vickyd

I could not have done as well as I have (banded 12/2/10, 57 lbs lost) without counting calories. For me, if I don't eat enough I don't lose...plain and simple. I use an app on my phone (myfitnesspal) to track everything (including exercise and water) so I always know where I am. Some people can do it without tracking calories...at first it is a bit of trial and error to see what works for you.

I agree with soup. If it is chunky, just simply eat/drink the broth...that's what I did in a similar situation and no one noticed...

I eat them occasionally without the bun. One of my FACS is a chili cheese burger which I have had since sugary using a Boca All-American Burger (which has a flame cooked taste), Hormel turkey chili and a slice of Kraft 2% American Cheese. I wasnt able to eat it all but it really satisfied my craving for one. You should be able to have a hamburger (unless you have issues with ground beef or bread). You may need to be a little creative to have it fit within your particular eating plan...

Is there any way you can find out what the requirements are to have your surgery covered by this new insurance. You need to find out the BMI requirement and whether or not you will have to do a medically supervised diet before surgery. Knowing those things will help you make an informed decision.

Nervousness is very normal. This is a huge step to take. I was nervous, but it was more of an excited-nervous than nervous-nervous (if you know what I mean). Mysurgery went great and I really wasn't in much pain at all. I had to stay in the hospital overnight (required by my surgeon) and I had a morphine pump but I only used it a couple of times. Even when I came home, I only took pain meds at night twice to help me get comfortable when going to sleep. Yes, there are sacrifices you will have to make but the band has given me a new perspective on things. If I think about wanting to go off of my eating plan, I make myself stop and think "is eating this really worth it?". So far, the answer has been "no".

Oops! Sorry for the double post...darned phone!

I'm in...and I'll keep the stats if you want me to...

I'm in...and I'll keep the stats if you want me too...

Absolutely! I know it's hard because we all want to see the scale moving down, but you should really be focused on healing right now not losing (if the scale does move down, it's just a bonus )...Once you can go on full solids, you could try increasing you calories a bit and adding some exercise (if you haven't already) to get things moving again...that's what worked for me. Good luck!

Breakfast for me is either egg beaters, 2%cheese and a turkey sausage patty or a Protein shake lunch is usually 3 oz protein (leftover from dinner the night before) or 1 chicken sausage link and 1/2 cup veggies or even a small salad with 3 oz protein and a small amount of salad dressing (I don't pour it on the salad, but rather dip my fork into it with each bite so I don't use more than 1 tbsp or so). Dinner is 4 oz protein and 1/2 cup veggies. In order to lose effectively, I have to take in between 1,000-1,100 calories a day so I usually need a snack - not because I'm hungry but because I need the calories. My "go-to" snack is low-fat string cheese or ham rollups with laughing cow cheese. As you can see, I choose to follow a pretty low-carb diet (it is what works for me). When I write it down like that, it doesn't look like much but I can assure you that I am not hungry at all between meals and am very satisfied on this amount of food.

If you don't like the protein shake you are using, try another brand. We all have our favorites (and those we can't stand)...you will be on liquids for several weeks (pre-op and post-op) so it is important to find something you can tolerate.

I am also not telling most people about my band and I was very nervous the first time I went out to eat with friends who don't know about it...I was worried that everyone would watch how much I ate and comment on it but I found that they really didn't notice (or if they did, they didn't say anything). I cut my meat up into smaller bites and so I think it seemed like I was eating a lot more than I was. I also like getting a salad - at most restaurants their salads are huge so it isn't as obvious that you aren't eating as much. I eat the protein off of the salad first and then eat some of the lettuce. If anyone says anything just say "this salad is huge" , "I had a big breakfast (or lunch) so I'm not very hungry", or "I'm watching my portion sizes". Like the others, if someone asks directly about what I am eating (since I have lost 56 lbs, I don't expect people not to notice) then I just tell them the same thing that eko does...I'm eating a high protein, low carb, watching my portions and exercising...technically, that is the truth...I AM doing all of those things...

