Hi all, okay. Started eating small again as of this past sunday 1/15/2011. As of today have lost 6.5. YEAH for me. But, I am starving. Today I had oatmeal and coffee (lots), lunch i had 1 slice of cajun turkey 1 pickle, banana pepper, 10 olives and poured a little ranch over it.was satisfied. at 4:30 i was starving, so went to starbucks got their ($4.24) chocolate banana protein smoothie. hit the spot. tonight i ate talipia, about 2 tbsp of homemade kraut. 1 tsp of banana peppers, 1 pickle with ranch over the fish. i am full and satisfied. I am gonna give this my best again. when u are self pay and it cost $120.00 to get a fill that is needed then i guess i am gonna try this on my own. wish me luck.

Whoa buddy, watch out for those starbucks drinks! They hit your calorie count as hard as your wallet. I'd say cancel the liquid calories all together, especially if you know you need a fill but can't get one as yet. Save up that four bucks a day and in a month or so you can get the fill you need. Your other food choices look fine, but you're a bit low on the fruits and veggies. Try to sneak a few in and chew them well, they go a long way in satisfying hunger with the band. Apples are a great treat. I can never eat a whole one though.

Great job on losing 6.5 lbs! you are on your way! Good luck on "dieting" on your own. I hope you can get a fill soon! Try the South Beach Diet, it does well with controlling hunger and it is very band-friendly.

It's a long road ahead, just keep plugging away!

I would definitely dont do starbucks and maybe have protein in the morning instead of oatmeal its so many carbs to start off your day. Have some eggs or a shake it would be better.

I have oatmeal every morning. Steelcut oats is low glycemic, holds you a long time and has Protein in it. The brand I use (Bob's Red Mill) has 7 grams of protein. Not a huge amount, but enough. I add chopped apples to mine and also eat a turkey sausage link. However, if you're getting hungrier sooner after Breakfast than you'd like, try something else.

If you're using a sugary instant oatmeal type, try switching over to steelcut. It can be made overnight in a crockpot so it's easy to have ready first thing in the morning.

I thought whoa Nelly on the Starbucks smoothie too, but looked it up and while it's hefty in calories (http://news.starbucks.com/news/starbucks+vivanno+smoothies+fact+sheet.htm), it's not the worst choice in the world. I'd have it made with skim milk.. or even better make my own at home and bring it in a thermos. I like the idea of having something from home and putting the $4.00 in a kitty to save up for a fill.

You're doing pretty well, a little more forethought and planning ahead will help you do even better! Maybe take an apple and some string cheese with you to work for those late afternoon hungries?

Keep on posting, we want to know how you're doing.

I am gonna give this my best again. when u are self pay and it cost $120.00 to get a fill that is needed then i guess i am gonna try this on my own. wish me luck.

Just curious but if you're going to try it on your own and not use the band at all...why get it in the first place? As a self-pay, you've just spent thousands of dollars on getting the band. So by not getting fills, it's a bit like buying a car and then refusing to put gas in it, no?

My doctor put 3cc in on the first fill, 2cc on the next and then went up by 1cc fills. If I had know that I was looking for cessation of hunger and not physical restriction, I would have stopped at 6cc...only 3 fills. Well worth the money to get rid of the hunger.

If you're one of the fortunate ones, the band alone will give you enough pressure on the vagus nerves to eliminate hunger (except normal hunger right before a meal)...assuming you're eating a reasonable meal. So pay attention to your hunger level...and whether you're eating enough.

I'm back to my Protein shake (with half a banana and a Tbs peanut butter) for breakfast. For lunch and dinner I eat 3 oz of protein, 1/2 cup vegies and (maybe) 1/4 cup starch. I'm not hungry for 4 hours after a meal so I know I'm at my sweet spot.

As others said, I'd watch those Starbucks smoothies. Most of them contain sugar in some form...and sugar can set you to craving more sugar.

Oh, and congrats on the weight loss!

.

Your weight loss is great! I agree with other posters that Starbucks is 1) expensive, 2) you can make your own shake with more Protein less suger. If you can't make a shake a work; you could buy a ready to drink protein which still would be cheaper. Premier RTD at costco is like $1.39 per container.

Also a little concerned about the olives, they have good fat but are very high in salt.

Thank you all for the input. first of all i choose to eat the oatmeal due to the fiber helps my bowels move. (i have a bad prob. in that area). 2nd I know that starbucks was bad but dang I was starving and fixing to get groceries and instead of going thru drive thru and getting a burger like i was doing i chose that. (LOL). The protein shake that I am making is: Slim Fast HIgh Protein Chocolate, 1 tbsp p.nut butter, 1/2 banana 1/2 cup ice and fill the rest with 1% milk. ** I hate skim milk **. I did real good this wknd. I gotta eat more meat (protein). i think in the morning i am gonna start with 1 egg with oatmeal. lunch meat and veggie and supper same. wish me luck and thanks for the support. i need it so bad. i want to get it right this time.

