The 214 Challenge for 2010!!

As I hinted at yesterday, I have been thinking for a while that I'd like to take up a serious physical challenge in 2010. As well as helping with my physical fitness it might also contribute to my ongoing weight loss and give me a sense of real achievement. Just as climbers of Everest respond when asked why they do it - "because it's there", I suppose I want to do something - "because I can". Now. Before, I couldn't. Now I can - so I'm going to!!

I have always wanted to do something really serious like climb Kilimanjaro. I'm further convinced of this by the November efforts of the UK Children in Need celebrities who did it for charity. However, I don't think I would be fit enough in time so that will have to wait for 2011! So, by way of preparation for perhaps an even bigger challenge next year, I have given a great deal of thought over the past few weeks, to what challenge I might take on in 2010. There were two general activities in the running - walking (hiking) or swimming. After being inspired by Robson Green's recent exploits on ITV, I thought about going for some 'wild' swimming adventure. I've done some outdoor swimming in the past when I entered a triathlon in my early twenties. However, that kind of thing would take some very serious training - and time - which I don't have in abundance. So I decided to focus my thinking efforts more on hiking.

In the UK there are a number of long distance footpaths. Many years ago I made serious plans to do the Pennine Way. This is about 320 miles and takes about 19-20 days following the spine of hills and low mountains that passes from the Peak District National Park in the south (central England) to the edge of the Scottish border in the north. However, I gave up on this at the time because I simply cannot take three weeks off work! But in my searching, I came across the 214 Lakeland Challenge - and this is more exciting.

The 214 Lakeland Challenge (also referred to as the Wainwright Challange) involves climbing to the peak of the 214 summits in the English Lake District described by Alfred Wainwright (pictured) in his famous seven volume pictorial guides. The summits vary from about 500 to 1000m and traverse all regions of the Lake District. The challenge is to complete all of these climbs - in one year. Well, since I love the Lake District, it's within a couple of hours drive from here, and the challenge can be completed over a period of time not requiring a huge amount of time off work, this is what I've decided to do! Think of all the steps and burned calories!!!

I've already bought the seven-volume Wainwright guides together with another guide that groups the walks into sensible units that can be completed over 36 separate trips. We already have the 1:25,000 OS Explorer maps that I will need. All I need now, are a couple of fleece jumpers because I no longer own any that fit! Oh, and the courage to actually begin! I think that I will 'officially' begin tomorrow - January 1st and my aim will be to complete by December 31st 2010. Who knows - I may even time my final ascent for December 31st and have a mountain celebration of New Year's Eve!

Wish me luck - I may need it!

Kerry (Kegs) and Mahhi

Hiya both! Thanks for your comments added to my last but one post - I had problems replying directly to those comments so have added my response here as a new post. It's probably ideal anyway because my sentiments apply to anyone struggling with weight loss:

And a very happy christmas to you too, and a new year filled with weight loss and self control - and may all your portions be small ones!

All the best to you in 2010. I truly hope that this time next year, we'll all be skinny and waif-like!!

Theresa x x  

Seasons greetings

Hello again! Happy Christmas! We've just returned from a Christmas week spent on holiday in Tenerife. We booked it all at the last minute and were lucky to get anything. But in the event, we had a fantastic time. We only just managed to get out of Manchester airport a week ago because it was snowing heavily at the time. The day before there had been awful delays because of the weather, but we were very lucky and only had an hours delay. Arriving in Tenerife we were faced with 20-25 degrees C most of the time. The last couple of days have been even hotter. We stayed in a lovely apartment at Puerta de la Cruz on the north coast. Although we had full self catering facilities we ate out every evening.

Probably the fact that we only found (or even looked for!) the beach on the last morning says something about the kind of people we are! However, we hired a car for the week and got around and saw lots of the island. Every day we went for a decent walk - I clocked up at least 15,000 steps per day and 25,000 on one day. I'm defintely feeling fitter already. The island is dominated by the volcano, Mount Teide, which stands at an incredible 3717m. We didn't get up to the top (you can get from 2200 to near the top by cable car) because high winds prevented the cable car from running. However, we did lots of high level walks with absolutely stunning views of modern and ancient lava flows, volcanic cones and deep chasms.

Needless to say, I did not count my calories while on holiday, but did my best to keep my appetite under control. I ate relatively small amounts for breakfast and lunch but tended to eat more in the afternoon and evening. Every afternoon, for instance, we bought an ice cream as 'reward' for walking in the heat. Eating out every evening, I tried to choose small meals. I always chose two courses (usually a starter and main course). However, a couple of times I ate so little of my main course I asked for a 'doggy bag' to take the rest away with me. By the end of the week I had switched to two starters. However, on the last evening my first starter was so big (a tuna and bean salad) that I took that away in a doggy bag and ate it for lunch on the way home yesterday!!

