Goodbye 2008, Hello 2009!

My goodness... where did the year go? And what a year it has been..! So many ups and downs... good times and not so good...

The highlights of my year:
1. My Wedding Day
2. Job Promotion in July
3. My amazing honeymoon (learning to Ski and scuba dive in the space of 2 weeks... fantastic!)
4. Spending time with my wonderful family in Thailand (with more gorgeous experiences to go along with it).

The lowlights of my year:
1. The death of a close family member... sad times, tough times... and more still to come!

Through it all I managed to lose weight... not as much as I would have liked, but I still lost none the less!

Next year I'm focusing more on health and wellbeing, rather than weight loss. Putting such an emphasis on the scales has done my head in, numerous times, and I'm sick of my moods being dictated by a silly number on the scales!! It's going to be all about good wholesome foods, getting back to basics and really focusing on what is in the foods I am eating. I want to get rid of as much processed crap as I can.

Goals for 2009:
1. 70kg by Christmas 2009
2. 76kg by June 2009
3. Pay off my personal loan
4. Finish painting our apartment
5. Finish the lighting in our apartment
6. Buy a house and sell our apartment
7. If all goes well, at the end of the year, start trying for babies!

A very very very very exciting year ahead!

So, to all of my faithful followers out there, and to those who are lurkers, soon to be bandits or just randomly surfing the net... I want to wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here's to our wonderful silicone friend!

LBG xx

Weird food day

I've had one of those days with foods... you know, the ones where you are surpised that some things go down, but your band backflips at other foods that are normally easy to get through...

Today I had some nuts and a coffee for Breakfast/Morning Tea, then at Lunch I had some cucumber and capsicum with Garlic Dip. I had a boost juice mid afternoon (skinny minny berry bliss... sooo good!) and then dinner was left over lamb stew which I have PB'd for the 2nd time already tonight, so I've given up. Crazy that I could eat fibrous raw veges at lunch yet I can't even manage two bites of soft potato and carrot and meat that falls off the bone in a rich broth... totally crazy..

Totally not hungry right now, but really really really Thirsty... but I physically can't drink at the moment cos I feel so so full (and a bit sore from the PB). I'll revisit the beverage issue in 30 mins or so...

All for now..

LBG xx

Christmas 2008 - over and out!

I came out of Christmas relatively unscathed... I lost 500g... but I think that's because I hit the gym pretty hard on Saturday and Sunday!! Thank goodness Christmas is over for another year!

I have an appointment with my wonderful surgeon in 1 month (27th Jan to be exact). I haven't lost any weight since the last appointment... very disappointing. But I've also realised that I can't rely on the band as much anymore for my weight loss. The band can only do so much and then it becomes alot more about me and what I do to help my weight loss. Somethings I've realised over the past few days is:

1. I don't exercise enough. I do my 30-45 mins 4-5 times a week. I can do HEAPS more exercise than that without killing myself. Just this weekend I did 1 hour on Saturday and 1 hour 20 mins on Sunday and I felt great! What is stopping me from doing this length of exercise more often? What about exercising more than once a day - gym in the morning, walk in the evening with Hubby? I also need to get out of my comfort zone... I'm thinking of trying boxing on Wednesday Mornings... and maybe get back into Pump (but I have to be sure that my back is OK..).

2. I need to focus more on whole foods. I've been reading alot of books lately on things like natural fats, processed foods, organic foods, non-meat soy and proteins and other bits and pieces. Really interesting stuff, but has made me think about what I'm eating. I also know that when I eat whole foods the band works! I get full on 3-4 mouthfuls - I feel satisfied, I don't get cravings, I feel healthful and clean.

3. I don't drink nearly enough water.. sure I drink coffee, tea, diet soft drink and diet cordial like they're all going out of fashion... but I want to start getting into the herbal teas, green teas and good old H2O!

4. I need to reset my goals. I was hoping to be at goal weight by my 2 year bandiversary... that's not going to happen! I think the goal just got so big, with such a short amount of time that I just gave up.. also, after getting married and reaching my "goal" for my wedding day, I wanted a break from it all and wasn't all that focused. Not anymore! I need to revisit my goals and make them realistic.

I'm looking forward to the New Year. I have some personal goals which I will have loads of fun with ... including buying our first house together and maybe starting on that family we've been talking about... and I've got my health and wellbeing goals (so that I can be as healthy as I possibly can when I do try to fall pregnant!).

2009 will be more about health and less focused on weight loss...

Enjoy the final days of 2008... 2009 is going to be a GREAT year! :)

LBG xx

Twas the night before Christmas...

I love Christmas... it's such a fun time of year. Everyone is in good spirits, people don't mind striking up conversations with other random people they see whilst waiting for coffee at the local coffee shop.

Definitely think that I need a fill come the new year. Last night for tea I had a bowl of lamb stew - but quite a large bowl with 4 dumplings. These dumplings aren't huge, but I remember when I was more restricted, I would only be able to have one because they were so bready... not this time! Then, after that, I had a mango. And this mango was freaking huge... so definitely time for a fill me thinks!!

Christmas tomorrow will be spent with my family. We're going out for lunch to a nice restaurant which will be very spesh! Unfortunately it's one of those 5 course meals. They scare me. Thank goodness it's spread out over the space of around 4 hours so it shouldn't be so bad. I won't be drinking either, which will save on the calories a little. Then boxing day will be a big BBQ at Mum and Dads place. Mum rang me yesterday to tell me what desserts she's planning to have... omg, heaven help me!!
I plan to enjoy myself with my food over the next 2 days and then get back into in on Saturday. I also plan on walking for 1 hour on Christmas Day and Boxing Day to try and offset some of the Damage I may do. If the gym is open on boxing day, I'll definitely be going! Oh yeah, and work is letting us finish early today at 2pm, so I'm going to head off to the gym and do a good 90 minute session before picking up my husband from work. So hopefully with my extra exercise I won't feel so bad when I'm having that extra piece of something naughty!!

Today I'm taking it easy with food. I've got a mango for breakky, Blueberries and yoghurt for a snack and baked beans for lunch. Nothing too exciting. Not sure what I'll be having for dinner - it will probably be take away, as I couldn't be bothered cooking tonight. But it will be a healthy take away - grilled fish and salad :). Speaking of take away - sometimes I get my fave indian take away on a Friday night (take out night!). Butter chicken. Now I get a small rice and a small butter chicken. I split the rice into two portions and the butter chicken into two portions and freeze one of the portions. Before I would eat a whole medium rice and medium butter chicken by myself! Cool eh!?

Who knows, I could be really tight both days and not get much in me at all!! Actually it was funny, yesterday, I had leftover lentil and vegetable pie. Two bites in and I was in stucksville and had to PB in the loo... yet yesterday evening I was able to put away a heap of food... still 2 years on and my band is unpredictable as ever! Also good as it tells me that my band is still working and my pouch hasn't stretched or done something funny!

I've just re-read this post and it seems so scattered... sorry peoples!!

Anyhoo, lastly, I want to wish all of you bandits or soon to be bandits a very very merry christmas!!! I hope you have a safe and happy festive season.

Much love

LBG xx

2 more sleeps!

2 more sleeps until Christmas! I'm just looking forward to the 4 days break I have for work!! Then it's back to work on Monday for another 3 day week... planning on doing shorter days as there won't be many people in the office next week.. 10 - 3 should be fine! hehe

Made a scrummy Vegetable and Lentil cottage pie last night, went down a treat! Even made it with Kumera mash instead of potatos to reduce the GI a little. My god it was GOOD! I didn't even end up cooking the sausages, and the boys just loved it! Go here for the recepie. Feeling healthy at the moment. Fueling my body with good stuff... (although I am sitting here sipping a hazelnut latte... my one weakness).

Lunch today is leftovers, yay! I've also got a mango, some blueberries, almonds and a light vanilla yoghurt... tonight I'm cooking a lamb stew.

Merry Christmas peoples!

LBG xx

P.S. BIG CONGRATULATIONS TO EM WHO GOT ENGAGED!!!! YAY!!

Bad food choices

So as I mentioned in a previous post, Christmas is all about food, and this weekend just past was no exception.

It started off well. I wasn't really in to breakfast, so I had lunch at around 11:30. 1 tin tuna with some onion, some nori (seaweed) and some cucumber sticks with the skin off. Noice and healthy. I went to a wedding in the evening. Had 1 canape and some champers.. then for some bizarre reason, I was able to eat the three course meal! Had a mushoom tart for starters (kinda quiche like so nice and soft), Main was a lovely piece of fish with some sauteed spinach, potatos and a merlot reduction. The white fish and sweet merlot reduction was weird tasting, but the fish was beautifully cooked and so soft and easy to eat. I only had one potato and a taste of the spinach, but managed to get most of the fish down. Dessert was a creme brulee with a pink champagne sorbet... enough said.. I think I was able to eat it because there was such a length of time between meals. Not to mention the fact that the wine was flowing and I was sipping in between bites which was helping the food go down no problems.

Yesterday (Sunday) I had a girlfriend down for lunch/nibbles. I had a cheese platter, crackers, dip and some chocolates. That was pretty much all I ate all day, but it was high in fat and probably not the best choices for me as it was just nibble stuff which goes down easy.

So I've decided that moving forward I'm really going to concentrate on whole food, that hasn't been processed to death and cooking from scratch. So tonight I'm making a lentil vegetable pie with a kumera mash on top (and Sausages for husband and father in law). I can't do sausages so I'll just stay away from them.

At the moment, I'm snacking on mango. I cut up this massive mango and have had it sitting by my computer for the past 40 mins. So delicious, but so freaking filling. Yum.

So the plan (at least for the days before christmas) for meals and snacks:
1. Fruit/Yoghurt for Breakky
2. Beans/Lentils instead of red meat
3. Fish/Chicken for dinner
4. Nuts/Fruit for Snacks
5. Raw cut up vegetables for lunch with home made hummus or tatziki

Christmas and boxing day will be a write off, but I do plan to bring so chick pea burgers to the BBQ on boxing day so that I'm not subjected to steak/sausages!

have a good day!

