November Bandsters!

[Oberhasli 1]

Alright Tom, You are back in action. My band is real tight in the morning. I stopped even trying to eat in the morn, just a Protein Drink. lunch for me is soft food, then for dinner my band is loose enough for a good meal. The cool thing about the band is when it works right you don't feel deprived at all. I love being a bandster!!

I haven't noticed a big difference in my band throughout the day. Maybe I will with some more restriction. My usual Breakfast is 1/2 cup of spicy V8 juice to start the day. A bit later on, I have a pouched egg with shredded low-fat cheese (bought a toaster on clearance for $8 that had an egg poacher thinking it was silly but now use it daily), 1/4 of a bagel with a very small dab of low-fat margarine, a 1/2 cup of fruit (strawberries, rasberries, bananna, etc.) and a 1/4 cup of no-fat cottage cheese. All is soft and I've had no problems in the past. Lunch is always a challenge as I leave for work by 11:15 and only get a fifteen minute break so try to eat something small before I leave. Often times, it's a salad with meat (chicken, shrimp, crab, turkey, etc.) or a Soup with meat and vegetables. I do a yogurt smoothie and a Protein Bar at work since they're easy to eat at my desk. For dinner, I'll usually do 2 ounces of grilled meat (the leftover makes the soup) and either a vegetable or potato.

Tom

[Vikki 2]

I have a question for you guys. I had my fill and was really tight so I lost about 5 pounds in two weeks. Then I started feeling a little looser so was able to get a little more food in my system but then gained 3 pounds back. I am now teadering between 227 and 223 for the last couple of weeks. I am not eating much and no carbs and exercising a lot. I was told maybe I am not getting enough Protein which will make me not loose weight. I really want to get down to the 100's again and am feeling very discouraged. What do you guys suggest I concentrate on for the next couple of weeks to help get down again. I am only three months into this so need to work on patients but the scale is frustrating me right now!!!

What would you guys suggest I eat to kick my body in weight loss again?

Thanks and Happy Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Oberhasli 1]

I have a question for you guys. I had my fill and was really tight so I lost about 5 pounds in two weeks. Then I started feeling a little looser so was able to get a little more food in my system but then gained 3 pounds back. I am now teadering between 227 and 223 for the last couple of weeks. I am not eating much and no carbs and exercising a lot. I was told maybe I am not getting enough Protein which will make me not loose weight. I really want to get down to the 100's again and am feeling very discouraged. What do you guys suggest I concentrate on for the next couple of weeks to help get down again. I am only three months into this so need to work on patients but the scale is frustrating me right now!!!

What would you guys suggest I eat to kick my body in weight loss again?

Thanks and Happy Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Vikki, I'm not a dietician nor do I play one on TV so take this for what's it worth. I'd suggest you eat a more balanced diet with a focus on protein. Carbs are not horrible things. You're body needs those too. From a weight standpoint, a calorie is a calorie is a calorie. You can eat 1000 calories a day of fat or 1000 calories of protein but the end result is 1000 calories. (Kind of like the old joke of which is heavier, a ton of feathers or a ton of car parts? A ton is a ton!)

Using the basic formula for calories needed, you're looking at around 2250 (10 calories per pound - you may want to try the other formula and get a more accurate figure) per day to maintain. If you're eating 1250 calories, you should be losing around 2 pounds per week. (Remember, as your weight drops, so does your calorie requirement.) Are you measuring your food and charting the actual calories and grams of protein? For me, recording everything I eat serves two purposes. One, it gives me a written record of exactly what I'm eating. An extra ounce here or there starts to add up. The other thing it does it makes me stop and think before I put something in my mouth. Do I really want to put that "treat" down? For me, I know when i actually go back to measuring, I often find that my "estimates" were a bit high meaning I was taking in more calories than I thought.

