This group is for weight loss support for lower bmi bandsters (of course anyone is welcome!).

For encouragement, tips, accountability.... Give stats, helpful advice, etc.

How much weight you have lost, how long it took. etc.

In some case I have found it takes a lower BMI patient a lot longer to lose the weight.

Introduce yourself and jump on in!!!:welcomeB: :welcome2:

Audree

Allowed Foods in Phase 2 (Foods you can reintroduce

to your diet)

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 borderColorDark=#ffffff cellPadding=6 width="80%" border=1><TBODY><TR><TD width="100%">FRUIT </TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">

• Apples
  
• Apricots-dried fresh
  
• Blueberries
  
• Cantaloupe
  
• Cherries
  
• Grapefruit
  
• Grapes
  
• Kiwi
  
• Mangoes
  
• Oranges
  
• Peaches
  
• Pears
  
• Plums
  
• Strawberries

</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">DAIRY </TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">

• Milk-light soy, fat-free or 1%
  
• Yogurt-light, fruit-flavored, plain, low-fat or fat-free

</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">STARCHES (USE SPARINGLY) </TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">

• Bagels, small, whole grain
  
• Bread-multigrain, oat and bran, rye, whole wheat
  
• Cereal-Fiber One, Kellogg's Extra-Fiber All Bran, oatmeal (not instant), other high-fiber, Uncle Sam
  
• Muffins, bran-sugar-free (no raisins)
  
• Pasta, whole wheat
  
• Peas, green
  
• Pita-stone-ground, whole wheat
  
• Popcorn
  
• Potato, small, sweet
  
• Rice-brown, wild

</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">VEGETABLES AND LEGUMES</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">

• Barley
  
• Beans, pinto
  
• Black-eyed peas

</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">MISCELLANEOUS</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">

• Chocolate (sparingly)-bittersweet, semisweet
  
• Pudding, fat-free/sugar-free
  
• Wine, red

</TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%">FOODS TO AVOID OR EAT RARELY!!! </TD></TR><TR><TD width="100%"><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top width="50%">STARCHES AND BREADS

Bagel, refined wheat

Bread-refined wheat white

Cookies

Cornflakes

Matzo

Pasta, white flour

Potatoes-baked, white instant

Rice cakes

Rice, white

Rolls, dinner

VEGETABLES

Beets

Carrots

Corn

Potatoes

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

FRUIT

Bananas

Canned fruit, juice packed

Fruit juice

Pineapple

Raisins

Watermelon

MISCELLANEOUS

Honey

Ice cream

Jam

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SouthBeach Diet Tips and Guides

The SouthBeach Diet is different from the Atkins diet in that it is not a low carbohydrate diet. Regardless of which phase you are currently in, you should follow these recommendations:

• Drink a minimum of 8 glasses of water, decaffeinated beverages such as club soda, tea, coffee, or decaffeinated sugar-free soda every day
  
• Limit your intake of caffeine-containing beverages to 1 cup each day
  
• Take one multivitamin and mineral supplement daily
  
• Take 500 mg of calcium for both men and women under the age of 50, and 1,000 mg for women over the age of 50, each day

Eating can be both pleasurable and healthy as long as you eat the proper foods. All the meals in the SouthBeach Diet consist of healthy combinations of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Dishes can be made by anyone and the ingredients can be found in most grocery stores. These foods will satisfy your hunger without depriving your system of the low-quality starches and sugars that caused problems with your blood chemistry in the first place.

The SouthBeach Diet does not involve counting calories, fat grams, or portion sizes. This plan was designed to be simplistic and will help you understand the principles of metabolism and put it to work for your own body. A major key to success with the South Beach Diet is the Glycemic index (GI), which ranks carbohydrate foods based on the effect on blood sugar levels. When you start adding foods back into your diet in Phase 2, keep your focus on low-GI foods such as apples, berries, grapefruit, high-fiber cereal, and whole grain breads.

