Does everyone really chew chew chew?

Thx Steelerfan...! I knew I would hear from you and how feel/eat us how I feel...although as I get farther out from my first fill I think I am starting to feel hungry more so may have to address this next time I see the surgeon. Thx always for your input! Oh yeah I do think you should not have to give up a lot of foods like what you mention but I know that I hardly ever eat bread at this point in time just because I dont have the room...although I did have a craving for of all tbings a combo burrito from taco bell (healthy!) And dang, it was good...worth the calories, not totally sure but good nonetheless!

I was never a big bread eater either so it dont bother me , but it would bug me even more if I was told I couldn't have it or if I had that kind of restriction where I couldn't eat it , I would probably go and get some out lol totally opposite of what alot of people do .

I eat bread maybe 2 times a week and some weeks I might not eat it all .  And that is the low carb bread .

Now when I go to  Red lobster oh my gosh those Cheddar Bay Biscuits those are to die for and dang it if I want to eat one I want to be able to eat one and enjoy my night out instead of looking at it and wishing I could eat it lol. 

Eating like that once in awhile isn't going to make you gain weight its not going to ruin all your progress for the day.  I plan on it in my budget of calories and carbs and I enjoy every bite of them biscuits lol.

Hmm taco bell I haven't ate there for awhile I love their Taco Salads yum !!! I eat the inside out of it and hubby eats the bowl less carbs :o)   Gosh when we eat out now its like a treat and food is sooo great because we eat out maybe 2 times a month now and everything taste so good lol.

If you're losing and have a level of restriction that doesn't have you getting stuck I suppose its not mandatory, however whenever I have had decent restriction I always get stuck if I dont chew really well. You must be taking small bites then right?

I try to eat with a small baby spoon if a spoon is needed but I cant say all my bites are small? I eat (ie) 3 small meatballs as part of my dinner (the kind that come in a package in freezer section @ store) and will cut them in two maybe three pieces then eat that together with green beans stewed tomatoes...I've not yet had a prob with stuck syndrome from the band.

Yeah, see I'm different.  I chew everything to a puree and one meatball is about 6-8 bites for me (I cut it in half, then have those halves, then halve those halves).  I think if I was able take bigger bites, it would affect my restriction level as a whole.  No way...I'd rather chew! :)

Wow lisa the meatballs are already so small...just couldn't see going to that extreme although maybe I will be joining you at my nect fill!

It's really not extreme...it's second nature to me now. :)

I dont take really small bites like my gf has to do gosh she cuts hers up like m&m's .  I take small bites but nothing like that . Mine are alot bigger then that .

See I have just never worried about restriction .  My doc as long as you can go 3 hrs or more without eating and not head hunger eating then he dont give fills at all .   He has just never made a big deal about this restriction or this so called sweet spot and that is probably why I dont go looking for it either .

His nurse thinks I have none and she tells me that everytime I see her every month and she got into my head this month about it and had me doubting myself  but she cant give me a fill because I lose more then the required 5 pounds per month and plus go 3-6 hrs without physical hunger . Head hunger different story lol.

Sometimes I still forget to chew,chew,chew....and usually when I do I get a nasty reminder. So more times than not I chew til it is like baby food!

I think your bitesize and chewing really depends on your restriction level.  I'm keeping my band on the looser side, so I find that I don't cut my food up into pea size bites that others talk about.  But I do take smaller bites than I used to and I will admit I am appalled at some of the bites I now see people take and I think about how I used to do that too!  It's all perspective, I guess.  I do chew pretty thoroughly, but I find I'm not as concerned about it now as I used to be and I never  (knock on wood) get stuck because of bite size.  It's rare for me to get stuck on anything.  Usually only happens if I eat too fast or eat something dry, and I'm very careful about eating slowly, so getting stuck is a real rarity for me.  But it's always good to be careful as you work towards more restriction. 

cat