LBG xx

Christmas Feeding Frenzy

Now that I don't eat much any more, I can really step back and see how much food revolves around christmas celebrations - whether it's gold coins or candy canes on the tree, to mince pies with a cup of tea before bed, to Christmas lunches, dinners and parties all with their own array of delicious foods and drink, there is always food around!!

I love the fact that my band really helps me get through the Christmas "cheer" without too much damage on the other side. That coupled with regular exercise should see me through relatively unscathed. Must admit though, I am loving short bread at the moment, which melts through the band (unfortunately). It's my vice... with a hot cup of tea before bed time. Luckily I don't like things like mince pies, christmas pudding or fruit cake and would prefer a fresh mango, strawberries, blueberries, peaches, nectarines etc.

I also took a break from the gym last week. I was putting too much pressure on myself to try and go 5 times, and each time I was working really really hard and not enjoying it as much as I would of liked. So I decided to take some time out from the gym last week (also because I did an abs, butts thighs class and absolutely killed my legs). Now I'm feeling more refreshed and able to get into my workouts with a new found energy that I was lacking before. I did a spin class this morning and loved it, and yesterday I cranked up my HR to nearly 180 bpm with a massive treadmill incline. Was great!

That's all from me for today. Thank you to all who posted such lovely comments on my blog. And thanks to Anon for your kind words. You are right, blogging does help me and I won't stop (unless you piss me off again... hehe).

Keep safe.

LBG xx

Twas the night before banding...

I LOVED this poem!!

'Twas the night before Banding,
when all through my gut
not a morsel was stirring,
not even a nut.

The suitcase was packed by the back door with care,
in hopes that a new me would soon return there.
I lay nestled, snug in my bed
while visions of calories danced in my head;

And me in my plus size pyjamas and wrap,
had just settled in for a long restless nap.
When deep in my mind there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my dreams to see what was the matter.

Away to my fridge I flew like a flash,
ripped open the door and drooled at the stash.
The moonlight reflecting off the beautiful snacks
gave a lustre of radiance to all on the racks.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
but an array of the comfort foods I hold so dear.
With a familiar feeling of all those I'd pick,
I thought in a moment I just might be sick.

More lovely than angels their voices they came,
and they whistled and shouted and called me by name;
"Now pizza, now french fries, now chocolate galore
on cheesecake, on ice cream, on donuts and more!"

From the tip of my tongue, to the bottom of my toe,
I will miss you all more than ever you'll know.
As an addict that shakes and stirs as he sits,
I'll mourn the loss of my delectable hits.

So back to my bed I went with great haste,
and settled back down with nary a taste.

And then in an instant, in pre-op I sat,
nervously waiting to no longer be fat.
As I sat deep in thought and adjusted my gown,
in came my surgeon in one single bound.

He was dressed all in scrubs, from his head to his feet
and he seemed very calm as he eyed me like meat.
He looked at my chart, with his scope gave a listen;
I don't think he noticed my eyes start to glisten.

He was chubby and plump he could lose some himself,
and I laughed when I saw him in spite of myself.
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He spoke barely a word as he prepped for his work,
he paused for a moment, then turned with a jerk.
And laying a finger aside of his face,
and giving a nod, out of the room he did race.

He checked in the next day, to his students gave a whistle,
and away they all flew like a down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim as he walked out of sight,
"speedy thinness to you and a healthier life!"

Brilliant! Thanks to Zena for this Gem!!

LBG xx

I'm done..

I am so over Anonymous and his/her comments... I don't know how many times I have asked you NOT to post any comments on my blog, but you still do it. They're not helpful, they're horrible.

The last comment Anonymous wrote was this: 20kg in 2 years, you could have gone to Jenny Craig. At least you would have learnt to eat properly.

Fuck off, just fuck off

I'm not going to post my story on here only to be insulted and berrated by some fuckwit who doesn't know me, my life or what I am going through.

I haven't been publishing Anonymous' comments, because they're negative, nasty and make me feel bad about myself and that isn't what this blog is about...

So I'm ending this blog.

Issue..

As you know, I have kept very private about the fact that I have a lapband.. and now I'm in a situation where one of my family members may actually find out about it. I can't go into it too much as I don't know who reads this blog, but there is a small chance that my secret could be revealed.

I won't be too upset if this family member does find out, what I will be upset with is if she tells other family members.
1. Because it's a breach of my privacy (to do with accessing medical records)
2. I'd want to hope that this family member would come to me first and talk to me about it, rather than just going straight to other family members and telling them what she has found out about me.

Still not ready to let my secret go... not sure why. I'm not ashamed of it. I think I'm ashamed of the fact that in the almost 2 years that I've had the band I've only lost 20kg. Yeah, I know... ONLY. How silly is that thinking!! Considering so many good things have happened to me since my operation, my health, my weight, my fitness, my self-esteem, my relationships have ALL improved... why should I be ashamed of that?

That's all from me today. Thanks for reading!

LBG xx

Learning how to eat again

I think I've forgetten how to eat with a band. I was eating lunch today, which wasn't all that exciting. I had a small portion of baked salmon (maybe 50-75g), 4 x 1cm sized cubes of baked pumpkin and about 2 tablespoons of zucchini and broccoli. This was left overs from dinner. I started with the salmon as I always try and get the protein in first. I then started on the pumpkin because it was easy to eat. I got to the last piece of pumpkin and really slowed down. I managed to eat the last piece and by then I'd been eating for 20 mins. I was full... and I really didn't want my veges.. So I'd effectively eaten only half of what I had allocated for myself for lunch... I am sitting here now, just a little more than comfortably full, but not ready to PB.

My stomach is saying "Thanks! I'm nicely full", and my brain is saying... "Surely there isn't something else you want to eat? You've hardly touched your lunch!!". I realise that my brain shouldn't be asking these questions, but it does!! I don't understand why I feel so uncomfortable with the fact that I've had so little food for lunch and this is something I'm going to have to deal with (again).

I notice it with dinner as well. I dish myself up in a small bowl how much I "think" I will be able to eat. I get through half and am full (yes, my band is working... the way it should be), yet I sit there and pick at it and eat it until it's finished... which can be sometimes over 1 hour after I first started eating!! That is crazy right? I've got to stop doing that!!!

Have a good day!

LBG xx

Thursday 20th November 2008 - Food and Exercise Diary

Yesterday was pretty much a write off with food and exercise! It started off well, and went down hill from there...

6:30am - Berocca Performance
9:00am - 1 bowl porridge, made on skim milk with fresh blueberries (150cal)
11:00am - 1 cup popcorn, 1 coffee (150 cals)
1:00pm - 1/2 Avocado, 1 packet vita wheat grain snacks (200cals)
3:00pm - 10 crackers, 30g Labne Dip, 15 lollies (400cal)
5:00pm - 10:00pm - 3 risotto balls, 2 feta triangles, crackers with dip, 1 bottle champagne... (can't even begin to work out the damage done!!)

No exercise :(

Absolutely crap all fruit and vegetables... just terrible! So today I'm having yoghurt, fruit salad, coleslaw, raw nuts and wholewheat crackers. Last night I was having bubbles with some girlfriends... bubbles make food go down a whole lot easier! We ended up polishing off a whole bottle of champers each!!! I must admit, I had a great time... and didn't give a crap about what I was eating... I really enjoyed myself.

Thank goodness it's friday! It's been another mad week..

Love to all

LBG xx

Wednesday 19th November 2008 - Food and Exercise Diary

I am really stoked by my fitness improvement over the past few months. My weight has not budged, not a single kilo.. but people are telling me that I look like I've lost weight. I did a great exercise session yesterday - 30 mins on the cross trainer and then 10 minutes jogging at 8km/hour non stop. When I first started jogging I could barely do 1 minute at 7.2km/hour before stopping and so I can definitely see the difference. I'd like to be able to jog for 20mins non stop and then do 4km jogging non stop, but that's something I'm going to have to build up towards. Exercise for me isn't a chore anymore. I enjoy it. I get on a machine and let my body just work hard. It definitely does help having some dance tunes on your i-pod and having HR monitor so you can track your progress. Anything that can help you get motivated. I would just die if I lost my i-pod. I've had it for over 3 years and it is my best friend when it comes to exercise. I just work that much harder when I've got good music to listen to. I can still exercise without the i-pod, but it's just not the same.. I work out for less, at less intensity.

Anyhoo, back to food and exercise for yesterday. My food intake wasn't too bad:

6:00am - Berocca Performance
7:30am - 40mins exercise (450 cals burnt)
9:00am - 2 cups of tea made on skim milk, 1 cup of watermelon (150 cals)
11:00am - 40g mixed raw nuts (200 cals)
1:00pm - 1 can baked beans (the small one) and 1 slice of cheese (250 cals)
4:00pm - 1 tea & 1 cream filled biscuit (100 cals)
7:00pm - 1/2 chicken schnitzel (150cal), baked pumpkin (50cal), 10 small wedges (200cal)
9:00pm - Skim Strawberry Milkshake (150 cal)

I didn't drink much water today, so will be changing that today. Now that I've stopped having the protein shakes in the morning I've found that I'm less hungry in the morning if I have fruit. The mixed raw nuts I usually eat over the space of around 30mins. And I wasn't really that hungry for lunch so I left some of my beans.

OK, that's all from me. 1 more day to go until the weekend!

LBG xx

Tuesday 18th November 2008 - Food and Exercise Diary

Today was another good day with food and exercise:

6:15am - Spin Class (burnt 550cal)
9:00am - Hazelnut Latte with Skim Milk (150cal)
10:30am - 30g mixed raw nuts (150cal)
12:30am - 2 rice cakes with avocado, turkey, sliced tomato and feta (200 cal)
3:00pm - 1 tea with skim milk (20 cal)
4:00pm - 1 cup popcorn (100 cal)
6:00pm - 1 tea with skim milk (20 cal), 10 chewy soft lollies (100cal)
7:00pm - 1.5 cups Potato and Leek soup (300 cal)
9:00pm - 200mL freshly squeezed Watermelon Juice (100cal)

Total Cals Consumed: 1140cals
Total Cals Burnt: 550cals

Not a bad effort yesterday eh? The watermelon juice I had just before bed was sooooooooo good. So refreshing. I made it with heaps of ice and it was just gorgeous. My new favourite drink I think!! Didn't really feel like breakky yesterday - never do after a spin session, yet today after my workout I was really hungry. Tucking into some fresh watermelon as I type this.

