Me and my battle with the bulge (Gastric Band)

[magicbeans]

yay on ur loss esp with TOTM and not getting enough calories in (the latter one can really mess up metabolism so u dont lose any )

wish i was as focused as u when it came to excercise...went on monday to the gym and so cba to again! no..i will go.... i will follow in ur footsteps!

 

[lclucy89]

This thread is amazing.
I am waiting for dates for the band, this has prepared me and made me really look forward to it rather than be nervous.

Thank you
And well done! Youre doing so well!!

 

[Maura]

hi tam. been on a short holiday so sorry not been on. glad u not going for defill as its just learning to chew.. we have been munching for most of our lives so we just have to learn

 

[Tamgredan]

3LB LOSS THIS WEEK!

Ive now lost 1lb more than what my 4 year old son weighs, thats a good feeling!

Friday night in work i had fish & mushy peas for my dinner and all was going fine until my phone rang, so i gulped down what was in my mouth to answer it and it got stuck....off to the toilet for me! I was gutted as it tasted so nice, but by the time i had faffed around, it had gone stone cold.

Apart from friday, everything this weekend has gone down fine. Ive managed a tomato & mozerella salad, chicken roast dinner, sausages and even 3 chips from the chippy on sunday. I have to chew really well and take it slow.

Chew well and eat slow sounded so easy to do before i got the band, but the reality of it is quite difficult. Especially when you are starving hungry and just want to eat. Its also hard when you have a lovely meal and what to eat it all...but can't. However, this is a small price to pay for the weight loss!

Im still getting shoulder ache when ive eaten certain foods, but it passes after about 20 minutes. Ive got it right now as ive just had some cereal.

Bought some apple & mango concentrate from sainsburys on the weekend and its devine....i really have been drinking more since i bought it, and tonight im taking 1litre to work with me. Ive said it before, and ill say it again; drinking water really helps with weight loss.

I looked good yesterday! On the weekends now, ive got the energy to make myself look good. I have the willingness to do my hair and make-up and put on nice clothes. It paid off yesterday and i had loads of compliments off my hubby and he couldnt keep his hands off me!! It was nice knowing ive lost 33lbs and starting to feel it now. Clothes are looking much better on me and on saturday i even ran up our drive in a little race with my son (i really cant remember the last time i done that)

Ive been banded now for about 12 weeks. On a scale of 1 to 10 with how difficult ive found it loose weight with 1 being as easy as eating cake and 10 being sweating everyday with exercise and eating only healthy foods within my calorie allowance, i would put this journey so far at a 3! Honestly!

I do quite a bit of walking with my job, and i do 1.6km on my exercise bike most days (15 minutes). I eat what i want and try to eat low carb where possible. Here are the rules im sticking to:-
1) dont eat & drink at the same time
2) chew chew chew
3) eat slowly
4) Listen to my body
5) eat when im hungry

Last night i made a chicken roast dinner and served mine on a side plate. Hubby had his on a normal sized plate. The difference was HUGE! i couldnt even finish mine, but i do remember the days that i would have eaten the same as my hubby and had a pudding after, and snacked throughout the night until bedtime. There is no way i could do that now, its impossible.

 

[magicbeans]

love ur posts..u r so focused and doing fab xx

 

[Mazza]

Well done Tam, its sounds like you are really getting your head round this banding malarky!

Im used to cold dinners now and the fact that no matter how much I want to eat loads and loads I can't x

 

[Loooy72]

3LB LOSS THIS WEEK!

Ive now lost 1lb more than what my 4 year old son weighs, thats a good feeling!

Friday night in work i had fish & mushy peas for my dinner and all was going fine until my phone rang, so i gulped down what was in my mouth to answer it and it got stuck....off to the toilet for me! I was gutted as it tasted so nice, but by the time i had faffed around, it had gone stone cold.

Apart from friday, everything this weekend has gone down fine. Ive managed a tomato & mozerella salad, chicken roast dinner, sausages and even 3 chips from the chippy on sunday. I have to chew really well and take it slow.

Chew well and eat slow sounded so easy to do before i got the band, but the reality of it is quite difficult. Especially when you are starving hungry and just want to eat. Its also hard when you have a lovely meal and what to eat it all...but can't. However, this is a small price to pay for the weight loss!