So all in all, a really fabulous Christmas. I'm not sure I want to do this every year because it's nice to spend time with family and enjoy the traditional atmosphere, sights and sounds of Christmas. But it was nice to do do something different, restful and get back to exercising! I'm now thinking about truly getting back to some proper, regular exercise. I also have it in mind that I'm going to take on a major physical challenge in 2010 - but more of that tomorrow....

Pre-band fears part 4: Eating cold food

Before I got banded, I read stories about bandits eating meals and taking an age over it. The thing that struck me, was the number of bandits who said that they commonly ended up eating cold food because it took so long to eat a meal that it got cold. Now, I've always hated eating cold food. A meal, for me, has to be served up piping hot to be truly enjoyable. The only times I have sent food back in a restaurant is when it hasn't been hot enough. So you can imagine, I was rather perturbed at the possibility of never again eating a hot meal.

So has my fear been realised? Well there's no doubt that my food does frequently end up cold by the time I've finished it. When I've eaten out with other people I have always finshed ages after everyone else. At home, my husband has usually finished his meal before I'm even one quarter of the way through mine! So, is this eating of cold food the problem that I envisaged it would be? Well the first thing to say is that my provider recommends that if you haven't finished a meal after 30 minutes, you should stop eating and throw any remains away. In theory at least, therefore, a meal will only get as cold as it can get after 30 minutes. The second thing to note is that a half eaten, 'gone-cold' meal can always be heated up in the microwave if necessary. But I have to say that my initial fears have been completely unfounded for another, unexpected reason:

The fact is, now, I eat much more slowly than I used to. This means that I taste and savour the tastes and textures of every mouthful. In turn, this means that I enjoy my food much more than I used to - whether it is hot or cold! Whether or not my food is hot cold is no longer the 'big issue' it used to be. Now, I think much more about the way that I eat, what I at, how much eat and the wonderful tastes if my food. This pre-band fear has turned out to be a non-entity!

Some advice to a potential bandit

After a previous post, a reader posted some questions to help her decide whether to go ahead and have gastric band surgery. I posted my answer as a 'comment' but I know some of you may not read the comments section - so here it is:

I'm pleased that you find the blog useful and helpful. I will try to answer each of your queries - but do remember that (a) this is only based on my experience - the experiences of others may vary, and (b) I'm not a doctor (well, not a medical one anyway!)!.

Loose skin: Yes, I have loose skin and it was one of my greatest fears before I got the band. However, it is much less of a problem than the health problems, humiliation and lack of fitness that go with being obese. I will need to have a tummy tuck and am considering other cosmetic surgery too. However, you are only 22 years old and your skin will be much more elastic than mine (I'm 45 years old). That means it is more likely to 'spring' back into position after you have lost weight. Therefore, you should have a very good chance of not getting excess skin after weight loss. You can do lots of exercise and muscle toning activities,and there are also lotions you can apply to help keep your skin taut. I'm not sure how much these are effectve. The main factors are how overweight you are, your age, and how rapidly you lose weight. You are young, you're not as heavy as I was when I started out, and people don't tend to lose weight too rapidly with the band (compared with a bypass, for example).

Diet: In theory, it shouldn't be necessary to 'diet' with the band. It is not about following a special diet; more about healthy eating, good nutrition and portion control. However, I find that my willpower is so weak that I need to count calories and keep a rigorous food diary to keep me on the straight and narrow most of the time. Most of my meals are healthy and portion-controlled. I also tend to have healthy snacks most of the time. However, I also slip up on a regular basis - yesterday, for example, I managed to fit in two bars of chocolate and a mince pie....!

Multivitamins: I take a daily multivitamin - just a common off-the-shelf variety from Tesco. I use a chewable one. I can swallow small tablets but prefer the chewable ones anyway - they are much like eating a sweet! As a bandit, you should find that after the initial liquids only phase, you can eat a fairly normal diet - albeit with much smaller portions. Therefore, it is not usually necesary to take any other supplements as it is if you have a bypass. I don't use any effervescent tablets but I could if I needed to - I am still a regular drinker of Diet Coke. As long as you pour it into a glass to allow the worst of the gas bubbles to escape, and drink it slowly and carefully, - I've never had any real problem.

Thank you for your kind words. I do hope that your surgery goes well. Do make sure that you get a good aftercare package that includes follow-up appointments, fills and an emergency number just in case you need it. I've never needed to use the emergency number given me - but it's a great comfort knowing that there are people available should anything go wrong. I've just read about a lady who had her op done in Belgium and her surgeon os only over in the UK once a month. She urgently needs a de-fill but has to wait a month for it - I, and some other bandits have advised her to get a de-fill from somewhere else and not wait. So - make sure you get a good aftercare package included with your surgery!!

