DO NOT USE POWER PLATE WITH LAP BAND

Well that's pretty final.

I rang them, seemed like the easiest option. Actually it wasn't because it took about 30 minutes until I had been connected and connected and on hold several times to get to the right person.

Tragically you must not use this machine if you have ANY implanted device which (after some deliberation by them) includes the Lap Band.

Also phoned my surgeon (as was scared!) and he said no too as it can cause tightness (!) swelling of the stomach lining and also tears in the muscle tissue around the port.

Apparently it doesn't have any effect on the actual band and port itself, but how its sewn onto us and where.

The same applies to massage chairs and the like.

So, my brief flirtation with wiggly jiggly is over.

:-(

It was so good at ridding me of aches after the gym. *Waaaaa Waaaa Waaa*

To power Plate or Not to Power Plate THAT is the question

OK...

H has left me a very interesting comment regarding use of the Power Plate.

I haven't seen any other bandsters (oh maybe just one bandster from Essex banded fairly recently) who use the Power Plate in their Gym routine.

H said that she has known a few people advised NEVER to use it for fear of dislodging the port/tubing etc etc.

Now, to be honest, I never even though about it!! Can you believe that? I never even considered that all that jiggly wiggling would do anything to my band/port! Even after all my band disasters.

So what I NEED to know is -

TO POWER PLATE OR NOT TO POWER PLATE

Just to let you know how I use it:
Calf massage - Lay on back on the floor and have my calves massaged = no jiggly wiggly in rest of body.
Thigh Massage - Lay face down with only thighs on the plate and kind of doing a  press-up on the floor so only bits on the plate are thighs and knees and probs a bit of pelvis/gut too.
Back massage - Sitting on the edge of the plate dangling forward - Whole body buzzing away.

Freaked out!

OMG I do not want this to be the next band disaster in my life! I can see that this would also be an entirely feasible reason for the Power Plate to be contraindicated if you have a band. The lady at the gym didn't even know what a band was... helpful.

HELP LADIES!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lemon-Almond Loaf

(makes 16 servings)

Ingredients for recipe:

• Low-fat cooking spray
  
  


• 1¾ cups all purpose flour
  
  


• 2 tsp baking powder
  
  


• ¼ tsp salt
  
  


• 1 cup 1% low-fat milk
  
  


• ¼ cup vegetable oil
  
  


• 1 medium-sized egg, beaten
  
  


• 2 tsp grated lemon peel
  
  


• ½ cup sugar
  
  


• ⅓ cup almonds, chopped
  
  


• 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
  
  

Preparation:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  
  


• In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder sugar, salt and sugar. Using a spoon, make a small well in the center of the flour mixture then set aside.
  
  


• In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, lemon juice, lemon peel, oil and milk. Pour egg mixture in the well of the flour mixture then stir until ingredients are thoroughly moistened.
  
  


• Add almonds and mix thoroughly until combined.
  
  


• Spray an 8 x 4 x 2-inch loaf pan with low-fat cooking spray then pour in batter.
  
  


• Bake for 45-50 minutes or until loaf is golden and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan on for about 10 minutes, then remove to wire rack to cool completely.
  
  

Make 8 Servings:

Weight Loss Recipes Amount Per Serving (1/16 of recipe (45 g)): 129 Calories, 3 g Protein, 18 g carbohydrates, 1 g Dietary Fiber, 5 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 1 mg cholesterol, 112 mg sodium

Getting my head in the game

My Weight Watcher meeting on Saturday was excellent. My leader is the best, and I never fail to learn something from her meetings. Even when I think I know it all.


She talked about the four stages of weight loss:


1. The honeymoon phase - we all know and love this phase. Several you reading this are probably in it right now. I was once there myself.

It's when it's all new and exciting. You follow the plan to the letter and the weight falls off. This is the phase where you are determined that nothing will lead you astray. You're tracking your food, drinking your water, taking your vitamins, and following the healthy eating guidelines. You are perfect and nothing will keep you from reaching your goal.


2. The honesty phase - this is the loser reality check. Is this worth it? Is all the hard work, the deprivation, the exercise, is it all really worth it? You either decide it is worth it and continue, or you decide it's not worth it and stop. This is the phase where a lot of people walk away. Our leader told us that in the fourth week is when most Weight Watchers never return to the meetings. They made the decision that it's not worth it.


3. The hunker-in phase - this is were you have renewed resolve. You've made it this far and darnit, you're going to do whatever it takes. The weight loss has dramatically slowed down from the honeymoon phase, and you have a gain here and there, but you're not giving up.


4. The "homey" phase - this is when you get cocky, where you think you know it all. This is when you consider leaving Weight Watchers. Maybe you're almost at goal, and you decide who needs to go to meetings. You've got it all figured out, there's no reason to go to the meetings anymore.

In three years I've hit every one of these phases more than once. When I was at 152 pounds a year and a half ago I was in phase #4. I thought I knew it all. Now at 180 pounds I realize I still have a lot to learn.

There was a comment on my post yesterday regarding my night time eating, which continues to challenge me. The comment was sweet, and she left some suggestions of things I could try to overcome my night binging. I went to her blog, and found she's in the honeymoon stage of weight loss. What struck me from her posts is how excited she is about the process of losing weight. She seriously has her "head in the game" as she put it.

This is what I've been missing lately. My head has not been in the game. I don't look forward to my weigh-ins. In fact, even though I went to my Weight Watcher meetings for all January I took a no-weighin pass for each meeting until yesterday. I finally realized that by not weighing in, I wasn't doing myself any favors.

My goal this month is simple. I need to get my head in the game again.

