kentx05

Yeah I called two days ago and spoke to a nurse from True Results. It turns out that they want me on this liquid diet until my next appointment which is now 10 days away. I thought one week of solids and one week of liquids would do the trick. I don't know how I'll be able to hold up by only drinking liquids. It doesn't provide satiety. Ice cream, never again.

Yes, I know, I know, I shouldn't have been eating ice cream in the first place. I received a fill in December and I felt kind of tight and fell into some bad habits that I never had before surgery, ex. eating ice cream. Well a few days ago I go in for a fill because I was feeling less restriction and the fluroscopy showed that I had pouch dilation (the enlargement of the pouch above my band). I rarely overeat, maybe once every 3 months but I did eat a lot of ice cream to the point of bloatedness. I didn't think ice cream would do anything to my band because it's considered a slider food. Yet after remembering what milk does to me I came to realize last night that ice cream had to have been the culprit. I'm lactose intolerant which means I usually have a lot of gas and get bloated after drinking milk. After watching my baby daughter get bloated from her nightly milk intake I put two and two together. It must've been the overdoing it on the Sonic Blasts that dilated my pouch. The nurse asked me to go on a liquid diet for 7 days and I'll see them in two weeks. For now I'm still eating solids until 7 days before I go in for my next fluroscopy. I'm writing this for others who might be lactose intolerant as well and who have addictively eaten ice cream like myself knowing that it's a no no for us bandsters. I can't prove it, but it's the only reasoning that makes sense to me. Ice cream causes me to bloat and have gas; hence dilated pouch. Please be careful out there bandsters. I would hate for you to make the same mistake. The same goes for carbonated beverages. You may not feel that it affects you but it probably does.

I definately have learned from this. I'm still confused as to what really did the overstretching. I usually eat the recommended 5 oz. of food for men. I supposed it could've been not eating small enough bites or eating too fast but I'm not sure. There have been times that I've cheated but not too much. My main problem has been ice cream but I assumed it wouldn't stretch my pouch out since it would melt. Could it have been that? I know that ice cream has stopped my weight loss at a screeching halt. Could it have done this too?

This morning I went in for a fill for the first time in 6 months. I've been able to eat a lot more lately and thought that some of the liquid in my band had evaporated. When I had my fluoroscopy or x-ray done they noticed that my pouch was now dilated. It looked like a balloon rather than an hour glass. I've been put on a 10 day liquid diet to see if my pouch turns back into it's normal shape. I know that I caused this by eating too fast and not cutting my pieces down small enough. My question is, what are the chances that my dilation will go down with this liquid diet. I go back in 2 weeks and hope it works. I don't want to have a band slippage or an unfill. If you have had pouch dilation before, did the liquid diet bring you back to normal or were you required to do an unfill? Any help or hope would be great.

I would say that you can have Protein Drinks. It just won't fill you up for too long because it's a liquid rather than a solid food. At least that's what worked for me. When I was in pre-op I would drink 2 protein shakes and one meal. I lost 22 lbs like that and I stuck to a low carb diet which made me feel better. Once you get over the cravings you should be fine. Find yourself a good and tasty Protein shake. My favorite is Muscle Milk Lite chocolate. It's kind of high in carbs about 9 g but it's so tasty and the only thing I could look forward to when I was hungry. Good luck to you.

Great decision. I know that low carbing is the only thing that keeps my weight loss going. Plus it's an easier way of life than low fat. I'm currently eating 20 g of carbs per day. I'm following the Atkins way somewhat. I have to adjust my veggies intake according to what I can take in 5 ounces with my Protein. However, my body fat is definately decreasing. My waist is getting smaller and the cravings go away after a good week of staying on it. I'm about to be bumped off of ketosis though because I'm getting a fill on Wednesday which means the 3 days of liquids, mushies, solids again. Good luck and let us know how it goes for you. I definately recommend getting "The New Atkins" book. It's really taught me about how my body works.

Is there anybody else trying Atkins? I'm trying to do it but I'm wondering if it can be done as a Lap Bandster. I'm not talking about a modified version either.

Are you eating any fruit as well? My doctor says fruits and vegetables after eating your protein is good but Low carbers usually shy away from fruit at the early stage. My thing is that the only vegetable I like to eat is lettuce and onions. So it's hard sticking to low carb if I can't eat much more.

I find them very yummy, sometimes too yummy. What is your experience with them? It seems like it's the only protein bar I can handle with taste. I usually use it as a snack between my 5:30 am breakfast and 12pm lunch. I know the doctor says no eating between meals but I'm a teacher and can't eat just when I want.

I'm curious how Lap Bandsters are approaching low carbing. Atkins (Induction phase) says 15-20 grams of netcarbs from your leafy green vegetables food group. Yet, I find it difficult to even eat one cup of green leafy vegetables because I still have to fit in my protein. How do we adjust being low carbers with a Lap Band? I'm still trying to figure this out. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Yeah, I recently scheduled my first fill in close to 6 months and surprisingly there wasn't an appointment available till like a month later. Usually I get my fills done quickly though while at the office. Has anybody noticed the cost of their fills?

Dr. Hollis is a very good doctor. I had no complaints with him. The surgery went smoothly and I've had no complications. Just follow his diet plan and you'll lose weight fast. I did. I fell off the wagon a few months ago but I'm about ready to go back to my low carbing losing weight days.