Im still getting shoulder ache when ive eaten certain foods, but it passes after about 20 minutes. Ive got it right now as ive just had some cereal.

Bought some apple & mango concentrate from sainsburys on the weekend and its devine....i really have been drinking more since i bought it, and tonight im taking 1litre to work with me. Ive said it before, and ill say it again; drinking water really helps with weight loss.

I looked good yesterday! On the weekends now, ive got the energy to make myself look good. I have the willingness to do my hair and make-up and put on nice clothes. It paid off yesterday and i had loads of compliments off my hubby and he couldnt keep his hands off me!! It was nice knowing ive lost 33lbs and starting to feel it now. Clothes are looking much better on me and on saturday i even ran up our drive in a little race with my son (i really cant remember the last time i done that)

Ive been banded now for about 12 weeks. On a scale of 1 to 10 with how difficult ive found it loose weight with 1 being as easy as eating cake and 10 being sweating everyday with exercise and eating only healthy foods within my calorie allowance, i would put this journey so far at a 3! Honestly!

I do quite a bit of walking with my job, and i do 1.6km on my exercise bike most days (15 minutes). I eat what i want and try to eat low carb where possible. Here are the rules im sticking to:-
1) dont eat & drink at the same time
2) chew chew chew
3) eat slowly
4) Listen to my body
5) eat when im hungry

Last night i made a chicken roast dinner and served mine on a side plate. Hubby had his on a normal sized plate. The difference was HUGE! i couldnt even finish mine, but i do remember the days that i would have eaten the same as my hubby and had a pudding after, and snacked throughout the night until bedtime. There is no way i could do that now, its impossible.

Hi
What a great post, it has been really helpful to me to see someone a few weeks ahead and still really focused.

Thanks, welldone

Claire x

 

[Maura]

good stuff, well done tam. got my first fill, think they filled it with air, no restriction

 

[MrsSmith]

Congratulations, love reading your diary as you really tell it how it is, it's invaluable to a pre-opper like me x

 

[Tamgredan]

Thanks everyone!

Yes ive surprised myself with how focused im being. Normally at week 12ish on a diet or new way of eating i would have given up!
I dont feel like im dieting, this is just the way it is from now on.

All that pre-op research i done, watching you tube videos, reading books and asking the 'stupid' questions really has paid off and has obviously had a big effect on my mind set.

 

[Tamgredan]

FOOD!

So im actually 11 weeks post op not 12 as thought.
Ive lost 33lbs and had 1 fill, ive got 5ml in a 9ml band.

Last night when i got home from work, i was thinking about food i had eaten yesterday and i felt like i had eaten loads. When i sat down and thought about it, i had eaten practically nothing. Even though i had eaten crap food as ive not been shopping it still made me think how different my mind is working with this band. I ate:-
6 pasta spirals and 4 small bites of chicken, a small fruit salad, a bar of dairy milk (small one), 2 coffees, 1 litre of water, bag of hula hoops and 2 jaffa cakes.
In comparison to what i used to eat, all this would have been in 1 sitting!!!

Im still struggling with 'healthy' foods in that they keep geting a little stuck but im not being sick as ive recognised the sign now and dont carry on eating.

6 pasta spirals and the bit of chicken took me 30 minutes to get down, previously that would have been possibly 2 mouthfulls.

Im also aware that im eating chocolate & crisps as they go down easy but its just because ive got nothing healthy in the cupboards. Im really enjoying pineapple at the moment. Most people can tolerate it, but my band loves it.

I would love to visually see what im eating a day now in one of those plastic tubes they use on 'supersize v superskinny' compared to what i used to eat.
I used to eat 2 ham sandwiches and 2 bags of crisps followed by chunk of cake and maybe a chocolate bar when i finished work - now i may have a small bowl of cereal. Its amazing really and im not missing the old habits at all. Afterall this is what ive paid £6k for!

 

[Ankaas]

Being pre op I'm having a hard time getting my head round the portion sizes. Sometimes when i read whats been eaten (not you per se, any post opper) I think is that actually a diet your on ?? then I realise the portion size is minute. It's alright talking about it but actually putting it into practice is totally another matter and I just can't contemplate it at the moment. But it's gonna happen soon so I'll soon know !

