Sweet Spot = Achieved!

I'm at my sweet spot. Fo' sho'. I can eat, but not a lot...very small amounts. My struggle is eating the right foods. I don't eat a lot of vegetables and I really don't eat much meat. Meat is really difficult for me. I get my protein in mostly through protein drinks and dairy.

I joined a gym this week. It costs $90/mo (RIDICULOUS), but is pretty much worth it. They have over 100 treadmills along with hundreds of other cardio machines, every weight machine you can imagine, 2 indoor pools, an outdoor pool, 3 studios for classes, a gymnasium, rock climbing wall, cafe, spa, and salon! It's amazing.

NJ is not so bad so far. I do miss home, but I'm not as homesick as I thought I would be. My parents are coming up in 2 weeks and I'm really excited about that. I'll be so happy to see them.

Goals for this week are to eat more solid protein, eat vegetables, and work out at least 4x.

eeeeexcellent.

I am now 12lb away from ONEDERLAND and am 10lb away from no longer being obese! Also, 12lb away from my May 31st goal!

I got an unfill last Friday and they took out what was put in back in ATL (.2cc). The effing thing cost me $650 which is ridiculous, but at least I can eat now and I'm still losing weight.

Today is my birthday, as well, so this is all good news and a wonderful present to myself! I haven't weighed this for 2.5 - 3 years, I think.

Yay!

Not doing well...Violent Vomiting & ER Visit

I arrived in NJ for good yesterday. It took me two days to drive it, but I'm up here! The movers won't get here until Wednesday; at least that's the plan right now. So, for now, Manolo & I are shacked up in a Residence Inn.

This morning, I decided to get some eggs from the buffet and take them in a container to work and eat them when I got hungry. So, around 9 I ate some...maybe 2 or 3 bites?...and I was immediately stuck. This was no normal stuck...I was PBing over and over. It got to the point where I couldn't even swallow my saliva.

Now, you might be saying to yourself, "Cody, why didn't you just go to your surgeon and get fluid taken out??" Well, my friends, my surgeon is in ATL and I'm now in NJ. A few weeks ago, I found a Lap-Band Office up here who would do my fills and unfills and I called them today when this issue was happening. They said the NP couldn't see me until I had seen a surgeon and Mondays are surgery days for surgeons. GRRRR! This was not a good situation. I was running to the bathroom every 5 min (I'm sure everyone at my client now thinks I'm pregnant, thank you). So, I made the executive decision to go to the ER.

The ER sucks here. I've never seen a room full of so many sickly people. I got to the point where they took my bp and temp and all that and had to go out in the waiting room before being admitted. Well, before I could even get admitted, I started puking SO HARD and so repetitively that food that was in my stomach (had already passed through the band) was coming up along with the burning, nasty bile. However, after that, I felt like a million bucks compared to before! So, I got out of the ER and came back to the hotel.

I was finally able to speak to the NP at the new surgeon's office and the earliest they can get me in is on Friday. I am fo' sho' getting fluid taken out. Until then, pure liquids.

I'm affraid I may have slipped my band, though. Can one violent episode like this flip it? I sure hope not. I've never had a fill done under floro, but I'm actually hoping they do the unfill under floro on Friday just to calm my fears!

Anyone else ever puked over and over so violently??? I'm slightly scared...

4th Fill

Today I had my fourth fill. Prior to today, I was at 6cc in a 10cc band. I wasn't sure I should even get a fill. I've lost 10lb since my fill about 2.5 weeks ago. I really didn't even think they'd give me one, but wanted to go in, anyway, to get my weight recorded and just see if they would be so kind.

So, the NP did give me a fill. She gave me .4cc. As I was drinking my water afterward, it was not going down. So I hopped back up on the table and she took out half (.2cc) and it went down okay! I was even able to drink a protein drink about an hour later and have some mashed potatoes around 1.

However, I did PB last night. Since I'm moving, I'm trying to see all my friends as many times as possible. So, Richard is in town and we went to Roaster's (think: really nice Boston Market). I ordered the veggie (ha!) plate and got broccoli & cauliflower, mashed potatoes, and green beans. It was going okaaaaay until I took too big of a bite of broccoli. I immediately knew I was in trouble and ran to the bathroom. Up it came! After that, I just asked for a to-go box and socialized :)

Today will probably be my last post before I get to NJ. The movers are coming tomorrow to load the truck! The packers were there today. Saturday I'll be on the road to NJ, but won't arrive until Sunday. Hopefully my stuff gets there around the 9th or else it will have no place to go! I don't sign the lease until then!