Nothing much else to report at the moment. The weather in Sydney is pretty crap at the moment. With only 11 days until summer it's wet and cold at only 21 degrees today.. Like what the?

Have a good hump day!

LBG xx

Monday 17th November - Food and Exercise Diary

A pretty good day for food and exercise yesterday. Here's how it panned out:

6:00am - Berocca Performance
7:30am - 40 min on Cross Trainer (450 cals burnt)
9:00am - Yoghurt - 150cal
11:00am - Pepitas/brazil nuts 20g - 150cal
12:30pm - avocado, feta, pine nut, turkey breast, cucumber and tomato salad (1 cup no dressing) - 200 cal
4:00pm - 1/2 cut fruit Salad (watermelon, peaches, strawberry, blueberry) - 100 cal
7:00pm - Home Made Potato and Leek soup - 300 cal
9:00pm - 2 fun size milky way 100 cal

Total cals consumed: 1000 cal
Total cals burnt: 450 cal

This morning I did a spin class and burnt 520 cals. My max HR was up at 165bpm and my average was 145bpm... I wore my new size 14 short shorts to spin. I must admit, this was a pretty big deal for me as I don't do shorts.. especially the ones that show pretty much most of my leg. Luckily I don't have alot of loose skin around my thighs. My constant efforts at Spin Classes have made sure that my legs are relatively toned compared to the amount of weight I have lost. As soon as the lights went out and the music started, I forgot I was wearing them and was able to move more freely... it was also a heap cooler than the longer bike pants! Bit of a NSV there! Especially because the size 14 shorts aren't tight around my waist and feel great on (i.e. They don't feel like I am squeezing into them and should really be wearing a size 16 but I'm just kidding myself... they feel like I am meant to wear them.. which is still really foreign to me).


Tonight is Left over Potato and leek soup... so freaking delish. Here's my recipe:

Serves 4:

3 large potatos peeled and chopped
1 leek chopped
1 onion chopped
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp lite sour cream
2 cups chicken stock
chives to garnish

Butter in pan, add onions and leeks and cook until soft but not quite brown. Mix in potatoes until covered in onion/leek mixture and cook for around 2 mins. Add chicken stock and simmer on a relatively low heat for around 20mins. Once potato is soft, take off heat and blend until smooth. Stir in sour cream. Serve and garnish with Chives. Salt and Pepper to taste.

Over and out from me!

LBG xx

Another week down...

I went AWOL towards the end of the week... life gets in the way and blogging goes out the window for a while. But I'm back.... for now!

So, you want to know how to cook beetroot? It's ever so easy! Top and tail the beetroot, wrap it in foil and bake in the oven for 40mins until tender... once cooled, peel off the skin with a peeler or with your fingers, it usually slips right off! Season with salt and pepper and voila... oven roasted beetroot!

Last week I went to the gym 5 times, exercised for 3.5 hours in total and burnt over 2500 calories. Go me! I'm really loving the exercise at the moment... it's really helping me balance my hectic work life out a bit and give me a bit of time out.

Can you believe there are only 5 weeks til christmas? WooHoo! How exciting. Today we were talking about decorating the office for Christmas. Last year, our department won the best decorated so we're trying to retain the crown. last year we all bought $5 santa suits and wore them and did a dance for the judges when they came round to judge... this year we're going to all wear brown track pants and jumper, black gloves and shoes, a red nose and reindeer horns and have a token Santa as well... some of us will be elves too...

This year will be my first Christmas with my family, with the band... we're going out for lunch and it's one of my favourite restaurants, so no doubt eyebrows will rise when I don't finish most of my meal. And then boxing day is a BBQ at my parents house... so can kinda get away with not eating as much cos it's a buffet. Good news is that the gym will be open most of the christmas period - with only Christmas and New Years Day closed, so I can still exercise. But even if it's not open, I've become partial to a bit of out door walking these days so can just do that instead!

Have a great Monday!

LBG xx

Wednesday 12th November - Food and Exercise Diary

Morning everyone!

The day started off well, and went down hill in the afternoon. Here's my food diary for yesterday:

6:00am - Berocca Performance
9:00am - Choc Mint Celebrity Slim Shake (200cal)
11:00am - 40g nuts, 1 mini scone with jam and cream (200 cal)
12:30pm - 2 baby potatoes, 1/2 beetroot (100 cal)
3:00pm - 1 yoghurt, 1 summer roll, 1 coffee (300 cal)
6:30pm - 1/2 cup brown rice, 1/2 cup vege korma (400 cal)
9:00pm - 1 cream filled lamington (150 cal)

Total Cals Consumed: 1350cal
Total Cals Burnt: 0 cal

No exercise yesterday, but that's OK... I'm planning on doing a 45min walk this afternoon. Nola asked about my beetroot salad... very very tasty. Ingredients are as follows:

• 1 Beetroot (baked and then cut into chunks)
• 1/2 tomato (cut into wedges)
• Cucumber (cut into chunks)
• 50g Turkey Breast
• 20g pine nuts (not toasted, just raw)
• 1 spring onion (cut up)
• 1 tsp ranch dressing

Noice!! I baked more beetroot last night, but made it into a beetroot dip. So today for lunch I've got beetroot and Hummus dip (both home made) and 2 rice cakes. Great cos you can control the amount of fat that goes into the dips - I made the dips with olive oil, great for monosat fats!! :)

Anyhoo, that's all from me today. Have a good one!

LBG xx

Tuesday 11th November - Food and Exercise Diary

Morning Peeps!

Yesterday was a funny day for food. I didn't do well with lunch, so ended up just having a couple of biscuits as my lovely Beetroot salad didn't like my band. I was also rushed for lunch, so maybe the fact that I was eating quickly and not chewing properly could have been the reason. Such a shame because I was looking forward to that lunch! Luckily, I have most of it saved from yesterday, so I'm going to have it today for lunch!

So here's my diary for yesterday:

6:15am: Spin Class 45 mins (550cal burnt)
7:15am: Berocca Performance
8:30am: Celebrity Slim Chocolate Shake (200 cal)
10:15am: 40g peanuts, 1 coffee (150 cal)
1:00pm: 2 biscuits (200 cal)
3:00pm: 2 biscuits, 1 tea (200 cal)
5:30pm: 3 marshmallow things covered in chocolate (300 cal)
7:30pm: 1/2 cup brown rice, 1/2 cup vegetable Korma (400 cal)
9:00pm: 1 icey pole (40cal)

Calories Consumed: 1640
Calories Burnt: 550
Total Calories: 1090

Not too bad.. but not good either. Thanks for your comments so far! I was asked why I have a liquid breakfast and not something like cereal or a cereal bar. I've never been a big breakfast person, and I don't feel like breakky straight after I exercise in the morning. I'm a big fan of Brunch however! I know that with the shakes I'm getting a great injection of proteins, carbs and fats in a shake option, but it definitely doesn't fill me up like cereal does! On the weekends I do have things like eggs, baked beans and toast (1/2 a piece!). The shakes are convenient and tasty during the week when I'm at work, but I think I might try the cereal option next week. Truth be told, I actually haven't found a healthy cereal that I like.. I love Crunchy Nut! But that's totally not an option cos it's so full of sugar! Dammit!! :)

Another question was, do I drink before or after meal - definitely before! I usually have a drink handy with me the whole day and I'm constantly filling up my water bottle.

And Bridget, you are right, we shouldn't really be counting the calories when we're banded, as the band should take all that guess work away from us, but when you're stuck on a plateau, desparate times call for desparate measures eh?

Peace Out!

LBG xx

Monday 10th November - Food and Exercise Diary

Yesterday was a day I just couldn't get full! Those differences in days are totally crazy. The night before I had the same meal and puked it up after 2 mouthfuls, yet yesterday I ate it no problems. Anyhoo, here we go:

6:00 - Berocca Performance
7:30 - 45 mins treadmill (455 cals burnt) - Water 500mL
10:00 - Celebrity Slim Shake and 5 shapes (250 cal), Water 200mL
11:00 - Coffee, 5 brazil nuts and 20g pepitas (250cal), Water 200mL
12:45 - 2 rice cakes, 2 slices turkey breast, 1 tbsp cottage cheese, 1 tbsp Hummus (200 cal)
3:00 - 40g peanuts, 1 tub yoghurt, 2 strawberries, Coffee (370 cal), Water 300mL
7:30 - 2 tbsp Kumera and Chive Mash, 1/2 cup mince, 30g grated cheese (300 cal), Water 500mL
8:30 - 1 icey pole (40 cal)

Total Cals consumed - 1410
Total Cals burnt - 450
Total Cals - 960

I ate so often yesterday, it was nuts! I couldn't get full... today has been better.. I had my shake 1.5 hours ago and I'm only now starting to get a little hungry. A coffee will settle that. I've made myself a lovely salad with baked beetroot for lunch today, and I did a fab spin class this morning, so feeling pretty good!

Tell me what you think of my food diary... I look forward to your comments on that.. be BRUTALLY honest!

Thanks all for your wonderful comments on my blog! It's so great to have my cheer squad... Even though I haven't lost weight in the past few months, I haven't felt better!

