Disappointed with myself and getting back on track.....

I am mad and disappointed in myself. I had VSG in July of 2017 - so I am about 14 months out. I was/am a slow loser which is very frustrating to me. I started at about 220 and lost around 50 pounds and could not get past the 170 mark...I was there for months. I was tracking everything, watching protein and getting in about 10,000 or more steps in a day - key word is WAS. I made a big move across the country in April and started doing a lot of traveling. In the last 5 months since the move, I have not been good about protein first, moving, tracking, taking care of myself. NO SUPRISE - I have gained 20 pounds in the past 5 months.

I am so mad at myself. I know how important the first year is and I wasted that beautiful gift.

I am getting back on track with logging every bite, planning in advance, no sugar, protein first, moving, etc.

Has anyone else had setbacks like this so early on. I do feel like a failure at this. I am a stress eater and have been eating sugar like crazy these past months.

I was in a VSG group before the move and that helped. It keeps you accountable. I plan on being on this page more.

Thanks for listening and thanks for the support. It is hard to write this down and be honest with myself on my weight gain these past 5 months.

Welcome back. There are people here for you. Please read and post on the menu boards! They are very helpful in both accountability and meal ideas.

You are not a failure, so don't think that. You still have your tools and it sounds like you know how to use them.

While I didn't have the VSG I really think the basics are the same for us all.

Here are some steps that helped me and I hope they will help you too! You may have several starts and stops but don't give up, don't beat yourself up. IT WILL CLICK!!! Our tool works if we work the tool and get back to the basics.

Planning/Preparing

Remember when we were preparing for surgery? How many meetings, classes and such did we attend? We were told the more prepared we were the better our chances were for success. And they were right. Go through the house, car and work place and get rid of trigger foods. Stock up on foods that will keep you on track. I removed every bad carb/sugar temptation and replaced it with lots of protein, veggies, grains and fruits.

Journaling

Get back to journaling. This will help you identify when you feel like eating, stress factors and any triggers in your life. Once you identify these factors, this will help you put tools in place to keep you from eating. It became clear I was not taking time for me anymore. I worked my day job and then spent the rest of my time caring for my husband. It was easy to reach for fast, prepackaged food. Since I purged my home I have to eat clean as there are no other options LOL

Use a tool to track you're eating and exercise like Getting Started with Health Tracker. Once I started to track ever bite and drink it became clear why I had gained.

Goals/Rewards

Make a list of goals for yourself. Make them realistic and small. Some of mine were move more, purge all junk from my home, eat more protein. If you didn't make a Weight Loss Surgery bucket list when you first had surgery do it now. GREAT reminder of all the things you can enjoy in life after losing weight.

Food

In general, a long term post-weight loss surgery eating plan includes foods that are high in protein, and low in fat?, calories, and sugar. Important, vitamins and minerals are provided as supplements. (if you had a different surgery adjust this to your food plan).

Water

Water is our Best Friend. I have to say I never went back to pop or any bad drinks, however I was drinking tea like crazy. What is wrong with drinking tea? I was either using sugar or 3 equals and 3 sweet n lows per 32 ounce glass. I found once I started carrying one of the metal bottles of water to keep it cold I drank water all day.

MOVE!

I can't say enough about how key this was for me. The reason I kept my weight off for almost 10 years was no matter what, I kept moving. If I could not go to the gym I would walk. Grab a cart and walk all the isles at your local box store. I loved Zumba, bootcamp workouts, lifting weights. When I stopped, the weight started coming back. So for me I am starting slow to avoid injury by walking and using some of the workouts on my Demand TV. Find something you love to do and it won't feel like a pain in the *** to do daily.

Support

If it's an option "run" don't walk to a support group. Come here on OH daily for support and participate in one of the food threads. It helps you be accountable and also great ideas for food prep.

Keep me posted on how you are doing.

Unfortunately the love of food doesn't go away. Fortunately, you have the tools to get you where you want to be.

Try to have some compassion for yourself. This is such a hard battle, and you are only human. Most of us truly understand how easy it is to fall back into our destructive eating habits.

I highly recommend working with a therapist. It's important to get at the issues beneath the behavior and develop strategies to deal with them. Struggling this early is definitely a sign that you need more support.

You can do this! You deserve health and happiness.

Don't get down on yourself I had my surgery May 2017 I've gained back 12 I'm still in size 6/8 jeans s/m top I work out every single day .. my surgeon said I look amazing and feel great .. let's just zip our lips a bit more through out each day .. this is normal let's just gain control so the scale stops here and only goes down . We got this we can do it !