My doc has said that by far the main reason they see for band problems (slips) is chronic overeating. He loves to give me a little 3-4 oz dixie cup and say 'This is your portion size--period!" He says that if I am hungry soon after, then have a snack, but be careful to stay within the portion guidlelines. I absolutely do not want to sabotage myself or my band, nor do I want to feel hungry much of the time. Fortunately I have found that if I eat the right kinds of foods then that amount is usually satisfying (ah yes-- follow the darn rules!), but sometimes even then I am still hungry. This morning I had about 1/4 cup for breakfast, felt kind of full and stopped. However as the day goes on my capacity seems to increase.

My understanding is that the pouch is 1/4 - 1/2 cup in size. Took me awhile to realize I needed to be measuring volume rather than weight-- dang it! I have seen various recommendations for portion size ranging from 2 oz. to 1.5 cups to just "eat till you're full." I think my doc said that the 3-4 oz. rule applies to the dense protein portion of my meal and that I could have limited vegetables along with it though he'd really prefer I have those as a snack later because they are mostly water.

Eating 1.5 cups at a sitting sounds like alot of freedom to me, but won't doing that stretch our 1/2 cup sized pouch? What am I missing?

What I can eat varies greatly from time to time. Sometimes 1/4 of a cup is all I can manage. Sometimes I can probably eat 1 1/2 cups. I probably average about 3/4 cup. A lot of this has to do with how quickly I eat, what time of day it is, what time of month it is, etc.

I am really struggling right now about whether to get another fill. Depending on when you ask me I can tell you I am too tight, too loose or anywhere in between. I just don't want to feel too tight all of the time.