Just a little bit past 3 years since my gastric band surgery. I am holding fairly steady in the 170's, any where from 173 to 177 depending on the day and the workouts. That puts me at 49 pounds lost post surgery which works out to be 52% of my excess weight lost to date. That is pretty much the prediction that you will lose 50% to 75% of your excess body weight.

My excess body weight was 101.5 pounds based on estimating my prime weight to be 125. Honestly I haven't seen that weight since high school but wanted to be realistic with my estimated excess weight. I still want to lose another 40 pounds but lacking motivation. I am still quite fascinated with this new size 12/14. My pole dancing and personal training have trimmed me into that shape even though I am usually running about 175 pounds most days. I still track my weight on a spreadsheet that I "dreamed" up 3 years ago to track my per pound cost of the surgery as I paid for it myself (no insurance at the time). I still kick box and hop on the treadmill but not often enough to help me trim off the 40 pounds. Like I stated... I'm still to fascinated with my current trimmer size and shape to get motivated to Kick It Up a notch.

100+ Days since GB Surgery

Alrighty then, the weight loss plateau has broken loose again! I am slowly approaching that 200-pound weight barrier, 3 lbs. to go to break through that wall! Potatoes continue to be a source of discomfort and I am making every effort to not eat them.

The BF has indicated that my curves are back and he likes that very much. I am using the WII Fit system again. Great way to track my weight and exercise. It has some awesome balance games. I can tell my balance is adjusting due to the weight loss and redistribution of weight. My WII Fit age was 34 this morning with my actual age being late 40's. Woo!

I totally spaced adding the weight loss ticker to my Blogger. Will get on that this weekend after my personal training session with Mistress Meghan of Health Happenings.

A funny thing is happening with my port area as it continues to exibit a bit of soreness. I am thinking it is due to crouching over at my desk all day at work so trying to sit up straighter. Will see if a little Yoga at night helps with that. On the other hand, being the optimist I am, it could be my abdominal muscles are tightening so much it is causing the pain (LOL, yeah right).

90-days since GB surgery

Weigh Loss: It has been an interesting two weeks where my weight has just fluttered. Not happy about the weight loss stall out again. I know it is my food as the BF so kindly pointed out - You seem to be eating more. What I am doing is loading my plate with more food, eating too fast, not chewing well and suffering heartburn like symptoms and no weight loss as a result. Potatoes snuck back into my diet and they aren't that easy to eat so I just need to snuff them out of my diet again and focus on protein. I am going to see if I can successfully add the weight loss ticker to my Blog site. Weight Loss Statistics: 22 pounds in 89 days, 19% of excess weight gone.

Exercise: I am still seeing my personal trainer 2x per week and I am able to do a lot more with less whining. I have, however, lightened the load on my home exercise just because "I wasn't feeling it." Well am I feeling the lack of weight loss now, YES. Buggers back to the treadmill although I think I shall do kickboxing and Pilates instead (I am certified to teach both so I should be able to command myself in a good workout). Just read another Blog from a gal who had GB surgery as well. Same thoughts as me, it is just a tool and you still need to be vigilent about diet and exercise. I GOT LAZY and that is when the stall happens.

Goals: I renewed my certificates for fitness kickboxing instructor and mat pilates instructor. I need to continue with my education for my personal training and several other certifications. Still see that very strong need for an instructor/trainer who has gone through the GB process herself (I want that to be me) to be able to offer the understanding and kick-butt tough girl attitude to motivate bandsers. Bandsters want training with someone who has been through the banding and understands. I just want to be a hard-ass like my PT and whip them into shape.

Gastric Banding - 2 months now...

It is time to switch time frames, 2-months since my GB surgery. I am still bouncing around my weight plateau of 210. Received my optimum fill on Monday and really think this is the sweet spot for fill level. Spent the weekend with family in Idaho and managed to hold steady. Not gaining weight over a family weekend is a big deal for me. I watched everyone eat fast except for my skinny older sister. I was pacing my skinny sister for once in my life!

The loose clothes theme is continuing. Not feeling too well this morning caught something from my BF. Check back soon as I expect weight loss to start again.

Support Groups Aren't For Me

Well after being "needled" by the nurse that has been sticking me for my fills, I finally caved and went to the support group last night at NWWLS. Needless to say, it was as expected for me and somewhat a waste of my time. While the information presented was interesting it was already something I had spent time researching and figuring out on my own. I tend to be more of a self-starter and do my investigations on my own. The topic was Mindful Eating and was actually interesting.

