Gaining again
Some of us do have some regain weight.
Here are some of the ways that might help:
1) Journal all that you eat and drink. This will give you some habits that are starting to come back. This way, you can see a pattern emerge as far as trigger foods, amounts, time, etc. (and yes, I need to do this every so often because I can get lazy.)
2)Remember what you did in the first year of your journey.
3) Don't be hard on yourself. You are correcting the issue.
4) Start low impact exercise, Swimming, etc. (during the hot weather, walking the local mall early morning. Most malls are open about an hour before the stores open for walkers. It's almost empty and the air condition is on. Also, that early, you know you accomplished a goal for the day.
5) There are different programs like WW where you get some accountability. If you do the meetings, you'll also get support from people like us who struggle with weight. If you don't want to go there, there are food delivery programs like Nutrisystem as an alternative.
Finally, of all 5 suggestions, decide what works best for you. It could run the gambit of none to all 5 suggestions. You know you better than any.
Good luck in your journey,
I am going to share with you something that you were probably never told before. Our intestines are lined with millions of hairlike structures called villi. These structures act like fingers to grab food as it goes through the intestines. They grab food and hold it against the intestines so that it can be digested.
After RNY most of those villi have been destroyed. Food passes through and is not absorbed so weight falls off effortlessly. The body is confused. It knows it is receiving food but it keeps losing weight. So the body goes to work to fix that problem. It grows back villi. Not just the original amount and type of villi, but more villi that are even stronger than before.
Between year two and year three after the surgery, most people have excellent working villi again. Those villi grab the food and hold it in place to be absorbed. Most people immediate gain twenty pounds as the body begins to function again. Appetite increases and they need larger clothes, but feel great. This is then point where you need to go on the correct number of calories per day to stop gaining weight. If that does not happen a person will continue to gain weight.
By the end of five years, many have regained about 50 pounds and at ten years it is not uncommon to have added 100 additional pounds. RNY works for approximately three years and then most people become super food absorbers. Even with less food than before surgery, they regain.
There is only one way to go back to the weight that you want to maintain. That is to multiply that weight by 10 and eat that number of calories per day. To maintain 178 you need 1780 calories a day. To lose 30 pounds you need to eat 300 less calories a day.
During the pandemic I found myself with 35 extra pounds. I joined online Weigh****chers. The program is completely different from years ago. I attended at least one and sometimes two or even three online meetings every day. I lost very slowly. Sometimes a pound a week and some weeks no loss or even gain. But I persisted and after about two years I was back to 130 pounds and have maintained it effortlessly.
There is no magic food or magic program that will get the weight off. The new Weigh****ches encourages you to eat good healthy foods, but nothing is not allowed. If you wanted to get your 1500 calories from chocolate frosted brownies you would still loss the weight.
I eat any food or drink I please, but track the calories.
Real life begins where your comfort zone ends
The best thing I do is weigh and log everything I eat. I use MyFitnessPal. Over time I end up eating more than I think I am. By actually weighing portions and logging them, I know exactly how much I'm eating, and it helps me eat a lot less.
6'3" tall, male.
Highest weight was 475. RNY on 08/21/12. Current weight: 198.
M1 -24; M2 -21; M3 -19; M4 -21; M5 -13; M6 -21; M7 -10; M8 -16; M9 -10; M10 -8; M11 -6; M12 -5.