tonya66

I ended up going back to the gym last night and doing some circuit training while working my upper body - I made sure I got in bed early last night. So the alarm goes off and I wanted to sleep so badly, but I heard a voice in my head saying "160's, 160's - remember your goal", so I got up and hit the gym again today at 5:00 am. This makes 2 days in a row that I've done it. Now I have to keep doing it. I want to loose my 16 lbs!

I am feeling good! I got up yesterday morning at 5:00 am - worked out, then last night went back to the gym and did some circuit training while working my upper body. I went to bed early last night, took an ambien so I would go to sleep. The alarm goes off at 5 am and I'm a little druggy from the ambien, but I forced myself to get up and I hit the gym again. I will also try and go tonight around 8:30 and do 30 min on the elliptical. I did not weigh this morning and trying to stay off the scale until Friday. I really want to be in the 160's and I'm getting close! The only "bad thing" I did, was I made this roasted chicken with a mushroom gravy and homemade mashed potatoes. I had a small bowl of the potatoes with the chicken and gravy poured over it, it was soooooo good, I had to have another scoop of it. So I ended up eating two helpings. I'm sure it was loaded with calories.

I am feeling good! I got up yesterday morning at 5:00 am - worked out, then last night went back to the gym and did some circuit training while working my upper body. I went to bed early last night, took an ambien so I would go to sleep. The alarm goes off at 5 am and I'm a little druggy from the ambien, but I forced myself to get up and I hit the gym again. I will also try and go tonight around 8:30 and do 30 min on the elliptical. I did not weigh this morning and trying to stay off the scale until Friday. I really want to be in the 160's and I'm getting close! The only "bad thing" I did, was I made this roasted chicken with a mushroom gravy and homemade mashed potatoes. I had a small bowl of the potatoes with the chicken and gravy poured over it, it was soooooo good, I had to have another scoop of it. So I ended up eating two helpings. I'm sure it was loaded with calories.

Oh. I also agree with you on the BMI, not sure how accurate it is. I was reading Dr. Oz's book, YOU ON A DIET - he stated that everyone's body is different, he said to find your ideal body weight, think back when you were at your peak, 18 or 19 years of age or even 20 he suggested and what did you weigh then? Whatever that was, that is your ideal body weight. So, if that is the case, I weighed around 135 - eeeks. I don't think I will or want to be that weight again. I think I would look like a skeleton. So, I took that number, and the number of the highest BMI which was 155, and decided I would like to be in between there, making my goal of 145. Not sure if I will get there, but thats my goal. :smile:

Shawn - YE HAW - CONGRATULATIONS:willy_nilly: I know how excited you must be! Awesome job. I know that I lost so quickly in the beginning, however the past year has been hardly anything at all, very very slow. I do believe everyone is different, and slow and steady will win the race!

this has been a touchy subject for some. My personal opinion is it is up to the individual. There is a law, called HIPPA, it gives each and every patient the right for their own medical privacy. So if you choose not to tell, doesn't mean you are ashamed or anything, just means you choose to keep your medical history private - thats your right. If you choose to tell, again, that is your right too. I personally decided not to tell, I figure I can always go back and tell, however, I could never untell. Well - there is a coworker I work with who has suspected it and she freaken googled something I typed on here (it was a thread I started regarding a type of plastic surgery), and she found out. She called me over to her desk and asked if that was me because it was so similar - my name was at the bottom of my signature, my age was over to the left, it said I was from Oklahoma - and I talked about the type of PS on this forum and I've mentioned it to her. Geeze, there are some nosey people. I begged her to keep it a secret, but I know she has already blabbed. The one thing I was not expecting was for people to come out and ask me directly "Did you have the lapband". I was prepared to answer questions on how I was losing weight, but I never dreamed people would come out and ask if I had the lap band. I would never come out and ask someone that. But some people are just plain rude! So if you do decide to keep it a secret, be prepared to answer questions. I still have not "come out of the closet", and not sure if I ever will. I might when I get to goal if someone I know is looking into it. I might share my experience. Still undecided on that. My doctor asked me to be in a calendar he produces, but I declined because I know someone that I know will see it.

