this came up in another post and thought it was a better seperate question...

question for the bandsters- how do you handle having food in the house? do you REALLY register the fullness? i.e. just because its there I won't be able to eat it? for example a box of mac and cheese- sure you could MAKE it, but then 2 bites and its a waste...(and you would rather spend the calories/time/effort on something you NEED, like Protein protein protein?

did/do you clean up/out the pantry before surgery? if you CRAVE (say ice cream) you just go somewhere and get a small, really luscious scoop and enjoy the heck out of it? I worry about all the horror stories of 'tricking the band' or 'eating AROUND the band' and gaining weight etc...etc...)

thanks!!!

Your object is to lose weight. There are always going to be temptations everywhere. this is the hard part, it takes time, but someday

in the far, far future, you'll be able to look a pizza straight in the eye and not even be tempted. I know it seems impossible, but it will

happen. In the meantime you are going to have to grit your teeth and just work yourself through it.

We (my wife and I) seem to be food hoarders, we have two freezers, a large pantry and a triple door refrigerator, all full-- for two people!

We can eat for years on what we have, but I just ignore it and drink my little shake and try not to think about the good 'ol days.

Right now, I dwell on the diabetes i've beat, and the sleep apnea I used to have and all the clothes I've given to Goodwill, and the

newfound energy I have and figure maybe it wasn't such a bad trade, after all. I hope you get to this point, too.

I never keep crap foods in the house, I'd suggest getting rid of all your temptation foods, throw them out or give them away. If you have a family and have to shop for them as well this can be difficult. If they want meals, treats or snacks that you shouldn't be eating buy things that only they like, not things that you like this will help keep you from making mistakes that you'll hate yourself for later. I live alone so I definitely keep No junk snacks in the house, only healthy ones if I keep junk food in the house I'll feel I need to eat it because it's there. My meals usually keep me satisfied enough to the point where I don't feel the need to graze all night long just because I'm bored, or whip up a high crab meal just because I'm craving it (or just because it's there). But these moments do happen which is when my healthier snacks/foods come into play, if I really am hungry . When I want real junk (which isn't very often) I'll buy a small bag of something (a single serving) and eat it that one time and move on, when I want to indulge on a meal that's a little less than healthy I'll go out to dinner I order a salad and eat only a little bit of tasty "garbage food" from someone elses plate or some of an appetizer. Once a week I go to a local frozen yougurt place, they make 1 flavor thats sugar free and fat free and it's the greatest thing ever to me when I add fresh strawberries. I seriously believe in moderation not deprivation. When I have "treats'" on occasion the weight may come off slower but it still comes off and living and eating this way is realistic to me, not some fad starvation diet. I enjoy these "snack/unhealthy" foods a million times more now having them on occasion than when I had it at home and just ate it whenever I was bored.

Sometimes I find myself wanting to snack and eat something out of boredem, convincing myself that I'm starving but when I look at my fruits, crackers, cheese, yogurts and carrot sticks I pass on it because I really want to eat crap! I know I'm really not hungry, I just want to binge on garbage. and that it's just my inner fat girl having another fit.. So keeping junk out of the house works wonders, for me anyway. Good luck!

I live alone, so I only buy what I can eat and cleaned out the pantry and freezer prior to banding. However, I have grandchildren that stay with me regularly so I keep snacks and things for them. What I try to do is not buy trigger foods for me and also try to have healthier snacks for them. Although the chips in the little individual bags I buy for them call to me from time to time but I just try to ignore it. I am not giving up all the foods I love, I am just trying to find a balance between eating healthy and making this a true lifestyle change. I have had a slice of pizza and was fine with it. But that was the deal, ONE slice instead of the whole pie. And the rest of that day's eating was careful to allow for the calories and carbs. That is what I am calling the lifestyle change part of it.

This is what I do. But I am very different from most banisters. I do not have restriction almost 11 months post op. Not because I can't seem to find the so called "green zone" I have never gone seeking after it. I do have a little restriction in a way that if I do eat too eat to much, I feel like crap. But I can eat more thn the 1 cup of food. I've learned a different way to lose weight, and in some ways I regret having surgery.

