Really doing well.

Jul 07, 2012

I am over 8 months out now and can say that I have been full circle. I was eating snack foods - inappropriately. I was eating all the time again (just not as much as I used to be able to). Now I have come to realize fully that if I want to lose weight and keep it off it is best to eat when hungry. Wow. What a revelation, huh?!

I don't understand what it is with our chemistry but there must be some neuron that sends pulses through our brain that says 'eat. eat. eat.'. It is one of THE most difficult things to overcome. I truly have learned how to eat - all over again. The scale is moving in the right direction. I am exercising every day. If I truly want a snack-like some cheese and crackers, I plan for it by eating less at supper or lunch to enable myself to fully enjoy the flavor-otherwise it is just eating to eat and not having the appetite is somewhat depressing-just like it used to be.

There was a time when I would have told people "don't do it!". I know someone I work with who still says that it is a "chore to eat". She is quite thin. I don't believe she is the average person - I have met many who underwent the surgery and she seems atypical. The 'don't do it' phase lasted only about a month or so. That was when I could hardly take a bite or two of food and was full - or would throw up or gag. It becomes easier over time if you just wait. I can not eat the same amount as I used to  but that was the point! Part of the problem was going out to eat and having too much food left over (eating it for days, okay?). Or, fixing food in the quantities I used to fix it in and seeing all the waste. Now I have adapted to making just enough to eat if it can't be frozen - and even if it can be frozen just enough to make a few individual meals so that I don't end up throwing so much away because you can only eat so much of something before it becomes old news and freezer burn sets in. The point is - is that food, even though we need it to live, should be enjoyable. For a while this surgery made it unenjoyable. But now, with a gained perspective I am enjoying flavors again-and understanding how much I can eat and adjusting portions accordingly.

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