Hi all! I met this gal in Michigan last night at my support meeting. She is 18 months out from her surgery & has lost 142 pounds!!! Isn't that awesome. She looked great. I asked her what some of her pointer would be. She said the following:

* Wrap your head around the idea that the weight just won't fall off from the very begining! You must work hard at it through exercise & diet, even w/the band!

This just clicked for me after 7 mnths (see LBT Bootcamp)

* She started exercising after the first week of surgery & Has never stopped. She only does 3 miles on a tread mill x3 a week. She also walks quickly up & down the stairscases with her daughter between every commercail if they watch TV at night. She says they usually watch 2 to 3 programs & end up getting in some great cardio.

I think I'll start this today.

* She doesn't eat more that a 1/2 cup of food at a time & doesn't eat till she feels full. She just eats whats on her plate & say I am not allowed more till a few more hours pass by. She claims she doesn't get hungry.

This would be hard for me BUT I am willing to try.

* She does juice alot w/vegs & fruits & Never eats solids in the morning. This is because she is too tight in the early hours to do so.

I actually have my sisters juicer arriving anyday- they stopped using it. Lucky me!

* She said most importantly she has journeled herself. I don't think she does it now & it wasn't that she journeled FOOD, it was her daily routine & EMOTIONS. She said this is what her break through was & encouraged me too do the same.

I hate journeling BUT I AM GOING TO DO THIS, just think if it works!!

We also did circut training at our support group last night & it was so much fun! Dr.Pleatman has a meeting once a month & there is always something new to learn. I love it. In March they are having their annual retreat for all of his patiences from all over. Its 3 days usually & I hear tons of fun. I can't wait!

I also mentioned that since she is 18 mnths out she should have an endoscope done to be safe.

I told her about all the unfortunate band loses we've had these past mnths.

She agreed & will let me know of the results.

For those of you wondering I believe her fill is just under 2cc. She'll let me know for sure this monday.

I felt she was very inspiring & it made me feel like we all can do this too!!

Those are some great suggestions! I'll certainly be taking them onboard.

The stair-climbing tip is a great idea, although, in the UK, we don't have comercials on the BBC channels, so I'll just have to climb stairs during the dull bits.

It's great to get advice from someone who's not only been in our situation, but has succeeded in goals we've set ourselves.

WOW...Good for her. I bet she feels great and is so proud of herself. Of all her suggestions I think the best on is to wrap your head around the idea that the weight just won't fall off. Even w/the band you MUST diet and exercise. Her results are proof of the diet and exercise bit. I have only had my band for four days, but I can't wait to use my new weight loss tool along w/exercise and a healthy diet to get down to my goal weight.

Humm well, sorry to be a neggative ass, but all I can think about when I hear this stuff is if she could do all that THAN WHY did she even get the band? I am glad she got it and was able to suceed and do it right, but IF it were ME, IF I was able to be so diciplined like I have tried for 20 years to be, than I wouldnt have spent the only money I have ever got in my life on the band,

I'm glad you posted these tips...this may not be true for all of us bandsters, but what the band does for me is to allow me to gain some discipline. I don't feel as hungry most of the time as I did before the band. It stops me when my emotions win and I want to eat and eat...I just can't. Having lost 45 lbs makes me feel like exercise isn't so bad, even though I haven't really acted on that feeling. So, being able to do those things after the surgery, does not mean you could have done them before. But that's just me.

Cindy

Humm well, sorry to be a neggative ass, but all I can think about when I hear this stuff is if she could do all that THAN WHY did she even get the band? I am glad she got it and was able to suceed and do it right, but IF it were ME, IF I was able to be so diciplined like I have tried for 20 years to be, than I wouldnt have spent the only money I have ever got in my life on the band,

I understand what your saying for sure. The way I look at it is we all have tried things before & many of them we were sucessful at. I think the key here is that with the diet & exercise & HAVING THE BAND it is the added security that the weight will hopefully stay off & we can learn these tricks of the trade & put them into our everyday routines & hopefully make them just like breathing. Its like a security net. I don't think she had any will power like she does now after the band. Its what helped her get her jump start. By the way great job on your over 60 pd loss Nykee.

P>S> I don't even think she is doing so much. Its the fact that she keeps doing it which I need to master. Its not even a full month on LBT Bootcamp & I am already getting tired ;0) But I pray I don't quit & keep going like she did.

I have severe arthritis and have been unable to do anything but walk about 100 feet for 3 years. It has been really a downer, but the arthritis is getting a little better now with the methotrexate and I am hoping that when I get banded I can exercise more since the arthritis should improve after losing some weight. I have no stamina though or staying power because of all the years (at least 3, maybe more) of just sitting around because I was in such pain and so fatigued from the arthritis. I am determined to be able to exercise though when I get banded and start losing weight!