LBG xx

Weight not budging

So I had my re-fill around 2 weeks ago now. I've definitely been able to feel the difference, and my portions are so much smaller than before the fill. My weight has pretty much stayed the same in the last 5 months. I'm on this massive mother of a plateau... I hate it, but I'm riding the wave anyway... maybe I'm content being this weight at the moment? Maybe I'm comfortable with the way I'm looking in clothes? I feel good about my weight, not great.. I think that's due to the fact that the more weight I loose, the saggier I feel. I'm wearting those sucky-in pants more and more as I am wearing more fitted stuff. Size 16 clothes feel amazing on me.. Like today, I'm wearing a top from Jacquie E, a fitted short sleeved work shirt and it's a size 16. It fits like a dream. I like wearing size 16s... Yeah, it's not a 14.. but it's "normal". Should I settle for "normal" at size 16?
Another thing I've noticed since being on my plateau, is that my fitness levels have really improved. When I first started jogging on the treadmill I could just do 1 minute at 7.2km/hour and then I would have to have 2 mins just to get my HR back to a normal level!! Now I'm able to jog at around 5 minutes at 8.0km/hour, break for a minute and then do it again. Today I cranked up the last minute of my workout and RAN at 10km/hour! MASSIVE! My heart rate levels have improved so much that I'm having to work alot harder to maintain the calories burnt. When I first got my Heart Rate Monitor I would burn around 650 cals in one spin session (45 mins biking). Now the same class only sees me burn 450 cals.

I am loving the fact that my fitness levels are improving and that I can see it improve. People tell me that I'm building muscle and that muscle weighs heavier than fat (etc etc etc). But from what I've read, it takes months to build any type of substantial muscle and I'm not weight training.. so I'm not sure I can blame muscle building for my plateau.

So, this week I'm going to make myself completely accountable on my blog for everything I eat. I want to you to scrutinize and comment and tell me where I'm going wrong! I will post up today's consumption tomorrow.

Thanks for reading! Happy Monday everyone!

LBG xx

Sunday Chillout

Just had breakky, which consisted of a small tin of baked beans (you know, the really tiny ones?) and 1 egg scrambled. Gotta get a good balance of protein and carbs right? Full full full after that, and that meal will tie me over until lunch (4 hours or so).

Having a lazy day today. Was going to go to the gym this morning, but it's 10:15am and I'm still in my PJs. Love it! Today my husband and I are going to clean up the apartment a little, get some groceries and go shopping at Jacquie E so I can go and spend my $50 gift voucher! YAY! Hubby said he has also seen a nice summer dress in target that he wants me to try on... considering he got paid yesterday, I'm not going to say no!!!

Last night we went to the theatre to see My Fair Lady. Brilliant. We stopped at sushi train for dinner. I chose two plates, ate maybe 3/4 of one plate and 1/4 of another plate, and had to puke it up 5 minutes later.. Disappointing as I love sushi, but it's really not the best meal choice for me, especially when we have to rush through our meal to make the theatre booking. The malteasers went down fine though... funny that..

Liz wanted to know about excess skin. Well, my experience has been pretty standard. The more weight I loose, the more excess skin I have. I exercise between 4-5 per week and I don't see it getting all that much tighter. So I pretty much have resigned myself to the fact that I'm going to need surgery at some point. But I want to have kids first, so will wait until after that's all been done and dusted before I start looking into Plastic Surgery.

Tonight I'm making Baked Salmon and salad and I'm now going to plan some healthy dinners for this week before we go grocery shopping.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend peeps!

LBG xx

Thank God that bloody election is over!!

Farking hell... how many people are totally sick to death of the bloody American Election? Fuck me, I don't even live in the country and I'm totally over it. Thank God they made a decision and picked a new president. Now the rest of the world can stop rotating around America and America can get off it's pedistal and actually start dealing with the issues that are consequently affecting the rest of the world i.e. the massive fuck-ups on Wall Street and the war in Iraq.

I just wonder how long it's going to take before someone tries to pull a gun and make more history by killing off our first Black American Mr President!!

Enough Ranting! I don't want to dedicate any more of my blog to that stupid country!

I was in Adelaide yesterday and the day before. Eating was OK.. I ordered a Wonton Soup for dinner, and didn't get much down. It was delicious though. Lunch was snacky type things - yoghurt, fruit salad and a chocolate bar. The only hot food being served at the cafeteria were pies, sausage roles and pasties... no good for bandits... !

Exercise has been excellent this week. Monday was a gym sesssion, Tuesday I went for a run/walk on the treadmill at the hotel gym, Wednesday I was travelling and busy for most of the day so had a rest day, and Today I was at the gym in the morning for 45 mins.

Not sure how my weight loss is going, as I haven't weighed myself in a while (I'm boycotting the scales at the moment!!).. but clothes are feeling good , I feel good! :)

Much love xxx

LBG x

P.S. no offence to my American readers! But imagine if you had the majority of your TV channels covering an election that isn't even about your own country! We didn't have this much coverage when we changed over prime minister last year!!!

Heart Rate - to the extreme!

Today I hit the gym for my usual Monday morning work-out. I've been loving my cardio workouts, getting on the treadmill or cross trainer and cranking up my tunes so that I can exercise my little heart out. Even though my weight loss has stopped since around June, I have certainly felt the improvement in my fitness levels.

After feeling sufficiently pumped on 20mins on the cross trainer, I hopped on the treadmill and found there was an option that I had never seen before... "Extreme Heart Rate". Sounds interesting I thought to myself, plugged in all my options and then off I went. The aim was to get my HR to 163bpm (or around 85%). The first task was a hill and when the incline was sufficent for my heart to be absolutely pounding, the machine told me I needed to get my HR back down to 126bpm. Once it was down there the treadmill got me jogging until my HR reached 163bpm. And once it was there, I slowed right back down to get my HR back to normal (smart little treadmill!). This kept going for the 20mins I was on there...

I think they call this interval training, and it's supposed to strengthen your cardio fitness. I really loved it. It made the time go quickly, I wasn't busting my gut the whole time but I felt fitter every time the treadmill made my heart rate go up... It was weird, but awesome...

... to the extreme!!

LBG xx

People notice..

I was eating lunch yesterday with some colleagues from work. Lunch consisted of the tiny can of spaghetti, 1 slice of bergen soy and linseed bread and a slice of cheese on the bread. I got through half the slice of bread and cheese and most of the spaghetti and then I was full full full. We were talking about eating, and one colleague said to me: "I've watched you a few times when you eat and you really take your time with your meal." To which I smiled and said "I'm just taking my time so I don't have to go back to my desk!". Interesting that people are so observant about my eating style!

Yesterday evening was one of those "I can't get full" evenings. I made a country chicken dish, with extra veges and rice. While I could feel the restriction when I ate, I was hungry half an hour later. So I had another helping. Now, bare in mind that my "helping" was one tablespoon of rice and some sauce with chicken and vege. I wasn't even drinking with my meal! Yet this morning, I've had my Celebrity Slim shake and I'm full... Strange..

And I couldn't satisfy my sweet tooth last night! I had 4 (yes count them... 4) freddo frogs AND a scoop of lemon lime sorbet... I could have done alot more damage if I hadn't of been banded.. but still... it was particularly frustrating. I think it's because I've been having a scoop of icecream after each meal during the week. And so I may have gotten used to having something sweet after dinner.. will have to put a stop to that.

This weekend I've got an engagement party to go to, as well as a farewell lunch/drinks. The engagement party will probably be nibbles, so no probs there, but lunch may be a bit trickier to negotiate.

Have a great weekend peoples!

LBG xx

Feelin' Hot Hot Hot!!

Man was it hot in Sydney town yesterday... Summer is definitely upon us, and another reason why the exercise levels have to go up and the food intake has to go down!! Beach weather!!!

I was feeling skinny yesterday... went to the gym in the morning and had a tight-ish fitting black dress on for work, with one of those thin belts that do up at the waist. People were commenting... it was nice! Then I had a massive headache that hit me at about 3pm... it was a doozy. Luckily dear husband drove me home because I could barely open my eyes... I took some panadol when I got home and spent the rest of the evening on the couch in a dark room. Dinner was already made from Saturday (Lamb stew)... it was delish but I couldn't finish all of it, which was EXCELLENT!

Went to Spin this morning, but wasn't feeling the fitness funk and really had to push myself through it. I've got the feeling like a headache *could* be coming on... so I'm dosing up on some more drugs and have some water handy. I really wasn't feeling it this morning (I usually get right into my Tuesday morning spin), but the music wasn't that normal high energy stuff, it was more rock and roll and I can't really exercise to that... maybe that was it.

I have a training session today and tomorrow. They provide lunch. Sandwiches... GREAT! Totally off the menu for me, so I've brought in a can of baked beans and a slice of soy and linseed bread. I've also got a can of mandarins in spring water some strawberries and a lemon lime celebrity slim. If they provide a fruit platter at the training, I'll have some more fruit as well...

OK, that's it from me. I have been reading everyone's blogs and everyone is doing so well. It's so amazing to read that everyone has their own private battles with weight loss... and I'm inspired by the way we are all coping with them. I love being on your journey with you... ups and downs. Thanks for reading !!!

LBG xx

Feelin' Better..

Feeling slightly better, although I have one sore tonsil at the moment.. which is totally weird. I have gone to the gym 4 times this week, 2 while I was feeling not-so-great and I still managed to burn 600 cals and work out for an hour. Funnily enough, I actually felt better after going to the gym!!

I've decided to put my scales away. Now that I've been re-filled I've become scales obessed again... I've lost 0.5kg this week, but I've been on the scales every day and I've got to stop it!! My next appointment with my fill doctor is on 27th January 2009. I even wished the receptionist a merry christmas on my way out of the surgery last week... CRAZY! I digress. I've got 3 months until my next appointment, and I want to have lost 10kg by then. So my goal is to be at 78kg by the 27th January.

OK, this freaks me out a bit...
1. Because I don't remember the last time I was 78kg
2. it's in the 70's... I'm still getting used to being in the 80's!
3. I don't even know what I'm going to be like at 78kg...

My eating seems to be well under control now. Small portions, 1 cup of food and I'm full. Excellent. My exercise is also pretty good - 4-5 times a week at the gym, for 45mins to 1 hr. So if I just keep doing that I should get there right?

Right!!

LBG xx

So far so good..

Well feeling like shite today, so took the day off work. Have razor blades in my throat and a constant headache. Hope it's only the 24 hour thing... we'll see tomorrow.

