I wouldn't say I went hog-wild yesterday for my birthday. But I wouldn't say I was a model bandster either; somewhere in between. Oddly, the scale was down a bit today although it was either half a pound, one pound or one and a half pounds. Ah, I do love my scale. So I haven't changed the ticker. We'll see what the verdict is for tomorrow.
I am firmly back on the wagon today; so far I've had some decaf tea, two soft-boiled eggs and half a mushed-up avocado with a little salt. Plus I walked for 20 minutes and I'm thinking I may do some more walking while the older son is at swim practice.
Thanks for the birthday wishes. It was a great, relaxing day. I had a mani/pedi and the boys got me a new label maker. What else could a mom ask for? They also, with the hubs' help, made me a cake. (See above.) I am saving pieces for their dessert tonight and then getting rid of the rest of the cake. It torments me.
Glad some of you enjoyed the book reviews; most of those books are geared toward people thinking about having the surgery so they may not be helpful to those of us already banded. But it's information I would have liked to have when I was researching so I figured I'd post it for anyone still in the researching phase.
Enjoy the day - the monsoon we had yesterday is gone, replaced with a patchy blue sky and mild temps. Yay for that!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
Birthday Gift and Book Reviews
The scale took pity on me and threw me a bone for my 37th birthday today. I'm down a half pound after seven days of wailing and gnashing teeth.
Today also marks three weeks since my surgery. Putting things in perspective (not a strength of mine), losing 13.5 pounds in three weeks is nothing to sneeze at. Look, I just ended a sentence with a preposition. Let's pretend that didn't happen.
Anyway, I will continue to plug away until my first fill on Feb. 10th and hope that the scale continues to move. My husband says when you've lost a lot of weight in a short period of time, your metabolism slows dramatically and then finds a new balance so you can continue to lose. Also, my period is due in the next week or so, and I've read that women often lose less in the two weeks before their period. Something to do with hormones controlling the force with which food is pushed through the digestive system.
And now, BOOK REVIEW TIME!
I've read four books on weight-loss surgery and banding. They range from really excellent to abysmal.
1. Fighting Weight: How I Achieved Healthy Weight Loss With "Banding" by Khaliah Ali
This is far and away the best book on lap-band I've read. Khaliah Ali is a daughter of the fighting great Muhammad Ali, and she struggled mightily with her weight until she was banded a few years ago. The book combines Ali's memoir of her experiences as an obese single mother and her decision to have surgery with great information from her doctors. The surgeons, George Fielding and Christine Ren of NYU, are the rock stars of banding and WLS in general (and also the doctors of several here in our blogging community). Interspersed throughout the book are sections written by the doctors, covering everything from finding the right doctor and getting insurance coverage to handling social situations and eating in restaurants post-band. Their information is fantastic, and I've found myself going back to this book many many times in the last few months to re-read sections. I highly recommend this one.
2. Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies by Marina Kurian et al.
This book, like most in the Dummies series, is a great resource for those who don't know much about the subject. It covers most of the available procedures, including banding, bypass and duodenal switch (but not the gastric sleeve, as the book was published in 2005). For people trying to decide which surgery will work for them, this explains the procedures and gives a list of pros and cons to each. Marina Kurian is another rock-star surgeon in the weight-loss world - she operated on Al Roker and Star Jones (both bypass patients). At the time the book was published, Kurian was still at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. She has since left to join NYU and now practices with Drs. Fielding and Ren. The book offers some recipes for post-surgery cooking, which are somewhat helpful but are not specific to band patients. Bypass and band post-op diets are not identical, so this can be a bit confusing. The book is also a little out of date and could use a revision and updating, but it generally gives a good overall picture of the options available and explanations of each.
3. Before and After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery by Susan Maria Leach
Susan Maria Leach had gastric bypass surgery, and this book combines a memoir with 135 recipes for weight-loss patients. Before and After was recommended to me by someone in my support group, but I have to say I didn't find it very satisfying. Leach mentions banding once or twice, but the book is completely geared toward bypass patients. While band patients have some similar experiences starting out and at goal weight with bypass patients, the process is pretty different. I haven't tried the recipes, but they do look delicious. Leach's book is great for someone getting a bypass but definitely not a must-read for band patients.
