Once upon a time ….. I got a Lap Band

This post has been in draft format for quite a while, mainly because I never had the photo’s I wanted to go with it.

So nearly 3 years ago I had a Lap Band or Gastric Band surgically put in to try and aid with weight loss.

What is Lap banding or Gastric Banding? It is a “Keyhole/Laparoscopic” surgical procedure which takes about 30-45 mins, it is fastened around the upper stomach to create a smaller pouch which restricts the amount of food that can be consumed. They also place a port on your abdominals to give access for adjustments. Adjustments are simply done in your Doctors surgery by inserting or removing fluid to restrict or allow less or more food.

Just like this.

Just like this.

How much does “Lap Banding” cost? Well from memory it was about $16,000 full cost per person and about $5000-6000 out of pocket after our Health Fund (Top Cover) paid their part. I think Private Health Funds are becoming more aware of the fact, this type of Surgery is becoming more popular and changing their Cover so that only their Top Policy covers this. FYI at the time Hubby was with NIB and I was with NRMA (now Bupa). If you are considering it, contact your Private Health Insurer or if you don’t have one, then get 1, most from what I have heard require you to have the relevant cover for 12 months before the procedure. There are other surgical options, the sleeve or tube or gastric bypass and the temporary stomach balloon, so best to talk with a Gastric Banding specialist to see which 1, if any, are right for you.

To share my personal experience of Lap Banding, I have mixed emotions.

Top pic at 132kg (my heaviest excluding my pregnancy). Bottom pic at 107kg after a 25kg loss. Bottom photo by http://www.bethtahiriphotography.com.au/

Top pic at 132kg (my heaviest excluding my pregnancy). Bottom pic at 107kg after a 25kg loss. Bottom photo by http://www.bethtahiriphotography.com.au/

On the positive side: I have lost 25kgs and feel great; because of that it has given me the energy I need to exercise more and not put so much stress on my body carrying around all that extra weight; it has shown me I don’t need to sit down to giant meals or 3 courses all the time; I have learnt to share food (despite what my husband may say); I have been able to wear nicer clothes and feel better about how I am looking; I like getting my picture taken, more than I used to; I love that I have much better agility and ability to play with my little dynamite daughter.

On the negative side: “Keyhole” surgery, left 5 scars, 4 small and 1 much larger than I expected (see picture); if you are not careful how and what you eat you can vomit (often), this can also lead to slipping of the band and require further surgical procedure to rectify or have the band removed; over-eating with the band can cause reflux. I have had all of the above happen to me, I over-ate just a little bit ie 1 mouthful, too often, ended up on reflux medication, vomited one too many times and my band has slipped. What I did to fix this was have all fluid removed from the band and the reflux was gone immediately and I am assessing having the corrective surgery. But for the moment I am trying to eat better without having fluid in, it still offers restriction without fluid. The other negative is that you can eat junk food easier than you can eat healthy food, lettuce, apples, steak, dry chicken breast are all more difficult to eat than chocolate, chips/crisps, chicken schnitzel, cheese and crackers. This absolutely differs by the individual, as hubby and I have different things we can eat without trouble. Another negative is I got to 50% of my weight loss and plateaued and have been there for over 2 years, fluctuating by 3-5kgs over that time.

The scar on my left side about 8cm wide. It has gotten better over the years but it is still a big hole.

The scar on my left side about 8cm wide. It has gotten better over the years but it is still a big hole.

My Lap band doctor has said throughout the process that everyone going through the surgery should see a Psychologist, because as much as it is a weight-loss aid it still doesn’t fix the underlying problem that most patients have with food. Personally I think it should be compulsory.

In summary, I would do it again, YES, a 25kg loss is great and I haven’t been fitter in my adult life than I am now. But if you are considering it I would definitely look at some assistance from a Psychologist and/or dietician or other slow weight loss program and give it another go before going under the knife. I had tried a lot of options over the years and there will be an entire post about that at a later date.

The Week that was – back to normal

With hubby back in town it was a chance to get back to some sort of normality.

Monday I headed off to my Trainer for my normal evening session and got myself back on the Indoor Rower. With a few Indoor rowing events happening this year Pioneer Fitness Indoor Rowing Fundraiser on 2 June 2013 and National Indoor Rowing Championships on 14 Sept 2013, it is time to get back on the rower. I actually rode my bike to get there (about 15 mins each way) and then did a 10 minute warm up and then 3x 8 minute rows with a 3 minute rest in between. Considering I haven’t been on the rower for a few months it felt good I rowed to a HR of 150bpm, plus a few sit-ups during the 3 min rest.

