3 Minutes in between bites

[tmbowe 1]

The thee minute wait between bites is a good thing! I have had to learn to do that without the Dr. telling me to. I find the slower I eat the better I do. At work it's easiest. I can take a bite, do some work and then take another bite. The other day I timed myself. I took 1 hour to eat 3/4 c of cottage cheese. I suffer when I eat at home cause I used to sit on the couch, watch tv and eat. I always end up sliming when I do that now.

I have to eat and clean house in between bites now. I really take a long time to eat! Tonight was tacos. I had one, and it took me 45 minutes. I did LBT, FB, and surfed the internet in between bites. I need to get a hot plate to keep my food warm. I also tend to eat more cold food, like salads. I have a very hard time at restaurants and usually get Soup.< /span>

That is something else my Dr says not to do. He says you need to set down and eat and not get up and do stuff cuz when you do that you are grazing. I tried to time 3 minutes in between bites and it is way to long. If I wait about 1 minute I am good. It also depends on what I am eating. If I am eating meat I have to wait a little over a minute but If I am eating something soft like potatoes I dont have to wait at all.. I guess we are all really different

[Delivered 0]

I never heard of the three minute expectation, but I am going to try it.

Thanks for sharing!

[MsFab1988 275]

I would never wait 3 min to take another bite, bad enough I gotta wait 30 min just to drink! lmao

[RestlessMonkey 7]

We should all, at least initially, try to follow our doc's advice. But that 3 minute thing would never fly for me; for one, that really would be just 10 bites in the 30 minutes I'm allotted to eat...and if I take small bites, that's not enough food.

Moreover though, for ME (and I'm only speaking for me) one big benefit of my losing weight that I look forward to with great glee and happiness is....being more NORMAL. I'm the big girl. People are always nice to me (I"m lucky) but I am "different". Not because I look like Megan Fox, but because I'm too darn fat. The last thing I want is to trade my one "affliction" for another. To make friends or family sit patiently while I eat a bite every 3 minutes..the thought makes my toes curl, and not in a good way.

I can't tell you how happy I am to get to go out to dinner, order a meal, eat my "girly" sized portion of it, and be DONE! I feel like a healthy supermodel (well, one who doesn't smoke LOL) If I had to keep an eye on my watch, or count, or plop an old egg timer on the table and do my "3" minutes...well, I just wouldn't is all.

That's one of the reasons things like WW didn't work for me; I got tired to DEATH of counting and weighing and measuring. I wouldn't trade that misery for being forced to take 3 min a bite.

Ok so don't do it when I eat out. Well, if i don't have to do it then, i don't have to do it. I don't mind not drinking with meals; I can drink up to time and then it's NBD. But 3 min a bite? good lord just shoot me now!

SO I guess it's important we do what our docs say, but also important that we find one whose lap band "philosophy" is more in line with our own. I'd be a huge failure if I had to do that. I'll give up beer, I'll give up drinking with meals, I'll give up snacking, but I am NOT timing each bite of food. That's my sticking point.

[crzytchr 3]

We should all, at least initially, try to follow our doc's advice. But that 3 minute thing would never fly for me; for one, that really would be just 10 bites in the 30 minutes I'm allotted to eat...and if I take small bites, that's not enough food.

Moreover though, for ME (and I'm only speaking for me) one big benefit of my losing weight that I look forward to with great glee and happiness is....being more NORMAL. I'm the big girl. People are always nice to me (I"m lucky) but I am "different". Not because I look like Megan Fox, but because I'm too darn fat. The last thing I want is to trade my one "affliction" for another. To make friends or family sit patiently while I eat a bite every 3 minutes..the thought makes my toes curl, and not in a good way.

I can't tell you how happy I am to get to go out to dinner, order a meal, eat my "girly" sized portion of it, and be DONE! I feel like a healthy supermodel (well, one who doesn't smoke LOL) If I had to keep an eye on my watch, or count, or plop an old egg timer on the table and do my "3" minutes...well, I just wouldn't is all.

That's one of the reasons things like WW didn't work for me; I got tired to DEATH of counting and weighing and measuring. I wouldn't trade that misery for being forced to take 3 min a bite.

Ok so don't do it when I eat out. Well, if i don't have to do it then, i don't have to do it. I don't mind not drinking with meals; I can drink up to time and then it's NBD. But 3 min a bite? good lord just shoot me now!

SO I guess it's important we do what our docs say, but also important that we find one whose lap band "philosophy" is more in line with our own. I'd be a huge failure if I had to do that. I'll give up beer, I'll give up drinking with meals, I'll give up snacking, but I am NOT timing each bite of food. That's my sticking point.

Amen, Monkey!

[wootsie73 0]

I think everyone is trying to do what their surgeon tells them to do. I am copying and pasting the information from my surgeon's website. This is his philosophy on timing your eating. I just thought I would share what he has to say on the subject.