All the best, Trees x

Pre-band fears part 3: Being called a cheat!

I suppose it was the 'outing' of Fern Britton that did it - she was 'found out' with the gastric band and called a cheat in the British media. I suppose that in the early days of the band I didn't know enough about how it would work so I think a part of me believed that there was an element of cheating involved. Of course now I know different. I know from experience that if I want to, I can eat pretty much anything. I can eat all of the unhealthy foods that I used to be able to eat. I can eat chocolate in volume and binge on the stuff almost as easily as I used to. I know that other famous celebrities gave had their band removed because they gained weight eating loads of chocolate! I know from months of hard work that band success means careful calorie counting, rigorous maintenance of a food diary, tonnes of exercise and constantly making good, nutritional food choices. It means sticking to a whole heap of rules, like chewing everything to death, eating slowly, not getting distracted while eating, using small utensils, eating off a side plate, practising environmental control and balancing proteins, carbs and veggies. It also requires sticking to the hardest rule of all, which is not to drink for at least one hour after eating!!

Because I was uncertain about how the band was going to work, I was careful early on not to tell anyone except my husband, that I had a band. Over time, and as I've learned more about what is involved in making the band work for me, I've become more relaxed about telling people. I guess I feel more confident that I am not a cheat! I feel I can explain to people properly how the band works and I can justify my reasons for having one. Some would say why do I need to justify anything to anybody - but that's just the way I am!

About six weeks after getting banded I told my immediate family. Since then, I've told several close colleagues and friends. Even just today, I told my office mate (as he was stuffing his face with a muffin!). Whereas many months ago I couldn't really see myself telling anybody, now I firmly believe that I will probably eventually tell everybody! I think that basically I'm just a coward, and am scared of telling people in case it doesn't work. That's why I expect I will eventually 'out' to everyone only once I reach my target!! I said I was a coward!

So, as far as people calling me a cheat is concerned - I no longer have that fear. At the end of the day, it's my body, my money and my health. As is plainly clear for anyone who knows me to see, the band has done wonders for me and it clearly does work. If having something that only does 30% of the work is being a cheat - then I confess to being one. But I jest. I am not a cheat, I don't feel a cheat, and anyone who thinks I am one is plain and simple WRONG! There.

Pre-band fears part 2: Being sick

Before I got banded I'd read and heard so much about bandits being sick that it really began to worry me. I got the impression, from various forums and web sites, that vomiting was a normal everyday part of life being a bandit. I read stories about people throwing up while they were eating out - much to everyone's embarrassment. I'd also read about people who more or less threw up every time they ate. But then, to add to my confusion, I read advice and guidance from bariatric surgeons and doctors saying that being sick was not a normal everyday occurrence for bandits - or at least that it shouldn't be. So, I decided to plough on ahead with surgery anyway and deal with vomiting if, and when, the time came.

Over a year on, what has the reality been? Well (and I advise you to read this before you eat if you've got a weak stomach!), first, there are three different kinds of vomiting with the band:

1. The 'slime'
2. Regurgitation
3. Vomiting - proper

I'm going to break with tradition and deal with these in reverse order.

3. Vomiting: We've all done this, whether from over-eating or too much of the amber nectar! This is when we bring up partially or fully digested food from the stomach. For bandits - this means the main, lower stomach. In the normal run of things, this shouldn't ever happen to a bandit purely from eating too fast etc because the lower stomach has much greater capacity than the upper pouch. However, vomiting could result from a tummy bug or other illness. Proper vomiting is dangerous for bandits because 'it' has to come up through the stoma created by the band, past the pouch and into the oesophagus. If the band is quite tight, forcing partially digested food past at a great rate of knots can cause band slippage. This is why if you ever go to a country where tummy bugs are likely, always take a supply of anti-sickness medication with you. Personally, I have not vomited at all since having the band.