Preparing For The Rest Of Your Life

Mindset Change for South Beach Diet

You have learned what the South Beach Diet is, how it works, and what to eat. Now, you need to get prepared to change the way you eat, for life. Start by accepting that the first couple of weeks will be a big change but one you will not regret. The first morning of this diet, you will eat a breakfast that may consist of a two-egg omelet with two slices of Canadian bacon, cooked in either spray canola or olive oil. In your old life, you may have toasted bread or a bagel and had fresh fruit or fruit juice to go along with your omelet. However, with the South Beach Diet, the bread will have to wait.

Most people have been conditioned their entire life to add bread to meals. You have toast with breakfast, sandwiches on bread for lunch, dinner rolls with dinner, and cake, cookies, or pie for dessert. However, during Phase 1, you will have to forget about the bread. It may take a few days to leave old habits behind but keep in mind that it is during this time that your body’s inability to process sugars and starches is being reversed. After trying numerous diets, most leave you feeling hungry, is one of the most difficult aspects of any diet. A common denominator seen with overweight people is that most of them skip eating breakfast. When this happens, blood sugar drops, which then increases the desire for bad carbohydrates to escalate until lunch when the entire meal is blown.

Planning for South Beach Diet

Planning will help you stay away from snacking or substituting things that are not healthy and could cause weight gain. Remember that once you start into Phase 2, carbohydrates will start being introduced back into your diet along with fruits. You also need to remember to eat your mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks, even if you do not feel like it. Some of the greatest low-fats foods to incorporate into your planning include cheese and yogurt to replace the fats since they have no bad carbohydrates. In addition, the sugar is found in the lactose, milk sugar, is one of the things you can have with the South Beach Diet.

The South Beach Diet is a lifetime change, lifetime commitment, and a lifetime of health and vitality!

How Does The South Beach Diet Work?

As mentioned, the South Beach Diet is unique, successful, easy, and works in a three-phase process. Unlike many other so-called diets, with the South Beach Diet, simply substitutes your bad carbohydrates and fats for good ones. After trying this, you will be amazed by how well and quickly it works.

South Beach Diet Phase 1

South Beach Diet Phase 1 lasts for two weeks. During this first phase, you will eat normal meals of chicken, beef, turkey, fish, and shellfish, lots of vegetables, eggs, cheese, nuts, and garden salads using 100% olive oil for your salad dressing. Each day for 14 days, you will eat three, well-balanced meals. While eating until your hunger is satisfied may go against most diets, with the South Beach Diet, it is part of the plan.

Trying to lose weight and become healthy by depriving the body of food makes no sense. In addition to the three meals each day, you will also eat a snack between breakfast and lunch, and then again between lunch and dinner. Even if you do not feel like eating these snacks, for the South Beach Diet to work, you need to, and after dinner, you will even have dessert. Additionally, during this phase, you can drink all the coffee and tea you want and be sure to drink lots of water.

You may be thinking that this is a lot of food - it is! With most diets, you deprive your body, eating only small portions of foods that are unappealing. The change you will make during this phase is that you will cut out all bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, baked goods, fruit, candy, cake, cookies, ice cream, or sugar. Keep in mind that these eliminated foods will be added back into your diet, starting in Phase 2. In addition to taking these foods out of your diet temporarily, you will also need to avoid beer, or any kind of alcohol. Once you start Phase 2, reasonable amounts of wine can be added back in.

Instead of feeling overwhelmed about the foods that will be taken out of your diet during the first two weeks, stop and think about this for a minute. To achieve a life of health and lose unwanted weight, two weeks is a small investment to make. After all, you are worth it! The first two or three days will be somewhat challenging, but breaking any bad habit starts out a little bumpy. Once you pass this small hurdle, the rest of the time will go by quicker than you think. When you see the results that these changes bring, you will be glad you did not give up!

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With Dr. Ortiz I get three weeks of liquids. In the beginning I used Wolfgang Pucks Gourmet broth, Better Than Boullion, drinkable yogurt, creamy soups, Myoplex pre made protien, Vitamin water, Kelloggs protein water, Nectar protein powder, V8 to name some off the top of my head!!

Audree,

I bought some Atkins drinks today and some Isopure drinks. Has anyone else tried these? I am hoping to find some that taste decent.

Thanks,

Christine

I have only tried the Myoplex and Nectar ones. Let us know how they are!!!

This is an email from the lady I told you that lost 130 pounds in a year. I asked her to email how she did it!!!!! It is awesome!!!!!

