DId anyone cheat while they were in the mushy /soft food stage?

[CaliQueenBee 0]

Well I havent been banded so tell me to rack off, but surely with mushies you can eat almost anything, as long as you make it "mushy". When I was at an information evening on the band one lady who'd had it done got up and spoke and she'd blended an entire roast pork dinner, frozen it in portions. It's like feeding a baby surely, just blend it up lump free adding extra stock (broth) to liquidise it.

OK so you may not get the experience of chewing a steak but there's really no necessity to be starving and lacking variety of food, like a baby you can eat a good meat and 3 veg dinner, but just not in solid form.

But of course, like a baby, start slowly adding one food at a time.

If I'm disillusioned, dont tell me now, lol. I'll figure it out for myself soon enough.

Blending is entirely different to what our lovely Dee Dee was doing. And rice and steak are not good food choices whether or not they're pureed or solid, they're not healthy! Steak is high in fat, and rice is high in carbs turning to sugar in your blood and EXPANDING in your stomach. And when you're 1st starting out in this journey it is not the time to screw around, but to be gentle with your body and work with your band not against it. Hell if anything blended was fine, break out the Twinkies, Ho Ho's and ice cream and stick it in a blender ya know? The point is, not only do we need to focus on healthy foods, but to follow your Dr's orders and use common sense in our food choices. And PORK ROAST??? Geeesh, why not just fry up some bacon and stick it in the blender. Goodness, I would not condone that choice at all. Once we're closer to our goal weight, and somewhere along the way an occasional treat is something we all need, but NOT and I emphasize NOT during your first 6 weeks! Put down the Rib-Eye and step away from the Rice a Roni!

[Jachut 487]

Again - there seems to be a huge difference to what Australian doctors are saying versus the US doctors. This was all condoned by the surgeon - steak and pork are not unhealthy choices if you choose lean meat. Pork is "the other white meat" and is actually one of the lowest fat choices, its only if you choose the crackling that you do damage. And steak doesnt have to be an enormous hunk of dead animal on your plate either. BBQ'd or grilled, its a healthy food.

A roast cut of pork cooked without added fat, on a rack so the fat drains away, without the skin and served with steamed vegetables and maybe a plain baked potato is a very healthy meal! A touch of gravy perhaps - not made with pan juices or blend it with stock and that would be a high Protein, varied Vitamin and mineral content meal. Heavy on the veges light on the meat. There'd be more fat and way more salt and additives in blending up a can of cream Soup.

I realise it wouldnt be wise to have that for your first mushy meal, its something you'd eat as you were preparing to go on solids but if you made it very liquidy surely it's be no more than a tasty Soup? .

[loopylou 0]

Jachut, Australian meats are much leaner than American meats - perhaps that is the difference.

And, for me, by week two I was eating most things. But I would try and hang off on the steak - but perhaps some meatballs would do the trick?

I try to eat healthy - but what is healthy to one person isn't to another... some people think - artificially sweetened foods and margarine and frozen pre-packaged meals are healthy - I dont. For me I think a Peanut Butter and banana sandwich on white bread is better for you - but personally I prefer rye and a little drizzle of honey.

[Jachut 487]

I think there definitely must be a difference and I can see that what I think is a healthy diet is not the same as what a lot of people here think - not that that makes me right of course It definitely strikes me as a cultural difference. Of course, I havent even been banded yet.

But I think the number one thing is to stick with what YOUR surgeon advocates. There's obviously a lot of variation out there - and none necessarily right or wrong but if you dont go by what your surgeon has told you, what's the point?

