The Rules

I think I may gloss over the rules of the lap band because I was so prepared for them by the time I had the surgery, I didn't think anything of it. As I mentioned in a much earlier post, I heard that you couldn't drink liquids while eating once banded, five years before I even had the band, but I had already mastered that behavior by the first surgery consult. They add up, though, especially when coupled with medication that's not related to the band, so finding a balance can be tricky.

A few of the rules:

• Drink at *least* 64 oz water each day.
• Do not drink water for 30 minutes prior to having a meal, during the meal, or 60 minutes after the meal.
• Each meal should last at least 20-30 minutes.
• Drink a full glass of water with thyroid meds as soon as you wake up. Do not eat for an hour after taking the meds.
• Eat breakfast as soon as you wake up.
• Take iron pills directly after breakfast and dinner. Drink with water.
• Eat 3-4 small meals during the day, with two snacks.

I am a highly organized person, and I do a pretty good job of following these rules, as best as possbile since some of them are contradictory, but I cannot imagine how the average bandster possibly keeps track of when to eat vs when to drink. We should be drinking water all day long, yet, 5-6 times/day we're eating, so that's a 2 hr chunk of time when we should be drinking (AKA 10-12 hrs. The simple solution here is that we must not sleep. ;-)

It's not really that bad, but it does require planning, that's for sure. I have it down, but it's worth mentioning for you Pre-bandsters out there. If it were foolproof, everyone would do it and have great results.