Don't get one if you don't think you need one. I was banded on 12/2/10 and didn't get my first fill until a couple of weeks ago...up until that time, I didn't think I needed one, and quite frankly I'm not sure if I did the right thing in getting the fill. I chose to get it because I was finding myself hungry an hour or two after eating (my portions were fine because I weigh and measure everything) and the PA felt that a fill would help but after my fill, my weight loss stalled for about 2 weeks. It may be unrelated but I can tell you that I will think long and hard before I get another one if I'm not entirely sure I need it. Your surgeon's office will still schedule monthly appointments for you to check in with them, get weighed and (if neecessary) get a fill but nothing says you have to get a fill.

I agree that you should do your research - and part of that is coming on here and hearing the experiences of people with the lap band. You will find that there are a lot of different opinions about it. It works great for some people and for others it never quite works as promised. One thing I can tell you is that the people who have had GBP (and have never had the band) can only speak about what they have heard...they are not speaking from experience. For example, the support group I attend is for all WLS patients but until I joined there were no lap band patients, only GBP and sleeve. I found that they were extremely outspoken that everyone should do their type of surgery to the point that when a person interested in getting banded attended our meeting they pulled him aside in an effort to convince him that the band wouldn't work for him. I was a bit shocked by this and made sure that I told him about my experience and suggested to him that he needed to research the various types of WLS and choose what was best for him. Now that I have been a part of this group for a while and they have gotten to know me, whenever someone comes in who is interested in the band, they send them to talk to me. They are also amazed at how fast I am losing - there is a member of the group who had GBP a couple of weeks after I was banded and my weight loss is on track with hers. All types of WLS have the risk of complications but studies have shown that although GBP patients lose weight faster at the beginning, when you look at long-term weight loss the methods are comparable. For me, I did not want to have a procedure that would alter my internal organs so I chose the band...it is what works for me...you need to decide what will work best for you. Good Luck!

Since you are newly banded, I don't think you can make a blanket statement of what you can and can't eat. The list for each of us is different...it just depends on what your band can tolerate and you will find out by trying different foods and seeing what works for you. As for me, I can pretty much eat anything. The only times I have ever been stuck was due to eating pork that was on the dry side and salmon that I ate way too quickly. I choose not to eat bread, rice and Pasta but that is what works best for me and my weight loss - I have tried them since being banded and they go down just fine so I could eat them if I wanted. Regarding the foods you mentioned specifically, I can eat both steak and popcorn. I find that with steak, because it is so dense, I tend to be very careful to chew it well and I order it medium rare so I know it won't be too dry.

Like Jess said...if you eat too few calories your body will go into starvation mode and you won't lose. Try tracking your calories for a few days, if you don't already. If you are less than 1,000 try slowly increasing your calories and you should start losing again. A lot of people need to have about 1,200 per day, I lose best when I'm between 1,000-1,100 per day. You will have to work to figure out the right level for you... Good luck!

I couldn't agree more

I didn't get the feeling that Jess was trying to discourage the OP from getting banded, but rather help set realistic expectations. I can only speak for myself, but a good portion of my journey so far has been learning a different way to live and accepting that my relationship with food will never be what it was. This is not an easy thing for people with food addiction to do. I had been thinking about the band for several years before actually getting banded and although I wish I had taken this step sooner, I realistically know that I was not in the right mental place before now to be able to follow the rules and do my part. It took a lot of work with a therapist prior to surgery for me to get to this point and, for that reason, I'm glad I waited. I think that was Jess' point...there are many people here on LBT who did not have a good understanding of what the band will and won't do for them and I think the point she was trying to make is that you need to understand the process and be ready to make the necessary changes in your lifestyle to have the best chance for success. I would definately suggest to the OP to read the posts on here and any questions when they come up...it will help you make an informed decision. What you will find is that everyone's journey is different...the way the band works for me isn't the same way it works for others (I rarely feel full, but when I eat 3-4 oz Protein and 1/2 cup veggies I no longer feel hungry...it took me a while to get used to that), the dietary restrictions aren't the same for everyone (I haven't yet found a food I can't eat - except dry meat - but I choose not to eat bread, Pasta, rice, potatoes because they are the foods that I have difficulty controlling so I have decided that I would rather not eat them), doctor's instructions can be very different as far as pre-op and post-op diets, etc. To answer your question about eating out, I do eat out at least 2-3 times a week. I don't commit to going to a new restaurant unless I can view their menu on-line or talk to someone who has gone before so I can make sure that there is something I can eat. I ask a lot of questions about how the food is prepared and I don't hesitate to ask the kitchen to prepare something differently - sauce on the side, steamed vs sauteed veggies. Sometimes I order from the appetizer menu and sometimes a full dinner. If I order a full dinner, I usually ask the waiter to bring a to-go box with the meal and after I portion out how much I should eat then I box up the rest (out of sight, out of mind). I have gotten used to waiters asking if there is something wrong with my food because I'm not eating as much as everyone else...I just normally say I'm not very hungry. You can make this work with your lifestyle, you just have to be willing to do your part because the band won't do it all for you...Good luck!

