Kris M.

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highest weight    287 (pregnant)
05-01-07            262 (post pregnancy)
05-31-07            258
06-05-07           255 (day 1 of pre-op diet)
06-15-07            252
06-25-07           251
06-26-07           250
07-06-07           245
07-17-07           245  1st fill! 5cc in band and fill of 1.4cc
07-30-07          242 2nd fill (7cc now)
08-27-07          237 3rd fill (7.5cc total - same as hubby)
09-15-07           229!!
10-03-07           225!
10/18/07          221!!!
10/22/07         221 and fill of .5cc for a total of 8cc
10/25/07         220!!!
10/31/07         218
11/05/07         217
11/08/07         215
11/14/07         214
12/03/07        210!
12/10/07        208
12/23/07        204
03/08/08       196
03/12/08        197 (small fill of either .4 or .2)
04/07/08       189
05/04/08       185
07/02/08       181 (.4 fill total of 7.4)
07/20/08       175!!
08/20/08       172!!  90 pounds GONNNNNEEE!!
10/01/08        167!
05/30/09       144
06/22/09       145 slight unfill to 7cc
03/17/11        146.2 and holding steady!

From Dave Ramsey's Town Hall for Hope: those sames steps can and probably should be applied to our weight loss journey as well.  There are times that we all lose hope that we will succeed, that we will ever reach our "goal", that we'll be able to maintain at our goal.  Those are very difficult times to move through, but there are some very good suggestions on how to get your hope back and take responsibility for your success.

1. TAKE ACTION- Do something, get up and move!  Even when you don't want to, or especially when you don't want to.  Do something to physically get your body moving.  It will release endorphins, hormones, etc that will change you attitude.  It may not immediately change your circumstances (stalls, plateaus, regain), but it will positively affect your mental state.

2. Quit the "loser" talk - Dave called it the spirit of Eeyore.  You know, the voice in your head that makes its way out of your mouth that says "I'm a failure, this is too hard, I'll never succeed.  Even if I do get to my goal it will be too hard to stay there."  Quit talking to yourself like a loser!  If you are surrounded by people who talk doom and gloom about how they can never lose the weight or keep it off, find a new group of people to hang out with!  You will be influenced by your associates and you will start to sound and think like the people you hear most often.

3. Give more - Give of yourself to others who need instruction.  Help a newbie out, reach out to someone who is struggling.  Send an email, make a phone call, send a text message.  Put yourself out there and you will gain more than you can imagine.  Sharing your knowledge and experience will not only help the person you are giving to, it will reaffirm why you have gone through what you have.  It will help re-energize you.

THANK YOU DEB TANK!

Just because it only took your doctor a few minutes to install a restrictive tool doesn't mean your head is all better and wrapped securely around this whole losing process.  GET OFF YOUR OWN BACK.
You didn't gain all your weight over night and you WON'T jump on the mental train over night either.  It takes time.  You will get there and realizing that there are other obsticals besides your mouth is a HUGE step!
All that being said...give yourself a break, relax and this will happen.  Don't guilt yourself over everything you eat or don't eat.  I eat chocolate and ice cream...just not by the pound or gallon anymore!  I don't make perfect food choices all the time...hell, who does?  I TRY to make better choices than I used to.  I can be successful at TRYING.  It seems to be working now!

Being the queen of "there's no way this will work for ME" I have to say now that I KNOW I couldn't have done this without my band.  Two nights ago we went to dinner for my husband's birthday.  My best friend ordered the dish hubby has ALWAYS ordered.  He and I are both banded BTW.  We looked at her plate and then each other and both just shuddered...NO WAY could he eat that now.  We both took home 2-3 meals of leftovers from what we ordered...my dinner had 3 chicken breasts in it!  That's 3+ meals now!  We SHARE a SMALL order of nachos now as our DINNER...each eating 2 or 3 and being stuffed!
This band has given us our lives...not back...but better than ever!  Yes, it will take several fills(3-5).  To give you some idea...my hubby has the older VG band(the one before the AP band) and he just got his 5th fill on 7-02...as of 7-22 he'd lost 23 pounds since his fill!!  Can you believe that?
We still get discouraged that we can't "eat" like we used to...I sooooo want a WHOLE PIZZA, but I can't because it gets stuck...but I CAN eat the toppings and sauce(usually not more than 1 slice worth now...lol).
The Bandster Hell post I made on my profile explains how we've made it this far.  I refuse to live my life on a diet.  It took awhile(I had the advantage of watching my hubby for a year before I was banded) for me to learn how I wanted to do this.  Now I just automatically reach for my protein first because I know I won't have a lot of room for much.  I really miss eating a huge plate of veggies...I love veggies and will get stuck on them now.  I don't miss carbs because I still EAT THEM.  Just not first and NOT A LOT.  We used to make TWO boxes of hamburger helper for dinner to feed myself, my husband and our two LITTLE kids.  The pan would be empty after dinner with NO LEFTOVERS.  The kids would have coffee cup-side servings.  Chris and I would have BUCKET sized servings.  We'd eat it all.  Not anymore.
We have changed too since working out(I HATE exercise!).  We both really enjoy working out now(not obsessed with it but we feel good after and can see the changes it's making and look forward to the next gym visit or feel withdrawls if we can't make it), and we've found that we CRAVE fish after working out.  So...neither of us having been big fish eaters, we now eat fish a couple times a week if we can!  That's huge!
This journey isn't over, it never will be I hope...but it's a GREAT RIDE!

