RE: carbs...are you "normal" I say yes...and NO! I'll explain......

Jimbo... you rebel rouser you... don't you know the government knows what's best for us?

Yes.......I'm still tryin' out the whole "low-fat" thing......I'm pretty sure it will work ....right?  after all.... doctors and nutritionist have been recommending it for years!

Howdy,

I just came back from the bank where I ate 4 butter cookies.....yum.... That being said, I am maintaining my weight for a while now.

I had a whole wheat sandwich with ham, cheese lettuce and mustard for lunch and the wheat bread is what triggered the carb monster. Before that I was good to go.... All carbs are a problem for me.

The first 5 years with the band, I did low carb (less than 50... then with the sleeve I waited til I was almost to goal before I added some carbs. 18 months ago I gained 12 pounds and had to wean myself off the carbs. I know if I got rid of those damn cookies, the junk food eating boyfriend and purged my house of the junky stuff, I could get to a normal BMI. That being said, I used to have a BMI of 55 so anything in the 20's at a size 10 and size 8 top is fine with me.....

Maintaining for 1 and a half years now......

i hear ya....I am still close to the min BMI  to qualify for WLS! and I've lost almost 300lbs!  how  F***ed up is that!  You bet I'm happy to be "obese" now!

Jimbo, I think you're spot on with your comments. Carbs are generating a lot of attention in the thread, but let's look at fat. I ran across this interesting article. Maybe others will find it useful.

 http://tinyurl.com/6kb5u48 

I just came in on the tail end of this conversation and "think" I read everything.  Probably the biggest thing I can contribute is something I read on all weight loss boards, not just WLS.  YMMV, ie your mileage may vary.  How much we can tolerate beans, milk and fruit longterm is going to depend on our activity level and our carb sensitivity.  Everyone is going to be different.

As a side note, if you read the boards of folks who were vegetarian and/or vegan that are MO, they readily admit that in reflection they weren't really vegetarians, they were CARBaterians.  The majority of their diet was bread, pasta and potatoes and sweets.  Their diets weren't that different than most of us pre-WLS, they just didn't include meat. 

Just my 2 cent.  :)

"CARBaterians".......I like that!   The same holds true W/ YMMV  in the other scenario.  I lived (for a short time) W/ a CARBaterian (twinkie vegetarian)  This dude ate cookies, candy twinkies, ice cream, cheese, pasta, bread, potatoes, and chips......he lived off of this.....seriously! I used to say to him....."you are the only "vegetarian" I know who DOES NOT eat vegetables!"   Unlike Brandilyyn and Lee..........Who did the "vegan" thing correctly.....and were still MO.  This dude was ANOREXIC!  He was my height  (6' 2")  AND weighed 135LBS!  So this illustrates again....... MOST  MO people will NOT be able to eat a"normal" diet. (not that this was normal in any way!)  Our bodies do not process food (carbs in particular) like many "normies" do.   We all know skinny junk food people....how come they can eat crap all day....and not be 300lbs?  I think they are in a minority.......but even if we eat a pretty "balanced" diet.....we were  STILL  MO? (not to say I ate a "balanced" diet!)   This is why YMMV is so true.   

For me, I will never be "Normal" (in any way you look at it!)    Carbs are my crack, mostly refined carbs, but even healthy carbs.  If I eat whole grains or too much fruit, I will slowly slide into a binge that can last for years.   I'm jealous of the people, before or after WLS, who can eat just one cookie and be satisfied with no cravings for me.  One cookie is fine for today, tomorrow it will be two cookies and a banana, then some donuts with my coffee and hell, back up to 275 pounds!

My daughter is one who can eat carbs in moderation, but she also eats really healthy, is thin and is a competitive dancer...I hope she can stay that way.  My husband on the other hand is thin except for his belly and neck...that is where you can see all the years of eating macaroni, sugary drinks and cookies/ice cream, donuts, etc.  He may not be obese but he's certainly not healthy...he takes blood pressure meds, cholesterol meds and if he got himself to a doctor I'm sure he would find his sugar high as well.  He takes in way less calories than I ever did but they're not healthy calories and his health has suffered because of it.

The only way I was ever able to lose weight and maintain it is low carb.  I have never forced what works for me on anyone else, but I know that the only way to make any weight loss permanent is to stay away from refined carbs and sugar, and limit even healthy carbs, otherwise I will be on a downward spiral.  I'm a carb addict, it affects me the way crack affects other people,  So for me, keeping them out of my house and out of my life is the only way to stay healthy and sane!

Too many years people have been told to eat less move more, and as a society we just keep getting bigger and unhealthier, so that's obviously not the answer.!  I truly believe that for most of us WLS people, low carb is.

This is why (for some of us)  even "healthy" carbs like fruit......might be "forbidden!" (get it forbidden fruit! )  The Mood/brain chemistry altering effect of some carbohydrate will (with some of us)  lead down a path of self-destruction! 

I'm sorry.....but the description of your hubby has me picturing an hourglass shape (not in a "good" way!)  Between a "goiter"-like neck and his "beer" gut!   Sorry for "poking fun"