babymk

Yes, Dr. So mentioned it when I got my fill. I will have to think about it, but first I'll see how I do now that I'm filled. A good friend of mine was sleeved in April and has dropped 73lbs in 5 months. So I'm comfortable with the idea of getting the sleeve if it comes to it.

I've been M.I.A. for 3 years and a lot has happened. I graduated from graduate school this summer and now have a master's degree. Kyle and I have been dating for 4 years now. He is currently finishing up his last year in graduate school as well in Boston. So we're currently long distance. The last time I was on here I wrote about me getting an unfill. Well I went 3 years with an unrestricted band. Needless to say I gained my weight back and I'm currently at 319lbs. I'm really disappointed in myself considering I was only in the 100s for 1 year before I ballooned back up into the 200s and now 300s again. I was at my highest weight in May of this year (2015) at a whomping 348lbs. A lot of that was stress eating and drinking every weekend. update: I'm now 317. I seem to be losing weight very quickly now that I have a fill. I'm excited to start losing weight again!

I've been working out everyday for the past 2 weeks. I've been eating healthier and I stay under a calorie goal thanks to "my fitness plan" that I'm constantly on. But the scale hasn't been budging! I feel like all my hard work isn't paying off and I just want to eat any sort of junk food I can get my fingers on! I mean I feel healthier, faster, and stronger. I feel like my stamina has sky rocketed. Several weeks ago I would climb a flight of stairs and get a bit short winded but now I can climb several flights of stairs and not feel short of breath at all. I'm just confused to as why that scale won't budge... I suppose I have to really start looking at the foods I eat and whether or not I can substitute or eliminate. I do really like dairy products and maybe that's the culprit? Everything else I eat is pure proteins, grains, and lots of vegetables. Sigh. Well I guess I'll figure it out soon enough. On another note I can't decide when I should go back to TJ to get my fill. Dr. So said the longer the better so everything could heal. I figure I had it too tight for almost a year so maybe 5 more weeks wouldn't hurt to have myself unfilled plus I'm not going on binge eating crazes or anything. I realized I'm just never going to be one of those people that can eat whatever they feel like and not gain weight. Instead I am one of those people that just look at food and gain 10lbs!

I would like to point out that I am so happy for everyone who has reached their weight loss goal and have kept it off which really says a great deal about a person. The determination and strength to stick with a lifestyle change and maintain is something so wonderful. I'm in a somber sort of mood because I can't say I'm one of the "greats," as I see them. I feel just completely stuck in the middle and technically I am. It feels almost as if I'm starting from square one. I still have around 100lbs to lose. I try not to think of it in "weight" terms but rather how healthy I feel, but I guess I'm not feeling too healthy as of late. I really don't like feeling sorry for myself so to speak, so I avoid wallowing in self-defeat. I guess all I can do is just move forward and not think about my past mistakes.

I'm obsessed with this yummy, vegan, and easy dessert "milkshake" recipe I've come across. 2/3 cup of almond milk (any flavor) 1 tsp of almond butter 1 frozen banana 1 scoop protein raw vegan powder (optional. You can use non-vegan protein powder too) Blend all ingredients until rich smooth consistency. Enjoy! This treat makes me so full, I consider it a meal replacement! It's so healthy for you too! It has about 239 calories per serving (without protein powder) but it can have less calories depending on the type of almond milk you use. There are unsweetened varieties of almond milk on the market that would bring this recipe down to 210 calories or so. The only sugar would be from the banana itself but that doesn't bother me too much considering it's a natural sugar from a fruit your body knows how to absorb unlike crap food full of fake sweeteners and "sugars." I'm not a vegan, but I do enjoy lots of vegan and vegetarian meals! xo Malinie

I've gotten in contact with Dr. Ricciardi's office in Las Vegas. First visit is $299 and subsequent visits are $175. He doesn't use fluoroscopy because they believe it exposes patients to unnecessary radiation. Instead he has patients drink water during the adjustment. I still have not made an appointment so I'm not sure how far ahead you would need to book but the I figure two weeks in advance should be fine. I would say it's about 25-30 minutes away from Downtown Las Vegas area (16 miles), so it's not really too close, but a lot of places in Vegas are like that for locals. It usually takes 20-30 minutes to get anywhere in Vegas lol

Got back from TJ on Monday. Jeri and I took the greyhound bus down there and that was quite an experience. It was cheap and in this recession I'm all for it! HAHA I got an unfill and I forgot the Dr's name but he was really nice and helped explain a lot to me about the reason for my weight gain and how to get back on track with the help of my band. My band was too tight so I am completely unfilled right now. The doctor put me on a liquid diet immediately but unfortunately I ate solids for 2 days because I just got so excited that I could eat without feeling pain or throwing up. But I've been on a liquid diet for 2 days now and I feel great, just been utilizing my blender lol. Kind of crazy that because my band was too tight i actually gained weight. So with that said the lap band is a tool it's not a miracle weight loss pill or a "short cut." Whenever I told anybody that I have a lapband they always assume i didn't have to work to lose weight and made it seem as if I "cheated" to lose weight. The ignorance out there never fails to amuse me. So I know I have to continue to work towards my goal weight and not get "lazy" because I've lost 20/30lbs here and there.