Yesterday I stuck to liquids and all was fine. Had a small can of baked beans for breakfast and was FULL until lunch. Forgot what that beautiful restriction was like. Had a handful of nuts and a couple of cups of tea for lunch, a piece of cheese for the afternoon and only now I'm starting to think about food... Tonight is mashed potato, a small piece of baked fish and a tablespoon of steamed vege.

No exercise yesterday or today due to feeling rotten, but hoping to go tomorrow morning.

My band and I are getting reaquainted... I still love you!

LBG xx

Fill! Glorious Fill!!!

8 weeks with no fill and I gain 4.4kg! How terrible is that?!?! Went to see wonderful fill doctor, and while he was a bit disappointed that I'd gained weight, I showed him a couple of before and after photos and he was pleased. The fill went back in, and I can feel it. Oh it feels so good! I'd forgotten what it felt like.

He also did measurements.

Neck 33cm (down 1.5cm)
Waist 92cm (down 26cm)
Hips 111cm (down 15cm)

Very Cool!

I'm on liquids today, and then soft foods tomorrow. Can't wait for the weight loss to start again.

Have a good day!

LBG xx

Thursday thoughts..

Yesterday I caught the train to work... and when I was on the train station there was a seat free. The seats are in a group of 4, all separated by an arm rest. I put my bags on the seat next to me, and then realised that if I scooted over to one side of my seat, there was more than enough room to fit my bag next to me, thus freeing up a seat. That was definitely my smile for the day.

Hope you're smiling today also!

LBG xx

Tuesday Ramblings

So today I did my 6:15am spin class with Tony the gym instructor with not an ounce of fat on him. He teaches so many classes a week, it's rediculous... he has no life.. or rather, the gym is his life.. and he has the body to show for it. I wonder what gym instructors eat. Can they go crazy and eat anything because they exercise so much? Or do they still count the calories and watch the carbs, protein and fat... I wonder..

But I digress. So I'm doing my spin class this morning, and I feel aweful.. like I can't breath. Around me all the windows are fogging up and I realise that there is no airconditioning working!! No wonder I'm having wipe my face every 30 seconds! I walked out of that class sopping wet from sweat.. but I didn't feel like I'd done a good work out because I couldn't breath properly. I felt like I was breathing in other peoples carbon dioxide...I felt quite ill actually. Still, Mr HR Polar Monitor said that I had burnt 550 cals so I must of done something right.

I had an amazing salad for lunch - baby spinach, tomato, capsicum, olives, fetta, 1 egg and balsamic vinegar.... delish, but filled a pretty big bowl which I got down easily. I felt so healthy eating it! I'm going to make the same salad tomorrow but this time, have it with some tuna. Tonight is baked atlantic salmon with a coriander pesto dressing and some steamed zucchini and broccoli. How delish does that sound?!?!

Having some family dramas at the moment which I won't go into, except that they are making me sad. But not emotional eating because of it, which is a good thing... I seem to vent to my girlfriends which seem to help!

Plan to go to the gym tomorrow morning, early... and tomorrow night I'm going out to Tenpenyaki with a girlfriend which should be fun!

Hope all is well in your world!

LBG xx

P.S. I've just put up my fat vs thin photos on my blog... I really can see a difference!! :) Here's some more below:



So this is a side on view taken in March 07... look at that muffin and those chunky ham arms!!! and I thought I looked good in this top!! *eek* how wrong was I!!! and this is me on the right 20 something kilos difference. taken in Oct 2008. Cool Eh??

Time to get serious!

So I have an appointment with Fill doctor next week (thank the lord!) and I'm now at 87kg!!! I've gained 3.4kg in 6 weeks!!! *eek* OK, so I was massively dehydrated to start with when I weighed in, so I never truely believed I was 83.6kg, but the numbers did flash on the scales.. so there is some truth in them... maybe I was in too much disbelief for it to sink in...

The sad reality is, is that I have gained 3.4kg since then! I haven't gone completely nuts with my food intake - I've had Macdonalds only once! But my portion sizes are now 1.5 - 2 cups of food and I'm hungry within an hour. My only saving grace is the fact that I have kept up my exercise and have been to the gym 4-5 times / week.

I had a pretty indulgent weekend though... out for dinner on Saturday night - 3 course meal. I chose the healthiest options - A lovely black sesame seared tuna, then a gorgeous piece of salmon with a lovely salad, and then a small slice of Bomb Alaska for dessert, but I did also have 3 lemon, lime bitters (I was designated driver), which were around 150cal a drink... Saturday (after a spin class) I relaxed for the rest of the day and had a load of chocolate and then Sunday, after starting the day off with half a gorgeous omlette, I picked and picked and picked cos I was bored! I should have gone for a walk or something, but I had burnt my hand (while making the Omlette!!) so I was in quite a bit of pain and was clutching at an ice pack for most of the day.

Today I was back at the gym this morning, burnt 550 cals and felt really great. Got alot of after work things on Wed - Fri, so going to aim to go to the gym in the morning and at Lunch time. I'm going to go to the gym twice tomorrow (Spin class in the morning then ABT at lunch) because I'm going to QLD for the weekend, so won't be getting much gym action while I'm up there!

Forgive my randomness. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I miss my fill !!! I'm looking forward to be filled again so I can get some more control over my eating. Exercise isn't a problem.. I love it more and more... it's just my eating!!

Happy Monday People!

LBG xx

Comparison Shots

I was a bridesmaid in late 2006. At that time I was around 105kg - so not even at my heaviest weight... I had a bright blue bridemaid dress, and I thought I looked fabulous. I kept this dress and the weekend that I had that major throw away of some of my fat clothes, I found this dress... and decided to try it on. We'll... the difference is absolutely amazing. I could get it on without even undoing the zip... My husband was so impressed, we took some photos, and I've managed to dig out some of the wedding photos. I've posted a few before and afters so you can see just what 20kg difference looks like!

Fat Bridesmaid

Me in the dress last week!

Looking at those photos makes me feel Damn GOOD! Happy Friday everyone!!

LBG xx

P.S. Those "sucky-in" pants are the ones from Target and they're called Dr Rey's Shapers or something like that... they're FAB!

Shopping Spree!

The weekend before last I thew out around $2000 worth of clothes that were just rediculously too big for me. I tried on stuff and my husband said I looked like I was a little girl wearing my Mum's clothes. So last weekend I told my husband that I needed to replace the clothes that I had thrown out. So off we toddled to the shopping mall where I picked out 3 lovely dresses from Jacquie E - 2 of which I can wear for work, and 1 dress which is more of a going out to the races or a wedding sort of dress. Then we were in target and I came out with 2 pairs of pants (size 14) and 2 tops for work. Score!

While it definitely didn't make up for the amount of clothes I threw away earlier... it's a start. And now I get to build my wardrobe gradually for summer! Have already worn one dress to work and people have commented!

Oh yeah, I have also bought some of those "sucky-in" pants, you know.. the ones that go up to your bra line that really hold everything in. I feel like I'm cheating in a way, because those pants really have changed my shape. I am a dress size smaller when I wear those pants. My loose skin on my stomach is getting more and more noticable and I feel more toned when I wear them... but I feel like I'm not my "true" self when I wear them, like I'm cheating!

Weird.

Anyway. Have a great day. 1 more day until the weekend.. YAY!

LBG xx

Foods that fill you up!

Having fill taken out has really changed my way of thinking with food. Before, when I was super restricted, I could rely on the band more to make me stop when I'd only had a couple of mouthfuls. Now that I can eat more because I've got less restriction, I'm trying to choose foods that fill me up. I love the fact that I can eat more veges and fruit, including things like celery, apples, grapes and all that other good stuff. So I've filled my lunchbox with all things good. Today I'm having a can of tuna mixed in with some mayo, onion and tomato on vita wheat for lunch, breakky will be a celebrity slim with extra berries (for some antioxidate action), morning tea is 3 celery sticks with philly and afternoon tea is an apple and some low fat yoghurt. Tonight I'm having potato and leek soup, which I make from scratch so I can control the fat content, although I am lacking a bit on the protein side for dinner I might have to add some chicken as well.

I must also tell you that my exercise since having fill out over 1 month ago has been superb. I have been to the gym 5 days per week for the past 5 weeks, something I said I was going to do while my fill level was reduced. Today was no exception, and I did a hardcore spin class at 6:15am!! Go Me!

I can't wait to have my fill put back in.. Bring on 22nd October!!!... 15 days to go!!

Happy Tuesday peoples!

LBG xx

Just a quickie today..

Sooooo freaking busy with work these days, I barely have time to have a look at all my favourite blogs! I am popping in and having a quick read in the morning, but haven't had time to do alot of commenting. But I am still around.

Stress combined with TTOM = a massive binge day for me yesterday afternoon. I ate a whole packet of vanilla wafters... yes peoples, a whole packet! 600 cals later!! I was mortified when I figured out how many cals it was. Luckily I'd already burnt 450 cals at the gym earlier in the day, and I ended up eating just rice crackers for dinner cos I really wasn't all that hungry. It's 2:30pm and I'm looking round for something to nibble on. I've already had an apple this afternoon. I have a yoghurt in my bag, so I might eat that... or I might have a couple of vita wheat.. I HATE being hungry!!! I need my fill back.

Tonight I'm going to make a fritatta with asparagus and pumpkin. YUM. Gawd, I'm already thinking about what's for dinner... when I was filled properly I didn't care what was on the menu!!

Thats all for now.

LBG xx

TGIF!

Nothing much to report at the moment. It's been pretty quiet on the lap band front. All is well with the restriction - confusing at times. Sometimes I can eat heaps, other times I'm just as restricted. Like last night I had Rice Noodles and was only able to eat around half a cup, where as yesterday afternoon I was starving and searching for food cos I couldn't get full! Weird!

