How Hard Do You "try" To Lose Weight?

[SashaWLS 412]

How much does the band help you alone, vs. you really pushing to follow a plan like weight watchers or something else? I know everyone says "the band is a tool" but I want to know what that really means... If you just eat what your body tells you, do you lose nothing??

[Humming Bird 275]

Everyone is different. Some bandsters exercise like crazy and track everything they put in their mouth and every calorie burned.

For me, I have put in very little effort. I don't track or journal anything. I don't do any type of formal exercise or "workout". I reached the green zone/ sweet spot very early and the wieght melted off and stayed off. I am more active in general because I feel better with all that extra weight gone. I try to eat healthy in general. I do not "diet". All that dieting stuff does not work for me. The many years of being a yo-yo dieter is proof enough for me to understand all that is a waste of time. I don't want to live my life obcessing over it and I have not had to.

[lmwalter 1]

I have been banded for a year and one month now. Up until about two months ago, I really didn't do anything to help the band. Now, however, I am at the gym 3 to 4 times a week; I am counting all calories through an app called LoseIt. So it's become a game to me. The weight came off slow and steady, but is now coming off a bit faster because of the exercise. My total weight loss to date is 75 pounds and I'm 25 away from my goal.

[B-52 7,113]

It was hard in the beginning....bandster hell...

But once the band was adjusted properly, it became very easy for me.

I am very really hungry, and when I do eat, the band restricts mt how much I can eat.

Only thing indeed to doing make wise food choices.

I go to the gym every chance I get, not because I have tobut because I want to.

I never count calories or measure/weigh foods.

[TracieR 88]

The band has physically limited the amount I can eat. I received restriction right away and rarely feel hungry. I do not diet. I do not eat Pasta, bread or rice by choice (nor do I miss it). I just try to make good healthy food choices and choose things that are high in Protein. I also do not deprive myself. If I want something I have a little bit of it. This has worked very well for me and the weight is coming off.

I also work out 4-5 days a week - most weeks. It makes me feel better and definitely helps with my weight loss. When I skip days I notice I make bad food choices. My work outs set the tone for my day. I am addicted now. It helps a ton mentally and physically.

Everyone reacts so differently to the band though. For me it is about the restriction. I physically cannot eat a lot, so the weight comes off. I get my self moving and some more comes off. As simple and as hard as that...

Good Luck to you on your journey!

[slm2007 7]

I've been banded almost a year (mid-april) and have had very little luck at this point. Honestly, I gave up in October and stopped going for fills etc. I've decided to give it another shot and I'm going to start over when I go to the appointment on 2/21. I became so disgusted and while I know the band is supposed to help and not do the work for me, there was NO help happening. I was having a difficult time staying under 1,600 calories let alone 1,100. I was struggling and failing and not getting much "support" from the doctors office. Frustrated, I stopped going and doing follow ups. I'm going to try again. It's hard work and those who say "oh, she has a lap band and that's cheating" - well, honestly it's like I have no band and I'm doing it on my own. IF I could have done it on my own, I wouldn't have resorted to surgery! Anyhow, everyone is different and a lot of people have had wonderful success on this and I am jealous of that and wish you the absolute best of luck and hope it happens for you quickly. Everyone tells me that when I reach the "sweet" spot it will start happening.....fingers crossed. GOOD LUCK TO YOU!

[Jachut 487]

In truth, I didnt try that hard. I did try though. My successful banded dieting was very similar to my unsuccessful non banded dieting. I improved my meals - chose healthier foods, and altered the carb/protein ratio (a recent trip on a school camp where we were fed mountains of cheap white stodgy food reminded me just how much of that sh*t I used to get through thinking it was healthy) a little. But I am and have always been a hopeless dieter - there was plenty of cheating - lots of treats in the form of Cookies, a muffin, a nice coffee etc. With the band, the only difference was that the portion sizes of everything were a lot smaller and for a long while there, I simply couldnt eat muffins, cake and things like that. I cheated less, as I always did when dieting too, but I still weakened and caved quite regularly.

So all in all, it wasnt that hard. What I changed the most was my exercise habits. I took up running and was (and am) absolutely dedicated to it. I will move heaven and earth to get my run in despite any obstacles.

Perhaps I was very lucky, but with the running and with being 5ft 10, I didnt need to drop calories to anything below about 1500, I lost well on that. I've NEVER had the sort of restriction from my band that could keep me at the 800 to 1000 calories others talk about and I never found the need to eat that little anyway.

[1shauna1 129]

I haven't reached the green zone yet, so I must "try" pretty hard still. I feel like I still need to diet, which sucks. I've been on a diet almost 20 years, going up and down (but more up than down). I had a fill on Thursday and am feeling great restriction so I'm hoping my band will start helping me a bit more with portion sizes. If I could think about food less that would be great; I know some people say they do since being banded and I wish that would happen for me. Maybe I've just spent so much time in the last years thinking about it it's become abnormally important. Hoping those feelings will lessen.

[Holly Dolly 575]

I'm right there with you Shauna! I had a fill this Tuesday. Well, Wed and Thursday I was still getting hungry about 2-2.5 hours later. Today has been a little bit better. I am just under 1000 calories and not feeling hungry. So, maybe this 8th fill is the charm for me!

And to answer the question....I try really hard....about 90% of the time!