So folks, there are a lot of opnions out there on the best way to handle your food intake. There are a lot of metabolism theories and suggestions on what is best. I'm curious as to what everyone is doing and how well it works for you and most important, why do you do it that way.

So do you..

Wing it. Eat what you need. Let the band tell you when you are full and exercise.

Calorie count. Keep track of what you eat but don't have a set eating schedule.

3 meals/2 Snacks. Stay strictly on the metabolism booster 3/2 program.

Which do you do? How well does it work for you? Why do you choose that particular format?

I choose to 'wing it' but I do keep an eye on the calories & exercise 3 to 4 times a week. I'm a grazer from way back due to my love/hate relationship with food. I avoided food as much as possible but when it finally came time to give in and eat, I'd eat to much AND didn't do my metabolism any favors by doing it that way.

I am slowly working towards 3/2 but I generally can't eat in the AM. I'm coming to terms with eating a lunch & dinner. But I generally don't even want lunch or snacks. It's a slow process but I know I need to get there because even my doc says the 3/2 way helps boost the metabolism. I'm not worried about that as much as I am about developing a proper relationship with food and a 3/2 program feels like the best way to do that.

So which way works best for you and why?

Wing it....I was told to let the band tell me how much to eat. I still pay attention to protein and calories/fat but dont count them just moderate them.

I wing it too. When I was first banded, I really just wanted a break from years of journaling every bite I ate; I thought that eventually I'd have to go back to tracking calories at some point. But I've surpassed every goal I've set thus far without journaling or counting calories, which helps me to feel so NORMAL about food and eating! If I ever start to gain weight or something, I'm not against it if it will help me, but the band has enabled me to eat to live, not live to eat.

I tried to measure, weigh, count...whatever...but I pretty much wing it at least for now. I do pay attention to what Im eating, how much and try to stay healthy....and let the band tell me when Iv had enough. I still think measuring would be good to do though....especially if you can eat more than a cup of food at a sitting...I want to do that but find winging it much easier and its working for me...at least for now...if I was gaining weight Id probably become more strict.

I tried to measure, weigh, count...whatever...but I pretty much wing it at least for now. I do pay attention to what Im eating, how much and try to stay healthy....and let the band tell me when Iv had enough. I still think measuring would be good to do though....especially if you can eat more than a cup of food at a sitting...I want to do that but find winging it much easier and its working for me...at least for now...if I was gaining weight Id probably become more strict.

I tried to measure, weigh, count...whatever...but I pretty much wing it at least for now. I do pay attention to what Im eating, how much and try to stay healthy....and let the band tell me when Iv had enough. I still think measuring would be good to do though....especially if you can eat more than a cup of food at a sitting...I want to do that but find winging it much easier and its working for me...at least for now...if I was gaining weight Id probably become more strict.

I track calories pretty anally. I use a combination of calorie tracking and measuring/weighing. 3/2 would never work for me as I do have Snacks at night (Im working on controlling this better through therapy, but its hard) and so if I'm going to have them, I'll at least stop when I run out of calories (the band doesn't help me with the snacks). I also don't eat Breakfast. My first meal is at noon and its a Protein shake because I generally can't eat much that early in the day. So I would have to fit 3 actual meals in starting at noon with 3/2 which I probably wouldn't be able to do. When I don't track calories and just wing it, I go WAY overboard since its easy for me to not think about what I eat when I dont track it. I don't specifically do low carb or anything but when I eat non-grain protein my carbs are usually not crazy high (under 50 a day or so maybe? Sometimes snacks make it higher...Im not overly focused on it but I do try to eat quality carbs/grains) and I usually eat anywhere between 70-100g of protein a day.

I do 2 hours of cardio and cross training 6 days a week and some light exercise (walking or 30 minutes on the elliptical) on the 7th day, just to give my body a little break.

When I'm really on track and following my plan for calories (850-950 a day), I lose an average of 3.5-3.9 pounds a week. Obviously that will probably change the more weight that I lose as you burn fewer calories during the day the lighter you are, but so far I'm happy with the way its going.

I have heard that 3/2 (or at least not eating at night) can boost metabolism. If I start having problems with metabolism or just being tired, I may try to not eat at night (although right now, even if I wake up at 6AM and don't go to sleep until 11 or midnight, I still have trouble falling asleep). As I get a handle on my food addiction, that may become a reality (I would love to be able to really CHOOSE to not to eat, instead of feeling panicked and like I NEED to eat).

Interesting thread.

