chatty826

Hi Canadian Girl Sorry I haven't been online. Hope your doing well. Are you saying that after losing weight, your stomach changes and you are able to eat less freeing satisfied and there for don't need to get fills all the time? When you get to your sweet spot you dont need to get fills very often it is diff for each person. I do not know about the stomach changes but one lap band site says this about fills and its what i hear from my doctor When the Lap-Band is placed around your stomach it will be attached with a small tube to a medi-port located just under the skin of your abdomen. The port will not be visible. As you lose weight, the amount of restriction on your band will get looser as your stomach shrinks away. When you return to TLCEdge after surgery you will occasionally have saline injected into the port. The saline will make the band tighter around the top of the stomach once again so you can continue losing weight. The beautiful part of having an adjustable gastric band is that it can be tailored to fit your needs. A fill is a simple office procedure.However if you feel ourself gain weight you will get another fill. What kinds for food do you eat now (favorite food) and what kinds of food do you stay away from? Favorite varies I eat a lot of eggs like tonight I made fritatas. I am having turkey chili tomorrow. I really dont eat much bread at all I can do subday six inch if it is toasted but sometimes cannot eat the whole thing. I think with one more fill I wont be able to do any bread. I do crackers no problem. Is there a food that you use to eat and now you can't or don't for any reason? Beyond the bread thing I don't do soda. I limit caffeine, I try to stay away from candies even as treats cause they dissolve in my mouth and I can eat a lot without getting fullness. I don't do beer but maybe once in a blue moon. It seems klike you have lot a far amount of weight were you always buying new clothes? I have bought a few but I am trying to limit it as I keep loosing. Do yo think I should do walking on my treadmill to help lose the weight. Yes any exercise is ideal. Were you on medications for health related issues. I was on high blood pressure pills which I am off and a CPAP for sleep apnea. Feel free to ask anything else!!

It took me a few weeks to decide to write this blog. I still am having a hard time dealing. May 4th 2010 I lost my mother at the age of 48 unexpectedly. She was my only parent since she raised us alone. She was an amazing woman and taught me so much. I am sure many of you might understand where I am coming from when I write this. My mother was great but she was a mother who feed us. food meant love. I come from a family of big people and its always just been normal to be large. This past year I decided to make a change in my life. A change that I hoped would inspire others to do the same. The number one goal was to help my mother see that if I could do it she could too. Although the reason she died suddenly did not revolve entirely around her weight I know that it had it's part. The doctor at the hospital told me people rarely live past 50 at her size. It is a horrible feeling to know it could have been prevented. To know that she will never meet my children or be able to give me one of those never ending hugs she was so good at. Even in the few months I have been working to loose weight my mother was so happy for me. She visited me this fall and was shocked at how much time I was spending at the gym. I only wish she could she when I reach my goal. I have toyed with the idea of becoming a personal trainer recently but I really feel I must now. I am giving myself six months to continue with my hard work and start the classes to become certified. My mother always taught me that anything was possible for me. I never thought that meant being slim and fit but now I know anything is anything I set my mind to. I want to make her proud. I want to live to a ripe old age and die happy expecting the sun to set on my life. I want to live the life my mom should have had. She did so much for me I owe it to her. If you or someone you know is dealing with obesity please do something about it. For me I have learned baby steps are best and to use whatever tools are available. Whatever it takes for you. If you do nothing you to could die and that is a pain your love ones have to endure for the rest of their lives. p.s. I have attached a picture of my beautiful mother. She had the most amazing smile which luckily I inherited. I love you mom!

Hey keep asking questions I know I had a lot when I started out. What do you mean by "sweet spot" and good "restrictions" with our fill? Sweet spot is where you get full easily it varies for most people it means I eat a small amount and get and stay full (my doc said 1/2c) and dont need any more fills. Restriction is what you feel when eating its the since that your full. It changes depending on the time of day or what your eating. You may be at your sweet spot and your restriction will vary. Does a persons stomach shrink after not eating so much or will it always be the same size? My doctor tends to think with the weight loss the stomach does change size a bit but unsure if this means shrinking. After losing alot of weight has your skin gone back to normal or is its aggy? I have lost 83lbs and was always very solid, sadly I am not any more. I have heard from many once at their goal weight that they dont have severe skin issues. For me I think it's just the fat is breaking down so its not one big mass anymore. I drink lots of Water, eat lots of Protein and lift weights. All those things plus age and genetics help with skin. have you been over filled with your band and before goin to get a fill do you eat differently or drink more fluids? I have had 4 fills and before I dont do anything different. In fact I have eaten up to an hour before my fill but after I go back on liquids for 48hrs per my doctor. I havent had any complications getting a fill they find my port easily everytime.

Hey a friend of mine is thinking of starting one. We have open flexibility on nights let me know if your interested. justcallmepatty@gmail.com she is in puyallup i am in lakewood we were thinking in lakewood since its in the middle.