Thank you!

So I started working out for the past few days and it feels GREAT! If great stands for agonizing pain! Gah! I'm so out of shape but you know what I pushed through it. I didn't quit. Yeah sure I would take a little longer breaks then intended to catch my breath but I finished! Kyle says I look so much better because my skin is glowing and my face is thinning out once again. Jeri is doing this with me as well, since we live together and I only feel we've enabled each others bad eating habits so why not enable good eating habits. Our fridge and pantry is stocked with produce, fruits, non-dairy milk substitutes, organic, vegan, gluten free, wheat free products! Which is what we prefer to eat but we just got lazy and ate out all the time, choosing fatty comfort foods and the pounds just creeped on. She's put on 40lbs and so did I! HAHA Anyway I'm happy I have support from her and I'm not doing it alone. I've been making Kyle some delicious meals and he prefers to eat this way too. He says when he eats fast food or fatty foods his body aches and he doesn't feel good at all. Well yeah fast food is not FOOD. I haven't been to a fast food place in 3 weeks now or maybe longer and I don't miss it at all. Well here's a collage of me making weird faces! Good day! xo M

I found a delicious recipe for healthy creamy salad dressing. One part jalepeno mustard + one part balsamic vinegar (use as much as you need to top a salad or even lean proteins). Mix ingredients with a fork and voila you have a creamy delicious low calorie salad dressing with a kick. You can even use any other types of mustard. Hope this easy recipe helps liven up those in a salad rut If anybody has any other low calorie salad dressing recipes please post

Hello everyone! It's been a long time and I have lots to say and get off my chest. So be warned lol I'm going back to the OCC to get an unfill on May 14th. For the past year my band has become very uncomfortable. Coughing in the middle of the night because of food being stuck in my throat, developing pneumonia. I've been to the doctors and so sick with fevers because of my very bad eating habits. My band has become uncomfortably tight, my esophagus is inflamed, and some days its even hard to drink water it's been so wretchedly miserable. On a personal note though Kyle is my boyfriend and has been for a year now. So needless to say the "happy couple" pounds piled on! I started taking birth control and my hormones were completely out of whack. I've gained 40lbs because of it and I'm not saying my eating habits were terrific by any means because they weren't. I went drinking every weekend and devoured fatty meals after the club then went home and slept. Giving my body no time to digest or work off those calories. I am definitely NOT surprised I've gained weight. While Kyle is 6 foot tall weighing in at 163lbs. He can eat anything he wants and not gain one pound! I started developing his mentality, completely forgetting that I have a weight problem. I just always wanted to be "normal" and not have to worry about things I ate and for a moment there thats exactly what i did. Unfortunately for me I probably should have stopped after the first 20lbs creeped on -____- But guess what I am back to blogging and being healthy. I cut fast food out of my diet for 2 weeks now and have stopped eating processed foods. I'm sticking with lots of organic and whole foods. I have lost about 10lbs since. When I was on the birth control I would try to lose weight but the weight wouldn't come off. I was eating way less calories and exercising for an hour of vigorous aerobic. I would lose nothing. I knew the culprit was the birth control so I stopped taking them, but after i stopped taking the pills I still didn't change my eating habits so I remained at the same weight. Finally I have changed my eating habits and the weight seems to be melting off. I've been eating 6 small meals a day totaling to about 1350 calories. I also utilize protein shakes as meal replacements if I don't have time to eat a meal. I drink lots of green tea and I may start to workout again just something for 30 minutes a day just to boost my metabolism even more. I really do enjoy eating healthy and organic. It always makes me feel better and that's the feeling I need to remember when temptation taunts. I'll be blogging a lot more since this is what helps me stay on track. There is an app on my iphone called, "my fitness pal," that I just absolutely don't know how I lived without! It has a bar code scanner so you scan your food and it gives you all the nutritional information for that product. So you can list it to your food diary and total up the calories you eat! How fast, easy, and amazing is that! This has helped me significantly in portion control since that's one of my biggest problems. Until next time, xo M

Thank you so much! I'm trying my best lol