Nearing 10 years Post Op~Checking In

  WoW..almost 10 years . Just checking in , touching base with Obesityhelp old timers...HAPPY NEW YEAR!!....Lot's of new things happened in 2016 for me. I did want to share something that happened to me almost 1 yr ago. I hit a steel pole on my left ankle while riding a horse and is still not healed, Been riding horse for 6 1/2 years, so I have managed to regain 20 lbs in 9 months since the accident..I did maintain my weight loss for over 8 years until these accidents, see if I can post a pic of my injury. Havent been here in OH for a long time, lots of new different formatting. Bruise as big as a bowling ball.. still there and the area is harder than a brick. I am still able to walk some. Doctor told me it will take a year to heal if it will completely heal or not is not known.. Last summer I went to water slide parks and hit my head on the bottom of one of the pools 3 ft. 6in deep.. I have memory loss pretty bad since the accident. This all happened in 1 years time frame.The ER checked me said it was a concussion. Has to heal on its own. I get bad headaches daily.

Before my Wls I was thinking how nice it would be to do all these wonderful things and be active after loosing a lot of weight. Boy, did I ever get active since weight loss. Well now I am back to doing almost nothing again.  2017 I will get back on track and take the weight back off. STARTED TODAY 1/1/2017 ..I can do it, I know how to do it the way that works for me...Thru the years I would gain 5 , lose 5 gain 5 lose 5. So I know the changes that need to be done..So my Two cents to newbies is Be Mindful of what life will really be like after weight loss goal. Don't overdo it, accidents happen.I have read many stories to long time post ops regaining lots of weight after injury's ....Hope everyone is well and safe ..My Wls still workin , still cant eat a whole pizza as I did  pre Op..lol....Wendy

It sounds like you are living your life to the fullest...injuries n'n all! Good news to hear that you feel your tool works after a decade.  

It's so great to see you again!  Not so great with your injuries, ouch!  I have a great list of basics to help us get back on track.  Here it is!  Keep me posted on how your doing and if you need help with any of the updates on the site let me know.  

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.

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.  So I was either pushing to be diabetic or get cancer.  I found once I started carrying a bottle of water around 24/7 (yes had one at my bedside) I lost the cravings for the sugar and I KNOW those artificial sweeteners are not good for me. Look I am old and if you add up all the artificial sweeteners I have consumed I am sure I am at the rat in the lab getting cancer threshold.

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. 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.

Many others are better with the get back on track stuff than myself, never had to do it.

Now the horse related stuff.... get stirrup turners if riding in large fendered saddles(western saddles esp). It will help keep your toes from turning out and making your legs and feet a target (toes in , heels down). And if you have had a concussion now too, invest in a helmet for riding. Even the best horses can have a bad moment or day. One of my geldings who Id trust my life with spooked bad on me once (not him normally, hes a been there done that have the ribbons horse). I was inches from my head smoking a fence post, from that day forward helmet goes on before the bridle does. I have 6 horses in various stages of training, from green as grass not seen a saddle or bridle to Mr what havent I done trustworthy at 19yo. I have a former 3* showjumper, who is my main dressage mount now (he didnt want to jump anymore), who I wouldnt dream of not wearing a helmet on. Hes a fantastic sweetheart and will pack anyone around, but at 17h and huge movement, helmet is a must. Oh and Mr Trustworthy is only 14.3h.