Its All Good

[waitingpatiently 250]

So I’m now a little over a year out and wanted to share a few reflections on my journey so far. Please know that this was my journey….yours will be different. But I thought maybe you might find something that will help you along the journey, like I did from all those that shared their stories for me. Warning its very long!!! Sorry about that. I just have so much I want to share with you guys!!

A little background.

I started this journey March 19,2012 at 236. I was never heavy until after the birth of my 3^rd child. I was very sick with that last pregnancy…… contracted a rare and deadly pneumonia that put me in the ICU for weeks. This damaged my lungs and it seemed like it was all downhill from there. I’m just now feeling “normal” again. That was almost 15 years ago. For me this journey was more than a physical makeover. It was a physical. Emotional, spiritual make over. There was not one area of my life I didn’t dig into. I will save that for another post. For now let’s just stick to what worked for me.

Pre-op

What helped the most was educating myself. I LIVED on this site the last few weeks before my surgery I prepared myself mentally for everything. I created a Stock My Pantry List that I see still gets around on this site. It helped me tremendously and gave me something to do (controll). This part of my journey was very much like I was nesting for a baby. Cleaning, cooking, and organizing everything in preparation of being out of commission for a couple of weeks. If you want a copy of the Stock My Pantry list….fill free to inbox me and I’ll be glad to send it to you. The best advice received during this stage: Follow doctor orders no exceptions!

Post-Op

No matter how much I prepared for the surgery….I still was unprepared. You see there were so many people that had such a quick recovery; I just knew that would be me! I have a very high tolerance for pain….Well I guess not!!! I did have several other things done at the time, but OH MY!!! Prepare for the worst and hope for the best! I had two hernias and adhesions removed along with the band..so maybe that was the difference…but I didn’t feel good for at least a week.

Best Advice: The 4-6 weeks is for healing….so focus on that not weight loss!!!!....And stay off the scale!!!

MY Journey

I have been asked several times what made the band work for me, while others struggle so much. I’m a rule follower and a little OCD so if I get something in my head I can’t let it go. So I really never doubted I could get the weight off….I knew I could (I had done it several times before), but my problem lied in keeping it off. The band alone will not do this for you!!! The one thing I have learned is that utilizing the band and making it work for me was very much a head game (demanding your body to co-operate!!). I never thought of myself as “Addicted” to food. I could see how that element would make the process even harder. I might even consider a different WLS. It took 8 fills for me to feel anything!! If I hadn't been so determined I could see how it would have become very discouraging. And I still think I need another fill, but I’m waiting till after my abdominalplasty /Breast Lift that is scheduled in less than 4 weeks. This process takes time. You must be vigilant and dedicated to the process.

For me, I have a condition called PCOS. I never realized that it was this condition that made it so hard for me to lose weight until my daughter was diagnosised with it at about the same time I had my surgery. I saw her struggling to lose her 50 pounds. Her doctor did well at educating both of us. I knew I had PCOS)( they told me that was the reason for my infertility 20 years earlier)….but I guess back then they didn’t know as much about it as they do now. I just thought it was an infertility issue….I was skinny (120 pounds) and Physically fit back then. After I had my family, I put it out of my head…it never dawn on me it was the source of my weight issues 20 years later. So with that new found info I was able to educate myself on the condition and put in place significant diet changes. Here is where some controversial ideas come in play. REMEEMBER this is MY journey!!! This worked for me. If you have similar issues, it may work for you….that’s why I’m posting it.

But it may not work for you. You see there is a large group people that believe we are all basically the same…you know a calorie is a calorie…..and that we all basically need the same amount of them and that our bodies need the type foods. I STRONGLY disagree. I think we are ALL different….none of us are the same. We all have unique set of genes that determine how our bodies will respond to different foods. That’s why two people can follow the exact same plan and have extremely different results. I agree that the majority of people fall right in the middle in calorie needs however there are a large portion of people that fall on the outside of those averages. Some of us could NEVER consume 1200 calories a day and still lose weight!! Most people could…not me. While there are others that could consume their 2500 calories a day and never gain an ounce (I doubt there are many of those on this site-haha). Others could follow the food pyramid and all would be fine…not me. My body hates carbs…(I LOVE them). Others follow a strict High protein/low carb diet and just become sick. It’s no wonder why we give up!! I decided to be successful, I had to figure out what was right for me.