Tuesday was our normal swimming lesson for Miss 3 and then managed to make it to Buggy Fit class where we did some running around a grassy oval, 1 fast lap, 1 recovery lap. I challenged myself to run the whole way at my own pace and tried to push myself as well. In between running laps we were doing some horrific exercises, including Turkish get-ups, Tricep dips, Prisoner get-ups and push-ups. All those “Ups” were hard. After several sets of running and exercises on a pretty warm day I was working up a good sweat and really enjoyed a good hard session.

Prisoner Get-Ups - try 20 of these in your workout.

Prisoner Get-Ups – try 20 of these in your workout.

Turkish Get-Ups - Try 20 of these without weights.

Turkish Get-Ups – Try 20 of these without weights.

Wednesday I was too tired for my early morning swim.

Thursday I headed to my gym EnVie and did a cardio session including 20 mins on the treadmill, 4 min warm up, 1 min fast 1 minute slow, by the time I was properly warmed up I was doing my 1 minute fast at 10 and 10.5 kph, pretty happy with that. After I got home I carried on with my renovations punching nails down in the floorboards and filling all the holes, ready for Saturday’s planned sanding day.

Friday I had no time for exercise instead an early morning trip to the Chiropractor before work, finally getting my hips, back, neck and shoulders in alignment.

Saturday in lieu of exercise I opted for an early morning trip to the Hardware store to hire a floor sander and spent the better part of my morning dust covered and on a mission to get the floor in Hubby’s office finished. The afternoon was spent putting 2 coats of urethane on the floor at 3 hour intervals.

The finished floorboards. Next job painting.

The finished floorboards. Next job painting.

Sunday I pottered around the house and finished another 2 coats on the floor, not very active at all. Then in the afternoon I headed out for High Tea with a couple of friends from Mothers Group, very nice nibbles and great conversation.

So as normal as normal can be but with only a 3 good workouts this week I need to get a few more in next week.

What is your goal for this week?

Have a great week everyone.

The Week that was – Recovering, Retail Therapy and Renovations

Monday I had the arduous 5-6 hour Road Trip home from my girls weekend away, getting in the car and hitting the road by 9am. I was supposed to be refreshed but I was still tired with a few late nights and the inability to sleep in, it eventually catches up with you. I was going to attempt to go to the gym but I was a little bit excited to see my girl after 4 days away from her, so I headed to school to pick her up, she was so excited she nearly squeezed my head off and would not let me go, I loved it. 

The scary total of 21 Champagne corks after our girly weekend.

The scary total of 21 Champagne corks after our girly weekend.

Tuesday we had our normal ritual of swimming lessons and I managed to get back in time for the Envie Buggy Fit class and we had a full class of sand running/exercises. It was hell but good, it is always hard to run on sand, I tried to run as much as I could and always headed for the hard sand. It was a really good class and had to keep reminding myself that we pay them for this torture.

Wednesday morning I joined the swimming group for some training in the harbour. I always get there late, so I did 1 lap with the coach of the group and then did a few sprint laps with my trainer as well as some training for Tri swimming where he was pushing me around as I swam, simulating the crowded water. After swimming I had a little faux pas, I dived out of the car (wrapped in towel, straight from swimming) quickly posted a few letters and as they were going down the chute I realised that I had accidentally picked up some paperwork I had to deal with at the office including receipts that I needed for a financial claim and they were gone. Freaking out I had to stand out the front of the Post Office (in my towel) waiting for it to open to find out WTF I could do to get my paperwork back. So after explaining my predicament to the ladies at the PO she said come back after 2pm when the mailman has been, which I did and successfully got my paperwork back again. They had a snicker and asked where my towel was, a little bit embarrassing.

Bestie day was great, having a spot of sushi for lunch.

Bestie day was great, having a spot of sushi for lunch.

Thursday I had the most awesome girly day with my bestie (it was her 40th Birthday), we had a mani, pedi, lunch and shopping. AWESOME. I managed to spend some of my Birthday Vouchers and cashola, this is the Birthday that keeps on giving. I got myself some new runners from Athlete’s Foot. Leah my “Master Fit Technician” was amazing, analysing my feet on the fancy machine they have in store and asking me all the right questions to establish my shoe requirements.

