I've seen examples of a few bandsters who turn to exercise and go crazy with it. Maybe it's replacing over eating with another crutch, and in this case it's exercise The Addiction Transfer thread ( http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f15/addiction-transfer-37273/ ) spurred this in my head.

So for those of you who are like the above, I'm wondering what your view toward it was before hand. Did you enjoy it? Did you hate it? When did you start working out more and more?

I guess I'm trying to see if there's a correlation between those who turn to exercise, and see if I may fall into that category down the road?

I honestly can say that I have exercised off and on all my life. BUT one thing about it is, if I am exercising I go all out!! I don't just do it here and there and once in awhile. I would do it full blast for months and then just up and quit for no reason other than I could.

This time though, I KNOW that I have to move my body to keep this weight coming off. I KNOW that if I quit this time, I am not going to be the strong older person that I am striving to be when I am 80. I want to be one of those people that have little health problems and live by theirselves until finally the family is like, come on mom, lets get you moved into at least an assisted living place. I want to live my life to the fullest. I feel like I have missed out on this whole thing called LIFE because of my fat!!! Like tonight, my DD says, mom, before you had surgery you used to always sit and watch movies with me, now you don't. I don't see this as a bad thing. I move a lot. I don't like to just sit and watch tv anymore. I have more important things to be doing.

So to answer your question, I think that I have transferred my food addiction to exercise but not fully. I still fight with the hunger, and there are times when I give in or I can have the will power to say no.

I do know this, that I would much rather my DD tell me that I used to watch more movies with her than to tell me that I am drunk all the time. I really think that a person has to have something else to focus on in life when food has been the focus for so long.

God, I have a terrible habit of rambling, I hope that i made some sense, at least a little.

I wouldn't say that I'm addicted to exercise now, (I hated it before), but I often find myself thinking about it a lot. Like if I haven't gone to the gym in a couple days in a row, I get bogged down by when I will be able to go again. And also, when I am at the gym on a cardio machine, I always think to myself, I'll just go another 10 minutes, and when I've reached 60 minutes I think, I'll just hop on another machine until I'm absolutely exhausted...But I think my relationship with exercise is a lot more normal than it was. Before the surgery I would hop on a cardo machine, do twenty minutes, and not go back for another 2 months (could that be the reason I never lost weight???).

before i was banded, i did not move (gee, wonder how i got up to 402??). if i was thirsty, i would ask DH to get off the couch and get me something to drink - the kitchen was maybe 25 steps from the couch.

we would go shopping and i'd have him drop me off at the entrance.

it was BAD. very bad. i got out of breath turning over in bed, walking to the bathroom, you name it.

i honestly think the lap band saved my life.

now - i try to work out 3-6 days a week. i have been in a slump so lately it's been 3 but i'm going to push it up to 6. i truly enjoy doing it once i am there. it's the getting there sometimes that is the problem.

i do cardio and strength training. i work with my trainer every week and love it!!

jmcabra sounds a lot like me. I'm not so much addicted to the exercise as I am to the way it makes me feel afterwards....both physically and psychologically. I really really like not having that cloud of guilt hanging over my head about how I really should be exercising. BTW, I have never been one for consistent exercise. I am very prone to laziness. This is just something I really wanted to do: to get in the best shape possible (within reason). I just REALLY want this. I want it so much that I paid $13,000 for surgery and now I'm paying $180/month for my gym & trainer. I have virtually not missed a session (except with good reason) for 3-1/2 months. For me, this is a miracle.

Another member, josiebies, put it very well. She said that she observed two groups here on LBT. Those that exercise and those that don't. The first group has consistent positive results and great attitudes. The second group...uh....not so much. She wanted to be in that first group. She wanted to succeed (and she is!).

Oh, and you asked when we started exercising. I started the day I got clearance from my surgeon to do so...and have ramped it up little by little each month. I don't exercise much more now than I did in April...just increasingly heavier weights and 45 mins of cardio as opposed to 30.

Another member, josiebies, put it very well. She said that she observed two groups here on LBT. Those that exercise and those that don't. The first group has consistent positive results and great attitudes. The second group...uh....not so much. She wanted to be in that first group. She wanted to succeed (and she is!).

I was part of the second group up until about 2 months ago. I stopped seeing results from just the lack of food, and I knew at one point or another, I was gonna have to get my butt in gear.