Went shopping yesterday evening. I wanted to get some sucking-in underwear cos I'm getting "floppy" in my mid-drift area and want to "tighten" up the whole look. I have one pair, but need more at the moment and they're on special at Target at the moment. Ended up trying on some tops and pants in Size 14's. The tops fit perfectly, and they looked great, and flattering. The pants were a little tight around the waist hips (muffin top and camel toe action happening... not pretty) ... so I think I'm half way between a 16/14 in bottoms and a 14 in tops... which is still pretty cool!

I didn't end up buying anything cos I didn't have the money... but it was nice to try on some "normal" sized stuff. Heart was still racing a little as I was slipping on the clothes, but they fit!

Just maintaining my weight at the moment, which is a little frustrating. I'm 86kg and stable. Due for TTOM next week, so that could be a reason why my weight hasn't changed. I was at the gym 4 times this week, and going tomorrow morning as well... food intake has been so so... I've had a few temptations this week which I just haven't been able to look past - namely the cream filled biscuits in the tin at work - thank goodness only the plain ones are left now!!! Water intake has been good - I've found a great Diet Rite Cordial in Peach iced tea flavour. I love iced tea and now I can have it in a cordial with no calories! Sweet!

Looking forward to seeing my wonderful fill doctor next month to get re-filled again. I miss the restriction and the control that the band gave me... even after 1.5 years, I'm still not there yet!

Have a great Friday!

LBG xx

Getting into a Groove

I'm really enjoying being able to eat more at the moment. It's a liberating feeling being able to choose anything to eat and knowing that you can eat it AND have some restriction there as well!!

I am having the most amazing salads for lunch at the moment - Pumpkin, Pecans, Fetta, Rocket, Cucumber, tomato and smoked salmon is my fave. I'm eating around 1-1.5cups, but it takes me a good 20-30 mins and I'm soooooooo full afterwards. I am getting the munchies alot earlier I'm finding after I eat, so I have a handful of nuts or a fruit cup handy to keep the hunger at bay.

I'm looking forward to going out for a Thai Meal on Saturday, knowing that I won't be limited to the soups or the juice of curries. That I can have one of their amazing king prawns.. YUM!

Tonight I'm having a rissole with salad, and tomorrow night will be Nachos (although I grate carrot, zucchini, tomato and capsicum to make it a little healthier!!).

Exercise is going really well this week. I've managed to get to the gym before work every single day so far. I plan on going tomorrow and Saturday as well. Which will make it 6 times this week.

OK, thats all from me for today... Happy Thursday!

LBG xx

You've got to do it for yourself!

I have an awesome gym buddy, who happens to be one of my besties and also happens to be a bandit. Actually, she's one of the reasons why I got a band myself (cos I saw that it was doable and real!).. And we confirmed yesterday that we were going to hit the gym at 6am for a spin session. Now, as some of you may be aware... spin classes are one of the hardest sweatiest classes to do... they never get any better and they never get any easier. Knowing that someone else is doing it just as tough as you kinda almost makes the class a little more bareable...

So, I turned up at Spin this morning... gym buddy didn't! Turned out she had a conference call at work early in the morning so will be doing the afternoon class instead. This was all in a text message to me on my phone last night, but I didn't check my phone until after I got back from the gym this morning!!

So no gym buddy... OK, I got on with it and did the class, no worries... except that I didn't set my HR Monitor correctly and it only captured around 20 mins of my workout!!! You might think, why such a big deal... but one of the goals I have for myself is to reach my target on my HR monitor so that each monday I get a little trophy that is the wall paper on my HRM for the rest of the week. It also then confirms that I have done at least 4 classes and have burnt over 2000 cals during the week (which is approx 250g of fat). So while I know I've burnt over 600cal this morning, my HRM only says 300cals!!! Noooooooo!!

Anyhoo, the point of this blog is to say that you can't rely on anyone else to get your butt exercising.. Sure it helps, it really does.. but at the end of the day, you have to do it for yourself! I'm glad I went this morning :)

Happy exercising everyone!

LBG xx

A brand new week!

Starting a new week for anyone who has been dieting knows that you can almost wash the sins of the past few days (ie the weekend) away and start afresh. Well, I didn't do too badly, other than popcorn and a frozen coke at the movies, I did manage to hit the gym on Sunday for an hour for a massive sweat-a-thon. But today, being Monday, is the start of a new week, and the start of new food and exercise goals. So this week is going to be a week of getting back to basics. My goals include (but are not limted to):

4-5 Gym Sessions this week (1 down already!)
Yoghurt and Frozen berries for breakfast every morning
2 bottles of water drunk at work every day
Fruit or Nuts for a Snack
Low Carbs at night
Protein with Lunch and Dinner

If I think of any more, I'll post them up.

Have a happy Monday!

LBG xx

Size 14 pants!

A momentous NSV for me today. I went to the shops to run a few errands and Husband and I were walking through target (in my size 18 target jeans mind you). We passed the women's clothes section and I saw these cute cargo army style pants. Husband suggested I try a pair on (he's into military stuff and has the same type of pants). So I instinctively reach for the size 16 (only cos there were no size 18 pants on the rack). Husband put is arm out to stop me and took the size 14 off the shelf. I immediately cringed at the thought of trying to squeeze my big butt into a 14, knowing that it would be too tight. I tried to take both the 16 and the 14 in, but Husband convinced me otherwise and I toddled off to the change rooms to try these pants on, with the sinking feeling in my heart that they weren't going to fit.

One leg went in, fit well around the thigh... other leg slid in and managed to pull the pants up over my hips... second hurdle crossed with success. Then came doing up the buttons!.. Low and behold there was enough material there to do up the pants! They are snug... but I can still sit down in them, and they are not that stretchy jean material either. I ran out of the change room to show hubby, who was equally as pleased for me. I took off the pants and looked at the waist band, thinking that the size 16 had been accidentally put on a size 14 hanger... not so! I was well and truely wearing a size 14.

A HUGE occassion especially because I have a very vivid memory of me going into target and not even being able to fit into a stretch size 18 pair of jeans and having to cross over to the plus size section to buy jeans with elastic in the waist.

You could have left me at the shopping centre all day and I would have been more than happy walking from shop to shop trying things on!! *lol*

Here is a photo of my first size 14 pants (and at $23, they were a bargain too!).

Love LBG xx

Support.. and a question..

You guys are amazing! Thanks to Diz, Nola, Cat, Bridget, MYF, Christa, Suzie, Tracey and the rest of you amazing bandits (or soon to be bandits!!!) for providing wonderful support to someone you've never met!! :) *hugs* go out to all of you!!

I don't think Anon was ever personally attacking me.. I agree that he/she has the right to her own opinion.. however, I have asked her/him not to comment on my blog if she is going to comment negative nasty things, and it has been continuing (as you know). He/She left yet another comment, which I've decided not to put on here...

Question: Do you think that losing 56kg in 8 months is healthy? that would be around 7kg/month or just under 1.5kg/week. Anon seems to think that losing that much weight that quickly is the way it should be done if you have a lapband... He/She said she read it in another blog. While I'm in awe that people can lose weight that quickly, I am a bit concerned by the fact that this person is losing so quick!
1. Surely this person is not getting all the vitamin and minerals necessary and would be feeling quite lethargic and ill?
2. The quicker you take the weight off, the quicker you can put it back on...
3. This person might have their band way to tight and just can't eat anything?
3. This person is 200kg and has lost about as much weight as would be expected for someone of their size in that amount of time... MYF would you agree here?

One thing that was different about me when I got my lapband was that I already had a fairly high exercise level. I wasn't exercising to the same intensity as I do now, because I carry around less weight, but I was still working hard. When I went to my Physiotherapy session after getting my lapband, the point of the session was to "start" teaching people how to move with alot of weight to carry so that they didn't injur themselves. The physio asked me what exercises I did... I told her, and she basically had nothing to teach me that I didn't already know!! So I sat there while morbidly obese people around me learnt how to do sit-ups and star jumps!! I was also quite a "small" obese person. My BMI was around 39 which puts me up there, but not as high as some..

I've been having a think about my current food intake and since it's slowly coming up to summer, I've decided I'm going to shake it up a little. Instead of having smaller portions of foods that I normally eat, I'm going to start to eat whole and minimally processed foods.

For example:
Breakfast, instead of having cereal and milk or a protein shake, I will have fruit and yoghurt (I want to look into getting a flaxseed nut/museli mix that I can sprinkle over to get some extra protein and good fats)
For lunch, instead of having canned soup or leftovers or half a sandwhich, I'm going to have salads with BBQ chicken, or cottage cheese and tabouleh and whole grain vita wheat, or vege sticks with tzatsiki
snacks will be the whole fruit, rather than the diced fruit in the cups - especially with the summer fruits coming back in season this should be easy to do!! Or some raw nuts (they reaaaaaaally fill me up and I only need a few grams!), or vege sticks with a home made Hommus or Guacamole
Dinner will be alot more fresh fish, chicken and steamed vege without the carbs like rice and potato (which at the moment I can still eat - pasta and bread are still out).
I'm also trying to have more green tea which I am getting back in to, and trying to cut back on the coffee which I'm finding difficult.

I also want to get out of the post-dinner sweet funk that I'm currently in. I keep fun size chocolates in the freezer for when I feel like something sweet, but I want to get out of the habit of wanting something sweet around 1 hour after I eat dinner. I think it's a matter of going cold turkey..

OK, enough from me again today! What a lot of reading..

Night night!!

LBG xx

Care Factor..

I'm going to start moderating my comments so that I can delete the comments left by Anon..

My care factor is zero... If anything, it is sad to think that someone feels they have to dampen down the energy and happiness that one trys to portray when they blog to the world their thoughts and feelings. I'm not sure if it makes you feel better Anon, blurting out facts about some scientist somewhere shrinking a stomach to the size of a tomato, or that a 700lb man died of malnutrition.... I figure that you have either NEVER had a weight problem and therefore are ignorant of everything to do with the mental, emotional and physical sides of weight loss... or you've had a lap band and you have failed to lose the weight on it and are all bitter and twisted about the whole experience.. or you are overweight yourself and don't have the guts to really make the change and lose the weight. Either way.. it really does suck to be you!!

So enough about that... on to more exciting things...