2. Regurgitation: This is bringing back undigested food from the upper pouch. This occurs if we eat too fast, too much, without chewing enough, and sometimes with particular types of food. It can also occur if you drink after eating. This is the type of 'vomiting' that most bandits are referring to. Regurgitation is unpleasant, to say the least, and if it happens too often, can begin to cause damage to the oesophagal wall. This is because of the acids that accompany food digestion which can attack the walls of the oesophagus, and also because of mechanical damage. It's best to avoid regurgitation! Although brought on by not sticking to the basic rules of eating slowly, chewing well and taking small mouthfuls - it is much more likely to happen if the band is too tight. So, if it's happening to you on a regular basis and you are sure you're sticking to the rules (and not drinking after eating) you should get your band checked out - it could be too tight. It is a misnomer to think that a 'too tight' band is a good thing because you will lose weight more quickly - you may also cause permanent damage to your oesophagus and there are a variety of other complications too, some of which require surgical intervention and the removal of the band. So it's not worth it. My personal experience is that since being banded I have regurgitated three times. The first time was when I got angry with my iPhone because it was misbehaving(!), and in my anger I scoffed down two thirds of an iced bun before I remembered I had a band.....! By then it was too late and I had a very unpleasant 20 minutes leant over the sink. The second and third times both happened at work while eating my lunch and working at the same time. In other words, I got distracted and ate too big a mouthful without chewing properly. Mia culpa.

1. The 'slime': This happens - a bit like regurgitation - when you eat too much without chewing properly. Food gets 'stuck' in the pouch, unable to get through the stoma because some less well chewed food is blocking the way. It can also happen if you drink after eating - the liquid can't get through the stoma because the food you ate, nicely sitting in the pouch and making you feel full, is blocking the way. So, the body produces what seems like tonnes of saliva to lubricate the oesophagus and pouch to try and remove the blockage. Usually, this does eventually work and you get a real sense of relief when the blockage clears. But meanwhile, your body is producing loads of this saliva and until the downwards blockage is cleared it has to go somewhere - upwards! The slime (as most bandits call it - I'm sure there's a correct technical term for it somewhere!) builds up gradually. You'll be eating something and start to feel an unusual heaviness around the breastbone (where the band is). Then you'll feel gurgling and things happening in your gullet, and then in your throat. Then you'll notice that your mouth is filling with saliva, and it's no good trying to swallow it because your mouth just fills up again. At the point when I notice the gurgling sensation, I know I've just got time to make it to the toilets at work - as long as no-one tries to stop me or talk to me on the way. Once, while rushing to the loo at work, my mouth full of saliva to bursting point, I passed a colleague in the corridor. Inevitably, he said "hello" and I just grunted. I often wonder what he thought.... Anyway, persaonally I went through two phases of doing lots of sliming - both were when my band was too tight and both times I ended up having an aspiration (de-fill). Since then, I still occasionally get the slime - but it's always when I've eaten too quickly, not chewed, or drunk after eating.

So, if you chew well, eat slowly, eat small portions, don't drink after eating and take anti-sickness tablets with you when you go abroad, you need never have any fear of vomiting with the band! On a more serious note, if you're already a bandit and regularly regurgitate or vomit, there's something wrong - either with your eating behaviour or with the band. Get it checked out. Vomiting, of any kind, is NOT a normal part of everyday life post gastric band surgery - and don't let anyone tell you that it is.

Pre-band fears part 1: Eating out

I promised a couple of weeks ago that I was going to post a few articles exploring some of the concerns I had before I got banded - and how those things have panned out. Funny, when I look back at those concerns, none of them were about the surgery itself, any medical issues or worries about complications etc. Here's some of the things that occupied my anxious thoughts at the time:

1. Eating out
2. Being sick
3. People calling me a cheat
4. Eating cold food
5. Not being able to eat enough when I need extra energy (like when on a long hike)

I might think of some more as I work through them. So, here's for the first one - eating out:

A couple of days before surgery I went through a 'cold feet' phase of asking myself was I really doing the right thing? I'd somehow got it into my head that never again, would I be able to eat out. I'd never be able to go out for a meal with my family again and I probably wouldn't even be able to join colleagues eating lunch in the staff canteen! I'm not sure exactly where I got these ideas from, perhaps from the consultant I saw who said I wouldn't be able to eat a 3-course meal again and I'd have to order a starter instead of a main course.

So what has the reality been? Well the first thing to say to any would-be bandits out there, is DON'T PANIC! You WILL be able to eat out! I don't eat out on a regular basis but have eaten out with friends and family groups on a number of occasions since being banded. I guess when I eat out I don't attempt to stick to all of the usual rules, but neither do I completely 'blow it' by stuffing myself silly. A happy medium then, is what I aim for. Typically, I would have a small starter (usually soup but no bread) to begin with. Soup goes down nice and easy so doesn't make me feel full. Then I usually choose a starter for my main course. I did try a main meal a couple of times but they were just too big. I felt bad at leaving so much food and attempted to eat more than was comfortable. So, a starter as a main course suits me fine. A typical starter would be Thai fish cakes, tuna salad, salmon. I tend to avoid 'mixed' food like curry, bolognaise etc because they have lots of unknown fats in the sauces. In the past, I ALWAYS had dessert. Nowadays, my brain wants dessert but my stomach doesn't! I also like to have a sweet taste in my mouth at the end of a meal. So, my solution has been to order a dessert to share with my husband. He's quite a fast eater and I'm so slow, so that he ends up eating 75% of it - which is fine!