Renee - YAY you've come back! To answer your question, no I do not think its my bodies set point. I just wasn't eating the "good" stuff and now that I have started watching what I eat again, I'm losing. Shawn - to answer your question is I have two goals, my doctor wants me to get to 155 - that is the highest weight on the BMI chart for me to be healthy. I want to get to 145, I don't want to always be on the border of going obese again, if you know what I mean. I don't want to freak out if I go up 2 lbs and will be considered Obesed by the charts. Now, the question is, can I get to 145? I'm not sure my body will let me, but if I can't I think I could be happy at 155.

I think for me the main reason that I didn't tell was I didn't want all eyes on me and watching me fail another attempt to lose weight. I also didn't want to hear the negative comments, and I didn't want to be judged. My last fill stopped me from eating late at night. If I eat past 8:00 I'm up all thru the night coughing and choking, its horrible. Your right to NOT get too tight. If you do, they have to take the fill out and its like starting all over again. grrrrrr. Its horrible when you are PBing on your own saliva Maybe your not eating enough? One of the things that has helped me lately is eat more frequently - i.e. I eat yogurt with granola for bfast, and around 10:30 I have a piece of string cheese, then eat lunch, then in late afternoon I eat 1/2 apple, or something small. Its all low in calories, but it keeps my metabolism working. It's so easy to get of track, heck, I went on a year long binge almost. Seems like that I would get on track for a week, then go back off of it for a month. So far, I've been track for a month now and losing again! Yay. Well, until today it was NONE. I am 16 lbs from being at a healthy weight and a healthy BMI, I know the only way to get there is to get my butt in gear with eating and exercise. I've got the eating under control lately, however, the exercise was NON EXISTANT. So, last night, I got my clothes out, my shoes, and set them by the front door. I knew if I didn't get up, I would have to walk past them when I went to work this morning and how much of a failure I would feel like. So, I set my alarm for 5:00 am - oh how I want to turn the alarm off when it went off this morning. I even said to myself "5 more minutes", but I've done this so many times in the past and the 5 more minutes turn into a lot longer and I don't get up. Well, today was different. I got up, got dressed and was the gym by 5:30. I only did 31 minutes on the elliptical, however that burned 310 calories. I will continue to set my alarm and work on getting my groove back! It sure is lonely on our thread these days. I wonder how everyone is doing? I miss seeing everyone on here and chatting about our band and challenges we face. Remember how exicted everyone was in Janaury of 2007? How we all couldn't wait to come to the board and talk? I was soooo addicted to this forum. Anyhow, hope everyone is doing great. I have started a countdown on another thread (Life at Goal or Near Goal) called the final push. Its my final push to lose the 16 lbs to get to my doctors goal weight. I have 26 lbs to hit my goal of 145. I am hoping to hit my docs goal by December, and my goal by our 2 yr anniversary date or shortly after. I lose so slow, and every pound is such a struggle for me, but I am overjoyed when I lose just 1 ounce, and a pound sometimes sends me over the edge with excitement! :cry_smile:

Okay, if I am going to get to my goal, I have to start exercising! I set my alarm last night and laid out my clothes and I did it! I was up at 5 am and at the gym by 5:30. I was tired and only did 31 min on the elliptical, however - that little amount of time burned 310 calories. I am going to try, let me rephrase that, I am going to continue to get up and hit the gym. I want to see the 160's by the end of the week!

Went to Nashville this weekend, I had a great time. Ate too much and drank a little too much, but we had fun. This morning woke up at 5am and hit the gym. I'm trying to get my groove back. I am also going to go tonight to work with weights. Here us new plan: Mon - 5:00 am - cardio 30 min 8:00 pm - weights and 15 min on elliptical Tuesday - 5:00 am - cardio 35 min 9:00 pm - cardio 30 min Wednesday - 5:00 am - cardio 40 min Thursday - 5:00 am - cardio 30 min 8:00 pm - weights Friday - 5:00 am - cardio - 45 min Saturday - 3:00 pm - weights and 30 min on cardio machine Sunday - OFF wt - 171.9

Went to Nashville this weekend, I had a great time. Ate too much and drank a little too much, but we had fun. This morning woke up at 5am and hit the gym. I'm trying to get my groove back. I am also going to go tonight to work with weights. Here us new plan: Mon - 5:00 am - cardio 30 min 8:00 pm - weights and 15 min on elliptical Tuesday - 5:00 am - cardio 35 min 9:00 pm - cardio 30 min Wednesday - 5:00 am - cardio 40 min Thursday - 5:00 am - cardio 30 min 8:00 pm - weights Friday - 5:00 am - cardio - 45 min Saturday - 3:00 pm - weights and 30 min on cardio machine Sunday - OFF wt - 171.9

