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Hi again...thank you all for your replies. Greythope, I'm glad there's someone who truly understands how I feel. People don't realize just how debilitating the sleep apnea is...my family used to think that I just LOVE to sleep and am a lazy fat ass. Well, that was never the case. I used to be quite active too...played soccer and basketball on teams well into my twenties. But I've always had this sleep issue and the weight gain has just exasperated it. I drive 50 miles each way to work and also worry every day that I'm gonna fall asleep and crash. People that haven't experienced this don't know how it feels....worrying about your LIFE being in danger...worrying about losing your job cuz ur always late...the list goes on. I had high hopes that this surgery would atleast help with my sleep and so far it hasn't done much. Jachut, I can really appreciate your enthusiasm for exercise, but our situations are like night and day. If you didn't exercise, you would have no excuse because you HAVE the energy. And don't get me wrong, I'm not using it as an excuse...but like Greythope said, you've never been in my shoes so you will never know what it's like. Making the time for it is not even as much the issue as even HAVING THE ENERGY to START!!!! Greythope, I guess we can only hope that with a little more weight loss every day the apnea will subside...even a little bit so that we can find the energy to start exercising. My life has been absolute HELL with this condition...frankly I'm sick and tired of being sick and TIRED!!!!!!!!! Good luck to you all and thanks for the great feedback...wishing you all continued success on this life long journey!!!

O really? Yani The sugar in the soda don't make you dump? Yani Have you put any weight back on from drinking it? Yani I only drink diet soda and it did not cause weight gain.

@melissac79: You said it melissac79. What's interesting about my change is not about having to buy clothes that fit, but fitting into the clothes that I have. My weight gain was due to my inability to condition myself thoroughly after having my spine "rebuilt" because of severe scoliosis surgery. I had only gained weight post-op in my stomach area because of exercise limitations. What's really wild is before getting sleeved, I was a 46" waist. I am now down to wearing clothes at a 40" waist. I have separated my clothes for someone with a 40" waist and a 38" waist and a 36" waist and my goal is to get myself to a 36" or 37" inch waist. I don't want to look at the scale because no news is good news. I will check my weight when I have follow-up appointments. I'm sure that this a realistic goal for me because everything in my closet that I have prior to my back surgery fit fine. My weight gain started when I was 50 years old. Now, at 57, little by little certain items are starting to fit and every time something fits, it's just a signal for me to keep going with my Physical Therapy harder each day. I keep telling myself "Enjoy this for this the good part". "No, try not! Do or do not! There is no try" -Yoda

Holy freaking cow, I gained like 3 pounds in 2 days! Makes me so mad. Yes, I had WAAAAY too much junk yesterday. This is really not fair, I tell you. I haven't exercised in about 3 days because I've been too busy (no, really). Can't my body give me a freaking break? Well I guess this is the first rough spot I've hit, really, so I'll try not to obsess about it. I'm just stressed because I got a little unfill (to 1.6) for my conference in Florida because I was afraid I'd retain water. I just know this means more weight gain. I just REALLY wanted to lose like 30 more pounds before May 22 when I go on my cruise. Now I've got to lose like 33 more pounds and after this weekend probably like 35 more pounds. Okay, yesterday's meals: B: Carnation instant BF S: Like 2 sugar cookies L: Stuffed pepper w/ tomatoes S: Like 2 more sugar cookies D: South Beach frozen dinner because no one loves me :cry S: Like probably 3 more sugar cookies and a mint brownie!!!!!!! I just can't have this junk around me. I have NO self control. This is why I have to plan my meals. Not to mention it was yet another Valentine's day alone and I was emotionally eating. Actually, I was babysitting my brothers while my PARENTS went out for Valentine's day. I just absolutely hate that holiday. Okay, sorry to bitch and moan. Back on the bandwagon!