Hey Congrats!! Not sure if you were asking me but I thought Id tell you. How did you find it on the liquid diet? I did mine for two weeks and it was hard but I made it through. I did cheat once but it so wasn't worth it I was worried theyd cancel my surgery. How much weight did you lose during that time? I lost 18lbs How much weight have you lost to date and do you feel full with the band? Have you had a fill? Where are you from and where did you get your surgery done? I had surgery Oct 09 and lost 83 lbs. I feel full much quicker than I used to and am almost at my sweet spot. I had surgery here in Wa where I live. I have had four fills and will have one more probably as I am getting good restriction right now.

I vary it up as well. I use the gym and do the machines as well as weight train. Lifting weights is essential when your loosing a lot of weight. Even if your doing it at hope you can find a lot of good info online (i use sparkpeople its free) on how to lift at home with free weights. For my cardio I do elliptical, zumba, and Ive recently started the couch to 5k running program. I like you get nervous about being in front of others but anytime I see a fellow big girl/guy busting their rump working out I am inspired. So what is to say it doesn't inspire the skinny ones just as much?

I am welcome to help you. I am an Oct 09 bandster and have lost around 83 lbs. You can find me on facebook under my email justcallmepatty@gmail.com

So this is coming on my second week of being a member of Full Circle Farm (which started as a local community supported agriculture). I am loving it. Everything I got last week was organic and if its not its all locally grown. I got the individual (you can do family) bundle and it was so much produce! I got a bunch of spinach, a salad mix, fingerling potatoes, a bunch of carrots, a zucchini, a cucumber, 2 green peppers, 2 tomatoes, 4 oranges, 4 white peaches, a pint of strawberries and a mango. I also ordered their organic orange juice and some meat. My order was 35 bucks (produce only) and I picked it up on the drop off day at the community pick up spot near me. I am loving this since when I go to the store I rarely get lots of veggies. I want to but picking out the best stuff is hard in the store. I was able to remove things from my list I didn't like before (like radishes) and I have made some very yummy and healthy things. If you would like to check out a CSA in your area I have posted the link below to the usda site that lists links there. If your in the PacNW try Full Circle Farm they are amazing!! http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/pubs/csa/c sa.shtml

Thanks everyone. For those of you wanting to be fitter for your families and for those who have lost others due to battles with obesity. We all have our own journeys but the same goal!!!

Hi everyone, I was seeing trainer but havent in a bit so I been doing the gym and running. I was wondering if anyone has good at home abdominal exercises they can share. I do plank on the ball and ball situps now. Thanks for the help.

Sooz I am soo very very proud of you. It takes a lot of guts to do something for yourself when you have so many people relying on you. Please fill me in on your journey. I am sure your daughters are so happy I am and I just met you. To everyone else posting. Thank you so much. Today I went jogging and when Id get tired or want to call it quits too soon I though of my mom and what a hard worker she was. I miss her lots but I know shes without pain now. Again thanks!!

Thanks everyone for all the support. I am trying to not do the whole depressed eat everything route that was the pre band me. I went yesterday and bought running shoes to jog. I workout a lot but never run and I thought why not. Sil my mother too died the week of Mothers Day. It was so hard as I had already bought her present. Your so right though that she is smiling down on me. I feel it when I least expect it. Newgirl- that would be awesome. In fact I am always telling people but if you need a workout partner now feel free to contact me. The more support we have the easier it is to get off our bootays and get the work done. My email addy is justcallmepatty@gmail.com I am on facebook too. I have a couple friends from this site I have met locally and its sooo encouraging.

Hi Great post I always love hearing what people do because it inspires me and I learn knew things about what I can do myself. How do you get your exercise? It varies I normally do cardio 5-6x a week for 30 to an hour. I lift weights 2-3 times a week. Cardio varies normally elliptical, bike and now yoga, kickboxing, zumba at gym. I love love love zumba. And hour of intense cardio and it flies by! When and how did you start? (how soon after banding) I started before my band after my surgery seminar. I joined a womens gym that had an indoor pool and pretty much swam and did Water aerobics. I was afraid to even touch the machines besides a lil time on treadmill. I soon got over than though and hired a trainer to teach me to lift. Trainers are amazing worth every penny she taught me to build muscles that make my cardio so worth it. I will continue to check in on this thread cause I really love the idea behind it. Everyone keep it up!

I was banded on 10/29 and have lost 82 lbs!! I have 5 cc in a 10cc band and I still struggle with restriction. I have hit a plateau recently but just read a thread and remembered I havent been doing well on my protein lately. I work out at least 5x a week with two-three of those days being weights. Working out helps lots. And if you lift weights you burn so much more fat throughout the day. I have found finding stuff that I like helps....check out the YMCA its great I do zumba which is an hour and awesome. Before surgery I would have never thought I could do an hour long aerobics class. Congrats everyone!!!

Congrats!! I am almost at six months and am curious about what my bloodwork will say I have been so bad on my vitamins and protein supplements. I just hit a major plateau maybe gaining (scared to weigh) but I know I can get back on track quickly.

I dreamt of all you can eat pancakes one night and I was good. Havent tried at all. I been getting stuck so much since my last fill but I can do toasted bread thank goodness.