4. Outpatient Weight-Loss Surgery by Kent Sasse
If you know anything at all about weight loss surgery and banding - if you've been to an info session or read a few blogs - this book is useless. The last 80 pages are appendices with charts and graphs, and notes citing other sources. The first 220 pages have the widest margins I have ever seen in a published book. And the whole thing is double-spaced. It reminded me of nothing so much as one of my college term papers, desperately trying to stretch three pages of material to 10 pages. The content is basic in the extreme. I don't recommend this one at all, I found it to be a waste of time and money.
That's it for now. If you've read a book you liked or didn't, please post in the comments. I'd love to hear what everyone thinks. Stay well!
Today also marks three weeks since my surgery. Putting things in perspective (not a strength of mine), losing 13.5 pounds in three weeks is nothing to sneeze at. Look, I just ended a sentence with a preposition. Let's pretend that didn't happen.
Anyway, I will continue to plug away until my first fill on Feb. 10th and hope that the scale continues to move. My husband says when you've lost a lot of weight in a short period of time, your metabolism slows dramatically and then finds a new balance so you can continue to lose. Also, my period is due in the next week or so, and I've read that women often lose less in the two weeks before their period. Something to do with hormones controlling the force with which food is pushed through the digestive system.
And now, BOOK REVIEW TIME!
I've read four books on weight-loss surgery and banding. They range from really excellent to abysmal.
1. Fighting Weight: How I Achieved Healthy Weight Loss With "Banding" by Khaliah Ali
This is far and away the best book on lap-band I've read. Khaliah Ali is a daughter of the fighting great Muhammad Ali, and she struggled mightily with her weight until she was banded a few years ago. The book combines Ali's memoir of her experiences as an obese single mother and her decision to have surgery with great information from her doctors. The surgeons, George Fielding and Christine Ren of NYU, are the rock stars of banding and WLS in general (and also the doctors of several here in our blogging community). Interspersed throughout the book are sections written by the doctors, covering everything from finding the right doctor and getting insurance coverage to handling social situations and eating in restaurants post-band. Their information is fantastic, and I've found myself going back to this book many many times in the last few months to re-read sections. I highly recommend this one.
2. Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies by Marina Kurian et al.
This book, like most in the Dummies series, is a great resource for those who don't know much about the subject. It covers most of the available procedures, including banding, bypass and duodenal switch (but not the gastric sleeve, as the book was published in 2005). For people trying to decide which surgery will work for them, this explains the procedures and gives a list of pros and cons to each. Marina Kurian is another rock-star surgeon in the weight-loss world - she operated on Al Roker and Star Jones (both bypass patients). At the time the book was published, Kurian was still at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. She has since left to join NYU and now practices with Drs. Fielding and Ren. The book offers some recipes for post-surgery cooking, which are somewhat helpful but are not specific to band patients. Bypass and band post-op diets are not identical, so this can be a bit confusing. The book is also a little out of date and could use a revision and updating, but it generally gives a good overall picture of the options available and explanations of each.
3. Before and After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery by Susan Maria Leach
Susan Maria Leach had gastric bypass surgery, and this book combines a memoir with 135 recipes for weight-loss patients. Before and After was recommended to me by someone in my support group, but I have to say I didn't find it very satisfying. Leach mentions banding once or twice, but the book is completely geared toward bypass patients. While band patients have some similar experiences starting out and at goal weight with bypass patients, the process is pretty different. I haven't tried the recipes, but they do look delicious. Leach's book is great for someone getting a bypass but definitely not a must-read for band patients.
