drinking...

[EricaG]

so i was wondering... do you guys drink with ur band? if so how much? and what.

im not too much of a drinker but i do love my glass of wine once in a while...

this is just out of curiousity. trying to prep myself for the future.. yeey!

[bogiesmom]

so i was wondering... do you guys drink with ur band? if so how much? and what.

im not too much of a drinker but i do love my glass of wine once in a while...

this is just out of curiousity. trying to prep myself for the future.. yeey!

Drinking is fine as long as it is not carbonated. It is actually considered a clear liquid. I like my "wine" every once in awhile too so I was sure to ask Dr. Ortiz about this and he told me a glass a day would be fine. After surgery I went back to the Mariott and had 4 Melon Balls with my mom at the bar. Good Times! (Ironically I have not had any alcohol since then due to being paranoid about calories but wine is only 100 calories for 4 ounces so you should be fine if you stick with wine and not be like me who likes to graduate to mojitos, melon balls, martinis...)

[Lindsay]

i don't drink at all anymore.

for a couple of reasons:

1. i can't validate those calories - i'd rather eat them.

and 2. i don't really care for it, so it's easy to pass on.

[jhawkchick75]

I still drink, but I have laid off b/c i'm with Lindsay - every time I drink that is that much less I get to eat!

Here's what I do - when I do drink i'm extra careful on what I eat before. My tolerance is shot now so I don't want to get too drunk fast and then get sick. You want to avoid throwing up at all cost w/ the band. I've gotten full on sick (not PB'ing) a couple times and it is terrible! Imagine that liquid trying to come back up through that small hole. It's not like throwing up before - way worse!

Even though I could have it now I gave up beer once I started pre op diet and have only had one since. I hoped it would taste bad but unfortunately it still tasted really good! Wine is OK but i've found it is a lot of calories. I do crystal light (well, the knock off Wal Mart version) and vodka. If i'm out and about i'll do wine or vodka and cranberry, but again you are talking quite a few calories. Just make sure and add them in your calorie count for the day.

[bogiesmom]

I have been blessed by the drinking angels in that when I drink I forget all about eating and food is totally out the window. That being said, I work with what I have got in terms of calories that I can use for drinking. I know 4 ounces of wine is equivalent to 100 calories (So is 1 ounce of liquor) so I try to pick things that are not too fruity or full of mixers loaded in calories and keep it simple. Here is an article I got from weightwatchers.com (note***1 point is approximate to 50 calories):

"So what'll it be?" asks the bartender. Most any woman will have a proud answer. Your personal cocktail says a lot about you. A martini woman revels in class and sophistication, while a margarita chica knows how to enjoy a fiesta. But what you might not know is that having a few of your favorite mixed drinks (which, more often than not, lead to a few more) can cause serious damage to your weight-loss efforts.

Despite what seems like common sense, less volume does not necessarily translate to fewer POINTS® values. To help make sense of the madness, we've researched 18 popular cocktails for you to compare and contrast to get the biggest bang for your POINTS value buck. Have a crack at our interactive game and find out for yourself how many POINTS values you've been drinking.

Some mixed drinks, like the screwdriver, will cost you only 2 POINTS values for 4 oz., while a 19 oz. frozen mudslide can be up to 10 times that many. Choices like the gin and tonic are quite reasonable others, like a piña colada, are downright bone-chilling. But don't call up your girlfriends to cancel happy hour at the martini bar just yet. As long as you understand that that the piña colada will cost you more POINTS values than three screwdrivers, we'll consider that a small victory. (Just pay attention to portion sizes because most bars serve up drinks larger than 4 oz.)

When you're on a weight-loss plan, you obviously want whatever you eat or drink to be of the best quality and have the most taste. "Fresh juices are the key to tasty spirits," says Brian Van Flandern, founder of Creative Cocktail Consultants in New York City. "Using fresh lime juice instead of sweetened, colored or artificial lime flavoring makes a tremendous difference in taste. I also only use fresh cane sugar in my sweet cocktails it's stronger and more palatable than artificial sweetening syrups. Plus, you can alter the taste by stirring in less."

Here is a basic rule of thumb: while liquor has a relatively high POINTS value of about 1.5 per ounce, there is practically no variance among the different varieties. An ounce of whiskey is equal to an ounce of rum, gin and so forth. "However," says Van Flandern, "you definitely want to avoid liqueurs. Most are artificially flavored or colored and loaded with high fructose corn syrup which is packed with calories."

Also watch out for drinks that combine different liquors. For example, a Long Island iced tea, which contains gin, rum, tequila and vodka (not to mention cola and sour mix), will set you back 6 POINTS values. On the other hand, your basic rum and coke (no big secret about the ingredients there) will only cost you 4 POINTS values. The monstrous frozen mudslide combines vodka, coffee liqueur and Irish cream with two scoops of chocolate ice cream. No wonder it's 19 POINTS values.

Bloody Mary 4 oz = 2 points

Screwdriver 4 oz = 2 points

Jack & Coke 6 oz = 3 points

Gin & Tonic 6 oz = 3 points

Mojito 6 oz = 3 points

Vodka Tonic 6 oz = 3 points

Sex On The Beach 6 oz = 4 points

Cosmopolitan 4 oz = 4 points

Mai Tai 4 oz = 4 points

Manhattan 4 oz = 4 points

Rum & Coke 4 oz = 4 points

Frozen Daiquiri 4 oz = 5 points

Margarita 4 oz = 5 points

Martini 4 oz = 5 points

Long Island Iced Tea 6 oz = 6 points

Pina Colada 6 oz = 7 points

White Russian 4 oz = 7 points

Frozen Mudslide 12 oz = 19 points

[funmama707]

I said it in the other thread, but my go-to drink has always been a rum and diet coke. Guess I'll need to find something else. I'm not a vodka lover, but I guess I could learn to drink screwdrivers.

[celticbanded]

Or you could do a Cape Cod, Salty Dog and there are others. Before getting the band, I would buy the low calories juices and have them with my Cosmos or the before mentioned drinks and I am sure I will do the same now. The hard part is when you are out and cannot bring your own stuff. Then it gets tricky. I have not drank any type of goodies yet with the band, but I think it is going to happen this weekend.

[stormy]

I used to drink about 2 times a week before the band. In fact I worried that it was an issue. I could drink about 4 drinks and still be ok to walk and talk. Guess I considered this to be a heavy drinker. Now since the band I drink maybe one drink a month and that one drink has me really thinking twice about even chewing gum and trying to walk. HA! I think the band is great for getting people to stop drinking. But I will keep my one drink a month, I do love my whiskey.

[EricaG]

I used to drink about 2 times a week before the band. In fact I worried that it was an issue. I could drink about 4 drinks and still be ok to walk and talk. Guess I considered this to be a heavy drinker. Now since the band I drink maybe one drink a month and that one drink has me really thinking twice about even chewing gum and trying to walk. HA! I think the band is great for getting people to stop drinking. But I will keep my one drink a month, I do love my whiskey.

ahaha... whiskey... that's all my bf drinks. i learned to love it. but im glad you feel better about ur drinking. im sooo looking forward to this. thank you