catfish87

Todays Group river road ride: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/338450064 Distance: 33.59 mi Time: 2:53:44 Avg Speed: 11.6 mph Elevation Gain: 1,276 ft Calories: 820 C

Congrats Tom! And thanks for continuing to share your knowledge of success.

"Portion control" That was my previous downfall....always, with every diet I ever tried. I'd read that I could only have a certain amount of this or that. Some diets even pre-portion meals for you. Lots of folks on here talk about trying those same diets....we do good for a while. Then reality sets in....are you really going to eat preportioned meals the rest of your life? Some people may, (if it works for them, GREAT! ) but it's not for me. I didn't understand a healthy portion...i always thought eat till you're full! Oh how wrong I was. Since I have my band correctly adjusted for me, I now eat until I'm satisfied...and stop! I THEN....AFTER I'm done, keep track of how much I ate...because it's interesting, and I think beneficial for me to know. If I see a trend of not feeling SATISFIED after a small amount, somethings gotta change. What that change is, depends on each person. To be certain, I still sometimes know I COULD eat more. But my band helps me stop at a "normal" portion. I wish you the best of luck in getting to that same level of satisfaction....NEVER, EVER give up! You can do this!

Of course this is just my opinion but, chances are very slim you could have caused any damage with liquids....although I suppose it is possible. Are you having any trouble getting liquids down...when you drink them slowly? Band slippages, while its a common topic on here, really aren't that common. Especially with todays surgical techniques. Heres an answer from a DOCTOR. Take it for what its worth. http://www.realself.com/question/gastric-band-slippage-symptoms Lap-Band Slippage Symptoms Slippage or pouch dilatation can occur if the Lap-Band moves down the stomach, or if the pouch above the band stretches up. Patients with these problems may notice heartburn or regurgitation of food at night when they lay down. Slippage of the band is unusual and occurs in approximately two or three percent of patients. It can cause acute symptoms of abdominal pain, or can cause failure to lose weight. The acute symptoms are pain, bloating, vomiting or difficulty in swallowing liquids and solids.

Todays group ride: http://connect.garmi...ivity/337934395 Distance: 48.29 mi Time: 3:36:39 Avg Speed: 13.4 mph Elevation Gain: 576 ft Calories: 1,036 C July totals: Count: 6 Activities Distance: 127.41 mi Time: 9:11:13 h:m:s Avg Speed: 13.9 mph Avg HR: 123 bpm Avg Bike Cadence: 64 rpm Calories: 4,444 C

Happy Fourth of July! This mornings group ride: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/337412006 Distance: 26.40 mi Moving Time: 2:02:18 Avg Moving Speed: 13.0 mph Calories: 654 C

1. ONLY use a surgeon who will use fluoroscopy, to see, instead of guessing.

I know years ago when I smoked, and quit, the life insurance folks had a mouth swab they tested for nicotine residual (I think). Maybe something like this would suffice? It's gotta be frustrating to have quit and not gotten "credit" for it. Hang in there....lots of folks, including me, get denied first time for various paperwork mistakes/exclusions. Never, ever give up!

Thanks Terry! And you were so right when you mentioned one of the "drawbacks" of losing was you have to work harder to burn the same calories....That distance/effort would have been over 2000 cal's for me last year, and I couldn't have sustained that HR avg then. But, we're much healthier today. Thanks for the motivation this morning.

Tuesday's Trainer "ride" http://connect.garmin.com/dashboard Distance: 10.32 mi Time: 40:05 Avg Speed: 15.4 mph Calories: 657 C Today's Ride...inspired by TPOPS! My best time for this route.....and first sub 90 minute time. http://connect.garmin.com/dashboard Distance: 26.23 mi Time: 1:25:51 Avg Speed: 18.3 mph Avg HR: 159 bpm ( 86% of max) Max HR: 173 bpm Calories: 1184 C And another short group ride still to come this evening. Yea for some sunshine and BEAUTIFUL weather! This evenings short ride: 14 miles, 1 hour, ~600 calories

So happy for you my friend! You have inspired me many times too. I know you have worked extremely hard to get to where you are. It's not always easy, but it's so worth it! You've got this figured out already....Keep on runnin' my friend! Congrats!!!!!!!!!!

