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I took the pre-approval diet pretty seriously for 6 months but I also treated myself to a Margarita once in a while, went to Red Lobster and had a margarita, appetizer and lobster lobster lobster! I went to House of Kobe and had fried rice but I made sure when I did my "last meals" they weren't every day. I followed the 80 grams of Protein, 45-50 grams of carbs and stayed about 800 calories a day and still made sure at least once a month or so I did something special like Red Lobster. I did my six months pre-approval through Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, St. Patrick's Day, (I still had a Reuben) , Easter & Mother's Day. What made "last meal" days so special for me though was, that when I would stall, the day I had my last meals, where we would go out to eat, or I would have a Reuben with two pieces of bread and something special, the next day I actually would have my stall break because I did get extra calories in. Of course, I always felt a little guilty when we had our "fore-special" outtings but in reality, it made them better and I realized I made better choices. No reason not to have a special day where you eat a hamburger, but maybe get rid of the top bread and do open face, or take one day a week that you get a little extra something special.

Although I am not yet banded - I am a part of the curves near me. I am in love with the ladies who go there, and the trainers. They are amazing and are never short of encouragement. I joined in april; and since then I have lost a little over 40 pounds & become a lot more stronger. I highly recommend you check it out.The only downfall I see of my surgery coming up is the 3 week break where I can't go into curves! I had issues going to normal gym's mostly because they gave you full control over what you wanted to do machine wise (afraid of using certain ones/lazy), where as in Curves you have the circle circuit where you just work your way around, 30 seconds per machine with resting boards in between! (plus the fact that it's a woman only gym made it so much easier for me)

I started at 3 weeks walking 2 miles, 3 days a week. I recently started lifting weights at 7 weeks post op. I also lift heavy weights but not super heavy. I also started running a week or 2 ago and now I'm able to run a mile non stop. My advice is to listen to your body. Good Luck

Hello. I am 4 months post op. Everything WAS going great! I had my first fill in Feburary. My doctor poked around on me for a good 15 minutes before decideing to wait a few days and do the fill under a portable x-ray machine. I went in, layed on the table, they positioned the x-ray where it needed to be, my doctor came in, numbed me, then found the spot right away. After my first fill was done, everything went fine. I went in March and decided I needed my 2nd fill. This time I had a doctor working under my doctor. He poked around for a half hour and couldn't find the spot he needed and it hurt. My doctor decided to do it, yet again, under a portable x-ray. This time, however, it wasn't so normal. When the x-ray was turned on, he asked the x-ray tech to do a lateral view. As soon as it turned on again, he knew it was upside down. Three or four of the stitches that are holding my port to my muscle broke. About 3 days after they discovered this, the last one broke. This was 3 weeks ago. I am waiting for my insurance company to ok the surgery to reflip the port. I am in a lot of pain right now. It feels like someone in jabbing me in the side and stomach with a knife from the inside. Has anybody had this happen? Does anybody know anything to take to help ease the pain?

I compete here in Florida we are doing mud endeavor in march 3 days before my surgery ( yikes ) My husband is training for savage race in July... If I'm well by them I might just join him!

Poodles, I also sit and look at my boyfriend (who refuses to go to the dr and he is def gaining weight) who can eat! And I am thinking to myself man, look at him eat! The other night we went out for pizza. By the time I ate 2 BITES of pizza, he is on his second slice! I ate 1 slice (not even the crust), was full, and he ate 3. I was like wow. It's amazing the food difference intake. What I am noticing is the grocery bill difference! I actully am doing less grocery shopping which I am truly enjoying! So heck, that means I am even saving money!

For the past two weeks the Girls have hurt like hell everytime I went running or played sports. It's not that time of the month and I haven't been able to explain the tenderness. And then today it dawned on me....I'm losing weight, the Girls are shrinking, and my poor sports bras just aren't cutting it anymore! So here's to the Girls and realizing they need some support in this weight loss process too!

I take Alive, liquid vitamins--nasty taste but with one 30 cc shot it is done. I also take Biotin 5,000 twice a day & have since 3rd week post-op.

