Need help, advice and a kick in the pants

I went through a similar thing over the holidays. Honestly, cold turkey is the way to go for me. I tried slowly reducing my carbs, but the cravings were insane.

So i went cold turkey. Make your home a safe space, hide or toss the foods you know will cause you to give in. Stock the fridge with satisfying protein. If you're going to eat over your daily plan, eat protein.

In my case, it got easier every day. Now I feel back in control.

other things that help:

-posting and reading here, when I feel weak.

-reading over my list of reasons I had surgery in the first place. Those reasons are still valid.

-set mini goals. For example, I had over 200 pounds to lose. Eating off plan for a day or two might not seem to have a big impact on reaching that goal, since it was so abstract . But, if my next mini goal is only 5 pounds away, that day or two can have a huge effect on when I reach that next milestone!

you got this! Just keep trying! Even if you give in one meal or snack, don't write off the whole day or week. Just make the next decision a better one for you.

Thank you for this!

Going cold turkey with carbs has helped me after the holidays. It's great that you are addressing this now instead of waiting until it really gets out of hand.

Please join us on the What Are You Eating/Doing thread. It's a way to keep your head in the game and to be accountable. The people are nice and offer great support. You've got this girl, and we've got your back.

You're human, it's ok to forgive yourself. At least you're trying to get a handle on it now rather than later. You'll have to go back to basics & buckle down. I'm not sure going cold turkey will work for you. I've never done well with that approach, at least not for the long haul.

Maybe stock up on a different treat instead, like sf pops, something where you don't feel that you're depriving yourself, at least until you're able to get over the cravings.

Also I wouldn't take much stock in the pouch reset article, it's more of a mental reset than a physical one. I say it's torture to mimic those days after surgery & re enforces a diet mentality rather than embrace the lifestyle change that we all signed up for.

Go back to tracking everything if you're not already doing it & tweak your menu as needed.

You can do this! Good luck to you

When I want a treat that won't do too much damage, I choose one of these: sugar free coolwhip with berries, sugar free gum, hot cocoa made from Fry's cocoa powder, splenda, and chocolate premier protein, Quest Cravings Peanut Butter Cups, Quest Cravings BBQ chips, or Smart Sweets Gummies (0 sugar, high fibre gummies). If I'm craving something not sweet, I'll have a tomato with salt and pepper, or a pickle and some cheeses, or a red pepper with some low cal ranch dressing mixed with Greek yogurt as a dip. I can't eat green peppers but am OK with red; no idea why.

I think it takes me about a week to wean myself off of carbs, and it's usually pretty miserable so I try to make sure I have things I like that are not carb based, and it works for me, although I'm not perfect and sometimes get into the darn crackers.

Cold turkey. Dense protein, few vegetables if you have room. Get rid of everything that is not those things. Up your water or liquid intake. If I absolutely have to have someting sweet I use a chocolate protein shake, spoonful of sugar free cool whip, or a greek yogurt, but I did best when I eliminated everything sweet for a while, it does eliminate the craving for it.

It takes a few weeks to get back on track. Just stick with it, you can do it!

I'm really sorry to hear that you are struggling.

It sounds as though sweet things are your downfall (we all have downfalls!), so even though you cleared your house of junk, don't forget the other sweet things in your house like sugar, honey, maple syrup, baking chocolate etc. I have only recently enjoyed sweet things again, and for me if I feel I need something sweet I reach for a banana or a fig or a date. I always have that on hand now. This may help you too. Also, when I feel the need to eat or have a craving I always reach for dense protein. It should fill you up so that you can't eat anything else. I have smoked chicken in the fridge and whenever I feel a craving I have a slice of that and it fills me up immediately. But, seriously, the best thing for me is to make certain rules for myself and with these I don't allow myself to even have a bite of what I've promised myself I won't have. (ie., no simple carbs or sugar at least for the 1st year). Having said that though, we are all so different and very human. I know at any time any of the things I've just said may not work for me anymore, but I thought I would share them with you if you can get some help from them.

All the best,

Barb