I was looking at a pictures of me and my weight loss over the last couple of months (for those who don't know, I've decided against the Lapband and to do it on my own) and I'm getting quite good results.

I think the key to my success though is that I didn't go flat out with the exercise straight away. I started it out slowly, only walking 3 days a week for 30 mins... and over the last couple of months have increased it to walking in the morning 5 days a week, Personal Training 3 days a week and running in the evenings 5 days a week.

If I had of started off that way, I would of given up as it would of been so hard for me. But the weight is consistently dropping off and I'm getting fitter.

I was wondering whats been your success to keep motivated to exercise?

I love it when they leave with the dramatic exit. It's a good thing DH just bought a whole shit ton of popcorn.

This is a lapband support forum first and foremost. Everyone here has tried many times over to lose weight "on their own". Most have had moerate success at it a few times, some spectacular. Everyone has gained it back.

Whilst everyone wishes you the best of luck with your journey, and understands perfectly the reasons why you decided not to go for the banddont expect people to like hearing things like "you're doing it on your own",anymore than you like hearing that really, you've got about a 1% chance of actually losing weight and keeping it off.

Now, onto the exercise. I did what you did. I held myself back and went SLOWLY. And like chickie, along the way, I fell in love with running. Now I can run for hours.

Unlike with dieting, with exercise, if you want to be dedicated to it, there's every chance you can be no matter what you weigh. The band has nothign to do with that. And it can only be good for you, so great work!

Hey, hey, hey! Beating down on FallOutGirl because she doesn't plan on getting the lapband is no better than those who've had bypass or sleeve beat down on lapband patients because we opted for the "least effective" surgery.

FOG, I've enjoyed your many posts and I hope you decide to stay.

BTW, I thought lapband was the easy way out and learned afterwards that it takes as much work to lose the weight with the band as it does without the band. The difference is that the band is an extra tool in my arsenal to help me not only control portion size but also the types of food I eat as some are simply not band friendly.

Edited January 13, 200917 yr by Donna113

What I got the band for was the appetite control. You can have all of the education, support, exercise, determination, etc. in the world, but if you have my problem - which most of us probably do - you can't control your appetite.

You've lost it (congratulations!!!) and perhaps you will keep it off (wonderful!!!- I really hope you do.), but maybe you'll be stuck thinking about food all day long, constantly battling the urge the eat, beating yourself up every time you think you've overdone it, exercising a little more and a little more to make up for the calories you couldn't resist. That's the point I was at and why I got the band. How successful I'll be with it remains to be seen, but I feel it's my best shot at keeping off what I lose.

I've lost over 50 lbs. several times. I've lost over 100 lbs. before, kept it off for about 4 years. Changed every habit I had. Ate off of little plates, kept track of my calories, timed my meals, bought nice clothes, learned as much as I could about nutrition, drank tons of Water, worked out 2 times a day, which included a three mile run, and lots of weight lifting... I never could control that damn appetite though. Even if I didn't give into it, it made me miserable. If I did, I was more miserable.

Peace of mind and a fighting chance are worth getting the lap-band for in my opinion.

Wow, that was quite the YAGE (yet another grand exit). I feel the intent of the OP was to feel superior over those of us who dieted and exercised their way into a lower weight only to gain it back. The comment

For those who lost weight and substantial weight and then gained it back, I don't know how you could, the hard work you must of put into it to gain it all back I don't understand. It's about education and you simply just can't put that junk food in your mouth other wise you will fail.

illustrates this. FTR, I hope you are successful and never look back. Statistically, I would not be surprised to see you back here in the future getting your band in. I think we have all been where you are right now at some point in our lives, best of luck to you.

Veronica, what a touching post. I was truly moved. My story doesn't mimic yours as I've never worked as hard as you to lose in the past but I've had the same struggles and difficulty with food, dieting and losing only to regain plus some. That's why I finally realized that I had to get medical intervention if I hoped to ever have a chance to successfully lose it and keep it off. Although I've only lost 32 lbs in the past 6 months, I've never lost consistently for 6 months before so now I'm hopeful that I will reach goal and once at goal, I'll be able to maintain.

Veronica, what a touching post. I was truly moved. My story doesn't mimic yours as I've never worked as hard as you to lose in the past but I've had the same struggles and difficulty with food, dieting and losing only to regain plus some. That's why I finally realized that I had to get medical intervention if I hoped to ever have a chance to successfully lose it and keep it off. Although I've only lost 32 lbs in the past 6 months, I've never lost consistently for 6 months before so now I'm hopeful that I will reach goal and once at goal, I'll be able to maintain.

Thanks. After I posted, I realized that I may have come across as snippy and hoped that I didn't, as that wasn't my intention. I just wanted to share my story and say "yeah I've been there, too."

After I gained it back this time, I figured I better have a better plan in place if I wanted to try to lose it again, since losing and regaining is bad for you.

Good luck to you in reaching your goal. I'd be happy with 32 lbs. gone (forever?!!) in 6 months!

Soo, soo much of this is crap.

You know, no one was beating you down, or attacking you at all. But when BS like this, and everything else you posted is spewed forth it is hard to remain civil.

Just a couple of points in you "You don't know me" post (I would love to get to it all, but I am a wee bit time poor today)...

Because I understand that good eating and exercise MUST be part of my life for the rest of my life.

Yep, and no one else undertands that. That's why we too the easy way out. We are stupid.

