low carb vs. weight watchers

[jimmielou 0]

Does anyone follow a program such as ww instead the low carb. and how does it work for you

[Jodi_620 37]

I don't follow any program. For me it was "either-or"...either I use yet another one of these programs or get the Lap Band. To me the Lap Band is the program. I do watch my processed carbs but that is both because they are bad for me and not eating them contributes to my weight loss. But I am not on a "Low Carb Diet".

Edited January 12, 2009 by Jodi_620

[littlefroggy 0]

I did ww for years so it is a bit ingrained in me. I don't do low-carb and I am losing really well.

I definitely try to eat more Protein than carbs and avoid bread, rice and Pasta, but I get plenty of carbs in chocolate, which I won't give up.

So I am more about SENSIBLE... I do have a secret longing to JOIN ww again just so I can get all those keychains and make lifetime since I was never able to do it before.... :tongue2:

[jimmielou 0]

Thanks for the info. I am a lifetimer at ww without ever reaching my goal too. I must have started 20+ times but never stayed with it. I was wondering because I have also done the low carb several times and never liked it. It is encouraging to know that you have followed the ww guidelines and still lost very well. I am waiting on insurance approval now, which I don't think is going to be a problem and they said I could have a surgery date in 3 to 4 weeks. I am starting with a BMI of 44...

[dobermanmom 0]

again, anything can work if you're CONSISTENT.

I'm SHOCKED at the number of posts in this community, looking for quick fixes.

[jimmielou 0]

No one here is looking for a quick fix. I'm just checking what works for different people. No one got this way QUICK and no one is going to fix it QUICK either.

I'm SHOCKED by the people that post that really don't have anything to contribute to the subject.....

It's responses like yours that makes people like me not want to post...,.

[MacMadame 81]

I don't follow any program. For me it was "either-or"...either I use yet another one of these programs or get the Lap Band. To me the Lap Band is the program.

My surgeon has a program. The people who follow it lose weight faster. I want to get goal ASAP because I think the hard part will be maintenance. I think you need to be careful if you think of the band alone as the program. It's so easy to eat around (any WLS, really) so if you don't have nutritional goals and guidelines and a plan of some sort, it's easy to get off track.

For example, on another list I'm on, people are talking about how they don't eat all day and then are starving at night and eat a lot and poorly. That's a bad habit to get into and it will sabotage their weight loss and their maintenance, if they don't watch out.

I am a big fan of low-carb, btw. I started it pre-op to lose some weight to make the surgery safer and it really made a big difference in my hunger cravings. I find if I eat carbs, I crave carbs. Plus I have so much energy when I put Protein first.

[Jachut 487]

I didnt follow a program, I got banded to avoid that. All I did was Portion Control.< /p>

I dont low carb. I couldnt live that way. And I dont believe the hype about it. Yes, the studies sound plausible but that's because people want to believe it. So too did all the hype in the 80's about low fat/high carb. There was TONS of "proof" that that was the way to go too. I really think high Protein will go out of fashion again, it didnt work in the 60's and 70's afterall, when everyone was doing Atkins. I tell you what does work for me though, is no longer eating 3000 calories a day of highly processed white sugary carbs! I eat good healthy food in its natural state meaning bread, crackers, processed cereals are not a huge part of my diet anymore, but unprocessed grains like rolled oats are. I get more carbs from fruit, vegies and nuts, I eat much more of the good fats and much less saturated fats (which is a huge downfall of the way many people interpret high Protein low carb) and a lot of fibre and it's worked.

[Jodi_620 37]

My surgeon has a program. The people who follow it lose weight faster. I want to get goal ASAP because I think the hard part will be maintenance. I think you need to be careful if you think of the band alone as the program. It's so easy to eat around (any WLS, really) so if you don't have nutritional goals and guidelines and a plan of some sort, it's easy to get off track.

For example, on another list I'm on, people are talking about how they don't eat all day and then are starving at night and eat a lot and poorly. That's a bad habit to get into and it will sabotage their weight loss and their maintenance, if they don't watch out.

I am a big fan of low-carb, btw. I started it pre-op to lose some weight to make the surgery safer and it really made a big difference in my hunger cravings. I find if I eat carbs, I crave carbs. Plus I have so much energy when I put Protein first.