I have very few foods, if any, I "can't" eat. Brussel sprouts are almost always a problem for me...and I don't really know why. I don't eat sandwiches....mainly by choice, just not a real desire to. I don't eat much Pasta, or steaks often at all. But I can if I really want to. I should say, I rarely ever get stuck....maybe once a month, due to poor eating habits. Mostly what I eat is home prepared now. I'm always glad when I have to buy dishwasher tabs...means I'm eating at home more often. That used to be a real problem for me...I ate "out" a lot. sauces, gravies, butter, etc, etc... When I eat now, I don't limit my portions to any certain amount. ( 1/2, 1, 1 1/2 cups and all that seem like a diet to me....been there, done that.) I eat a much smaller amount than prior to getting my band correctly adjusted FOR ME. You see, I was never any good at PORTION CONTROL.....that's why I got banded! And it certainly works....now that it's properly adjusted. Some folks do great eating only a certain amount, but I failed many, many times trying such diets. Now I try and cook lots of veggies, fresh 95% of the time. Almost no canned goods. I use my crockpot quite often. chicken, pork roast, lamb shank, pork steaks ( I'd never heard of them til I moved here ) Homemade stuffed peppers, lentils/onion/ham pieces, corned beef. So easy, and tender, moist. I probably eat fish at least 5 times a week. Swai, catfish, grouper, halibut, flounder, cod. Grilled/blackened/even fried. It's my favorite solid Protein...and never have any trouble with it. Tonights meal = spaghetti squash with vodka sauce, oven baked cut up sweet potato/zucchini/onion medley with some EVOO/seasoning on them, a small amount of polenta, half an avocado......and homemade fruit salad for dessert. Pretty low protein dinner. BUT, I had quite a bit of fried fish (about 8 ounces) and a salad for lunch. I'll have a 40ish gram protein smoothie/shake around 9pm, three hours before bed. I didn't have anything except coffee until about noon today. That'll put me right at 80 grams for the day, which is my target over the long haul. Some days it's more, some less. I have used LoseIt! to track what I eat/exercise since Jan 14th...just out of curiosity, not as any limit. It works for me that way. Here's my avg's since then. Calories eaten 1858 ( I eat a lot ) Exercise 779 ( I ride a lot ) Net Calories 1079 it evens out As far as specifics I ( think ) I know now, that I didn't prebanding.... IT takes time to change our eating habits. And the most important is correct adjustment for the individual person...no two people are the same. Just because we may have different ideas of what the band is/is not supposed to do, we're really all after the same goal...TO BE HEALTHY! Best wishes to you for your success!

You going to start one for July?

I've been cyclilng since about last Feb ( 2012 ). I was around 250 lbs when I started. I bought a couple different "cheap" ( think K-mart ) type cruiser/ maybe 5 speed bikes. Rode them a couple times and took them back....very uncomfortable! I had a friend that rides A LOT take me to a bike shop.....what a difference! Theres about three main types of bikes you might consider, depending on your terrain, and budget of course. First would be a type called a "comfort or hybrid" bike. The sit more upright, and as the name suggests, lots of folks find them pretty comfortable. Your weight should not be an issue with a quality ( think $350-700 range ) hybrid. Giant, Specialized, Trek and many more manufactures make a LOT of different models. They are good on paved and/or small crushed stone trails. They are a bit heavier than a road bike, but can still provide a good workout in varied conditions. A good all around beginner bike in my opinion. Then there are road bikes. Expect to spend between AROUND $800 to well over $4000 for a NEW, good road bike. At first, they may look uncomfortable due to the position you ride in...more bent forward. But for me, its actually MORE comfortable, no strain on your back! I personally ride my road bike 95% of the time ( a USED TREK I found at a steal of a price at my local bike shop! ) It's just so much more comfortable to me and the workout is MUCH, MUCH better for me. Then there are mountain bikes.... and I can't offer any opinion on them. What I will offer is this. If you are serious about riding any more than a few minutes here and there, its absolutely in your best interest to find a bike shop....EXPERTS at finding one that fits you properly! Nothing....repeat...NOTHING, is more important on the bike than a proper fit. Some shops may charge you to "fit" you for a bike, ITS WORTH IT! You can take their advice, buy from them, or look around on places like craigslist. There are HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of bikes on it in my area. Lots of folks buy on an impulse...then use it for a coat rack, or a dust collector. Expect you may pick one up for half price of new...sometimes less! But going to that bike shop will give you a good idea of the type/size you are looking for. I started as I mentioned, cycling last spring....and after a couple of miles I was winded...tired! But I stuck with it...one mile becomes two, then three. Just like any other form of exercise I suppose. But then a funny thing happened....It really doesn't feel like exercise to me. I enjoy it! About three weeks ago, I did my first Century ride, 100 miles. This month, I've cycled a little over 600 miles...and 28,000 calories!! But it all starts with one mile....Best of luck to you!

