Jersey Girl, One suggestion, give up the beer. It will stretch your pouch. Any carbonated beverage no matter how slow we drink it over time will stretch the pouch. You could let it go flat but who wants a flat beet. Yuck, I was a guiness drinker and had to give it up. Try some SF drink mixes and switch to something else or maybe wine. Most of the reading says we should not drink alcohol for a year after surgery, well I fluncked that the first 2 months. The other think I noticed, is I used to be able to tolerate alcohol and now because we eat so little at meals and have to drink on an empty stomach that I am a cheap date. Two martini's and I am done! I love a good dirty martini and I have decided the olives are my fruit, veggies and fat. Two olives and one drink and I am full. I would love to find some of the CL Mojito mix, afraid I would be tempted to add a little rum and mint to that. Back to losing, some bandsters do not lose until after there first fill, it takes some of our bodies a while to adjust to decrease in activity and as you said the weight loss is slow and steady. Good luck, keep blogging and reading and you will be successful.

Try eating your bigger meal during the day, not at night. When you eat it during the day, your body has the rest of the day to try to use up some of those calories. When eaten at night, all it can do is digest while you sleep or otherwise take it easy.