5 days to go..

I've been busy trying to follow my pre-op diet. Haha. I've been reading your blogs but not commenting or updating, so I apologize for that!

As for the diet, it goes well. I have cheated a few times, but no biggie. I avoided sweets altogether until last night when I had my "last meal" at Cheesecake Factory. And don't you know, I just had to get the peanut butter cup cheesecake. But I figure since I only go once or twice a year, it is okay to indulge post-band and take a piece home with me.

My 5 day liquid diet started day, and I plan to follow it fully. I get to have protein shakes, soups, creams, broths, and all the sugar free ice cream/Popsicles/jello that I want... which I can guarantee you will not be much. The protein shakes are filling me up for a few hours at a time, so that's a surprising positive. The only thing is, I have had such trouble finding a brand that doesn't make me want to barf. I bought four samples from GNC and only really liked two. The first one ended up being a meal replacement (bah!) and I can't remember the name of the second one. So looks like I'll be going back and perusing the aisles some more.. the guy who works there is like huge. He's kind of scary.

In other developments, I have an amusing (at least to me) story to tell. So I haven't told THAT many people about getting the band. I only told my close friends (of which I have 3-4) and my immediate family (parents, brothers, in-laws). I also told my husband's cousin who is very close to us and had lap-band surgery in April of 09. Beyond that, I haven't told anybody else. I never told people they couldn't tell (except for the cousin--but that was before I made my decision), but I never told people they could tell others either. Well, I don't know what I was thinking because my mother-in-law is apparently telling everyone in the family. Not that I care, but I would have liked her to ask me how I felt about it first. And then, to top it off, my father-in-law is an MD and everyone who works at his office knows. Ha. But the amusing thing to me is, though I told them about this in November, my father-in-law has decided to ask a colleague who is a lap band surgeon if he would be willing to budge on the price for me so I don't have to fly out of state for it. (They don't know I'm going to Mexico, and I don't want them to. They think I am only going to San Diego. It's best if they don't know because I don't care to hear any one's judgments.) So he has spent the past week checking on the price and trying to get some leverage for me to get this surgery here in my town. So far, the surgeon quoted a very reasonable price, but it didn't include the hospital or anesthesiologist. So ya know... if he can't work out an arrangement here, then I am still going in five days to get it done in Mexico. I appreciate his offer to help and see what he can do, but I wish he had thought about asking his friend sooner. Oh well.. I am just so ready to get this show on the road. I'd be willing to wait to do it if I COULD do it here for a reasonable price, but I don't see my luck being that great. Plus, I'm just ready to do this already. Three months of planning and waiting has made me a very impatient girl.

I'm starting to get hungry.. luckily my mom-in-law has some homemade vegetable soup. Yum.

Funny text message

I thought you may get a kick out of this text conversation with my husband.

Me: I'M HUNGRy.

Me: I want cookies

Me: And taco bell!!!!!

Him: Lol

Me: I want a five layer burrito

Me: I'll be your bff

Me: I'm dying

Me: My head hurts :(

Him: Sorry baby

Him: Popsicle

Me: Ew. I need some meat to sustain me

Me: Help me cheat?

Him: lol you'd hate me later

Me: But I'd love you now

Basically I am having the worst case of hunger known to man. Or me, at least. Probably because I was lazy and didn't want to cook so I only had a snack for lunch so I could eat more at dinner. Definitely won't make THAT mistake again!

I keep wondering, how important is this first week of dieting for a successful surgery? It seems like only the last nine days would be *really* necessary. First four days are 1,000 cals plus protein shakes and the last five days are strictly liquids. This week of 1,200 cals seems unnecesary. I do see the good side of it, though. It gets me used to eating like I should. I just don't want to starve through it. I hate eating this way because I can only eat certain foods at certain times. If I did this diet my way, I'd only eat when I wanted to and make the best choices that I could. This just seems like jail. Alas, it is *my way* that got me this big, so I'll shut up.

Ignore me. It's the hunger talking. :)

Pre-op day 1

So it wasn't as bad as I imagined it to be..If I found myself hungry throughout the day, I would just drink more tea.

Breakfast: 2 egg whites, 1/2 cup mushrooms and 1/2 banana

Lunch: 1 cup of cooked spaghetti with 2 tbsps of Parmesan cheese, 1 cup salad with 1tbsp Italian dressing and 6 croutons




Snack: 1/2 cup pinto beans

Dinner: 1 cup cooked white rice w/ 1 tbsp butter and 1/2 cup steamed veggies.