Like anything, it's a combination of things as to why I'm fat. I know this always sounds like a copout, but some of it is genetic. My aunts are heavy; my female cousins are heavy. No one is super-obese, but over 200 is the norm. Usually after having kids. I can lose weight, of course I can, and I have, but have found that I have to go to such extremes (strict dieting and strict amounts of exercise (1-2) hrs a day) to get a steady weight loss or maintain the loss that I can't or don't keep it up long-term. I know some people down an egg-white omelette and then hit the gym before a salad for lunch, but I can't maintain that and my sanity at the same time. The foods I like are not diet foods. They are savory - cheese, milk, protein, rice, pasta. I don't eat huge amounts, for example I almost always eat only half a restaurant portion and take the rest home, but I eat just enough of the "wrong" foods to result in a long-term slow weight gain. I am also notorious for not being able to sleep on an empty stomach, and late night eating is not the greatest idea. I don't like "diet foods" I can be an emotional eater - don't taste the food, just eat. So ... the usual ... too many calories, don't exercise enough to keep the calories off. Not the best eating habits. And probably some metabolic stuff that makes for it being more difficult for me to keep the weight off without more effort than I am comfortable putting out long term. Basically, I don't mind eating less or exercising regularly. Sometimes I think I could go without eating at all .... if I could just do it without the hunger. But, I'd rather eat small portions of the foods I like, and be satisfied with that.

I've been big virtually all my life. I started gaining massive weight when I was 7 years old, even though I was active in my local Boys and Girls club playing soccer and basketball. I never dropped the weight. I was so big during elementary school, I couldn't fit into a size 52 pants, and my elementary school days (specifically grades 3-6) I had to wear sweat pants and sweat shirts, that how overweight I was. As I grew up, though, through middle school and high school, I was able to fit into pants and t-shirts, though I never wore smaller than a 42 waist. Post-high school, I managed to lose about 30 pounds during summer by walking 6 miles round trip to my local mall and play Dance Dance Revolution all day. After a while, I moved closer to the mall (litterally 2 blocks away), so I stopped walking, and then I got a car, and virtually stopped walking and playing Dance Dance Revolution altogether. I didn't watch what I ate, and that was a tri-fecta of weight gain. I went from 250 to 380 pounds in a little over a year. I was wholly disgusted with myself, but never did anything active about it, until I started the process for the Lapband procedure.

I think my fat comes from a variety of things: 1. Genetics - ALL the women in my family are heavy. They have been fighting their weight all of their lives. We MUST have low metabolism. My aunt is the thinnest of us all, and she works HARD. Constant exercise and eats very little, yet she is still far from skinny. 2. I OBSESS over food - See below. THats EXACTLY how I feel about food! "When I am stressed I want to eat, when I am excited I want to eat, when I am sad I want to eat, When I am alone I want to eat and so on and so on." As soon as something happens, good or bad, I want to divulge in food! It's definately an obsession and I think the only thing that keeps me semi on track is the guilt of disappointing the people at my surgeons office and frinds and family that have been so supportive of my decision to get healthy. I wish I could say it was for me... Sometimes, I obsess so much about food, I make myself miserable. A friend of mine calls it head hunger. I rarely feel physical hunger. Maybe I could use some therapy too??? 3. I suffer from chronic anxiety and depression - I take medication that is working the best for me EVER, but unfortunatey; one of the side effects is weight gain and increased hunger for sweets. YAY. (one of the reasons I was approved for my surgery) 4. I hate to excerise for a variety of reasons - I dont like to sweat. I am not coordinated, so I look foolish. I have bad knees, so it hurts to do much with them. (one of the reasons I was approved for the surgery) 5. Low self esteem and poor eating habits growing up. I was never told I was fat by my family, but kids were extremely cruel to me as a child. My mom never cooked a vegitable and rarely made meals that didnt come out of a can or box. Corn, pork and beans, instant mashed potatoes, spam and a hell of a lot of hamburger helper. I'd like to place blame on all the above, but I know in the end, it is up to me to help myself. I've no one to blame for my fat, but me. Knowing that doesnt usually help tho. I've been battling my depression again lately, and managed over the course of 3 weeks to put on 7 pounds that i'd already lost! I cant stop thinking about cookies and snacks! I think its self sabotage... Will this obsession ever cease or will I be fighting it till my dying day?:laugh:

