I have a simple question but will probably take a complex answer but since you guys are...

Gwen M.
on 9/4/16 6:00 pm
VSG on 03/13/14

I feel like you already know the answer - you're eating things you know you're not supposed to.  

VSG with Dr. Salameh - 3/13/2014
Diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder and started Vyvanse - 7/22/2016
Reconstructive Surgeries with Dr. Michaels - 6/5/2017 (LBL & brachioplasty), 8/14/2017 (UBL & mastopexy), 11/6/2017 (medial leg lift)

Age 42 Height 5'4" HW 319 (1/3/2014) SW 293 (3/13/2014) CW 149 (7/16/2017)
Next Goal 145 - normal BMI | Total Weight Lost 170

TrendWeight | Food Blog (sort of functional) | Journal (down for maintenance)

bluekrystal
on 9/5/16 5:32 am

yes Gwen, I know the answer already, I am asking how to overcome the cravings. I don't really know what to eat that's healthy in place of the bad stuff.

Gwen M.
on 9/5/16 5:34 am
VSG on 03/13/14

Protein, protein, protein.  Eat beef jerky, hard boiled eggs, tuna pouches, cheese sticks, greek yogurt if you can find options that are low sugar.  

 

Don't go to the cafeteria where the triggers exist - take your own food from home.  
Tell people not to bring you packets of crackers.  

VSG with Dr. Salameh - 3/13/2014
Diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder and started Vyvanse - 7/22/2016
Reconstructive Surgeries with Dr. Michaels - 6/5/2017 (LBL & brachioplasty), 8/14/2017 (UBL & mastopexy), 11/6/2017 (medial leg lift)

Age 42 Height 5'4" HW 319 (1/3/2014) SW 293 (3/13/2014) CW 149 (7/16/2017)
Next Goal 145 - normal BMI | Total Weight Lost 170

TrendWeight | Food Blog (sort of functional) | Journal (down for maintenance)

Deanna798
on 9/5/16 5:42 am
RNY on 08/04/15

Eating carbs makes you want to eat more, so to get rid of the cravings you're going to have to crack down for a while and white knuckle through it.  Make a goal, don't eat them for 3 days.  Those days make sure you bring something protein forward and healthy to snack on when you feel like you need them.  once you get the simple carbs out of your system it becomes so much easier and the cravings are less strong.  You will stop physically craving the carbs, but your head my still want them.  

The longer you resist, the easier it gets.  Hang in there.  I was Type 2 diabetic and was lucky that it went into remission after RNY.  

Age: 44 | Height: 5' 3" | Starting January 2015: 291 | RNY 8/4/15 with Dr. Arthur Carlin| Goal: 150

Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. ~Proverbs 19:20

White Dove
on 9/5/16 6:07 am - Warren, OH

I would substitute Chike high protein coffee shakes for the coffee.  I would substitute Quest Protein chips for the oyster crackers.

You will be amazed at how much more satisfied you will be with high protein substitutes that are still in the same type of foods that you crave.

Don't be afraid to spend money on substitutes.  High protein substitutes will fill you up and are much more satisfying than the empty calories that you are eating now.  The free crackers and cheap coffee mate are costing you your health.  Better to get high quality protein instead.

At your stage I was spending at least $200 a month on protein shakes, protein bars and protein chips.  I eliminated all sugar, flour, rice, cereal, potatoes, corn, fruits, butter and oils.  I ate steak, chicken, beef, tuna, eggs and cheese.  Anytime I had a craving, I worked out a substitute that satisfied me.

 

 

Real life begins where your comfort zone ends

rocky513
on 9/5/16 11:36 am, edited 9/5/16 4:36 am - WI

I have to respectfully disagree with you, White Dove.  She is drinking multiple cups of coffee with several teaspoons of creamer daily.  Drinking that many shakes is a lot of calories and will stop her weight loss.  She is eating 6-8 packets of oyster crackers per day.  Eating 6 to 8 packets of protein chips is a lot of calories.  The problem with the OP is not the cravings alone, it's that she needs to learn how to stop that cycle of "I want" and then caving in to it. She needs to learn to sooth her stress in a healthier way and to reprogram her thought process into accepting that there is a problem that only she can control.  Food does not have to control you.