Anyone else running 5ks? I did my first one on the 16th June and ran/shuffled a 42min 45sec time. My second one was on the 23rd June and I ran a 39min 30 sec. I just did my third this morning - knocking the time down to 38mins and 3 secs - that's a pace of 12:15per mile! 6 months ago I was 315lbs and would be able to walk a few miles, but that would be it. Now I am training most days and down at 248. The "high" I am getting from the running is just incredible - and combined with the lapband, the weight is just falling off. I live in The Woodlands, TX, and there is a 5k race - "Run The Woodlands" on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month - I intend to run as many as I can. They are very non-judgemental and you get a big round of applause when you cross the finish line. My goal is to finish the Houston marathon in January, with a short term goal of the Rocky Raccoon 25k on Nov. 3rd. Anyone else running 5ks? How did you get there with your training? How are your times coming along (only if you want to share)?

I broke my foot (cuboid bone) last week and it is driving me nuts! I see people riding their bikes and I so want to be them! I want to go to the YMCA and do Yoga and Strength and conditioning! Please help remember this is a temporary bump in the road! On top of it all I got that TOM and gained 4 pounds like over night! I know, I know, it is water weight and the pain meds making me hold on to water weight!

StephC - Right after I had the baby I was taking pilates classes at the gym. It was on a machine and I absolutely LOVED those classes! I was there 3 times per week. I have a pilates DVD, but it's not the same "type" of pilates, so I didn't enjoy it as much. One of my weight rewards is to join a gym, and start taking pilates again. 2x per week is my goal. nat

Keep up with the water and protein. And ask your doc about adding B12. That helped me with weakness/dizziness I had around 2-3 weeks.

I was told to get walking immediately---cardio of any kind was fine as soon as I felt up to it. For weight/resistance training, I was green-lighted after the 4-week check.

I didn't have a "stuck" episode for a quite a while after surgery, probably not until I had 2 or 3 small fills. I suppose it's possible to never have one, but as you get more fills and the novelty of being newly banded wears off a bit (sometimes I forget I have a band because I'm so used to it now), you may forget or not pay attention or be in a rush and you too will probably have that stuck feeling eventually, and if not, more power to you, you'll be one of the lucky ones. When it's happened to me it's been my own fault, each and every time from me eating too fast or not chewing enough or just being distracted while eating has caused episodes. But these episodes are very rare for me at this point (I was 1 yr post-op this past December), as I have learned what I should and shouldn't do at certain times of the day (from morning til dinner, lately, I'm pretty tight and eat very little and mostly mushier things or Protein shakes). Around dinner time is usually when I am able to eat a small meal (probably the size of a lean cuisine) and I'm satified, but I still have to be very careful. I'm not perfect all the time, which is why I am a slow loser, I do indulge on occasion but it works for me and my lifestyle. It's really all been trial and error so far in discovering foods I should try to avoid and things that usually give me no trouble. The only thing I can't do is eat fried or crispy (from being baked in the oven) chicken skin, which I shouldn't be having anyway lol, but this is a big NO for me, the few times I've tried it I've gotten stuck, even just one bite has gotten stuck no matter how much I chewed it. I also can't sit and eat a big burger with the bun or eat a big sub sandwich with the bun (shouldn't be doing that either, but I can't even if I wanted to). Also, if I have steak and it's too chewy, fatty, well done, or rubbery I have to spit it out because I know it'll get stuck. But for the most part I can have every type of food as long as it's cooked right, Pasta, rice, breads, all meats, although sometimes veggies give me trouble unless they are really over cooked, salads are sometimes hard, I have to eat them extra slowly. If my food is dry, that means trouble, so I try to moisten it a little with fat free dressings or fat free sour cream fat free sauces or gravys, I eat alot of avacoado too in place of mayo to add some moisture. So I basically can eat anything, just in very small amounts now, I have to be very careful though at all times when I'm eating. This wasn't so until my last fill (about a month ago). I'm now at 7ccs in an 11cc band and this is definitely as tight as I feel I should be without starving to death lol. I felt a little restriction since the beinging, and then little by little I felt a little more with each small fill, but comparing that to how I feel right now, I'd say that was nothing compared to this! So it took me over a year to get where I needed to be with restriction, my "green zone", but that's mainly because my doctors believe in filling slowly and also because I'm self pay since my insurance changed. I have to pay out of pocket for each fill so I didn't fill up as often as I would have liked to. Like I mentioned before, the amount of food I eat for dinner is about the size of a small lean cuisine, sometimes I can eat more, sometimes less, it depends on the day or the types of food I'm eating. I do not measure my food, to me that whole 1 cup, half cup of food thing is for the birds.. I eat what I'm eating and I count my protein and calories, that's it. I am not telling anyone to not measure their food, always follow your doctors orders, I'm just stating that this is what works for me, my doctor feels this is fine for me to do it as long as I'm still losing. To answer your question as to why some don't feel restriction until after several fills, keep in mind that every BODY is different, what works for you might not work for someone else, it's not an exact science. Some people have bigger bands that need more Fluid to constrict, some people have larger stomachs and need more saline injected in their bands for the proper amount of restriction. Some doctors do small fills, some do bigger. Sometimes just the band alone is enough for some patients and some need to be super tight. We are all different, but in time we can find our perfect balance. Good luck to you, I've babbled enough.. I hope some of what I've said helps!