I do follow the Lap Band program that was my point. I eat small healthy solid meals, don't drink with my meal, eat slowly and get my fills. I have allowed the Lap Band to help me learn to eat healthy and watch my portions. As I said in my original post, I watch my processed carbs. But I don't do a "low carb program". And I have lost 76 pounds in 7 months eating from all the food groups so I must be doing something right. I don't feel like I am on a diet. I don't count calories, keep diaries or weigh or measure. I don't crave or feel like I am missing out. I allow myself the occasional treat and there is no doubt that I can do this for life.

My orginal post did not say that anyone should follow bad habits like starving then binging, I only meant that I did not find it necessary to join another weight loss program. I completely agree that watching carbs is a great way to keep the head hunger away and if you go through many of my past posts you will see that. I don't think that extreme Atkins-like low carb is necessary. I eat whole grains, dairy, fruit, veggies and meat. I watch starches, sugars and bleached white flour and being insulin resistant (PCOS), that alone has gotten me off my meds and put my PCOS in remission.

Following one diet after another helped contribute to my weight problems. I chose Lap Band so that I could finally get out of the dieting cycle. If following Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, Atkins or any other program is the way people want to go and it is something they imagine doing for life then more power to them. The OP asked for opinions and in my opinion, learning to eat sensibly and allowing the Lap Band to help me control portions is the way to go.

I would like to add that in the beginning I felt like I needed a program too. I was so used to being on one diet program or another I felt lost. But my doctor assured me that if I followed the Lap Band rules I would be fine and he was right. Now that I see that I don't need those diets anymore and the weight is still coming off, I feel so liberated and for the first time in my life, normal.

Edited January 13, 2009 by Jodi_620

[jimmielou 0]

That sounds like a reasonable way of doing things Jodi. Thanks for your advise

[MacMadame 81]

I

My orginal post did not say that anyone should follow bad habits like starving then binging

I didn't say you did. But these people got to that point because they didn't have a program. So a program is not necessarily a bad thing.

It's also not necessary to do the extreme Atkin's version of low carbs to do low carbs.

I am currently right on track with my weight loss and I am developing a lot of healthy habits. So I am going to stick with my surgeon's program. I have talked to some who share my surgeon who didn't want to have to restrict themselves during the 6 month honeymoon period and didn't do low carb as he recommends and they are sorry now. It took them a lot longer to get to goal and they never got down as far as those of us who did follow it.

[Jodi_620 37]

I would say that those people got where they did by ignoring their doctors instructions, obviously no doctor in his/her right mind would advocate or approve of that kind of lifestyle.

And of course having a program is not a bad thing. Most bariatric surgeons provide the patient with a program, I just don't think getting surgery then joining Weight Watchers or one of the other diet programs is necessary...my opinon, take it or leave it. (And BTW, for what it's worth,my surgeon agrees.)

I really am not sure why you keep replying directly to me, we each have our own methods, we are both doing well so I don't think there is a right and a wrong here. Each individual needs to do what will work for them. I say let everyone read through the various methods then come up a game plan that works for them.

[Jodi_620 37]

That sounds like a reasonable way of doing things Jodi. Thanks for your advise

You're Welcome...Good Luck!!!

[kgloverii 0]

I eat like Jachut. I watch processed and refined carbs. I eat organic when possible. But if a McDonald's fancy strikes, I'll get a burger and peel the bun off and eat the burger. Nothing is off limits and now that I have restriction, my 'new brain' called satisfaction (which I never had before) does the work for me. It is really about getting to the right fill capacity and working the band. And making satisfying healthy, non-slider choices.

[Jachut 487]

Isnt it funny how the topic of diet is such an emotive one? We're all prone to getting defensive about our choices.

I always feel compelled to argue the low carb point because I really believe its unhealthy and not necessary. Why? What does it matter to me what someone on the other side of the world eats? And likewise, why would someone care if I eat 10 slices of white bread a day? But they do. I think we do pretty well to discuss this without fighting, lol.

Really, a lot of what you like to do is personality dependent. Some people love the discipline of calorie counting or food group watching, and whilst I consider it dysfunctional dieting behaviour best left in my past, for others its a healthy focus and the way they like to live. My mother lives on weight watchers, she just is so used to it and there's nothing dysfunctional or unhealthy about her approach to food, OR her weight. I like to eat what I want, when I want and not following ANY program has not caused me to eat around the band at all because my motivation is to be fit, healthy and thin and I look at a Mars Bar and can see that that will not help me stay that way.

Kudos to all of us for finding our own path.