What kind of eater were you?

So I have a general question for the other men on the board that I heard someone ask at a support group.  What kind of eater were you? (post-op)...  and how has your journey with WLS gone based on which type of eater you were given the restrictions of RNY and banding?  So far these were the some answers to the first question. The binger... Usually doesn't eat breakfast and/or lunch, and then inhale a very large dinner and possibly another meal closer to bedtime.  The body goes into starvation mode, then holds all the calories from the binge as fat. The grazer...  Eats and snacks all the time... usually seen always with food around.  The body constantly gets filled with calories going over the required daily need and stores the rest as fat. The soda drinker... drinks regular soda like its the air your breath.  More sugar, more calories... The overeater... Probably sticks to a normal routine of 3 meals a day but they're very large as far as proportions go.  Big breakfast, big lunch, big dinner... The dessert feign and sweet tooth...  Regardless of the regular food habits, this person would constantly eat or snack on high carb,high sugar desserts in the form of ice cream, candy, chocolate, cookies, etc.   The alcoholic...  This is obvious... with 7 calories per gram of alcohol plus slowing the matabolism. Those were the top answers.... if possible that you may be one or more combinations that resulted in your weight gain. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- For me, I was a definately a soda drinker... and then I was a binger.  The jury is still out on how i've overcome my eating habits since I'm still very much learning what I can and can't tolerate and still on pureed/soft foods at this point. 

Yep, that pretty much describes me pre-op; soda drinking (all diet coke), sweet tooth, big meal bing snacker. Now binging is 4 granola bars. I tried SF ice cream,....no good. Pizza, dough kills me. choclate Chip cookies,...more than 2  small ones makes me dump. Soda; diet or otherwise,...tastes like battery acid Cheeseburgers,.....not even going there. Yes I could probably eat more of that stuff than I do but why regain any tolerance for it and scrw up what I've gained.  I see way too many post-ops eat the wrong things and guess what?  You body adjusts if you keep putting it in there and then you go back to the same prblem you had before surgery.  Not worth it man,....just don't even play with fire. Stay with the vitamins and the new life eating style; focus on protein, water and exercise and the rest will take care of itself.  I like atmeal with chocolate protien powder and a banana, protein fruit smoothies, shrimp, protein bars, a cold bottle water, and reduced fat PB and banana sandwich on wheat bread occasionally, and if I get a sweet attack or can't sleep,...I'll eat a pop-tart or a couple of cookies and brace up for feeling like needing to lay down within 30 minutes. Sorry about the soapbox/rant,...that wasn't your question was it?  Js some insight as to whats in front of you and yuor needing to make the decision to not go there or draw that line in the sand that you don't eat those things anymore. Good luck on your journey. You should be through the rough stuff and on your way to some great FARTS!! Joe

I was more the overeater than anything. If I ate junk food it was only because I was hungry all the time and that was what was around the office or home.

So far this has been a good thing because the restriction alone is helping me a whole bunch!

Over eater.  I loved and still do love foods.  I like variety and I always wanted to taste it all. If I liked it I went back for more.  I ate until I was FULL.  I was deffinately the worst nightmare of the all you could eat chinese restaurants. I always thought of myself not so much as having a sweet tooth, but of having a fat tooth.  I would take something deep fried over something sweet any day.  The richer and more flavorful the better. I'm still struggling with that now.  It seems that the things I shouldn't be eating are the things that I crave the most. Scott

Overeater and soda drinker. I would go down to my favorite burrito place every morning and the concious part of my brain would be saying get one ham and egg burrito and a bottle of water and that'll do you until lunch time. If I'd gone that route I'd have consumed a respectable 450-500 calories for breakfast. The other part of my brain would over rule it though and I'd get two breakfast combos (eggs, beans, potato chunks, bacon, ham, chorizo, cheese, wrapped in a homemade 12" flour tortilla) and a 20oz coke. So I'd end up with about 1350-1400 calories for breakfast. Usually I was still to full to eat lunch so I'd drink another 20 oz coke. Another 250 calories. By the time I got home in the early evening I was pretty seriously hungry and would have 2 - 3 helpings of whatever we were having for supper and a couple more 20 oz cokes. End of the day I've drank over 2 liters of coke and consumed around 4500 - 5000 calories and hadn't exercised a lick. Do that every day for 10 years and you will see some impressive gains. RNY has helped me erase about 10 years worth of damage in just under 5 months. I still have a hard time believing it.  

