I hear so much talk about how everyone has to follow "The Rules" if you want to be successful...

I'm curious what everyone's take on this is...specifically,

Do You learn and follow the rules to loose weight?

Or

Do you learn and follow the rules because that is the only way you can manage to live with the band....

I am also curious what people feel "The Rules" actually are...

In my case, it was because following them was / is the only way I can get by day to day with the band....in the beginning, long before I even had the surgery, they started teaching me the "Rules" and telling me then I had to start adhering to them...to be honest, for me, I felt they were silly...and I told them so...

They would smile am laugh, and say..."You just wait and see"...""there will come a day you will wish you knew them by heart. better to start now than wait till later"

And they were right...after my 3rd fill, BAM! Could not keep anything down...suddenly I knew EXACTLY what they meant...

I can now say, these "Rules" are no longer rules, but new habits that make up a new lifestyle...I don't have to be reminded about small bites and chewing...drinking while eating..etc, etc....I know...and it all is natural and part of me know...

I hear so much talk about how everyone has to follow "The Rules" if you want to be successful... I'm curious what everyone's take on this is...specifically' date=' Do You learn and follow the rules to loose weight? Or Do you learn and follow the rules because that is the only way you can manage to live with the band.... I am also curious what people feel "The Rules" actually are... In my case, it was because following them was / is the only way I can get by day to day with the band....in the beginning, long before I even had the surgery, they started teaching me the "Rules" and telling me then I had to start adhering to them...to be honest, for me, I felt they were silly...and I told them so... They would smile am laugh, and say..."You just wait and see"...""there will come a day you will wish you knew them by heart. better to start now than wait till later" And they were right...after my 3rd fill, BAM! Could not keep anything down...suddenly I knew EXACTLY what they meant... I can now say, these "Rules" are no longer rules, but new habits that make up a new lifestyle...I don't have to be reminded about small bites and chewing...drinking while eating..etc, etc....I know...and it all is natural and part of me know...[/quote']

When deciding to get banded I researched to make sure that this lifestyle is something I can live with for the next 60+ years and be happy and who I am inside. So my thoughts are ....

My band thought me the importance of chewing and eating slow 5 months out if I forget it reminds me :/ . That really is not a rule but a behavior that if not done is negatively reinforced with discomfort:sliming and yes a few times stuck...as far as rules of food not to eat I eat everything but learned food like pork doesn't agree with me but that can vary day to day...Everything else is just a lifestyle change I guess . I don't eat slider foods not cause its a rule or I won't lose I just no longer crave them snd I use my calories and stomach real estate selectively if I want something I eat it like a macaroon at a party yesterday I ate and so what lol . I didn't eat cause I didn't want to the entire sweet table .. I work out 4-6 times a week not a rule but now I actually enjoy it. I was a person who would never get up early to workout now I am addicted to my 530 am workouts 3 -4 days a week. If the gym offers those classes I am there!!! Something in me clicked and I do enjoy the results from eating clean and working out. I have eaten clean n workout pre band but my hunger head and physical go the best of me. The band has taken care of both:) I see the results and it motivates me it is a positive reinforced behavior .

B52 I read your post and responses and along with mis and Carolina girl have helped me learns the ins and outs n I say learn not because it's rule driven or just behavior but helping me with my new lifestyle like how parent helps a child. Because as far as I'm concerned I have been Reborn at 38 n learning to live life all over again. Sometimes I wonder who this new person is

rules are different for everyone as doctors are different, peoples bodies/lives etc..

so i dont see a specific set of rules and i feel this plays to being a disaster for some as they get many different versions of what is right and they want to do what someone (who is losing) is doing and then spazzing when what they do (isnt working in their eyes) when it is--

it will if they give it time and stay off the scale..and then they come to this forum, see people posting the opposite of what the dr says to do (aka beer or keeping their band so dangerously tight, all they can do is drink)) and they figure since it is ok with that person, then it must be okay)...well its not..

my rules i follow are from my dr and nutritionist

eat Protein first, veggies and fruit..drink alot and exercise...

and to stop eating at 20 minutes and not drink 1/2 hour after i eat.....and no carbonation

for best results, listen/follow your dr's rules and if you want to know something, call and ask your doctor..if you are losing inches, you are losing weight, no matter what the scale says or dont say..this is the rule i live by

I follow the basic band rules, because aside from losing weight, I do not want to cause any damage to the surgery. It was a big and expensive step to take, and I want to protect it.

When I say the "basic" rules, I mean small bites chewed well, sticking to small portions, listening closely for the signal to stop, not drinking 1/2 hour before or after a meal, no carbonation, NSAIDs (for the most part). I was told no straws or gum, but I have zero issues with either one. As for the portions, my band dictates that....which pretty much stays in the 1/2-1cup measurement. I don't actually measure, but I can eyeball it when I put whatever in the bowl or on the plate. No matter what is on the plate, I stop when signaled.

The other rules....well, I guess they're more behavioral changes they try to instill. Things like keeping a food journal and tracking calories. In the beginning, I tracked calories daily. Once I got to the green zone, I stopped. The band tells me all I need to know, and as long as I'm still losing, it's working. I feel completely FREE since I stopped tracking, and no longer worry about eating to the point of weight gain.

I follow several different rules. 1) the LapBand rules on eating (cause if you don't it means trouble). 2) During my weight loss stage I set personal rules that I followed (low carb, exercising, no eating after 9pm, etc...) 3) Now that I am maintaining I have created some lifestyle rules for myself.

But I don't see them as rules, more as guidance. I don't deprive myself of anything but I do make health choices that others would see as being deprived.

When I post about following the rules I am referring to how to eat with the band. In my opinion the biggest problem with the band is the patients not learning how to eat/manage their band. This is a high maintenance tool, we cannot ignore/abuse it, if we do there are consequences. Almost two years banded, I have learned to listen to my band and not to push it. I learned to "follow the rules".