LoseIt!

So, it hasn't been quite as bad as I expected. Knowing that I only have 9 more days...there is a definitive end...makes all the difference. I obviously couldn't keep this up indefinitely. If I could, I wouldn't be in this situation! My liquid diet consists of protein shakes twice a day and a bowl of soup once a day. I can fill in with sugar-free jello, pudding and popsicles. I have to say that I'm quite tired of jello, pudding and popsicles. I'm still not very good at making my own protein shakes, so I tend to drink ready made or Smoothie King. I love Smoothie King's Chocolate Gladiator with berries, but I can't seem to replicate it yet. I have lost 7.3 lbs. and I'm excited by that. I had gained around 15 lbs. over the holidays, so it would be nice to get at least most of that off before surgery. I have no doubt that the loss will slow way down now, but I still have 9 days. I plan to update my ticker once a week, so official weigh in will be Wed. morning. I am so proud of myself for not cheating. Not even a little!! I have diet coke in my fridge and I don't even really miss it. What I do miss is Chipotle. Mmmm...Chipotle. I actually blame Chipotle for 30 of the 40 pounds I have gained this year. I love the stuff and I could never content myself with just a little bit. I'm hoping the band with help with that, but I know it might be something I have to stay away from for good. Only time will tell. Things I still have to do before surgery: get my blood test, get my allergy shot, pick up meds at pharmacy, and grocery shop for the necessary post op diet. But I have a lot to keep me busy this week, like a NASCAR dinner at Texas Motor Speedway (that's right...I said it), "dinner" with friends, a couple of movies and some training at church. Plus, a couple of friends are going to get pedicures with me on the Monday before surgery to help keep my mind off it. Then mom comes in Tuesday night and Wednesday is surgery. It is going to be over and done with before I know it!

I don't think it is silly at all. I had thought my preop would be one week liquids and I would drink my diet coke up until surgery day. I was told two week liquid diet (which meant it started immediately) and no more diet coke. I cried in the car a bit too. I'm on day 3 and the caffiene & carb headaches have passed for the most part. It is hard, but I know it will be worth it. I've lost 5 lbs. since I started, so there you go. Good luck!!

I often yell at my Wii when it "oh"s me. I hate that!!

Congratulations!! I will be joining you in a week and a half!

Great story! Thanks so much for sharing.

My answer was the one about fitting in spaces. I really want to get healthy, but I think if my feet didn't hurt (that might be health, I guess) and I didn't have to worry about space, I doubt I would have made this decision at this time. I wouldn't have even researched it. Now that I have done the research and made this decision, I'm glad I did for many, many reasons. I don't want to have to worry if I fit in the booth, if the seatbelt won't fit on the airplane, if the chair will support my weight, if I can walk through the restaurant/store without knocking something over, if I can walk down the aisle of an airplane without giving someone a concussion... You get the idea. If I were smaller, I don't know that I would change my life entirely to make myself more healthy. Regardless, I'm super glad I am!

Great, thanks! I'm totally trying this!

Good luck!! I'm getting banded on 1/27 and I'm ready too!

My smoothie this morning was great as usual, so no issues there. I even started my morning with some hot tea as recommended by the nutritionist and I really like how it cleared my throat. About 10:30 I started getting hungry. At 11:00 I ate a sugar free jello cup which is allowed on the plan. I told a friend that we could ride together to grab lunch. There isn't a Smoothie King by there, but there is a Jamba Juice so I decided to try it for the first time. I have to say that I was quite dissappointed. They had some good choices, but their protein powder is only 10g of protein. Not enough for my plan, but I decided to go with it this one time. I got a Mega Mango (all fruit) with the protein. I honestly almost can't drink it. It doesn't have much flavor and I can really feel the protein powder coat my tongue. It is going to take me 2 hours to eat the darn thing. In the end, I guess it is a good thing. Won't be tempted by something that doesn't really fit in my plan. I brought a jello cup and a pudding cup for afternoon snacks. I have theater tickets tonight so we are going to dinner somewhere I can get some soup and I have another pudding cup for dessert. It will feel good to have one day on the books!! I'm hungry, but psyched up enough to keep on track.

