shoewhore17

My doctor didn't give me a calorie count either, and I'm by no means a medical professional, but 600-800 calories seems very low. I would think that by not eating enough calories you're actually hindering the weight loss process. Not sure how much truth there is to it, but I've heard that the body goes into "survival mode" and your metabolism slows down when you eat less than 1000-1200 calories a day. I would tend to think that as long as the calories you consume at the end of the week is less than the amount of calories you've burned, you'll lose weight.

Just thought I'd share this with you all, I read postings often but I've never started one/ commented on anything. Anyway... My son's daycare teacher said to me today "I am just so jealous of you, you're so tiny now!" I was speechless, and that doesn't normally happen. I honestly can't remember a time that someone said they were jealous of my weight/body. It feels great!

Everyone is different, and I know I had high hopes for the beginning months and the weight didn't fall off right away for me. It sometimes take 3 months to get your band at the right restriction. I've been banded for 6 months and I've lost 50 pounds so far, I started at 263 and I'm now at 211. I had a 2 month period where my weight loss basically stalled out and I didn't lose more then 3 pounds a month. I'm not trying to discourage you, If you work hard (I didn't work out as much in the beginning as I do now so that will definitely help) you can do it, but I just hate for someone to have such high expectations, especially right after being banded. I found the first month or two tricky learning the band, getting fills, eating differently etc.

I exercise everyday, most of the time twice a day. I do spin classes 3-4 times a week, I take step classes a couple times a week as well as some muscle conditioning classes. When there isn't a class scheduled I go into the gym use the treadmill, do circuit training or I swim laps (which is much more difficult that I had remembered!). I lost 12 pounds last month and that wouldn't have been possible without the intense exercise, using the band alone I probably would have lost 3-4 pounds. If anyone wants to try an intense workout and hasn't already done so, I highly suggest spin classes. I attribute a lot of my calorie burning to spin classes, which is why I take 3-4 classes per week.

I couldn't agree with you more savvycat, I think there are mixed messages and everyone has different diets, rules etc from their different doctors. I am also not one to do something just because someone told me to do it so I can relate. I drink diet coke and I still drink alcohol on occasion. I've been fairly successful with my weight loss, I've lost almost 60 pounds in 6 months, could it have been 65 if I didn't drink those vodka and cranberries last month, probably. Am I upset about that, not one bit. What I'm saying is, I haven't been a saint, I don't always follow the rules after a fill, I drink soda (I'm drinking one right now) and I have alcohol. All that being said, I've been successful and am happy with the results so far. My suggestion, do what you need to do to get through the day because if you start hating your band because you can't have soda or beer it's going to be a long and hard road.