The other thing you don't mention is exercise. Do MODERATE exercise too. That will not only raise the number of calories you burn from the actual exercise but tends to raise your metabolism too so you burn calories in general. Remember muscle does weigh more than fat so as you burn your fat and build more muscle (physilogically, it's impossible to turn the fat into muscle), the same mass will weigh more.

HTH,

Tom

[Vikki 2]

Tom, You are a plethera of information!!!! You should go back to school to be a DR. I seriously do not count calories I just try to get full and that is it. I was thinking this morning of making a diary of my food eat day and the amount. I will start trying to count calories and Protein to see if it makes a difference. So 1250 calories a day and how much protein? I guess there are carb's in potatoes so I am getting carbs from that. I just don't eat any bread anymore or chips or pretzels like I used too. Thanks for the info and I am going to start my diary today.

[Betsyjane 2]

Hi Vicki

You had an aggressive first fill! It may be though that some of it absorbed into the band and you need another fill. Mine didn't absorb, but my band got loose as I lost weight.

Then...what Tom said. My Dr. said to eat my Protein first, my veges second, and if I had any room left, have a little bit of something else. He also said I only need more than a tiny bit of carbs if I'm training for a marathon.... So I'm having a piece of some kind of meat or egg and then veges at each meal, and if I have a Protein Shake (Muscle milk light---yum...), a mush a few berries in it to try to get some fruit in.

Other than my Protein Shakes, I'm not a fan of either sugar or artificial sweetener, so there's not much cooking that goes into my meals...I keep a bunch of frozen chicken breasts around and a bag of fresh veges that I have cut up and ready to be salad.

Oddly, I've read here that several people stopped losing pounds either by not eating enough protein or by not eating enough calories.... I guess we're all in this for the long haul and we're all trying to find that correct balance through trial and error. Keep the faith dearie! This is just a temporary glitch.

[AngelaT 2]

I have a question for you guys. I had my fill and was really tight so I lost about 5 pounds in two weeks. Then I started feeling a little looser so was able to get a little more food in my system but then gained 3 pounds back. I am now teadering between 227 and 223 for the last couple of weeks. I am not eating much and no carbs and exercising a lot. I was told maybe I am not getting enough Protein which will make me not loose weight. I really want to get down to the 100's again and am feeling very discouraged. What do you guys suggest I concentrate on for the next couple of weeks to help get down again. I am only three months into this so need to work on patients but the scale is frustrating me right now!!!

What would you guys suggest I eat to kick my body in weight loss again?

Thanks and Happy Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Vikki,

Make sure you are eating enough protein and Calories. Between 800-1200 cals per day, mostly protein. It is amazing how not eating enough will stop weight loss. Ieat 5 times a day and have between 900-1200 a day... I have lost 32 lbs since November 7 and I do not even have a fill yet! Lots of Water also!

[Vikki 2]

Thanks Betsy.....You are so sweet!!! Yes I have to remember the long haul part. I want people that haven't seen me in awhile to go WOW you have lost a lot of weight.........But that hasn't happened yet. I am still in the honeymoon stage and need to just take it one day at a time. I am going to the Vitamin store this weekend to get more suppliments. I have felt way too tired lately so I need more nutrients to get the energy back. :faint:

Thanks for all of your advise.....I will keep on trucken and getter DONE!!!:heh:

[Betsyjane 2]

I KNOW!!!!!! No one is noticing my weight loss yet. It may have something to do with my baggy clothes, though. Just hate to buy new ones yet.

Interesting Angela. My Dr. says eat 3 meals and no Snacks. I have Protein Shakes in between anyway....satisfies my sweet tooth, chocolate tooth, and anxiety about getting enough Protein in.

[Vikki 2]

Thanks for the advice Angela. Since you are a natual health nut what do you get most of your protien from. I can't seem to get chix down and tried to have soft pot roast last night and no go. Is just getting protien from powder Protein mix enough? What foods do you suggest? I am having a hard time figuring the food out since it is hard to get anything down. It seems like one day I can get something down then I try to eat it again the next day and it gets stuck??? IT is a crap shoot anymore. I know having hot liquids before does help open it up.