My smoothie this morning was great as usual, so no issues there. I even started my morning with some hot tea as recommended by the nutritionist and I really like how it cleared my throat. About 10:30 I started getting hungry. At 11:00 I ate a sugar free jello cup which is allowed on the plan. I told a friend that we could ride together to grab lunch. There isn't a Smoothie King by there, but there is a Jamba Juice so I decided to try it for the first time. I have to say that I was quite dissappointed. They had some good choices, but their protein powder is only 10g of protein. Not enough for my plan, but I decided to go with it this one time. I got a Mega Mango (all fruit) with the protein. I honestly almost can't drink it. It doesn't have much flavor and I can really feel the protein powder coat my tongue. It is going to take me 2 hours to eat the darn thing. In the end, I guess it is a good thing. Won't be tempted by something that doesn't really fit in my plan. I brought a jello cup and a pudding cup for afternoon snacks. I have theater tickets tonight so we are going to dinner somewhere I can get some soup and I have another pudding cup for dessert. It will feel good to have one day on the books!! I'm hungry, but psyched up enough to keep on track.

What kind of frozen chicken did you use? Like frozen chicken breasts?

That is awesome! Congrats to you and thank you for the constant inspiration!!

I had my pre-op and nutritionist appointments this morning. I think I'm a little overwhelmed. I definitely started to panic on my way from the doctor to work, but I was able to get past it. I think I'm good to go now! I'm starting my pre-op diet tomorrow. It is mostly a liquid diet. Two protein shakes and one serving of either broth based soup or cottage cheese. You can even have "chunks" in the soup. So that will be good. It is going to be super hard. I don't know why I thought it would only be one week of liquid diet. Oh well, maybe I will lose my holiday weight before I actually have the surgery. That would be excellent!! I keep thinking about how ridiculously hungry I'm going to be. But then I think I can do most anything for two weeks. I actually told several of my employees today. I wasn't planning to tell most of work, but we were discussing me been out and I was asked specifically what surgery I was having. I started talking about how it was stomach surgery, no big deal. But then I realized that I love these people so I just said, "well, I'm having LAP-BAND®®® procedure." They were all so happy for me (of course, I guess they work for me so it would be weird to trash me.) One of them has a daughter who had a band, but she had a lot of complications. She still said she thought it was a good idea and thought I would be good with it. That was a great feeling!! So, now it is definitely not a secret. I'm okay with that. I just don't do secrets well. I took my before pictures last night and they are beauties! Ha! I will post them soon. That said...tomorrow is officially Day #1. Here I go!

I had my pre-op and nutritionist appointments this morning. I think I'm a little overwhelmed. I definitely started to panic on my way from the doctor to work, but I was able to get past it. I think I'm good to go now! I'm starting my pre-op diet tomorrow. It is mostly a liquid diet. Two protein shakes and one serving of either broth based soup or cottage cheese. You can even have "chunks" in the soup. So that will be good. It is going to be super hard. I don't know why I thought it would only be one week of liquid diet. Oh well, maybe I will lose my holiday weight before I actually have the surgery. That would be excellent!! I keep thinking about how ridiculously hungry I'm going to be. But then I think I can do most anything for two weeks. I actually told several of my employees today. I wasn't planning to tell most of work, but we were discussing me been out and I was asked specifically what surgery I was having. I started talking about how it was stomach surgery, no big deal. But then I realized that I love these people so I just said, "well, I'm having LAP-BAND®®® procedure." They were all so happy for me (of course, I guess they work for me so it would be weird to trash me.) One of them has a daughter who had a band, but she had a lot of complications. She still said she thought it was a good idea and thought I would be good with it. That was a great feeling!! So, now it is definitely not a secret. I'm okay with that. I just don't do secrets well. I took my before pictures last night and they are beauties! Ha! I will post them soon. That said...tomorrow is officially Day #1. Here I go!

Way to go! You look great and I can feel your energy!!