A WOMAN'S WEEK AT THE GYM This is dedicated to everyone who ever attempted to get into a regular workout routine. Dear Diary, For my birthday this year, my daughter (the dear) purchased a week of personal training at the local health club for me.Although I am still in great shape since being a high school football cheerleader 43 years ago, I decided it would be a good idea to go ahead and give it a try. I called the club and made my reservations with a personal trainer named Belinda, who identified herself as a 26-year-old aerobics instructor and model for athletic clothing and swim wear. My daughter seemed pleased with my enthusiasm to get started! The club encouraged me to keep a diary to chart my progress. MONDAY: Started my day at 6:00 a.m. Tough to get out of bed, but found it was well worth it when I arrived at the health club to find Belinda waiting for me. She is something of a Greek goddess - with blonde hair,dancing eyes and a dazzling white smile. Woo Hoo!! Belinda gave me a tour and showed me the machines. I enjoyed watching the skillful way in which she conducted her aerobics class after my workout today. Very inspiring! Belinda was encouraging as I did my sit-ups, although my gut was already aching from holding it in the whole time she was around. This is going to be a FANTASTIC week-!! TUESDAY: I drank a whole pot of coffee, but I finally made it out the door. Belinda made me lie on my back and push a heavy iron bar into the air then she put weights on it! My legs were a little wobbly on the treadmill, but I made the full mile. Belinda's rewarding smile made it all worthwhile. I feel GREAT-!! It's a whole new life for me! WEDNESDAY: The only way I can brush my teeth is by laying the toothbrush on the counter and moving my mouth back and forth over it. I believe I have a hernia in both pectorals. Driving was OK as long as I didn't try to steer or stop. I parked on top of a GEO in the club parking lot! Belinda was impatient with me, insisting that my screams bothered other club members. Her voice is a little too perky for early in the morning, and when she scolds, she gets this nasally whine that is VERY annoying. My chest hurt when I got on the treadmill, so Belinda put me on the stair monster. Why the Hell would anyone invent a machine to simulate an activity rendered obsolete by elevators? Belinda told me it would help me get in shape and enjoy life. She said some other s**t, too. THURSDAY : Belinda was waiting for me with her vampire-like teeth exposed as her thin, cruel lips were pulled back in a full snarl. I couldn't help being a half an hour late, it took me that long to tie my shoes. Belinda took me to work out with dumbbells. When she was not looking, I ran and hid in the restroom!! She sent another little skinny thing to find me. Then, as punishment, she put me on the rowing machine -- which I sank. FRIDAY : I hate that Belinda more than any human being has ever hated any other human being in the history of the world. Stupid, skinny, anemic, anorexic little cheerleader. If there was a part of my body I could move without unbearable pain, I would beat her with it. Belinda wanted me to work on my triceps. I don't have any triceps! And if you don't want dents in the floor, don't hand me the darned barbells or anything that weighs more than a sandwich. The treadmill flung me off and I landed on a health and nutrition teacher. Why couldn't it have been someone softer, like the drama coach or the choir director? SATURDAY : Belinda left a message on my answering machine in her grating, shrilly voice wondering why I did not show up today. Just hearing her made me want to smash the machine with my planner. However, I lacked the strength to even use the TV remote and ended up catching eleven straight hours of the Weather Channel. SUNDAY : I'm having the Church van pick me up for services today so I can go and thank GOD that this week is over. I will also pray that next year my daughter (the little s**t) will choose a gift for me that is fun -- like a root canal or a hysterectomy. I still say if God had wanted me to bend over, he would have sprinkled the floor with diamonds!!

