Progress: Caffeine (19 Mar 10)

[caffeine 0]

Weight lost on pre-op diet: 17.5 lbs (1.6 lb/day).

I gained 1.2 lbs during surgery. Probably swelling plus the weight of the band itself.

Weight loss with lap-band in 3 days: 6lbs (2 lb/day).

In all, total weight loss is 23.5 lbs, but what's truly amazing is how effortless weight loss is right now. Tomorrow I will be under 230, which is what I weighed in the middle of grad school.

To me, the lap-band is magical. I know what it does, but there's something else it does which the doctors don't advertise. It somehow makes it easy for me to listen to my stomach. My stomach tells me things, and I never could listen. I always wanted the last few fries on the plate. Or had "room for dessert". Somehow, the lap-band opened up a connection between my brain and my stomach.

Actually, maybe I could phrase it this way. The lap-band doesn't make me realize when I'm no longer hungry. It makes me realize when I'm full. There's an important distinction. When you're "not hungry", you can always eat if you want to. It becomes a matter of willpower. And since I am overweight, I already know that my food willpower is ... "limited".

But when you're "full" rather than "not hungry", there's less willpower involved. I can FEEL my stomach is full. and it FEELS like I shouldn't be putting anything more in my mouth.

My only regret is not doing this sooner. I should've done the band years ago.

I see tons of people on the forum who have lost 100 lbs and more. Even though I may not talk or interact with them, I definitely take notice. I totally understand where that kind of weight loss comes from.

Whoever this Mr. Lapband was, he was a genius! :frown:

[BetsyB 9]

It sounds like you have just the right mind set for this to work for you, Caffeine.

I'm not a professional bubble-burster, but it's realistic for you to expect that, once your postop swelling recedes, you will experience hunger for a period of time until you achieve good restriction.

That doesn't mean you won't continue to enjoy great weight loss success; it sounds to me as though you have the mindset to lose no matter what.

Just don't be discouraged, okay? Right now you've got a sort of postop euphoria going for you----and while I don't think you're headed for buyer's remorse (I've never felt even a split-second of that), you might be headed for times when it seems less effortless. (Even then, your body will be busy changing, even if the scale does not cooperate always.)

Good luck!

[caffeine 0]

I'm actually almost relieved to hear there's no magic involved. If my current weight loss is post-op surgery, then I'll take it graciously. :frown: I think what really sold me on this thing was the adjustability.

Heh. I think your term, euphoria, pretty accurately describes me right now. My wife noticed that my multiple "love handles" are gone. Now I just need to work on that front tire I have hanging off my belly. :thumbup:

One of the reasons why it *seems* effortless is that when I *am* hungry, a glass of Water or a cup of water is enough to assuage it. I drink the water, and my stomach feels full. It gets rid of that empty pit feeling that can only be scratched by raiding the fridge.

Is that the effect of post-op swelling? How many days does it take for that to subside? I'd just like to know so I can prepare for it. Right now I feel like I'm top of the world. Maybe a good dose of reality would be good for me.

Edited March 19, 2010 by caffeine

[Drasan 23]

"Somehow, the lap-band® opened up a connection between my brain and my stomach."

Love, love, love this statement. That nails my thoughts exactly. I'm at the same stage as you, 9 days post op.

When I was in the hospital, I was told this is the honeymoon stage. I'm loving the time it's giving me to learn what restriction feels like. So when it's time to start getting fills, I know what to expect.

Good luck on your journey and THANK YOU for that great thought!

[caffeine 0]

Cool! I'm glad it resonates with you. It definitely feels that way for me as well!

BTW, off-topic, how do you choose a profile picture and that neat-o BMI ticker from TickerFactory at the end of your post? I'd like to have one too. :frown:

Edited March 19, 2010 by caffeine

[Drasan 23]

I'm not sure I'm the best one to explain how to add the ticker and avatar. I sort of stumbled around after some instruction and figured it out, but here goes.

Here is the link for the ticker factory. If this site allows links, not sure. Weight Loss - Diet Ticker

There are instructions to walk you through.

After you create it, copy the code and paste it into your signature box.

You can find Edit Options, which include Edit Signature and Edit Avatar by clicking on Quick Links located on this site on the blue bar right below Welcome Caffeine.

I hope that helps. Send me a message if you still have questions.

