Hello everyone!!

I am back on and in need of some input.

I will have my band now for 6 yrs in July. When I first got the band it worked great! For the past couple years I have been at a stall then all of a sudden I began gaining weight..

Knowing that muscle weighs more then fat I am just hoping my weight gain is muscle..

My tummy is big with fat and then with all the muscle back there which I can totally feel my mid section is bigger and my jeans don't fit ;-(

this makes me sad and adds to the discouragement.

A couple years ago I had issues with high cholesterol and my fibromyagla got really bad. So I began hitting the gym a min of 3 days a week

I really got into the gym and to my surprise really enjoyed it. Not at all a fan of cardio and to be honest I detest it!!

Anyway I also began doing organic and seriously paying better attn to what I put in my mouth.

I do not eat out and I am a great cook thanks to this band. I am not a huge carbs eater other then things that are natural organic carbs, fresh fruits and veggies.

I have a 10cc band and it was full to 8 1/2 and it really did take a long time to eat things when I went back home to St Louis in Nov last year my surgeon took out a tiny bit of Fluid did not help ;-( He backed out some because he said it was taking way to long for me to eat things..

I love the surgeon I have here in the So Jersey area however his office staff are a ridiculous bunch of nit wits and that I simply can not deal with!! So I am looking now for a new doctor here in NJ

Bottom line here is I eat healthy and I do workout again a min of 3day a week sometimes 4 or 5 days. I have muscles in places I never knew I had them and my pants will not button!! My jeans are tight, my thighs are bigger, my butt is bigger, everything is bigger even the numbers on the scale!!

What on earth am I doing wrong I feel now like I am d&*(%^ if I do and if I don't!! I have gotten very discouraged and feel like giving up at this point.

I would love to hear some input and thoughts. I think I need to be here again for some great support from all of us who have been there and done that!

Thanks

Michele

This sounds obvious but, although calories are not all equal in the way the body uses them or reacts, if you are gaining weight, you are eating more than you are burning.

Muscle, inch per inch, does weigh more than fat but not that much! My daughter is an elite triathlete and is training for the World Champioships. She eats and burns enormous amounts. Much more than a "normal" exerciser. But as her muscle builds, her weight does not - In fact, despite a 3000 a day intake, it is decreasing as her fitness and muscles increase and she was, obviously, not over-weight to start with).

I wouid suggest a week or so of rigorous measuring and counting every mouthful. It is very easy to slip into eating slightly more than we think.

Hi there, do you need to meet with the surgeon for a fill assessment or talk to a nutritionist -- sounds like eat very well, however maybe you've slipped into slider world a bit or have some other issue. Maybe you need a fill? It's great you're exercising and feeling that benefit. I have exercised for a long time -- have to or can't move -- but I think I was consistently just under where I get the real benefit. I actually need a 70 minute walk at a good clip to be in that zone. I didn't think I was a person who would ever experience endorphins from exercise but now I do. I know when that's happening all the other cardio benefits are there, too. Fill out the stats on your profile so we know more -- love it that you are six years out. That is very inspirational.

First off let me say thanks for the input.

I do count what I think is every bite that goes in..I am pretty obsessed but all this at this point ;-( not sure if that is good or bad..lol My surgeon back in STL took a bit of Fluid out and seriously not enough for me to even see in the syringe

but non the less he did. I was not even able to get into the 1500 calorie zone.

I do have a job that allows me to work from home and my apartment is only about 600 sq ft so not much room to roam about.

I do not sleep well and my job is HIGH stress. I have gone through menopause over the past 12yrs but now am done with that nonsense too.

I have had every god known test done to make sure that there is no underlying medical issues but there are none. Again leaving me in a whole world of confusion.

I am trying to find a good surgeon in my area and it has not been an easy task..

I am going to be staying on top of this because it is currently adding to my stress level and that as we all know is not good news for that hormone they call Cortisol which lives in my midsection!!

So how many calories do you eat a day? As a post-menopausal female (I am too), the BMR does decline, however much exercise you do. I don't do gym work but I live in a very rural and hilly area and do lots of walking and even with that, I need to be under 1200 to lose. At 1500 I would not lose.

Menopause, sleep issues, stress -- yup, right there with you! Oh, and pain. I am trying to manage all of that and keep it together. It's a full-time job! Staying with it, though, because I want to be as strong and healthy as possible -- including getting off this last chunk of weight. And keeping it off! I just read that piece about Project Management in the magazine section here and am going to work this as a project. #1 was identifying what is not working. Oh, and getting good sleep is in there, too.

Sometimes seriously under 1000 a day.. It really sucks that I can not get this weight off.

I try to eat more but simply can not get it in this is why my doc did take a smidgen out and as i said I mean a smidgen!!

And a good nights sleep WTHeck is that..lol I would not know that if it even happened.

I am going to see a nutritionist/trainer next week and he is my pal on my food tracking website.. I am trying to very honest about what goes in my mouth.. Sometimes I forget because my mind is old..lol

I need to get back to the gym have not been in a couple days and today I had major pain below my shoulder blade this morning OMG it felt like major gas like when I had my surgery. I will go back tomorrow I don't care if my arm falls off!!

I can barley move today from the lack of working out, Gosh I never thought ever those words would come out of my mouth but yes I am hooked on the gym.

If your on FB I found a great support page today it is called Lap Band Divas..HUGE busy support page..

M