It seems there are 2 trains of thought about life with VSG- Deep Thoughts?

Also, I think the original 2 "paths" you have there are 2 way polar opposites, I think there are subgroups to your 2 options.

Or maybe just me and Ms Jacque are subgroup folks, but I doubt it! 

true, true

Brandilynn... I heart you! So great to see a response from you! =) I know you're on the maintenance side of the fence now, but please don't forget your groupies! Like the munchkins in Oz...we'd be lost without our Wizard!!

muaaaahhh!
Heidi

Great thread!

I am in the other camp.  I eat what I want in moderation. I dont deny myself treats i make sure I get my water, veggies and protein in and vitamins.  My weight loss is slow but I like it that way because my skin is doing really well.  Its a choice that i made. It took me years to get this big and i want to take my time so that it stays off.  i feel great and I dont feel guilty about eating anymore.  

I think its a personal choice as long as you stick to the program, what ever yours is and watch your intake trust me its way better than not having the VSG

i love it best thing i have ever done for myself.

Great, thoughtful responses, thanks y'all!

I have cut out alot.. and I read the lables on everything.. however if I am making my kid ramen.. I take a bite..if I am making chicken fet I will eat mostly chicken however I will eat a few noodles... I used to eat hominy, rice, pasta, potatoes, and anyother white carb as often as possible, Multiple servings a day. However now I may have a few bites of these types of things a month.. rice.. maybe a table spoon a month, I eat a few potato chips occasionally.. I do eat chocolate.. however I ONLY eat dark chocolate with nuts, no caramel.. no nugget..... just basic..  before I could eat an entire candy bar, chips, soda, dinner and other random things just in the 5 hours before bed... Now I may have one or two bites of something "off diet"  in the afternoon... I have been successful with the way I have done things.. however everyone may not be.. you just got to find what works for you.. I know I cant have white carbs daily, nor do I want them.

I'm still early out, but my plan is kind of a blend of the two. I plan on following the low carb plan and doing all that good stuff as much as humanly possible and at home. But if we're at a friend's house and they order pizza, I'll deal with that when it comes, even it means picking off the toppings.

Having said THAT, bread - like the kind on the table at restaurants is my weakness. Bread and cake. I know that. So I know that I will just have to say no to those. One good buttery roll and I'd be going down a hill that wouldn't be good for me.

Maybe further out, I can learn moderation with bread, but for now I think I have to be away from it.

Thanks for the post. I'm a "normal food in small quantities" person. I had a healthy diet, just too many calories because I was hungry ALL the time. Hunger has always been my central issue. I am not an emotional eater, not a carboholic, not a sweets fanatic, and nearly never a junk food/fast food consumer. My blood lipids have always been the envy of my docs. My husband says that I had the healthiest diet of anyone he knew.

So as long as I can be satisfied with small portions of the healthy foods I like, I think I can handle half a piece of pumpkin bread (my favorite) for breakfast on occasion without it turning into a weight gaining cascade of carbs. I'm still early out, so I could be proven wrong.

Everyone has their own weight demons and I respect the harder core approach many on this board adopt, particularly the folks who've lost a ton of weight. That said, I am not convinced that absolutely everyone has to be hard core to get to goal and stay there. Sometimes I think this point of view is blasphemous on this board. I sometimes get bummed out by the admonitions that we all have to stay on red alert the rest of our lives or fail miserably; I'm very unlikely to stay on red alert about anything for long periods of time. I'll find out whether my relatively lax attitude works for me or not. Again, thanks for the post.

I think there are as many camps as there are people with the sleeve.  Everyone needs to figure out what works for them and then stick with it.

Carbs are not evil, but they're evil FOR ME.  They have a horrible effect on how I feel.  So I limit them.  And FOR ME, it's easier to totally abstain from certain foods versus trying to eat them in moderation.  That's my body chemistry and it's what I have to live and work with.  By getting rid of my pre-op constant gnawing hunger, the sleeve has provided me with a fighting change to eat the way my body is happy.

I absolutely believe there are folks who can eat carbs, eat sugar, eat with less focus and still be successful - but I can't.  And that's just the way it is.

 I honestly feel that whatever works for people, then that is cool.  

For me - I kind of cringe now at not putting something with the maximum nutritional value possible in my mouth.   Because I can eat so little, I want to get the maximum impact.  I am kind of freaked of becoming deficient in something that my body needs and I don't want problems from it.  Of course I take my vitamins, too.  The thought of my poor lil tummy processing crap food now literally makes me feel ill.  That might change one day, and if it does I will enjoy some crap in moderation I guess.  I do intend to try and avoid carbs, fast food, deep fried food and overly sugary desserts as much as possible for the rest of my life.  That is not to say that I don’t have desserts – I do!  I just make/find something that is not junk.  Like the eggface protein cakes, I make those a lot.  I chose not to drink alcohol or caffeine, but I haven’t been much for those in my life anyway.  One thing I do eat is “real" fats.  I eat butter, whip cream – etc.  I feel that the processed, fake stuff is actually worse for me.  Since it’s such a small amount and I am supposed to have some fat in my diet, I don’t avoid it.  I did not have this surgery so that I could continue eating “anything I want".  I had it for the restriction and for the fact that things are not re-routed like in GB.  For the ghrelin reduction and for the lack of other issues that seem so prevalent in other procedures.