A Simple Formula for Weight Loss Success

After weight loss surgery, the first and most dramatic change you will make is how you eat. Whether you have had a Lap-Band® or gastric bypass procedure, the rules are essentially the same. Your stomach has been altered so that anything you eat goes into a small pouch the size of a golf ball. That means after just a few bites, you feel full—something that might come as a shock if you’re used to devouring huge portions at the dinner table.

Bariatric surgery will alter your eating habits dramatically, particularly in the first few months after surgery. To gain the greatest benefits of the surgery, Dr. David Provost recommends patients follow a simple formula:

3 x 3 + 30

What this means is that you should only eat three bites of food at each meal, and separate each bite by three minutes. In addition, you should not drink anything—including water—for at least 30 minutes before you eat and 30 minutes after you eat.

That may sound like a ridiculously small amount of food, but the truth is, after weight loss surgery, you won’t want to eat any more. Both the Lap-Band and the gastric bypass restrict the amount of food that you can fit in your stomach. If you try to eat more than your stomach can hold, you will feel extremely uncomfortable and you may even vomit. In addition, waiting at least 30 minutes after drinking liquids before a meal and also waiting 30 minutes to have a beverage after you eat will help ensure that you get enough nutrients and keep you from cheating your surgery by washing down your food through your pouch.

Finally, slowing down your eating will also let you experience your meals in a whole new way. When you wait three minutes between bites, you have the chance to savor your food, and also appreciate the people who may be sharing the meal with you. So, remember 3 x 3 + 30 at each meal will promote rapid weight loss and help you achieve your goal weight faster than you ever thought possible!

Joan

[RestlessMonkey 7]

Thank God my doc doesn't require that. Seriously. I'd never have had the surgery if he had.

[Headhunter 6]

Yeah, that's kind of rough, the "timing" thing.

The only thing that I do similar to that is this> When i first got home from the hospital and began to eat a little more normally, one of the first things I realized was that I could NOT "gulp" in the same way i used to, with Water. And that REALLY bothered me. I eventually realized that I could swallow 5 gulps, and that was my limit. So, i began mentally counting each gulp. I still do that to this day, and it has become more of a habit than something i really do consciously.

But as far as sitting and waiting for 3 minutes....with an EGG timer, no less....c'mon!

That would actually make a pretty good comedy sketch.

:w00t:

HH

[elcee 3,340]

Is this Doc for real? Only 3 bites of food per meal - that wouldn't even feed a hamster. Info like this makes you wonder about the surgeon and their qualifications.

I'd like to see the doc try this him/her self WLS or not and see how long they survive!

[elcee 3,340]

Plus the pic on the Doc's website doesn't match the written info. There is no way that plate of food the model is holding only has three bites. So should you believe the pic, the info or just realise that what this guy say's is an utter load of garbage and go and find yourself another doc!

[wootsie73 0]

Plus the pic on the Doc's website doesn't match the written info. There is no way that plate of food the model is holding only has three bites. So should you believe the pic, the info or just realise that what this guy say's is an utter load of garbage and go and find yourself another doc!

Well, this is 1 of the best surgeons in the state, according to my PCP, Texas Monthly magazine, and D magazine. The D magazine is a Dallas, TX publication. He has done thousands of bariatric surgeries, and takes very difficult cases that no other doc will touch. He was the head of Bariatric Surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern in Dallas, and left there to open a private practice closer to where he lives. So, he's not stupid, which is implied in your post. It does sound very conserative to me as well, but I will talk to him and the Nut about it before I totally disregard the information. I wasn't trying to sway anyone or trying to get you to follow the rule. I was just showing that there was another doc who believed the same thing as the original posters doc does.

Joan

[elcee 3,340]

He may be an excellent surgeon but as is the case with excellent surgeons he may have unrealistic expectations in other area's.

Its not even the 3 minute rule that concerns me although that's hard enough it's the 3 bites per meal.

But as has often been said you have to be comfortable with and trust your doc. So if you do that is great.

I just have to ask though - how do you cope with only eating 3 bites per meal /9 bites per day?

[lessofm3 0]

I wasn't instructed to wait 3 minutes between each bite, however I was told to put my eating utensil down between bites, and to chew, chew, chew. By doing so my meal lasts anywhere from 20-30 minutes. The only downfall is by the time I'm halfway through my meal is cold :-( but if that's the price I pay to be thin and healthy so be it!

[elleaitch 0]

Interesting, I get 36 minutes for lunch so I can manage 12 bites, I'll be so slim so fast I'll be skinny. I'm glad it's not a fixed rule :w00t: actually 12 bites sounds quite a lot when I think about it :sneaky:

[emjay 8]

9 bites a food a day for the rest of my life? No way in hell. I'm not viewing this as a race, but a lifetime of eating better. I may be able to eat alot less than I used to, but I can tell you 3 bites won't cut it for me.

Good luck with that. Personally I think that doc is off his rocker, but I'm sure if his patients stick to the rules - they no doubt lose. Not of offend, it's just that it seems all of our docs have different opinions about losing the weight. Slow and gradual is good for me (even though I wish it were gone yesterday).