Saturday, I did a spin class in the morning and then xc skied 3 miles in the afternoon. Really felt that on Sunday morning. It's -7 this morning and I'm planning to go skiing this afternoon. Scheduled for spin class tonight. CGJ, I've been looking around for xc ski clubs but can't find any in my area. Plenty of downhill ski clubs and several friends are into that. I also want to get into mountain-biking this Summer, but my friends that are into cycling stay on the roads. I have 15 miles of mountain-top bike trails near my house, but have been warned to not go up there alone as the conditions are rough. I biked up there 35 years and it was rough. I'm told it's now 10 times worse.

Hello everyone! I just started with a personal trainer. I do 2 days/ week of strength training and 3 more days /week of cardio (2 days off). I am SOOOOOOOOOO sore from the strength training. Not kidding. It is hard to walk. I know, I know; this will get better in time. But any suggestions for relief would be fantastic. Thank you in advance

My doc said I could swim once the scabs fell off (around 2 weeks). The first few times I couldn't last more than 15-20 minutes, so I'd say wait about 3 weeks before trying water aerobics and don't be surprised if you need to stop halfway through the class.

after 2 weeks of working out eating healthy standing long hours ( i was leaning to 1 side at the time ive noticed ) protien shakes around 1200 cals a day or more.... also 4 Ls of water a day ( exercises include 6 min abs bike riding dumbbells sqauts and palaetes ) also abdominal massages to try loosen up the abdominal fat ( i am skinny ) i noticed the left side poking out alot more then the right side next to the belly button... i thought ab!!??? then i realised no swelling... with a dul pain that radiates sometimes down to my hip bone im having a masive anxiety attack over this or its real ? first thing i thought was stomach cancer ? small intestine cancer ? then i thought i dont wanna tell my parents this and stress them out first dr said its normal just the intestine that moves i gave it 4 weeks with no exercises it was still there the 2nd dr said its abnormal but i shouldnt worry and relax come back in 2 weeks so i did so now he said he cant feel nothing while the abdominals have swollen... ( it goes up and down ) after all of this im due for scans tomorrow wich freak me out making me wanna just sleep and not worry but i cant cause i dislocated my arm for the 2nd time and cant sleep proper ive also cleaned out a house im doing up to set for ppl to rent out and there was mice feccies if theres any diseases in that ?? but the drs think im mad and no1 cares does anyone have any idea what this could be ??????( the dr also said while examined its not a hernia or a ceptic ulcer )

I know this is going to be a problem for me. Just getting my exercise ducks in a row for after surgery (almost a week away but too quick to begin a regimen) and when I get the okay.

I am joining a gym again, YAY!!!! I am not much of a walker (bad ankle) but I love the elliptical, weight training and would eventually like to take some classes to spice up the routine!! I have been looking into clubs as I should be cleared for exercise in 1.5 weeks. My brother is adding me to his plan today with no initiation fee and a really good rate. Mother's Day weekend special for all family members. I am so happy!! The largest amount of weight I have ever lost on my own (85 lbs) happened when I joined a gym many many moons ago. I am so motivated, its scary!! :welldoneclap:

My opinion. Minimally you should get all your muscles twice a week, three times max. Three sets of 15 what ever you are doing...and you should be fatigued by the end of the third set. If it's too light then add more weight. You need to bust your butt to really grow muscles like body builders, don't worry about over doing it. There are all kinds of ways you can hit your muscles groups and ways to rest between sets. Google it. Good luck. Also, if you want to really to knock yourself out look up Crossfit. It's cardio and strength training at the same time. There's lots of jumping and crazy stuff, but it's a great time saver.

MMurray26 "The One Thing We Have in Common, is that we're all different!!!!" There is no "norm" on how people feel post op some people feel great and have returned to work within a few days others are tired, feel a little weak for a few days - maybe a week or two you "should"/will gradually gain your strength back don't overdue anything if you need a nap in the middle of the day......go for it who deserves it more?? you just had major surgery you are the important one for now - take care of yourself if you have kids, tell them to go run around the block for a week speedy recovery kathy

great. sounds like a similar diet to what I had for a 3 week pre-op diet. it is a nice transition to the post-op diet stages. I think it helps mentally prepare you. good luck!!!

The annual "Walk from Obesity" is a 3 mile walk that takes place all over the USA. The Dallas walk is Saturday, September 18th. I don't know if all areas do it the day. If interested in walking for a good cause, your cause. Check out their website. The Walk from Obesity - Join a Walk