[3604821097]  University of Texas Southwestern Medical School Program The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center 5323 Harry Hines Boulevard Department of Plastic Surgery Dallas, TX 75390-9132

Plastic Surgery

Rod  J. Rohrich, MD

(214)648-3571 (214)648-6776 [email protected]

Important New Protein Quality Guidelines from Surgeons

If you have been reading our updates, you know we have regularly advised that:

- whey protein ISOLATE is better than whey protein concentrate
- collagen-based products such as the test tube products get very low protein quality scores. Profect and New-Whey are calculated to have a PDCAAS of 5 or 6 out of a possible 100 (1).

Historically, we have perhaps been the only ones saying this.

Now the bariatric surgeons, dietitians, and nurses have just issued Protein Quality Guidelines, and everything they recommend is consistent with what we have said.

While many many products do not meet the guidelines, you should know that
for every single new guideline, UNJURY matches it 100%, fully, bull’s eye, completely, exactly, and it always has.

While the full set of guidelines should become available on the web soon, here are some of the key messages from the guidelines (2).

1. It's not enough to know how much protein you are getting (how many grams). You also have to look at the amino acid profile to know about the QUALITY of the protein.
(Some proteins have almost zero value.)

2. The PDCAAS scoring is the superior way to rate protein quality (it looks at the levels of each indispensable amino acid).

3. Doctors, nurses and dietitians are advised to use Caution when recommending any type of collagen-based protein supplement (for example, the “test tube” products).
So you too should use Caution when using products with hydrolyzed collagen.

4. Whey protein *Isolate* is better than whey protein concentrate. (Concentrate has more lactose, and gives you less protein.)

5. Recommended daily grams of (high quality) protein: 70 grams per day during weight loss and low calorie diets.

The society issuing the guidelines is the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), and almost certainly your surgeon, dietitian and nurse are members. The guidelines were announced Monday June 16, 2008 at the ASMBS annual meeting.

You can be sure that most of the products, those which don’t fully meet the guidelines, will try to make it sound like they do, or will try to say the guidelines are not important.
But here are 2 easy rules to remember:

1: "Caution on Collagen"
(e.g. about 94% of the protein in the test tubes is collagen)

2: Whey Protein ISOLATE is better than Whey Protein Concentrate

Here are three key messages from the guidelines:

A. "The PDCAAS score indicates the overall quality of a protein."

B. "The PDCAAS score indicates the body’s ability to use that product for protein synthesis." (Protein synthesis is necessary for making every cell in your body.)

C. You can lose lean body mass (for example muscle and organs including the heart) even if you get the right number of grams of protein, if the protein doesn’t have each and every Indispensable Amino Acid IN THE RIGHT AMOUNT.

In other words, even if you used 3 of the "test tubes" every day, you can still lose muscle and organ tissue because the test tubes have a deficiency in indispensable amino acids. (1)

We hope this is helpful. If you have any questions, please do ask us. This is too important to your health.

Healthy regards

Jerome
UNJURY (R) Protein


1. We calculated the PDCAAS (amino acid scores) of Profect and New-Whey based on assays of samples we sent to Covance, Inc, a leading independent laboratory, in 2007. To our knowledge, they have never disagreed with our calculation of their PDCAAS scores.