So what was right for me? Well, I knew that in general before surgery I doubt I ate 1500 calories day normally. And I knew that I was gaining about a pound a month. So after post op, my nutritionist wanted me to eat 1200 calories a day with at least 70g of Protein no limits on carbs. At first (being the rule follower I am , I went along with the plan)The only exercise during this time was a 30 min walk about 3 days a week. I knew that this wouldn’t produce much loss, but I gave it a try. As I thought…I actually gained a pound by my 8week visit). I then (on my own) reduced my calories to 1000. My nutritionist didn’t agree with this but she told me to give it a try. Next visit I did have some loss but it still wasn’t where I wanted it (about 0.5 pound a week). I told her I was listening to my body and it needed something different.

*I changed the calories to 900/protein at 70 gram/ and set a limit of PROSSED carbs to 30 a day (the nutritionist about flipped)

*I Changed my 30 minute walk 3 days a week to a 15 min walk every day ( I wanted to establish a exercise routine but didn’t want to spike my appetite and want more calories) BINGO!!! This was the winning combo. The weight fell off at about 2-3 pounds a week. This lasted for about 5 months of steady weight loss. At my 7 month check in I was down about 50 pounds. My nutritionist was convinced!! She now supported my plan. But I also noticed that as I lost I the amount I was losing was going down too.Why? I was doing the same thing.

Why would it change? It didn't really matter why...do it did mean I had to switch it up again. On reflection I kind of figured out that it was the same with other methods.Just like weight watchers point program…when you are heavy you get extra points…but as you lose they take away points. They have to take the points away to keep you losing weight.The same is true here. As I lost, my body required fewer and fewer calories just to move…my body was becoming more efficient. At the end of the 5 months (7 months after surgery) I was back to the 1 pound a week. (I was now 180 pounds and 7 months out)At this point, there wasn’t much I could cut out in the diet area…so I knew it was time to get sweaty!!! But I knew that exercise was out of the question on 900 calories a day!! I wanted to lose another pound a week so that was 3500 calories and I could go to the gym 5 days a week (it’s just math….that means I had to burn 700 calories each day at the gym. increased my calories to 1100 and started hitting the gym) ) Yes… I was hitting the gym hard!! About an hour on the Eiptical and 15-20 min on weight machines!!!! Yes I know that is an extremely low net calorie intake….but this is what I needed to do to get the weight off. I wasn't going to die from lack of food! There was still plenty of reserve!!!! No it wasn’t easy!!! Yes I struggled!!! Yes I cried, But I did it!! I ate a huge amount of healthy foods like spinach, celery, cucumbers, cabbage,broccoli, green geens ( I call these "free" foods VOLUME CONTROL things I simply eat because I need to take up space… I also ate tons .chicken, berries, nuts, tuna not to mention the countless low calorie Protein shakes….I never went hungry….if I was hungry I ate. I might have been what I wanted to eat, but I gave my body the nourishment it needed. It wasn’t a exciting diet in fact I ate almost the same thing every day. I just kept telling myself “I could do ANYTHING for 20 more pounds…once I get it off I could return to a more enjoyable diet”. And it worked!! Off came the weight again!! At 2 pounds a week!!!BY January 2013 (10 months out) I was at my personal goal of 160 pounds!!!(76 pounds lost!!!!) When I asked my doctor If I needed to lose more he said absolutely not!! That the 15 pounds that I have left was all skin and he put me in the success file! Now he has taken my diet plan and is sharing it with his other PCOS patients. That made me feel good.

Now, I’m a little sad. I always thought I would be able to return to that “normal” range for calories…that I would be able to eat at least 1200 calories and maintain…but that’s not the case for me. I maintain now. But my numbers aren’t pretty. I have figured out that my “Base Metabolic Rate” is more like 900 calories (and that is with a pretty good amount of muscle mass) if I don’t exercise and I hate exercise. But I like to eat…so now a days I simply add whatever calories I burn at the gym to my daily calorie intake. I try to go to the gym 2-3 times a week and burn about 500 calories each visit so to keep it simple, If I go to the gym 1 time a week then I can have 1000 calories a day for that week; 2 times a week=1050 calories a day weekly; 3 times a week =1100 calories a day weekly if I don’t hit the gym I get the whooping 900 calories. These are my numbers. Like them or not I had to accept them. And they are pretty accurate. I’m now at month 13. (3months into this final phase) and I’m simply maintaining at 158-160 pounds.