Update!

I've been so busy! The move to NJ is happening next week. Last weekend I went up and found a place to live. I'm going to be paying more for my apartment up there, which is barely over 700 sq. feet than I pay for my townhouse in ATL which is close to 1500 sq ft! Insane.

So I'm pretty stressed about all this. Just trying to get all my stuff ready for the movers to pack is enough to make me want to vomit.

On the weight loss front, I'm down to 222! I haven't been this low in, I'd say, 2.5 years! However, there isn't really a drastic change in my clothes. I've gone down a size, solidly, but I would think that losing over 40lb would be 2 sizes! Not so, my friends. I'm in 16W right now. 16s are a little snug (muffin top!). So, now I just have to wash my jeans each time after I wear them b/c they stretch out and I'm constantly pulling them up by the end of the day.

I'm scheduled for another fill on Thursday (the day the movers load the truck). I don't think they are going to give me a fill, though, because I've lost 8lb in a week and a half.

Ugggggh.

Ugh. As Amy W. would say...they only gave me "a sparrow's fart" for a fill. I got .6cc so I'm at 6cc now. I can already tell it's not going to have the effect of the last fill, but I'm going to stay positive! I was able to lose 9lb between my last fill and today so I know I can keep it up, just gotta work my band.

They scheduled me for another fill on 3/4, but I don't think I'll be here anymore for that one. I'd really like to try to be, though!!!

Weight Loss & Fill

I returned from helping my family w/ my Gramma's death on Thursday. My cousin drove me back and my parents stayed until Saturday. It's sooooo hard to be on a road trip with someone who doesn't know about your Lap Band. Normally, the drive is about 8 hours, but my cousin has a 3 year old, so it was closer to 10 for us. Therefore, we had to get fast food. I've noticed the most band-friendly fast food for me is either Taco Bell or Chickfila. I don't eat it often, but when I have to, those are the places I go. So, I was really hoping for Chickfila, but no dice. Not even a Taco Bell where we pulled off. So I ate Sonic and when I say ate, I mean I grazed. It wasn't going down well, but I was okay with that. It worked.

So, I was really afraid that I would gain weight over the week because a. my Gramma ate HORRIBLY (one of the reasons she passed) and b. what was in the house was rotten so we had to rely on what people brought over (which wasn't much, btw). So, we ate out or ate what people brought over and I was dreading getting on the scale when I got back.

However, I was pleasantly surprised! Not only did I NOT gain weight, but I LOST. I lost 3lb. I've now met another goal and have now lost a total of 34lb in under 3 mo. I'm at 230!

I'm getting a fill this morning and I'm a little concerned they will be conservative with this one since I've lost so much. My argument is going to be that I'm moving and won't have a surgeon there so I need a good fill. I'm hoping for 1.6cc (that will put me at 7 cc total in my 10cc band).

Death & Gaining Weight

I'm currently out of state with my family. My Gramma died last Friday so we got here on Saturday. The funeral was yesterday and I'll be leaving to head home with one of my cousins later today.

Since being here I have eaten like crap. We have no food so we rely on what neighbors and friends bring over or eat out. Not one healthy thing!! I'm upset about gaining weight (I haven't weighed in, yet, but can feel the lbs packing on). I'm anxious to get home and get back on my eating routine. We left in such a hurry that I didn't have time to even wash clothes let alone pack food.

Oh Happy Day!!!

I woke up with a little surprise from the Weight Loss Gods for me on the scale today. I'm at 233! I blasted through my 30lb loss and this makes me feel good.

What does not make me feel good is how I lost it. I cannot describe to you the anxiety I am suffering because of this move. Being in limbo, trying to rent my house out and not give it away, not knowing when the move is going to happen or where I'll live, but knowing it is definitely happening (or so say my bosses and our CFO) has me in a constant state of anxiousness and I hate it. I can't sleep, I am moving constantly (twitching, bobbing my leg, etc.) and just can't calm down. I don't know what I need to do in order to fix this but I'll tell you this: Xanax is not working.

