Just curious to see if we have dominant tendencies.

Wheetsin: It's amazing you've lost 155 lbs since banding in March 06. How have you boosted your loss? Exercise? Mine has been slow, but I have always been a very slow loser. Your poll was very intersting. I"m in the majority with my restriction. So I guess it's just the nature of the beast. I never know how my meal will go until I get into it. I have been trying to keep my main meal to noon. Evening meals don't work for me as I reflux pretty bad all night unless I stick to mushy stuff, and then I'm very sparing with the portions. I get the hiccups when I'm full but usually know about two bites before this happens. I also have a horrible time burping. I will feel like there is a burp in there and it just won't come out. At the very begginning and early stages it was easy to burp but now it's very hard. Any suggestions???? Keep up the good work. You look GREAT!

MichelleC: Your male surgeon is silly. My surgeon has the band himself and he said men have the same issues. I've noticed once a month a few days before when I start my normal bloating, my restriction is really tight and I will only be able to eat mushy and blended food, sometimes very soft fish. BUt then after a few days it loosens back up and then I can eat really good for a few days. (usually, one meal a day will do me) I talked to a man at the office who heard me talking about that and he said he experiences the exact same thing. Altitude affected his too. It's just the body and how the fluid retention and organs all function. I've also noticed that when I'm nervous/upset/stressed it's really restricted. It's a very interesting process. So you are not silly at all.

Wheetsin: It's amazing you've lost 155 lbs since banding in March 06. How have you boosted your loss? Exercise? Mine has been slow, but I have always been a very slow loser. [...] I get the hiccups when I'm full but usually know about two bites before this happens. I also have a horrible time burping. I will feel like there is a burp in there and it just won't come out. At the very begginning and early stages it was easy to burp but now it's very hard. Any suggestions???? Keep up the good work. You look GREAT!

Most of my loss was in the first 6 months. I lost over 30 lbs my first week, and at my first fill had about 50. After that inital 6 months, things really slowed way down. In March of this year I set a goal to lose 15 lbs by July, and I didn't make it. I didn't lose a pound. Then 2 weeks into July I dropped the weight. I've probably lost a total of 50 in the last year. And I have about 50 to go. That seems to be a magic number for me.

My exercise hasn't been what it should have been, but I do move. I walk at lunch - usually make myself walk to get lunch. I try to take 2 or 3 breaks during the day, and "speed walk" the hallways. The dog gets walks, and unless school is in (I took this semester off), I'm always going something at home. I watch maybe 2 hrs of TV a week. I just can no longer stand a sedintary lifestyle. If I need to move, but can't stand exercise, I will go shop. I figure - hey, I'm still moving around. Only now I'm getting therapy too! For a while I had a firm gym routine, but that didn't last. I really hate exercising. But I can't blame my near stop in loss on anything but me until I get my arse back into workout habits.

I don't get a "soft stop" like hiccups. I just get to a point where I'm not hungry. I don't have "comfortably full". I have "not hungry" and "freakishly bloated." No happy medium. And I hate feeling that FULL feeling now, so I stop at "not hungry". I too get a burp sensation, and can't get anything out. I figure it's because there's something in my band that's keeping the burp frm getting through, kinda like a clogged toilet.

155 sounds like a lot, and it is, but I had a lot more to lose than most people who get the band do. It's a numbers game. Right now I'm sitting at almost exactly 75% of my excess weight gone, and that's very typical (perhaps even on the low end) of a bandster 18 months out.

WOW! I can't imagine 30 pounds in one week. That's mind blowing. THe most I have ever lost in my life was 30 pounds in one month and I was in high school, marching in band 2-5 miles everyday. I was doing high protein, low carb. But since I hit 40 I've been a really slow loser. The first month I lost 11 pounds and then 8 and has leveled out around 6 pounds a month. There were a few months in there where I didn't lose bu 1 or 2. But I started making better choices and pretty much eat the same as I did before when dieting. Low fat and sensible. I've never been a big sugar eater so that's not a problem. BUt what I really miss is the bread and STUFFED PIZZA CRUST! It just doesn't go down at all. And Pizza isn't the same when I ate just the topping. So I usually just skip it. On days that I have a lot of restriction I keep baby meats on hand and mix them in with mashed potatos etc. I've found that when you're hungry, you can blend up almost anything and it tastes good from a spoon. For example, I was starving and had yogart, soft oatmeal for lunch and breakfast, I'm a meat eater and was HUNGRY, so I blended up sardines in mustard sauce and ate them with a spoon. It was a mental game, but I ate it and enjoyed every bite. I was satisfied finally too! Same way with baby ham mixed in with mashed potatos, YUMMY! Well, keep up the good work. Nice chatting with you.

I am another one that can not eat deli meat, turkey ,ham ect. It will not stay down. I am also real tight in the morning and get looser as the day goes on. ......sometimes.... Donna

Morning I'm ALWAYS tight!

Later in the day is better........

Crack(ers) go down toooooooo easy!

I am at my sweet spot and have been since my latest fill....

Nearly 4cc's in a 4cc band........

Tried steak, tried chicken... NO LUCK......... what goes down consistantly is ground beef and ground turkey, tuna, ... chips and salsa.......... and the damn crackers!

LOL on the crackers!

The two things that go down sooooooooo easy for me are pringles and crackers. I can't eat chicken or anything with breading. No bread but I can eat toast. I can eat beef very easily. Scrambled eggs are really hard for me. My restriction varys from day to day, food to food, and time of day makes a difference although not in any discernable patern.

Yes, Yes, Yes !!

I thought I was crazy, everyday is different. I am a slow loser, up and down. Lose 3, gain 2, lose 4, gain 1. Who knows. Like you all say it depends on the day and the hour what I can eat, go figure. But I will reach my goal.

My DH is so supportive, he always saying I look great.