Okay today was one of them days. Our son was moving and decided today was the day. I only had coffee that was it. 2 glasses of water until: YES: Starbucks. Sorry but no food, in a hurry, did not want drive thru so again had a smoothie. It held me over until supper. I had Captain D's (baked talapia with rice). Had 1/2 of the fish down had about 2 bites of rice and the rice got stuck. So yes I had to excuse myself to the potty. Went sat back down and ate almost all of the other 1/2 of fish. I know today was bad, bad. Cannot live like this. But I # 1 was not hungry today. # 2 I did weight and I am down 9 lbs. 240. Yes this is wonderful. Tomorrow is another day and I am def. going to have the right foods. Today was hard. Thanks for all the support. Yes I Can Do This in 2011.

Please eat your oatmeal!!!!!!!!!!!! I eat it all the time and I am still managing to lose weight! Plus, if you go workout within an hour of eating oatmeal it will give you a great energy boost! At least it works for me! Eating Protein along with the carb boosts your weight loss as well. So, you did good by eating an egg along with the oatmeal.

Thank you all for the input. first of all i choose to eat the oatmeal due to the fiber helps my bowels move. (i have a bad prob. in that area). 2nd I know that starbucks was bad but dang I was starving and fixing to get groceries and instead of going thru drive thru and getting a burger like i was doing i chose that. (LOL). The Protein shake that I am making is: Slim Fast HIgh Protein chocolate, 1 tbsp p.nut butter, 1/2 banana 1/2 cup ice and fill the rest with 1% milk. ** I hate skim milk **. I did real good this wknd. I gotta eat more meat (protein). i think in the morning i am gonna start with 1 egg with oatmeal. lunch meat and veggie and supper same. wish me luck and thanks for the support. i need it so bad. i want to get it right this time.

Thankyou for your input on the oatmeal. It seems to work for me.

For breakfast I have Chobani Greek yoghurt (fat free with fruit), half a scoop of vanilla whey isolate powder, spendra to taste, 10 g of kashi go lean high protein for some crunch. This is about 25 g of protein for about 220 calories. I would consider keeping a Ready to Drink Protein in your car for emergencies it will save you money and let you have a lower calorie high protein option when you're busy.

Thank you all for the input. first of all i choose to eat the oatmeal due to the fiber helps my bowels move. (i have a bad prob. in that area). 2nd I know that starbucks was bad but dang I was starving and fixing to get groceries and instead of going thru drive thru and getting a burger like i was doing i chose that. (LOL). The protein shake that I am making is: Slim Fast HIgh Protein Chocolate, 1 tbsp p.nut butter, 1/2 banana 1/2 cup ice and fill the rest with 1% milk. ** I hate skim milk **. I did real good this wknd. I gotta eat more meat (protein). i think in the morning i am gonna start with 1 egg with oatmeal. lunch meat and veggie and supper same. wish me luck and thanks for the support. i need it so bad. i want to get it right this time.

I've been told that Slim-Fast has too much sugar, but seriously I have not read the labels.

I use Syntrax Nectar for my post-workout drinks. It's 90 calories, 0 sugar, 0 carbs and 23 grams of protein. It comes in lots of different fruit flavors and some richer, more desserty flavors too. I mix it with something flavorful.. like powerade zero or coffee or whatever seems appropriate.

Just mentioning this in case you want to try something other than slim-fast. www.si03.com or www.netrition.com for the syntrax nectar (make sure you look for the nectar.. they have other stuff that isn't appropriate for our needs).

The egg with oatmeal sounds like a good idea.

Today is Sunday Feb. 6, 2011, .1:00 pm I am down to 236.5 down 12.5 from 249 as of Jan 15, 2011. So excited. out of the 40's.

This morning I had oatmeal with 1/2 tsp. of butter. Coffee (lots) with hazelnut creamer sprinkled with cinnamon. I have prob. 16 oz. of water so far. At 2:00 i will have a Jillian Whey Choc. Protein shake with 1 cup of ice, 1/2 banana, 2 tbsp. of p.nut butter, 1 scoop of protein powder, 1/2 cup 1% milk and 1 cup of water. Put into my bullet blender and have a great protein shake.

I eat so much oatmeal haha! It's delicious.

I only have my oatmeal in the morning. And it is the maple and brown sugar. I know I know, but as we all know this is a life journey not a diet. So I am doing what works for me. I am just overjoyed at being down 12. 5 lbs in less than a month.

I have oatmeal every morning. Steelcut oats is low glycemic, holds you a long time and has protein in it. The brand I use (Bob's Red Mill) has 7 grams of protein. Not a huge amount, but enough. I add chopped apples to mine and also eat a turkey sausage link. However, if you're getting hungrier sooner after breakfast than you'd like, try something else.

If you're using a sugary instant oatmeal type, try switching over to steelcut. It can be made overnight in a crockpot so it's easy to have ready first thing in the morning.

I thought whoa Nelly on the Starbucks smoothie too, but looked it up and while it's hefty in calories (http://news.starbuck...+fact+sheet.htm), it's not the worst choice in the world. I'd have it made with skim milk.. or even better make my own at home and bring it in a thermos. I like the idea of having something from home and putting the $4.00 in a kitty to save up for a fill.

You're doing pretty well, a little more forethought and planning ahead will help you do even better! Maybe take an apple and some string cheese with you to work for those late afternoon hungries?

Keep on posting, we want to know how you're doing.

Is all this oatmeal gluten free? How long does it take to prepare? What makes it more filling than regular oatmeal?