[marni 0]

So I finally got my fill. All of a sudden I was hungry. I mean stomach growling hungry. So he filled me. I still lost 3 lbs from the 2 weeks before. I thought I would feel really restricted but Im not sure if I notice much differenc. Maybe a little. I go back in 2 weeks for my 3 month follow up. So, Im down like 25 lbs and was banded on 11/29. I try to convince myself that this is good. However, my friend had no surgery and she's lost about 20 lbs doing what I do....She definitely eats a bit more but it seems to be working.

[AngelaT 2]

Thanks for the advice Angela. Since you are a natual health nut what do you get most of your protien from. I can't seem to get chix down and tried to have soft pot roast last night and no go. Is just getting protien from powder Protein mix enough? What foods do you suggest? I am having a hard time figuring the food out since it is hard to get anything down. It seems like one day I can get something down then I try to eat it again the next day and it gets stuck??? IT is a crap shoot anymore. I know having hot liquids before does help open it up.

Fish is soft enough ususally. chicken can be soft...dark meat. If it is mixed with a sauce it helps. You can also puree it so you can at least eat enough while restriction eases up a bit. Do a Protein Drink for Breakfast and double the Protein. Remember small bites and chew, chew, chew :bored

Hope this helps. Good luck!

[Betsyjane 2]

I'd like to add more Protein to my Protein Shake, without adding anymore sugar or sweetener. Was thinking of mixing it with milk instead of Water. Anybody have any ideas for adding even more protein to it? Ice cream? Just kidding...mostly.

[AngelaT 2]

I'd like to add more Protein to my Protein shake, without adding anymore sugar or sweetener. Was thinking of mixing it with milk instead of Water. Anybody have any ideas for adding even more protein to it? Ice cream? Just kidding...mostly.

I recommend soy milk or almond milk, unsweetened you can add stevia to sweeten it a bit. milk is not really good for adults, and it is very high in sugar... lactose is a sugar. you can also start with an already made Protein Shake, add a bit of Water and a scoop of powdered protein and you could have a shake with over 40g of protein or much higher depends on what you use! I also eat Protein Bars...low carb.

[Oberhasli 1]

I'd like to add more Protein to my Protein shake, without adding anymore sugar or sweetener. Was thinking of mixing it with milk instead of Water. Anybody have any ideas for adding even more protein to it? Ice cream? Just kidding...mostly.

Peanut Butter is a good source of protein but should be used limitedly because of the higher fat and calorie content.

One of my favorite shakes is 1/2 cup fat free milk, 1/2 scoop of Protein Powder, 1/2 banana, 1/2-1 tablespoon Peanut Butter (depends on how I feel and how much other fat/calories I've had) and a handful of ice cubes. I sometimes substitue the peanut butter and ice for frozen strawberries (or other fruit) and add a bit of Splenda for sweetness.

You can add Protein Powder and non-fat dried milk to pudding mix and up the protein of your pudding too. Melted peanut butter drizzled on top of sugar-free white chocolate "enhanced" pudding is yummy.

Tom

[Oberhasli 1]

I KNOW!!!!!! No one is noticing my weight loss yet. It may have something to do with my baggy clothes, though. Just hate to buy new ones yet.

Interesting Angela. My Dr. says eat 3 meals and no Snacks. I have Protein shakes in between anyway....satisfies my sweet tooth, chocolate tooth, and anxiety about getting enough Protein in.

We need to all listen to our own doctors but most fitness related people suggest for "normal" people to eat more frequently (every 3-4 hours) to keep the body fueled. With a restricted stomach size, that would become even more important as what you have left isn't large enough to consume adequate calories to properly fuel the body. You're body is going to better utilize 250 calories 5 times a day than it is 418 calores three times a day. And you won't stretch your new smaller stomach as much!

Tom