That is so true. You know what's funny? Before I was banded my biggest problem was Doritos, burgers, and pizza. I never ate ice cream or cake, it was never a problem with a sweet tooth. But now since it's the only way I can cheat, it's become a problem. I had my last fill in December and my band was a little tight after that. So I went to ice cream one day and fell inlove with it. I haven't had a fill since then because I still stay pretty full for quite a while. I might just go in soon though since it's been more than 3 months. What kills me though is the fill price. Since they always do the X-ray I noticed that I was getting charged $800 a visit. Sure my insurance picks some of it up but that's a lot of money for a fill.

I was banded at True Results too, August 2010 by Dr. Hollis. Starting weight 282-pre surgery 260- and now 205. I did get down to 198 but I've fallen inlove with carbs agains, especially ice cream after doing so well. I'm in need of a buddy to get me back in line because I know if get those darn sugars out of my diet, the scale will roll again and fast.

Low carbing is what has helped me lose close to 45 lbs since August. If it wasn't for the Low carbing with the LapBand, I think my weight loss would've been slow. Plus I find when I eat carbs, especially the bad ones, you crave more carbs. To me carbs are evil. They make you tired fast and they make you hungrier faster.

HIGHEST WEIGHT - 282 LBS GOAL WEIGHT - 165 LBS SURGERY DATE - 08/9/2010 WEIGHT ON DATE OF SURGERY - 262 LBS CURRENT WEIGHT AS OF 01/14/2011 - 203 LBS I HAVE 41 LBS MORE POUNDS TO LOSE

I do weigh my food as well. I was told that a medium framed male as myself should eat about 5 oz of food per meal and to lean heavily on protein. Women on the other hand would eat 4 oz of food. I bought the cheap "Biggest Loser" food scale online. I try to weigh my food every time I eat. I've noticed it does help me to eat just the right amount of food. Sometimes I can't even fit all 5 oz which is fine with me. I do try to count my calories because the info packet I said mentioned a goal of 1200 calories a day. I don't keep count religiously though because I know with my choices of high protein foods, my calories never surpass 1200 calories. Also, my doctor recommended 60 g of protein a day. 90 is kind of high.

Is there anybody else that gets their fills at True Results? I was checking my insurance claims and realized that everytime I've gone to get a fill, I'm charged $250 for the office visit and $600 for the fill. I couldn't believe it. I'm assuming it's because they're using the x-ray machine each time they give me a fill. Does anybody else that goes to True Results have the same charges. My insurance covered it but it looks like I might have to pay some out of pocket.

Is there anybody else that gets their fills at True Results? I was checking my insurance claims and realized that everytime I've gone to get a fill, I'm charged $250 for the office visit and $600 for the fill. I couldn't believe it. I'm assuming it's because they're using the x-ray machine each time they give me a fill. Does anybody else that goes to True Results have the same charges. My insurance covered it but it looks like I might have to pay some out of pocket.

God bless you and thanks for posting this. I do this only to give you a glimpse of what is to come. I was banded on August 9th of this year. My weight loss journey began a month before that when I went on the famous pre-op diet. It was there that I learned how to eat. I was 282 lbs when I started this Lap band journey of ours. After the pre-op diet and I had gone down to 267. Since August 9th, I've gone from 267 to 213 and still climbing down. I have not exercised, which I will when I can, but the Lapband has helped me control my portions. I think the secret to this weight loss is my low carb eating. Low carbing it along with the Lapband have left me with awesome results. The LapBand has controlled my portions and low carbing it has brought in Protein that sustains my hunger for 4 hours or more. The pounds are just dropping. My self confidence is way up. Every day I get comments about how I continue to shrunk. There is not one day that goes by where I don't hear co-workers say, "Wow, you look great". Or, "Wow, you're melting away". The reactions of my friends who have not seen me in a long time is even better. I feel like myself again. LapBand, like our doctors told us, is a tool. But I had to change my way of life as well. My daily staple used to be Cereal, school lunch (2-3 servings of that school lunch mind you), and cereal when I got home. No wonder I was hungry all the time. All those sugary carbs just left me hungrier by the time the spike to my metabolism was over which generally lasts 30 minutes to an hour. LapBand has taught me portion control, low carbing it has taught me how burn fat and keep my body energized. It'll come. Your weight will begin melting away. But just remember, LapBand is one change. You still have to do the rest. I have had about 4 fills. In reality, the last two were the best ones. I was still losing weight when I was in the yellow zone. Stick to it. Believe that it will be and remember to eat right. God bless you.

This can be either two things. You're not in your green zone yet or you're eating the types of foods, carbs, that won't satisfy you for long. I recommend low carbing it. It's the only way that has worked for me. Protein keeps you satisfied for close 4 hours while carbs gives you that full feeling for maybe an hour at most. Consider these things and think about what you're eating. Good luck friend.

Thanks so much for the link. Right now I've achieved moderate to high levels of ketosis. It worked. Now I'm going to check on that site and see how it goes.

After reading so much on Ketosis I went and bought myself some Ketostix. I'm really into it now and I'm striving to get there, Ketosis that is. My question goes both male and female bandsters. How many carbs do you limit yourselves to a day to achieve high traces of ketones? My doctor recommended one cheat day in order remain in ketosis as well. Anybody else here that?

Thanks everybody. I'm feeling much better today. Never again will I try eat pancakes. I didn't know it would be like bread in my stomach. I was fine until I got home 30 min laters and drank some water. Then it was utter pain for 2 hours. It decreased once I began to stay on my feel. I didn't know pancakes could do that. I ate about 3/4 of one which I never do. I've stuck to my post op and now first fill diet to the max. Just one hiccup that I don't plan on testing again.