And simply the reason everyone failed at losing weight as you considered it a diet and not a life style change. There is no diet word in my life, I eat the right amount of calories, I exercise probably more then I need too but I want to get it right but I still live life the right one.

Again. We must be dumb. You smart. You go on "diet' Uh. Lifestyle change program. Me never been on one of those. Only mabe 5 or six a year since my son was born.

For those who lost weight and substantial weight and then gained it back, I don't know how you could, the hard work you must of put into it to gain it all back I don't understand. It's about education and you simply just can't put that junk food in your mouth other wise you will fail.

Like I said in my other posts that you too as a personal attack. Losing weight is the easy part. Keeping it off is the hard part.

But I suspect that you know it all anyway. I do, honestly wish you the best, and hope you defy the odds. But the reality is, you won't. And at some point in your adult life, you will have to eat your words (pardon the pun)

Keeping the weight off is really where the band comes into its own, that's for sure.

This reminds me of Magda Szubanski, any other Aussies seen her Jenny Craig endorsements lately?

I heard her on the radio, saying she's chosen Jenny Craig. The interviewer asked her if she'd considered a lapband. She said she thought about it but decided she'd rather learn to eat properly. I thought what a fking idiot. She obviously knows NOTHING about the band. I forgot about it but then she turned up on A Current Affair saying how she's already lost 10kg and how successful she's going to be.

Honestly! Start telling everyone WHEN you've done it and WHEN you've kept it off. Kudos to anyone who actually does it but guaranteed she'll have egg all over her face this time next year.

For the Americans - she was the farmers wife in the movie Babe.

Statistics virtually PROVE its undoable. There's always going to be some amazing person that does it, but most wont and that's all there is to it. You dont get banded because you're too dumb to realise that you have to change your lifestyle, you get banded because you've finally decided to take decisive action for the last time.

I simply dont know why someone without a band would be hanging round here talking about how to lose weight without one. Like Magda, tell us all about it WHEN you've done it and WHEN you've kept it off. I'll give you all the praise and admiration you can handle and it will be heartfelt. I will even tell you you're a better person than me becuase I sure couldnt do it without a band.

After this post I'm done with this site.

just curious... if you dont HAVE a band nor do you have an INTEREST in getting banded, why are you on a LAP BAND site... errrr... were you on a lap band site?

Hi all above im new to this forum completely unbiased coz i know none of you at all. maybe slightly biased perhaps coz im a bandster too lol. i have read all of ur points while i can understand ppl that choose not to have the band fitted .... each to their own i say. its wat make s u happy in the end. i have the band fitted since june 2007 and in 19 months i have lost nearly 6 stone i look and fel like a different person. the band is reversible too so when u reach ur goal weight u can choose to have it unfitted to its not too extreme lets say as perhaps the bypass fall out girl. well done for losing the weight naturally... but dont knock us bandsters for wat u might be thinkin coppin out. the band only works as a combo of healthy eating and exercise the three together is what define s the end result... a lot os blood swwat and tears has been shed on all our parts to look good. but maybe u should consider that naturally losing ur weight the last two stone is the hardest .... lipo suction on ur lips ..... reduce the case of verbals ur currently experiencing

Hi all above im new to this forum

WOW -- what a name. Not one I'm likely to forget anytime soon.

Hey, hey, hey! Beating down on FallOutGirl because she doesn't plan on getting the lapband is no better than those who've had bypass or sleeve beat down on lapband patients because we opted for the "least effective" surgery.

Honestly, I don't think I was beating down on FOG *at all*. It's reality that diets don't work if you are as heavy as you have to be to get a band.

Honestly! Start telling everyone WHEN you've done it and WHEN you've kept it off. Kudos to anyone who actually does it but guaranteed she'll have egg all over her face this time next year.

Exactly! People who come here and tell us that *they've* found the answer and *we're* stupid to having gotten a band when they haven't even gotten to goal yet are going to get exactly the reaction they deserve. Especially if they've been on a diet for a grand total of TWO months!

Everyone is like this when they first go on a diet. Whatever diet they are on -- a commercial program, something they've come up with themselves, whatever -- is the greatest and they've finally cracked the code!. Then the weight starts not coming off so fast and it gets harder to exercise obsessively and they never even get to goal. Or they get to goal and the hunger is too much and they start eating a little bit more here and a little bit more there. The weight creeps back and at first you tell yourself that, hey, 10 lb. isn't so bad. You're still in normal clothes and maybe 10 lb. ago you were a bit gaunt anyway. And then 10 becomes 20 and 20 becomes 30 and the next thing you know, you've gained it all back.

I know this because I've lived it. We've *all* lived it. Statistics show it. Scientists can even explain exactly why it happens.

So people who tell me they've found the answer and I just wasn't dedicated enough when they aren't at goal and haven't been at goal for at least 5 years have absolutely no credibility with me. Not to mention, you don't tell someone who has beaten the odds (I've been in the 2% that those studies talk about.) that they aren't dedicated. I fought my weight gain like a banshee and I did way better than average because I was dedicated. But I ultimately failed for the same reason we all ultimately failed -- because my body was fighting me and my hunger would not be denied.

The other thing is, I came here because I was looking into a band. I made friends here. So when I decided I didn't want a band, I didn't want to leave. I stayed and everyone was very nice. But I didn't run around the boards telling you guys how stupid you were for getting a band and that you should have got a sleeve instead. If I had, I would expect people to be upset with me and I won't blame them.

Edited January 14, 200917 yr by MacMadame