Hi Guys,

On some posts I see people who have been banded speaking about counting calories, eating nonfat or lowfat. I'm a little confused.

I am in the pre-op process and wondered this; if I am to eat protein first, then veggie, then good carbs if space permits, do I need to restrict fats? I have lost weight eating Atkins style, i.e. bacon, chicken salad, fish w/dill sauce etc. The fats always make it more palatable for me. I absolutely cannot eat a salad with fat free dressing.

If we are being restricted as to the amount we are eating, can't we incorporate fats into our diets?

Marieze

It's an interesting issue. I've talked with bandsters who do their loss by the band's portion control only. I've talked with folks who believe banding whould also include a diet...I've met vegetarian bandsters.....Especially after about 8 months of banding, there's a lot of variety in bandsters. I've personally developed a very strict healthy diet when I'm at home, and whenever I eat out, I allow myself whatever, and rely on portion control alone. I'm happy with that.

Here's what I believe:

1. At the beginning follow whatever your doctor says. You will have lots of adjusting to do in your new life, and it is best to follow the program, at the very least until you get your bearings, good restriction, etc.

2. Weight loss is usually faster during the first year of banding, so it's a good idea to optimize your weight loss, building in an exercise lifestyle and as strict a regime as you can.

3. If you're comfy with Atkins, that's great! Eat your protein and your vege and then other things if you have room. It's the way to get enough protein. But remember that being banded doesn't mean a steak won't clog your arteries. So to the extent that you are in this for health, think about building in lower fat protein sources. Frankly, your band may help you....some of your foods that you used to love may not be interesting after banding. I used to love shrimp, but I'm one of those people who can't get it through the band well...some can and some can't....and shrimp just became a food that wasn't worth the effort. And oddly, I don't miss shrimp.

Think about it this way....If you eat according to plan, and you want to lose between .5 and 2 pounds a week, you may find that you count calories and as weight loss stops, you may drop your calorie intake by 100-200 calories to accomplish it...or you may count fat intake and keep it under a certain level. I found whenever I hit a plateau, I counted protein, calories, and fat intake for 3 days and it gave me a wakeup call about what I had allowed to sneak back into my mouth. We obese have been good at deceiving ourselves about what we eat!

I guess the bottom line is that it's a long haul journey and not a sprint, and you'll evolve through many stages based on everything from persanal preference to weight loss goals...so at first as a newbie, follow your doc.

Enjoy the learning curve!

I don't watch fats at all. I concentrate on protein. The only fat I have is in milk or my protein shakes as well as meats.

All bodies need some fat for hormone health and to prevent dry skin. I was told to try to keep the fat percentage less than about 35%.

I've been told to average 30%. I wouldn't have DARED eat ice cream in my first 8 months banded, but now I know that if I do, I need to cut back on fat/calories...amd put in extra time in the gym. I don't feel deprived, but I do know there are consequences. It's just that with the band, I can actually carry all this stuff out and actually succeed. A first for me! If you love salad dressing THAT much...it might be interessting to think about what you will eat in a day as a bandster and see how you might need to tweek it to get that salad dressing and rebalance a few other things.

I eat what I want... but that doesn't include the things I used to crave. After being banded I have no desire for fast food, pizza, chips, etc.

I'm diligent about getting to the gym and I feel like a "normal" person. If I want something, I have it - although I had to swear off the evil halloween candy except for one day a week. I swear, it's EVERYWHERE!

As for my meals, I try to eat my protein first but damnit - sometimes I want the potato, or the salad. I'm eating the right foods but know that I still need to get my protein intake up. I'm kind of in a weird place right now because my band is too tight during this time of the month (sory, boys) so it's nearly impossible for me to eat what I normally do and am existing on soup.

I think one of the biggest things for me has been the change in my lifestyle. I don't eat if I'm not hungry and just plain old don't care about food anymore.

We're not told protein first here and so I dont really eat that way. I just eat less than what I used to be but a totally normal diet, I eat carbs and I eat fat (hate low fat products, apart from skim milk).

And I've lost all my weight.

Not that I'm saying my way is the right way, just that its another way you can do it and still lose weight.

I count calories when I think I'm going overboard, but I've become lax with it because I'm getting good at eyeballing.

As for low-fat, I don't really do all that. My yogurt might be low-fat, but it's not something I went out of my way for.

I *did* start buying skim milk after I got banded, and since I was never a milk person anyway, it's good to me. So that's the only low-fat thing I get. If I eat cheese or anything dairy, I don't get LF. I eat so little, I want to enjoy the taste instead of holding my nose!

I chose to do high fat, low carb, low calorie. I kept my food choices in check but used full fat dressings on salads, etc. I still stayed under 600 calories daily.

You do what works for you. It takes experimenting and seeing what works for you. There are no band rules, there are band guidelines. You discover what works for you. If you and you doc are happy, you are losing weight at a reasonable rate... then it works.