Lessons lerned

*You are unique!!!You must figure out what your body needs and respond to it . And most likely its not going to be what YOU want it to be. But you need to accept it and deal with it. I wish my body liked carbs…..I miss them a lot!!! It doesn’t mean I NEVER have them. I just need to be mindful there is a price to pay for having them…so I keep them to a minium. Nowadays I allow myself some healthy/nutral carbs but nothing like the average person eats.

For me My diet is 900 calories a day (+exercise), 70 grams of Protein/ 60grams of healthy/natural carbs

* gave up almost all processed foods

* I try to exercise 2-3 times a week

* If a plan isn’t working, mix it up until you make it work

After re-reading this it may sound like this was just easy for me. I want everyone to know this was the absolute hardest thing I have ever done. I could have not did this without my family willing to give me the support to put myself before all of them for a while. Instead of me coming last in everything….I was first!! They worked around what I needed. That’s what families do for each other. I have always been there for them….this time they were always there for me. To a husband that was firm with me and would accept excuses from me (but yet hugged and encouraged me the whole way)….to a daughter that was my cheerleader….to another daughter that was my inspiration and motivator to a son that simply kept telling me how pretty I was. I will NEVER be that other person again!!! It was I life makeover!! It even made us a stronger family...We as a family lost over 150 pounds!!!!

Good luck everyone!! Inbox me if I can help you in anyway.

[☠carolinagirl☠ 18,722]

great to see YOU again.........even better to read such a positive upbeat POST. you go girl as you a walking/talking success story.

[50for50 72]

This was great to read! Very enlightening and positive - thank you.

[50for50 72]

This was terrific to read and very enlightening and informative. Thank You!

[waitingpatiently 250]

Carolinagirl-Its good to see you too. I havent been on much lately. I'm getting ready for abdominoplasty in 10 days!!! I think Im more worried about that than the Lap band surgery!!

50/50-Thanks! Looks like you are well on your way!! You have done a great job to only be out a few months. Keep your head in the game and the taste of success will be in your very near future!!!

[michpell39 399]

Thank you for posting this, I agree a calorie is not a calorie , it takes me a lot less food and a lot more gym time to get any weight off

[arainey77 34]

So I’m now a little over a year out and wanted to share a few reflections on my journey so far. Please know that this was my journey….yours will be different. But I thought maybe you might find something that will help you along the journey' date=' like I did from all those that shared their stories for me. Warning its very long!!! Sorry about that. I just have so much I want to share with you guys!!

A little background.

I started this journey March 19,2012 at 236. I was never heavy until after the birth of my 3[sup']rd[/sup] child. I was very sick with that last pregnancy…… contracted a rare and deadly pneumonia that put me in the ICU for weeks. This damaged my lungs and it seemed like it was all downhill from there. I’m just now feeling “normal” again. That was almost 15 years ago. For me this journey was more than a physical makeover. It was a physical. Emotional, spiritual make over. There was not one area of my life I didn’t dig into. I will save that for another post. For now let’s just stick to what worked for me.

Pre-op

What helped the most was educating myself. I LIVED on this site the last few weeks before my surgery I prepared myself mentally for everything. I created a Stock My Pantry List that I see still gets around on this site. It helped me tremendously and gave me something to do (controll). This part of my journey was very much like I was nesting for a baby. Cleaning, cooking, and organizing everything in preparation of being out of commission for a couple of weeks. If you want a copy of the Stock My Pantry list….fill free to inbox me and I’ll be glad to send it to you. The best advice received during this stage: Follow doctor orders no exceptions!

Post-Op

No matter how much I prepared for the surgery….I still was unprepared. You see there were so many people that had such a quick recovery; I just knew that would be me! I have a very high tolerance for pain….Well I guess not!!! I did have several other things done at the time, but OH MY!!! Prepare for the worst and hope for the best! I had two hernias and adhesions removed along with the band..so maybe that was the difference…but I didn’t feel good for at least a week.