So that's what I eat. Now what about the eating process itself? Well, I was never a particularly fast eater before, but now you can bet your last dollar that I will be the last to finish every course! This has been slightly embarrassing at times because people who don't know about my band obviously wonder why on earth I'm such a slow eater. However, I just pass it off with a comment like 'sorry I'm a slow eater' or 'sorry - I've been talking too much'. I also have to be doubly careful not to eat or swallow too big mouthfuls in case I end up getting hiccups, slime or worse. I don't suffer too much with any of these but am more likely to if distracted. Therefore, when I eat out I am particularly careful to focus on the eating process and avoid any mishaps.

I've seen a number of info-bites from bariatric surgeons and associates commenting on eating and drinking while eating out. Most have said that bandits should not try to stick rigidly to separating eating and drinking while out. In fact I again, try to go for a happy medium. On the one hand, it's usually impractical to avoid drinking when you're put for a meal. I generally try to swig down as much fluid as I can before the meal begins, and limit my intake afterwards. On the other hand, however, I have to be careful that drinking after I've eaten doesn't bring on an attack of the slime. If there's food sitting my pouch and I have a drink, one of two things can happen. Either the fluid washes the food through (no problem there then), or it gets blocked, turns the food into liquid mush which only has one way out - UP!! DefinItely to be avoided.

So is it possible to eat out when you have a band? Absolutely yes. However, if you have good restriction you won't be able to eat a normal three meals. You'll also have to eat slowly and be careful not to get distracted. In the weeks coming up to Christmas I have several celebratory meals coming up. I'm looking forward to them every bit as much as I would have before being banded. Looking back to my pre-band fears I realise they were largely unfounded. While what and how I eat are slightly different to what they once were, I can still go out and fully enjoy the company of family and friends. I guess that's it really - the emphasis is more on enjoyment and company and less on food. That's the band for you!

The goodness goes on...

Wow! Not sure what is happening. Two more excellent days where my eating has been totally under control, I've felt real restriction and nit been hungry or craved food at all! Today, for example, I had orange juice and Actimel drink followed by banana and a small cereal bar for breakfast (200 calories). For lunch I had a pre-prepared salmon (200 calories), bulgar wheat and vegetable snack pot. This evening I prepared two veggie sausages, boiled potato and sprouts (315 calories). So far I've eaten about 35% of it and I'm stuffed!

Having a better day - why?

I've had quite a good couple of days. On Sunday I set aside time to do some stepping, light weights training and stretching. I felt so much better afterwards and it gave me a mental lift. Yesterday was a very long, hard day at work but I somehow managed to largely stick to healthy eating. Today has been a bit more relaxed and I've eaten quite healthily today. I ate raspberries, Greek yoghurt and chopped banana for breakfast. It was midday before I was able to eat it and it was slow going. But it left me feeling quite full. For late lunch I ate a cheese sandwich with a tin of Weight Watchers mushroom soup. I got peckish early evening (nothing new there then!) and had a small cereal bar. Then this evening I ate a piece of fresh trout fillet, stuffed pasta and mixed veg (butternut squash, courgette and spinach). I bought the trout Monday, thinking it was salmon! Still, it tasted delish and was lower in fat than the salmon!

I guess today has been better for three reasons:

1. I worked at home so (a) wasn't tempted by the chocolate vending machine at work and (b) was able to take much more control over the timing of meals.
2. I was feeling a bit more positive after a weekend that included some exercise.
3. I started the day a bit later (10am instead of 5.30am) and so ate my evening meal later. I am writing this at 10.30pm, about to go to bed and feeling nicely full!

So can I carry any of this forward to give me continued success? Well I certainly can't work at home every day (chance would be a fine thing!). I could try to make sure I don't have any loose change so I can't use the vending machine. I could also eat my breakfast later in the day (I don't usually feel hungry in the morning anyway) - or split breakfast and have some a bit later. But I honestly think the thing most likely to work for me us making time to do some exercise, walk, go to the gym, swim etc. Because whenever I do physical activity I get a psychological boost and feel so much better physically. I am building up a renewed resolve to put exercise higher up my priority list.

Keep your fingers crossed for me please!

New breakfast plans

I went shopping this evening after work and stocked up on lots of healthy food. I'm going to try a different strategy for breakfast. During the week I normally take mixed All Bran and muesli to work with me. I don't particularly enjoy this breakfast but I suppose I think it's good for me. However, I've thought for a while that I need to have more protein early in the day. Anyway, my new experiment is to have fresh berries, low fat Greek style yoghurt and muesli. I'm going to take the ingredients to work (we have a kitchen with fridge etc) so that they're always available every day whenever I want them. Day one is tomorrow - watch this space.

