Doing awesome!

I'm at a great place in my journey. I'll have to come back and do a longer post about it later, but I'm really happy with how things are going and the things I am learning and doing. I'm almost down 40 lbs from my highest post-baby weight. It's been a lot of work, but I'm in it for the long haul.

Spring

I'm still plugging along! I'm doing pretty well. The scale hasn't been moving as fast and so it's not as exciting to come and post about my progress, but I'm feeling really good. I've been running again. My running buddy and I have been running longer and longer. We usually do a total of 3 miles, broken up with some walking in between. Lately we've just been running out of time to get the whole thing in.

It has warmed up enough that we're running outside. It is a nice change. I'm liking Spring. It was a long winter!

I have learned that a couple of my fellow band sisters, banded by the same doctor as me have had their bands erode into their stomachs. Basically, the band wears a hole in your stomach and ends up inside it, either partially, or in one of their cases, the entire band was in her stomach. This is very serious and has resulted in the removal of those bands and other stomach repairs. The one I talked to about it has gastroparesis and has trouble eating and is in a lot of pain.

I haven't had any obvious signs of problems with my band. I am very grateful for that. I will certainly follow up with my doctor and get some tests done to verify that it's still in place, and not eroding etc. The band erosions can be caused by the way the bad was done, so it is significant that my surgeon's patients are experiencing problems.

Please understand that getting a Lapband is a huge decision. There are many who never have problems, but there are many who do have problems, some of them quite serious. When I researched the Lapband, I really had rose colored glasses on when looking for information. Because there is certainly a lot of negative info out there as well.

What I am learning is that the band won't fix you. It might help you get it. But you still have to get it. You still have to make hard food choices. You still have to choose to exercise and eat right. You still have to make the change from doing those things that make and keep you fat to doing those things that will lead to a leaner and healthier body. I'm not perfect, but I'm getting better all the time. I'm doing these things that will lead to a healthier body and at this point, it has nothing to do with my Lapband.

Time for an update

I know I've said in the past that if I'm not posting I am probably struggling. Well, for once, that's not the case! I'm happy to say that I am continuing to make progress and get healthier.

My weight has continued moving downward, albeit slowly. I'm almost at 25 pounds lost since beginning the Game on! in December. I have every intention of continuing with it until I am at my goal weight.

I've realized I need to make some tweaks to it to speed things up. Currently the way I'm using the free day is causing me to lose too much ground to really be losing much weight. So I am working on some modifications.

I'm also getting back into the swing of running. I have been blessed with an amazing, good friend who invited me to be her workout partner and we've progressed from walking, to running a little, to running a good amount. We're working on doing a 5K in April. Just bought some new running shoes, so I'm committed. Those puppies are not cheap!

I have to be honest because this is a blog about my Lapband. I don't feel that my band is doing anything for me at this point in my journey. I'm at a medium restriction, and most of the time it doesn't affect how much I eat, only the length of time it takes me to eat.

Even though I have a Lapband, I don't believe that the ultimate state of losing weight involves extreme portion control. I have always believed that eating healthy foods in a reasonable portion size is the way we were meant to eat and is the optimum way to lose weight. Thankfully, I have gotten to a place that my band isn't controlling what I eat. I am. I actually feel so comfortable with where I am at right now, if I could, I would have my fluid removed.

I don't for a second think I would have been better off not getting a Lapband. The whole process of the surgery and lifestyle changes has been life altering for me. It wasn't until I began this process that I was able to finally see myself as someone who could sustain a healthy life and not be a fatty the rest of my life.

But the problem was pretty obvious once the effects of the band were gone with the removal of my fluid at the beginning of my pregnancy more than a year ago. Without that help, I gained weight and I gained it fast. Since having the baby, seeing that getting my band filled back up wasn't making much difference for me has really made me take a hard look at my habits and my attitude toward food.

I feel so blessed to be in a better place again. I'm making consistently good food choices and my body is responding.

Thanks for reading. Sorry my posting is so sporadic. :)

Starting round three

We have started the third month of Game on! I lost 20.6 by the end of the second round. I am really loving having some loss finally! I feel great and hopeful that this is completely sustainable.

Still working hard

These last two weeks have continued to be successful while playing the Game On! I am down 15.6 pounds total since December 1st. Feeling so glad to be doing this.

Holding steady

Well, I'm a little disappointed that the second half of the month didn't yield better results, but I ended out the four-week challenge at the same 9 pounds down. Still, losing 9 pounds in December is a lot better than I have been doing. On to January!

9 pounds

9 pounds. In December. I'm only halfway done with this month. Wow.