Best Advice: The 4-6 weeks is for healing….so focus on that not weight loss!!!!....And stay off the scale!!!

MY Journey

I have been asked several times what made the band work for me, while others struggle so much. I’m a rule follower and a little OCD so if I get something in my head I can’t let it go. So I really never doubted I could get the weight off….I knew I could (I had done it several times before), but my problem lied in keeping it off. The band alone will not do this for you!!! The one thing I have learned is that utilizing the band and making it work for me was very much a head game (demanding your body to co-operate!!). I never thought of myself as “Addicted” to food. I could see how that element would make the process even harder. I might even consider a different WLS. It took 8 fills for me to feel anything!! If I hadn't been so determined I could see how it would have become very discouraging. And I still think I need another fill, but I’m waiting till after my abdominalplasty /Breast Lift that is scheduled in less than 4 weeks. This process takes time. You must be vigilant and dedicated to the process.

For me, I have a condition called PCOS. I never realized that it was this condition that made it so hard for me to lose weight until my daughter was diagnosised with it at about the same time I had my surgery. I saw her struggling to lose her 50 pounds. Her doctor did well at educating both of us. I knew I had PCOS)( they told me that was the reason for my infertility 20 years earlier)….but I guess back then they didn’t know as much about it as they do now. I just thought it was an infertility issue….I was skinny (120 pounds) and Physically fit back then. After I had my family, I put it out of my head…it never dawn on me it was the source of my weight issues 20 years later. So with that new found info I was able to educate myself on the condition and put in place significant diet changes. Here is where some controversial ideas come in play. REMEEMBER this is MY journey!!! This worked for me. If you have similar issues, it may work for you….that’s why I’m posting it.

But it may not work for you. You see there is a large group people that believe we are all basically the same…you know a calorie is a calorie…..and that we all basically need the same amount of them and that our bodies need the type foods. I STRONGLY disagree. I think we are ALL different….none of us are the same. We all have unique set of genes that determine how our bodies will respond to different foods. That’s why two people can follow the exact same plan and have extremely different results. I agree that the majority of people fall right in the middle in calorie needs however there are a large portion of people that fall on the outside of those averages. Some of us could NEVER consume 1200 calories a day and still lose weight!! Most people could…not me. While there are others that could consume their 2500 calories a day and never gain an ounce (I doubt there are many of those on this site-haha). Others could follow the food pyramid and all would be fine…not me. My body hates carbs…(I LOVE them). Others follow a strict High protein/low carb diet and just become sick. It’s no wonder why we give up!! I decided to be successful, I had to figure out what was right for me.

So what was right for me? Well, I knew that in general before surgery I doubt I ate 1500 calories day normally. And I knew that I was gaining about a pound a month. So after post op, my nutritionist wanted me to eat 1200 calories a day with at least 70g of Protein no limits on carbs. At first (being the rule follower I am , I went along with the plan)The only exercise during this time was a 30 min walk about 3 days a week. I knew that this wouldn’t produce much loss, but I gave it a try. As I thought…I actually gained a pound by my 8week visit). I then (on my own) reduced my calories to 1000. My nutritionist didn’t agree with this but she told me to give it a try. Next visit I did have some loss but it still wasn’t where I wanted it (about 0.5 pound a week). I told her I was listening to my body and it needed something different.

*I changed the calories to 900/protein at 70 gram/ and set a limit of PROSSED carbs to 30 a day (the nutritionist about flipped)

*I Changed my 30 minute walk 3 days a week to a 15 min walk every day ( I wanted to establish a exercise routine but didn’t want to spike my appetite and want more calories) BINGO!!! This was the winning combo. The weight fell off at about 2-3 pounds a week. This lasted for about 5 months of steady weight loss. At my 7 month check in I was down about 50 pounds. My nutritionist was convinced!! She now supported my plan. But I also noticed that as I lost I the amount I was losing was going down too.Why? I was doing the same thing.

