Well - I'm just about at my goal weight! Had my surgery Novembver 16th 2009 and as of today I've lost 102 pounds with 8 left

Congratulations!! I have fallen off the wagon and am trying to regain my strength to continue...I have gained about 15 lbs just after dropping under 100lbs off...ugh. I should have met ny goal weight by now and am just going the wrong direction. You are an inspiration!

Hello Howdybooth,

I had my band placed on Oct 30, 2009. We are almost mates. You look great!

I am on maintenance, which for me is harder than loosing. Due to a slip, my band is empty, so now, I have to put all my learned experience of 2 years into work. It is mostly a success. Best of luck to you. Karen

JBall - may I ask how you gained? I keep my band pretty tight - that way my biggest temptation (breads) can not be eaten. Maybe you need a fill - tighten you back up so that you are restricted to what you can and can not eat.

kll724 - I was wondering about maintenance......people think the hardest part is losing the weight.......I think that maintenance is much harder! Also - since I'm not at goal, but I am continueing to lose 1/2-1 pound per week, what do I do when I reach my goal? Have some Fluid removed?

I think you are right that I need a fill...though I also feel that I SHOULD be able to control myself...but I never could for long in the past so I guess I should use my band as it is intended! Thanks for your support!

JBall - may I ask how you gained? I keep my band pretty tight - that way my biggest temptation (breads) can not be eaten. Maybe you need a fill - tighten you back up so that you are restricted to what you can and can not eat.

kll724 - I was wondering about maintenance......people think the hardest part is losing the weight.......I think that maintenance is much harder! Also - since I'm not at goal, but I am continueing to lose 1/2-1 pound per week, what do I do when I reach my goal? Have some Fluid removed?

I lost a 104 pounds in a year. I've always been a big exerciser. I just couldn't do the eating. It took me a year to really recover from the surgery and bike like i used to bike. This way of life is severely lacking in carbs and biking without carbs is difficult. After a year, I kind of just stopped losing weight. I had to have an unfill once because I was too tight. I knew it was too tight because I couldn't even drink water. I called my doc immediately. I probably do need to get a fill again but after being too tight, I think I might wait a little longer. October rolled around and then the holidays and winter!!!! OMG I gained back 20 pounds. Frustrating! There was also coming off my diuretic BP meds. Now that it's warmer and nicer outside, I'm back to biking and working out again with a higher intensity. Turns out my calories are too low for my workouts. As soon as I raised my calorie intake to fit the exercise and starting logging in my calories, I started losing again. But Howdybooth may be right, it might be time to get a fill. I can eat certain types of bread, thin crust and crusty types. I bet being tighter I wouldn't be able to eat any those. I don't want to go through this every winter! It takes work! Maintenance for me will probably be a long time of still logging calories!