10 years Later and I feel like a failure

I had VSG 10 years ago and maintained it for several years but this last 2 years I started to slide and now I am back where I started. I feel very defeated. I am going to do the pouch reset starting saturday for 10 days and hoping that will get me back on the right path but I feel so out of shape right now I don't even know where to begin to exercise. I get winded just walking fast. Anyone else been in my shoes and was able to lose it again and keep it off?

I long ago came to the conclusion that I am going to be on a diet for the rest of my life. I have had many setbacks. I have gained weight back and lost it again. I believe that you have to have goals. Do you know the difference between a wish and a goal?

They are the exact same thing, except a goal has a date attached to it. Sit down and calculate how long it is going to take you to lose the weight again. And then get a calendar and mark down those days. The most you can lose on a sensible diet is about two pounds a week. That is about 100 pounds in a year.

Plan your meals and your exercise. For me, Weigh****chers is very helpful. After I had weight loss surgery, I never expected to go back to a Weigh****chers meeting again. Now I find that so amusing. I belong to a gym that has a nice heated pool and love water aerobics there. In the summer, I spend every good day at an outdoor pool.

Right now you are a stage where you feel a bit hopeless. As you get on a plan and start losing weight you will feel more optimistic. I get on the scale every single morning. I bought a smart scale, mine is Garmin Index. It tracks my weight, BMI, fat, muscle, water weight, and bone weight. It cost me $150 four years ago. It has been a wonderful help to know where the weight came from when it changes.

As long as we are alive, we have the ability to change and shape our lives. It is not a one time decision. I get up every morning and take it 24 hours at a time. There is plenty of help out there. Start somewhere and then keep going. The hardest step is the first one.

Thank you....i did sign up for weigh****chers again last week and as soon as I finish my pouch reset that is my plan to follow. I have gotten away from weighing myself and from exercise. I still have really good restriction but I find I eat too many carbs and junk so I am hopeful that now that I have a clear goal I will make it....thank you for the encouraging words. I do belong to a gym as well and they have a water class that I have attended and enjoyed so that is a great idea to start there.

The current WW plan has things that I had missed like corn and it is zero points.

Everything I've read about the "pouch reset" seems to be that they are bunk, especially the ones that have you go back to liquid only then progress through the stages.

Instead of the pouch reset, some people do a week of all meat all week (AMAW) and that seems to help them get a kickstart (the variation is CAMAW which stands for critters and meat all week for those that like half and half, yogurt, cheese). The point is to focus on dense proteins, in those approaches at least. Something to consider if you really want to do something else before WW.

One of the lovely ladies here, Hala, has shared that when she gets off track, she starts with the next meal vs waiting until tomorrow (or my former favorite, I'll start on Monday....no, Ill start on the first the month....no, I'll start on the monday that's the first of the month but that may have just been me). I try to keep that in mind when I'm kicking myself for a bad choice..I have an immediate opportunity to start again!

Good luck with getting on back on track; come here, share and interact; there's lots of support available!

Now Im worried... I just ordered the pouch reset.

i can't give any input about a regain after WLS since i am still new to this...But i certainly have had my share of regains after being successful in losing a lot of weight. One thing i know for sure is when you are really big..the best exercise you can do is walking. Don't worry about the distance..Focus on your time. If you can walk an hour without stopping That is great...Just walk and your distance will increase as you begin to slowly lose weight. If all you can do is walk 30mins right now without stopping...that's ok too. Maybe break up your walking ..if your goal is 30mins a day, Try 15mins in the morning and 15mins in the evening..The same if you can walk an hour a day.

thank you. I am really short so my weight number wise sounds relatively small. I am at around 210. But for someone my size that means I should lose about 100 pounds. I did it once and I can do it again. I just need to do the same things and this time no slide back into mindless snacking and eating carbs that don't really keep me full. Also exercise needs to be part of daily life....I just need to accept that. I hate to exercise. I hate being hot and sweaty. I do like the pools and swimming because I don't feel that way when I do that so maybe that is the best place to start for me

It seems like you know exactly why you have gained the weight and what works best for you when you need to lose the weight. I hate to exercise also. That's why I embrace walking lol.

I like walking my two dogs so I can do that until it's summer and the sidewalks are too hot for them. But I do love water aerobics and swimming. If you have never tried a water class you should...it really helps to make the exercise more fun.