My insurance company required a psych veal, proof that I had been obese for at least 5 years, and approval from my PCP. Once I had all of that info, it was submitted to my insurance for approval. Once approved, they scheduled the surgery and I had the testing done. Each insurance has their own requirements but your surgeons office should have an insurance coordinator who will check the requirements and work with you to meet them (at least that was my experience).

First of all, take a deep breath!! What you need to do is find a way to lighten up your family favorites or adjust them slightly to work for everyone. One of the things I do is if I make something that is normally served over Pasta, I still make the pasta for DH and the kids but I put mine over veggies - that way I am pretty much having the same thing they have. When we order pizza, instead of Domino's we now order from a local Italian place where I can order a side of meatballs in marinara sauce. Last night, my DH wanted shrimp scampi so I made that for him and set some shrimp aside for me which I grilled with some mushrooms...I just make adjustments on the main dish that work for me and it isn't that much trouble to do it. The big thing I need is to not feel like I am depriving myself so as long as I am having something similar then I don't spend the entire meal wishing I was eating what they are eating. There is no right or wrong eating plan...some people do low carb, some do low fat, some do WW, some eat whatever they want but in moderation...you just need to choose a path and see how it works for you - you can always switch things up as you go. Another good place to look for recipe ideas is The World According to Eggface. She had GBP and her site contains tons of recipes that are really good. I tried her Philly Cheesesteak Casserole the other day and everyone loved it! My last suggestion is to use some sort of nutrition tracking software - I use My Fitness Pal (on my Iphone and on the computer). You can put in your food and it calculates the nutritional value so that you can see at a glance what your numbers are for the day. This helps keep me accountable... Hope those ideas help!

First of all, you are doing great! You have to remember that you are in the healing stage so weight loss isn't your top priority right now and 3 lbs in 2 weeks is right on target (1-2 lbs per week). Regarding food ideas, I was allowed canned tuna and canned chicken during the mushie stage so tuna salad or chicken salad would work for you during the induction stage of Atkins (if your surgeon allows those as mushies). Everything else I can think of that I ate during mushies would have too many carbs or too much sugar... Good luck!

I just broke through a mini-plateau (for lack of a better word - I call it mini because it only lasted a 3 weeks) by reducing my carbs to under 30 for about a week. I had previously tried increasing my calories but that didn't work for me (it might work for you because you are working out a lot more than I am). Good luck!!

I'm ready for my butt to go...at least a good portion of it...and it can take my thighs along with it so it doesn't get lonely...LOL

In my experience, that saying that you will go down a size with every 10 lbs lost is bull! I have lost 53 lbs and am down from a very tight size 28 to a 22 in pants, for tops I dm Dow from a 26/38 to a 18/20. I think the thing that has helped me the most is exercise. I am a classic pear shape and exercise is helping to reshape my butt and hips which I think is helping me go down in pants sizes quicker than usual. Hang in there...you are doing great!! The clothes sizes will start going down soon!

I like Isopure from GNC (not the fruit flavors). It is lactose free and has no carbs. Very good IMHO.