there is a biggest loser contest starting up in my area. am i wrong to join this challenge knowing i have the band? my husband said i have an advantage over them due to having the band and thats not fair.

i disagree because i have to work just as hard to lose weight too. the band controls my portion size but nothing else.

i just wanted thoughts from other banders.

I think you have the advantage.

You may have to work just as hard but you won't be as hungry as they are.

I think it is an advantage - and you do too, or you wouldn't have been banded. We all got the band to use to help us lose weight. If you didn't think it would work to your advantage, then why bother? As far as the contest, it would depend on the rules.

Good luck, you can do this - contest or no contest!

thx for your comments, im shocked because as banders we are always saying how we are not cheating by getting the band. but i guess that only depends on the situation.

thx for your comments, im shocked because as banders we are always saying how we are not cheating by getting the band. but i guess that only depends on the situation.

Not cheating but using a tool that makes it not as painful.

I wondered the same thing too, my local Curves posts women's weight loss (lbs and inches) on a bulletin board (with your permission of course), and I have opted to not let my weight loss be posted on the board. I don't want to mislead other women to think that my weight loss is due to Curves and their programs alone, because it's not.

Unless there's an alterior motive to win the competition (prize money or gym membership etc.) I would join a weight loss challenge here on LBT with individuals that have also had the Lap-Band.

1.) How much is the prize? LOL

2.) I disagree with those above... because as we all know it IS possible to gain weight with the band if you're not mindful of what you eat. We may be banded, but banded for different reasons. I'm hungrier with my band than I was without it and it's because it reminds me to eat. I didn't get fat by "over eating" as most people do, I got fat by not eating all day then eating one big meal late at night. Constantly keeping my body is starvation mode, so it stored fat instead of losing (even if my calorie intake was lower than I should have had in a day)

So I disagree that you "won't be as hungry as them" because I experience the opposite.

Also you do have to work out and do all of those things and ideally you'll lose 2lbs a week. The average person can do the same, eating larger portions.

So carry on, enter the contest and split the prize money with me lol

:tt1:

ymjackson- you are funny. honestly i didn't think about the prize money and i still haven't. i have been on here and other boards trying to get a support ggroup going in my area with no luck. where i had my surgery has support groups but i dont want to make the drive since its in a different city.

k-state- i have joined challenges on here to and they are great but i'm looking for local support too. im sure there are other banders in my area but i can't find a local group.

i looked at this challenge as oh they meet once and week and talk, exchange receipes etc so i wanted to join.

thx everyone

The band is just a tool...just like a treadmill. If it's working properly and we use it properly, we'll lose weight. If not, we won't. I don't see having the band as cheating any more than I see having the use of a treadmill in your home as cheating. We don't magically lose weight just because we have the band.

The biggest loser is about perseverance, self-control and willpower...and we didn't get those installed with the band. Just ask those who are gaining weight after having taken it off...or who have only lost 25 pounds this past year or who struggle on a daily basis to make the right food choices and not graze.

If anything, I think those who don't have the band may have the advantage because they won't be relying on the false security of a band (as way too many banded do)...which means they may actually be motivated to work harder.

My .02.

Based on your reply above, and since you are primarily looking for support, I would join the challenge, and if I won, I would decline the prize and title. You would still get all the support without wondering if you had an advantage.

Good luck to you!

I totally agree with elfipoo the band is just like having a tredmill or elipctical. Just as long as before you sign up the person in charge says its ok for you to join with having the band. you will have just as hard of a time as them and it will totally motivate you. i joined a biggesets loser como last year it was great but broke my foot and didnt get to finish.wish they were doing it agian goog luck in whatever coice you make.

What do the contest rules state? I'd think there would be something in it about bariatric surgery or the use of medications to assist in the program.

If it asks about it and you have to lie, I'd say no. If I were part of it without surgery and thought everyone was the same and heard there were people who had surgery and were part of it. I'd be ticked, but would take a look at the rules of the game.

As you stated, your motivation is the support, not the winning of the title...

Just my 2 cents worth.

Denise

I have not told people about my band. But, I would ask if I could join just for the moral support, not mentioning the surgery.

People do get weirded out by WLS and we sure don't need any more of that. It would be great though if you could meet with them for the recipes and fellowship.

If they ask why you don't want to officially join, just say you are a slow loser (or what ever) and don't like to compete or something like that.

I don't put my band out there for ANYONE to give me any negative comments.

I just joined curves 2 days ago and they told me about the contest and I told them well i have the lapband and they said there are 3 people that have had weight loss surgery in the contest. I dont think its fair so I didnt enter. I could never ever have lost the 100lbs that Ive lost without this band so it must be an advantage.

Well.....it IS an advantage. But I find it advantageous not so much in day to day ability to stick to a *diet* but that it keeps me from ever really blowing out. Day to day, I do get hungry, I do get head hunger and I can guarantee if I entered a competition like that, after a day of low carb high Protein eating, I'd be struggling to avoid a big carb pig out. I would struggle every bit as much on that sort of regime as I ever did.

The band helped me achieve slow steady loss, not spectacular loss like you're wanting in competition situation. For that, I'd have to dig as deep as ever.

And of course, the exercise part of the equation, you'll have people that do that easily and people that wont. Bands dont make a difference to that.

And of course, its ENTIRELY possible that someone will beat you anyway. Some people have incredible willpower over short periods of time and some people lose weight faster than others.

I'd enter. Its not as if its hundreds of thousands of dollars like on the TV version. If you win, it will be down to hard work and perserverance, the difference being you probably wont pack on 20lb within a week of it finishing.

I dont think I'd lie about it though, if there are rules and if there are, I'd ask if I could join for moral support.

Wow, this is a great thread and an interesting case study in comparative morality. We have heard the story that the band is a tool…and it is, but when you apply it as a competitive weapon it is a superior tool. I am grateful to I have the ability to use the lap-band and I whole-heartedly embrace its assistance. However, it is a tool that creates and advantage, if it did not we would not be here using it. This is like saying that building a house with hand tools is the same degree of difficulty as using power tools.

Since you are considering using it in a competitive manner it reminds me of the debate about using steroids in sports, there is no doubt that they help athletes become faster, stronger and more capable. (BTW…I am not against steroids and have used them myself in sports where they are legal. But that is another debate…I also hate the BCS and think we should have division I football playoff…just to add fuel to the fire…sorry to get off track)

We have all know the adage use the right tool for the job and LB is the right tool for losing weight. The question is one of ethics…if you and the other competitors agree that a LB participant is acceptable…then no harm, no foul. If you don’t tell them it violates the spirit of the competition. I really don’t mean this to sound so high-and-mighty, I am a very competitive, Type-A person and will use every tool I can to win, but inside at the end of the day, I want my victories to be untainted and for no one to be able to say they should have the proverbial “asterisk” attached to them.