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What are your goals for March???

Boy if you find out the answer to that question, you'll be helping all of us!

I lost 20 lbs on the 4 weeks of liquids and that ended 1-29. Since then I have only lost 2 lbs. I am having trouble keeping off the 22 lbs I lost. I am supposed to get another fill on 4-9 but that's a scary thought since my food gets stuck regularly.

Make sure you are eating solids. If you are too full and eating lost of mushy foods you are probably eating too many carbs (most mushies are carb rich), maybe even too many calories (many mushies are also higher calorie for a smaller portion), and that will put you at a stand still.

The body takes energy, first, from carbs THEN from stored fat. If you are ingesting too many then you are just gonna sit and spin your wheels. you will burn what you ingest and not burn the fat.

If the clothes size is changing then you must be converting some of the fat to muscle which is good. If you are eating that little, you need to track your calories on fitday.com or a website like it. You may be eating too little, but over the course of 3 months... eating that little would still make weight come off... you would be losing muscle.

Eat food. Regular "chicken breast consistency" food. that is the only way to make the band work.

Eat 60-80 grams + Protein or you risk muscle and hair loss. MEATS!

Decrease your carbs no more than 60-80 a day if possible.

That is how i've approached things.

I totally agree with Brandi (Beversman)

If you're on a plateau for more than even 5 or so days and you think you're doing the right things - you may not be doing quite as well as you think, I've had that trouble a LOT in past diets.

What I do when I plateau:

Measure your food - it's EASY to overestimate portions. Track your food - like with fitday.com. EVERYTHING that goes into your mouth should be tracked - from sauces you put on food to your Crystal Light few calories to the tastes you take when prepping dinner for the family to the stray handful of peanuts or M&M's from your coworkers goodie jar - everything! See what you're REALLY eating and then, track your exercise! And if you're not exercising now, get out and move your booty!

If you're really, honestly at ~1000-1200 calories of HEALTHY solid food calories with a good protein/carb/fat breakout, you're exercising regularly like 3-6 days a week (I mean break-a-sweat and feel good after exercise!) and your weight's not moving, see your doctor!

<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">I can't eat much meat at all. My protein comes from 1-2 slimfasts and 4 peanut butter cracker. sometimes I can only eat 2 of the 6. I could hold 1/2 pk of peanuts before this last fill. but those days are long gone. Does anyone have a problem with crystal light. Until this last fill that is what I drank and a gallon of water/ day. Now since I had the fill, it feels like the crystal light is thick and harder to get down. It doesn't make sense because it basicly is only just flavored water. I am thinking if I am too tight and my body is doing the stavation thing that I used to put it through, eventually it will get the point that I m not budgin and I will eventually start losing. I am getting the low end of protein, maybe I am just feeling self pity. I'll get it down and deal with it somehow. The dr scales are just jackin with me because 5 differend scale read that I have lost more than what my dr says.

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You sound too tight. The band is designed to work with solid food - you should be at a point that you can get the nutrients (including protein) you need with eating 90+% of the time rather than using supplements.

I got too tight after my last fill and got only 0.2cc's out (I have a 4cc band) and it was a HUGE improvement. I was scared of the unfill but it was VERY good!

My goal for March is to continue exercising 3 - 5 days a week at least! I walked 45 minutes on the tread mill today! A fast aerobic walk! I have really built up my energy by walking and lifting weights. I have not weighed in lately but I know I am losing inches because all of my slacks and jeans are too big again! What a great problem.

I will try to remember to weigh in in the morning and report back tomorrow night. I am going to a Rotary training convention with my spouse this weekend at the DFW Hyatt. I'm sure they will have a workout facility or a pool to swim in! So, I plan to hit the exercise plan hard this weekend!

10 more weeks of school here in Texas! I will rejoice when summer gets here so I can spend more time on home projects. As a choir director, I spend a lot of extra hours at school so I look forward to getting outside during the summer!

Have a great Thursday!

Kathy B.