Nykee,I feel the same than you about this but I am so ashamed of the fact that I had wls and that I might not lose weight.....that I will lose weight at all cost now......I will do all the things that I couldnt do previously.....I might still not be good at them and I still hate the exercise and I still suck at dieting and I still want to eat all the time,head hunger is killing me, but when I realized that I had wasted all that money,I started working this band for sure.....self pay is good for that....all the band did was made me realize nothing really can make you lose weight (maybe the DS or RNY,lol.....)but yourself....and if I want to really lose weight I have to do it myself.....I still have 80 pounds to lose but less that a year ago I weighed 350 pounds...I am now 250 by hook or by crook....maybe trying all those suggestions will be a good thing ....part of the hook and crook that might just work....

Forever battling the bulge....desertmom...

Wow 142 lbs! That is so inspiring.

I used to sit around and say I can't and I didn't. I was banded on January 12 and I was determined to say I can and do!

I started walking... not far, but a start. Don't get me wrong, I was out of breath putting my sneakers on. But if I say I can't do it I will be letting the "weight demon" win. Two weeks in and I am walking a mile aday.

THAT IS BIG FOR ME. I used to watch people walking and instead of watching I am doing!!!!

Today the glass is 1/2 full and I can:scared:

ME AND MY NEW FRIEND.... MY BAND!

Nykee, I have been able to follow good dieting rules in the past, but my motivation always went down the drain because I just didn't see results. There was one point where I gave up all sugar and carbonation and exercised my butt off for 3 months STRAIGHT! I saw a 2 pound weight loss. That was it! So for me, the band means that I can follow the same rules only this time I will actually see results. It's incredibly motivating. For me, seeing the scale go up does not motivate me to work harder, only when it goes down. It enables me to keep my motivation which is the #1 key to weight loss!

I should also mention that this gal that I met. Well she said that the 3 miles is what she does 3xs a week NOW.

Remember she is 18 mnths out. Who knows how long it took her to get up to those 3 miles?? I didn't ask her that. Its different for every single person. I myself am up to 3 miles 3 times a week & it took me one month to get there. But I am already 32 pounds down. If you asked me to do this 7 mnths ago I wouldn't have been able. Too much on my knees. The trick for me will be not stopping.

My biggest dissapointment after ever diet I do is not stay with it. The band I pray will always be with me. Its very easy for me to say "Hey look what I am doing" & than only give it a month or two. I want to say, for myself one day "Hey look what I am doing & I haven't quit yet" and than have the date read Feb 20th, 2007!!

The key is to never give up trying.

I don't feel as hungry most of the time as I did before the band. It stops me when my emotions win and I want to eat and eat...I just can't.

That right there is exactly why I'm getting banded.

That's fantastic!

For me, I always gave up on diet and exercise too. Just couldn't stick with it. Exercise made me hurt .. diet, well, I just didn't have the willpower. The band has enabled me to make better choices and to be fuller. I don't use food as a crutch anymore. As the weight has come off, I've started enjoying exercise. It feels great.

Nykee .. you'll get there. I promise. Just give yourself time

:clap2:

Wow 142 lbs! That is so inspiring.

I used to sit around and say I can't and I didn't. I was banded on January 12 and I was determined to say I can and do!

I started walking... not far, but a start. Don't get me wrong, I was out of breath putting my sneakers on. But if I say I can't do it I will be letting the "weight demon" win. Two weeks in and I am walking a mile aday.

Thats what I call an NSV!!!! Way to be proactive! What a super super NSV!:clap2:

Thanks for the post. I agree with Cndy, Now that I have lost about 43lbs it is easier for me to exercise. I don not want to get into 'Diet Mode' with the band. I do know however even without the band eating the wrong kinds of food is not the way to go. I too drink my breakfast in the morning because I am too tight . I will say this I am at 2.8cc's in my 4cc band and I am at my sweet spot! I feel the same restriction I felt when first banded. Restriction is also helpful in losing I didn't see where she told you that. It is VERY important. Thanks for the post I need to exercise regularly that is something I am dealing with constantly.

Thanks for the post. I agree with Cndy, Now that I have lost about 43lbs it is easier for me to exercise. I will say this I am at 2.8cc's in my 4cc band and I am at my sweet spot! I feel the same restriction I felt when first banded. Restriction is also helpful in losing I didn't see where she told you that. It is VERY important.

Great 43 pound loss!! Whoohooo! What the lady did say is that she had a great fill at just under 2 cc for her. She says she never gets hungry & eats only a 1/2 cup of solids at a time. So I believe that would be because of here restricition. Not willpower. I still don't quit have my sweet spot but I think I may be there now if I could just get a hold of this head hunry I still have. Sometimes I still pb & than sometimes I eat like crazy & others I think I am at a perfect fill. I think I need my head to get more into the game & stay at the fill I am at.