I still follow my Lap Band Rules: protein first, putting the fork down between bites, chewing like a mad woman, etc. I just think that I'm losing this weight extra fast because I can't sit still and I don't sleep.

So, thank you Weight Loss Gods! However, I'd really like to have just one night of restful sleep.

235!

Almost at 30lb lost! I'm so thrilled!

Food is still really tough for me. I'm not able to eat normal food or even a lot of band-friendly foods. However, I've noticed that as the day goes on, my band loosens.

I start each day with a hot cup of tea. After that, I drink my protein shake. Depending on how the shake goes down, I can tell how tight I'm going to be for the day.

I've been in training for the last day and a half. Thursday our catered lunch was Jason's Deli sandwiches, a few types of pasta salads and such, and cookies / deserts. I took two quarter sandwiches and just ate the turkey and ham off of them. That night we went to a really nice dinner and I ordered the Lobster (my absolute favorite protein on the planet). I was able to eat it! Not all of it, of course, but it went well! Yesterday we had a box lunch with sandwiches from Panera. My plan was to take the meat off like last time and just eat that. Yeah, that did not work. After sliming for about 5 min, jumping up and down, I was able to PB. Hallelujah!

Loosening Up?

I think the inflammation from my last fill is finally about to subside! Today I was able to eat mushies...kind of. At least I was able to eat teeny amounts, which I'm okay with! As long as it's fairly solid and satisfies me.

So far, I've lost 5lb since the fill. That's just b/c I've been on liquids, but I'm determined to maintain this loss until my next fill!

So, now my grand total loss since 11/13 (when I started pre-op) is 28lbs. Not too shabby.

Super Tight, Questions about Restriction, & a Quizzie! Yaaaaay!

First of all, I just want to congratulate SO MANY of you that I follow on how your weight loss has progressed over the last week! I was catching up on the last few days of blogs and SO MANY of you have posted great successes! Congratulations to you all!

As you know, I had my fill on Thursday (like I mentioned in my previous post) and I am still tight as Hell. Nothing but pure liquids for me. Not even mushies! It's misery...well, kind of. I am enjoying the weight loss, but to be honest, I just want something satisfying in my stomach! Not even to feel full, per se, but just to have something solid in there.

So, my question is, is this what restriction feels like? Not being able to eat normal food at all? Or is this still just the inflammation from my fill? Do any of you get inflammation like this after a fill? Is (true) restriction maybe just a bit better than this?

For example, my diet the last few days has consisted of nothing but watery protein drinks, creamy chicken soup in hand, more protein drinks, and today I had french onion soup broth (french onion soup w/ no cheese or bread). I'm not overly concerned that I need to get an unfill b/c I am still getting my nutrition in, but just not the calories, so I'm dropping weight pretty dang fast. Right now, I'm considering giving it another full day and if it's still like this on Tuesday, I'll call my dr.

Now it's QUIZZIE TIME!!!!!!