4. Outpatient Weight-Loss Surgery by Kent Sasse
If you know anything at all about weight loss surgery and banding - if you've been to an info session or read a few blogs - this book is useless. The last 80 pages are appendices with charts and graphs, and notes citing other sources. The first 220 pages have the widest margins I have ever seen in a published book. And the whole thing is double-spaced. It reminded me of nothing so much as one of my college term papers, desperately trying to stretch three pages of material to 10 pages. The content is basic in the extreme. I don't recommend this one at all, I found it to be a waste of time and money.
That's it for now. If you've read a book you liked or didn't, please post in the comments. I'd love to hear what everyone thinks. Stay well!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
5-Day Challenge
For the record, I did my 20 minutes of walking today, Vanessa. It was a crappy day to walk outside and I didn't feel like it but I did 20 minutes on the treadmill. I definitely wouldn't have done it if not for the challenge, so thank you!
Sticky Scale
ARGH.
That should sum it up. The scale continues to read 240, despite mixing up my calorie intake (but still hovering in the 800-1100 calorie range every day) and walking for an hour yesterday. Boy, is this frustrating. I know people don't always lose at this point, but I figured that was because they didn't have good restriction yet so they were eating things they shouldn't or more than they should.
I AM BEING A DREAM BANDER AND I STILL HAVEN'T LOST WEIGHT IN SIX DAYS.
There. I said it. Let me tell you, I have rarely kept to a diet. But I am following all the rules here and I'm stuck in the same spot. It's too early for a plateau, isn't it?
Otherwise, things are going well. I made a delicious scallop recipe from Sally last night. My in-laws were here, and everyone loved it! I served the scallops over a bed of spinach. I was able to eat two scallops and eight or nine very small bites of spinach. Delicious. Thanks Sally!
I am getting a few of my lap-band books together and will be writing a post reviewing each one. Some of them are terrible, and some are awesome. Stay tuned...
That should sum it up. The scale continues to read 240, despite mixing up my calorie intake (but still hovering in the 800-1100 calorie range every day) and walking for an hour yesterday. Boy, is this frustrating. I know people don't always lose at this point, but I figured that was because they didn't have good restriction yet so they were eating things they shouldn't or more than they should.
I AM BEING A DREAM BANDER AND I STILL HAVEN'T LOST WEIGHT IN SIX DAYS.
There. I said it. Let me tell you, I have rarely kept to a diet. But I am following all the rules here and I'm stuck in the same spot. It's too early for a plateau, isn't it?
Otherwise, things are going well. I made a delicious scallop recipe from Sally last night. My in-laws were here, and everyone loved it! I served the scallops over a bed of spinach. I was able to eat two scallops and eight or nine very small bites of spinach. Delicious. Thanks Sally!
I am getting a few of my lap-band books together and will be writing a post reviewing each one. Some of them are terrible, and some are awesome. Stay tuned...
Friday, January 22, 2010
Question of the Day
For those of us just starting out, can you please post what one or two things have helped most with your lap-band success?
Crossroads
I hit a crossroads last night. There was a Mom's Night Out at a local restaurant, open bar and passed appetizers for two hours. Before I left I was so busy getting everyone organized that I didn't have a chance to have dinner. I planned to have a few apps and a glass of wine.
I had a sea scallop, three risotto balls and three pieces of shrimp tempura, plus a glass of pinot noir. (Skipped the sliders, pot stickers and spring rolls.)
It was a lot, but I had planned for a high-calorie day. I'm not sure exactly how many calories I consumed with those appetizers; it's hard to tell with food like that. I vigilantly weighed, measured and journaled everything I ate up until then, counted the wine, drank lots of water yesterday, etc.
The thing that kind of scared me was, I felt pretty normal. If I had tried, I might have been able to eat a slider, roll and all. But I am terrified of going down that road, because I think I will end up sabotaging my weight loss and fighting the band at every step of the way.
I need to make a big decision: Am I going forward really focusing on changing my habits and putting to rest my compulsions, or am I going to push the envelope and eat as much as my band will "allow" at any moment?
Last night I did a little of both. I stayed away from the sliders because I didn't want to know if I could get one down.
