How do you guys keep it off?

So, I use to be very active here several years ago but, I have since lost all my login information for the site. I am very happy to be back. My big question is how do you guys keep the wight off? Pre-surgery I was 400LBS, post surgery lowest is 187. Now 12 years later I've created back up to 300LBS. Have any of you gon through something similar and been able to get the weight off again? I'm so disappointed in myself for letting this happen but, with a combination of heath (physical and mental) issues and bad habits resurfacing it's just happened.

I don't know where to even start on trying to loose the weight again. One big thing hindering me is a severe L3-L4 hernia I've been battling for about a year now making exercise hard.

Any tips, trick, or ideas any of you have or your own personal journey with something similar you would like to share would be greatly appreciated!

Actual weight loss from surgery that people keep off is 80 to 100 pounds. So you have done what the surgery helps with. Now it is completely a matter of how many calories you take in and how many you burn. I keep it off by following Weigh****chers. I posted today about their book, The Shift, by Gary Foster. I learned through the years that exercise does not make much difference. Calories do.

If you want to weigh 187 you have to limit to 1870 calories a day. For a woman it takes 10 calories to maintain a pound. For a man, it is 12 calories per pound. It is not fair, but they have more muscle and burn more calories than women.

If you want to do this, it takes a commitment and the time, money, and drive to make it happen. It has to become important enough to you to keep you going when it is tough. It will be hard work sometimes, other times it will seem very easy. Start with a really good smart scale and use it every day. I weighed multiple times per day. Set aside the time to attend WW meetings. They have been around for more than 50 years and they do know how to help people lose weight. I highly recommend online, not in person. Too much stress geting weighed at their centers.

I used to say that the struggle never ends, but I no longer have to struggle. What has happened to me is I have lost all food cravings. I also have restriction again and cannot overeat anymore.

I am no longer telling myself myths about weight, and I no longer have any problem with being hungry or with staying at goal. The magic of surgery and the magic of exercise is over for you. It is basically a once in a lifetime thing. But losing weight again is entirely possible once you find the right path.

Today just happens to be my 8 year surgiversary. I hit goal weight within a year and kept it off for 3. But a series of injuries and terrible jobs and other stresses including lockdown helped me gain back over 30lbs from my lowest. I knew it was a problem and I've tried to address it but in all honesty it was half hearted. I love food and it was hard to go cold turkey from what I love. It's been about a month now since I threw out ALL the food in the pantry and didn't replace it. I'm back to tracking every calorie on MyFitnessPal including weighing and measuring. It's working because, of course it is! I've always known what to do, I just had to dig very deep to actually do it. I don't think there are any magic shortcuts. You just have to want it enough to take the action and do it.

How do we keep it off? It's more complicated than that. Most people further out from surgery end up fighting some regain, including myself. It's really hard, maintaining. Most of us spent a lifetime cultivating bad habits that got us to surgery, and those habits don't just go away.

Exercise is nice. It's great for health, but mental and physical. But it's not going to do much on the scale. Making the scale go down is all about what you're eating.

To cut down on food, I have to really watch what I eat. I log every bite on MyFitnessPal. I weigh every portion. If I don't do those things I eat much more and fool myself into thinking otherwise.

Most of us lose slower than we did right after surgery. I have no idea if it's physical, metabolic, or what. Honestly I just think it's because we are a little bit older, a little less active, a little less motivated.

Stick around and join the daily menu thread. It helps keep your head in the game. You can lose the regain, but it's going to take work and time.