zjasm

Well it’s coming off faster than expected now. Not sure if it’s the gym, the colon cleanse, the low carbohydrate diet, the 1400 calories a day or the fact that I’m doing them all at once AND doing it consistently. So I’m happy about the weight loss anyway. BUT (there’s always a but) just not feeling all that well physically. I’ve been getting a lot of headaches, and I’ve had diarrhea the last few days, and I feel a little run down after the gym, and everyone else says they feel great afterwards. I figure I will keep up what I’m doing for the next couple of weeks and if my body doesn’t adjust I think I’ll change things up. I really hope the weight loss continues at this rate. If anyone reads this and has had a similar experience please let me know….

I'm going to give that a try! Only when I'm at home of course - I can only imagine the embarrassing looks I would get from thrusting myself into a downward-dog yoga pose in the middle of a busy food court!

I drink all sorts of diet drinks (all carbonated) because I don't like Water. It's a little uncomfortable and makes you burp more, so it's probably not worth it. But it hasn't had any other adverse effects other than the mild discomfort. Is there another reason that us bandits shouldn't have the carbonated drinks?

Exercise is hard work! I’ve been 4 days in a row and although I’m not overly sore I really don’t want to go to the gym today! I know it’s mostly me being lazy but it makes me feel kind of woozy and really exhausted when I do certain exercises, plus I have tachycardia so my heart rate goes out of control and I usually get headaches during the workout and afterwards (I often lose the energy to do household tasks when I get home which I never have a problem with because I love cleaning). I guess I’m just hoping that I get to a point where I can start feeling good when I work out so it’s not such a chore and doesn’t ruin all of my evenings. I think I might just try to take it a little easier during my workout today, maybe use lighter weights and only do the aerobic exercises that I’m comfortable with. Then when I’m feeling better I can push myself a little harder. After all, I’m paying to use the equipment, not be forced to feel sick. Any thoughts? Starting 132.2kg Current 102.9kg Goal 60kg Height 5'7" Age 26 Melbourne, Australia

Exercise is hard work! I’ve been 4 days in a row and although I’m not overly sore I really don’t want to go to the gym today! I know it’s mostly me being lazy but it makes me feel kind of woozy and really exhausted when I do certain exercises, plus I have tachycardia so my heart rate goes out of control and I usually get headaches during the workout and afterwards (I often lose the energy to do household tasks when I get home which I never have a problem with because I love cleaning). I guess I’m just hoping that I get to a point where I can start feeling good when I work out so it’s not such a chore and doesn’t ruin all of my evenings. I think I might just try to take it a little easier during my workout today, maybe use lighter weights and only do the aerobic exercises that I’m comfortable with. Then when I’m feeling better I can push myself a little harder. After all, I’m paying to use the equipment, not be forced to feel sick. Any thoughts? Starting 132.2kg Current 102.9kg Goal 60kg Height 5'7" Age 26 Melbourne, Australia

Also Dianne I am sorry to hear about your experience. I had to go in for additional surgery a few months after I was banded because they needed to replace my port. Stay strong, anything worth it is worth working for.

I did get diarrhea on the second day but to be honest I don't think if it was the CC pills (I might have had a tummy bug) because I was feeling a little unwell in general. For the most part I have actually found it to be the opposite, I went a few times more than usual but it was worth going because you're passing something more substantial. Yes, I certainly do think it's helped with the weight loss, I've lost about 6.6lb over the last week, although I note that I have changed to a low carb diet and daily exercise. So it's been a triple threat.

I was on a low cal diet and wasn't really losing anything (I mean low - sometimes 500-600). Then I increased my calorie intake but went on a low carb diet and the weight has been flying off this last week - 6.6lbs, I also started exercising 30 mins a day at the same time so that has helped too. Although I have been feeling run down with headaches so that's a minus. ahb08 - I hope you reach your goal with or without the band. I knew I needed help and I didn't want to run the risk of working hard to lose it simply to gain it back. Good luck!

It's called Quick Cleanse bowel clear and yes, the tablets are HUGE, I am struggling with that a lot actually. I've taken them in half and in whole form but I can always feel them sitting there while they break down which isn't so nice, but they don't come back up, which I found unusual because smaller tablets have come back up. I am going to try crushing them to see if they stay as effective, I will let you know how that goes :thumbdown:

Congrats on reaching your first goal! About having a reduction... I think you should wait until you are at/near your goal weight (unless you wont be covered by insurance, then do it sooner). I want to get a lift when I'm at my goal weight just because I find them so uncomfortable, but that might change, who knows? I have the exact same concerns about sensation and scars too but I think the surgeon would be able to clear those types of questions up and show you before/after shots of work they have done. And as for healing I don't think it would be any more difficult than the lap band, its amazing what the body can come back from. Keep on working out and keep up your diet, it will be so worth it in the end! zjasm Starting weight 132.2kg (290) Current weight 103.6kg (227) Goal weight 60kg (132)

I had the op laproscopically and all the doctor had to say to me about the pre-op diet was "if we don't shrink down your liver enough to do it laproscopic then we have to open you right up and cut through all your muscles to get to your stomach" Needless to say I didn't stuff up, not even once, on that pre-op diet.