This seems to be viral...I love quizzes, but don't want to divulge too much about myself.
1. What time did you wake up today? about 9
2. How do you like your steak? Well, I haven't had steak since before 11/20, but I like filet mignon med-med well. I don't like my meat mooing across my plate.
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Up in the Air
4. What is your favorite TV show? I have several, but most of all "Intervention." I'm obsessed with it.
5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? I'm in the process of moving to NJ, but ideally I would live my life in London. I love that city.
6. What did you have for breakfast? Uhhh, considering I can't have anything thicker than creamy thin soup, I had a protein shake.
7. What is your favorite cuisine? MEXICAN!!!!!
8. What foods do you dislike? Most veggies, pork, tofu.
9. Favorite place to eat? My favorite restaurant cheap restaurant in the world is this place here called Taqueria del Sol. My favorite FANCY restaurant is either Atlanta Fish Market or Bones.
10. Favorite dressing? HOMEMADE Buttermilk Ranch...none of that stuff in a bottle.
11. What kind of vehicle do you drive? Acura TSX
12. What are your favorite clothes? Jeans and a cute shirt.
13. Where would you visit if you had the chance? Portugal. Hawaii (I've been all over the world, but never to Hawaii!
14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full? It depends on the day. Over the last few years a lot of 1/2 empty days.
15. Where would you want to retire? No clue! I'm too young to think of that stuff.
16. Favorite time of day? Evening, but not night.
17. Where were you born? The great state of Missouri
18. What is your favorite sport to watch? College football. Specifically, Auburn football.
19. Bird watcher? Nope
20. Are you a morning person or a night person? I'm an early riser
21. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? Nope. You know all big news if you follow my blog.
22. What did you want to be when you were little? A financial analyst. HILARIOUS! Can you tell I was raised by to corporate big-wigs?
23. What is your best childhood memory? any time I spent with my dad and all my swim meets
24. Are you a cat or dog person? doggies, pls.
25. Are you married? Nope
26. Always wear your seat belt? Yes, or my car gets angry
27. Been in a car accident? Yes
28. Any pet peeves? Too many to mention. You'd think I was a world class bit*h
29. Favorite Pizza Toppings? cheese, pepperoni, and mushrooms.
30. Favorite Flower? hibiscus
31. Favorite ice cream? Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Shortcake
32. Favorite fast food restaurant? Anything BUT McDonald's. I do like Krystal, though!
33. How many times did you fail your driver's test? None
34. From whom did you get your last email? I think a moving company
35. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Target.
36. Do anything spontaneous lately? Nope!
37. Broccoli? Cooked properly, yum! (agreed!) and with sour cream!
38. What was your favorite vacation? Soooo many. Backpacking through Europe by myself after college graduation, Mom's 60th birthday cruise, any week I get to spend at my parents' beach house...so many more!
39. Last person you went out to dinner with? one of my BFFs while I was in NYC...We went to Zarela!
40. What are you listening to right now? My dog snoring. So precious.
41. What is your favorite color? Green
42. How many tattoos do you have? Two.
43. Coffee drinker? More like Chai drinker.

2nd Fill

Today was my 2nd fill...HOLLA!!!! I needed it desperately. I was eating lots of junk and it would all just slide through my band. Not a good thing, my friends. Although, I have lost 3lb since my last fill. So at least it's moving in the correct direction.

So, my first fill was 3cc. Today I got 2.4cc. This equals a total of 5.4cc in my band. My next appointment is in 3 weeks. They are rushing it just a bit b/c I'm moving and they want to get me in for another fill before I get the heck out of Dodge. What good peeps.

But, seriously, I'm so sad about missing out on my free year of aftercare. I looked in to some places up there and IT IS RIDICULOUS! $300 just to get in and then another $300 for each fill. No ma'am. No ma'am. My company is going to fly me home once a quarter so I'll just have to come home a day early and get a fill at my current surgeon's office.

Anyway, I was able to drink a delicious and thin protein shake this morning.

NYC and BIG NEWS!!!

Let's start with the big news...I'm moving! My company is transferring me to New Jersey and even more crazy is that I'm supposed to be there in 6 days! While that may not happen, I will be there by the 26th, just not moved in...I don't even have an apartment, yet! I'll probably commuting weekly for a few weeks, staying in a hotel M - F. I own my house in ATL so I have to rent that out and the challenge there will be to kick my current roommate out before her lease ends.

This past weekend I went to visit one of my very good friends who lives in NYC...however, not for long. He's moving home to Birmingham at the end of February. Anyway, we had a wonderful time!!! We walked and ate and drank. I did gain a few lbs. so that's no good, but I'm sure I could have gained much more had we not walked everywhere under the sun. One of my favorite meals was at Zarela where I got the world famous Arroz con Pollo. Another favorite restaurant was the brunch at Calle Ocho. They have a complimentary sangria bar with 8 different sangrias!!!! My favorite non-meal was the delicious hot chocolate from Jacques Torres (aka Mr. Chocolate). Best hot chocolate EVER. One thing I will say about NYC (and this could just be the North, in general. IDK) is that the service is the WORST EVER. Servers do not give a rats butt if they provide you with good service. Multiple times I had to go on a hunger strike in order to get my water glass refilled.

So now it's back to reality. I have to figure out this transfer thing. And I have to eat well. My next fill is on Thursday and I'm not so sure they will be happy with my progress. Since gaining a few lbs in NYC, I'm only down about 1 lb since my last fill. Boooooo.

Who Should I Follow?