If I had eaten dinner before I left (or even sipped a protein shake on the way), I could have had a glass of wine and stayed away from the food altogether. That would have been the best choice. It's tricky - I don't want to NEVER eat at functions like that.
The scale showed me up a pound today, which is mathematically impossible since my daily calorie intake hasn't topped 1000 calories more than twice in the 2.5 weeks since my surgery. And it's often been in the 600-800 range. So intellectually I know it's water (fingers are STILL swollen) but that doesn't make it less upsetting.
This leaves me with plenty to ponder. I think I'll take my measurements; hopefully those numbers have gone in the right direction and that will cheer me up a bit and help keep my eyes on the prize.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
A New Day, and Question of the Day
The scale is holding steady at 240, much to my dismay. My fingers are also still crazy swollen and my period isn't due for another 10+ days, so no idea what's up with that. We'll see, I guess. I have a water bottle with me much of the time and I sip, sip, sip away at it but I guess I need to do more.
Today is going to be a higher-calorie day. (Yesterday ended up being more than 515, btw, I felt better and had some cottage cheese and the M&Ms.) I am shooting for 1100-1200 calories today, all with "legal" soft foods, of course. It shouldn't be too hard, I have a Mom's Night Out tonight with some girlfriends so a glass of wine will add to my daily tally. But I think a day of higher calorie intake will help shake things up a bit and maybe get the scale moving. Also, it will make me feel c-r-a-z-y eating 1200 calories. My, how things change...
And now, the Question of the Day: How much Biotin do you take for the hair situation? Do you find the pills or the shampoo more helpful? And do you have a favorite brand of Biotin supplements? Where do you get them?
I'm feeling better and I changed out of my whiny pants, so hopefully today's post won't be as much of a downer. Thanks for your sympathy and support, it is so nice to read, especially on days like yesterday.
Today is going to be a higher-calorie day. (Yesterday ended up being more than 515, btw, I felt better and had some cottage cheese and the M&Ms.) I am shooting for 1100-1200 calories today, all with "legal" soft foods, of course. It shouldn't be too hard, I have a Mom's Night Out tonight with some girlfriends so a glass of wine will add to my daily tally. But I think a day of higher calorie intake will help shake things up a bit and maybe get the scale moving. Also, it will make me feel c-r-a-z-y eating 1200 calories. My, how things change...
And now, the Question of the Day: How much Biotin do you take for the hair situation? Do you find the pills or the shampoo more helpful? And do you have a favorite brand of Biotin supplements? Where do you get them?
I'm feeling better and I changed out of my whiny pants, so hopefully today's post won't be as much of a downer. Thanks for your sympathy and support, it is so nice to read, especially on days like yesterday.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Whiny McWhinerson
That's me today - whine, whine, whine. I don't feel well, I miss eating toast when I have a stomach bug, I'm tired despite having two (2!) naps, I'm hungry but nothing seems good to me and I've only had 515 calories today and about 700 yesterday but the scale hasn't moved in two days.
I want chocolate. Real chocolate, not sugar-free pudding (which isn't bad, but isn't quite what I'm going for).
I know this band is going to be a great thing for me. It already is - I've lost 13 pounds in 16 days, and 26 pounds total on this journey.
I'm still having a hard time letting go of my old eating habits, though. I haven't eaten anything that isn't allowed on my postop instructions, and I've definitely been within my calorie limits, but boy I still want want want to have the things I used to have.
This is really hard. And I'm not liking it very much today.
UPDATE: I had 0.5 oz of M&Ms. Satisfied my chocolate craving. Counted the calories in my log. Feeling just fine with it.
I want chocolate. Real chocolate, not sugar-free pudding (which isn't bad, but isn't quite what I'm going for).
I know this band is going to be a great thing for me. It already is - I've lost 13 pounds in 16 days, and 26 pounds total on this journey.
I'm still having a hard time letting go of my old eating habits, though. I haven't eaten anything that isn't allowed on my postop instructions, and I've definitely been within my calorie limits, but boy I still want want want to have the things I used to have.
This is really hard. And I'm not liking it very much today.