Well it’s coming off faster than expected now. Not sure if it’s the gym, the colon cleanse, the low carbohydrate diet, the 1400 calories a day or the fact that I’m doing them all at once AND doing it consistently. So I’m happy about the weight loss anyway. BUT (there’s always a but) just not feeling all that well physically. I’ve been getting a lot of headaches, and I’ve had diarrhea the last few days, and I feel a little run down after the gym, and everyone else says they feel great afterwards. I figure I will keep up what I’m doing for the next couple of weeks and if my body doesn’t adjust I think I’ll change things up. I really hope the weight loss continues at this rate. If anyone reads this and has had a similar experience please let me know….

Oh Careypea, I feel so sad reading your post! I think the fact that you have such strong and overwhelming emotions connected to the band indicates you have deep, underlying concerns that you need to deal with. Feelings like "shame" and "guilt" shouldn't be associated with the band! Did you ever think that maybe this is God's way of helping you, by leading you to the band? By guiding your hand pick up the phone and make that first appointment? And maybe it's the devil making you feel the shame and the guilt and guiding you into poor decisions that harm yourself, like not getting your FILLS!!!

I use ShapeUp and I love it. I've been using it for over a month and I'm still not sick of entering the details each day and I love the little graphs and calendar. I also use WeightBot everyday to track my weight I love that too.

I hope you have a speedy recovery and best of luck in your new life!

I get frequent headaches too. I wasn't aware there were any concerns with taking meds etc. But I take Nurofen + and it seems to go down fine. I've had my band for a year and been taking them throughout that time and have had no problems. Having said that; there are plenty of souble options available OCT, it depends on what works for you.

Try a colon cleanse system. They go for 15-30 days and are just a series of herbal tablets. I've just started on one and it's working great, I just took it after 2 meals and by the next morning everything was shifting. I didn't have any adverse reaction to it, didn't drink and extra water and I'm fine. Good luck!

So for my second blog entry I’m going to tell everyone what’s working for me right now - no holds barred. I started a colon cleanse system yesterday and also went on Benefibre. I had been reading about the large amounts of excess waste that just sits in your colon and doesn’t pass through due to a lack of fibre in the western diet. So I figured that trying to get rid of it would be the best thing to do. It’s a 15-day program and even after just 1 day I could feel things shifting. So keeping my fingers crossed I will get some great results and drop some extra pounds because apparently you can shift a substantial amount of weight (like 10lbs+) in a very short time. Google colon cleanse, it’s an interesting topic and something I think bandits can benefit from. As far as diet goes I’m doing a high protein, low carbohydrate (20g) plan that I came up with that seems to work for me. I’m also keeping calories between 1200 and 1400. I’ve just started exercising for half an hour 6 times a week at a ladies circuit gym too. I’m really trying to boost my weight loss so I’m pulling out all the stops for once instead of just relying on diet. Recently I was losing 1-2kg (2.2-4.4lbs a week), last week I lost 1.7kg (3.74lbs) but I anticipate and hope that will increase slightly with the cleansing and exercise. I have my 10-year high school reunion in 3 months and even though I know I wont be at my goal weight in 3 months, I would like to be down to a size where I’m comfortable and confident enough to have a nice time and not be the girl who gained 100lbs after she left school.

So for my second blog entry I’m going to tell everyone what’s working for me right now - no holds barred. I started a colon cleanse system yesterday and also went on Benefibre. I had been reading about the large amounts of excess waste that just sits in your colon and doesn’t pass through due to a lack of fibre in the western diet. So I figured that trying to get rid of it would be the best thing to do. It’s a 15-day program and even after just 1 day I could feel things shifting. So keeping my fingers crossed I will get some great results and drop some extra pounds because apparently you can shift a substantial amount of weight (like 10lbs+) in a very short time. Google colon cleanse, it’s an interesting topic and something I think bandits can benefit from. As far as diet goes I’m doing a high protein, low carbohydrate (20g) plan that I came up with that seems to work for me. I’m also keeping calories between 1200 and 1400. I’ve just started exercising for half an hour 6 times a week at a ladies circuit gym too. I’m really trying to boost my weight loss so I’m pulling out all the stops for once instead of just relying on diet. Recently I was losing 1-2kg (2.2-4.4lbs a week), last week I lost 1.7kg (3.74lbs) but I anticipate and hope that will increase slightly with the cleansing and exercise. I have my 10-year high school reunion in 3 months and even though I know I wont be at my goal weight in 3 months, I would like to be down to a size where I’m comfortable and confident enough to have a nice time and not be the girl who gained 100lbs after she left school.