I pretty much wing it. I do not journal or count anything. I keep some basics in mind like drinking a Protein shake daily because I am not able to eat enough protein. I take my vits. and eat a Fiber gummie every day. I listen to my full signal and stop eating even if there is a bite or 2 left on the plate.

It has worked well for me.

I journal everything. This includes my cheats (wine and chocolate), my chewable Calcium and my diet juices.

Then again, my loss has been small. Who knows what is the best way to do it. Personal Quest.

The only thing I really look at is weight of my Protein, try for 3-4oz each meal. I definitely am conscious of calories and fat, eating quality foods, and..have not cheated. Rather, allowed myself small amounts of the good stuff. For example, breakfast this morning was two eggs with reduced fat cheddar cheese and bits of real bacon, avacado on the side. Now, I can live with that!!!

I have a great tool on my mobile phone (android) called the calorie counter, it is really great and I highly recommend it. I use it mostly to look at calories in things I USED to eat, like a double bacon cheeseburger......IT IS QUITE DISTURBING THE AMOUNT OF FAT AND CRAP I USED TO EAT!!!!

Good luck,

FBS

Wing it, for sure.

I've journaled, tracked and counted my food intake all the way up to 350lbs.

All it ever did for me was waste my time. I think this is a personal thing, but for me living like a normal person is the way to go. I do pay attention to what I eat and believe in moderation.

Cindy

For the most part I wing it, stay away from high fatty foods, try to get my protein in. I weigh/measure my food for a few days every couple of weeks just to make sure I am on track with the amounts. So far this has been working for me. I never was one to journal what I eat.

Wow! I'm amazed at how many 'Wingers' there are out there. I was expecting to see a lot of 3/2ers.

I generally wing it but after the last seminar I spoke at I was beginning to wonder if I was doing myself a disservice as the doctor that gave this particular seminar (not my surgeon) touted the necessity and benefits of the 3/2 way of life. My surgeon told me personally, "I don't care what you it, it's how much." Of course I know that both he and I would prefer that I don't consume 900 calories in ice cream each day, but I get his drift. The only thing he actually said to stay away from was high calorie sodas which I don't drink anyway.

I am a winger out of years of habit. As I said, I can't even get a Breakfast in, I'm just to tight in the AM. I've been a little stalled for the last 8 weeks at 185 but my recent increase in exercise seems to have pushed me through that.

I've cut my Starbucks down from a mocha to a skinny latte or plain coffe and my Godiva consumption has been put on hold as well. That should help a little.

I was concerned that my winging it was still harboring avoidance issues with food but after reading your comments I see that it's not avoidance it's healthy ambivolence. Ahhh, I see...If food is no longer an issue then there's no need to monitor the heck out of it. So if I choose to wing it or 3/2 it, as long as I'm comfortable & healthy I think I'll be fine with either way.

In the meantime I think I'll stick with my wing it & eyeballing the calories method. Seems to be working so far.

Thank you for your comments. They really helped me understand a nother piece in the puzzle of my relationship with food.

I wing it. It was important to me that I don't journal or weigh and measure. I tend to obsess over things and didn't want to go that route again. I lost 40 lbs on Weight Watchers and maintained it for 2 years by obsessively tracking everything that went in my mouth. It bordered on some form of an eating disorder or OCD.

So far, it has worked well for me. If that changes, I am open to journaling or weighing/measuring. Part of the reason I got the band is so that I have an internal means of portion control.

If I let my band tell me when I've had enough, I'd be right back up at 330 lb. I weigh and measure everything and I record everything I stick in my mouth...including gum or breath mints. I tried winging it but found that my weight loss is critically tied to how many grams of Protein and carbs I eat, as well as calories.

I also eat on schedule. I wake up automatically at the same time every day and my body seems to now be used to eating at set times. I find that about an hour before meals, it's telling me it's time to eat but in a way that gives me that hour to prepare (versus the ravenous hunger that demands to be fed *now*).

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During the weigh loss phase, I weighed and measured and journaled EVERYTHING....and....very happy I did. It set me up to trust my way of eating. Now that I have been in the maintenance stage, I trust my good judgement from the things I learned while weighing and measuring. Now I eat when hungry....make good/healthy food choices and don't stress about it. I do make room for treats on a daily basis and love my stress-free way of eating.

I also am a believer of every day getting adequate amounts of protein and fueling my body every 2 hours with some kind of snack. Learning how to eat by weighing a measuring taught me how to "wing it".