1 mo post op (Feb 18)- 206.8 2 mo post op (March 18) - 198 3 mo post op (April 18th)- 193 4 mo post op (May 18th)- 184.2 5 mo post op (June 18th(- 178 6 mo post op (July 18th)– 174 7 mo post op (Aug 18th)- 178 - went on vacation and ate big (7 day cruise) 8 mo post op (Sept 18th)- 174 9 mo post op (Oct 18th)- 170 10 mo post op (Nov 18th) - 167 11 mo post op (Dec 18th) - 170 - haven’t even been trying 12 mo post op (Jan 18th 2008)- 174 - again, not trying. But finally refocused - exactly where I was at 6 mos post op – so basically no weight loss in the past 6 mos 13 mo post op (Feb 18th) - 183 - Ouch! started taking steroids and made my weight go up, along with not eating right and no exercise! 14 mo post op (March 18th)- 185 - grrrrr 15 mo post op (April 18th)- 180 - weight is finally going down, but inches are actually coming off faster since I've been exercising a lot. 16 mo post op (May 18th)- 178 17 mo post op (June 18th)- 175 18 mo post op (July 18th)- 179- still not focussed:sad: 19 mo post op -(Aug 18th) - 178 - focussed again - This time I am committed to getting to goal and will not stray! I do not ever want to see the 180's again! 20 mo post op (Sept. 18) - 171 -

1 mo post op (Feb 18)- 206.8 2 mo post op (March 18) - 198 3 mo post op (April 18th)- 193 4 mo post op (May 18th)- 184.2 5 mo post op (June 18th(- 178 6 mo post op (July 18th)– 174 7 mo post op (Aug 18th)- 178 - went on vacation and ate big (7 day cruise) 8 mo post op (Sept 18th)- 174 9 mo post op (Oct 18th)- 170 10 mo post op (Nov 18th) - 167 11 mo post op (Dec 18th) - 170 - haven’t even been trying 12 mo post op (Jan 18th 2008)- 174 - again, not trying. But finally refocused - exactly where I was at 6 mos post op – so basically no weight loss in the past 6 mos 13 mo post op (Feb 18th) - 183 - Ouch! started taking steroids and made my weight go up, along with not eating right and no exercise! 14 mo post op (March 18th)- 185 - grrrrr 15 mo post op (April 18th)- 180 - weight is finally going down, but inches are actually coming off faster since I've been exercising a lot. 16 mo post op (May 18th)- 178 17 mo post op (June 18th)- 175 18 mo post op (July 18th)- 179- still not focussed:sad: 19 mo post op -(Aug 18th) - 178 - focussed again - This time I am committed to getting to goal and will not stray! I do not ever want to see the 180's again! 20 mo post op (Sept. 18) - 171 - :rolleyes2:

I'm staying on plan today because I didn't all weekend when I was in Nashville and I want to see the scales move down!

I'm so glad you like it. I think it will be a regular at my house too! I actually combined a few recipes to make this one. I added in a few of my favorite spices and woolah - my own recipe.

Pam, I just saw your post, I have been out of town. I had my surgery done by Dr. Gorospe and Dr. Kirk, here in Tulsa. My insurance paid for it, so that is why I went to them. Dr. Kirk is the one who does the fills, like I said, you will really like him. Well, you will lose slowly until you get that perfect "sweet spot". You'll get it, just be patient.