Hi MsE! Thanks for your comment. I'm actually in Melbourne, Australia.

Just to give you a bit of background about my journey so far. I was first banded in May 2008 but didn’t achieve any weight loss for over 6 months (in fact I put back on 5 kilos I had lost during the pre-op diet). Basically, the doctor had an incredibly hard time finding my port, not sure why, he would poke around with the 5 inch needle for ages trying to find it (I used to cry). Of course he put a hole in the port during one of my first fills and the band therefore didn’t retain ANY fluid. Having the largest band available I experience no restriction without any fluid so I was able to eat anything, like normal, as if I had no operation or band. The softest, doughiest bread available wasn’t a challenge for me. Anyway, the doctor continued to attempt to give me fills, I think I had about 4, not once questioning the fact that I was losing no weight, regardless of the concerns I raised with him. Eventually he admitted that the may have put a hole in the port, and yes, he indeed had. I was incredibly upset that my greatest fear about getting the surgery in the first place was being realised… I would need more surgery. In November 2008 I went in for the additional surgery to replace the port. The recovery time was less than half that of the first op and I was back in the swing of things within days. During the op the surgeon put 6ml in my band, half of the band’s capacity (so not much). I felt restriction for the FIRST TIME more than 6 months after the original op, but not much. 2 weeks after the second op I went back to the doctor who again, couldn’t find my port and poked around for 5 minutes trying to find it. This time around, sick of the allowed assault, I had the intelligence to not put myself through the experience and I told him to stop. I have not been back since. 4 months on and I have lost about 15kg (since the second op, 26kd in total). And even though the band isn’t doing it’s full job it’s still helping me out and I’m glad I had it done, regardless of the fact that it’s been a difficult experience. I guess anything in life that’s worth it, is worth working for. I’m starting this blog because I was working really hard to lose the weight (eating very low calories) but I wasn’t losing. So I came across this site while researching my predicament – it seems my body was getting to few calories (about 600 – 800 a day) and I’d slipped into starvation mode. The day I increased to 1400 – I lost 0.5!! I am hoping that if I track my progress publically I will be able to get help when I hit a roadblock and not get disheartened! Starting weight 132.2kg Current weight 105.3kg Goal weight 60kg

Just to give you a bit of background about my journey so far. I was first banded in May 2008 but didn’t achieve any weight loss for over 6 months (in fact I put back on 5 kilos I had lost during the pre-op diet). Basically, the doctor had an incredibly hard time finding my port, not sure why, he would poke around with the 5 inch needle for ages trying to find it (I used to cry). Of course he put a hole in the port during one of my first fills and the band therefore didn’t retain ANY fluid. Having the largest band available I experience no restriction without any fluid so I was able to eat anything, like normal, as if I had no operation or band. The softest, doughiest bread available wasn’t a challenge for me. Anyway, the doctor continued to attempt to give me fills, I think I had about 4, not once questioning the fact that I was losing no weight, regardless of the concerns I raised with him. Eventually he admitted that the may have put a hole in the port, and yes, he indeed had. I was incredibly upset that my greatest fear about getting the surgery in the first place was being realised… I would need more surgery. In November 2008 I went in for the additional surgery to replace the port. The recovery time was less than half that of the first op and I was back in the swing of things within days. During the op the surgeon put 6ml in my band, half of the band’s capacity (so not much). I felt restriction for the FIRST TIME more than 6 months after the original op, but not much. 2 weeks after the second op I went back to the doctor who again, couldn’t find my port and poked around for 5 minutes trying to find it. This time around, sick of the allowed assault, I had the intelligence to not put myself through the experience and I told him to stop. I have not been back since. 4 months on and I have lost about 15kg (since the second op, 26kd in total). And even though the band isn’t doing it’s full job it’s still helping me out and I’m glad I had it done, regardless of the fact that it’s been a difficult experience. I guess anything in life that’s worth it, is worth working for. I’m starting this blog because I was working really hard to lose the weight (eating very low calories) but I wasn’t losing. So I came across this site while researching my predicament – it seems my body was getting to few calories (about 600 – 800 a day) and I’d slipped into starvation mode. The day I increased to 1400 – I lost 0.5!! I am hoping that if I track my progress publically I will be able to get help when I hit a roadblock and not get disheartened! Starting weight 132.2kg Current weight 105.3kg Goal weight 60kg