Whenever Possible and my 80/20 Rule

All of us bandsters experience a bit of a inconsistency in what we can eat from day to day, week to week and sometimes from one minute to the next.  I have learned to adapt to my band's fickleness and one of the ways I do that is to be flexible with my "band rules".

I plan my meals with high density protein first, low glycemic veggies second and aim for about 16-20 grams of protein per meal.  Sometimes, however, my band won't let me eat dense protein first...might be a day where I am retaining water, a humid and hot day or just a difficult day.  On those days or often if I am eating out, I break a band rule and eat some hot soup as my first course.  The rest of the meal is going to be dense protein and veggies, but perhaps less than I would have if I didn't have the soup.  I avoid cream soups if possible...

If we are at a social gathering and there is no band-appropriate food, I will eat SOMETHING rather than walk around hungry, even if it is just nibbling on a cracker and some cheese while having a glass of wine and chatting.  I always keep an Atkins Advantage bar in my purse and will eat half before an event and save the other half for the car on the way home.  These bars have between 17-20 grams of protein for 200 calories and are very satisfying if you find yourself away from your normal food supply away from home.

It is ok to break the rules "appropriately".  One great thing about my band is that if I do break the rules, I can get right back to it at the next opportunity.  I follow the rules at least 80% of the time, meaning that no more than 20% of my calories will come from foods that are not "band-worthy"...sometimes that means I have a cookie with half a glass of milk as a treat...

Just wanted to put that out there for those of you who are worried that you will never eat "normally"...naturally thin people eat like this, you don't see them agonizing over whether to have one cookie or a skinny cow ice cream...just stay on the 80/20 path and you will do fine!

Steph

This is such a nice post!

I think an 80/20 plan is what my aim needs to be rather than that stupid mindset of all or nothing. I think it is especially hard to really be honest with yourself. This goes for before and even after lap band. I would have never considered myself someone "addicted" to food until I really needed to sit down and think about it. The biggest reason I chose the band over any other type of surgery is because I LOVE food...LOVE it. Which caused me to over eat more times than not. After the band I couldn't really overeat unless I really tried and was just asking to be hurting for days...
I love variety and not having to cut everything from my diet due to malabsorption (spelling?). For me now, it's a matter of not skipping meals and not making the choice for convenience over nutritional value. One day at a time...thanks Steph I think you are right in your mindset and even inspiring. :)

The all or nothing attitude is what got us to the point of needing WLS....better to walk down the middle of the lane, than constantly be crashing into the guard rails!

I had a small handful of MM's (about 15)...there's my 20% for the day!!!  And it was damn good too!!!

Yum!

I follow the 80/20 rule also .  There is no foods off limit with WLS we just need to learn how to control our portions and how often to eat them foods without giving up the foods we love.

That is what I do . I eat all the same things as before but Im just more careful and it makes me feel like Im eating normal and Im not on a diet and start wishing I could have this or that .  It makes it alot easier to do it this way .

Great post Steph and I'm glad that is what works for you! 

Mine is more like 95/5...80/20 would put me out of maintenance quickly!  I couldn't eat like a naturally thin person before and I certainly won't trick myself into thinking I can now.  Reason is...I'm NOT a naturally thin person.  I have to work harder than they do and I realize this after almost 17 months of maintaining my loss successfully.

When I have tried on my maintenance plan to gradually add more of those "20%" things you speak of, I gain weight.  Straight up. The scale doesn't lie....so this is what works *for me*. :)  Maintenance is MUCH more difficult than the losing phase, I have come to realize.  I have it down pat now and am finally lovin' life...but boy those first 6 months were ROUGH.

I do enjoy my 5% though and really make it "count" taste-wise...I just don't need to make it 20%.  Thanks for posting, Steph!

Hi Lisa....it is great that you really savor your 5%!  One thing I have noticed that having this surgery has changed about me, is that even if I can have just a bite of something tempting, usually that is enough...I really enjoy it!  Before, I could eat a whole platefull of food and not even remember eating it...
My daughter and her 3 girls are all carb addicts and they cannot eat "just one" so it has to be almost an all or nothing situation.  We all have to find the process that works for our particular mindset, physiology, etc...

 I needed to read this, I really did...thank you for the reality check, Common sense and reason dont come naturally to me, lol, so sometimes I need to hear other people talk balance.

My 80/20 plan may not work for everyone...85/15, 90/10, 95/5...

Early on, I followed my plan to the letter, I think I was 99% compliant for months.  I also am not focused on getting to a particular weight within a set time frame, either...I want to enjoy my social life with friends and family, and living within the Italian culture, food is a big part of it.  Now, though I can enjoy just a bite or two of something I normally would not include in my food plan, just as much as I used to enjoy a plateful.

I see many newbies posting questions about being able to eat "normally" after surgery or never being able to have a certain food again.  We didn't eat normally BEFORE surgery.  For me, it was a matter of allowing myself to succeed and sometimes fail, without the guilt I have felt in the past.  I am over it and know that my value as a human being is not measured in pounds or inches or the size of my clothes, but by how I influence my grandkids, support my grown children emotionally and spiritually and know they will do the same long after I am gone. 

Each of us has to find our way through this maze of experiences in our WL journey...the intent of my post was to sort of depressurize the experience a bit. 

Steph