weight gain

I am 2.5 years out from having bariatric surgery and have gained 20 lbs.  Anyone else having problems with weight gain? How do you get your eating under control like when we first had the surgery? I feel my new stomach is just as large as my post surgery one!!!

You need to give us more information. Which surgery did you have? Has your eating pattern changed?

RNY surgery and yes my eating habits have changed.  I need to take control again, and I will be able to lose this weight, but I am having one heck of a time doing that.  I guess I can answer this message myself. Like the commericail says "just do it!:

LOL  yes, we all know what to do!  But doing it is hard! Maybe particularly hard after RNY when the malabsorption decreases.  But it can be done!  If I can do it ( and I have had two lots of regain), you can too! 

For me, motivation is key. I have to have a reason strong enough for my mind to think I have no choice. Luckily, life provided that for me when I needed it! 

I'm almost 3 years out from my VSG and, at about 30 lbs from my goal, completely plateaued and have basically been here for going on 2 years.  In March, I suffered a knee injury but couldn't have it repaired surgically until this week for a host of reasons.  During that time, I gained about 15 lbs but, thankfully, lost 5 just prior to my knee surgery.

Like you, my eating habits has slipped but, when I started making a few small changes, I lost 5 lbs.  Once I'm cleared to workout again, I hope to get completely back on track and get to my goal within 6 months.

To help myself get back on track, I started by redoing one thing at a time until I remastered it.  For example, a few weeks ago I bought a really cool (and way too expensive) water bottle and started filling it before I leave the house for work.  I drink one bottle on the way in, another throughout the morning, and a 3rd in the afternoon.  I started out using water flavorings, because that made it more appealing, but after one of my husband's docs at Mayo Clinic told me there is mounting evidence that these flavor mix-ins are actually causing people to crave sweets, I've started using a slice of lemon or an herbal tea instead.

Before adding the water, I also began getting off the train 2 stops from my office and walking the rest of the way, about a mile.  In the evening, I walk back to the further train stop and get in another mile.  Until my knee worsened, I was also walking up/down 1 - 2 flights of stairs to use the restroom so add in even more steps.  For my B-Day my husband got me a FitBit so tracking has been super easy.

Once I get cleared to exercise again, I plan to start working out again but, instead of the 6 - 7 days/week I was doing at the height of my weight loss, I'll start with 2-3 workouts in the gym each week, in addition to walking to/from the further train stop; and will gradually add workouts each week or so until I'm back to at least 5x/week in the gym (or on the trail or on my bike, basically anything in addition to my daily walks).

I also started drinking protein drinks again after probably a year of blowing them off.  I mix them in the morning with decaf coffee and a little Splenda and they taste REALLY good.  I've tried several brands but the one I prefer is the Trader Joe's Vanilla Whey Powder.  They may also have chocolate, not sure, as I prefer vanilla.

I posted a question similar to yours several months ago on a Facebook VSG page and several people suggested this approach and, so far, it seems to be working.  Several others who also experienced plateaus and/or gains suggested going back to the pre-surgery liquid diet for a couple weeks and then starting over again with the Week 1, Month 1, Month 2 etc. diets but that was too restrictive for me at that time so I opted for the approach of phasing good habits back in over time.  If I feel I'm still stuck a few months from now, I'll probably try the more drastic approach to get myself back on track...but only if I'm not seeing the progress I hope to see a month or two from now.

Hope this gives you some useful suggestions.

Laura in CO

Laura that was really good advice for anyone, thanks for sharing it.

You're welcome!

Laura

Thanks for the information. The advise is great, start out slow and build up to a healthy plan.  I like that. Small steps are the best steps I think too.  Great advice...

First, know that you are normal.  It is typically around 2 years out that old habits start to re-surface, and that takes many of us, including me, by surprise.  I thought I was done with night eating, sugar, eating out of boredom, (fill in the blank here).  The good news is that you recognized it at 20 pounds and not 45 (like me).  The better news is that you can lose that 20 pounds and find a way of eating/living that is beneficial and comfortable.  Everyone's journey is different.  I use my nutritionist's plan of eating, WLS support groups, Overeaters Anonymous, and, at times, therapy to work together with my WLS tool.  Now, at 7 years out, I am at my lowest weight since surgery, and I love the way I eat and live.  It's interesting that you say "get your eating under control," because that is something I could never do alone, with or without surgery.  For me, it was realizing my powerlessness over food, and my addiction to it, and surrendering to powers greater than myself. 

Thanks for the reply and some beneficial tips, Overeaters Anonymous, therapy, etc.  Sometimes I think I am about to embark back to the old me and than I scream and say "no." It is great to hear from others who have been where I am at and get themselves back on track. I know I did not do a good job of changing my eating habits in the first year of surgery, and now I need to make an effort to face problems, learn how to handle problems better.  I refuse to go back to 300 plus lbs!!  Thanks for your reply...