Fill #1 - 3/6/07 - 2.2cc's Fill #2 - 4/17/07 - 3.0cc's Fill #3 - 7/6/07 - 3.5 cc's (I think it was only 2.5cc's because when I went back for fill #4, he could only w/draw 1.8 cc's) Fill #4 - 7/20/07 - filled me back to 3.0 ccs - He should have filled me more! Fill #5 - 8/17/07 - 3.4cc's Fill #6 - 10/08/07 - filled me to 3.8cc's - the best restriction I've ever had,but still could eat big bites of food, so I figured I needed to be tighter. Fill #7 - 11/21/07 filled to 4.0 cc's. By the evening could not hold anything down, not even my saliva. PBing all night - horrilble experieince UNFILL #1 - 11/23/07 - unfilled to somewhere between 2.5 to 3.0 cc's - NO RESTRICTIONS AGAIN Fill #8 - 1/18/08 Went in and the doc filled me back up to just right under 4.0, according to Flouro, it was perfect. Well, by next morning, could not hold down saliva again, ended up back in hospital UNFILL #2 - 1/19/08 - Doctor had to unfill me to 3.0 again because of the swelling from all the PBing for being too tight. Again, NO RESTRICTION - Fill #9 - 2/12/08 - 3.5 cc's - was tight for about a week, now feel lose again. grrrr, still have "some" restriction, just not quite enough! Next fill scheduled for 4/7/08 - I hate that it takes sooooooo long to get in to see the fill doc. FILL #10 - 4/7/08 The doc just added .4cc's, making me at 3.9cc's. I think this might be the one! FILL #11 - Was scheduled on 6/25/08 - but the doc did not fill me up, I was leaving for a cruise on 6/27 so he didn't want to risk me being too tight, so did not get a fill. FILL #11 - 8/5/08 Went for a fill, this time the doc took all my fill out and all he could get out was 2.4 cc's. Filled me up to 4.0 cc's, I left, had to go right back because I could not drink, he took out a little over .2 cc's, he said I'm somewhere between 3.5 to 3.7 cc's. - I had great restriction for 2 weeks, but It has now loosened some. I feel I might need a tad more. I'm worried I have a very slow leak. UNFILL #3 - 8/5/08 - Took a little over .2 cc's out, had pretty good restriction, but still a tad too lose. FILL #12 - 9/17/08 - Added just 1/10th of a cc - I think I'm somewhere between 3.8 to 3.9 cc in a 4cc band. I am hoping and praying this is the fill that I stop with! I do not have another appointment for another fill, will wait this one out and see.

Fill #1 - 3/6/07 - 2.2cc's Fill #2 - 4/17/07 - 3.0cc's Fill #3 - 7/6/07 - 3.5 cc's (I think it was only 2.5cc's because when I went back for fill #4, he could only w/draw 1.8 cc's) Fill #4 - 7/20/07 - filled me back to 3.0 ccs - He should have filled me more! Fill #5 - 8/17/07 - 3.4cc's Fill #6 - 10/08/07 - filled me to 3.8cc's - the best restriction I've ever had,but still could eat big bites of food, so I figured I needed to be tighter. Fill #7 - 11/21/07 filled to 4.0 cc's. By the evening could not hold anything down, not even my saliva. PBing all night - horrilble experieince UNFILL #1 - 11/23/07 - unfilled to somewhere between 2.5 to 3.0 cc's - NO RESTRICTIONS AGAIN :cursing: Fill #8 - 1/18/08 Went in and the doc filled me back up to just right under 4.0, according to Flouro, it was perfect. Well, by next morning, could not hold down saliva again, ended up back in hospital UNFILL #2 - 1/19/08 - Doctor had to unfill me to 3.0 again because of the swelling from all the PBing for being too tight. Again, NO RESTRICTION - :frown: Fill #9 - 2/12/08 - 3.5 cc's - was tight for about a week, now feel lose again. grrrr, still have "some" restriction, just not quite enough! Next fill scheduled for 4/7/08 - I hate that it takes sooooooo long to get in to see the fill doc. FILL #10 - 4/7/08 The doc just added .4cc's, making me at 3.9cc's. I think this might be the one! FILL #11 - Was scheduled on 6/25/08 - but the doc did not fill me up, I was leaving for a cruise on 6/27 so he didn't want to risk me being too tight, so did not get a fill. FILL #11 - 8/5/08 Went for a fill, this time the doc took all my fill out and all he could get out was 2.4 cc's. Filled me up to 4.0 cc's, I left, had to go right back because I could not drink, he took out a little over .2 cc's, he said I'm somewhere between 3.5 to 3.7 cc's. - I had great restriction for 2 weeks, but It has now loosened some. I feel I might need a tad more. I'm worried I have a very slow leak. UNFILL #3 - 8/5/08 - Took a little over .2 cc's out, had pretty good restriction, but still a tad too lose. FILL #12 - 9/17/08 - Added just 1/10th of a cc - I think I'm somewhere between 3.8 to 3.9 cc in a 4cc band. I am hoping and praying this is the fill that I stop with! I do not have another appointment for another fill, will wait this one out and see.