My friendly and helpful Shoe expert Leah from Athlete's Foot.

My friendly and helpful Shoe expert Leah from Athlete’s Foot.

Bringing out a selection of shoes based on my footprint, pressure points etc. I was debating in the end between 2 different ASICS styles and then after trying each pair on both feet opted for ASICS Gel Kayano 19 in electric purple/white/neon/pink. Dare I say they were the best looking shoes I have seen in a while which never swayed my decision 1 little bit (oops may have told a small lie there). She also upsold me some Experia aero-dynamic fit socks and I upsold myself some neon stretch laces. Anyone who is doing any type of transition sports or is just too lazy to untie and retie shoe laces should get these, I love them. As an added bonus over the years I have spent a particular amount of money in their store and have managed to earn myself 2x $25 vouchers in loyalty points, so pending their fancy socks being great I should score myself 2 more pairs with the vouchers I will get in the mail. I did also manage to get into my Gym in the afternoon and did a very light 40min cardio session, with 10 min on the bike, 10 on the tready and 10 on the crosstrainer and a 5 min warm up and cool down on the bike. It is so hard to take it easy on taper week.

Oh yeah, my new shoes, socks and laces, lets hope they make me move faster.

Oh yeah, my new shoes, socks and laces, lets hope they make me move faster.

Friday started off amazing with my first phone call of the day from the local radio station initially trying to fool me into thinking Manu from MKR (My Kitchen Rules Australia) was calling and then revealing that I had been drawn out as the lucky winner of a $1000 voucher from Domayne kitchen dept. (Domayne sell a huge range of furniture, outdoor furniture, beds, homewares, laptops, bathroom vanities and appliances but my prize was to be spent in the Electrical Dept. with the only exclusions computers). To be entered in the drawer you had to submit a recipe. I submitted a recipe from my blog Prawn Saganaki. Happy Friday, yeehaa.

Saturday was T3 day, my 3rd ever Triathlon. Read about it here. After my Tri I came home to do some renovations, ripped up carpet, lino, and pulled out tons of staples. I think my muscles were more sore from doing the renos than the Triathlon.

Miss 3 playing Pro Hart before the carpet and other layers get removed.

Miss 3 playing Pro Hart before the carpet and other layers get removed.

Sunday back into renovation mode and I had to demolish a very well built, but ugly, old built-in wardrobe which took me about 4 hours plus finishing off pulling staples out of the floor. Dare I say it is amazing what you can do with a claw hammer and a big flat screw driver. More sweat and sore muscles. Oh and a quick mow of the lawn.

I could turn this into a renovating blog at the moment, lots going to be happening over the next few months. Next week stand by for a floor sanding update.

Have a great week everyone.

Tried Tri Again

So here I was about to attempt my 3rd Triathlon – Tri the Gong, being run by Elite Energy and I was again tackling the Enticer distance.

The morning of the event Hubby was flying in from overseas bright and early so his parents were picking him up from the airport and on the way picked up Miss 3 at 5.30am.

For some reason I felt no pressure or anxiety and was really relaxed before this race and got a good nights’ sleep.

I was getting ready and loading in the dark. There was 1 benefit of going alone was it didn’t matter too much where I parked as I just got on my bike and rode to the registration tent. I had trouble at the registration area as I stood in the 40+ line and they couldn’t find my information. I spoke to an official who advised me that you are categorised based on the age you were last Dec, which was 39, yeehaa, so still with the younger gals.

I met up with my friend Colleen near the registration area and we hung together for most of the day. We stood in the transition area to listen to the briefing and then headed down for the start of the swim. Our swim start was delayed 10 minutes due to an excessive amount of bikes on the bike course. The swim was in the harbour a bit of argy bargy for the first bit and some congestion around the buoys but mostly open water. Colleen and I swam almost side by side for the whole swim and she got out about 3 steps in front of me. We certainly didn’t come last, as I turned around coming out of the water there were still a few behind us.

I jogged and walk to my bike and had a really slow transition, I was a little bit too focused on getting all the sand and grass off my feet and putting on my shoes and socks, meanwhile people were coming and going. This is something I really need to improve on.