Hey bandsters,

I havent poseted in a little while, thoought I'd give you all an update. I went to the DR Yesterdy for my first follow up since my first fill (1cc). I lost 9 lbs in 6 weeks. I was happy about that, enev though it didnt seem like 9 lbs. He adjusted my band again because of the hunger issue. I get hungry quickly, can eat pizza and just about everything else except Italian bread. BUt now, supposed to be on fluids for 2 days, went against Drs order and had some pizza with the kids,(it smelled sooooooo goooood), well, that landed me with my head in the toilet. So much for pizza. So I hope I am not too tight, but porbabally too soon to tell. I definitely feel different. Other that that, I am trying to wish the weight away, and sometimes when I look in the mirror I feel like it might be working, and then reality sets in. I would like to wear a bathing suit with a single digit this summer, although I dont know if that will happen. As for my march goals, so far so goo, although my schedule is kind of tough. I have vowed no eating after 7 pm. broke that 3 time this week. Excercise 3-4 times a week, no excercise this week, but have scheduled for tomorrow morning, and more Water, right now i am indunging in a cocktail. kids are asleep. So I am trying to keep it together, although my head still wants to eat. My head wants a huge bowl of sugary Cereal, but my body wont fit it. My head also says look for anything else to eat, but my body says "if you do you will be sorry" So for now just the cocktail. 1.5 oz of Gin and diet calorie free tonic. So its not as many calories as it could be. Well, thanks for listening. See you in the morning.:kiss2:

I meant to post this here and not in our old thread. Oops.

Well, I finally got my act together and with the help of my bodybugg I was able to lose 7 lbs this week. It took me 3 months to realize the weight doesn't just fall off, I have to do my part too. I always knew it of course, but I didn't get motivated until I got my toy. So far, it's totally worth the price.

Now I have to decide if I really need my fill next week. I'm thinking I'll just cancel and continue doing what I'm doing. Then, I'll get a fill when I slow down or stop losing.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. It's Spring Break for me. Whee!

Maud...what'd you do different?? I'm on a plateau and need to figure out how to break it!

I have to be honest, I was eating like crap before. I wasn't motivated to eat well.

So, once I got my bodybugg I decided to splurge a little on Saturday, then be really good all week. Of course, I slipped up a couple of times. However, with the bodybugg I log all the calories I eat then upload the data from the armband to see how many calories I burned that day. As long as I had a deficit of at least 1000 calories, I knew I was ok. Many days I had a deficit of up to 2000 calories.

Seeing how many calories I burn a day seemed to really help for some reason. It motivated me to walk a bit more, put the piece of chocolate down, etc.

I also followed the suggestion in the book You on a Diet to eat the same meal for two meals a day. I eat the same thing for Breakfast and dinner every single day (except Saturdays) and vary my lunch (always a South Beach microwavable, just different variety). I also tried not to have more than one snack a day (a South Beach Meal Replacement bar). And, I got all my Water in.

The band helps me with eating slower and less, the bug helps me with moving my body.

I have done a search on this web site and others about the bodybugg, COuld you please give me a web site i can order one from or where do you get it? Thanks!

I will warn you, it's pretty expensive.

I love it, though. And I've never been one for tracking my calories. But seeing how much I burn seems to make it easier and inspire me to move more.

For example, I did 45 min of cardio today instead of my regular 30!

You can get more information at: http://www.bodybugg.com/

thank you so much for the info!

Hi Ladies....haven't had much time to set down and actually post, but will try to keep in touch better. I lost my Daddy in February. He spent 3 weeks in ICU and we (my brother, sister and step-mom) had to make the most aweful decision of removing him from life support. Needless to say, it's been a tough couple of months. I have logged on a couple of times and checked every body's progress. You're all doing great. As for me and my band experience, it has taken a definite back seat to all else. I did have my 3 month follow up this week and the nurse said I was on track with my weight loss. NN32, your goals for March would be good for me too, so I'm gonna "borrow" them. Hope all is well with you all and will definetly be posting more now.

Kathy - I lost my dad suddenly last August from a heart attack (he was only 66). I totally understand the loss and heartbreak you're going through! Just know that we all are here to support you, but know that if you try to do too much (i.e. deal with the loss at the same time as trying to lose weight) it can be very stressful! Sounds like you have your head in the right place though! Let us know what we can do to help!!!