 It looks like WLS therefore would only be effective with the "overeaters" and the "bingers", as the rest can all be eaten around, even with WLS (unless you count dumping as detracting from "dessert feign / sweet tooth")   hmmmmm  ..

I was a grazer and over eater.  I could just snack on something all day.  But let me ask you guys this question.  Before I had surgery I had the thought that as I lost weight I would not become a snob about and look down on others, but I had a business meeting at a buffet place and as I watched people eat I was disgusted.  Just the load of food looked repulsive to me and not the feelings of "oh i wish i could eat like that" that I thought I might have before surgery.  Anyone else struggle with this?  I do not want to look down on others, but be an inspritation for others to do what ever it takes to get healthy. Jason

I've been there and still catch myself on occassion asking myself,  "How or even Why are they doing that?" Then that little voice reminds me, that use to be me and i thought I had everything under control and was just enjoying life and what made me hapy or feel good. By eating correctly and taking care of yourself, your actions and recovery speak volumes. Did we listen to others when they advised or questioned us before surgery?? They don't see the harm they are doing just as we refused to believe it was as bad as it was for us. AA calls it denial. Me: head bob and kept eating.  Cutting back was 2 (2 for $3) cheesburgers (oh yeah, those were 2 for $3 double cheeseburgers) instead of 2 quarter pounders and drinking diet coke instead of regular coke.  A $.99 box of cheap cookies was a 1 serving snack because it was less than a dollar.

hey jce3g,

i don't want to hijack mysties thread. your question always starts a provocative response. you ought to post it and see what happens!

what i will say is that it's a slippery slope. i feel nothing but sadness when i see overweight people doing the wrong thing or struggle to get in and out of seat, car or whatever. watching someone sweat like crazy in the middle of winter or drench thier t shirts in summer while watching the sweat almost drown them. i was all of these things and more it seemed. i feel so bad for obese people.

like you i don't want to eat like that either, ever again. i really have to watch myself when an obese person gets in my face though. it's been more than once i catch myself calling them a fat ass in my mind! where did that come from? i feel ten times worse when that thought comes out. i know i didn't mean it, i just wanted to get even. i would never say something like that but what does it mean that i could even think that?

so there's the dicotomy. get me mad enough and you're overweight and i'll use it as a slur (silently) only in the most heated moment. yet, nothing but sympathy for them at the same time. i dunno, i think they might have removed some brain cells when i was under......carbonblob

I haven't gotten to the point of thinking condescending thoughts about other fat people yet. Mainly cause I'm still pretty damned fat myself. I think you have a valid question though. Here's the thing I'm struggling with and it's kind of a corollary to yours: I worry about what people think when I'm eating with them.  We see a 330 lb guy and we naturally assume he'll load his plate to the gills and when he doesn't you gotta wonder what's wrong with him. Is he trying to impress others with his will power and then pig out like crazy when he's alone? I've done that before. Is he sick? Is he really dieting? Cause you can look at him and tell that **** ain't ever worked before. I wonder what's going through other peoples minds when they see us with way less food on our plate than a normal person would eat. With perfect strangers, I could give a **** but sometimes you're eating with someone you need to connect with. Case in point: I had a job interview about 10 days ago. The guy takes me out to eat at a decent resturant. He's about 50, 6' tall and probably has never weighed more in his life than he does right now which is about 175. He gets a Chicken Fried Steak with French Fries and Fried Okra. My 330 lb ass gets a Grilled Chicken Breast with a Salad and Steamed Green Beans. This is in rural west Texas and out here by God, men are supposed to be eating a Chicken Fried Steak. I spent some time during the meal wondering if he thought I was trying to put on airs for him by eating something rather effiminate. Could have been worse I guess. I almost ordered the Grilled Catfish.