Reward or punishment?

At the Healthier Weight support group last weekend, there was a long term bandit there who had some real gems to share with the rest of us. We had got into a discussion where several of us, me included, were sharing our experiences of resisting (or not!), chocolate and other goodies. Lots of people were saying how the distraction techniques that are often recommended don't work for us. Anyway, this lady was suggesting that many of us have, perhaps as children, been brought up to think of chocolate as a treat or reward. Therefore, when we feel a bit down, we are inclined to give ourselves a lift by turning to chocolate. She said that actually we need to change our mind set. To think back to the 'fat days', to the humiliation that we suffered as obese people, the awful practicalities of buying clothes, sitting in an airplane seat, huffing and puffing just getting up a flight of stairs etc. Then , capture all if those bad feelings and associate them with chocolate. Start to see chocolate as one of the root causes of all of that pain. Instead of thinking about it as a reward, begin to think of it as a punishment. She talked about a technique where you pinch together your thumb and finger whenever you think of those negative feelings and then do the same thing whenever you see or desire chocolate. This is similar to many of the behavioural techniques advocated by Paul McKenna.

Another tip from this very wise lady was to 'think thin'. In other words, try to imagine that you are thin when eating - and often this helps curb our excessive food cravings. I'm not sure about thinking thin, but I do find that thinking fit often works for me. When I'm doing well with my exercise regime, I feel good about myself - emotionally stronger and with better self esteem. I find, at these times, that I only crave good quality, healthy food - so it's a self-perpetuating thing.

Despite still working very long hours and being under a lot of pressure at work, I am trying very hard to find time to do some exercise. I know that if I succeed, even if a lot less often than a few months ago, it will have all sorts of positive knock-on effects. Also, in the light of the 'reward or punishment' technique described above, I'm going to read Paul McKenna's book again (I Can Make You Thin) and try put some of his techniques. I need to crack my chocaholic tendencies otherwise I will struggle with my weight for the rest of my life. That said, I'm talking about 'struggling' to lose the last 25lbs - not the kind if struggle I used to have - just day to day life for a 20-stoner - so it's not all bad! Not at all.

Many meetings in Manchester

Hello again! It's been nearly a week since I last posted - the longest it's ever been apart from when I've been on holiday. I've been working very long hours this past week and just too tired to post. I had a very interesting weekend. On Saturday, I travelled into Manchester for a meet-up with others I've 'met' through the UKGastricBand forum. It's been arranged for months and I'd been looking forward to it. Anyway, I arrived at the agreed location, but due to a series of unfortunate misunderstandings, some on my part, I didn't find the group! I was really gutted and decided to drown my sorrows in a pizza lunch! I ordered a really small, thin based veggie pizza and struggled to eat it all. In fact, I'd had enough by the time I got half way through - but I still have a 'fat' brain so pressed on till the end! I went to work for a few hours and then headed home to work some more!

As well as meeting the guys I've been chatting with online for so long, I was really looking forward to eating with some other bandits! I know it might sound daft, but I've never sat down and eaten with someone else who has a band. I'd love to just see some other bandits eat - how much, how quickly, what etc. Still, it was not to be - maybe another time.

On Sunday I headed back into Manchester for the regular Healthier Weight support group. I don't find the presentations as useful as I once did because I've heard them all before. But it's still good reinforcement. However, I really value the opportunity to discuss progress, problems, concerns and successes with other bandits. It's equally great to see long term bandits looking positively skinny, as it is being able to offer advice and encouragement to newbies. There is strong evidence that bandits who maintain contact with a support network gave more success than those who don't. So, come rain or shine, it is my intention to keep going fir the foreseeable future.

Metabolic rate and muscle mass

Heres my response to Yana who commented on my previous post - I tried to post it as a comment but had a temporary glitch. So here it us for everyone!

Hi Yana,

You are absolutely correct with your figures - as we lose weight we need less calories. However, muscle needs more calories per gramme to function than the equivalent weight in fat or other body tissues. This means that if, as you lose weight, you do a lot of exercise and build up muscle mass, your metabolic rate increases a little. Using your hypothetical numbers, if you lose weight from 300 to 200lbs and your metabolic rate drops from 3000 to 2000 - you then do loads of exercise over a period of months and increase muscle mass. Assuming your weight stays at 200lbs, your metabolic rate increases to, say, 2300 calories. If you still continue to consume the same amount of calories as you did before increasing muscle mass, then you will lose weight at a slightly faster rate. This was what I meant when I said I was using my calories more effectively - sorry it wasn't that clear but sometimes my head kind of tips out ideas onto the screen before they've been thought through properly!! Hope that helps!

