PJbanster

1200 to 1500 calories is actually really good. You may not burn that in exercise but being a male at 319 you def burn more than 1200-1500 calories a day just existing. Keep in mind too while you're exercising, that the key to fat loss is muscles eating up the fat. Do the cardio but work on those muscles too!

Check out this link.

http://www.bmi-calcu...bmr-calculator/

Slow loss sucks I agree. A crawl will still get you there faster than standing still. Just keep on pushing even if it were as slow as half a pound a month it is a half a pound less than you were before. Just keep up the good work it'll pick up!

BP is probably blood pressure... PB is productive burp.

First of all sounds like you're doing well! 21 lbs already WAY TO GO!

Well I have been at this 1 year and 6 months and have lost 153 lbs. Let me tell you I have weighed myself every single day! I even took my scale with me on vacatoin. It helps me see weight gain and loss patterns, I track it and I have been able to see what eating patterns affect the scale for me. Your weight will usually fluxuate within a few lbs but if you do everything you're supposed to you shouldn't see huge weight gains.

If there was a place to "blow your own horn" this is the place! Awesome job keep up the good work!

Sounds like you're doing the best you can right now. Keep it up! Eventually if that routine stops working and you stop losing for a period of time you can look in to changing it up some. You will be VERY surprised when that time comes you will have more energy than you realize. The more you keep it up the more it will be routine and you won't even think twice about doing what you've got to in order to get the results. As long as you keep it up and do the right things for your body EVENTUALLY your body will give in and give you the results. Remember that when you plateau. Lots of us have been there and somehow we got past it. You can do this. 38lbs! WAY TO GO!

Another option besides bypass would be the gastric sleeve, however, I personally would keep trucking with the band really track what you're doing and eating and see what you can change. The band is ONLY supposed to help you eat less. You've gotta pick what you eat and how much you exercise.

Sounds like your doc does fills slowly. Most people hit that green zone with about half the band filled, but everyone is different. Any loss is a good loss and 25 lbs is quite an acheivement. You seem to really have a desire to learn how to do it right. Planning really is the key. Also, I'm a fan of myfitnesspal. You can access it online and there is an app for the phone. I track just about everything I eat on that (trust me it gets addicting) and I have definitely been able to see patterns in my weight loss. For example, I tend to plateau when I go too long on too low calorie of a diet and am exercising too much. I can usually break a plateau with upping my calorie intake and lowering my cardio. It's just a good way of tracking and figuring out how your body works. You keep doing what you're doing and make yourself aware of your actions and that weight will keep disappearing!

You look like a different person. I'm sure you feel that way as well. You're so right the road is bumpy with or without a band. Congrats to you for sticking to it and getting those results!

Ya funny I've gotten that same attitude. I have had lap band surgery now and am able to consistently lose weight and keep it off. I mean go for her for losing 50 lbs. I did that too before surgry lol. I just gained it back plus some after the fact. I don't know why people have to make it a big deal. You lose weight yay for you, but you don't have to down play someone else's progress because they used a different method.

You find most people post/blog when something bad happens or if something really good happens you don't really see the it's a normal day everything is going alright posts.<BR> You're right though, a lot of us do come here for encouragement and need that positive feed back. <BR>I've been banded for 1yr and almost 5 mo. I've had great success with my lap band and am very happy with it. The only time I've ever had an issue with mine is when I got a bad cold and had bad drainage. All that it took to fix that was to have less than half a CC removed. The only times I ever get sick from eating is if I eat too fast or if I'm more restricted during that time of the month. I rarely ever have anything come back up anymore. It's definitely been a learning process but after tweaking and tracking and playing around with my diet I have figured out what works for me. I've lost 150 lbs and I feel and look so much better. You are right everyone is different, but if you are proactive and realistic then you will most likely get the results you're looking for. Just keep telling yourself when it comes to eating that the band helps with the appetite it's still up to you to decided what you put in your mouth. The band doesn't STOP craving for unhealthy food. I tell myself every time I go for a run, What sucks today is just a memory tomorrow! Also remember to just keep pushing and tweaking your diet and exercise plan even when you plateau. I have had so many plateaus and every time I freak out and every time I eventually get past it.<BR>Oh and the protein shake thing... I notice if I don't smell it they don't taste bad. I think I've just gotten used to them by now.<BR>