I saw this online in another site and thought I would share with everyone. It got me to thinking about ways to insure my success: 1. Not taking Vitamins and supplements. 2. Assuming you have been cured of "obesity". We have to live a healthy WLS life-style for the rest of our lives or the weight WILL come back. 3. Drinking with meals. The tool of not drinking with meals is a critical key to long term success. 4. Not eating right. In today's society it is a challenge to eat right. Make it easy on yourself. Don't skip meals, don't keep unhealthy Snacks around, feed yourself at regular intervals so you won't make poor choices about meals. Consider having some personal absolutes such as: avoid all fried foods, avoid all sugary foods, always use low-fat options, or only eat in a restaurant once per week. 5. Not Drinking enough Water. Most WLS patients are at risk for dehydration. Drinking a minimum of 64oz per day will help you to avoid this risk. Drinking water flushes out your system, helps you lose weight and avoid kidney stones. 6. Grazing. Nibbling small amounts here and there throughout the day can make your weight creep up. Make a plan for what you will do when you crave food so you will do something constructive that will not involve eating. 7. Not exercising regularly. Exercise is one of the best weapons a WLS patient has to fight regain. It boosts your spirits and keeps our metabolism running strong. When you exercise you build muscle. The more muscle you have the more calories you will burn even at rest. 8. Eating the wrong carbs (or too many). Face it, refined carbs are addictive. If you eat them you will only crave more of them. Eat complex carbs. 9. Drinking Sodas. Some people claim that drinking sodas stretched their pouches. What we know for sure is that sodas keep you from getting hydration you need after WLS. Diet soda has been connected to weight gain in the general population. Find other drinks to fall in love with. 10. Drinking Alcohol. If you drank alcohol before WLS you will probably want to drink it post surgery. Most surgeons recommend waiting one year after surgery before drinking. Be very cautious, you may get drunker quicker which can cause health problems and put you in dangerous situations. Alcohol is connected to weight gain because it has 7 calories per gram where Protein and vegetables only have 4 calories per gram. It is noted that some people develop ad addiction to alcohol after WLS so be very cautious. If you notice a problem, contact your doctor.

Today has been 1 motnh since I had my band removed and Iam happy to report I have NOT gained any weight back. I made it through Christmas and all the goodies, booze, & food with no gain. I'm using my head and still working it like a true bandster would. Just thought I'd share this good news with all of you

My name is Alex and I'm a 39 year old male living in Tennessee. I am divorced with three children. My highest weight was 323 and I became more and more concerned with my overall health condition. In 2007 I was diagnosed with sleep apnea, and just two years ago, atrial fibrillation. When it was suggested that all of these problems could be related to my obesity, I started looking for more extreme ways to try to lose weight. I have struggled with weight gain my entire life, trying all kinds of diets, losing 60 pounds when I was 16 but gaining it back by the time I was 22. My ex-wife had Roux en Y surgery in 2007, and had a dramatic weight loss. Unfortunately, she did not heed the advice of the doctors and dieticians and never took her supplements, so the weight came right back within two years. This has turned me away from having the surgery until a mutual friend of hers, a lap bander, had me speak to another friend who had recently had the gastric sleeve surgery, which I had not heard of until earlier this summer. I got very excited after researching the surgery and called my insurance company for physicians in network who perform it. I signed up for a consultation with the Vanderbilt Center for Surgical Weight Loss in Nashville in July and that is when I was sure this was the right time and the right thing to do. When the surgeon, Dr. Brandon Williams came in during the presentation I realized I went to high school with him and felt another sense of ease since we already knew one another. I had complete encouragement from my parents, my fiancée, and my personal physician, who wrote the letter of recommendation for me to have the surgery. And my insurance company was very easy to deal with, and only required a few standard prerequisites prior to having the surgery. (Psych eval, attendance of support group, evidence of trying other diets, etc). Four months later my surgery took place 11/21/2013. My only complication during the surgery was during post op; my heart went into atrial fibrillation while I was in the recovery room. I was moved to the cardiology floor at Vanderbilt for monitoring. The first night in the hospital was spent seeing many cardiologist trying to figure out how to get my heart rate below 130 where it stayed for hours. By morning, it was down to the 80s, since I was able to take my beta blockers crushed (yuck!). I was discharged the next day since my heart rate was back in the 60s. It has almost been 2 weeks since I had the surgery, and the only pain I feel is in my right side around the ribs, which is close to where they removed most of my stomach. I am now past the soft foods stage and can drink and eat ok, long as I resist the temptation to eat too big of a bite of food. I still crave the old foods I am no longer allowed to eat, but am putting in the toughest battle to stay with this diet by the book. I am 27 pounds down and hope to lose more and when I return to work I hope I can keep in control of my daily diet. That's enough about me... Good luck to everyone out there. I feel good about what I have done, no regrets.