OK, so we are one big happy blogging community, but I feel like I don't follow enough bloggers. Who are some of your favorites that I should follow? I like people who not only talk about how great things are going but also acknowledge the struggles! Comment away with your favorite bloggers.

Previous Diets

What diets have you tried (and ultimately failed at) in the past? I'll list mine...it's a lot, hahaha.

-Weight Watchers (3x)
-Nutrisystem
-Jenny Craig
-Zone Diet
-Atkins
-My own diet where I worked out 2 or 3x a day and ate only 500 calories
-Phentermine (2x) medical weight loss
-Body for Life
-Cabbage Soup Diet

I'm only 27...that's twelve diets!!!! Ridonkulous, if you ask me. I don't ever want to be on one again. Fo sho.

I Posted This Little Gem Last Night...

It's about my fill, my weight loss, some awesome new foods I've found, and my dog Manolo!!!! Check it out...

First Post of the New Decade!

Happy New Year, y'all!

My fill has been super. I know its not true restriction, but I am loving it anyway! I have lost those 4 stupid pounds I gained since my lowest post-surgery weight AND another pound. Go me.

My NYE was lame-o. I was sick with a cold and had a migraine from it. So, since I was in Orlando visiting my friend, I stayed in bed while they all went out to a house party, but I didn't feel sad about it. In fact, I was perfectly happy to stay in. I got to watch the Killers concert! That's a perfect night for me.

New Years Day was the Outback Bowl!!!! It was super. We won...barely, but it was a great game!

I got back yesterday afternoon and am absolutely dreading going back to work tomorrow. I've been off since the 19th! However, today I went to TJ's and bought some delicious (and nutritious!) foods to take for lunch / snacks. One of my absolute faves is the Jell-o Mousse Temptations. Soooo good esp if you are craving chocolate and only 60 cals!

I hope you all had a pleasant New Year and I'm going to post a vlog on my YouTube channel tomorrow, I think!

1st Fill + I'm a Moron

Yesterday I got my first fill. They added 4cc's. I won't go into too much detail b/c I'm sure most of you know what it's like to get a fill. If you don't, leave a comment and I'll get back to you!

Afterward, I was sitting in the waiting room drinking my water (which took forever) and this lady came up to the front from the back. I guess she had her initial consultation. She asked me if I'd had the procedure and wanted to know about my experience. I told her about being self-pay, my surgery day, the post-surgery agony, the gas, my weight loss, the process of restriction, etc. I think it really helped her. I know I would have loved to have spoken w/ someone face-to-face prior to having my surgery. Sure, I read LBT and went to 2 seminars, but nothing beats picking someone's mind who has had it done and hearing what they liked and didn't like. Before I left she asked me if I would do it again. I said "absolutely! but ask me again in 11 months!" I still have so much to go through before I can truly say if I would do it again or not...but more than likely I think I'll be happy with my decision :)

So, after slooooooooowly drinking my water, I left to run errands. Let me tell you, that fill made me tight. I know it won't last and it is just inflamation, but all day I felt like something was stuck in the back of my throat. Not a pleasant feeling. So, about 2 I ate half a cup of lf cottage cheese. It took me over an hour to eat. No joke.

That night, realizing I couldn't eat any of the food in my house, I went to the grocery store and bought pudding and soup. I had half a cup of broccoli soup, but was CRAVING something sweet. So, I snuck one of my roomie's dog turd cookies (they are the pecan sandies w/ powdered sugar, but my family calls them dog turds). I ate a bite, went down okay. Took another bite, chewed, swallowed, and immediately knew I was stuck. Tried drinking water, but that was stupid b/c when you are stuck nothing can go through the band, not even water. So I hung out with my head over the kitchen sink for about twenty minutes with spit pouring out of my mouth. It felt like my chest would explode. Finally, I was in so much pain I jumped up and down throwing a fit at myself and BOOP! up it came! So, now, I can say I've had my first PB and PBing is different than puking b/c it tastes the same going out as it did going in. No bile to burn your esophagus or horrible taste in your mouth.

So, I have learned my lesson(s): 1. no more dog turds EVER 2. listen to your dr. when they say mushies only for a day or two after a fill 3. just b/c you crave it doesn't mean you can eat it.

I made a VLog!!

I hope you all enjoy. I actually made two videos. Blogger video was being retarded so I had to switch to YouTube. First video is posted first (obviously) ;)