I'm curious about something....

Just how easy is it to strectch your pouch? I try really hard to keep my portion size to 1/2 C per meal as recommended by my dietician. But there are sometimes where I don't have anything to measure with and have to "eyeball" my portions. If I go a little over the 1/2 cup, is my pouch going to stretch out and then slow down my weight loss? Or does it take a lot to stretch the pouch and it's not a huge deal if I eat slightly more once in a while?

I've made the investment of time, $$$, and effort in this process and don't want to mess it up!

IMO - volume measurements are a guideline, and pouch capacity is completely dependent on things like your level of restriction (e.g. with no restriction the first bite of your 1/2C might be history by the time you reach your last bite), how fast you're eating, what you're eating, etc. I've found that volume guidelines serve best as a way to convert portion to a spatial relationship, like using the palm of your hand to gauge a serving of meat (poor people with tiny palms, yay people with huge hands). A way to help us visualize the quantity of food we might, in an ideal world, target as a meal. Please don't think of it as an exact measurement living under an exact science, to where 1 crumb of food over 1/2 C is going to stretch your pouch. Pouch stretching it a process.

Restriction (fills) will decide how much you can eat. 1/2 cup has never been enough for me, I eat around 1 cup and always have. That amount satisfies me and has given me success at weightloss and after three years the band is still working.

Stretching comes from eating all the time and constantly keeping your pouch filled to capacity. Ideally you should be eating three meals a day and allowing your pouch to empty out before you take in your next meal (only eat when you are actually hungry). If you graze all day adding food to the top as it slowly trickles through the band then eventually you will stretch your pouch.

Restriction (fills) will decide how much you can eat. 1/2 cup has never been enough for me, I eat around 1 cup and always have. That amount satisfies me and has given me success at weightloss and after three years the band is still working.

Stretching comes from eating all the time and constantly keeping your pouch filled to capacity. Ideally you should be eating three meals a day and allowing your pouch to empty out before you take in your next meal (only eat when you are actually hungry). If you graze all day adding food to the top as it slowly trickles through the band then eventually you will stretch your pouch.

It's all about calories folks. 1 c/pasta has a lot more cals. than 1c/asparagus. Guidline should be cals., not size.

I agree with Jodie. I think you should be able to "feel" your ideal meal size, to me it is utterly ridiculous to think that you need to measure it and not even listen to your own body. Serve a reasonable portion of food, eat till you're not hungry, its pretty simple. Leave what you dont want.

The main reason pouches stretch out is that people have their bands way too tight, nothing can get through easily and thus even tiny meals result in the pouch being distended for long periods of time - even permanently becuase they havent even emptied fully the next time a person eats.This is partly why some surgeons say 3 meals NO snacking, you have to allow your stomach to actually empty, well this is what my surgeon believes anyhow and he told me there's a lot of credible evidence that avoiding snacking and having longer periods between meals controls leptin much more effectively and decreases overall hunger, that snacking keeps the pouch distended, increases the risk of problems and keeps your body in a hormonal and chemical swing that lends itself towards inappropriate hunger.

I know that certainly works for me, I find snacking makes me hungrier and I just keep eating, exactly like some people say that eating carbs makes them hungrier. By restricting myself to 3 meals I can eat enough at a time to satisfy myself psychologically, I've had enough to enjoy the process of eating and to be mentally done as well as phsyically, which i think is important. Then I go five or six hours until I eat again. Even unfilled, I dont really get hungry, and I dont actually require much more food than when I had restriction. My pouch (even unfilled I still have one because I can and have gotten stuck on bread) empties completely and remains unstretched for a few hours at a time.

Other surgeons of course believe in tighter bands and more frequent, smaller amounts of food. But you kind of have to choose one side or the other, eat six times a day and the portions do need to be tiny.

I agree with Jodie. I think you should be able to "feel" your ideal meal size, to me it is utterly ridiculous to think that you need to measure it and not even listen to your own body. Serve a reasonable portion of food, eat till you're not hungry, its pretty simple. Leave what you dont want.

The main reason pouches stretch out is that people have their bands way too tight, nothing can get through easily and thus even tiny meals result in the pouch being distended for long periods of time - even permanently becuase they havent even emptied fully the next time a person eats.This is partly why some surgeons say 3 meals NO snacking, you have to allow your stomach to actually empty, well this is what my surgeon believes anyhow and he told me there's a lot of credible evidence that avoiding snacking and having longer periods between meals controls leptin much more effectively and decreases overall hunger, that snacking keeps the pouch distended, increases the risk of problems and keeps your body in a hormonal and chemical swing that lends itself towards inappropriate hunger.

I know that certainly works for me, I find snacking makes me hungrier and I just keep eating, exactly like some people say that eating carbs makes them hungrier. By restricting myself to 3 meals I can eat enough at a time to satisfy myself psychologically, I've had enough to enjoy the process of eating and to be mentally done as well as phsyically, which i think is important. Then I go five or six hours until I eat again. Even unfilled, I dont really get hungry, and I dont actually require much more food than when I had restriction. My pouch (even unfilled I still have one because I can and have gotten stuck on bread) empties completely and remains unstretched for a few hours at a time.

Other surgeons of course believe in tighter bands and more frequent, smaller amounts of food. But you kind of have to choose one side or the other, eat six times a day and the portions do need to be tiny.

Thanks for your answers everybody - I've been away for a while but am checking back in tonight. All of the above were very helpful - thanks again!

You need to worry about stretching your pouch if your eating past the point of fullness!!! My doctor asks me everytime I go in there if I'm eating more than four ounces and if I'm satisified between meals...this is how decides if I need more fill or not!!! Also keep away from the liquids while you eat!