When the meeting broke into small groups is where it got dicey for me. I am not a weight watchers meeting kind of person. A good percentage of the bandsters in the "emotional" eating group basically sat around whining about life (yes, I know sometimes life sucks and slaps you when you are down) and saying how they were getting around the band or throwing up in the bushes outside of restaurants. Another recent bandster and I seemed to both be looking around the group and probably thinking the same thing, Pull Yourselves Together People. It was not a positive experience, rather a bit of a downer to see some of the non-success people still whining about how they couldn't get it together. Man, I didn't think I was so intolerant of whiners. Not like I am a huge success as I did sneak a couple soft serve (FREE) ice cream cones this weekend and added one pound (kicked my scale, yes I did) this past week.

I was looking for some useful information and tools to succeed. I had already reached a couple of the conclusions by myself... the band is just a tool not a cure-all. That being said, I do like reading the Yahoo groups for bandsters. I can skip over the whiners and find the discussions about things that interested me.

Got my 3rd fill yesterday and I can finally feel the difference and have to slow down and really focus on taking small bites. YES!

My Personal Trainer is really pumping up the workouts and I know I am doing better with some of the weight gone (15#). I am going to speak with my PT about becoming my fitness mentor as I want to re-up my instructor certifications and perhaps do training in the future. There is a huge opportunity with the recently banded and barely exercised. Based on what I saw in the group, they want training with someone who has been through the banding and understands. I just want to be a hard-ass like my PT and whip them into shape.

Post GB Surgery - 6 1/2 weeks

Day 46 since GB surgery (Realize Band) and some days are harder than others. Today I realized I still have an emotional eating problem. I want to stuff my face to make myself feel better even though I know that doesn’t work. Thank goodness the Realize Band puts a crimp in my stuff in the food desire. I am heading in for another fill on Monday, part of the regularly scheduled fill cycle for the new bandsters. This will be my third fill. The second was only 1cc and it made a difference while my stomach was still getting use to the fill but then I got hungry again in a couple days.

My weight isn’t falling off like in my dreams it would but it is dropping. I have got my typical ½ lb. weight gain from working out hard yesterday. My clothes are definitely looser and I am toning up nicely. My low weight this week was 209.5 but this morning it jumped to 210 again. Sigh. Slow but regular progress is encouraging while discouraging all at the same time.

Diet change – cheese is out again as it is causing breakouts on my face. Darn I was beginning to really like the bits of cheese. I am keeping the milk in my diet for now just to put in my tea and coffee.

Five Weeks since GB (Realize Band) surgery

Five weeks past GB surgery (Realize band) and I had my first “fill” appointment on Monday. Not too bad, just a wee prick in my port/tummy area. The worst part was my skin’s reaction to the adhesive on the band aid the nurse used to cover the shot area. It was itchy afterwards and I just put it off to the area being unhappy about the needle shot. Then I took off the band aid Tuesday morning and saw the red area and it stung. Nasty for sure and I will let them know next time, no Band-Aid.

Fill was only 4 mil and not enough to curb my returning hunger. The fill slowed me down a little bit but got the shakes Monday afternoon and had to eat. They have me scheduled to go in for fills for the next three Mondays as they hone in on the perfect fill to lose weight. Apparently I am NOT suppose to eat 1200 calories but about 1000 calories if I want to maintain a 1 – 2 pound a week weight loss. Mentally I have had some eating that happened when I wasn’t hungry but just craving, cheese slices mostly.

It is so funny that I am thinking I am overeating when it is only 1200 calories. I will do better this week on my eating awareness. Drinking more fluids is vital and I am improving. I am also doing more walking every morning on the treadmill to pop my aerobic activity. The inches have been coming off even though I am not currently losing weight. I do expect a weight loss this week with the recent fill. It has me more focused on the food I am eating and why I am eating it. Session with Mistress Meghan tonight at Health Happenings in Monroe and it is suppose to be HOT outside which means sweltering in her little gym. It will be a sweat shop experience tonight for sure!

I purchased a Flip digital video camera to take some videos to post on my blog. It will have to wait until the tripod which is backordered arrives. In the meantime, I will be doing practice videos and figuring out how to edit and which software to download to edit with… all fun.