Kathy S.

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I really do have restriction now.  I've PB'd both yesterday and today because of the textures of the foods I tried to eat.  I thought I had the eating rules down pretty well, but I've got some re-learning to do.  

My throat is sore tonight from my episode today at lunch, so I'm taking it easy tonight, and I'll watch carefully tomorrow what I eat.  I'll spend a few days just eating the safe basics that I've been able to rely on.  Then I'll see how I feel and how my band is behaving.

I see my GP tomorrow for the first time since before my surgery.  I had my last weigh-in with her in June, about 6 weeks before my surgery in August.  She supported me in my pursuit of WLS, but she didn't really support the WLS itself.  I know she'll be glad to see how I've done so far.   She has a friend who had had RNY and was required to take dozens of vitamins and minerals daily, and she didn't want to see me in that situation.  We talked quite a bit about how the band works, and she liked it better than the RNY.  I'm looking forward to telling her about it tomorrow.

Well, I was down to 210.5 this morning, so the scale is on the move!  That's very rewarding because I feel as if I'm making good choices and doing the right things.  Non-scale victories are important, and I've seen lots of them over the past 7 months.  But those scale victories are really important too.

I've been using my Polar heart monitor the past few weeks to more accurately gauge my calories burned.  I've been walking over 2 miles a day on the treadmill and using weights while I'm walking.  Those weights keep my heart rate on the high end of the desired range, and that really burns the calories.  Twice this week, I've burned over 800 calories, and today I burned 600.  I know those high figures are playing a role in my losing.  

It feels good to see some progress.

Tomorrow is my 7-month bandiversary.  7 months.  Wow.  It seems like no time since I had my surgery.  It's funny how the time went so slowly leading up to the surgery and how it has flown by since.

I've been using FitDay.com to track my calories the past few days.  (I had used it occasionally before, but I've really been paying attention since this most recent fill.)  Anyway, this morning I weighed in at 211.5.  That's the very lowest I've been on this journey, so it looks as if I'm beginning to lose again.  I had floated around 215 for the past 2 months, with an occasional low of 213.  Hitting 211.5 was very rewarding.  I'm ready to lose more regularly.

I also updated my exercise schedule and plan to do several 40 minute moderate workouts each week.  My Polar heart monitor measures my calories burned during exercise, and I burned over 800 calories in yesterday's workout!   I was intending to burn 500-600 in my workouts, so if i can occasionally burn over 800, I'll be able to keep my average higher than I had expected.

I feel very much in charge now, with my band doing exactly what it's supposed to do.  

Now I'm up to 3.8 cc's in my 4.0-cc band.  It's hard to imagine having that much saline in the band.  I had restriction already but felt I could use a bit more, so the NP added what we thought would be .2 cc's to my already 3.4 cc's.  But when she finished, she said I was now at 3.8.

We also talked about what it takes to lose a pound of weight.  A pound is made up of 3500 calores, so to lose a pound a week one would have to reduce one's daily calories by 500 below the required, weight-maintenance number of calories.  To lost 2 pounds a week, one would reduce the daily number of calories by 1000.

To maintain my weight, I need 1600 calories a day.  So to lose 2 pounds a week, I need to reduce my calorie intake by 1000 calories a day.  If I burn 500 calories a day doing exercise, I need to eat about 1100 calories.  Together, those 2 behaviors would give me the 1000 calorie reduction I need.

That sounds do-able to me.  I don't like the idea of having to track all of my calories, but once I do it faithfully for awhile, I'll become better at estimating.  Now that my band is getting full, I need to make the best possible choices with my foods--limiting fried foods and carbs. 

The NP told me today that the doctor's goal for me was to lose 23 pounds in the first year.  Well, I'm not quite to the 7-month mark, and I'm down 25 pounds since the day of my surgery (and 30 from my highest weight).   If I can now work on losing 2 pounds a week, by the time Jason and I go on our cruise, I'll be well under 200.  That's my next goal--to be under 200 pounds, maybe by the end of the semester!

I feel like I'm getting the hang of this band.  It's about time, isn't it?  I passed the 6-month mark 4 days ago.  But I also just finally got restriction 8 days ago, so I'm really just to the point where the band is working.

I'm been recording my food intake on a semi-regular basis using FitDay.  That helps me see how close I come each day to my 1200-1500 calorie goal.  Today I'm short of that, but I'm over 1000 so I'm not too far short.  Most days I'm struggling to find snacks that won't put me over, but today I must have made better choices.  I'm amazed that I've eaten as much as I have but am still under my limit.

I've also kept my promise to myself about exercising regularly.  I've managed to get in 30-45 minutes several mornings this last week and feel pretty good about it.  I tuck my mp3 player in my pocket and take off on the treadmill.  With the variety of music I have on it (thanks to Jason), I never know what's going to come on.  So I can keep myself amused for as long as I want to walk.  I lift weights while I walk, and that adds to my variety, so I don't get bored too quickly. 
 
I'm ready to get some more of this weight off.  Spring is on its way.  And only 4 months from now, Jason and I will be on our way to the sunny Caribbean for our cruise!!  I really want to be under 200 for that occasion.  If my weight loss stays steady at a pound a week, I'll be there easily.  And if my weight loss speeds up, I'll be well under.  That's my goal--although I'd love to under 190 for that trip!

If i stick to the rules and make good choices, I can't help but be a loser!

Surely this one will bring me closer to my sweet spot!  

I'm up to 3.4 cc's in my band, and I am officially down to 217.0 pounds (down 5.5 since my fill on January 5).  The lowest I've been on my scale at home is 213.5.  The NP was very pleased with my recent loss and feels I'm very close to where I need to be.  Still I'm glad to get a little more fill because I feel I can eat more than I should and don't stay full as long as I should. 

