I'm really working on internalizing the idea that "I could eat" is not the same thing as "I am hungry." Seems simple enough, right?

I realized today that, if the above is true, then "I could eat more" does not mean "I need more." This also seems simple.

If only simple things were easy!

You are so right. It's not easy and not it's not simple. Most of us haven't even felt physical hunger in years because we would constantly eat and never let ourselves get hungry. So not only are we trying to learn to listen to our body's natural hunger signals, we're also trying to retrain our brains to go "Oh, I don't need more food" rather than eat until our brains go "Oh I couldn't eat another bite".

That's one thing all the surgeons and nutritionists seem to miss telling us ahead of time: trying to be successful with the Lap Band is one huge learning experience.

Being satisfied is one of the hardest things to learn. It really helps me to measure my foods all the time because I can eat over but I choose not too. I dont need more. Also remember that your brain takes about 20-30 minutes to register the food in your tummy. When I am very hungry I try to take 5 minute break in the middle to help the process.

It sure is hard. My mom asked me the other day what I could eat and I said whatever I want. But I'm choosing to follow the rules. I'm choosing not to eat in between meals. I'm choosing not to have the doughnuts, cookies, and snacks that are at work. I'm choosing to do these things even though I do feel hungry in between meals sometimes. I'm choosing because I don't want to have had surgery for nothing.I don't want to fail..I can't fail!!

Learning and figuring out that I really am satisfied on a small amount of food was hard to get used to when I was first banded. I ate dinner til I was stuffed in my preband days. Now I find true satisfaction in walking away from a meal and feeling comfortable enough to do anything other than crash on the couch!

not sure i can speak but what i feel is this....i was never satisfied. i wanted more and more and then more...the band gave me that extra push and with me figuring out that no i wont starve to death on a cup of food and that i was feeding my body, i learned that i was satisfied with my allotted amount...for me, it boiled down to me making the decision to eat smart...and think smart...not sure my comment means much to anyone but its the answer i wanted to give.

Did anyone on here notice a sharp appetite decrease after your band was placed? I noticed an immediate decrease in appetite And still today. I asked my do for a out it Nd he told me the band sits on the top of the stomach where the receptors are that control appetite. That is the thing I am most satisfied with! Forget restriction, my once raging appetite is gone!

Did anyone on here notice a sharp appetite decrease after your band was placed? I noticed an immediate decrease in appetite And still today. I asked my doctor about it and he told me the band sits on the top of the stomach where the receptors are that control appetite. That is the thing I am most satisfied with! Forget restriction' date=' my once raging appetite is gone![/quote']

Sometimes I have to remind myself when I am eating that whatever I am eating is not the last time I will get to eat that food. Does that make sense? What I mean is if there is a bowl of M&M's at work and I take 10. Instead of going back later and grabbing more I try to say to myself to stop because it won't be the last time I get to have M&M's, they will be there again another time so don't pig out on them, save it for the next time. I hope that sounds the way I mean. Like CG said, be smart with your choices.

I agree Chrissy, because life is too short to not enjoy chocolate!!

Being in the "Green Zone" does not state eating to you are "Satisfied", or eating till you "Full"...it simply says you are "Not Hungry"....also says "Good Portion Control" and "Steady Weight Loss"

When all those 3 things are happening, then you have "Patient Satisfaction"

Eating till you're satisfied or full....not sure how that concept got started, but is is not listed as a attribute to the "Green Zone"

The band has simply taken away my appetite, to the point where I have no interest in food, or a desire to eat....so i guess that means "Satisfied"...but i don't have to eat to feel satisfied.....

As I'm typing this, it is 5 am....have not eaten since 6 pm yesterday...and yet I have no desire to eat....as a matter of fact I'm headed to the gym soon on a empty stomach.....just my Protein and Vitamins.....

And when I do eat, the band controls the portion sizes.....all I need to do is make wise - healthy food choices....does not mean I cannot eat ice cream, etc, means I am only able to eat just so much so I try to make the best of it....(but not always)

And yes..having the band do it's thing, .I am extremely satisfied.....if that is what the OP is trying to get at......

Being in the "Green Zone" does not state eating to you are "Satisfied", or eating till you "Full"...it simply says you are "Not Hungry"....also says "Good Portion Control" and "Steady Weight Loss"

That's exactly what surgeons mean by satisfied- no long hungry.

They don't want you to eat until you're stuffed full because if you are, you're eating too much.

"For those patients who are rigorous about the volume of food they eat, and do not let the stomach to tell them when to stop eating - they do very well. This is one of the keys of successful patients, only eat a certain portion of food - period. If the band is properly adjusted, the appetite will be dimmed for several hours. Once your brain realizes that a small amount of food keeps you satisfied, then your eyes will adjust to the amount you eat."

Got that from the article link on the bottom of Missy's post. Great read if you haven't seen it!

Sometimes I have to remind myself when I am eating that whatever I am eating is not the last time I will get to eat that food. Does that make sense? What I mean is if there is a bowl of M&M's at work and I take 10. Instead of going back later and grabbing more I try to say to myself to stop because it won't be the last time I get to have M&M's, they will be there again another time so don't pig out on them, save it for the next time. I hope that sounds the way I mean. Like CG said, be smart with your choices.

That makes sense to me. I spent years working at a job where I had to eat what I could when I could, and never knew when I might get to eat again. I'm in a better situation now, but that's a hard habit to break. I always had the appetite of a lumberjack anyway.

Being in the "Green Zone" does not state eating to you are "Satisfied", or eating till you "Full"...it simply says you are "Not Hungry"....also says "Good Portion Control" and "Steady Weight Loss"

When all those 3 things are happening, then you have "Patient Satisfaction"

Eating till you're satisfied or full....not sure how that concept got started, but is is not listed as a attribute to the "Green Zone"

The band has simply taken away my appetite, to the point where I have no interest in food, or a desire to eat....so i guess that means "Satisfied"...but i don't have to eat to feel satisfied.....

As I'm typing this, it is 5 am....have not eaten since 6 pm yesterday...and yet I have no desire to eat....as a matter of fact I'm headed to the gym soon on a empty stomach.....just my Protein and Vitamins.....

And when I do eat, the band controls the portion sizes.....all I need to do is make wise - healthy food choices....does not mean I cannot eat ice cream, etc, means I am only able to eat just so much so I try to make the best of it....(but not always)

And yes..having the band do it's thing, .I am extremely satisfied.....if that is what the OP is trying to get at......

"Satisfied" is a perfectly cromulent word, and happens to mean exactly what I want to say, whether it is on the official Green Zone list or not . I agree that my new idea of what it means to be satisfied can't be what it used to be. I hope I reach that low-appetite point that you have. Giving up sweets has helped a lot, but I still think about my next meal more than I should, and snacking is easier to start than to stop.

Sometimes I have to remind myself when I am eating that whatever I am eating is not the last time I will get to eat that food. Does that make sense? What I mean is if there is a bowl of M&M's at work and I take 10. Instead of going back later and grabbing more I try to say to myself to stop because it won't be the last time I get to have M&M's, they will be there again another time so don't pig out on them, save it for the next time. I hope that sounds the way I mean. Like CG said, be smart with your choices.

I agree 110%.....unless you are on the strictest of diets....I have no problems eating the things I enjoy...such as a piece of cake or ice cream....skinny people do it all the time, right?

Difference is, when I was fat, I would not stop at one piece...I would have the whole cake finished sooner or later....then look for something else to devour....

But a normal lifestyle is different....and that is what the band can, and has done for me.....