Great post. My profile picture is me...I was banded in 2007...lost 130 pounds, had a lower body lift and breast lift with augmentation in 2009 and this pic was from vacation in 2010...first time wearing a bikini. Now...in December 2010 I was diagnosed with breast cancer...kicked it's ass and then got pregnant in September 2011...delivered my third son on May 15, 2012 and now I'm fighting the pregnancy weight gain. I have 60 pounds to lose but I keep my profile pic the same to remind me that I did it once so I can do it again all of you are beautiful...never be embarrassed of your pictures!

Hi , I can think of lots of reasons why I got fat. I was born a preemie and weighed about 4lbs. That was pretty small in the 1960's. I was thin until I was about 10 or so. I was always forced to eat everything on my plate. I came from a very dysfunctional family and I had low self esteem problems because of an abusive mistrustful father. I remember weighing about 120 at age 10/11 and then I remember 160 at age 15 and the last recollection I have of being under 200 was when I was 19. Then I started drinking heavily and of course with hangovers I would have the urge to eat whoppers or chicken wings at 12:00 midnight. I also drank and ate a lot in my 20's. I remember weighing about 247 at age 23. Then I moved to Holland and my weight stabilized for a while because of smaller portions and less processed foods in Europe. I stayed in the range of 250 - 260 for a while and went to a dietician to see if I could lose some weight with a well balanced diet. This did not work very well. After my first child, I got up to about 300 lbs, stayed there for lots of years. Ballooned up to 327 and went on Atkins and got my weight down to 279 over an 8 month period. Then I got pregnant again in 2002, went back up to 320 and after my baby was born I dropped back down to the 290's. I was nursing my son for a year and did not gain or lose any weight. ONce I stopped, I ballooned up to 334 about 3 days before lapband surgery. THere is some obesity in my family on my fathers side, mostly the women. None really on my mothers side. My mother was anorexic at one point when she was married to my father. She weighed 82 pounds at her lowest and did not go above 100 until she left my father. She is 5 ' 2 " , so she is much shorter than me and my brothers and sisters. My sisters and my brother do not have a weight problem. I did not try to diet often. I think I made two serious attempts to get the pounds off. I was always so hungry all the time and I loved junk food. I was never a sweets eater, but I loved bread, cheese butter and Pasta. So I would say in my case, there were a lot of causes for my weight gain. Babs in TX 334/180 -154 New goal: 170

Hi all. Thanks for sharing so much of yourselves in your posts. I am humbled to read your stories. Why am I fat? I have never been fat or struggled with it. My mom used to tell me I ate like a bird. That was until the age of 31 when a switch on the back of my neck flipped and I started to eat like a Hoover vaccum cleaner. I packed on 80 pounds in 2 years with no change in diet. I exercise and still gain...23 doctors and 5 years later...I am 36 and almost 100 pounds overweight. I was diagnosed with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) and IR (insulin resistance) both of which are being put in 'remission' with WLS. I will be self pay, have done all the tests, and have my first mtg with the surgeon next week. I am very excited. I have to share that the weight gain while painful in different ways...has also been a blessing. I am very empathetic and literally being in someone else's shoes...who is overweight is interesting. How things change for us that once were taken for granted...has been a helpless feeling. I WILL PREVAIL. I will run a 5k this fall. I will run a half marathon in the spring. :smile2: PCOS/IR SUCK!! We can do this!!!

Agree with everything you said and one of the things I didn't mention I couldn't eat was potatoes, cake ... Rice, bread and a few other things was more because of in many people it causes problems long term. And because of some of those foods that swell and can lead to more stretching. So my doctor as well teaches moderation (although there are definitely some things she said to never touch again, soda) and says that one day I'll feel like I can eat just about anything I want in small portion, but just to be aware of the ones that are more prone to trigger changes that may lead to weight gain. I think we're saying the same thing and should be proud we're being diligent enough to listen and learn from the experts as well as our own bodies

Welcome twistedbarbieLA! Are you getting in all your protein and water? I know that carbs play a big role in weight gain for me and something I let back in my diet slowly over the years that caused my weight gain. Try and get back to the basics of what your surgeon prescribed right after surgery