Trees x

Why I've not gained weight

I recently responded to a post on the UKGastricBand forum to someone who was asking how to get the self control needed to overcome the desire to eat chocolate and other unhealthy things. I've copied some of my response below. Some of these things I have said on here before, but thinking about it helped me put into perspective exactly why I hadn't gained weight during some of the bad times I've experienced in recent months.

"I am a self-confessed emotional eater and complete chocaholic and yet I've lost nearly 8 stone (if I can do it - anyone can!!!). When things in life are going well, my desire to eat chocolate and other bad stuff just goes - and if anything, I crave good, nutritious, healthy foods. During these times I lose weight. However, when life is difficult, as it has been for me over the past 2-3 months (work pressures), I utterly crave chocolate. Over the past 2-3 months I have regularly (i.e. every 2-3 days) binged on chocolate. By that, I mean, I've gone out and bought 6-7 bars of chocolate and eaten my way through all of them in an evening. On top of that I've eaten cheese sandwiches (cheese comes second to chocolate in my head), muffins, iced buns and all sorts of other rubbish.

HOWEVER (this is the good bit) - during these times I have NOT GAINED any weight! This is because:

1. My metabolism has speeded up because I've lost weight so my body uses calories more effectively,
2. I do more exercise (though nothing like as much as I do when life is going well),
3. The portion sizes of my main meals is much smaller than it ever used to be - because of the band,
4. In between the bad days I have relatively good days where I have a negative calorie balance (i.e. I use more than I put in).

So, if you still find you can't keep off the chocolate (and incidentally, I never keep any in the house), it's not all doom and gloom - stick to good eating habits as much as you can and this should mean that at least you won't gain any more weight. On good days, and at good times in your life, you should be able to lose with the band - and keep it off during the bad times".

ONE YEAR TODAY!

It's my bandiversary today! One year ago I was recovering in hospital after my early morning surgery. In fact, at this precise time, I was sitting in the chair watching TV and trying to take my mind off the discomfort and general fuzziness that was my head. Reading back over my blog post the day after surgery, I am reminded that on the evening of my surgery I watched the X Factor before getting a nurse to help me back into bed for the night. Well nothing new there a year on then, because I'll be glued to it again this evening!

So how has the last year been? Well, on the plus side, I am 110 pounds lighter than I was a year ago, I am MUCH fitter and healthier, and can now fit into size 16 clothes. I still have 25 pounds to lose and a couple more clothes sizes to drop, but even if I don't lose another pound, I would still consider my band journey to be a success. On the minus side, it hasn't been easy. There have been some low points as well as highs and it has been a complete pain the bum having to keep a daily food diary! That said, it will be the last habit I break becuase it has been enormously valuable and I wouldn't have achieved what I have had I not kept it religously. I've had a long route to finding my sweet spot, including seven fills and two de-fills. I've spent 48 days of the last year on fluids and a further 48 on mush!

This blog was started on day one of my pre-op diet, on 10th Novemeber 2008. Since that time there have been more than 6,000 visits to the site and about 350 posts. I have communicated with hundreds of fellow bandits through the blog and through the UKGastricBand forum (and other similar sites) and feel I have made some firm friends, albeit virtually, for life. In fact I will be meeting up with a group of bandits in Manchester next weekend - we've never met before but have all shared the ups and downs of band-life on a regular basis and Im sooo looking forward to it.

My daily life isn't hugely different from what it was. I don't eat breakfast before I leave for work any more - I eat it later in the morning. I also don't eat in the staff canteen any more. I don't eat 'on the go' any more - my daily eating is carefully planned out, prepared in advance, weighed, measured and written down! The contents of the food cupboards in our house are different - there's no chocolate, very rarely any cheese in the fridge (except Rosemary Conley's low fat cheese sometimes), and no biscuits or cakes. I still eat out occasionally, but I'm always the last person to finish now. I can still eat anything. I very rarely take the lift at work and can now take the stairs up to my fourth floor office two at a time. I do a bit of jogging, visit the gym, swim and do lots of walking. I get much less sweaty than I used to!

My wardrobe is completely different. There is now nothing left in my wardrobe that I wore before getting banded. There are relatively few clothes in there because I don't want to buy too many before I reach my final target weight. What has surprised me is the fact that most of my shoes are now too big and my wedding ring now fits!

Looking back to the days before I had surgery, I know that I had a number of concerns - not least of which was 'would the band work?'. But there were other things too, like, would I still be able to eat out? I had visions that I would never again be able to go out for a meal with my family. Anyway, to celebrate my 'coming of age' today, I have decided to start a short series of posts (starting later this week) where I will explore some of these pre-op qualms and look at how they have panned out, how I have dealt with them, was I right to be anxious about x, y and z, or were they empty fears?

