Preparing for the Band - hoping I'm not hopeless

After not being able to get loose the 100 pounds I gained over 10 years ago (after going on the birthcontrol and poor eating habits) and now that I"m done having babies I'm now heading towards getting the lap band.  I'm just about done w/ all my insurance requirements including my 6 months of diet and exercise w/ my PCP and I'm worried that even w/ the band what if I'm just destined to be at this weight forever.  It's so easy to put on so hard to take off.  At my current weight of 280 pounds I eat consistantly around 1500 calories a day and honestly think I have pretty healthy eating habits - lean proteins - limited carbs, no soda, lots of fruits and vegis (I know I have my moments though).  So if I already eat around 1500 calories a day will the band even help me?  If calorie levels are about the same or in that area will I even be able to loose weight? 

I'm so close but now I'm getting scared.

Thoughts/ opinions?

Instead of posting a long drawn out post for you to read... may I suggest to peak (maybe even read) my recent post about living 5+ yrs w/a band & the honest I feel needs to go w/it.

http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/lapband/4314814/Hello-Everyone-Gone-for-awhile-have-much-to-share-but/#35557630

PLEASE - if you have any questions you'd like me to personally answer ... you are more then welcome to PM or message me at any time.

It all depends.. I mean if you eat 1500 cal a day and exercise your net should be at least 1000 cal and you should lose weight. If you not losing weight eating 1000 calories a day net maybe you have a thriod issue.

Not to judge by any means but I ate decent before the surgery too but I ate HUGE portions.. I would eat yes veggies and protein (lean even) brown rice but I would eat 2 servings of everything not 1 heck even three at times and when I had bad days I had bad days.. pizza, wings, beer and ice cream to top it off.. so those 4000+ calorie days added up.. so of course I didn't lose weight.. so you have to be honest with yourself.

If you think you can lose the weight on your own give it a try I did.. I did one last chance at WW before I turned to surgery.. Surgery only limits HOW MUCH you can eat NOT WHAT you can eat.. remember that.. you can still have most of your goodies besides bread .. bread is usually hard even a person who can eat bread can't eat a lot of it.

You know you better than anyone.. I eat about 1300/1400 (if I eat a good amount of cheese that day) and I exercise approx 60-90 min 4 days a week at least.. I lost 106 pounds in about 14 months. In the beginning I ate less I'm sure but I didn't track then ... my band is a little on the looser side and it's been almost 2 years since surgery.

Good Luck

Getting scared as you get closer to surgery is normal. Take a few deep breaths!

First, I have to ask you a hard question. Please, please don't take offense. When you say you're eating 1500 calories a day (spending those calories wisely) and not losing, I have to ask: are you being totally honest about what and how much you're eating? Do you keep a food log? Do you weigh and measure your food?

I ask this because even though I am a world-famous veteran bandster, I got very lazy about my food log last fall, and when I started doing it again, I just didn't understand why I wasn't losing weight when my log showed intake of 1100 calories a day while I'm working ot 45 minutes a day. A little voice in my head (one of many) said, "But you're not weighing and measuring your food." And when I started the weighing and measuring again, my food log told me I was actually eating 1500-1800 calories a day.

Now that's out of the way...If you truly eat 1500 calories a day now, and 1500 calories a day after you're banded, no, you won't lose weight. There's nothing about the band itself that will make you lose weight. When the band is properly filled and the patient is making a conscious effort to make good food choices and control portion sizes, weight loss should result because the patient just isn't as hungry as before, so the daily calorie intake goes down.

Weight loss is pretty simple (though not easy). You have to take in less calories than you burn each day. The band works for me because I can't eat as much at one sitting and I'm not as hungry between meals. If I make good food choices (SOLID food) and exercise daily, I lose weight or at least maintain it. When silly stuff like M&M's creep into my days, the weight loss stops or the weight starts to creep up. Like you, I've always eaten healthy foods - I love complex carbs and lean proteins. Without my band, I would eat ridiculous amounts of those foods.