Anyways,you CAN be at goal in 6 months,believe me and you have exactly what it takes..............................determination and discipline.

That is going to get you where you want to be.I know you noticed right away how all these women have lost only 40 to 50 pounds in a year or even longer.I was right where you are a few months ago and I said to myself,that is NOT going to be me! I spent alot of money for this band and I am determined to make it work for me,no matter what!I was banded on Feb 20th and by October I had lost 115 pounds and than no longer had fat to lose but had alot of hanging skin,that's when I had my tummy tuck done.

Like I told you at the meeting.I ate (eat) only once a day,sometimes twice depending if my family invites us to go out to dinner but I count all calories and try to pick things that are really low in calories.

Most of the times I am way under what "they " require but hey,like I said to myself, I'll do what ever it takes.Like you,yes I was tired when I didn't eat enough,so I started to make sure when I did eat it was meat .In the very begining I would usually have a weight smart frozen pot roast with veges meal for lunch and I still wouldn't get full so I would have a large salad on the side or some days I would have a large chicken breast on a salad.

My favorite and most eaten meal was a carne asada taco salad from a real mexican restaurant,I just don't eat the shell! I would eat this "lunch" as late as I could hold off,usually around 3pm because I never ate breakfast.Then usually after eating that much food,( I really stuff myself with this meal) my hunger would stay away until really late at night,that's when I would have a yogurt or one of those 100 calorie snacks.When I am hungry before lunch or even after I keep drinking coffee,it keeps my hunger away bug time.I was never a coffee drinker until recently.Most importantly,I walk everyday about 2-3 hours after I eat my lunch and walk 2 miles,then when the weight started to come off,I found walking to become easier and I started to run a little between walking.

The weight did stall sometimes and I would have to eat more for a few days,then I would notice the weight loss again. You are so lucky,you did this with your BMI being so low,you have so much less to lose than the rest of us.You're going to be beautiful by summer time!

I found this site for anyone who is in to myspace.

I joined it!

http://groups.myspace.com/TheSisterhoodofWeightLossSurgery

I got this list out of Dr. Ortiz's book LAP BAND FOR LIFE.

:hungry:

Cereals-grains like Beans, lentils or whole wheat bread or oats

Vegetables-carrots, cabbage, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, mushroom, onions, tomatos, squash

Fresh Fruit-He suggest one piece at Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Apple, blueberry, grapefruit, kiwi, orange, plums, mango

meat, poutry, fish-the size a deck of cards, light meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, legumes, egg whites.

Milk, cheese, yogurt-2 servings a day. non fat or 1% milk, low fat cottage cheese, nonfat yogurt

Fat-3 servings. avocado, almonds, a little olive oil.

Drink 6-8 glasses of Water a day, low cal drinks such as Crystal Light.

Buy a pedometer and log at least 10,000 steps.

Audree

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Protein is a very important nutrient. It is necessary for your body to build new tissue following surgery and to maintain muscle mass while you are rapidly losing weight. The goal is to lose fat tissue, not muscle. It may be difficult to get in enough Protein, especially in the early weeks after surgery. At mealtimes, start with you protein-rich foods first and then eat your vegetables.

One of the questions I'm asked most often is how to get enough proetin without guzzling Protein Shakes. If you are trying to get 50-70 grams of protein per day I would suggest choosing high protein foods in lieu of other 'filler foods' -- ie. have beef Jerky for a snack, yogurt rather than Jello, eggs rather than pancakes, etc. This is not a diet; it is simply a list of high protein foods to help you gt what you need.

