike ride today in the beautiful St. Louis weather. My first longer ride of the year. Felt great. I think I'm doing a ride from St. Louis to Springield, IL ( 114 miles ) coming up the end of May, so I better get to logging some time in the saddle! Happy Sunday all. Todays ride was a little over three hours. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/493088551

5k run this morning. Here's a pic of us before the run. It was my girlfriends 1st 5k event. She took second place in her division! Now time for some Kentucky Derby!

gym weight work and a quick spin on the trainer this morning after work. TGI Friday!

Just out of curiosity, how much Liquid Protein did you drink at once? For me, if I take too much at once, it will make my stomach upset....say more than about 30 grams within a few minutes. Not sure what is on you list of approved "foods", as your ticker say's you were banded in April, but possibly some chocolate milk would give you some carbs that'll help? And of course, drink lots and lots of water. Best wishes!

Way to go my friend! Congrats on all your hard work and accomplishments. You rock!

It said "locked" when I last seen it too. Now, it doesn't show up when I click on the lapband section. I wanted to follow it....I think its useful info for ANYONE considering Mexico surgery, not just sleevers. But I'm tired and cranky I suppose....was a long midnight shift followed by a nice run this morning. Goodnight and Happy MayDay all.

5km run after work this morning. CG, you crack me up!!!!!!!!!! Hope you're having a great Mayday everyone!

Best wishes on a speedy recovery and much continued success!

Not only was the topic locked, but now its not even available to be seen. Deleted? Quite a shame IMO, when someone comes here and posts their real life story, in what I thought was a very straightforward, respectable, and informative way, that the post is no longer available. What about today or tomorrow, next week/year when some prospective WLS candidate comes here looking for suggestions or opinions about surgery in Mexico? How can they get an unbiased opinion if only positive comments are allowed? I thought this site was to be about sharing knowledge. Nevermind, I guess they can click on the ads for the best info...

. Is fluoroscopy another word for x-Ray?! Because that's what I got done to determine if I had slippage!!!! I suppose thats another term for it. They use a machine that can see a contrast Fluid (barium, I think) flowing through the esophagus and through the band area into the stomach. Pretty useful, IMO. Here's a link that describes it. http://www.hoab.org/fluoroscopy-st-louis-missouri/

A little over 8 miles walking/mushroom hunting today...I really enjoyed it! They're only around for about a few more days probably, so I'm gonna find 'em while the gettings good..... and the gettin' was GOOD today!

5k walk/jog this evening.

Maybe you could contact a local Amvets/VFW/American Legion, etc organization? Most of them have someone to help drive veterans/dependents home from the hospital and medical appts. Best of luck!

Gym session of weights and a spin on the trainer this morning after midnight shift.

@@karibensea Welcome back to the forum! I think we may have had our surgery done at the same hospital, although different doc's. I was banded in Sep 09 at St. Alexius. Not sure if your signature line is correct or not, but it says your last adjustment was in Feb of 2010.... and you have only had three adjustments since banding? It sure sounds like you're doing your part!!!!!! Exercising/eating well, etc. Do you think the band is doing ITS part? Is it possible you need an adjustment? We have a nice support group just across the river in Collinsville that meets twice a month on Thursday evenings. Possibly you'd consider joining us sometime. I've learned a lot over the years from folks and one thing I know, if my band isn't adjusted correctly for me, I overeat and won't lose. I've got a picture of a fork on my computer with the saying underneath it.... "You can't outrun your fork". Its true for me. When was your last checkup with your surgeon?