[babsy 0]

I must still be in post-op euphoria too then. I'm 2 and a half weeks post band, and have lost 8kg since I started the pre-op diet (nearly 4 weeks ago). The best part is that I still haven't felt hungry. I eat at meal times because I should, but because I'm not "starving" I don't go to the fridge and grab whatever's quickest. Instead, I plan what I'll eat, something that is healthy and nutritious, and that's all I will have.

I still battle a little in the evening, but that's head hunger because I had the bad habit of snacking at night. So now I prepare by having sugar free lollies, and diet Desserts if I really need something more (1 or 2 a week).

No idea how long this will last, but I'm enjoying it. I haven't felt full yet, but don't want to eat too much and get pain. I did have a 4ml fill put in in OT, so maybe this is working? I don't know. Don't see the doc for another 2 weeks.

[vlp1968 83]

I am jealous. I didn't have very long of no hunger after surgery- probably about 4 days. After that, I was starving. I was banded on Nov. 16. Now, I have restriction off and on with fills. Can't wait for that to be more consistent. I am sticking to the food and excersise plan and am pretty pleased with my weight loss- 58 pounds.

[caffeine 0]

Hi Babsy, I thought I detected the Queen's English before I saw where you're from. I have a friend from The Courant who does CDS for AIG. He's from Sydney.

It's so weird to see people use kilograms for body weight. All my degrees but one are in physics, so I have a good intuition about kilograms...

I can quote the Earth's mass kilograms from memory. I could give an approximate mass for the Sun or Jupiter even though I don't have that memorized because I worked in kg so much. Same for the mass of an electron. It's so natural to think in kilograms.

But when I see kilograms for body weight it takes me aback. It's shocking. Such an odd sensation to feel so comfortable with kg for "physicsy" things but feel so uncomfortable with kg for humans. Wow!!!

I know that a person should weigh more or less 70-80kg, but I don't have a "feel" for that number. I couldn't tell you if 90kg or 60kg is unreasonable for an avg sized person.

Back to our favorite topic. I'm still in my honeymoon. I didn't lose any weight yesterday, but I have to get used to the fact that I'm not going to be losing a pound or two a day like I used to. I'd eventually disappear if I did! :-)

Today was interesting.

Someone who just finished their PhD in physics with my thesis advisor called me out of the blue (he joined the group after I left so I don't know him) and wanted to know how to get into finance. Had lunch with him at an Indian restaurant. Indian food is something I can gorge myself on.

Today I had one samosa and about 1/3 of the food they served. Back in the bad ol' days, I could've easily have finished the whole thing, AND have some nan as well. So I did pretty damned good, but I still can't shake the feeling that I "cheated".

Then tonight we watched 4 episodes of Lost. We eat while we watch Lost. I ate about 1.5 cups of food:

sauteed tuna steak

avocado and onion salad

lentil Beans

taboulli salad

and I feel totally stuffed to the rafters; like I cheated. But the fact remains, I could've easily have eaten twice as much before. At least. Yet I still feel like I cheated.

I need to really retrain myself -- I'm not on a "diet". I *have* a diet, but I'm not on a diet. I rarely feel starving. When I feel munchy, a glass of Water usually does the trick.

But I'm still dying of curiosity about what's going to happen when I stand on that scale tomorrow morning. Today the admin assistant told me that my face looked much thinner. She hadn't seen me since before my operation a week ago. When she said that I was elated.

This is truly the best thing to happen to me. Why oh why couldn't I have found the LAP-BAND® a decade ago?

[caffeine 0]

vlp, 60 lbs in 4 months is great. There are millions of people out there who can only dream about your progress. Don't beat yourself up over it. At 60lbs, you're an inspiration to me. Whatever you're doing, it sounds like it's working to me.

One thing that helps me a lot is Water. It has become an integral part of my life.

I made two purchases which I am 100% happy with: Green Vibrance and Alive! Multivitamin supplement.

In the mornings I make a concoction of Green Vibrance and empty out two capsules of Biotin and St. John's Wort and mix it into a mug of water. It totally fills me up and is a great nutritious Breakfast. I'm totally happy with it and don't miss my Starbucks sandwiches one bit. It makes me feel like I'm doing something really good for my body.

The Alive! Vitamin supplement is what I have for dessert because it's fruity. I'm not big on sweet stuff to begin with, but fruity is great. I mix it in with a big mug of water and add a little rose water and it's a *phenomenal* dessert that I sip while watching Lost, Family Guy, or South Park.

