Eating Advice

Yesterday, I had a doctor's appt. and I had gained, according to his scale I gained 4lbs and my scale dropped 1.6lbs, and he stated I gained because I did not eat the meals recommended in the Eating for Life book.  He advocates that book and eating your meals recommended in that book.  I was irritated because if I eat all the meals from that book does that mean I need to do that for the rest of my life or what?  I am seriously considering looking for another doctor at this point.  I told him I would eat only the meals from the book and follow the recipes for 1 month, but I am really considering another doctor.  Help!!!!

Hi!
I don't know what this "Eating for Life " book is all about so I can't comment on that.   I know that with my dr he gave me a sample daily menu.   Each meal I have consists of a protein and a veg or fruit.  I'm to have one snack which is yogurt and fruit.  My portions are small.  Ex: 1/3 C protein
and 1/4 C fruit or veggie.   So each meal I have is basically the same.  The protein varies and the way I cook it varies.  Sometimes I use sauces, bbq, soups etc even tho they are not recommened.  I figure I have to eat somewhat normal!!   We have to live and that will sometimes mean we will not do exactly as we may have been told.  Let's be realistic!! 
Can you use the meals in the book as a guideline?  Like I said, without being familiar with that book it's hard for me to know what he expects from you.
Have you been eating healthy stuff 95% of the time?  Are your portions what they should be? 
Scales can all vary so that's tough too.   If you want, like you said, try following it for a month and see how it goes. 
I know once we have lost our weight that we want and are on maintenance, our foods may vary then as we experiment a bit.  For now we need to follow a plan pretty close.
Good luck in your decision.

Lyn

I actually agree with you.  I think a person needs to learn good healthy behaviors and habits and not rely on a book as the end all and be all.  I think most of us have dieted enough to know what food is good and what food is bad.  Cheeseburger and fries BAD...Turkey burger and carrot sticks GOOD!!!  Look and I didn't even look at the book.

Now I noticed your doctor said you gained.  Are you struggling to lose weight?  I am going to assume you are having some issues and give you some tips that worked for me.  I was having problems losing too.   

Now you need to look closely at your eating habits.  Be honest with yourself.  Are you eating too much fattening greasy foods, high carb food??  Are your portions out of control.  I try to eyeball my food (because again I don't want to depend on measuring forever) but you may need to measure for awhile to get a idea of what 4 oz looks like, or a 1/2 a cup.  Make sure you get your protein in.  Look at your fluids....make sure you are getting all your water in.  And don't get a lot of liquid calories...in fact if your struggling to lose weight I would cut all liquid calories.  What's more satisfying to your appetite a glass of juice or an apple???  A glass of milk or cottage cheese.  And soda, beer and coffee are all empty calories you don't need right now.  Especially if you are a slow loser.   

Next you will need to exercise at least 30 minutes a day and gradually add more time.  I do 90 minutes a day.  When exercising you NEED to include weight lifting.  Your muscles are your fat/calorie burning machines.  It would make sense then if you weight lift and tighten, strengthen and increase your muscle mass the more easily your body will burn calories...hence lose weight!!!  Please consider exercise a must in your new healthy life.  And it will help you lose weight faster...I lost 13 lbs in January!!!

Good luck 

I am not in favour of following a laid down plan so closely long term but it might be of use if you are unclear about nutritional values (you may be an expert - don't know!).

My way is to eat as normally as possible and that means lots of variety and all types of food. And if i am hungry, i have an extra meal and so on. But I reckon that i am fairly knowledgeable about foods and so am confident that the amount and the choices are healthy. While losing, I tried to make healthy chocies 80% of the time. But if you are gaining weight, then something is worng with your eating at them moment.

About two threads before this post is a thread entitlted something like Helping Newbies, sample menus. i started this earlier today and quite a few people have chimed in.

So it might not be a bad idea to use the book for the month you have agreed - just to get really used to the foods and the quantities. Then branch off on your own!

Kate

 Hi,

This is my first time posting on the lap band forum I usually only post on the exercise forum.  But we have the same doctor and he has never once told me I had to follow the book.  He highly recommended it.  I bought the book read it, took the good from it and followed it loosely and I have lost 140 pounds since Nov 09.  Yes I will say the book helps when I get lazy with my eating habits but the part that I took from the book was 6 small meals a day which helps with hunger and keeps the cravings away. I am almost to goal 15 pounds to go, I keep my band loose but I do exercise regularly right now I am training for a half marathon in Feb.  So my point is yes the book is good but you have to figure out what works best for you.  I Would not give up on Dr. B he only wants the best for his patients. 

Thanks Anne74.  I really do like him.  Let me ask a question.  I do not like ground turkey or ground chicken, but I do buy 90-98% fat free hamburger meat.  I told Dr. B this and he stated it was ok.  I am thinking that when one of recipes calls for that then I can substitute it for the hamburger.  By the way, what nutrition bars do you recommend if eat them?  You can send me an email as well.

 I sent you an email let me know if you did not get it.  Ground Turkey YUCK! LOL 

Just added Body For Life exercise as my New year's resolution. I had done it several years ago for 9 months and I love the structure of it as you track cardio, weight lifting and those 6 meals a day. Structure is good for me BUT enforced rigor around food is not. Reminds me too much of being on a diet. I like the idea of 6 small meals to keep the hunger at bay but also fuel your muscles for the work out.

As always, I appreciate Kate's advice to you around a variety of foods. The basics of lap band food are pretty straight forward so I would consider Eating for Life as a way to get ideas around variety etc... but if it provokes you then look on this site for otehr people's ideas about foods as well. This weight management is as much about our heads as it is the rules to follow so honor your own psychology and do what works and leave what doesn't. Good luck to you!