I'm sure we all have one. That one food item that you've never been able to deny. Mine's ice cream (particularly Ben & Jerry's, and Cold Stone Creamery).

After you were banded, what was your attitude towards these kind of items. Did you avoid them at all costs due to the amount of hard work you put in to losing weight, or accept that it's unrealistic to go the rest of your life without them so you have one occasionally while trying to keep the portion down?

Just curious.

I'm coming up on my 1 month band anniversary, have been very strict about following the rules, and am doing great, but have been craving Cold Stone Creamery. Since this situation is undoubtedly going to come up again, I'm debating on strategies to deal with it.

Thanks.

I'll be honest about what i have done. I'm sure everyone will NOT agree with me and it does NOT follow the 'rules', but it has worked for me!

I am a low BMI'er, and my dr. even called me a light weight...although I was a few pounds away from morbidly obese. whatever! We BOTH felt i would lose slowly and it would slow down more the closer i got to my goal.

I do NOT deny myself what i want. In the beginning, yes, i had to stay away from it ALL because i had no restriction and i would not stop if i started.

Now, that i have restriction, if i want chocolate, i have it. BUT, instead of eating an entire 3 musketeer, 2 bites is PLENTY! or a york pepermint patty... satisfies the choc. craving. If i want ice cream, i have it.... I just eat Blue bell frozen yogurt instead. it's so sweet that the 1/2 cup serving is PLENTY!! if i want chips, i eat them. they are NOT a slider for me. i can eat about 5 chips and HAVE to stop. I don't think i have ANY slider foods. i can eat almost anything (only a couple of bites of bread or Pasta and i feel FULL, so it's just not worth it to me....i rather eat more than 'waste' my meal on a couple of bites!) but i can only eat about a cup of food and i'm full.

i probably eat 'ice cream' every other day...sometime everyday.

my Dr. has told me i'm doing EXCEPTIONAL! he's never asked WHAT i eat....but has told me whatever i'm doing, i'm having GREAT results! In 6 months, i have almost made it to my NORMAL weight range. I'm only 7 pounds away from my original goal and now thinking I will lower my original goal (that i thought would take a year to get to!)

I do NOT look at this as a diet, but rather a way of life. i cannot and WILL not stay on a DIET for my entire life. i will however, eat whatever i want in MODERATION. I do NOT do diet foods/drinks/snacks... i have real sugar (i cannot have artificial stuff) i just count the calories and adjust my day to it!

I'm sure we all have one. That one food item that you've never been able to deny. Mine's ice cream (particularly Ben & Jerry's, and Cold Stone Creamery).

After you were banded, what was your attitude towards these kind of items. Did you avoid them at all costs due to the amount of hard work you put in to losing weight, or accept that it's unrealistic to go the rest of your life without them so you have one occasionally while trying to keep the portion down?

Just curious.

I'm coming up on my 1 month band anniversary, have been very strict about following the rules, and am doing great, but have been craving Cold Stone Creamery. Since this situation is undoubtedly going to come up again, I'm debating on strategies to deal with it.

Thanks.

I DO allow myself treats! Ice cream is the biggie for me, too. I like B&J's and Marble Slab. Fortunately, we don't have a MS close by, so my "deal" with myself is that when I go into the city, if I want ice cream, I have it. I get the smallest size they will sell, eat what I want of it, and throw out the rest.

In 10 months, I've only really pigged out a couple of times. Just, be aware that you CAN eat ALOT of ice cream, even with the band. Don't keep it in the house, or you WILL eat it! Also, figure the ice cream into your daily calorie intake. Don't eat it in addition to your daily calories! This will help keep you on track! Good luck!

i happen to agree w/wannabthinagain.

early out i kept my love for chips/queso/guac at bay till i got decent restriction - now my daily habit is a few times a month.

sunday i had a cookie for the first time in maybe 9 months - i'm not a sweet tooth, and it really satifisfied me for another 9.....chips on the other hand, while i don't deny myself - i do have to monitor/check myself.....much easier to do w/restriction.

i think most will agree it's about moderation, no matter how you manage that vs denying a craving & binging later on.

I also don't deny myself if I want ice cream--but again, it's all in how much you eat. I can get by on one or two bites if we're at home, and if I go out I get the smallest (usually kiddie) size and have that with lite ice cream if possible. And that almost daily habit has turned into a once or twice a week bite or two rather than a daily bowl. Certainly more manageable and definitely satisfies without ruining a whole day of hard work.

I have found though, that since getting the band, things with real sugar seem SO much sweeter than before, sickly sweet even. Just a nice side effect to keep me away from treats!

Haagen Das makes a chocolate sorbet ..... low fat, light on the calories. I'm gonna get some and see ....

This is for life. I can't imagine never having certain foods. I just eat. I try to eat a wide variety. If sometimes that includes ice cream or a cookie or potato chips, so be it. Food is just food and the more I treat it like fuel instead of investing it with all the baggage and importance we usually give it, the better I do.

I think the goal is to eat like a normal person and learn to handle all foods.

Personally, I believe if you grit your teeth and hang in by sheer willpower and avoid certain foods or entire food groups and panic when you're served mashed potatoes in someones home, or paintakingly remove grains of rice from your curry, you've not recovered from obesity, you're just holding out and eventually will cave. You've swapped one set of unhealthy eating behaviours for another.

The key is to learn to eat whatever you want, but for you to actually want healthy foods most of the time, which only tends to happen when you have a normal and sane relationship with food. If you truly give yourself permission to eat whatever you want whenever you want it, you get over wanting chocolate for Breakfast, and it kind of all becomes normal. Takes time, but I think its key.

That's becuase I think that losing weight from our bodies is really secondary to fixing our heads.

That's becuase I think that losing weight from our bodies is really secondary to fixing our heads.

I think this statement is 100% on the money. Losing weight is ALL MENTAL for me. You said it perfectly!

The therapist at my weight loss support meetings says there are no bad foods, just bad choices. I agree with the other posters, and allow myself to have treats, but instead of eating a whole candy bar I split it with my girl friend. I eat cookies, but again, not the whole bag, or row, and I tell myself that if I'm going to eat sweets, I will exercise the next day, whether I'd planned to or not. It works for me .

I did end up giving myself the "treat" by going to Abbott's Frozen Custard, and getting the one scoop of chocolate. I made two observations about this:

1) My GOD these things taste good when you haven't had them for at least 3 months!

2) They ended up giving me more than I really wanted (either that or the "scoop" was really large), but I ended up eating it all anyhow. Though I don't particularly feel guilty about it because it is still a smaller portion than I would have eaten before. It was maybe 1-1.5 cups of ice cream, far less than the pint (and wanting more) I could eat before.

This makes me consider two more things: Either my willpower to know when to stop still needs work. Or my sense of portion size has gone the either direction, and even small portions seem large to me. I'm leaning more towards the first choice.

Either way, it's been a learning experience, and one that I plan on remembering.

This whole experience reminds me of a Simpsons episode where Homer is either trying to cook, or invent something, but his experiments keep bursting into flames. His response to each fire is to say "Hmmm", and jot it down on a clipboard.

That's my new response to a lot of daily choices. Say "Hmmmm", and jot it down on a clipboard.