[divaliciousdee 0]

I talked with my surgeon(caught him in the hallway at work..good thing about working at a hospital). he said it was okay with the tenders if I smashed and chewed them to mush. He also said that I did not hurt my band because even though it takes 4 to 6 weeks to heal some people heal faster than others thus the increase in appetite. I told him I was scared I hurt my band and he told me not to worry. I am not gonna sweat it. I am not perfect in any way and what is easy for some of you may not be for me. I admire all of you who did not cheat in anyway during the first 6 weeks, you have great resolve. I am not like that if I was I would not have gotten the band. I would like to thank all the other banders who PM'd me(u will remain nameless) about your cheating episodes. I thank you for keeping it real with me. I feel better that you guys PM'D me to say that you slipped up too. Everyone is not perfect but the PM's(lol..pms..lol) really lifted my spirits. For the record, I didn't eat 20 tenders like I usually did before the band it was 4. My surgeon said 4 tenders will not slip or stretch my pouch especially cause I am unfilled. Thank you for all of your posts.

Dee Dee

[Lynn B 0]

Well I have been cheating in my dreams - I am missing real food so much that I dream that I am eating steak and chicken >>sigh<< just a week and a half til mushies.

[CandySmooch 0]

Each Dr. is different. My Dr. told me to stay away from Protein Shakes and such as someone else was mentioning they keep you full.........my DR. told me the EXACT opposite - said to stay away from them because they are empty calories that WILL NOT keep you full. I've found that to be true in my case. My Dr. stressed moderation as the key - I was not doing this to go on a diet but to eat like a normal person. I'm also going the natural way - I've been reading Kevin Trudeau's Natural Cures They Don't Want You To Know About. EXCELLENT READ! I highly recommend you reading what the government and food industries are doing to Americans to make us the #1 Fattest Country in the world. So I am buying all organic natural foods along with moderation. NO Fat free, sugar free, low carb crap anymore - it is all highly toxic. SERIOUSLY EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK - its an eye opener - if anyone has any questions about it PM me. And yes to answer your question - I cheated post-op - nothing huge - but i moved onto mushies earlier etc. I felt I was healed and so hungry I was able to get things down with no problems and had my band checked afterwards - no problems there either. Now i didn't go eatin steak and chicken etc. so I wouldn't recommend that so early.

[idahomoon 0]

You took a great step by getting feedback here and the consensus being......NO!!!

I don't know of any comforting words that will help but in my head I think.......... I've done and eaten whatever I've wanted for all my life....... positive choices are my life and sacrifice for the time being....... it's temporary..... you will get more choices soon enough..... you're health is much more important.

I also keep thinking of the story that my doctor told me of an emergency surgery of a patient he did a week before me.... she went to tony roma's two weeks after surgery feeling fine and ended up calling an ambulance in the parking lot.

To me it's putting your life on the line worse than the actual surgery and the embarassment of not sticking to the rules.

:-( I know it's hard........ support support support.... that's what we're for!!!

[Jachut 487]

Candysmooch I agree with you entirely. There is no way I'm having this band to live on processed crap like powdered shakes. I am positive half the weight problem in the US and in Australia which is fast catching up in obesity levels is due to the highly processed foods we eat. And I do not believe in low fat yogurt, cheese, etc. I believe its better to eat more reasonable amounts of the natural version. I dont want to fill my body with artificial sweeteners either. I only buy organic fruit and vegetables and often organic meat also. Its very possible to get fat on good food, really that's what I have done as I feel responsible for my kids so dont bring biscuits, chips, McDonalds, ice cream etc into the house ever. I just eat way too much of the right foods most of the time, I am entirely capable of a fast food pig out occasionally though.

Im quite relieved that my danger foods - bread, cakes, white carbohydrates seem to be foods that often cant be tolerated after banding because I know I could use a diet more focussed on Protein, fruit and veg and less on carbs. I'm more than relieved that I cant stand ice cream and really dont have a control problem with chocolate. Here's hoping it doesnt develop when I realise its easier to eat than other foods. I might blend up Soups in the liquid phase but they wont be salty canned ones.

That's why I felt the suggestion of liquidising ordinary healthy meals was a reasonable one and it didnt surprise me when it was suggested at the info evening. However again, I would never advocate doing anything different from what your surgeon says to.