I was 346 and stuck to it! It was tough too because I had to go to all these little kid parties with pizza cake and cookies and all those devil food haha. After you have surgery you can have things like christmas cookies, you've just gotta use them as a rare treat and only like 1 at a time.

Shoping in the normal clothes section/ shops! That was a HUGE one for me!

1. Some days I can drink more at once than others. I mostly try to spread it out all day. General rule just keep yourself hydrated to the max. It helps with weight loss.

2. That just depends on your body.

3. I usually tell people I had lap band and that has helped my portion control but that I have had to change my food choices for healthier food and that I also work out a lot. Most negative people are jealous or not informed.

4. YOU WILL! Just make sure you're honest with yourself about what you eat. Track your food and exercise so you can see patterns in how you eat & exercise vs weight loss. Everyone is different and small tweaks to your plan help you specifically.

5. There is a port revision surgery available.

6. If you can't handle chicken breasts you could always try something like skinless thighs, however, I personally do not have any issues with any type of food. There have been times I have had issues but it's usually either that time of the month or me eating too fast.

7. I am down 150 lbs so far and even when i have off days I do not gain like I did before the band. You CAN gain but try to stay on top of being honest and really looking at your eating and exercise habits.

8. You CAN have alcohol but you have to think about those empty calories and sugars in it. Plus you really want to keep your cokes to a minimum for the bubbles and acid. PLUS, diet drinks can have the same reaction regular sugar does on the body in the way that it can make you more hungry. Oh and I've found through this process that my major stress relief is a hard work out. REALLY helps the anxiety levels.

9. I haven't had problem swallowing pills, but everyone is different. Not a bad idea to start a chewable. There are TONS of chewable brands out there. I use Bariatric Choice.

10. I am a 38 DDD I think i started out at like a 44/46DDD and My cup size is the same as before I lost weight I have shrunk a lot around. They are saggier even though they take up as much cup space. It really depends on how badly stretch marked your boobs are. Stretch marks are basically scars and they don't have the elasticity that the unscarred skin will have.

I started doing a slow walk about a week after surgery it was a 2-3 weeks before i upped the pace a bit and probably a month before I really upped it.

I got a lot of that before I was banded to. Once they see the weight loss and you handling it pretty well the comments pretty much stop or are very minor. You just keep doing what you're doing and try to stay positive!

Funny... one of the girls that told me it's the easy way out just had surgery last week. She's trying to hide it but everyone already knows lol. She's like 340 lbs I THINK we'll start to notice a difference at some point.

Awesome I hope it all goes well for you!

<P>I had surgery on a thurs and took off the next week. Total was 7 days missed from work. I think a week was good some people take like 3 days and are good. After 2 weeks I started to feel much more normal. I remember feeling uncomfortable in the chest area and my back being really achy from the air that gets in your body from surgery. Just a little uncomfy nothing terrible. Don't push too hard take slow walks when you're feeling up to it, the movement helps honestly.-<BR><BR>My pre op diet was:<BR>Breakfast - 1 egg<BR>Snack - 4oz no sugar added apple sauce & 4 oz protein shake<BR>Lunch - 4 oz of meat & veggies<BR>Snack - 4 oz protein shake<BR>Dinner - 4 oz of meat & veggies<BR>I think I had another 4 oz protein shake after dinner<BR><BR>The only time I was really hungry was between work and dinner when my husband would eat a peanut butter granola bar in the same car with me. I treatened his life! lol The hardest part was going to my nieces bday party in the middle of it and not touching anything. Was tough being around pizza and cake when I was pretty frigging hungry. The only veggies she had were things I wasn't supposed to eat like carrots and tomatoes. I only had to do the diet for 2 weeks and when it was all said and done it wasn't all that difficult. </P>