The course for the bike leg was 4 laps and my main concern was forgetting how many laps I had done, someone said to me you will remember that hill 4 times and they certainly weren’t wrong. The course was mostly flat with 1 big uphill but then you had the added benefit of 1 big downhill, winding around the beautiful Wollongong lighthouse and to a roundabout at the other end. I did enjoy the course, getting up out of the seat up the hill and putting on the speed going downhill whilst gasping and grasping for water. I overtook a few people on the bike leg and there was 1 section that was quite narrow which always seemed to be where I needed to overtake, with a little bit of caution I managed to get past and not fall off or knock anyone else off their bike. I was having a laugh to myself doing a bit of Sesame Street counting, as each time I would go past the Start/Finish of the bike leg I would count like “The Count”, 1 ha ha ha haaaa, 2 ha ha ha haaa, etc etc and would do that a few times on each lap so I knew where I was up to, small things amuse small minds as they say, but it seemed to work for me. I still had that doubt when coming into the finish line – “did I finish all my laps?”

I hate getting off my bike because it only means 1 thing THE RUN. I kept telling myself, its only 2k, you can run this far. My friend Colleen had said something to me earlier in the week which was “I don’t want to be the skinny person walking” and I must say, seeing people slimmer than me walking during the run leg at my last Triathlon almost gave me permission to walk and I did. This time I was determined to not walk at all. I remembered to grab my security blanket which is my water bottle, that way if I got a dry mouth I would have a swig and be happy and not feel the need to walk to catch my breath. I also didn’t feel the need to walk through the drink station and reward myself with the water and a walk, so I was set. I declined the drink station and kept on running, there were many many times I wanted to walk, especially when I saw all the skinny/ier people doing it. I just kept up my shuffle, I was being overtaken, every 2nd step but I didn’t care. I wanted to pick up the pace a bit but waited til I turned the half way mark and then up a small incline and once I got beyond all of that I went from a shuffle to a jalk (jog/walk as fast as a walk but still jogging – I made it up myself). In my speed terms a jalk is a nano second faster than a shuffle per kilometre. I was super excited to see the finish line and run under the giant inflatable NAB sign and then onto the official finish and even managed to pick up the pace to a Rachael Sprint (not as fast as anyone else’s sprint but faster than a jalk). For the first time in my Tri history as I was coming up to the finish line the announcer called out my name, so with a double fist pump in the air I crossed the line. The satisfaction of running the whole way was awesome, I was out of breath but excited. I had done my best and even if my best was last place, this time I was not concerned.

Crossing the Finish line

Crossing the Finish line

So the results were in, official 2nd last position (secret little cheer about not coming last), and finished in 46:28, now I was thinking that I must have broken some land speed records to improve from Husky Tri by over 12 minutes but then checked the distances and the bike leg was 1k shorter, but given that my average cycle pace is about 3min per kilometre I still made big improvements. I am not sure how accurate the courses for these events either but this race felt better (except for my swim/bike transition).

With my friend Colleen, she inspired me to keep on running.

With my friend Colleen, she inspired me to keep on running.

So for my age/sex category I came 29/30 and overall female 165/184.

Happy happy happy.

 

Gasping for air at the finish but somehow still smiling.

Gasping for air at the finish but somehow still smiling.

Red Wine Pilates

Those who read my blog know that it is mostly serious with a little bit of humour. Well this post is the opposite, it is completely funny and I would love to thank my darling friends and Bridesmoles Kristy and Maryanne for being such good sports at 1am whilst smashed, hammered, slightly intoxicated. Please excuse the poor photography but you don’t really think about that whilst doubled over with laughter. 

Character image used from www.iruntodrink.com

Character image used from www.iruntodrink.com

“I am rich because of the wonderful friends in my life, actually I’m loaded.” – Rachael Griffin

The Week that was – Let the Celebrations Continue

Monday I had an early morning trip to the Airport, hubby off to Singapore for work. So knowing I wasn’t going to get a morning workout in, I packed my runners to have a go, during or after work. Because hubby was away I cancelled my evening PT session as I didn’t have a babysitter. My mission for the day was to get all my work done and get out the door on time and do a quick run before I picked up Miss 3 from Daycare. I swear some days I try to cram waaaay too much into my day. So I dressed ready for a run and left work and then looking at the clock and I had to be at a friend’s house for dinner (who I haven’t seen in ages), to catch up with her another friend, I realised I was not going to fit everything in.  Obviously the run/workout is what suffered.

