This whole fill thing is quite the hot topic...."I'm too full and I'm PBing. I have no restriction because I can eat a sandwich. I haven't found my sweet spot." Etc, etc. I am actually getting nervous about the whole thing as my surgeon refers to himself as an "aggressive filler", and I want to be able to eat a sandwich! I did not balloon up to this weight eating just one sandwich. I do no want to be able to eat Jack-in-the-Box's bacon ultimate cheesburger, bacon cheddar potato wedges, and a large chocoloate shake in one sitting. But a sandwich sounds like a perfect sized meal to me. I suppose I will have to talk to my surgeon about "baby fills" until I feel good about it. I just really don't feel that I need that much restriction to lose weight at a reasonable rate. Am I being unrealistic?

Edited April 16, 200818 yr by TxChelsey

Most Drs don't want you to be able to eat more than 1/2 to 3/4 cup of food in one sitting. Even all the books, literature etc that I have read all say the same thing about volume of food consumed in a meal.

I have seen that trend, but I have also heard a bit of variation across the boards. When I met with my dietician, she was very specific and gave me a couple of pages of menu suggestions. She said I should eat 6 to a maximum of 8 ounces per meal. All her plans include 6-8 oz of food per meal. I have been counting on getting to comsume a cup at a time, as that seems very small anyway. I guess I figure a chewed up sandwich would not exceed that.

Some of her sample meals....

Breakfast: 1/2 cup light yogurt

1/2 small banana

1/2 cup egg whites

Lunch: 2 oz tuna salad

1 slice of wheat toast

1/2 cup fresh fruit

Dinner: 2 oz pork loin

1/4 cup black Beans

1/2 cup steamed carrots

Edited April 16, 200818 yr by TxChelsey

My Dr is also an "aggressive filler" but only at my request. I struggled w/my last fill, because I was looking for my sweet spot - then got it & wasn't sure I wanted to be "that" restricted. I'm also working out pretty hard & was not getting enough calories in - many times I felt dizzy when w/my trainer. That strong fill lasted about 10days and now I like where I'm at eating approx 1100 calories vs the 800 I had been taking in, and I feel completely satisfied - can even eat a sandwich.

I'm sure telling your Dr that you'd like to take this slow will be no problem at all.

I went in for my 6th fill 2 weeks ago and my nurse actually did my fill. She was "aggressive" as you have said. I have not been able to eat solids without throwing up for 2 weeks. I am dizzy and feel sick when I wake up each day. I am hoping to go in today for a slight unfill. I think it is best to be modest with fills to avoid being sick and having to make a trip back for an unfill. Good luck to you in your journey!

my fills are not aggressive - or at least i don't think they are because i have no restriction at 6.5ccs in a 10 cc band. i go in for another .5 cc on thursday. i have .5 cc put in each week until i hit restriction.

Plus... sometimes you can go in for a small fill... and end up with less restriction due to possible air bubbles! You have to be open and honest with your doctor. This is YOUR journey. It's not a race, it's a marathon!

trust me, you will not want to eat that sandwich, once you are at a good fill.

good luck

Is a sandwich an appropriate sized meal, I guess is your question. I would say probably at our highest weights, you could eat a reasonably sized sandwich and still lose weight. But to eventually reach or maintain your goal weight, A sandwich, depending on the size and content of the sandwich, might be way too much.

But I agree that you don;t need to be overtight to lose weight.

I would say probably at our highest weights, you could eat a reasonably sized sandwich and still lose weight. But to eventually reach or maintain your goal weight, A sandwich, depending on the size and content of the sandwich, might be way too much.

The idea that eating a meal as big as a sandwich is too much food to get to goal weight seems really ridiculous to me, at least for most normal people. People without bands lose weight, and they eat sandwiches, AND they get to their goal. if you can't eat a sandwich and still lose weight, you are using your band as a crutch. exercise! make healthy food choices! but eating only 500 cals a day should not be necessary to hit goal.

I don;t think I said anything about eating 500 calories a day. But If my normal weight friend eats a sandwich for lunch to maintain her weight that is one thing, but she would most likely have to eat half of that sandwich ( or reduce her calories in some way that day) in order to LOSE weight.

The lower our weight the fewer calories we need to maintain our weight, when we lose weight, we now weigh less and it then takes even fewer calories to continue to lose at the same rate. Because it's based on the fact that it takes 3500 calorie reduction to lose one pound.

This is why WW, if you are counting pounds, starts out with a higher point allowance for people at a higher weight and then as you lose weight you get fewer points.

Of course my friend could have a sandwich for lunch, but she might have to skip b'fast. It's all about calories in and calories out.

I did not advocate anyone eating 500 calories a day. And I did mention the size and content of the sandwich matters. Sorry if that wasn't clear.

I think it is very realistic to only want to be as filled as necessary to lose weight. For that reason, even though it frustrated the heck out of me, I appreciated the slowness with which my doctor gave fills. I have lost weight pretty slowly (but steadily) but was able to get used to each level of restriction as it came rather than suddenly reaching it and having to adjust. On the other hand, I am a HUGE proponent of getting the fills and restriction you need. I needed 5 fills before I got any noticeable restriction at all. (7.5 ccs in a 10 cc band) It made all the difference in the world. I would not have lost the 31.5 pounds I have lost had I not reached the proper level of restriction. I could not lose weight at all without the band and I needed to have quite a bit of restriction before I saw the scale move at all. Even at my sweet spot I am not breaking any weight loss records but I am happy because the band has finally allowed me to lose something!!! So what I am saying is: you need to determine what the right level of restriction is for you. I can eat about 2/3 of a fast food hamburger, but I can't eat the fries etc. that go with it. (And it's a hamburger, not a double cheeseburger!) If I could stay at a level of restriction that allowed me to eat a whole hamburger and fries, AND still lose weight, you better believe I would do that!!! But for me, nope. I need restriction. Just listen to your body and watch the scale. You will know what to do.

my fills are not aggressive - or at least i don't think they are because i have no restriction at 6.5ccs in a 10 cc band. i go in for another .5 cc on thursday. i have .5 cc put in each week until i hit restriction.

your fills could be considered "aggressive" based on the frequency you go in for one (each wk). more than most go every 2/4wks - so the volume may not be as high (.5) due to that??? maybe.

i had to get to 8.5cc's in my 10cc band before i had "TRUE" restriction - you may require that much as well. it was a tad too much for the first 10 days then it settled in & seems to be perfect.

i wanted to, well need to eat more than 800 calories a day - considering i'm burning over 700calories w/a session with my trainer - and 500 on days w/out him. my average right now is approx 1200 (and that sometimes is hard to do)....it's quite a balancing act.

as for sandwhichs: mine now are deli meat or salad (egg/tuna/chicken) on 1 wasa bread cracker with veggies & i feel COMPLETELY satisfied.

finally got restriction with my last fill - i'm at 6.75cc's in a 10cc band and boy o boy do i feel it - in fact, yesterday for lunch i ate my tilapia wayyy to fast and didn't chew well enough and PB'd...ugh! But for dinner I had some steak and chewed super well and ate slowly and could only eat about a golf ball size before i was like...no more - must stop!!! Yeahhh - restriction!!!