Serving size Protein grams

Kelloggs Protein Water 5 (my new favorite)

barley, uncooked (1 cup) 16.5

baked Beans (1/2 cup) 8.1

Kidney beans (1/2 cup) 7.2

Lima beans (1/2 cup) 5.4

bean Soup (1 cup) 7.6

corned beef (3oz) 22.9

hamburger (3oz) 21.8

roast beef (3oz) 23.3

cottage cheese (1/2 cup) 13.6

fried chicken (1/2 breast) 24.7

chicken drumstick 12.5

chicken, dark (3.5oz) 29.3

chicken, white (3.5oz) 32.3

chicken salad (1/2 cup) 17.4

cocoa from mix (1 cup) 7.0

corn bread (1 square) 5.0

cream Soups (1 cup) 7.0

custard (1/2 cup) 7.2

egg, boiled 6.3

egg, fried 6.7

egg, scrambled 7.1

baked flounder (3oz) 30.2

frankfurter 7.2

haddock (1 filet) 16.6

red snapper (3oz) 39.0

scallops (5-6 medium) 39.5

shrimp (5 large) 15.5

shrimp, canned (3oz) 20.8

baked ham (3oz) 26.3

boiled ham (2oz) 14.5

lamb chop, broiled (4oz) 20.2

beef liver, fried (3oz) 13.2

calf liver, fried (3oz) 15.1

lobster (1 cup) 19.5

minestrone (1 cup) 5.0

onion soup (1 cup) 8.1

oyster stew (1 cup) 15.8

pea soup (1 cup) 13.3

perch (3oz) 22.5

pork chop (3.5oz) 21.4

bkes sole (3.5oz) 30.0

spareribs (6 average) 14.9

broiled trout (3oz) 20.3

water packed tuna (1/2 cup) 36.4

turkey, dark (3.5oz) 30.0

turkey, white (3.5oz) 32.9

yogurt (1/2 cup) 4.4

I got this from my bandsters group to make sure you get your protein intake. Hope this helps!

Audree:hungry:

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Dr. Fox's Plateau-Busting Plan

as submitted by Blu on 5/8/00

This is the plan that Dr. Fox gives to his RNY and AGB patients in order to get through a plateau in weight loss. We put this up here as a reference material -- but many people find it useful. (Emphasis by editor.)

#1 Do for 10 days to break plateau

#2 Drink 2 quarts of Water a day

#3 You must have 45 grams of Protein supplement and all your vitamin & mineral supplements each day.

#4 You may consume up to 3 oz. of the following high-protein foods, 5 times a day:

• beef,
  
• pork,
  
• chicken,
  
• turkey,
  
• lamb,
  
• fish,
  
• eggs,
  
• low-fat cheese,
  
• cottage cheese,
  
• plain yogurt (or artificially sweetened),
  
• peanut butter,
  
• beans/legumes.

#5 You may also have:

• sugar-free popsicles (avoid juice popsicles),
  
• tea or coffee,
  
• sugar-free sodas,
  
• sugar-free Jello,
  
• broths & bouillons,
  
• Crystal Lite drinks.

#6 IF IT IS NOT ON THE LIST YOU MAY NOT HAVE IT!

#7 Keep a food diary and try to get 30 minutes of exercise daily.

Thought this was good! Audree

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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=392 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top width=392><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=392 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=bodytext>Q: Is it possible to consume too few calories? I'm ranging between 950 and 1,200 calories a day, which I've always thought would put me into "starvation mode" and slow my metabolism down to compensate . . . But because I'm eating the "right" foods, and eating four or five meals a day instead of three big ones, I'm not hungry, even at that low intake. This is Day 10 for me, and I've had an exciting weight drop (6 lbs of my 13 lbs of excess baggage). Also, I assume the reason you suggest not weighing in each day is because our weight will fluctuate somewhat--sometimes up, sometimes down--from one day to the next, so I shouldn't be discouraged that I was up a pound this morning?

Dr. Agatston: It sounds like you are doing great. Unexpected day-to-day weight fluctuations are usually due to Fluid losses and/or gains. I would not add calories if you are not hungry. I would make sure to get some exercise, which helps maintain your muscle and bone mass (your metabolically active tissues). This prevents a decrease in metabolic rate and prevents yo-yoing.

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD colSpan=3></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

I am pleased with the results I have experienced on the South Beach Diet. However, I have hit a plateau. The past two weeks I have not lost a pound even though I am following the program to a "t." No flour, rice, Pasta, Cookies, etc. Is this the end of my weight loss?

I don't know how long you have been on The South Beach Diet, but plateaus are a common challenge of almost every weight loss plan. As you lose weight, your body's metabolism--the rate at which your body burns calories--often slows down.