Tuesday after Miss 3’s swimming lesson, we were running late to make it to the Tuesday outdoor class and went into the gym for a Cardio session. To be honest I didn’t really know what cardio I was going to do and upon arrival I noticed there was a weekly cardio challenge up on the blackboard and it was 26 minutes of intense workout. I did a 10 minute warm-up on the cross trainer whilst I debated if I was going to do it, and I did. So here is how it went:

Goal                                                                      Actual
10 min spin bike Level 10 @ 100rpm                  Achieved that and completed exactly 5k
5 min treadmill as fast as possible                      Ran 0.68k at 8.5kph on 1.5 incline
5 min spin bike Level 10 @100rpm                     Achieved that and completed 2.5k
2.5 min treadmill as fast as possible                   Ran 0.34k at 8.5-9kph on 0.5 incline
2.5 min spin bike Level 10 @ 100rpm                 Achieved that and completed 1.3k
1 min treadmill as fast as possible                      Ran 0.15k at 10-10.5kph on incline 0.5

So all in all I was happy with my result and I thought the bike to run intervals would be really good Tri training. I am looking forward to the next weekly challenge. I was a little disappointed to see when I went back to gym later in the week they had put the rpm down to 80 (a bit soft if you ask me).

Wed I was going to go swim in the Harbour with the swimming group but received a message to say the water was too dirty, so I headed to the local pool to begrudgingly pay my $4.30 for a swim, as it turned out it was free, unknown to me if the heated pool temp is below 26 degrees then you don’t have to pay, so at 25.5 I was pretty happy. I must confess for most of my 45 minute session I was bored. I started singing the bored song I made up: Bored bored bored bored I’m so bored. Some suggestions I have had since are I may need to review my program and spice it up a bit, something to ponder, since I was not really working to a program at all (tips please, what is a program).

Thursday I went back to the gym to tackle my weights program, I got through 3 sets of most of my exercises before Miss 3 got bored, I even bumped a few of my weights up.

Ahh I claimed the "old man chair" and relaxed with a red wine and a mag.

Ahh I claimed the “old man chair” and relaxed with a red wine and a mag.

Friday I was heading off for a girls weekend so I dropped missy off at Daycare and headed up to Sydney to get a lift, luckily because I had only managed 4 hours of sleep before I was awoken at 5am by some of our workers needing something out of hubby’s truck, oh joy. I would have not been able to drive myself to our destination which is about 5 hours from home I was soooo tired. I had all good intentions to have a run when I arrived before cracking open the champagne but the entire trip the rain was like a monsoon, relentless all day. So again, no run.Saturday the rain was still relentless, so I opted for a 40 minute swim (instead of a run) and then had a spa bath whilst sipping on a glass of champagne. Total relaxation.

Hot Tub yeah baby.

Hot Tub yeah baby.

Sunday – we headed into town for more supplies it appeared we had almost cleared the house out of champagne and needed some more supplies for dinner. After treating myself to a milkshake and 2 donuts for lunch, very nutritious, we arrived back to our luxurious accommodation and my friend Kristy said she would come for a run with me. The rain had finally clearly, not sunshine, but overcast. We headed out on the country roads for a good 45 minute run, it was an unintentional hill run, I really had not researched the local terrain and there was some epic swearing from both of us as we struggled to reach the top of hill after hill. In hindsight I had a realisation that my water intake for the day was about 5 sips and I had the dry horrors and contemplated licking the water out of puddles to hydrate myself, a shocking feeling. But I finished, just.

with my beautiful Bridesmole Kristy. We did it, went for a run and in our 17 years of knowing each other an many many girls weekends away we have never done exercise.

with my beautiful Bridesmole Kristy. We did it, went for a run and in our 17 years of knowing each other an many many girls weekends away we have never done exercise.

This weekend has been so good to do a lot of nothing, catch up with 5 great friends including 2 of my Bridesmaids Bridesmoles and a lot of laughs, chatting, board games and hiding in a corner to read or watch some Movies. Drinking a little lot, eat a little lot in moderation kind of and more birthday cake. Successfully avoiding a hangover so far and getting in a bit of exercise.

* Side-note – we so far have a collection of 21 champagne corks and as I write this I am consuming tequila/margaritas for my last night away before I go back to reality.

Texas Hold-em champion, the Birthday Girl, yeah baby.

Texas Hold-em champion, the Birthday Girl, yeah baby.