Jean

Have you had your thyroid and other hormones checked recently? Are you on any medications that can affect weight?

Jean

Thanks for the replys ladies.  I have had a goal of around 1500 calories a day for the last year or so since I was following a Biggest Loser cookbook at the time and so that made sense. Ive been on a diet most of the last 10 years as well and generally loose and gain the same 15 to 20 pounds a couple times a year.  I've been logging my food intake first in a book and now on my Droid (did you know they have apps for that?  Outstanding!)  I know my portions are heavier at dinner time and that can be a factor, but a typical day for me is a couple hardboiled eggs or a bowl of healthy cereal and a half a homemade smoothie for breakfast (whole fruits only w/ ice & a splash of creamer - I split it w/ my 4 year old)  some homemade soup which I pack for lunch, about one and a half portions since that's what I usually eat as my whole lunch or a tuna sandwich w/ vegies and light mayo on whole wheat bread, greek yogurt for a snack or a handfull of preportioned nuts. I am a creature of habit.  Now  when I get home for dinner I am hungry.  I have a full time job, a long commute, and three children ages 1 to 7. So I am hungry when I get home - no doubt about it and I do tend to have large portions compared to earlier in the day, and that's where almost half of my calorie intake comes in.  That's one of the reason I hope the lap band will assit me.  My husband is extremely health conscious so we tend to not have unhealthy foods in the house but my portions are heavier.

One of the reasons I just bring this up now, on top of getting closer to my date and I'm getting scared is that I was on a food calorie intake website and based on my weight I should have a much higher calorie intake and still be able to loose weight.   I have had my thryoid tested - it's always been normal range except for once about 8 years ago where i tested as borderline. Since then it's always been normal. 

Anyways I proabably sound like I'm in denial, and I can accept if I am, but I'm really hoping this will be the tool to where I can finally get my body healthy.  = )

Thank you Lap Ladies. = )

Oh and the only medication I'm on is an anxiety med that should not affect my wieght. I almost wonder if my body has just happlily settled into its weight. 

Anyways - I'm not a typical whiner, so sorry about that. = )

Trouble is we are all different. The last poster says that post-op and for several months she ate well under 1000 cals a day. I didnt'! I ate about 1200 a day from the time I went on ot puree/mushy foods at jsut over a week post-op!

The band makes it much easier for me to keep to 1200, but pre-band I ate enormous quantities! So eating 1200 should help you lose.

Some people, however, really do need the malabsorption of other surgeries.

Kate

Here is the truth.  If you consistently eat 1500 calories and still weigh 280lbs, there is something terribly wrong with your metabolism.  You have a metabolic disorder that needs to be checked out before you have any type of weight loss surgery.

In your case,  a restrictive only WLS will only help you if you starve your body down to a calorie amount that does not sustain good health.

You should look into the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy with Duodenal Switch.

And to be sure that you are eating only 1500 calories, do you:  weight and measure your foods?  keep a food journal of every single morsel that touches your lips? 

So, no a Lap Band will not do you good if you are already trained in eating a totally acceptable amount of healthy calories.  I mean say you get a band and get yourself on say 500-1000 calories - do you really think that would be healthy in the long run?  There is only so long we can eat that way.

I wish you the very best,
Leila

So slow in replying - sorry -my bad.  BTW- I do appreciate the honesty I do not take it the wrong way that it's possibly I am not counting all my calories and measurement - decieding to have surgery is going to impact my life one way or another and I don't want to take the decision lightly.  I don't want to be in denial of all my eating habits either.  I could improve my eating habits, but I do not think it's very often I go over 1800 calories in a day.  

I'm going to meet w/ my surgeon in a couple weeks, right after I've finished my diet and exercise requirements for insurance.  I originally was only going to consider the band, but after more research I'm going to consider more options as well.  Just hoping and praying for the best choice for me.  I'm hard working and determined person too. = )  Thank you all you inspirational veterans.  = )