I origninally started with a low bmi and a "lower" weight than the most @ 185 and cant belive how difficult this has been. I lost 6lbs from the Fluid diet and now have been yo-yo'ing up and down with the last 3lbs. I am following the strict diet, but cant imagine how precise this science is, I mean one extra item on any particular day (ie 1 cookie) will add a pound.

How many of you have the same experience with having to precisely count every single calorie to see any loss at all?

If so, what range of calories produces loss for you?

Ps. I already have 8.5cc's and seems not to have phased me as far as sweet spot or restriction. I have never eaten to be full, but feel like no matter what I would eat, fullness would not be found.

I think you will find people who represent the whole spectrum on this issue, like most issues. I remember a poster who used to say you needed to count everything, including spices. Yes, she wanted you to count that shake of cinnamon.

Others would be more lax in their approach - and they could be just as successful. I guess it is as much your personal approach and how well you are doing with it.

I feel you I yo yoed 5 lb until I started the gym. I mean we all know the the key to weight loss isn't food, it's working out. I lost a lot by eating better but I feel my weight loss kicked into high gear when I felt enough energy to work out. I am only stating the obvious because you didn't mention anything about your work out routine. Also in regards to your "sweet spot" it might be lower than you think. I have had up to 7cc in my 10cc band. I feel that at 4cc I eat the best. Maybe you should try different amounts. I have had my lap band for almost 2 years... and it's still a mystery to me.

Samd

Your right, I havent been consistently exercising yet, I was trying to lose without exercise and then use exercise when I stopped loosing, but it looks like the only alternative I have at this time. Ill give it a try starting tomorrow and update in 1week.

Please share more about the sweet spot being lower. I do have restriction, but today out of curiosity, I decided I would eat until I felt full, not unconfortably full though. I think I was able to eat 1 1/2 - 2 cups and by my calculation thats WAY too much. Would you agree that Im not at my sweet spot?

I didn't have restriction at 8.5 ccs, either. Tiny fills from that point on have gotten me there--so don't be discouraged about fill amount. There's still plenty of room for fine tuning.

Secondly, the day-to-day fluctuations in weight are meaningless. A cookie really doesn't cause a gain of a pound. The body--especially the female body--does weird things, weight-wise. If you can't take the daily ups and downs in stride, it might be a good idea to weigh less frequently.

All that aside, yes--I really do need to pay very, very close attention to what and how much I eat, even though I have restriction and the band is doing its job very well.

I was banded because I have ridiculously low caloric needs. And even with a band, I still have those ridiculously low needs.

I lose best when I eat 800-900 calories, get 80-100 g protein/day, and stay <50 g net carbs/day.

EXERCISE IS CRUCIAL for me--I cannot lose without it, even at my very low caloric intake. I exercise every single day, at least once--and often twice.

Your needs might be very different. If you're not losing, it'd be a good idea to start tracking what your taking in (and putting out in the form of exercise) on a site like fitday.com. (No, I don't count my cinnamon!) Once you get a concrete idea of what's not working all that well, you can tweak things, one at a time, to see what does work.

If you're not already doing it, the first change I'd make is exercise.

The next would be addressing calories; do you lose better if you knock off 100 a day? If you add 100 a day? How about if you bump up Protein? Or pare down a little on refined carbs? If you add a bit of heart-healthy fat?

There are so many variables--and you really might have to do some work to figure out what does the trick for you. Once the ball gets rolling, you won't have to devote so much attention to it---but if you're not getting results, it really is worth the analysis.