But I eat everything in moderation of course. I have NO foods I don't or can't eat. So what I do is this, if I want a piece of chocolate, I'll go to 7-11 and the ones around me usually have fun sized snickers and Peanut Butter cups. So I'll get one of those to satisfy my craving. Or I'll go to the mall and go to the frozen yogurt place, which has fat free frozen yogurt at 27 calories per ounce. Kind of sucks because it's a bit more expensive this way, but I do still have lack of will power so I know if its in the house I will eat the whole bag or whole container. Also I've started eating nuts, but I have to portion them out right when I open the bag, or else I will eat more thn I should. For some reason if they are already portioned won't go into the portioned bags.

WOW, this is why I am (already) so amazed with this group- like an instant 'phone a friend' (this from someone who has a tiny group of friends). You really did help with the questions...

I do live alone so that helps- I am always stopping by the grocery store on the way home for '2 items' (or the curs-ed drive thru). I have food in the cupboards (amazing how being lazy makes you NOT cook healthy huh? a half gallon of ice cream is SO much simpler isn't it? (sad laugh). Thin people just do.not.get.it).

You really have answered the question in your own ways.... feel like I am whittled, slowly down the self doubts/fear on this one.

----did any of you found you saved (a lot of) money on food post - op? just curious...

and just realized saving $$$ on the 4 meds I take for diabetes, AND depression.....hmmmm....

I totally get your being lazy and not cooking lol, I'm so that way. It's just so easy to be lazy and hit up a drive thru, especially when you're to the point where you're just starving and tired from the day, you just have to push through that part. McDonald's still tempts me when I smell the disgusting delicious odor coming from it on the side of the highway.. But anyway, I figure, why am I gonna cook when it's just me, unless I'm cooking for my boyfriend which I do a few nights a week, but when it's just me, why bother lol? But there are ways that I've learned to make dinner for myself that are lazy friendly and healthier, even if on some nights it's just a lean cuisine..

I food shop way less so in that aspect I've probably saved a little. Even though I notice now when I go shopping my bill is quite high considering there's not alot in my cart. Healthier foods and less processed foods usually cost a bit more than garbage foods, but it's worth it. I went shopping with a friend the other night, her cart was full, hers came out to about $80-$85.. my cart was maybe half full but $135.. I bought alot of meats (higher quality), whole grains..the good stuff, and it was just so much more expensive, she brought all processed junk, fattier meats, white breads, you know the stuff thats killing us because it's all we can afford... But I know that that food that I bought will last a long time, it's going to take quite a while for me to eat all that meat.. She'll be back at the store in a week or so, I will not. I buy my meats in bulk and try to get frozen veggies when they are on sale. After a while you'll get the hang of it and know how much to get and what's worth spending a little more on and what isn't. You just have to look for sales and buy only what you know you are going to eat before it expires. Like fruits and veggies (fresh ones) don't last long, so now when I buy them I buy in very small amounts. Sometimes I still over buy, when I look at my cart I think "this can't possibly be enough food", it's a learning process that takes time to get the hang of, but you'll get there.

I use my little George Foreman grill a lot. And my toaster oven. Normally I just make a meat on the grill or baked and a vegetable for dinner, so there is not much prep nor cleanup. I was the queen of drive throughs before my surgery. Living alone I just didn't want to expend the energy to make dinner for just myself. Now that I have been doing it for a few weeks, it doesn't seem near as much trouble. I do keep some convenience foods on hand for nights when I really just don't have time or inclination to cook. I just check the nutrition info to make sure it works with my carb and calorie daily counts. And there is a learning to curve to know how much fresh food to buy so it doesn't go to waste. One or two tomatoes, an onion, one leek, one sweet potato, squash, etc.

I have definitely saved money since getting the band. I'm out and about a lot with my daughter, and we often eat out for morning tea/lunch/afternoon tea. Prior to the band, I would quite often have a coffee and cake "snack" and then a big ham and salad sandwich and a drink for lunch, and then some other snack thing for afternoon tea. Now, we just bypass the snack things unless my daughter is hungry. And if she's hungry, I tend to go for "easy" rather than "delicious", iykwim. As in, I'll duck into a fruit shop and buy her a banana. Come lunch time, I still get my latte, but I'll just eat a couple of sushi rolls. And I'll spend less than $10 Aussie dollars on my lunch, whereas before I'd be spending that on the morning tea AND the afternoon tea, and maybe $15 for lunch!