I am 34, I had my surgery a week ago on 4/16/13. I am an RN and I work in Neonatal ICU. I have been happily married for 13 years, but we've not been able to have children. My husband actually had gastric bypass in 2009 and lost 150 lbs. Our pets are our "children" for now - we have a yellow lab and 3 kitties, all of whom are very spoiled! I have 2 little nephews (also spoiled by me!) and adult neice who is about to graduate from grad school and an adult nephew who just graduated college. Also I have 2 sisters and 2 brothers, and my best friend who I consider a sister as well. I was a thin child, underweight actually until puberty. My weight gain was gradual starting around age 17. I married at 20 and was diagnosed a couple years later with PCOS while we were still in college. We were told we could not conceive without medical intervention, which turned out to be true. When we graduated college and were ready to start a family, we went on fertility treatments right away. 3 pregnancies in about 6 years of active fertility treatments (everything but IVF) all ending in early first trimester miscarriages. After extensive testing, no reason was found for the miscarriages except for my PCOS and insulin resistance. We are very hopeful that reaching my goal weight after surgery will help with conceiving and carrying a child.

Hi, my name is Nikki. I'm 39 yrs old and I'm from Mississippi. I have 4 children ages 22,15,14,and 13. I'm recently divorced and very happy. I'm a massage therapist that works for a chiropractor for the past 9 years. I've been overweight probably for the past 4 years. I started to seriously gain weight when my oldest son fell ill with complications from sickle cell disease. I had to stop working out and give him all of my attention and support. Emotional eating played a big role in my weight gain too! I've researched WLS for the past year and just decided that enough is enough in this weight gain/loss roller coaster. My surgery is set for October 21, 2014 and I'm very excited and nervous all at the same time. I can't wait to be happy with my self image again!

Great Idea My name is Lee Ann, I 41 years young. I have been married for 26 wonderful years to my soul mate. I have a son who is 23 and two beautiful daughters twins who are 22. I also have 2 dogs oscar and pookie. I am a Texas native, I have llived hear most of my life. I am also a stay at home wife. I only ever worked if I wanted to. What started as my weight gain was when I was 21 and my mother passed away at 56. She died from brain and lung cancer, so I started soothing my pain with food and kept on for years. I finally work up one day and said that it was enough. I love animals all kinds. I have a dream of doing so many different things before time runs out, like horse back riding, skydiving, wearing Victoria Secret, flying in an airplane. I always put others first in my and I still do. My family are the ones who finally encouraged me to do this, they always tell me that its my time. I guess I can really say that I am one of the luckiest people in the world because of the way my family appreciates and LOVES me. God Bless Everyone may your destination be your dream come true!!!

I started my weight loss journey in Sept 2008. Had absolutely NO complications or problems and lost over half my weight in 3-4 months. I weighed 247 on the day of my surgery and quickly plummeted to a sexy 125!! Felt amazing and looked it too! However, 5 years later I had picked up a brand new habit!! I started going out...like to bars...which I had never done in my life ( I was married w/ kids so this wasn't acceptable) anyway, Now, I was divorced and had alot of free time on the weekends. Had a wonderful job, gaining new friends, hobbies etc. However, I also started drinking. Would never have more than 3-4 Captain and Cokes but my god they were delicious to me!! I had never drank before nor did I drink much soda. I quickly found myself drinking on the weekends while out with friends. Long story short, 2 years later I got a DUI !!! The first and ONLY person in my family that drank much less, get arrested. This killed my spirits, and I felt I had let my family down so I swore off alcohol. Fast forward 2 years...no job, new relationship that required a move 3 hrs away from everything I had ever known, only to find he was an alcoholic who was also physically abusive when drunk (strangled me on numerous occasions)...I started drinking again (along with him and only at home) just to get my mind off the fact that I was so far away from my family and other miseries. I am now on my own, doing very well, great job, my own place but have now started drinking wine (a whole bottle of Pink Moscato) a few nights a week. This didn't really start until this past April when I had a full hysterectomy....Thankfully, I have never had a hangover, never get sick and am actually really productive around the house..(which isn't a bad thing) I guess my question is, I have gained about 13 lbs since this time last year ( my job is sitting for 12 hrs 4 days a week) when I am home ( I live alone) I am just sedentary and don't really have any energy to do much of anything ( severely anemic and get Iron infusions every week ) so do you think it is the Wine that is causing the weight gain, the Full hysterectomy, the desk job or just a combination.??? I would really like to stop any further weight gain and any answers would be appreciated.

