I am struggling!!!!

I have not lost in 3 months. I tottaly am not eatting what I should, but that is my problem... I don't know what I really should be eatting at this point. Please help me by telling me what it is that you are eatting and doing. I don't want to start gaining and I still have a lot to lose. I just really need your guys help! Thanks. Amanda

Hi Amanda, I also haven't lost in 3 months, and I am diligently sticking to plan. I get around 1200 calories per day and at least 80g of protein. I drink all of my water and take all of my vitamins and supplements. I don't eat fast food and the only carbs I eat are whole grains, fruits, and veggies. I know that if I reduced my carbs to 50g or under I would lose weight again, but I don't like eating that way-it makes my arthritis flare up and makes me feel sluggish. Right now I feel wonderful and I don't want to change that. I noticed that I've started to drop inches again this week though, even though the scale isn't budging. The only component missing from my plan is exercise-I know I need to do it but haven't managed to yet. Even if you aren't eating all "good" foods, I recommend that you track everything you eat for a few days just to see where you are-the numbers may suprise you. I recommend thedailyplate.com or fitday.com. I don't know if this is helpful to you, but I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone.

I started to track thing today and vaaalaaaa I had consumed 1340 cal by lunch today! So I will not be eatting that way anymore. Way to many calories! So I will be tracking everyday again. I never thought I was eatting that many! What a surprise!

Hi Amanda, Ok, your first step is you know you aren't eating right, so let's get ya back on track. The coolest thing about our surgery and where we are right now in the journey is that it's NOT TOO LATE to keep losing. I know that at 6 months exactly my weight loss slowed to half of what it was. I was losing 10-12 a month and am now at 4.5 a month for the last two months (and 3 lbs in December). But the inches are really coming off lately. I wanted to tell you this so you aren't discouraged when you get back to losing that it's not as fast as it was at the beginning, but you will still keep losing. I keep my calories to 1000 - 1200 a day, 60 grams of protein, carbs under 100 grams, fat under 50 on average and fiber around 25 to 30 grams per day. I also try to keep my sodium level to less than 2300. I use sparkpeople.com to track my food. The important thing is to track it. It's really the only way I know to keep on a focus on what i'm eating and stay away from grazing. I eat mostly the following: Zen Bakery (Trader Joe's) fiber muffin for breakfast, sometimes with a half cup of 4% cottage cheese if I'm hungry, or I may have the cottage cheese an hour or two after the muffin. I also drink coffee in the morning, with splenda and a splash of half n' half. Lunch is usually tuna with light mayo and some soy crisps, a salad with protein (chicken or fish usually), sometimes cheese and fruit. It just depends on what's in the house. A hardboiled egg is nice, or leftover from when I make dinner. I have found a lot of great recipes to try by surfing around the web. Dinner is either the same as lunch, or sometimes if I am tired I will use a Smart One's or Healthy Choice frozen meal, but I try to avoid those because of the high sodium in packaged foods. If I do have a snack it's a cheese stick, soy crisps or sometimes as a big treat i like some trail mix, but that's a scary food for me so I try not to buy it too often. I also like beef jerky, but again must be careful due to sodium. I avoid bread, rice and pasta, basically any "white" foods. I love beans for lunch or dinner as well, usually heated with a bit of cheese on top. Amy's Organic Black Bean soup was an early favorite for me, and I always have a go-to can in my pantry. I buy a good deal of food at Trader Joe's, they have great soy-based chickenless nuggets and now I found some chickenless and beefless strips to try in my recipes. Basically I find if i just monitor the protein at 60 grams or so, then the other numbers fall into place on their own, based on choosing good carbs. I don't drink soda and I no longer like Crystal Light, but I do love Good Earth Tea and water, usually at room temp. I wish I could give up coffee, but a girl needs a few good vices I hope this helps you. Really the best advice is get the bad food out of your house (no excuses!) and get back to tracking your food intake. Make sure you're getting all your water in, add some exercise like walking and you should see the scale keep moving. Remember, that pouch is still there, you went through a lot to get this surgery and there's no reason to fail yourself now, it's not too late to keep going! Inky (trust me, I had this same conversation with myself in January and it really finally got me - and my scale - moving again!)

I am so thankful for your replie! It makes me encouraged. I know now what I need to be getting in and what not to. Thank you so much for shareing and your advise.