Are You Lost? 10 Ways to Get Back On Track
August 19, 2016First, I want to wish you “Congratulations!” on your journey so far. Whether you are six months, two years or ten years out from your surgery, you made a life-changing decision, and that takes guts. Good for you!
Looking back at the last few weeks, months or even years, have you found yourself playing “hide and seek” with your motivation, dedication, and consistency? Have you made a slight detour off track but looking for ways to get on track? Have you noticed that the number on the scale has remained the same or has found its way creeping up and you can’t seem to figure out why? You are not alone.
As a Bariatric Lifestyle Coach, I work with weight loss surgery patients who are in the beginning stages of having surgery but also those who have had surgery years ago, and have found themselves a bit lost trying to navigate this maze after the excitement and “honeymoon” period of surgery has merged back into just…life. Your tool is not broken, hope is not lost and no, it’s not too late.
10 Ways To Get Back On Track & Ride To Your Happy, Healthy Self!
1. Light your own fire
Why did you have surgery to begin with? What do you want out of your life and out of this journey? When you look in the mirror do you see the version of yourself you are proud of? You deserve to feel proud. You deserve to move well and have a strong body and have the energy to thrive day today for the rest of your life. Isn’t that part of the reason you had surgery is to be able to live longer? Be healthier? Your motivation has to come from YOU.
Do you want to run a marathon? DO IT! Do you want to wear your jeans from high school? GO FOR IT! You are the only one holding yourself back. Let go of fear, let go of excuses and reasons why you “can’t” and open up your heart to the possibility of why not? ANYTHING is possible. You can do anything if you want it bad enough and are willing to work hard for it. Stay focused, take it one day at a time, follow these suggestions and you won’t just find your way back on track, you’ll build a whole new set of tracks that can lead you to a destination you never thought was possible.
2. Hold yourself accountable
This is YOUR life. You can make every single excuse for why you are not seeing the results you want or why you have found your way back up 50 pounds but the proof is in the sugar-free protein pudding. Whatever you have been doing is not working and it’s time to change it. No one is going to make you get out of bed an hour early and take the dog for a walk. No one is going to karate chop the ice cream out of your hands in the middle of the night. YOU are the one that has to make it happen.
3. Just because you CAN…doesn’t mean you SHOULD
Sure, technically some of us CAN eat anything we want and not get sick or get the oil slicks afterward, but, that doesn’t mean we SHOULD be eating those things. You KNOW the foods you should be eating in order to be successful. Ask yourself if you are about to eat this because you CAN or because you SHOULD?
4. Be realistic and be patient
You didn’t get to your highest weight by eating one bad meal and you aren’t going to get to your goal weight by one week of good quality food, good sleep, and great exercise. Give yourself time to get back into the swing of things and don’t get discouraged when you don’t see a 10-pound weight decrease in one week. This is a LIFESTYLE. You can enjoy the foods and the treats that you want in moderation and still reach your goals. Stick to the plan, stay consistent, forgive yourself and move on when you screw up and just keep going.
5. Get moving
I cannot stress this enough. YOU HAVE TO EXERCISE. PERIOD. If you are new to working out, check out my “5 Steps for Confidence to Go Into the Gym” article. You don’t even have to go to the gym (I get it, not everyone is a gym person…I’m not offended). I tell my clients all the time who claim they have, “no time to go to the gym,” that there is a way to be active without even having to step foot into a gym. Add bodyweight movements into your everyday routine. Do you watch T.V? At every commercial do a different movement; march in place, take a lap around the couch and finish with 10 bodyweight squats.
6. Confide in someone
Support is an incredibly important aspect of this lifestyle. Honestly, support is amazing in general. Who is your biggest supporter? Sit down with them and tell them what you going to be doing. Tell them where you fell off the wagon and why. Tell them your plan moving forward and how they can help you stay on track and stay honest with yourself so you have the best chance of sticking to the plan from step 7.
7. Make a plan
Don’t start over. Pick up where you left off. I have seen a lot of people ask about “going back to basics”. The concept of going back to the basics of this lifestyle is a great idea, however, going back to only drinking clear liquids and protein drinks is a bit drastic and not the most effective way of fulfilling this goal. Sit down and make a plan based on suggestion number 8. What is going to be your first step to getting back to that person who was doing exactly what they were supposed to at the very beginning of this process?
8. Write a list
Be honest with yourself and write a list for yourself of all of the behaviors and little things you have found yourself doing lately. No one has to see this list, however, use this list as a guideline for yourself. Start the list with the things you know have become a big problem that you are having trouble undoing. Have you been eating candy, fast food, and overly processed items? Have you stopped exercising? Work on ONE thing at a time. Find a way to modify that behavior or slowly phase that behavior out of your lifestyle. When you are able to make it a whole week with this modification, you are ready to move it along to the next item.
9. Reflect and get honest
It is this time in the process where it is really important to self-reflect and get very honest with yourself. What has happened in the last few months that has thrown you off? Was there an event that caused you to eat emotionally and it snowballed? Did you lose motivation? Have naughty foods slowly made their way into your mouth bite and now you can’t seem to end a day without boyfriends Ben and Jerry? Have you used a busy life, family drama, work issues, and unforeseen circumstances as excuses to put your health and your goals aside? Really take some time to sit and think about where this started, why it started and what you have been saying to yourself along the way to make it okay to not do what you know you need to do. I call this the “Judge Judy Moment, “the moment of brutal and unapologetic honesty that none of us want to hear, but absolutely need to.
10. Forgive yourself
You are human. You are flesh, blood, and bones. You are allowed to screw up, hey, you’re even allowed to do it a few times. Forgive yourself, use this as a learning experience and know that it is YOU who is going to make the next moment, next day and the rest of your life better because of this. It is easy to feel sorry for yourself and give up. It takes a lot of courage to stand up, dust yourself off and move on.
Remember - Today is a great day to get back on track! YOU CAN DO IT!
 | ABOUT THE AUTHOR Lyss Remaly had WLS in 2010 after her highest weight of 350lbs. She revised from Lap-Band to a Duodenal Switch. After changing her habits, she became certified as a personal trainer and behavior change specialist to help others do the same. Lyss is a Bariatric Lifestyle Coach, Certified Personal Trainer and a competitive Natural Bodybuilder. Catch up with Lyss at FitnFabulyssRead more of Lyss' articles! |