2. Preprint. L. Aills et al. Bariatric Nutrition: Suggestions for the Surgical Weight Loss Patient. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases July/August Volume 4, Number 4S, 2008 ( Official Journal of the Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery)

When do you begin getting fills? THAT will be the beginning of your journey.  If it's empty it's not working yet....just you are.  That being said:

You can choose not to have Bandster Hell. You can decide that your "tool" is in place but when not filled it is much like a tire on your car with no air in it.  You can decide to use the period between banding and getting fills to eventually obtain restriction as a healing and training period and not sweat the scales.  If you choose to rely on your band you will PROBABLY run into Bandster Hell...if you expect your band to be beneficial.  Without saline, it's just in there...not providing any restriction...just like you were before getting it in the first place...in other words you will be dieting.  But, if you choose this time to hone your Band skills that you will need with restriction you will probably still see weight loss.  Concentrating on Protein First, Veggies Second, Carbs last or not at all; no drinking with meals(or small sips depending on your doc's preferences); smaller portions and chewing well, will help "train" you for your new life.
Don't sweat the interim but do be very conscience of what goes in your mouth.  Try for only the good stuff.  Try for smaller portions.  Use protein as a crutch(if you're still hungry have 2 chicken breasts and some veggies instead of the potatoes).
I'm no expert, it just worked for me and for my husband.  We neither one "starved" thru Bandster Hell.  AND....we both lost weight...and are losing it steadily.
The bottom line is YOU ARE STILL HEALING.  You need calories to do that properly.  Eat.  You will lose the weight anyway because what you are eating is different from what you ate before being banded.  This part IS NOT about losing weight...it's about the healing process and doing that correctly so you have your tool working for you for a long time.
DON'T SWEAT bandster hell!!
Now, all that being said....you can only eat what you can hold.  If you're full....you're full.  Don't sweat the how much....concentrate on the WHAT that you are eating.  Is it mostly protein?   Is it low fat?  Is it low carb?
Drink your liquids, eat your protein and relax.  The weight loss WILL COME.  You will do well.  Do not starve your body, but do not STUFF it either.  Eat your protein first...then veggies....then carbs.  You will lose weight, I promise!!

STAGE I – FIRST 2 WEEKS POST-OP

1. Liquids only from list below 3 times daily at set times.

2. Liquid protein supplements  3 times daily between meals and bedtime.
    NOTE: Most people can only drink 1 protein drink per day the first 2-3 days due to swelling.

• Remember: small amounts (4-6 ounces)
• GO SLOWLY (30 minutes to drink 6 ounces)
• When you feel full STOP!
• NO carbonated drinks 

LIQUID DIET:

• Coffee, tea, fruit juice (NO orange or grapefruit)
• Crystal light, Nutrasweet, Sugar free Kool-Aid
• Diet drinks
• Protein drinks as advised by the doctor 
  
• Broth
• Skim milk or Lactaid milk
• Sugar free Jell-O or Sugar free popsicles
• Low fat yogurt
• Sugar free pudding
• Applesauce or baby food fruit
  

STAGE II FULL LIQUIDS FOR 2 WEEKS
Full liquids from the list below can now gradually be added to your diet.

1. 3 meals per day with a liquid protein supplement twice daily between meals.

2. NO liquids with meals if soft food is included. You must wait 30-45 minutes for the pouch to empty before drinking.

3. CHEW WELL- the food must be almost liquefied before swallowing.

FULL LIQUID DIET(anything you had to eat with a spoon or could drink):

• Mashed potatoes
• Blenderized soup
• Soup with noodles
• Cottage cheese
• Oatmeal
• Grits
• Cream of wheat                        
  

 STAGE III – SOFT DIET

• Soft fruit (banana, melon, strawberries)
• Cooked vegetables and fresh green vegetables
• Soft pasta (well chewed)
• Eggs
• Toast or crackers

Gradually add regular foods and remember:

1. Eat only at set meal times
2. NO LIQUIDS with meals or for 30-45 minutes afterwards.
3. Avoid cheap calories
   • Fats
   • High Calorie Liquids
   • Sweets, ice cream, junk food, cookies
4. Protein supplement drinks1 time a day for 1 month

http://www.5daypouchtest.com/plan/theplan.html

Weight tracker
on June 4, 2007 11:13 pm
Published
highest weight    287 (pregnant)
05-01-07            262 (post pregnancy)
05-31-07            258
06-05-07           255 (day 1 of pre-op diet)
06-15-07            252
06-25-07           251
06-26-07           250
07-06-07           245
07-17-07           245  1st fill! 5cc in band and fill of 1.4cc
07-30-07          242 2nd fill (7cc now)
08-27-07          237 3rd fill (7.5cc total - same as hubby)
09-15-07           229!!
10-03-07           225!
10/18/07          221!!!
10/22/07         221 and fill of .5cc for a total of 8cc
10/25/07         220!!!
10/31/07         218
11/05/07         217
11/08/07         215
11/14/07         214
12/03/07        210!
12/10/07        208
12/23/07        204
03/08/08       196
03/12/08        197 (small fill of either .4 or .2)
04/07/08       189
05/04/08       185
07/02/08       181 (.2 fill total of 7.2?)
07/20/08       175!!
08/20/08       172!!  90 pounds GONNNNNEEE!!
10/01/08        167!