If you have any pre-op fears that you'd like me to focus on, please leave a comment and I'll do my best!

Putting things into perspective

I'm feeling positive today! I've been making healthy food choices for a few days and am experiencing good restriction. In fact I had a bit of a shock yesterday - it just struck me that this restriction, chewing, eating slowly and eating small meals is with me for life!!!! It's so easy to think in terms if the short run - focussing on a target weight, where I want to be next week, next month, six months time etc. But I had a realisation yesterday that actually, the band and all the habits and paraphernalia that come with it will feature with me for the rest of my life. It puts things into perspective when I have a few bad days - or even a bad month or two!

Today I ate a slice of cheesy beans on toast for breakfast and was really full afterwards. For lunch I ate half a pot of Innocent veggie curry. It was packed with veggies and low in fat. Lovely, but again, left me feeling really full. This evening, I prepared a fishcake, rice, green beans and courgettes. I got half way through it and had to put the rest aside for a couple of hours! I'm going to tuck into the rest right now! It's this kind of thing that makes me feel so optimistic about the future.

Some reassurance

As far as my healthy eating goes, I've had a fairly wretched few weeks. Just in the last week I've had about three or four fairly serious chocolate binges. HOWEVER, for any new or inexperienced bandits out there I can offer you some great reassurance. Despite my poor eating habits of late, largely down to work-related stress, I haven't gained an ounce!! I haven't even been doing much exercise at all but gave managed to keep my weight stable. I think it's partly because the band has controlled my portion sizes (apart from the chocolate!), and partly because I suspect my metabolism has speeded up with the muscle I've added over the last few months.

This is all very reassuring to me because it suggests that the long term outcome if my band will be favourable even if I'm not as 'good' as I should be. It has also really emphasised to me just how effective my band us when I make good food choices. I'm glad things are stable at the moment because my bandiversary is coming up in two days.....!

Diet pills?

Just watching Supersize versus Superskinny where they are looking at diet pills. Apparently there are more than 40 different types. In the UK, 50% of women have tried them! Some suppress your appetite while others make you feel full. They have a very wide range of ingredients. The lady in the programme tries some - she finds that one of them takes away her appetite when you try to eat. Another one actually turns your fat into poo! One lady explained how she seemed to spend several weeks on the loo - and how she had to be careful not to fart! There are lots of unlicensed pills available over the Internet. One of these is based on amphetamine - a fairly serious steroid! Madness! The downside of this drug is a fairly serious impact on bowel movements. It also leads to difficulty sleeping - you have to take them with caffeine, then take magnesium to counteract the drug to allow sleep.....

The presenter found that one day she only needed a banana, and the next day, just a cup of tea! Perhaps I should try some? Oh, hang on, they're just getting to the bit about diet pills causing heart attacks..... There is a particular problem with pills that are unlicensed and available over the Internet. Many over the counter pills are safe enough, but when they limit your food intake to one banana in a day, they will severely affect nutritional input and energy levels.

Oh well. I guess I'll have to stick to relying on my band!

Good veggies for restriction

Over the past weeks I've been keeping a mental note of what foods, and veggies in particular, make me feel full and work best with my band. I eat quite a wide range of vegetables and have noticed that while some slip down relatively easily, others rake a lot more chewing and leave me feeling full. The best ones include sprouts, mushrooms, spinach (raw or lightly steamed), chunky and lightly cooked broccoli and cauliflower. The vegetables that slip down more easily include onions, soft courgettes, aubergine (unless with skin on - then it can be quite tough), tomatoes, and anything that can be mashed - like butternut squash.

In terms of other foods, bearing in mind I don't eat meat, the main tricks to ensure foods don't slip down too easily are (a) don't overcook food - keep it crunchy and solid and chewy, (b) avoid washing food down by using gravy, sauces or accompaniments that are high in fat. This evening, for example, I couldn't eat all my dinner because it just filled me up. Here's what I had:

Wholegrain (brown) rice
Olive tofu
Mixed broccoli, shitake and oyster mushrooms, and courgettes

I added a little light soy sauce and loads of black pepper for extra flavour and a hint of moistness - otherwise this was a fairly dry meal.

Other good foods are lightly cooked unpeeled baby new potatoes, pasta al dente, any fish that isn't too oily and doesn't come in a sauce, quorn in most forms, various types of beans (e.g. adzuki, black-eye). Sometimes a meal just needs some moisture - a good way to get this without loading on lots of calories is to add some Philadelphia Extra Light (very low fat soft cheese).