Hello, Feb 23 bandsters..I'd love to compare notes with everyone..How much pain are you having, what stage of the diet are you on now, have you lost weight post op? I still have a mod. amt of pain at the puncture sites and shoulder, I'm on full liquids but I've not been able to get the daily required amt. of fluids in, and to my shock, my 24 hr stay in hospital resulted in 6 lbs weight gain....Luckily I have NO appetite and have to force every oz of fluids down. Hope to hear from ya'll soon............

I used to smoke too. I smoked for 25 years :/ Every time I would go to the doctor for anything they would blame it on smoking. "Your back hurts? It's because you smoke. You have a cold? It's because you smoke. You have an ingrown toenail? You smoke."!!!!!!! Every single time. Then I quit smoking cold turkey. I gained 60 pounds. Now when I go to the doctor it's "Your back hurts? You're overweight!" LOL Seriously. That is exactly how it is. But am I glad I quit smoking. Even with all the weight gain. I feel so much better. And I really loved to smoke. I prayed about it while I was quitting. I asked Jesus to help me not to indulge in something so unhealthy for me. I should have prayed not to replace cigarettes with twinkies..............SMH

Hi! I was on Topamax for 2 1/2 years to help with my Bipolar. What is your use of the drug. It does help to keep you from gaining weight while on other antidepressent drugs which cause weight gain. My only bad side effect was I could not drink anything carbonated or eat gummy candy because it made theses things taste bitter.:thumbup:

I have not seen much posted about non-fat frozen yogurt? Which I must confess, I find somewhat surprising...so it has led me to ask. Is there some inherent evil associated with this diet friendly treat and the Lapband? An inquiring mind wants to know… I am planning on it being part of my post-op repertoire…or so I think? Second, it may just be my imagination, but it seems (no scientific data), that many of the newer banders are struggling with post-op weight gain and slow starts. While a few fortunate souls are making rapid progress, again the individual variable strikes…no two banders are the same. No real point to make…just an observation. Other than that it was a good gym day and we went to the Long Beach Grand Prix and got to meet Danica Patrick. Yes, she is as adorable in person. I am sorry to report, that they had the good corners of the drifting competition reserved for the VIP seats. The events held at Irwindale Speedway are much better, the venue is easier to get to and the layout is more crowd friendly. I everyone had a good weekend.

Well, went to the doc yesterday and I get to FINALLY come off my steroids, so I'm hoping the weight will start falling off. It's horrible the weight gain i've had. And not eating right is not helping either. Shawn - yes, I think we are all struggling and need to hang close to the thread so we can get and give support. I know I'm having a hard time but trying to overcome it. Damn that chocolate!

Cindi -I am not too upset that I haven't lost weight in such a long time, mainly because I don't blame the band, I blame myself. I have made poor food choices. First, I went on vacation, ate whatever I wanted, while on vacation, I fell - came back home, my house had flooded, completely flooded and ruined almost every room in the house. I also had to have surgery on my knee. So, with all this going on, exercise stopped, eating began. Everyone from my church was bringing food to my family, we moved in with my mother in law, and ofcourse she cooked for me too. I was having a pitty me party! Well, my house is back order - (looks better than it did), my knee is finally healing, but I still want to eat all the junk. I'm battling the head hunger, but I'm about to win the battle I think. I'm getting better and better at saying "No thank you!". I'm also avoiding bringing in the junk into my house. So, even though I haven't lost weight in 6 months, I feel like I learned a valuable lesson. I know that I must take control and not resort back to my old habits. The other thing I have learned is I don't think I will ever weigh over 200 lbs again! Even though I haven't lost weight, I haven't gained either. I might have gained 5 lbs or so, but nothing like I had done "pre band". Normally a 6 month eating binge would bring on 50 to 75 pounds, no problem. I can live with a 5 or 7 lbs weight gain. So, I love my band. It's a wonderful tool, the problem is I haven't been using it as a tool. Now, I've got my head screwed back on like it should be, I am making better choices, I am actually planning my meals out. If it is not written down on my plan, I am avoiding it. Even when we went out for Mexican Sunday, I chose grilled chicken, and I counted out 5 chips and put them on my plate. I ate them very slowly so I wasn't eating a bunch of chips & salsa like normally. No one noticed I wasn't eating. Anyhow, its all about choices and attitude with the band. We have to utilize it as a tool and not let it do all the work, we have to do work, but the band will help us if we follow the rules. This is the lesson I have learned and it was a valuable lesson for me!