When I'm feeling "munchy" or hungry, this is my strategy:

1. Drink a glass of water.

2. Drink a glass of water.

If I still feel munchy,

3. A bottle of Ensure.

By this point, I'm absolutely full. It's true that sometimes I'm still "hungry" even though my stomach feels full, but by this point, my stomach feels so full that I *have* to wait. And when I do wait, the hunger is assuaged.

[dontgoggilme 0]

i, too, feel the band has given me a different brain stomach connection. it's like i do listen to my body now whereas before i just kept on eating cuz it tasted good. now i know when i to stop and i do stop. and i'm still just on liquids. i can't wait to see how well the new "connection" works out when i'm doing mushies and regular foods.

[caffeine 0]

One of my best friends is from "Nawlins". :-)

Yeah, that's totally my experience too. The only time I knew when to stop was like after gorging myself on Thanksgiving dinner.

It's still kind of freaky. I get that "I can't stand another bite" feeling way way way sooner than I ever did.

[babsy 0]

Hi Babsy, I thought I detected the Queen's English before I saw where you're from. I have a friend from The Courant who does CDS for AIG. He's from Sydney.

Hi caffeine, nice to meet you. I have no idea what any of that means?

It's so weird to see people use kilograms for body weight. All my degrees but one are in physics, so I have a good intuition about kilograms...

I'll change my ticker to pounds just for you. I tried to add another but it wouldn't let me (or I couldn't do it). Funny you said the Queens English - I'm originally from England, but a long time ago.

I'm feeling really full after eating way less than a quarter of my usual meal. We had roasted marinated beef with roast potato and pumpkin, plus steamed broccoli. My husband served what he thought was an OK amount, which I put in the blender as I'm on mushies. I have a funny feeling under my sternum, which might mean I've had enough. I'm certainly not hungry, so I've stopped. Probably ate about as much as a jar of baby food.

You drink lots of Water. Water is what I struggle with. I always feel overful after one mouthful. I'm trying really hard to sip, and was always a slow drinker pre-band. However I did sometimes choke on water before, yet nothing else. Lucky the pre-op diet got me used to black tea, so I have that instead. Tough at work too, as I only get a break for coffee and lunch. I have water as well as coffee, but don't want to drink with lunch (exciting - a diet yoghurt). Just have to try and catch up with fluids at night. When I want to eat, a sugar-free lolly or piece of gum is what helps me.

Physics is way off my expertise. I'm a registered nurse, but my masters is in counselling. As far apart as they can get???

[caffeine 0]

Apologies!

AIG = Big insurance company that received bail-out money.

CDS = Credit default swap.

Courant = Mathematical institute of New York University.

Almost as arcane as Aussie slang. :-)

17 lbs speaks to me. :-) Just out of curiosity, do you think equally well in kg and lbs? In the US, all applied math, science and most scholarly engineering is done in SI (metric) but in day to day life we pretty much exclusively use English units.

I take it a lolly means "candy" and not "lollipop"? My friend calls everything sweet a lolly. It throws me for a loop.

Naw, actually counseling isn't that far off. A lot of it is problem solving and/or diagnosing. They're just different kinds problems! :-) I once dated a cultural anthropologist. Now that was way off the scale. But it was cool because she was interested in physics and I was interested in anthro.

[Journey482 0]

Caffeine, you are right on target with so many of your statements, and I too love the "connection between brain and stomach." I 've never had that!

From my initial consultation on 12/2/09 until the surgery on 3/16/10, I was down 23 pounds (this through the holidays, football playoffs and Super Bowl! quite a coup for me). As of now - not a dang pound lost since banding 8 days ago. BUT as I think about it, I've used bouillion as a filler - low cal, and HOT (which I am missing a lot), but maybe the sodium is killing me so I'm off that for a few days. You're doing great if you're already on "food" so soon, and still losing.

We need to eliminate the phrase "cheating on my diet" from our lives. There are plenty of healthy, thinner people out there who have regular meals and even dessert, but know when to stop. So I need the band to help me learn that lesson (or unlearn all the bad lessions I was taught, like "clean your plate"); so be it.

Congrats to you on your success so far, and I hope to see you around these forums for a long time coming, with both of us headed towards the healthy body and lifestyle we deserve.