<P>I've always had a pretty good knowledge of what to eat health wise. I could do well for weeks and months at a time with my well rounded healthy meals, but because of my body and some health issues one bad meal would cause MAJOR weight gain for me. I have never believed in getting your band so tight you can't swallow your own spit lol. If I can't fit in 1200 healthy calories each day I would get some fluid taken out. I do know a lot of people who only eat 700-800 calories a day and it really is not enough to realistically be healthy. You're body needs nutrients to survive and THRIVE. I use my band to keep me from being hungry between meals so it's easier to stick with the plan. It also keeps me from being as bad as I want on days where my will power is not so strong and when I do have a treat day with something not so healthy I don't pay the price I used to. It's funny now a "bad day" is eating 1500-1800 calories lol. Not that it's a lot but probably once a week I treat myself with higher fatty foods. I know before a bad day would be SO MUCH more than that.<BR>It's great that you've found something that works for you. Good job and keep at it!</P>

The only thing lapband does for me(once I was filled to the level I needed to be), was make me get full faster and stay full longer. I still count all the calories I put in my mouth. The closer I get to my goal weight the more I have to be careful about what types of food I eat. I've tried calorie counting in the past but the only difference now is I'm not feeling so hungry that I cheat all the time. The band does not work by itself but it is an amazing tool. I have done a lot of experimenting with what works for me in the last 14 months that I have been banded. Different foods can have different affects on everyone. I am 5'8" and 201 now. If you're around that you're going to have to calorie count and eat the right kinds of food. One step to take is try to keep your sugar intake down. That was the main tweak I made the closer I got to 200 that has helped. I switched to a soy milk that has less sugar than 1% milk. Little things like that go a long long way. It really is a journey. I've had my struggles a long the way and at some point it just hits you what you need to do for you and to really buckle down. No one can do that for you.

Also, don't forget the exercise! Real exercise to get that heart rate up!

That's awesome!

I personally don't do well when my calories get too low. I eat my 3 meals a day but i also have 2 protein shakes a day. I had stopped doing the shakes for a while but recently started them back up to help me lose.

It is funny how different things are now. Before we thought we were eating low cals and eating more than we thought. Now we think we're eating really well then when we calculate it up we're like 800 calories? Felt like I ate so much!

That is so awesome!

All interesting facts! It's amazing how out of wack our ideas are about what portions should be! Healthy carbs in the right portions are great for our body especially the whole grains. It's bad bad to completely starve your body of healthy carbs. I mean you can drop weight pretty quick without carbs but your body needs them and you can baloon out quick the second you have a small amount. I find myself loving to learn about stuff like this lately. It just seems like the more science you learn behind this whole weight loss subject the more it FINALLY makes sense!

I have been banded almost 11 mo and at mo 9 the weight loss slowed majorly. I was still eating the same calories and still exercising 6 hours a week. I went from losing 11-12 lbs a mo to 5 lbs. What i discovered was that I was sticking mostly to cardio so with all the weight loss I wasn't maintaining my muscles. Anytime you aren't maintaining your muscles weight loss will be slow because your muscles burn more fat. I have no idea what your exercise habits are but weight loss focused only on eating less with little to no real heart rate increasing and sweating exercise will always be slower. I can tell you that if I hadn't been doing as much exercise as I have the weight loss would not have been as successful for me. I'm almost 117 down and still a week shy of 11 mo. Now there is nothing wrong with the slower weight loss. If you're losing that's great! But if you're confused as to why it's not faster a good place to start looking is the exercise routine. Everyone is different and everyone has to start somewhere. The key is figuring out what works for you.

I had the same problem. Doc took out half a cc and BAM all the sudden i could drink water again. I know mine was so bad I couldn't really eat and really hardly even drink for 4 days. I felt like warmed over death by the time I got to the doc.