UPDATE: I had 0.5 oz of M&Ms. Satisfied my chocolate craving. Counted the calories in my log. Feeling just fine with it.
First Doctor Visit
I think I may have a stomach bug. Yesterday and today I am EXHAUSTED, way more than normal. I could just sleep and sleep and sleep. I've been nauseated on and off. I also feel on the verge of tears.
My visit with the surgeon was fine, nothing exciting. Everything's healing well, he was very happy with my weight loss and scheduled me for a barium swallow and first fill in three weeks.
Here's the problem: The hubs is traveling that day, and I need him to do the school runs/ child care. Now I have to reschedule it which isn't so easy because it means coordinating the surgeon's schedule with the radiology department's schedule AND with the hubs' travel schedule. Sigh.
In short, a blah kind of day.
My visit with the surgeon was fine, nothing exciting. Everything's healing well, he was very happy with my weight loss and scheduled me for a barium swallow and first fill in three weeks.
Here's the problem: The hubs is traveling that day, and I need him to do the school runs/ child care. Now I have to reschedule it which isn't so easy because it means coordinating the surgeon's schedule with the radiology department's schedule AND with the hubs' travel schedule. Sigh.
In short, a blah kind of day.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Counting Calories
I know the band is supposed to free me from dieting and calorie counting, but keeping track of my calorie intake has been oddly comforting for me. I guess it's because I can see that I'm satisfied on so many fewer calories than pre-band. I've been faithfully measuring and weighing to make sure I relearn appropriate portion sizes.
We had 15 members of the hubs' family over on Sunday for Chinese takeout, the Golden Globes red carpet and some football (on the smaller kitchen TV - big TV reserved for red carpet fashions, obvs). Not many of them know about the band, so I wasn't sure how it would go.
I don't really like Chinese food and they all know that, so I don't think it was too strange that I made a separate dinner for myself. I had a glass of wine, a cube of port salut (soft) cheese and 1/4 c. of ricotta with 1/2 c. of tomato sauce baked in the toaster oven (yum!). I faithfully logged everything and came in just under my 1000 calorie self-limit for the day. Very happy about that.
Yesterday was fun and relaxing. The hubs and I saw Sherlock Holmes, I did a little cooking and everyone just chilled and played.
I woke up with my fingers all crazy swollen, and the scale showed me up .5 pound. Lousy piece of... ;) Since I could barely get my rings on, I'm assuming it's all water retention, so drinking lots today and hoping to pee it all out soon.
Thanks to everyone who answered my question yesterday about whether your significant other or family reads your blog. My husband said he's happy for me to use this as a place to vent, ask questions and hang with the band girls without worrying that he'll be checking in.
Tomorrow is my first follow-up visit with the surgeon. Wondering when he'll schedule my first fill...
We had 15 members of the hubs' family over on Sunday for Chinese takeout, the Golden Globes red carpet and some football (on the smaller kitchen TV - big TV reserved for red carpet fashions, obvs). Not many of them know about the band, so I wasn't sure how it would go.
I don't really like Chinese food and they all know that, so I don't think it was too strange that I made a separate dinner for myself. I had a glass of wine, a cube of port salut (soft) cheese and 1/4 c. of ricotta with 1/2 c. of tomato sauce baked in the toaster oven (yum!). I faithfully logged everything and came in just under my 1000 calorie self-limit for the day. Very happy about that.
Yesterday was fun and relaxing. The hubs and I saw Sherlock Holmes, I did a little cooking and everyone just chilled and played.
I woke up with my fingers all crazy swollen, and the scale showed me up .5 pound. Lousy piece of... ;) Since I could barely get my rings on, I'm assuming it's all water retention, so drinking lots today and hoping to pee it all out soon.
Thanks to everyone who answered my question yesterday about whether your significant other or family reads your blog. My husband said he's happy for me to use this as a place to vent, ask questions and hang with the band girls without worrying that he'll be checking in.
Tomorrow is my first follow-up visit with the surgeon. Wondering when he'll schedule my first fill...
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