I'd add that just because your surgeon/doctor removes the saline and checks to make sure it's "all there", doesn't necessarily mean you are going to feel correct/any restriction. If you haven't had a fluoroscopy, I'd recommend having it done. Although you did say your doctor told you your " stomach is super tiny "....did he see this, or was he guessing? Just my experience...

Thanks to TPops for this thread to log cycling activities this month. Last ride for the month of June: http://connect.garmi...ivity/335680330 Distance: 15.51 mi Time: 51:00 Avg Speed: 18.2 mph Calories: 959 C June totals: Count: 22 Activities Distance: 602.73 mi Time: 39:49:21 h:m:s Avg Speed: 15.1 mph Avg HR: 136 bpm Avg Bike Cadence: 71 rpm Calories: 28,380 C

Todays first ride: https://connect.garm...ivity/335430175 Distance: 18.33 mi Time: 1:21:19 Avg Speed: 13.5 mph Elevation Gain: 28 ft Calories: 945 C I only need 13 miles for 600 during the month of June....I think I'll get that in this afternoon.

Todays ride: Forgot my Garmin 26 miles 2:00 Hours ~ 900 calories

Simple....kick em to the curb! This is your life......enjoy it!

Thanks Anna! It really is great!

Congratulations!

Friday check in: Only two more days this month! Keep pushin' June totals Count: 19 Rides Distance: 542.69 mi Time: 35:37:02 h:m:s Avg Speed: 15.2 mph Avg HR: 136 bpm Avg Bike Cadence: 71 rpm Calories: 26,476 C

I'd suggest maybe he was referring the the procedure where they simply fold a small portion of the stomach over the band and attach it with a couple of stitches. To help secure it in place. Thats very common now. Plication is different than that. Very few surgeons currently even offer plication.

Hi my fellow Wildcat fan! I'm gonna suggest a couple of things...obviously, just my opinion. Maybe the reason you eat that bread and rice now, is because you have adapted/learned to chew better and have slowed down your eating? I seem to remember not too long ago when you got a fill and were having difficulty with some of those foods. So possibly, you've just adjusted to this restriction level. Concentrate on making the best food choices, and let the band help with quanity. If you end up with more than a cup...don't stress as long as it's good food choices most of the time. Maybe a small tweak is in order....only you and your doctor can determine that. Hopefully, this next suggestion comes across the way its intended. Encouraging. If you really want to break that plateau, you must find something, whatever you can do, to increase your cardio activity. Safely, under direction of a professional, there is something you can physically do to increase your heart rate and burn those calories. KICKSTART that metabolism into high gear! Maybe its only 5-10 minutes the first little while...build slowly, increasing only when you can safely do so, but get that heart rate to whatever your doctor will allow. The rewards are so worth it! Best wishes my friend!

Disclaimer...I don't have it. It wasn't offered when I got mine in 2009, but the results look very promising. Heres one surgeons website talking about it. http://drsimpson.net/Gastric-Plication-weight-loss-surgery/iLap-surgery/iLap-surgery-new-hope/iLap-surgery-new-hope.html " Lap-band surgery plus Gastric Plication may be the perfect surgical combination for super morbidly obese patients. Because Gastric Plication causes a quicker more complete satiety, the patient can eat much less food. The lap-band further limits the amount of food that can be initially ingested. But its most important job is to heighten the sensitivity of the nerves at the top of the stomach. Those are the nerves that send the signal to the brain that you are full. So the combination of Gastric plication with Lap-band surgery results in fast satiety with much less food than the individual surgeries. iLap surgery is a double restrictive procedure that is adjustable to keep it working over the long run as is required by super morbidly obese patients. It can result in the same weight loss as the Lap-band over gastric bypass. But the small intestine is untouched and completely intact so it will deliver all the nutrition and energy in food consumed by the patient. The energy a super morbidly obese person desperately needs to get on their feet and move. Lap-band and Gastric Plication surgeries can be reversed because none of the stomach or intestines are surgically removed. Because both surgeries are less damaging than gastric bypass, recovery time can be much shorter. Physical therapy and exercise may be able to be done sooner after surgery and with more intensity, possibly improving the patient's prospect for living." Best of luck in your decision!