Well, just got back from FILL #12. I know I said I wasn't going to go, but I lost that restriction. I finally figured out, (DUMB ME) WHY all of a sudden I got good restriction after 1 month of my last fill. I PB'd, and that made me swollen, therefore giving me good restriction. duh. That lasted 1 week, then it went away. I freaked! I started thinking back and realized it was the PB that gave me restriction. What an idiot I am. So, I go in for fill #12, I know that just a little might do the trick, so he gave me 1/10th of a cc. I had to eat some peaches before I left, and I think this might be the fill. (I know - i've said that with every fill - lol) I guess its my hope! I believe I'm at right around 3.9cc's. Not sure because he didn't take any out of me this time, just gave me a little and that was it. Well, I'm off to Nashville tonight - Wt - 175.6 - yuck - I'm up again after losing that good restriction!

Well, just got back from FILL #12. I know I said I wasn't going to go, but I lost that restriction. I finally figured out, (DUMB ME) WHY all of a sudden I got good restriction after 1 month of my last fill. I PB'd, and that made me swollen, therefore giving me good restriction. duh. That lasted 1 week, then it went away. I freaked! I started thinking back and realized it was the PB that gave me restriction. What an idiot I am. So, I go in for fill #12, I know that just a little might do the trick, so he gave me 1/10th of a cc. I had to eat some peaches before I left, and I think this might be the fill. (I know - i've said that with every fill - lol) I guess its my hope! I believe I'm at right around 3.9cc's. Not sure because he didn't take any out of me this time, just gave me a little and that was it. Well, I'm off to Nashville tonight - Wt - 175.6 - yuck - I'm up again after losing that good restriction!

Pam - Good for you for exercising!!!! That is a key for sure to losing this ugly weight and becoming healthy! I just got back from FILL #12 - I think and I honestly believe this is going to be my last fill. I thought Fill #11 was, but I decided to go back and get a little more. This time he filled me only 1/10th of a cc, just a few drops. I wanted to tell you you, I got there at 10:58am and did not walk out the door until 1:44pm. So, it took almost 3 hours! About your port side, I know it is tender but by the 29th it will be less tender. He finds the port side with the x-ray, and ten draws a little dot so he knows here it is, so he doesn't poke too much. I can't wait to see how it went for you. Make sure you come back and post! I'm looking forward to watching your progress. The good news is, he is using a different formula to numb you up, it is WONDERFUL, no sting at all. I said why did you wait until my 12th fill to do this, lol. Anyhow, I am hoping this fill takes me to my goal!

Tracy - yep, it sure did freak me out! People are just nosey - but I'm to the point that I don't care as much about people finding out that I got the Band. But again, I am also thinking, what business is it of theirs?

Pam, I totally understand what you are going thru, I remember feeling the same way. It is quite normal for you to be hungry at this time. Most people feel the hunger until the 3rd fill. I was worried too about the fill my first time, but it is not that big of deal at all. When u go in, Dr. Kirk will give you a shot to numb the port area - that shot feels like a little bee sting. He numbs the area up good, then he will find the port under the flouro (xray machine). He will then inject the saline in the port area to fill the band, he will have you drink some some yucky tasting stuff that he can see go thru and see how fast it goes thru the band, this is where he tried to get you adjusted just right. My suggestion is as soon as you leave, go ahead and make yourself another appointment because it takes about 4 or so weeks to get in. More than likely you will need another fill, most people do. Feel free to ask any questions, I'll be happy to help.

Pam - you will love Dr. Kirk, he is so nice and funny. But, the bad news is, he does take a lot of paitents so when I go get a fill, its about a 2 hour sometimes 2 1/2 ordeal. So plan to be there a few hours. The prices have went up then, I thought he told me one time he charged $150 and the hospital charged $100, but sounds like its a bit more. I am going to see him tomorrow. I was going to cancel it because I feel I have pretty good restriction, however, I'm going to get just a tad more, I'm talking just a few drops. Hopefully this will be my last fill.

I used Dr. Gorospe in Tulsa, and he also required a seminar. I believe the makers of LapBand want you to be well informed before making a decision like this.