Diet Dillemas

Went back to get my band filled yesterday. Had a great discussion with the Doc doing the refilling. He is the one who normally runs the seminars on how to maintain your gastric band (ie sticking to the bandwagon!!). I can't make it to them so he went through it very quickly with me.

Now I want you to think how long gastric banding has been around. How successful it is and how many people maintain their weight after reaching their goal. The surgeon I had and the Dr that does the fill up have both been dealing with the bands for 10-11 years.

Before I go into what I have been told I have to do I will tell you a little bit more background on me:

• I didn't eat a lot as a baby. One third the amount I was supposed to. Dr's then didn't worry I was happy and growing.
• I ended up being force fed because my parents were afraid I wasn't getting enough.
• In highschool I was full of energy and was eating 1 meal a day ... dinner and maintained a size 14.
• By my 30's I was getting to a size 16-18 and not liking it. Many Dr's tried me on different things and forced me to eat 3 square meals. Had no luck in losing
• Gloria Marshals Diet - lost weight only because they gave up and dropped my calorie intake back to 800 per day. I maintain at 1000. I refused to eat breakfast.
• Herbalife - fluids and tablets - need I say more.
• Weight Watchers - put me on such a high point system that I gained weight. I dropped it back myself and started losing but not much.
• Jenny Craig - Again way too many calories but they refused to cut back because it was not medically sound. I gained weight.
• A chemist one - was on 600-800 calories but their shakes made me bloated and uncomfortable. I lost weight but couldn't keep up the program.
• One that delivers food - again too many calories and snacks
• Biggest Loser club - need to eat at least 1700 calories per day - I gain weight on 1200!!!!
• Public opinion says that breakfast will increase your metabolism - I started eating breakfast - light yoghurt, raw oats and a couple of nuts. - I still put on
• Drs did tests to find out why and came up with "obviously there is something wrong with your metabolism, it's just that science hasn't figured it out yet!"

So here I was trying to do the right thing but gaining weight by the minute. I am sure I even breathed in a few calories. I used to be a gym junkie but the heavier I got the less I could exercise. In the back of my mind I thought my body does not need as much as anyone else.

So in comes the gastric banding. The diet resembles what my mind and body have been trying to tell me for ages. What you need to understand is that the band is tightest in the morning and therefore you are not hungry. Why eat when you are not hungry. I had that figured out as a baby! The only times I have lost weight is when I don't eat breakfast - ooooh did I just say a bad thing - some would think so.

The band is supposed to slowly make you feel hungry, so at mid day I should be moderately hungry at at night I should be more hungry. The docs don't care about calories it is about hunger. Eat like a 3 year old does - when you are hungry. Your body knows when it needs food.

Now the healthy lifestyle that people tell you about to diet on is more for maintenance and for those growing. Therefore it is of no use to me at this stage while I am trying to lose. (Was that another bad thing to say)? Please remember this is my understanding of what my Docs have told me in comparison to the way I know my body works. It may not be for you and you probably shouldn't do it without the gastric band and have a specialist at hand.

So my diet right now (until my goal weight is reached) is this:

• No yoghurt, fruit, nuts, grains, legumes, cheese (Generally foods that are not satisfying)
• If I get peckish in the morning then I can have a small milky coffee or tea (these take away the hunger).
• If need be, because I am a woman, I can have 60g of plain chocolate a month at that time when the sugar craving really hits (don't think I will do this).
• Lunch should be high protein
• Eat meats such as Fish (mackerel, tuna, salmon), chicken and turkey, and there was a red meat but can't remember what it was.
• cook veggies or salad.
• Absolutely no snacking.

I have noticed that when I did eat breakfast I was constantly hungry in the morning and needed something else to eat. Then I needed something mid afternoon and maybe in the evening after dinner as well.

Today is my first day with no breakfast and you know what, I wasn't hungry. I had a tiny pang and had a tiny coffee but I could have halved the coffee cause it worked that fast in getting rid of the pang. My lunch is sitting here half eaten because I am not hungry. The same lunch last week would have been all eaten and I may have been looking for something else as well.

The Doc thinks if I stick to the above I will lose around a kg a week. I need to lose 50Kg so I am going to do up a chart to track my progress and weigh myself every Monday. I will let you all know how I am going.