Helpful Band Rules

This was posted on the Obesity Help LapBand Forum.




Good Restriction is NOT:
- Being unable to eat or drink well
- Being able to eat only a few bites per meal
- Having any type of pain or regular barfing
- Expecting the band to make us stop eating
- Expecting the band to restrict poor band food
- Expecting the band to be a magic cure
- Expecting hunger to be entirely gone

Good Restriction IS:
- Being able to eat 1-1.5 cups of food per meal, not less
- Being able to eat a variety of foods
- Getting and heeding gentle "soft stop" sign to remind us to stop eating before we overeat and vomit
- Being able to meet all nutrition needs fairly easily, with good food choices
- Feeling SATISFIED (not FULL) with a good band meal for 3-4 hrs. This means understanding what satisfied feels like and what head hunger is
- Having a general dimming of hunger between good, planned band meals
- Losing 1-2lbs a week, on average (Very heavy people may lose more at first, and this is fine if there is good food choices)

One of the most important parts of restriction is the foods we choose. A good fill will restrict only good band foods, never liquids, soft stuff, junk food or sweets. For good restriction we must choose the foods that are restricted - primarily meats. If we don't, we will have to self-restrict to 1-1.5 cups of food.

This one area is the biggest thing people don't understand - that the band will not restrict poor foods. Then they run to get more and more fill (and the doctors do not review a food journal to see that the food choices are poor). They get more fill, end up too tight for safety and then end up with slips, dilations and erosions. The No. 1 reason for trouble and almost all the serious troubles is trying to get and keep a too tight fill.