As for replacing "bad foods" with substitutes, that never worked for me.  I am a food addict and don't know when to stop eating.  I tried substituting foods.  I would bake a pan of black bean brownies made with stevia and no flour.  The stats were great if I ate one brownie per day, but I would nibble at the whole pan throughout the day, all the while lying to myself saying, " I can have these because are healthy".  Then I tried keeping them in the freezer.  They were yummy and a trigger food for me and I would eat them until they were gone.  My weight loss stopped and I had to retrain myself to get back to a very basic eating plan.  I had to learn the hard way that I have real issues with food and some things were going to be permanently off the table for me if I wanted to be successful.  Staying away from those foods has become easier with time.  If I substituted with similar foods, it would trigger me to want the "real thing".

If anything my philosophy after WLS is totally about NOT having any willpower and knowing this about myself.  I can not be trusted around certain foods, so my only option is to remove those kinds of foods from my life.

HW 270 SW 236 GW 160 CW 145 (15 pounds below goal!)

VBG Aug. 7, 1986, Revised to RNY Nov. 18, 2010

White Dove
on 9/5/16 2:11 pm - Warren, OH

I was thinking one or two shakes and one pack of protein chips, not six or eight per day.  Of course moderation is necessary.

The reason substitutes work for me is that I am satisfied with small amounts or make things that allow me to eat large amounts.

I would never bake the black bean brownies because one brownie would have be too little.  But I can make one chocolate brownie flax seed muffin in a minute in a cereal bowl and it will last me for two meals.

When I turn my protein shakes to ice cream I end up with two cups from an eight ounce shake.  It doubles in volume in the ice cream maker. 

Store bought sugar-free ice cream will be something like 1/4 cup per serving.  That would never satisfy me.  My way gives me two cups for the same calories.

I only make items that fill me up while staying in the calorie and protein requirements.  I will make a meal from a three ounce serving of baked fish and a cup of cauliflower and come in at under 200 calories, while getting full.  One bag of protein chips will last me for about a week, having a few with each meal.

I get flavors that I like, but eat slowly, weigh all portions and stay in my calorie range of 200 - 300 calories per meal.

Real life begins where your comfort zone ends

rocky513
on 9/5/16 3:26 pm - WI

I understand that it works for you, but the OP obviously has issues with moderation, as do I.  The act of substituting foods without knowing how to moderate them is a problem.  

Before she starts to substitute one food for another, she should perhaps try to work on portion control and telling herself to NOT eat foods that make her blood sugar spike.  Gaining control over food demons is essential for her success.  

She's eating 6 to 8 bags of crackers and drinking a large bottle of creamer in less than a week (an entire small bottle of sugar free creamer is over 900 calories).  She knows it's a problem.  She is having trouble with moderation.  Learning to measure your portions and be satisfied with what you measure is hard work and if you never retrain your thought process your success will be limited.  

In order to be successful with food substitutions, she first needs to learn how to measure portions, plan her meals, and stop eating, even when she mentally wants more food.

HW 270 SW 236 GW 160 CW 145 (15 pounds below goal!)

VBG Aug. 7, 1986, Revised to RNY Nov. 18, 2010

White Dove
on 9/5/16 3:38 pm - Warren, OH

I agree that it takes a commitment.  I also did a lot of therapy before and after surgery.  I saw surgery as my last chance to get it right.  I saw a lot of people fail their weight loss surgery.  I was and still am determined not to let that happen to me.

Real life begins where your comfort zone ends

Pokemom
on 9/5/16 8:57 pm
RNY on 12/29/14

Thank you for your comments about the cycle of "I want" and learning to break that cycle.

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