Tomorrow will be my 6 year anniversary with my Husband from the day that we first started dating. Hubby and I met off the internet (interestingly enough when I was 86kg!!). Who would of thought that after 6 years we would have been married and bought our own home! I am so excited about our future together now... We're talking about buying a second property (a house!!) so that in the not so distant future, we can grow our family. We will be celebrating by going to our favourite restaraunt (we went there alot when we were dating).. and then on Sunday we plan on seeing WALL-E the movie.

Yesterday I managed to drag my butt to the gym after work.. I knew I had to get there and just "do it". I'm so glad I did. Once I got on the treadmill an hour passed by real quick and I could have stayed for longer. I felt tops! I'm looking forward to going again tonight. Dinner last night was a home made vegetable soup and a crumpet. The soup went down fine, it was nice and thick and filling. The crumpet I had to work on, but with small bites and lots of chewing, I managed to get it down.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

LBG xx

P.S. Anon - Just so I can put my weight loss in perspective for you.... I've now lost 27% if me... relatively speaking.. I'd say I was pretty much on track.

30kg lost says I've learnt a thing or two!!!

Yeah Cat.. I totally agree with you about Anonymous and his/her comment. He/She comes back occasionally to post his/her comments... He/She has obviously never had a weight problem.. and yeah, they never like to leave a name.. I'm used to it. Quite frankly it amuses me! There are so many amazing people who read my blog, and I get such positive feedback. So when Anon leaves me nasty comments, I enjoy reading them... because it just affirms how ignorant some people are about weight loss, gastric banding surgery and all that other stuff.

So to respond to Anonymous....

I will always love food, not just fatty foods, but all types of foods. And I know that I will always need help, and I know I will never be free of dieting. I accept that. My band is my tool, my help and will be with me forever. I will constantly be struggling with my weight for the rest of my life.

I must have learnt something over the past 1.5 years... - I have lost over 30kg !!! From going to a morbidly obese couch potato that was on the boarder of diabetes, in a size 24, at the ripe old age of 27, to being 30kg lighter, happily married to a wonderful man, jogging on the treadmill and on the street for over 20 mins and in a size 14... I think something has definitely changed don't you??

And just so you know Anonymous, I don't care what other people think of me, and I always had a full and enriched life, regardless of my weight.. so while I know that there are some people out there who don't judge overweight people... the majority do..

So Anonymous, unless you have never made a mistake, never put a foot wrong, never given into a craving, never had junk food because you felt like it, never eaten a little too much at christmas dinner... I suggest you shut the fuck up and stop leaving your pointless and nasty comments on my blog.

To all my other readers who "get" what's happening with me and my band... Thank you for stopping by!!!

Love love

LBG xx

Realization..

I have been banded for 1.5 years!!! Holy Moly! I was reading Bridget's blog on being banded for 6 months and I started to think about the fact that I had been banded for 1.5 years.

I really don't know what I expected I would be like in 1.5 years. Did I expect to be at my goal weight by then? Hell no!! I still don't think I'll ever get to my goal weight.. it's so far out there in the relms of my imagination right now... it's slowly becoming a little more realistic but I know I've got a ways to go yet.. and I'm kinda enjoying the ride.

What else has changed? My appreciation for good quality food. Gone are the days where I'll just have a big bowl of pesto pasta, heaped with cheese and butter for dinner.. I crave small portions of delicious fresh food - gorgeous fish and other seafoods, well cooked veges, salads with tangy home made dressings, gourmet cheeses, dips and anti pastos (not corn chips and salsa if you know what I mean!!). Having McDonalds last week really affirmed the fact that I really do look at food a different way now.. I would have preferred a salmon or tuna sushi roll or some gorgeous fresh sashimi with some wasabi and soy sauce than a big mac and fries.. that still blows me away.

Another thing which I love that has changed about me is my energy levels. I may still be 15kg over weight, but damn it, I'm super fit right now. It doesn't bother me that I do two exercise session in 1 day, where as before, 30 mins would poop me out! Like today, for example, I'm going to hit the gym at lunch time for some cardio action, then I'm looking forward to doing an hour long walk with my husband this evening (the weather in Sydney today is supposed to be devine!). Yes peoples, I am LOOKING FORWARD to it!! I LOVE getting hot and sweaty. I LOVE feeling that burning sensation in my thighs and butt when I go to spin classes. I LOVE getting into this amazing zone when I jog. I LOVE the fact that I can JOG! hehe

What else? hrmmmmm... I love looking at myself in the mirror. Especially my face and shoulders. I have features.. not fat cheeks and double chin, but collar bones! I love looking at old photos of me now, because I know that I have changed so much. I've started to wish that I had taken more photos of me when I was fatter!!! *lol* My body is changing, I'm getting saggier, and I accept this. There are some great knickers that you can wear that sucks everything in so you look flat. I've got a couple of pairs of these and wear them when I go out for special occasions. But I think I need to start wearing them more often, they make me feel good. Husband calls them my granny knickers, but once you put clothes over them.... totally different!

Another thing I've noticed is that I don't hold back as much... I really do live life to the fullest.... like trying scuba diving for the first time. Fat me wouldn't have dreamed of getting into a wet suit (because I wouldn't have been able to fit it!!) and then get in the water.. but now I know I can pretty much do anything. When I do stuff, people don't look at me with the pity they used to. I used to hear them thinking "Poor fat girl, look at her trying so hard... well at least she's trying". Those voices have definitely stopped!

I've got a ways to go yet. But I know this isn't going to be a short term thing. This is for life. This band is for life, this way of eating is for life. Having the fill out has made me realise just how much I depended on my little silicone friend to stop me from overeating! Now that I can eat more (although I'm still way down on pre-banding amounts), I've noticed the old habits creeping back in. I'm definitely looking forward to getting that fill put back in!! October 22nd is over 5 weeks away!!!!!!!!!!!! ARGH!!!

Thanks to all for reading for the past 1.5 years!!! You guys help me so much with your comments and suggestions.

Much Love xxx

Still some restriction!! YAY!

Yesterday, after writing about how I was going to eat well and blah blah blah, I had McDonalds for lunch... I haven't had Maccas in probably over a year!! I got a McChicken and a small fries and a diet coke. I only ate 1/2 of the fries and maybe 1/3 of the burger. Man, I was real full! It was great! But you know what else? I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I was going to. I have to admit, I was slightly disappointed, and kinda wished I'd had a salmon sushi roll instead as it would have been so much tastier! I won't be getting Maccas any time soon I can tell you! Amazing how your taste buds change eh?

Last night for dinner I thought I'd give pasta a go. I made a delish onion, capsicum and spinach sauce to go with the spinach and ricotta tortellini. I made myself a small bowl (bandit size), a couple of mouthfuls later I was in the bathroom puking it up! My band still doesn't like pasta.

There is definitely restriction there!

I'm going to have some yoghurt and strawberries for breakky now.

Have a wonderful Friday!

LBG xx

I'm such a guts!!

I can't believe how much I have been eating since I had that fill taken out. Granted, I can still feel some restriction, it's nowhere near as much as before! Yesterday I got home from work, got out the camembert and rice crackers (bad move!), and before I knew it, half the cheese and two rows of the crackers was gone!! 2 hours later I was having curry and rice at a local nepalese resteraunt. It is nice to go out for a meal knowing that you don't have to position where you sit so you can make a quick and some what subtle exit to the bathroom, or your choice of resterant is determined by whether or not they have soup on the menu, or when you get your meal and you start to hyperventilate because you realise you can only eat 2 mouthfuls and your dining partners are going to wonder why you're not eating!! That's why I like going to places where you share food - we shared a whole heap of curry and rice last night, then there is tapas and thai where you just pick off the plates. No-one else is really watching what you are eating because they're too busy trying to feed their own faces!! But when you've ordered your own meal and everyone else has cleaned their plates and you're trying to hide food under your napkin...

I digress, I figured that if I'm going to be able to eat more (and enjoy the fact that I can eat more) then I was going to have to put some safe guards in place to ensure that I don't put on any weight.

1. I must go to the gym (or do some form of exercise) 5 days per week (4 at the minimum). I have a polar F11 heart monitor which tracks my calories, session numbers, time spent exercising etc. If I make my target each week I get a trophy as my wall paper. if I don't make the target, the wall paper goes back to a swirl and it takes a whole week to try and get that trophy back again.
2. I will drink more water! Something I haven't been doing since my unfill. I have been drinking more coffee though ( I can't seem to function without a good coffee in the morning these days!!). I have a water bottle at my desk at work, and I will aim to drink two of these per day.
3. The food that I do eat will be quality foods (not rice crackers and cheese!!). So things like Fruit (I've got strawberries and madarins for lunch today, YUM) and vegetables will grace my plate every day. I will make an effort to eat well, fuel my body and enjoy it!
4. I will track what I eat on Calorie King so that I am accountable.

OK, that's all from me today. I'm off to fill my water bottle!

LBG xx

Dealing with the hunger!!

I'm not used to being hungry... I mean that gnawing hunger that doesn't allow you to concentrate on anything else until it is satisfied.. and I don't like it! Yesterday I had a coffee and tea in the morning (still some restriction so don't feel like eating), then I had a cup a soup with noodles for morning tea (160 cals), then I had a cup a soup and 2 crumpets with marg for lunch (350 cals), then for afternoon tea I had an apple puree, a mandarin and some vita wheat snacks (200 cal), then I went to the gym and did a spin class (600cals burnt), and then had left over beef stroganoff, mashed potatos, some green beans and steamed cauliflower for dinner. The plate I served my dinner on was still a bread and butter plate, but it was practically spilling over the side. I've realised that my food intake yesterday was quite "soft and sloppy", ie, I should be having more solid foods to make me fuller! So today I'm having vita wheats with ham, cheese, tomato, baby spinach, strawberries, yoghurt. And for dinner tonight I'm making individual Lasagne with Salad. YUM!

