Is there really a "sweet spot"

[wvgal30 0]

Hello, I was banded Oct 29, 2008 and I have lost only 16 pounds and that was the first 3 weeks. I have had 1 fill of 3 cc in my Realize Band. Since the fill I have lost nothing. I will tell you - I have not been dieting per se, I have been trying Portion Control - yet having whatever I want so as not to sabotage myself into thinking in diet-mode. I haven't been exercising - and I do realize that this would definitely make a difference in weight loss. I have started on wii fit..but not consistantly yet. I am scheduled for another fill Jan 20. I don't mind losing weight slowly...but people are still asking me if I had my surgery yet...and now...it is getting a little embarrassing saying ...yep...2-1/2 months ago!

I have felt a difference with the fill, i.e., I have had some painful feelings (almost spasms) when I forget to chew well or take too big of a bite. My question is:

If you are to chew well and to take small bites so as not to get stuck - yet you want food to stay in the pouch so as not to feel hungry...how is this possible? If food is flowing through the pouch and not staying in it....how does one feel full? Is there something I am missing here? How does it work to get the band tightened - how does this help if food does not stay in the pouch? I am sure there is an explaination for this...please someone explain it to me so that I won't lose all hope. Thus far, I have just been telling myself that I have not hit the "sweet spot" I read about.

When one hits this sweet spot - does it make you able to eat significantly less? Right now, I don't stop eating when I should...and there really isn't a symptom that I have which signals me to stop. When I am filled to my personal sweet spot - will something happen to let me know that I am full?

I don't expect to lay around and lose weight...I am willing to work at it and use the band as a tool as it was designed. I am just the type of personality that if I think I am dieting...I will sabotage myself. I have also been on diet pills off and on for years and I have this theory that if you are not starving - you are not losing weight....so I would like not eat all day and eat 1 meal at dinner....I want to lose the healthy way - I want this to work and I want to help it help me...I just don't understand how it works if food is going through the pouch. I probably should have thought of this before getting banded LOL! Anyway, could someone explain the concept to me?

I am going to start counting calories on the daily plate and start little by ever so little doing a bit more exercise daily. I am willing to work, I am willing to change my ways, and I am okay with losing slowly yet healthy.

Thanks for reading and TIA for any input you have on this!

[ksill18 0]

ok do you want it candy coated or the real deal? #1 wii fit is not exercising. you have to walk walk walk...when your get up to it Jog or run. Also strength training is also key. the more muscle you build the more fat your will burn. Also get a food scale, measure out 3 oz of meat and only eat healthy stuff. If your still going to mcdonalds or fast food joints then the band will fail. also dont drink 30 mins prior to, during or 30 mins after a meal. make sure you are getting your 8 glasses of chilled Water a day. Go for checkups every 6 weeks, if a fill is needed then get it done, your doctor will know. Also BE HONEST with your doctor!!!

Do this and you too will see results. I wish you luck :thumbs_up:

[bandfun4me 0]

I agree, you will have to work a little harder if you wnat to lose more weight. Yes, the loss will still be slow, but you will lose at a gradual pace. In the beginning I was told cardio 2-3 times daily (3x15 min) as yoiu increse your time you can drop a session and soforth. I was banded in jan 08 down 65 lbs size 16/18 to a 6/8 now. I exercise 2x day a hike at lunch fo 3 miles and the gym at night . Before I was doing the treadmill at 4:30 am till my sessions got to long. then switched to afternoons and the evenings in the summer. You will have ot chnage ot work it in for yourself. Weigh that food out if that is what it takes, set a timer for 30 minutes and stop eating after that. This is your new life, treat your band with care don't abuse or try to work around. it will work. Keep regular dr visits, i go every 6 wks now. I have 8cc in my 10 cc band. I try to eat the good for-me -foods. Here you don't call it cheating, we call it making bad food choices, This is hard work. not like the gastric, your restriction will ease as your stomach wall decreases the fat content and you will need more fills. simple as that. Until you get to the max. good luck.:thumbs_up:

[gentylwind 1]

What I am finding is if I am eating until I feel "full", I am overeating on my band and I don't lose. Doing as mentioned above, having a pre-measured portion, eating it in a slow 30 minute time frame and stopping at 30 minutes whether I "finished" everything or not, I find I am satisfied but not full. I start getting hungry again around 4 hours later. Getting hungry has meant feeling physical hunger pain, not just feeling like I have room to eat more. It is my body demanding fuel. I seldom felt that as an adult...I made sure I didn't apparently.

