What Now?

Feb 21, 2012

I have friends who complain that they aren't losing weight, yet when I ask them the qualifying questions, they come back with answers like: I am not like you... I don't have the time to exercise... I have an idea what I am eating - I don't need a food journal...

Look, losing weight and getting healthy doesn't JUST happen, it takes work.  Sure, surgery will give you a great head start, but what happens when you are a year out, and you aren't losing weight like you did months ago?  I can answer this question: Food journal & MEASURE your food; EXERCISE DAILY; drink water; take supplements; learn how to read food labels - and if you do not cook for yourself, learn to cook -- in a healthful manner.

Frustration tends to start rearing its head when the scale stops dropping multiple pounds, but what you need to do is BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF.  After talking with the nurse practitioner at my bariatric surgeons office, I admitted I wasn't food journaling, which is probably why I am barely losing weight.  Yup, even I get lazy, but I can also be honest with myself & figure out what I am doing wrong.  With smart phones, it is easy to find an APP you like & will use, just take them for a test drive.  Even a note pad will work.  The point is if you make this a daily activity, you are more likely to continue.  I have an APP on my phone that does the math for me - tells me how many calories I have left, what my protein intake is, and calculates calories burned through exercise.

For those of you who just cannot find an extra 30 minutes a day to exercise, you need to make your heart a higher priority.  Yup, I said it, if you love your heart, you will exercise at least 30 minutes a day.  With exercise you actually sleep better, and will walk taller when you are out in public.  I park at the furthest part of every parking lot for extra exercise, and I live in rainy Seattle.  I can take 20 flights of stairs at a time, because I kept pushing myself & did it daily.  It is easy to find a flight of stairs, so just start going up & down - you'll be surprised how hard a workout this can be!  Check Craigslist for a used exercise bike, and USE IT.  I find I like to listen to music and browse my emails while I ride.  I set up playlists for my bicycle rides, so I know how long I have peddled, and how long until I am done.  My heart rate is now a fabulous 52 when I am at rest, and it did not come from sitting around.  It has taken me years of swimming to be able to swim three miles a day.

Not everyone knows the basics of healthy cooking, which sort of surprises me.  Maybe it is the Fast Food Age, too many convenience foods in a heat and eat package, but there really are simple ways to improve your diet.  I have always been a picky eater, so I learned how to adapt & cook things for myself, so I could control what was in my foods.  I was 19 years old before I knew I could order a Big Mac with only lettuce and cheese (although I haven't had one in years, this is how I used to order it).  When you actually read the nutritional labels for Fast Food Restaurants, you will really be shocked.  If you do not know how to read labels, you can learn!  When I make my veggies, I use bouillon instead of butter.  I rarely ever use oils or fats in my kitchen, mainly because I am a picky eater (lucky for me!).  Learning how to prepare food will also shrink your monthly food bill, you can control what goes into your body.  Sorry if this sounds basic, but there are members in my support group who do not cook.  I will never, ever give up my pressure cooker, as it makes the leanest meats tender!

When is the last time you had your blood work taken & explained to you?  I take my supplements daily, without fail.  When I got a low/normal result on my Vitamin D level, I was shocked.  "How could this be?  My Calcium looks fine..." But knowing I was getting deficient in one area made me react and add more Vitamin D to my daily regime.  Blood tells what you really are doing, it will show if you sit on your butt & have a lousy diet, or if you are on top of things.  When you have a limited amount of food you can eat in a day -- either through restriction, or just from counting calories, you have to make up the deficiency somewhere.  One of the members in my support group told me she now has Osteoporosis.  This made me aware of staying on top of my supplements and asking for a bone density test.  Sure, the member had decent calcium levels in her blood, but she now has to worry about why her body had to leech the calcium out of her bones, when she could have just taken the right kind of calcium to prevent this whole mess.

Here is another piece of advice, staying positive doesn't just happen, it has to be worked at.  There are days I do not feel like doing the things I know I need to do, but in my goal to stay positive, I just do it.  Having a positive outlook makes this journey so much easier.  I have one friend who has a difficult time seeing the positive in life, so I bug her, constantly.  Get outside of your usual, find something you can be passionate about, and do it.  If you think the weight comes off easily, I am pretty sure you haven't been working at it very long.  This is for life - as in the rest of your life.  If you face the future with a positive outlook, you will be able to continue succeed, instead of stalling out.  Drink your water, take your supplements, and actually chart your food and calories, and you will succeed.

For those of you looking for a swimsuit - please check my photo album "Free Swimwear" - I have already swam 81 miles this year, with another 519 to go!  If you have a swimsuit you no longer fit in, please consider "paying it forward" to other OH Members - private message me if you want to help.

Brenda : )~

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