I am truly getting excited about this process. I am a planner though, so I have been holding back somewhat because I haven't known what kind of pre-op diet I will have. Normally, I would have had a day-by-day menu already prepared. :w00t: That's how it happens for me. I join WW or Jenny Craig and I meticulously plan my meals. And I do great!! I lose weight and everything is groovy. Until, of course, I can't plan that one week. And then everything starts to crumble. So my new goal is to be more flexible and "go with the flow". My other nagging feeling is the guilt I feel for gaining weight since my initial mid-November appointment. The surgeon didn't put me on a diet, nor did they say "don't gain weight", although I'm guessing it was implied. Through Thanksgiving and Christmas, I gained around 15 pounds. Although I'm a little embarrassed by that, mostly I just want to move forward. I feel confident that I can go on any pre-op diet that I am given and be successful. I just don't want to be judged and get a lecture. Sigh. I'm 12. Tonight is my last support group meeting pre-band. I'm going to have someone take my "before" pictures, so (even though they will be icky to look at) that will give me some turbo-incentive! To me, 1/12 has always been the date I was waiting for even though my surgery date isn't until 1/27. Tomorrow it starts! YAY! I have decided that even if my my pre-op diet is less than two weeks, I'm going to make it two weeks. I'm getting fired up now just thinking about it!! I will post my before pictures tomorrow. Try not to lose any sleep in anticipation, y'all! Hee!

I am truly getting excited about this process. I am a planner though, so I have been holding back somewhat because I haven't known what kind of pre-op diet I will have. Normally, I would have had a day-by-day menu already prepared. :thumbup: That's how it happens for me. I join WW or Jenny Craig and I meticulously plan my meals. And I do great!! I lose weight and everything is groovy. Until, of course, I can't plan that one week. And then everything starts to crumble. So my new goal is to be more flexible and "go with the flow". My other nagging feeling is the guilt I feel for gaining weight since my initial mid-November appointment. The surgeon didn't put me on a diet, nor did they say "don't gain weight", although I'm guessing it was implied. Through Thanksgiving and Christmas, I gained around 15 pounds. Although I'm a little embarrassed by that, mostly I just want to move forward. I feel confident that I can go on any pre-op diet that I am given and be successful. I just don't want to be judged and get a lecture. Sigh. I'm 12. Tonight is my last support group meeting pre-band. I'm going to have someone take my "before" pictures, so (even though they will be icky to look at) that will give me some turbo-incentive! To me, 1/12 has always been the date I was waiting for even though my surgery date isn't until 1/27. Tomorrow it starts! YAY! I have decided that even if my my pre-op diet is less than two weeks, I'm going to make it two weeks. I'm getting fired up now just thinking about it!! I will post my before pictures tomorrow. Try not to lose any sleep in anticipation, y'all! Hee!

I started blogging for the exact same reason. This monopolizes my every thought (almost) and I didn't want to overload my friends and family. It is an excellent outlet. Good luck!!

I hope everything went well!

Yes BG! I have been hating and hating this wait, but this was like the magic dust that made it more than worth it.

It is going straight into "restricted cash" for a new summer wardrobe!!

It seems like a while since we've heard from you. It's good to get an update on your endeavors! Glad you are enjoying the cold, but this TX girl has had quite enough!!

I got the super awesome news that they will honor the new price. I'm SO happy!

I'm a self pay patient and I'm scheduled for 1/27. I love the doctor and the package of care that is included, so I was fine with the price. Expensive, but it is what I wanted. I saw a commercial today and the advertised price for EXACTLY what I have scheduled had dropped $3k. Holy cow. I made a call to the office and left a message with my contact to see if I can get the newly advertised price. Hopefully, they will just say yes and that will be the happy end of it. But of course, I'm nervous that they won't. Nothing I can do until they call me back. For you GNR fans... I sit here on the stairs 'Cause I'd rather be alone If I can't have you right now I'll wait, dear Sometimes I get so tense But I can't speed up the time But you know, love There's one more thing to consider

I'm a self pay patient and I'm scheduled for 1/27. I love the doctor and the package of care that is included, so I was fine with the price. Expensive, but it is what I wanted. I saw a commercial today and the advertised price for EXACTLY what I have scheduled had dropped $3k. Holy cow. I made a call to the office and left a message with my contact to see if I can get the newly advertised price. Hopefully, they will just say yes and that will be the happy end of it. But of course, I'm nervous that they won't. Nothing I can do until they call me back. For you GNR fans... I sit here on the stairs 'Cause I'd rather be alone If I can't have you right now I'll wait, dear Sometimes I get so tense But I can't speed up the time But you know, love There's one more thing to consider