Losing Weight Before the Wedding

Sparkly_81 has lost 80 pounds in 13 months. In a discussion forum she says;

Last Jan I was feeling really down about being overweight. I was also was getting married and being a bridesmaid for my sister. I was really not confident at all about looking good and decided I had to do something about it. So I set about calorie counting and getting into fitness. 13 months later I have lost 80lbs. This takes me into the normal BMI range (I know; don't listen to BMI, but as a fat, relatively unactive woman it was probably quite accurate and psychologically this is a big milestone for me). I am working out regularly. I am pretty close to the point I can do a few pull-ups and I can run without killing myself.

She's had 130 people comment on her progress. See her workout and fitness details here.

Slip slidin' away

As soon as I posted last Tuesday that I was good at consistently exercising, I hit a brick wall. Suddenly, I didn't want to exercise anymore. The last five days have been a struggle, and one I didn't want to share with the world.
 
Not only was I struggling with food, which I've come to accept, but I felt myself slipping when it came to exercising. I woke up Wednesday and thought I really didn't feel like working out, so I didn't. I skipped the gym. Thursday was a huge struggle, but I forced myself to go. Friday I skipped the gym again. I didn't even walk at lunch or do the stairs this past week. This isn't my normal routine. It's almost as if patting myself on the back for doing a good job at something, somehow sabotaged myself.
 
I still managed to work out five times last week, for a minimum of an hour to an hour and a half each time. I suppose to most people that sounds like success, but because it was such an unusual struggle  for me, I tend to think of it as being a failure.
 
Yesterday I felt more like myself and got in an intense hour and a half workout. This past week made me realize how easy it would be, at any moment, for me to just stop working out, to simply give up. I'm not sure where these feelings are coming from. Maybe it's my lack of success at losing weight lately is now spilling over into the one thing I've considered a success, my exercise routine.
 
Whatever is going on in my head, I'm determined to overcome it. I'm back to the "just don't even think about it as an option, just do it" attitude towards exercising. If I think about anything too much, I tend to over anlyze it and ruin it for myself.
 
Exercise is like brushing my teeth. It's not optional. If I don't want my teeth to fall out, have a lot of pain as my teeth rot, and spend hours in a dentist chair (not to mention a lot of money), I have to floss and brush every day. If I don't want my body to fall in disrepair and become unhealthy, and spend a lot of money on doctors and medicine to only life a life of pain, I must exercise almost every day. There really isn't any other choice. That said, I feel like I'm back on track with the exercise.  
 
My eating and my weight
My eating is a continual battle for me. I'm still not at peace with food, and sadly, I doubt I will ever reach that place that so few seem to enjoy.
 
I went to my Weight Watchers meeting yesterday and weighed in at 180.4. Ugh! This is NOT where I want to be.
 
My biggest problem is the night time eating. Every time I think I have beat this problem, it comes back to haunt me. Nothing seems to work.
 
Things I've tried, that have worked temporarily:
 
1. Eat dinner super late, at 9 p.m. This helped, but then I don't sleep well with a full tummy.
 
2. Eat a late night snack of five Points. This helped too, but see #1.
 
3. White knuckle my way through it. This just makes me angry, and I can't sleep. Usually I cave a few hours of restlessness and binge.
 
4. Drink tons of water. Temporarily stops the hunger, but then I'm up several times going to the bathroom. Interrupts my sleep, which I already have problems sleeping through the night.
 
5. Go to bed earlier. Then I can't sleep, see #3.
 
6. Brush and floss before bed. This has absolutely no affect on me. I can always brush and floss again after eating.
 
I know this night eating is a mind game I play with myself almost daily. I know it can't be true hunger because I eat a lot during the day (all 29 Points plus some). In order to maintain my 180 pounds, I would have to eat a lot, so it's obvious I'm not starving myself.
 
Tonight I'm going to try something different. The thing that has worked on occasion is the late night snack of five Points. I'm going to try that again tonight, and if I find I can't sleep, I'm going to post about it in real time. Instead of remaining quiet about my failures, I'm going to share them with you. I don't want to be slip slidin' away.

Cinnamon Raisin Scones

(makes 8 scones).

Ingredients for recipes:

• 1¾ cups plus 3 tbsp flour
  
  


• 3 tbsp sugar
  
  


• 1 tbsp baking powder
  
  


• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  
  


• 2 tbsp butter
  
  


• 2 tbsp applesauce
  
  


• ½ tsp salt
  
  


• ½ cup 1% low fat milk
  
  


• ⅓ cup raisins
  
  


• 1 egg
  
  

Preparation:

• Preheat oven to 425° degree.
  
  


• In a medium mixing bowl, add 1¾ cup flour, 3 tbsp sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Mix together.
  
  


• Melt butter and place in a medium bowl with the applesauce. Add milk, egg and raisins. Stir until ingredients are blended.
  
  


• Add wet ingredients to flour mixture. Stir until moist. (Dough will be sticky.)
  
  


• Sprinkle the 3 tbsp flour on a flour surface. Flour your hands well and move dough from bowl to surface. Knead lightly 4 or 5 times with floured hands
  
  


• Place the kneaded dough on an ungreased cookie sheet or pizza pan. Pat the dough into an 8-inch circle. Cut dough into 8 wedges.
  
  


• Bake at 425º degree for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.
  
  

Tip:

• Instead of raisins, try other dried, chopped fruit such as apricot, mango, apples, etc.
  
  

Make 8 Servings:

Weight Loss Recipes Amount Per Serving (1 scone (72 g)): 197 Calories, 6 g Protein, 35 g carbohydrates, 2 g Dietary Fiber, 4 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 32 mg cholesterol, 196 mg sodium