[puddin 7]

I'm confessing, too. Last night I went to the movies and had junior mints. "WHAT!", you say? I know I'm only 2 weeks post-op. I know it was bad anyway. But I just let the suckers sit in my mouth until they were liquid. I've been on the liquid/mushie (sort of combined with my doc) phase for a week. I need variety and the liquid-everything is killing me. But I know I have to do it. So the junior mints will be my ONLY slip-up. I actually don't feel guilty about it. I'm just sharing because I think we're all human and need to commiserate/celebrate with one another and help each other along the way. Thanks for sharing your slip-up. Now you know you're human, too.

[cnicholl 0]

Gross as it may be... chew and spit works great for me... I get the sensation and the taste... but not the calories or the potential damage to the band...

I have crunched tortilla chips... chewed a hamburger from burger king, and licked a softtaco from taco bell...

the funniest part was... the tortilla chips were great... i REALLY needed to crunch...

the hamburger was good for the first second, but after that it was really gross.... I guess I never really tasted a burger... rather I just inhaled it... and the taco? ugh... first taste was disgusting... the tortilla tasted like paste in my mouth... I then just licked the filling (meat and cheese) that wasn't all that great either... I pretty much cured myself of the craving on both of those... I didn't swallow any of it... just spit it back into the bag... gross but effective...

[CandySmooch 0]

To each his own and yes Jachut - why would anyone fill there body full of artificial sweetners that do nothing but toxify your body! NO more for me - As I have another thread started but you hit on a few topics of interest for me with the organic talk. Organic, natural, and Kosher foods are the only way to truly eat healthy -the book i recommended in the above post hits on all the subjects you and I have mentioned including the obesity epidemic and proccessed foods. I'm with moderation and organic, natural or kosher food all the way. I didn't do this to be on a diet for the rest of my life and my surgeon supports my choices all the way. Margarine is a huge killer itself - you can read a little about it here although its not much info it is a start http://www.snopes.com/food/warnings/butter.asp and I used to use this all the time! Why do you think you see everything TRANS FAT FREE now adays?? That hydrogenated oils are literally killers to everyone and we've been eating it here in the states for decades! Eatin' some plastic that tastes like butter. I'm not just sayin this stuff for the hell of it. Everyone needs to do their own research and decides whats right for them but this is the way I'm choosing to lead my life from now on.

[CaliQueenBee 0]

Well as CandySmooch said, "to each his own" ~ your body, your choice. I choose to eat as healthy as I can and not put my band or health at risk in the first few critical weeks. I encourage EVERYONE to follow their Dr's instructions and if they say you can eat chicken, steak, during your 1st 2 weeks, then that's between them and you. If your Dr says not to, then they tell you that for a reason and I did my best to follow my Dr's orders. Come on, we're all human and we're in the place we're in because we didn't use self control right, so we're gonna mess up here and there. Personally, I didn't spend all this money (I was a self-pay) to blow it in my 1st two weeks by stretching my band or by having my band slip because my digestive system had to work overtime digesting foods my Dr and nutritionist said not to consume.

It is not just a physical change but a change of mentality must go along with it to be successful. The band changes you physically, but the reason why we're overweight is not just fixed with the band. We have to still make good food choices, the band limits the quanity you have to determine the quality.

[Danistar 0]

Well if you can blend it up in a blender it should be alright, unless there are still pieces of gristle and stuff in it. But then you can strain it and should be able to eat the remainder without any problem. I did eat mac and cheese last night, I didn't have any problem with it because I chewed it up till it was non existent.

I had a lovely dinner of a turkey patty boiled in chicken broth along with some sweet potatoes that I could mast up. I just blended up the turkey...it was really juicy and I felt really satisfied after I ate it.

Just my two cents worth. Boy Sunsett I am really sorry about your gall bladder attack!

[jillrn 0]

I dont know if this will help anyone but I have a hand cranked baby food grinder than makes things very mealy in texture. Not quite puree, but almost grainy (hard to explain) I used it for my kids and they loved eating "regular" food, my dd would not eat baby food b/c of the texture, but she loved this. I think it would be better than a blender b/c it would not be liquidified, you would however have to add some sort of broth or something b/c it gets a little dry esp chicken. Jill