Hello, my name is Sara, and I'm mobidly obese. I'm 28 years old and really tired of being FAT! Even when I was at my peak playing varsity soccer and running cross country I was always "thicker" (a nice euphamism, right?) than my team mates.

I have never really been an over eater... I eat til I get full then stop. But I am a bored eater... and maybe even a lonely eater (when my husband is deployed and I'm not accountable to anyone)... I try to eat health(-ier) foods already and I'm just concerned that because I'm already not eating a whole lot of food I wont be as successful as I hope to be with the band.

I am "approved pre-op" at the moment and wanted to ask people about their amount of food intake before they were banded and how successful they have been so far. Anyone else a light eater before the pre-op diet seeing results? what tips or tricks have you learned in adjusting to your banded life style?

I know exerciese is a big part of it, but I just want to make sure I'm not wasting my time and putting myself at risk for the possibilty of failing (again).

Any suggestions? Please let me your story!

The band (with restriction) makes it so that you can only eat 1/2 cup to 1 cup of food. And you feel full for 3-4 hrs after that. I guarantee you're eating more than that right now. I'm not saying I know for a fact it will work for you, because there are people who fail with the band, but I'm confident when I say I'm sure you'll be eating less once you reach full restriction.

(Not to mention you're not able to eat carbs like bread & tortillas and cake....cause it will get stuck! so that makes it easier/less calories as well!)

Hello, my name is Sara, and I'm mobidly obese. I'm 28 years old and really tired of being FAT! Even when I was at my peak playing varsity soccer and running cross country I was always "thicker" (a nice euphamism, right?) than my team mates.

I have never really been an over eater... I eat til I get full then stop. But I am a bored eater... and maybe even a lonely eater (when my husband is deployed and I'm not accountable to anyone)... I try to eat health(-ier) foods already and I'm just concerned that because I'm already not eating a whole lot of food I wont be as successful as I hope to be with the band.

I am "approved pre-op" at the moment and wanted to ask people about their amount of food intake before they were banded and how successful they have been so far. Anyone else a light eater before the pre-op diet seeing results? what tips or tricks have you learned in adjusting to your banded life style?

I know exerciese is a big part of it, but I just want to make sure I'm not wasting my time and putting myself at risk for the possibilty of failing (again).

Any suggestions? Please let me your story!

OMG! Sounds like you have the same pre-surgery jitters I had! But not to worry! If you start out following your dr. guidelines closely, by the time you get to eating 1/2 cup to one cup at a time, you are already so many lbs lighter, you are motivated to look for the foods that are highest in Protein and lowest in calories. That has been the ticket for me anyway.

I am still not in the "green zone," ie., where you eat less cause of the band making you feel "full," but the added protein in my diet (80 grams a day) is my savior for now.

Super good luck to you. And keep checking in on this website. It has been so helpful for me.

Thank you both SO MUCH for replying!

I think you're right, Peach. Im definitely eating more than 1/2-1 cup at a time. I just have to be confident and keep positive. I'm glad I found this site though! I have found out so much about how to work with the band from reading over the posts here. I definitely feel more informed about how to succeed going forward because everyone here is so willing to open up about their experiences and help others maximize their success as well.

Thank you, Goodie, for your support! Im glad to know I'm not the only one who has these jitters. Your encouragement means a lot to me! )

I think we kid ourselves about what light eating really is! I was (am, really) a boredom snacker/sweet carb addict rather than a really huge volume eater but I had great success, getting down to a bmi of 20. I wasnt a very fast loser though.

One of the most important parts of my band journey was attending mindful eating sessions with a psychologist who specialized in over eating. I also had a big issue with boredom eating. I would have 3-4 bags of low fat crunchy snacks (half a bag of pirates booty does have calories) in my house at any given time. Also I could eat half a box of luck charms as DESSERT for dinner. Once you are at restriction the band does help with the hunger. Without the hunger you have a better chance of drowning out the voice in your head telling you to eat that cookie left in the conference room. The voice is still there however. They call it head hunger. Where your head says you should eat something even though your stomache is'nt hungry. Due to other health issues I had to wait 7 months from time of consult to surgery; and lost 50 pounds. During that time I significantly reduced my food consumption. For the month presurgery I was doing 2 protein shakes a day and one meal. I also swam 7 days a week. I have been a slow loser, 1 pound a week. Not sure if this has been because I lost a total of 82 pounds dieting and exercising before having surgery. I would say the developing a new mindset or relationship with food BEFORE surgery has everything to do with your being successful post surgery.

One of the most important parts of my band journey was attending mindful eating sessions with a psychologist who specialized in over eating. I also had a big issue with boredom eating. I would have 3-4 bags of low fat crunchy Snacks (half a bag of pirates booty does have calories) in my house at any given time. Also I could eat half a box of luck charms as DESSERT for dinner. Once you are at restriction the band does help with the hunger. Without the hunger you have a better chance of drowning out the voice in your head telling you to eat that cookie left in the conference room. The voice is still there however. They call it head hunger. Where your head says you should eat something even though your stomache is'nt hungry. Due to other health issues I had to wait 7 months from time of consult to surgery; and lost 50 pounds. During that time I significantly reduced my food consumption. For the month presurgery I was doing 2 Protein shakes a day and one meal. I also swam 7 days a week. I have been a slow loser, 1 pound a week. Not sure if this has been because I lost a total of 82 pounds dieting and exercising before having surgery. I would say the developing a new mindset or relationship with food BEFORE surgery has everything to do with your being successful post surgery.

Very cool! Wish I had your psychologist! You sound like you are doing amazing! Super congrats!!