And its true, even though I haven't lost much since I've been working out, my mood has done a 180, and I feel like even though the scale isn't moving as fast as I want it to, my body is looking a lot better and I look better in clothing. I also want to be in that first group, better mood, positive attitude, and feeling like I have a healthier relationship with food, because I have a healthier relationship with exercise. The other thing that keeps me going is the fact that I know that exercise is good for my heart. I know that physically I'm in better condition now than I was two months ago. I've been checking my heart rates, and monitoring them, and I don't feel like I'm going to die when I get off a machine!:whoo:

I also see two different groups here at LBT. And I see the same as josie does. There are also the in betweeners who execise whenever their favorite show isn' on, or when they have more time, so it ends up being once a week maybe. That is going to get you nowhere in the long run. If exercise is put first over everything else, everything else will fall into place. That is how I see it. At 60, I want to look and feel like I do now at 37, and I believe that if I keep doing what I am doing now, I will look at feel very similar when I am 60!!! Go exercise!!!!

ok ok you all convinced me. Today I am finshing my summer classes so I plan on getting my butt in gear for August. I was really good about it before the classes started but with school and work i have just had no time. Ok wish me luck guys.

Good Luck Ariel!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I loved it before banding. But I wasnt very consistent with it, life got in the way - I allowed life to get in the way more like.

I do about an hour 5 or 6 times a week. But I'm not obsessed, nor have I transferred any addiction, I dont really have an addictive personality, I was fat more becuase I was disorganised, lazy and failed to put myself a a priority. If I dont get to run, or I miss 2 or 3 sessions, I dont stress over it, in fact every now and then I have a good week off or so. Its an important part of my life now, and a daily habit for the most part but not something that takes precedence over everything.

I've always been pretty athletic and good at most sports too. I'm not a gifted runner by any means though, I'm slow, flat footed and plodding but I love it.

I started exercising 3 years ago in my last attempt to lose weight. I did cardio and weight training 6 days a week, and never lost any weight. In fact, I continued to gain slowly. BUT and this is a big one for me, I was able to get off my antidepressants.

Now that I am banded, I am glad I already had the exercise habit. Today I was very excited because our gym finally got a trainer and he pulled my name out of the fish bowl and I get a free week of training sessions. I am ready to learn some new things, and he said his specialty is breaking plateaus and weight loss. I am so happy about this!

I always enjoyed exercise-but it is too hard when you are heavy. The discomfort, shortness of breath and fear of a heart attack gave me plenty of reason to put off exercising. I started walking a 1/2 a mile 3 days after surgery. I have built up to 2.5 miles a day. I also practice yoga, but have to wait til my 6 week check up. I go to classes 2x a week and practice at home 2-3 times a week. Keeps my mind off of food. Am I addicted? Maybe just a little, but I have had far worse vices.

Thank you all SO much for your replies! You're all so very inspiring... I'm fighting back some tears, heh. I want to be part of the second group. I rather like exercise now, but like has been mentioned, being so overweight makes it very hard.

As it stands, I'm on Ibuprofin 800 mg just so I can walk further than my standard to-the-copier-and-back office walking. I have learned the hard way that if I don't take at least 800 mgs an hour before walking, my lower back seizes up and I can barely make it home. I plan to have a party when I can toss those babies in the trash bin, though! I know that being an NSAID, I should be careful with Ibu when I get my band. I just typed "if" and deleted it in place of "when"... heh.

Now, I'm one of those in the middle group liste, I work out when I remember, when it's convenient, which equals NOT OFTEN. When I do I love it and go balls to the wall, though. I really feel I will be one of those ugly ducklings when it comes to exercise. I have had so many dreams of being thin enough to run without my fat rubbing together and causing pain or a rash, the freedom it allows mw to just GO. Emotionally, I'm ready to be able to exercise without pain, it's just waiting for my body to catch up

Oh, and Ariel, best of luck!!

What do ya'll think..??

I'd like to start a thread in the general discussion are called something like "There are two groups here on LBT..." in order to inspire people to exercise. But my point is NOT to make fun of people who choose not to...or to diminish whatever success they've had. I also don't want to be perceived as 'tooting my own horn'. I just want people to realize that exercise is really a very cool thing for so many reasons.

I probably shouldn't risk it, huh?

i'd love to see that thread but i dunno how some of the non-exercisers would take it. they may see it as an attack of sorts ...

"stop picking on me b/c i dont work out" ... etc...