Exercise can help. Try to walk 30 minutes most days of the week and see if that gets things rolling again. If you are already walking, consider making an appointment with a personal trainer to help begin a gentle strength-training program. If both of these things are in place, then it's time to review your calorie intake. Even if you are following South Beach faithfully, if you are eating too many calories, even if they are the right calories, you won't lose weight

julestwu, Did you like Dr. rodrigueze Did you get the Jhonson&Jhonson band? I heard that is what he uses, they sound like they would be good. I talked to a girl on the phone today, she said there not as ridgid as the other one . Now I dont know Just repeated what she said. I was gonna go with Dr. Ortiz but, I think I'll use Dr rodrigues If I can spell it. Hes alil cheaper.

Mini, I was very happy with Dr. Rodriguez. I have an Inamed band. The small one. 9.75cm. I don't know anything about the Johnson and Johnson band.

Hey Audree,

I read that gal's email to you. I thought it was interesting but I am not sure it is something I would want to follow.

I am not judging her AT ALL because obviously it worked for her and she is very happy with her results.

What I found interesting is that she only eats one time a day and basically only eats some Mexican food. I also noted how few calories she was eating.

I am not sure that is what I would want to do, epsecially for the long term. I think it is very important to eat several times a day, even if is was only 100 calories at a time. I also think it is important to vary the diet, although some people are totally fine with eating the same thing all the time.

What did you think of her plan? Are you planning on following it at all?

I hope you are doing good today. I missed you posting yesterday.

I have been doing pretty good. I have been eating soft foods for the last few days. I don't have a lot of restriction but I DEFINITELY get full a lot faster than I did before.

I lost 10lbs immediately following the surgery and then I was getting hungry on the thicker liquids. I gained 5 lbs back but I think I am losing again even though I am eating soft foods now. I think my body had to kind of get used to what the heck I am doing.

I am calmed down enough and not weighing myself 300 times a day. I am back to weighing myself once a week. Which I am doing on Fridays because that was when I had the surgery.

Overall, I am transitioning into eating and getting back to my normal self.

Has anyone been exercising at all?

The first week after the surgery all I did was walk but I walked a lot.

Last week I added biking into it since the weather has been nice. I had no problems and was able to go about 9 miles each time.

This weekend I started with some jogging. I didn't go very far... more of a jogging and walking for now. But I had no pain.

I probably won't swim for a couple more weeks. My incsisions are doing really good but I want to feel like they are totally healed.

Does anyone have any exercise goals for the year?

SUsan,

I am exercising between 1 and 2 times each day. It is very important to me as not only do I want to lose weight, I want to be healthy. I do not jog or run. I have always loved to swim, so every morning I swim for about 45 minutes. this has always been my favorite because I LOVE the water.

I have just started doing yoga on Mondays and Thursdays. This I am beginning to enjoy, it is very new for me, but I like it. I have a real problem with flexiblity so I thought it would be good.

On Tuesdays and Wednesday I try to lift weights, as this is at th same club that I pay for the swimming, I feel a litte better about putting it off, and often do not do it.

When I first started swimming, I spent a few weeks not losing weight, but I did lose inches, and better than anything else, I feel great.

It is amazing to me that now I "feel" fatter than I did at 196, mainly because, I think, I pay more attention now. before I was in denial.

I have said this before, and I'll say it again. I have recieved a lot of complements about my weight loss and my "stick to itness" I am not quite sure how to take and respond to these completments.

Audree,

I went and bought some south beach lunches and have been eating them the past couple days. My 15 yr old son has been begging us to go out to breakfast (he is the only one left at home, thank God) so we went to Home town buffet this AM, yuck, I haate PBing in the resturant restroom! Anyway, I ate too much this mornign. But tomorrow it is back to swimming, and this is long term for me. So, right now I am down 38 lbs. I still think I will be at 130 by my 1 year anniversary. Anything else is gravy. Right now I wear a very loose12, I could probably fit into a 10m but haven't tried yet, scared I guess. I haven't worn a 10 for at least 15 years.

I love my band. I guess he needs a name. I think its a boy because he ony focuses on one thing at a time and can be a real pain in my you know what. Actually, my cousin is similar and his name is Brandon. SO, I guess that is what I call call him, Brandon.