 

[Tamgredan]

1LB LOSS.....In 2 weeks!

Well at least its still coming off and not going on. The past week had been quite good overall with foods not getting stuck (apart from 2 occasions), but i have eaten quite a bit of crap aswell to prevent PB'ing.

The week started off very good with me making chicken & cheese salad for work followed by a fruit salad and lots of water, but by the end of the week i was so tired after night shifts and going into work earlier, i didnt have the time to make any lunch and had to use the canteen. To be honest no foods go down well from there, unless its cake, so im just wasting my money.

Ive also been busy this week trying to find a 2nd hand sofa. Ive got a 2nd living room area which has always been my sons toy room, so ive decided to make it another living room with TV etc... and need a sofa. At least when its done i can cycle away on my bike and watch TV at the same time.

Ive been on my bike 3 times this week. I need to go on it every night, but after a 12 hour shift its the last thing i want to do.

Ive also been shopping at Aldi, and i love it. Less choice means less crap being bought and the fruit & veg are spot on. Ive had a full trolley for £58 from there and the foods lasted me all week. I love their crab sticks, chicken pieces and of course their peanut biscuits which are to die for - band or no band, i can get them down alright.

Still in a size 24 but now its comfortable, where a few weeks ago i was probably in denial. I was a size 26 comfortably so 1 size down.
My bras are definately fitting me better, and ive not got the massive back bulge i used to have. I can now acually wear a top and not have to put a cardy over it for 'comfort' reasons.

People are noticing which is really good. My big boss (who is gits of all gits) even spoke to me about it last week. For someone to pay an interest and ask lots of questions, i think he may want one too. Im just fretting that he doesnt start searching the internet and stumbles across my diary. It would be evident it was me!

On the job front, it is getting better. I seem to have found my stride these past few weeks and im making good progress with the teams. Lets hope i can regulate my hours and get more 'home' time.

Im averaging 2.12lbs loss per week at the moment. Next week im holiday all week, so ill have time to wonder the boards all day and try new foods and see what i can tolerate. Its my sons 4th birthday party on tuesday - i must avoid the buffet.

Have a good week all

xx

 

[MrsPill]

Do you think that your band is too tight ie with the PBing issue?... or does PBing happen anyway? Just wondering x

 

[Tamgredan]

Do you think that your band is too tight ie with the PBing issue?... or does PBing happen anyway? Just wondering x

Im not 100% sure but i do know im not too tight, as i can get foods down. Im even considering another fill as portions are creeping back up.
I just think ive either been eating too fast, eating foods which i can no longer tolerate or i need to learn that my band is tighter some time. Its a big learning curve. Yesterday i ate like a horse with no problems at all.
I know im tight in the mornings, and i dont get hungry either. By 2pm its very slack and i can almost chomp down anything, then at 6pm ish it seems to go tight again until about 10pm!!
Its all part of the fun though! i would hate it if i was starving hungry and couldnt eat.

 

[MrsPill]

It seems weird to me that it tightens then slackens. Thats why this forum is so good because you get realtime experience from people who are going through it. I'll be with you all soon!

 

[Maura]

hope all is well. my weight loss is at a complete standstill. i am for dublin on thurs for my 2nd fill. did u get a suite? do u have DFS? i got a 3 seater and 2 seater from my second living room for just 599.... that was few years ago but am sure their prices r still the same xx

 

[em126]

Really enjoyed reading the diary posts... very inspirational.x

 

[Tamgredan]

Maura: yes i managed to pick up a black leather small corner sofa from the local car boot for £60, brand new with 2 small scratches on it, which ive managed to fix...BARGAIN!!!

Im waiting for my provider to ring me back and i have decided to book a 2nd fill. I only want a small amount put in (maybe half a mil).
Ive just managed to scoff a pork pie from my husbands bakery, band slack all day today so ive eaten quite a bit really. I definately should not be able to eat this amount, so ive got to have 2nd fill. Im already pre-empting the first 2 weeks to be hell like my 1st fill.

 

[soon2Byummymummy!]

hey tam you'll be supprised the difference half a ml makes i requested half a ml on my last fill last month and omg i was ill tried to persevere but ended up back in the clinic within the week getting quarter of a ml taken out. the difference that made is unbelievable instantly felt better