Why would it change? It didn't really matter why...do it did mean I had to switch it up again. On reflection I kind of figured out that it was the same with other methods.Just like weight watchers point program…when you are heavy you get extra points…but as you lose they take away points. They have to take the points away to keep you losing weight.The same is true here. As I lost, my body required fewer and fewer calories just to move…my body was becoming more efficient. At the end of the 5 months (7 months after surgery) I was back to the 1 pound a week. (I was now 180 pounds and 7 months out)At this point, there wasn’t much I could cut out in the diet area…so I knew it was time to get sweaty!!! But I knew that exercise was out of the question on 900 calories a day!! I wanted to lose another pound a week so that was 3500 calories and I could go to the gym 5 days a week (it’s just math….that means I had to burn 700 calories each day at the gym. increased my calories to 1100 and started hitting the gym) ) Yes… I was hitting the gym hard!! About an hour on the Eiptical and 15-20 min on weight machines!!!! Yes I know that is an extremely low net calorie intake….but this is what I needed to do to get the weight off. I wasn't going to die from lack of food! There was still plenty of reserve!!!! No it wasn’t easy!!! Yes I struggled!!! Yes I cried, But I did it!! I ate a huge amount of healthy foods like spinach, celery, cucumbers, cabbage,broccoli, green geens ( I call these "free" foods VOLUME CONTROL things I simply eat because I need to take up space… I also ate tons .chicken, berries, nuts, tuna not to mention the countless low calorie Protein shakes….I never went hungry….if I was hungry I ate. I might have been what I wanted to eat, but I gave my body the nourishment it needed. It wasn’t a exciting diet in fact I ate almost the same thing every day. I just kept telling myself “I could do ANYTHING for 20 more pounds…once I get it off I could return to a more enjoyable diet”. And it worked!! Off came the weight again!! At 2 pounds a week!!!BY January 2013 (10 months out) I was at my personal goal of 160 pounds!!!(76 pounds lost!!!!) When I asked my doctor If I needed to lose more he said absolutely not!! That the 15 pounds that I have left was all skin and he put me in the success file! Now he has taken my diet plan and is sharing it with his other PCOS patients. That made me feel good.

Now, I’m a little sad. I always thought I would be able to return to that “normal” range for calories…that I would be able to eat at least 1200 calories and maintain…but that’s not the case for me. I maintain now. But my numbers aren’t pretty. I have figured out that my “Base Metabolic Rate” is more like 900 calories (and that is with a pretty good amount of muscle mass) if I don’t exercise and I hate exercise. But I like to eat…so now a days I simply add whatever calories I burn at the gym to my daily calorie intake. I try to go to the gym 2-3 times a week and burn about 500 calories each visit so to keep it simple, If I go to the gym 1 time a week then I can have 1000 calories a day for that week; 2 times a week=1050 calories a day weekly; 3 times a week =1100 calories a day weekly if I don’t hit the gym I get the whooping 900 calories. These are my numbers. Like them or not I had to accept them. And they are pretty accurate. I’m now at month 13. (3months into this final phase) and I’m simply maintaining at 158-160 pounds.

Lessons lerned

*You are unique!!!You must figure out what your body needs and respond to it . And most likely its not going to be what YOU want it to be. But you need to accept it and deal with it. I wish my body liked carbs…..I miss them a lot!!! It doesn’t mean I NEVER have them. I just need to be mindful there is a price to pay for having them…so I keep them to a minium. Nowadays I allow myself some healthy/nutral carbs but nothing like the average person eats.

For me My diet is 900 calories a day (+exercise), 70 grams of Protein/ 60grams of healthy/natural carbs

* gave up almost all processed foods

* I try to exercise 2-3 times a week

* If a plan isn’t working, mix it up until you make it work

After re-reading this it may sound like this was just easy for me. I want everyone to know this was the absolute hardest thing I have ever done. I could have not did this without my family willing to give me the support to put myself before all of them for a while. Instead of me coming last in everything….I was first!! They worked around what I needed. That’s what families do for each other. I have always been there for them….this time they were always there for me. To a husband that was firm with me and would accept excuses from me (but yet hugged and encouraged me the whole way)….to a daughter that was my cheerleader….to another daughter that was my inspiration and motivator to a son that simply kept telling me how pretty I was. I will NEVER be that other person again!!! It was I life makeover!! It even made us a stronger family...We as a family lost over 150 pounds!!!!

Good luck everyone!! Inbox me if I can help you in anyway.

Nice post! Very informative!