Post-Op Regain- Starting Over?

What the others said : there is no magic. Just hard work. 

You have your tool. Use it.  I am 8 years post op and I still have restrictions as long as I follow the guidelines: dense proteins + a few bites of veggies.  

But give me carbs or slider foods and I can eat and eat and eat some more.... 

Make baked - grilled chicken, pork roast, beef roast. HB eggs... Cellery cucumber. And other low carbs veggies (non starchy) 

I add healthy fat - I.e olives, avocado, olive oil for my salads... Etc... 

A premeasured - portioned nuts are my snacks ...fruits = sugar... I may eat a serving of berries (1/2 cup) a couple times a week when I am trying to lose weight. Maybe more if I am just maintaining. But not much more. 

When I crave chocolate - I eaither make something out of my proteins or ...eat a square of 86% chocolate. 

It is hard work. But it can be done. 

Drinking water - flavored is ok, is important. When I don't drink enough - it feels like hunger... 

The advice above is good. Follow it. You CAN do it, but if you keep continuing to self-sabotage, perhaps you need to see a therapist to figure out why. I believe that when we love ourselves, we are more likely to take care of ourselves and do what we need to do for our health.

HERE is Gina's story. Maybe it will help you.

Thanks for that link Laura!  I hadn't seen it before and it's  pretty awesome - just like Gina herself.  Saving it for future reference.  =)

You have good advice.  I would only add that since you admitted you didn't follow your bariatric post-surgery eating plan - following the plan NOW - the weight will not come off quickly as it did the first year after your surgery.

Losing weight after the "honeymoon" period (12-18 months post-op) is much more difficult and can be discouraging BUT it can be done.

Keep a food journal.  Record every bite.  Be accountable.  Don't guess - weigh, measure, read labels, etc. and journal it.  It is an "eye opening" experience.  

Best wishes,

Penny

Hi Laura, I post this a lot and hope everyone is not sick of seeing it but it works.....  Here are some steps I hope will help you. They helped me...  

Planning/Preparing

Remember when we were preparing for surgery?  How many meetings, classes and such did we attend?  We were told the more prepared we were the better our chances were for success.  And they were right. Go through the house, car and work place and get rid of trigger foods.  Stock up on foods that will keep you on track. I removed every bad carb/sugar temptation and replaced it with lots of protein, veggies, grains and fruits.

Journaling

Get back to journaling.  This will help you identify when you feel like eating, stress factors and any triggers in your life.  Once you identify these factors, this will help you put tools in place to keep you from eating.  It became clear I was not taking time for me anymore. I worked my day job and then spent the rest of my time caring for my husband.  It was easy to reach for fast, prepackaged food.  Since I purged my home I have to eat clean as there are no other options LOL

Use a tool to track you're eating and exercise like Getting Started with Health Tracker.  Once I started to track ever bite and drink it became clear why I had gained.

Goals/Rewards

Make a list of goals for yourself.  Make them realistic and small.  Some of mine were move more, purge all junk from my home, eat more protein.

Food

In general, a long term post-weight loss surgery eating plan includes foods that are high in protein, and low in fat?, calories, and sugar. Important, vitamins and minerals are provided as supplements. (if you had a different surgery adjust this to your food plan).

Water

Water is our Best Friend. I have to say I never went back to pop or any bad drinks, however I was drinking tea like crazy. What is wrong with drinking tea?  I was either using sugar or 3 equals and 3 sweet n lows per 32 ounce glass.  So I was either pushing to be diabetic or get cancer.  I found once I started carrying a bottle of water around 24/7 (yes had one at my bedside) I lost the cravings for the sugar and I KNOW those artificial sweeteners are not good for me. Look I am old and if you add up all the artificial sweeteners I have consumed I am sure I am at the rat in the lab getting cancer threshold.

MOVE!

I can't say enough about how key this was for me. The reason I kept my weight off for almost 10 years was no matter what, I kept moving.  If I could not go to the gym I would walk. I loved Zumba, bootcamp workouts, lifting weights. When I stopped, the weight started coming back.  So for me I am starting slow to avoid injury by walking and using some of the workouts on my Demand TV.  Find something you love to do and it won't feel like a pain in the *** to do daily.

Support

If it's an option "run" don't walk to a support group.

Keep me posted on how you are doing

I have not been where you are (waiting on my date for RNY) but you need to go back to basic - portion size. Now I am just telling you what I will be practicing. We have to change our life style ( staying away from the BAD Foods). You were successful before so you can do it again. Just do what you did in your after your first surgery.a I somehow believe that you can do it again. Next, do your proteins....some shakes will do you well. You are going to lose those 40lbs, just take it one day at a time.

Joan

Laura

I am in the same boat, sorta. I am 13 years out and slowly gained back about 30 pounds in about 5 years postop but the last 3-4 years it has been so hard to keep the weight off. I am up about 60 pounds from my original weight loss. It is demoralizing. I am back to the same ole person I was before surgery. I have tried getting help from everyone. Been on every diet known to man. Sought counseling from a therapist. Went to my surgeons dietitian and they are a broken record saying start back at 500 calories a day like I was 2 weeks post op. I cannot so that and it is not realistic. I feel like I can never lose weight again!