fitchick911

Formerly,
Me, too! I have been worried about the complete lack of restriction. My only saving grace is the reduction in the Ghrelin hormone. I have always suspected my food cravings were chemical. Well, darned if that was 90% of my weight battle. Apparently, the band cut off the production or at least blocked it. I am so grateful for the "monkey off my back!". I had 4 ccs put in about a week ago. NO CHANGE! Only two incidents of "stuckness" in 3 months. But, not having the pangs to EAT EAT EAT is remarkable.
Good luck, Formerly. As my co-worker lovingly tells me all the time as I leave for lunch: Make good choices. Some days I could just slap her! :-)

Yes, but only after you are allowed to eat soft food. Make sure it is no sugar, or at the least low sugar.

Wow, I love this! I also have a Vitamix and make fruit/yogurt smoothies so far. I will try the vegetable drink now too. I'm only 5 weeks out from surgery and eating vegetables seems impossible. I haven't had a fill yet (next week) and still get restriction. I get full/too full easily. Vitamix @ least gives me a smoothie vegie option. Thanks for reminding me of all the machine can do. I make milkshakes for my kids. Soup.......lots of options. I need the energy. Thanks.

Well I agree and disagree with the other posters...
The key to losing fat - (I say fat because even muscle loss = weight loss and who wants to lose muscle?) is understanding and applying the energy balance PLUS understanding how your body uses food as fuel and how those fuels differ (carbs, fats, Proteins, alcohol).
Your body has a strong will to survive. It will not voluntarily give up its' fat stores. You have to coax and burn them off. You do this by creating a calorie deficit created by BOTH exercise and reduced food intake. Creating this deficit by intake alone will not take an obese person down to a healthy body fat percentage - at best, it will create a skinny fat person.
Calories In Vs. Calories Out is a bit too simplistic. 1000 calories of cotton candy and 1000 calories of skinless chicken breast are profoundly different. The difference in insulin response alone (not to mention other body chemistry) is huge! All calories are not equal.
Ponder this... "Joe" eats 1000 calories a day, day after day. He needs to lose 100 pounds. This low calorie diet gives him a deficit of 2000 calories a day. By this calculation he should be able to completely lose his excess body weight in 175-200 days....(Bet he doesn't)... But what if he continues this trend for several years? Does he completely disappear? Of course not. Because it's not just about calories in/calories out - it's about managing your metabolism via your energy balance.
I eat 1000 calories some days - I eat over 3000 other days. I still have challenging food demons, but I manage them. If I'm going to eat cheat foods, I do so on planned high calorie days. By cycling calories this way - combined with a challenging exercise schedule consisting of both strength and cardiovascular training - I keep my metabolism white hot. My body fat percentage continues to fall, while the scale stays relatively stable (small lean muscle tissue gains). This lifestyle allows fat loss on calorie deficit days and muscle gains on calorie surplus days.
There are several scenarios of posts on LBT that leave me grumbling... One of them is very low calorie diets. People who eat very low calories (600-1000) love the weight loss they initially see. But how much of that weight is lost muscle? Your body is a machine. If it's being starved is it going to give up metabolically active lean muscle tissue which is high maintenance to keep - or fat stores which costs next to nothing to maintain? Some of both, but the ratio is going to tip toward the lean muscle tissue. As muscle tissues decline, your body adjusts it's metabolism in a fight to avoid starvation, the weight loss slows and then comes the unavoidable - yet easily predicted plateau. They havn't lost weight in months, but hey, plateau's are normal right? No... they aren't normal - they mean your body has adjusted your metabolism accordingly to try to stave off starvation. It won't give up without a fight. But their doctor prescribed the 800 calorie low carb diet, so that must not be it... :tt2:
Here's another one... I've read a lot of posts where people are eating 1000 calories and gaining weight and they try to suggest it's muscle gains... Not a chance... It is physiologically impossible to maintain that large of a calorie deficit and gain muscle tissue, which actually requires a calorie surplus. One person is starving themselves eating 800 low carb calories a day, while at the same time I sit here on a high calorie day snacking on Peanut M&M's dipped in Peanut Butter.
"So Brad, if your so damned smart and think this is so easy, then why did you get so fat you needed WLS?" Because I didn't understand the energy balance and how my body used fuel and how those fuel types differ - BUT now I do... And I want everyone else to know too... It may be simple - but it isn't easy... The band is a great tool to help you achieve your goals.
Your body is a wonderful efficient machine when properly understood. Fuel it appropriately and it will reward you!
Good Luck!
Brad