Learning that feeling full (stuffed, or a sensation of physical fullness) means I have gone too far is probably one of the hardest parts for me. I'm having to redefine what it means to have eaten a meal. I always ate until stuffed (which I interpreted as "full"). And that will stretch my pouch and hinder what I am trying to accomplish here.

Having adequate fills makes this easier, without a doubt. I just had my second fill this week to 6 cc in a 10 cc band and its easier than before. I don't get hungry until right at the 4 hour mark. I am not enamoured of feeling hungry I am finding and I am learning I did a lot of eating in large portions prior to my band in order to keep from ever feeling it. I would eat until stuffed and the way I knew it was time to eat again was by no longer feeling stuffed. I thought that was hunger and am learning its not! That was getting to "not hungry". I never got down to "hungry" before.

Now I do. Its uncomfortable and unmistakable when my body is asking for food. And not eating simply because more food will fit has been a challenge, but I can't deny the results. I drop weight in chunks when I use my band correctly.

The food trickling slowly through the stoma (opening) is what makes you feel full on less food. Rather than a big bunch at once, the stomach is fed food in small amounts.

Best of luck to you as you adjust to your new life! I am pretty new at this, so I definitely don't proclaim to be any kind of an expert. Just sharing the observations that are starting to work for me.

Edited January 8, 2009 by gentylwind

[Donna113 2]

Hello, I was banded Oct 29, 2008 and I have lost only 16 pounds and that was the first 3 weeks. I have had 1 fill of 3 cc in my Realize Band. Since the fill I have lost nothing. I will tell you - I have not been dieting per se, I have been trying Portion Control - yet having whatever I want so as not to sabotage myself into thinking in diet-mode. I haven't been exercising - and I do realize that this would definitely make a difference in weight loss. I have started on wii fit..but not consistantly yet. I am scheduled for another fill Jan 20. I don't mind losing weight slowly...but people are still asking me if I had my surgery yet...and now...it is getting a little embarrassing saying ...yep...2-1/2 months ago!

I have felt a difference with the fill, i.e., I have had some painful feelings (almost spasms) when I forget to chew well or take too big of a bite. My question is:

If you are to chew well and to take small bites so as not to get stuck - yet you want food to stay in the pouch so as not to feel hungry...how is this possible? If food is flowing through the pouch and not staying in it....how does one feel full? Is there something I am missing here? How does it work to get the band tightened - how does this help if food does not stay in the pouch? I am sure there is an explaination for this...please someone explain it to me so that I won't lose all hope. Thus far, I have just been telling myself that I have not hit the "sweet spot" I read about.

When one hits this sweet spot - does it make you able to eat significantly less? Right now, I don't stop eating when I should...and there really isn't a symptom that I have which signals me to stop. When I am filled to my personal sweet spot - will something happen to let me know that I am full?

Like you, I lost approx. 12 lbs within the first 2 weeks and then nothing until about 3 months out and then averaging only about 3 lbs a month. I'm now almost 6 months out. Yes, wvgal, there is a "sweet spot" but it may take several fills to get there. I feel I'm at my sweet spot now but it took 5 fills to get there (I was very sensitive to fills so only received .5 cc at a time after the initial 3 cc fill). There is no signal to tell you to stop eating, you should stop eating when you no longer feel hungry. At first this is a hard gauge so the best thing is to chew 20 times per small bite and stop after 20 minutes of eating. That should help with portion control. Since you don't really need to chew Soup or other liquids, obviously, you should avoid those if you're seeking satiety (not fullness -- fullness means you've overdone it).

I was walking 3-4 miles a day every day for the first 2 months but injured my knee when I started jogging and was told to rest my knee for a couple of weeks and restart walking (no jogging allowed). My knee did recover fully after 2 weeks but my exercise routine seems to have suffered a fatal blow. I really need to get back on the exercise routine and plan on restarting this weekend.

[janesays 2]

wvgal, good for you for taking the initiative to get in control of your band! it is one thing to have surgery, but completely another to use it to it's full advantage.

i really hope you like using thedailyplate.com and continue to use it. i find it is the only way i keep myself accountable for what i eat, and i have been using it daily since last march or so. i love it! i swear i'm on that site 10X a day writing down everything that goes through my digestive tract.

knowing that i tend to stop eating once i am a little over my calorie cap for the day, i put it on the highest settings saying the amount i need to consume to lose 3 lbs a week. well, over the past 7 weeks since surgery i have lost an average of 2 pounds a week, so it's right!

the only problem i see for you is that the daily plate only gives a cap for the # of cals you should eat for your body, and not a minimum. not enough calories can slow your weight loss, and eating only one meal realllly slows down your metabolism. hopefully you will get past your "diet" fix and find a healthier way to lose weight--- and lose weight you will. good luck with everything!!