Curious, do you still watch your not drinking before and after eating?

I was just wondering, I see some posts about people stalling on their weight loss for long periods of time. Are you still following the guidelines about not drinking for at least 1/2 hour before and after food?

I am very careful not to drink before and after eating. I fill up fast on food and stay feeling full for a long time. The worst part is getting the thirsties after you eat. I found a remedy for this by finishing my meals with a few segments of a "clementine" tangerine. It gives me enough moisture to make it through the next half hour before I can drink water again.

For me that is the hardest part of having this surgery. Not being able to drink and eat at the same time. However, I was 409 lbs. to start off with, I have been having a pretty regular weight loss of 2-5 lbs. a week. I may go one week without losing, but I'm still losing consistently. I am not exercising yet either, but I am moving around a lot better. I'm joining the YMCA tomorrow. They're having a free membership drive this weekend. I'm going to be brave and get into the pool to build up my strength for starters.

Yes, I am very careful not to drink 1/2 hour before or 1 hour after.  That has to be for life.  I have found the remedy for me and the thirsties is to make sure I drink a ton right up until the 1/2 hour before.  If I am rl\eally hydrated, I don't feel thirsty with or immediately after my meal.

Yes, that's what I thought so too. You don't drink for an hour afterwards? My doctor said I only needed to wait 1/2 hour. That's what I've been doing all along. Sometimes I do go longer if I'm not that thirsty after a meal, it kind of depends what I ate.

I find I do best with "moist" foods. It's got to have something on it to help it slide down. (Chicken salad, chicken cassarole, turkey chilli, diet foods with diet sauces)

I have not been sticking to this rule very well lately.  It was easier before I started drinking coffee again.  Now I crave it all the time, especially while I am eating.  I knew this would be a problem for me, because I have always drank the bulk of my calories.  But I am going to make it a goal for this week.  Thanks!

I quit waiting before I ate.  I'll drink right up to the point where I take my first bite of food.  After that first bite, I push my drink away and don't drin****il at least 30 minutes has passed.  If I eat soup, I drink the liquid first before eating the solids.

I was told that not drinking before was to ensure you had enough room in your pouch to eat food.  Now if my stomach is empty and I put liquid in it, that liquid drains out pretty quickly, so I don't have to worry about it mixing with my food and pushing it out faster or stretching my stoma.

I was told by my Doc that you have to stop drinking up to 30 mins.. before a meal.. I also keep the regimen of  taking drink sips 5 mins apart.. my doc stated that I'm to maintain this rest of my life.. I also eat less by doing this because this called water loading... by drinking a couple of glasses between meals.. you will eat less.. and not have the thristies after a meal.. but I still usualy have a stall after two to three weeks.. usually around that time of month.. but I'm not complaining.. big difference from a size 32 to a 16 today.. I was dancing yesterday in OLD NAVY.. got a cute maxi dress.. in a Large.. But you are doing awesome LAURA!!

I really do think that it does make a big difference.  I also noticed that when I feel like I'm stalling, and I write down all of my intake, usually the thing that is low is my water intake, so I up it by a few glasses a day, and the pounds start coming off again.  I know a lot of people that had the surgery in the last 2-3 years, and many of them are already gaining a significant amount of weight back.  I guess I try to learn by their mistakes---just because you CAN eat something doesn't mean that you SHOULD eat it.  They come back from their lunch breaks with big macks and drinking their cokes while they eat their fries.  I know I didn't go through all of this for nothing.  It's easier to stick to the rules from the start, than it is trying to break new bad habit, I think.

Thanks for the good reminder!

Yes, I think it is important. Waiting a half an hour before I eat keeps me honest too.

Frequently I would like to eat without waiting the half an hour. But I find that after waiting the half an hour, I'm not nearly as hungry as I thought I was (the feeling passed) or I have the time to figure out something that is healthy for me to eat instead of just grabbing the easiest food to down.

If I can't decide if its thirst or hunger I'll go for the water and wait it out--but as for dining out, I'm drinking my water at the table right until I take that first bite of food.  I have trouble as it is remembering to keep drinking throughout the day, so I need every bit of help I can!