I should also mention that this morning I felt like a danish, but instead I went to Woolies and picked up a yoghurt to have with my strawberries instead! That took a massive amount of will power because I was starving from my spin class this morning and knew that I was going to be able to eat it! Having more restriction meant that I used to walk past Baker's Delight and not even bat an eyelid... now I have to find another way to walk so that I avoid this devil bakery at all costs!!!

Have an awesome day!

LBG xx

Yum Cha = deliciousness

Diz asked what Yum Cha is... why are you asking this question? How can you not know what Yum Cha is?!?!?!

I have taken the liberty of googling Yum Cha and you can find the answer here. My fave dish is prawn wrapped in rice noodles with soy sauce... and this time I could eat it!!! Actually, I could eat all 3 portions of them.. and the prawns went down easy.. but I was still amazingly full afterwards (still some restriction there!!)

All I can say... Yum Cha = Deliciousness!

Happy Monday!

Ok not really... since when are Monday's anything but suicidal... struggled to get out of bed this morning... too scared to weigh myself today... kind of ignoring the scales at the moment!!! The weekend goes way too quickly, one minute you're doing your saturday morning spin class and the next you're making lunch for work on Sunday night... *sigh*

MJW asked a question which I thought was interesting: Do you sit at the hairdresser looking at the person in the mirror wondering who they are, or have you moved on from that?

Actually, it doesn't have to be at the hairdresser, it's pretty much every time I get in front of a mirror. I'll be cleansing my face and look up after patting it dry and look at myself. Or I'll be walking past a shop front and catch a glimpse of my reflection and not recognise that it is me for a split second... it's a lovely feeling!

Eating this weekend has been mixed. I've started the day off soooooo healthy - half bran muffins after my Gym session... then it went down hill and on Saturday evening I finished off a whole packet of Maltesers (100g!!!) *eek*. I did redeem myself a little by having a chicken wrap with heaps of salad which I only ate a little bit of. Sunday was a vege omlette (yum), then Yum Cha for lunch for fathers day (can't say that was too healthy!!) and then off to the movies where I had a small frozen coke, pop corn and some jelly snakes. Dinner was a small plate of beef stroganoff, 2 tbls rice and some steamed veges.. Loving the fact that I can eat again (and I must say, so are my bowels!!), but not loving the fact that I'm getting hungrier sooner and can eat more. So this week I'm going to be tracking everything I eat on calorie king and get into the exercise this week. Plans for Exercise are as follows:

Monday 8/9 - Spin Class 5:45pm
Tuesday 9/9 - Spin Class 6:15am
Wednesday 10/9 - Lunch Time Cardio
Thursday 11/9 - Spin Class 6:15am
Friday 12/9 - Lunch Time Cardio
Saturday 13/9 - Core 7:45am, Spin 8:30am
Sunday 14/9 - Rest

Have a good week!

LBG xx

New Do and Subway

I got my hair cut last night. I was going for something a little shorter, a little more edgy and something that suited my face (that seems to have gone from round to oval since my weight loss). Well I came out feeling cute, sophisticated and stylish! Loving my new do! Husband thinks it makes me look older... I think it makes me look sophisticated and professional.

Anyhoo... the eating front has been so much fun over the past couple of days. Yesterday I had subway for lunch. I got a wrap with turkey, ham, cheese and loads of salad... took me around 1 hour to eat, but DAMN it was so freaking tasty! Then for dinner I had a small bowl of Beef with vege and rice noodles. Even though I've had heaps of fill out, I can still feel some restriction, which is awesome.

On the exercise front, I was at the gym before my hair appointment. I jogged on the T-mill for 16 minutes. The bra I was wearing really wasn't suitable, so I was feeling a bit self conscious. Burnt 550Kcal and exercised for 45 mins. I'm off to the gym again tonight for another similar work out, and then tomorrow morning I'll do Core and Spin Classes. 5 times this week, which is great.

Scales showed me at 85.8kg. Not entirely happy with this, but I really do think I was quite dehydrated. I've eaten a load of carbs over the past few days, which attracts a bit of water as well... I'm just going to keep up with the exercise and hopefully that will minimise any damage!!

MYF - have a great time on your holiday! Can't wait to see piccies!!!

Much love xxx

LBG xx

The Quad Burger

Have you guys seen the new Hungry Jacks Quad Burger that has just been released? It contains 4 beef patties, 4 slices of cheese, BBQ sauce, 2 rashers of bacon on sugared buns. Where is the salad, you may ask. Well there is none. Now I'm a big big fan of the whopper, because of the fact that the salad is REAL - real chunks of tomato, onion and lettuce, not like the shrivelled variety that graces the burgers of Macdonalds. But I am dissapointed by this latest creation. The calorie intake of this monstrosity equates to half a females average daily energy requirement, not to mention the 70g of fat! At over 1000kcal, eating this burger would be all I would be allowed to eat all day, and I wouldn't be getting any nutrition. Funnily enough, this buger has been selling in the US since 2006!!!! The first time I saw this burger on TV, I must admit, I did salivate at the thought of biting into the soft bun, feeling the meat juice flow onto my tongue, chew slowly through the layers of meat and cheese and taste the tang of the BBQ sauce. But the more I look at it, the sicker I feel. I would much prefer a wrap with crunchy salad and meat, with maybe some fetta, low fat bacon, low fat beef patty, loads of salad stuff like lettuce, tomato, spanish onions, capsicum, cucumber with a delish dressing of some sort... DELISH!!! Give me subway anyway over that poor excuse for a burger!!

What amuses me the most about this Quad burger (or Stacker Burger as it's known in the US)... is that there is actually a Wikipedia page for this thing!!! Hilarious!

Anyhoo, on the lap band front. My hunger has returned, but not as much as I thought it would. I'm able to drink properly now so have been enjoying Berocca in the morning as well as tea (I love tea!). I ate some baked beans at lunch yesterday (you know, the mini cans) and I was able to eat it slowly over 20 mins and I was filled to the brim. Best thing was that I still felt the restriction a little. I have been drinking a whole lot more since the unfil, and I've put on a bit of fluid weight (which is totally fine cos I knew I was really dehydrated). Yesterday for dinner I had half a baked potato and a chicken cordon bleu. Took me ages to eat, but felt very comfortable and felt restricted and full after the meal.

I went for a run/walk this morning. I jogged/walked 10 laps around the oval near my home. Burnt 550cal and exercised for 40 mins. Did some squats and lunges before heading home. Feel good! Tomorrow I'm going to do a 6:15spin class.

That's all from me today. Have a good one!

LBG xx

I will NOT go backwards!

I've worked too damn hard to get down to this weight to see it go back up again!! Next appointment is October 22nd, and I know I'm going to need some fill put in. Even this morning I've got some massive funky tummy rumbles going on, which feel rather foreign to me!! I know I could probably go and have a cheese and ham scroll from Bakers delight right now without any problems, but I've got to keep on top of my food intake if I don't want to see those scales go up!!

It was so bizarre, last night I was thinking (and salivating) about what food I'd be able to eat now... Fried Rice, Stir Fry, Chunky Salads, Meat, Thai food.... and guess what... most of it was healthy! *lol* Macdonalds did cross my mind a few times. I've been craving eating a burger or a kebab or something really fulfilling recently, and then when I eat the craving goes away!! I think while I'm less restricted I'm actually going to have a kebab (which is probably better than a burger!!) and really really really enjoy it! Oh, and SUBWAY... I'm craving a 6 inch with chicken, loads of salad and ranch dressing... YUM!

Another thing I told myself I would do is start up the exercise again. So this morning I was back at the gym at the 6:15am spin class. OMG, I almost passed out / threw up, but damn I feel awesome right now. Husband and I are going to start going for evening walks as well, cos it's getting lighter in the evening now.

Feels so good to be able to drink without the pressure I was getting in my chest. I guzzled a 600mL bottle of water at the gym this morning with no problems.

Anyhoo, hope everyone has a fab day!

LBG xx

3.5ml OUT!

So last night I made a delish vege soup for dinner.... did I get to eat any of it? Well yes, but then it all came back up again... and again.. and 5 times later I thought stuff this, and I didn't eat any more. Soup peoples! I was vomiting on SOUP! I was extremely sore in my chest during the night and it was even difficult to get water down. So today I rang up my gorgeous surgeon and got an emergency appointment with him to get some fill taken out. He said that by the sounds of it I'd set up an inflammatory process that had proceeded to make the stomach around the band extremely swollen. He took 3.5mL out (which is alot for a bandster!) and as soon as I had my first sip of water, I felt nothing.... that is... INSTANT RELIEF!!! I'm on opti-yuk/fluids for a couple of days to settle my stomach. For lunch I had cup a soup... and it went down a treat, in 15-20 mins. I've had some diet lemonade and a cup of coffee and some water and I feel sooooooooo much better already.

Now the challenge is, how am I going to cope with having less restriction!?!?!

Oh yeah, I also weighed myself at the doctors surgery.... and I was 83.6kg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! TOTALLY STOKED! It almost made the fact that I couldn't eat anything worth it!!! *lol* Just kidding!!

Really want to count that weigh in, but I think I'll stick to my own scales which read 84.1kg this morning (which is still pretty excellent!).

Now the challenge really begins! I'm going to up the exercise and keep a close eye on what I am eating... but at least I know I can eat again!!!

Much Love..

LBG xx

Closer to the 70's than to the 90's!!

Guess what loyal readers! I weighed in this morning at 84.9kg. WoooooooooHooooooooo! Do you know what this means??!?!?!

1. Massive psychological boost as I am now closer to the 70's than I am to the 90's.

2. I'm below 85kg, my next goal

3. I've now lost 23.7kg since the band and 31.1kg overall

4. BMI now at 30.4kg/m2... only 1.3kg to go until I'm "overweight"

5. 83.6kg (which will get me to overweight BMI) is also my 25kg weight loss mark

Very very very exciting!

Still feeling the remnants of the cold/flu I had this week but definitely feeling a little better. Looking forward to a little normality this week. Not travelling at all for work, regular hours, getting back to the gym and hopefully getting back to eating properly!

Happy Sunday Everyone!

LBG xx