I had hot chocolate this afternoon after my fill and veggies tonight.  I'll take it easy again tomorrow and maybe have some meat tomorrow evening.  Jason and I will go out to eat Wednesday evening (for Valentine's Day), and we'll probably go to our favorite Mexican restaurant, Mi Mexico.  I get a chicken dish there, the Cancun, that is grilled strips of chicken covered with a melted cheese sauce.  The chicken is supposed to be wrapped in a tortilla, but I get mine "sin ropa," and it is delicious!  The chicken is so tender, and the cheese sauce helps it go down.  I have some rice and beans with it, but I eat most of the chicken before eating the side dishes.  That will be my first real outside meal, and if i can eat some of it, I'll know this fill isn't too tight.

I spent 30 minutes this morning on the treadmill and lifting some light weights.  My plan is to do that on MWF mornings and take TR mornings off.   I feel like I have a new start and am on track.  Go me!!

First thing this morning, I dressed for my workout and headed for the treadmill.  I filled my water bottle and put it in its holder, grabbed my mp3 player and headphones, and donned my Polar workout monitor to track my time, heartrate, and calorie burn.

I spent 45 minutes walking, listening to good tunes, and lifting light weights.  It felt great!  The Polar monitor said I burned 599 calories, and my heart rate stayed in a good, healthy range, so I was very pleased.

Since then, I've drunk 48 ounces of fluids; eaten some Kashi Go Lean cereal with skim milk; had a little pork roast, string cheese, and green beans; and some sf hot cocoa (made with water and a dollop of skim milk). 

I'm getting ready to read the Sunday paper and then take a little nap (enhanced by listening to one of Sandy Richards' Imadulation CDs).  Then I'll have some dinner, grade some papers, and watch some TV with my sweetie.  Sounds like a pretty-close-to-perfect day! 

Tomorrow I'll get fill # 7 and add to the 3.2 cc's that are already in my band.  This one ought to make a substantial difference!  I'm expecting good things!

Well, I have my next fill Monday, February 12, and I'm ready for it.  I've floated around 214-218 for the past 2 months, and I'm ready to get serious and lose some weight.  I try not to get too upset about the slow weight loss because I honestly feel it's more healthful and better for my skin to lose slowly.  But it's been almost 6 months and I'm only down about 26 pounds.  I had hoped to be down twice that amount as this point.

So I'm reviewing the situation (to quote Fagan from Oliver).  I'm ready to drop some pounds.  I'm going to start using FirDay on a regular basis so I can see how many calories I'm consuming.  I'm also getting back on that blasted treadmill!  I just haven't seemed to be able to do that regularly this year.  I know, I know--I shouldn't beat myself up over the lack of exercise because I've been under the weather off and on since the semester started.  But I also know that exercising regularly gives me more energy and helps me feel better emotionally.  I NEED to do this!

One of my weaknesses is that I let Jason's habits affect mine, and I need to work on that.  He's quite sedentary and loves to spend every evening sitting in front of the TV, working at his computer and snacking until bedtime.    I don't snack regularly, but I do sit too much.  I could very easily spend 30-60 minutes each evening exercising.  I need to at least try that for a week or two.  In that past, I wasn't able to get to sleep if I exercised in the evenings, so I had moved my treadmill time to mornings.  But I just don't want to get up early enough to work out in the mornings.  I must find a way to work this out.  I need the exercise, I know.

On a different note, I got my hair cut this morning, and my hairstylist (who also happens to be my niece) commented that my hair seems to be growing much faster than it used to.  I think the protein has made the difference in my hair and my nails.  I hadn't thought about my nails until Erin said that about my hair.  But over the past few weeks at work, I've had 5 or 6 comments about how nice my nails look.  I'm not doing anything different  for them or for my hair, so I think the extra protein in my diet is making the difference. 

Today is Jason's and my 10th anniversary.   We're both amazed that the 10 years have gone so fast, and yet we both feel as if we've always been together.  It's pretty special being married to my best friend!

My weight continues to bounce around 214.5.  That's the lowest I've hit so far.  One morning that's my weight, and the next morning I'm back at 216.0.  It's strange to see the weight move around that way, but I'm not discouraged.  I know I'm losing, and I know the number will drop, even if it does so slowly.

I'm able to eat too much, I think, and I don't stay full long enough during the day, so I want to snack throughout the afternoon.  That makes me think I need a tiny bit more fill.  I go for my 6th fill on February 12.  I won't wait this long for my next fill.  When I get this next one, I'll go ahead and schedule my next appointment for 4 weeks out.  I don't want another 6-week wait.  I've even thought about calling to see if I could possibly get in one day next week, but I may as well wait now since I'm only a little over a week away.

I love my band and am grateful to have it to help me lose weight.

I've made some progress over the last week.  

First, I got back into a better exercise routine.  I had let that go over Christmas break, and I had missed it.  I 'm teaching a 9:00 class on MWF this semester, so I can get my 30-45 minutes in before Jason leaves for work and still get to work with time to spare.   It feels good to get that "me time" in in the mornings, and I feel more energized throughout the day.

I also saw the scale move this week.  I was down to 214.5 today!  That's the lowest I've been yet, and that feels good.  I know that's likely to fluctuate back up, but it's also going to come back down.  That's my new weight.  I'm down 25.5 pounds since August 16.

I also made good food choices last week.  Jason and I eat out a lot since it's just the 2 of us, but last week we felt like eating at home several evenings.  That allowed me to fix smaller amounts and not have to deal with leftovers.  I was able to take what I wanted for lunch (again, reasonable serving sizes) and not have to take whatever I had not eaten the night before.   

I look forward to being able to get another tiny fill in 3 weeks and see how that will help me even more.