Snack: Sugar free Popsicle.

This all added up to about 1000-1200 calories today. Not bad! I even cut out 2 snacks because I wasn't that hungry: a granola bar and a piece of fruit.

Here's to hoping I'm as successful tomorrow as I was today. :)

A gift to all my friends and followers!

I have something I'd like to share with you. While my husband was a pastor and we were living in Illinois, we lived with a family for a few months who became very close to our hearts. When we moved in with them, they had just finished losing all the weight they needed to and were working on maintenance. Every morning they would weigh themselves and mark it on a chart taped to their bathroom mirror. Then once every few weeks, the husband would enter their numbers in an Excel spreadsheet and it would show a physical graph of how much weight they lost/gained. He did this so they would have a daily physical reminder of their achievements.

He sent me the spreadsheet, and I want to share it with you. If you are the type of person who weighs every day and needs a reminder of how you are doing, this is just the thing to tape on your bathroom mirror and keep track!

I have uploaded the spreadsheet to YouSendIt.com for you to download. If for some reason the link doesn't work, please leave me a comment with your email address and I will email it to you. This link will only be valid for 7 days. There are instructions inside the spreadsheet, but let me know if you still have questions. I am not an Excel whiz, but I'm sure I can always email our friend to get your answers.

Here is the link: Weight Loss Spreadsheet.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Protein Shakes

I tried to find a thread for this on LBT but got tired of searching. As I am about to begin pre-op, I am curious; which brands and flavors of the protein shakes are your favorite? I have always hated SlimFast and stuff like that so I'm hoping the shakes won't resemble it. I am about to stock up so suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks!!

A pre-band challenge and a post-band victory

As I gear up for my pre-op diet that begins on Monday, I am putting things in order before I leave for surgery. The thing dearest and most important to me is my 11-month old daughter's care while my husband and I are in Mexico for three days. See, she is our first. And I stay at home with her. So I am VERY attached. She usually spends part of the night in our bed, and I enjoy snuggling with her. The thought of leaving her for three nights is almost too much to bear. I didn't even think of this before I booked the surgery. I'm kind of glad I didn't because it probably would have caused me to delay it. However, I am gonna miss her like crazy. She is my princess. My dad and stepmom have offered to keep her and so have my in-laws (whom we live with). I am torn on who to leave her with. Both places have their upsides. If I leave her here, she will be home but I am afraid she will be neglected some as this family isn't very organized. I know I would come back to her things being a complete wreck. I am leaning towards leaving her with my dad. She LOVES her papa and he adores her. My only worry is she'll be too much of a burden on them because she still wakes up once at night to eat. My dad has assured me it would be no problem and I have no worries leaving her with them. They are the most attentive caregivers and are prompt to change her and feed her. To be completely honest, my in-laws are kind of lazy about all of that and try to pass it off on each other. I think for my utmost peace of mind that we will leave her with my dad.

Okay, so basically I wrote the first paragraph to settle all that in my mind. Thanks for sticking with me through that part, haha.

The second part of this post is definitely for females only and may be a little TMI, but I am already thinking of positives of getting the lap band. My favorite part is that I just had my period, so I won't be going through pre-op with an insane urge to eat a Hershey's chocolate bar! I will be newly banded when I get my next period and unable to eat much but liquids. I know you girls can appreciate that! Lol.

So yes, I am ready to do this. I am on my way to being a healthier and happier me :)

24 days...

In a little over three weeks, I will be banded. My fears are strangely starting to alleviate. I'm not sure if it's a result of prayer or not, but I am thankful! My pre-op diet starts in about a week and a half. One week of high protein, 5 days of mostly liquids, and then 4 days of clear liquids. I know this will be great preparation for post-op, but going one month without real food is kind of scary! The one thing I have determined, though, is not to let food rule me. In one of Dinnerland's recent posts, she mentioned that she hoped that food would not rule her life after surgery. After all, it is JUST food. JUST sustenance. No reason to revolve our lives around it. I hope to be the same. I have been on both ends-- the health nut counting every calorie and point and also as the fat girl reviewing every calorie with a gaping mouth. I don't want to be counting all my life. That's why my weight loss on Weight Watchers was never long-lasting. I want to become knowledgeable about what is good for me and will make my body work to the best of its potential, but I do not want to count forever and assess every bite I put in my mouth. Though I'm sure that's a lot of what I'll be doing at first because I will be learning a whole new way of life.

I am getting excited and even giddy. Let's get this show on the road!! :)