Potatoes

Thank you everyone for your responses.  I have spent so many years on different diets that learning how to eat as a bandster is yet another chapter in my book.  I am working on writing down everything I eat, finding good protein choices and taking time to eat.  My problem before the surgery was taking time out of my day to eat ( I am a Special Education teacher and usually am working on something during my lunchtime).  So I have the same problem now and am working on remedying it.

I promise that I will be better at writing down everything I eat, drink enough water and eat plenty of protein each meal.  I am only weighing myself once a week (we haven't bought a new scale yet so I go to my friends) and as of Friday I was down 17 pounds.

Thanks again!
Carrie

 Shhhh, don't tell anyone, I'm eating mashed potatoes right now.  At LUNCH!!  Hehehe, ok so I'm in a silly mood today.  I usually stick to low carb/ low glycemic index type foods, but I'm human!  I occasionally want potatoes, bread, rice, pasta and even the occasional baked confection!!  I've learned to eat what I want, in moderation and without GUILT... because for me, the minute I feel guilt its all over and I set off on a binge and it may take me WEEKS or even MONTHS to get back on the wagon!!  I'd say the occasional small potato is ok, though it offers little nutritionally.  A sweet potato would be a much better choice  if you were going to indulge more often :)

Kari

I'm a ditto here.  I'm NOT going to feel guilty over a couple of bites of potato.  I"M NOT!  But that being said, I get in my planned protein... it takes some time to learn how to do this.  I never have more than 1/4 cup of white carbs on my dinner plate, and sometimes I leave a few bites behind, but they are there if I want them.  I'm finding more often the better restriction I have the less carb based foods I prepare cause I can't eat them. 

I did this to eat normal.  Normal people eat some potatoes.  I just can't go back to Gayta-Potata (my nickname as a kid). 

When people try to act as my food police it causes me to rage, and threaten violence, I don't recommend it.

Here's a general tip... if they say the #1 issue that all WLS patients face in years 3+ is weight regain, my suggestion is to look at what successful bandsters eat that are 5+ years out. We can all do different things, including me, that help us lose weight. Figuring out how to eat long term in a way that keeps the weight off is really important.

There are people who post they eat what they want. The most common causes of weight regain is continuing to eat like you did before surgery-- just less of it. Then not measuring and stretching your pouch and last not becoming active. You have to exercise 2 hours to burn 500 calories. Most people can restrict their calories more easily than exercise. Doing both (restricting calories AND exercising) gives you the biggest bang for your buck.

My suggestion is to figure out how you can eat the foods you love in moderation. Be honest with yourself. If you cannot moderate them, then cross them off your list. Many people are carb sensitive and once they eat these foods, they crave more. I have a big problem with salty snacks. Can I eat them? Sure. Will they go through my band? Absolutely. But when I buy them, I have a really hard time moderating how much of them I eat. Same thing with baked goods. If I go out to dinner, I can enjoy a dessert once in a while but I bought a pie and thought I would eat oe slice a day until it was gone... LIE! I would keep grazing on that sucker until it's gone. Why? Because our brains are still wired EXACTLY like they were before surgery. We still think like a fat person. We try to convince ourselves that we deserve that food item, that it's just a small amount, etc. That's all fine and good. The real question is what happens after 4 years of doing that? Ask a gastric bypass patient. In my opinion, if you want to donate your body to your surgeon and have your stomach shrunk to eat less of the same cra* and lose weight, you won't be successful very long. It takes a lifestyle change to create healthy behaviors that lead to lifelong success and not immediate satisfaction from a certain food that tickles some part of your brain when you crave it.

Sorry to those who I offend. I'm just keepin' it real. Just because you've been successful for a few months eating what you want just less of it, doesn't mean that strategy will work after 5 years. Those are the real statistics after thousands of people being surveyed. Could you be the FREAK exception, sure. But the odds are highly unlikely that it's true.