For veterans - Do you....

Drink diet soda? I have slipped back to having it and see my waistline getting puffy...is there a correlation?

Drink with a straw after about 2 years or so?

Still log your food? Ever?

Drink caffeinated beverages? Or have you managed to stay away?

Get in all your fluids?

And finally - have you dealt effectively with regain? I need to get 10-15 lbs off. The skinny clothes are snug and that is not okay!

Oh boy.  I do drink diet soda, maybe 1 can per day.  Mostly I drink tea, coffee and hot chocolate in the winter, and iced coffee and crystal lite in the summer.  I do drink with a straw on occasion.  I do drink caffeine.  I do NOT drink anywhere near the amount of fluid I should, and rarely drink any water at all.  Bad me!

My regain had nothing to do with any of those things. 

To get back on track, I DO log my food.  I have a plan of eating, and I went back to weighing and measuring.  I cut out all sugar and other "trigger" foods (for me that's snacky-type foods, i.e. chips; and fast food) that had somehow found their way back into my diet.  Of course, I stopped drinking alcohol about a year and a half ago as well.

Could I do more?  Sure.  I could exercise and drink water.  Maybe some day I will add those back into my life.  Progress, not perfection, is my motto today. 

Support is key for me.

 Hi there - I do drink diet soda - mostly caffeine free - however, I definitely think it has a lot to do with my regain.  However, and this is the bad, rebellious part of me - I can't eat sugar - and now I can't even have a glass of wine.  I get so angry about it - that I find myself saying "f" it!  I want soda!!!!!

I often will have a small bottle, not the big ones you get at WAWA, but the 6 ouncers I think and will sit down at night to enjoy my popcorn and a bottle of the diet coke.  I should stop - but I find that I just get angrier.  I drink water throughout the day with a straw only because the water bottles I have have them.  I do get my water in every day - but that is only most likely because I am lucky that I LOVE water!

I don't log my food - I never had - it is a habit that I tried to get myself in to and have not ever been able to do it for any length of time. 

One of the things that I am working on with my therapist is to go back to portioning out my snacks.  You should see my classroom, I have all kinds of salty, snacky foods.  I actualy just went through the box that had them all in there and totally forgot that I had shelled pistachios in there - I keep going for a handful of pretzels.  (As i sit here munching away.)  I am taking it all home with me today, (I set an alarm so I wouldn't forget to pack it all up) and am going to go home and make portion controlled bags.  Even if I should not have some, at the least I will only be able to eat one serving because that is all that I will bring with me.  That is the baby step I am trying this week.

The other thing is the 5k, while I like the idea of raising money for an amazing cause, I am really wanting to do it for the bucket list thing, however, I am hopeful that it will help me with the regain.

Don't know if this will help you, but it is where I am at almost three years out.  (7 weeks away from THAT surgiversary....CRAZY!!!!!!)

for me - I do not drink diet soda - didn't prior to surgery don't like it
I do drink with a straw, have done that since about 6 months out from surgery, found that I drink a lot more fluids if I can use a straw
I do not drink anything with caffeine - about 5 years ago I was having a lot of pain in my breast - my PCP told me to give up caffeine and the pain would go away - he was absolutely correct - have not had pain in my breasts since giving it up
I do not journal foods -  no time, I used to be very good at it when I did.
I've not been able to exercise on any regular schedule since going back to grad school - I thought about not going back because I knew that would be one of many things I'd not have time for anymore and since I have not exercised since September of 2010 the gain is pretty significant for my 5 foot frame.
I have two classes left and I'm at the point of saying f-it - I need to exercise and screw the grades, but I can't just in case I ever decide to go on for a doctorate I need to keep the GPA up.

Gene/6 years out - no longer drinks diet soda, only drinks decaf coffee, does not journal, does not use a straw, his regain stabalized and seems to be exactly where his body wants to be.  He is still below the surgeons predicted weight for him.

just about 3 years out.. drink diet soda on occasion, but not too often.  When I do, I definitely notice more bloating. 

Straw.. yep.  I refuse to drink from glasses at restaurants and always get a straw.. now if I followed the rules and didn't drink when I eat, I wouldn't have to worry about it...   Or if I didn't get drinks from places like Dunkin and Starbux, again no worries.. guess that answers the caffeine question.  I was drinking WAAAAY too much caffeine and am now trying to cut back.  Right now I am sipping on a cup of decaf iced coffee.  

Log food? What's that? Never have, never will.. tried it, didn't get more than MAYBE 3 meals in.. not gonna happen.

I'm getting better about getting in all my fluids since I am cutting back on the caffeine. 

Regain.. hmmm... I fight with the same 10 pounds all the time.  I don't know that I'd call it regain, just annoying weight that won't STAY off.  I still have about 30-40lbs that I never lost in the first place and I want to lose.  I'm hoping that with getting the fluids in and being able to get to the gym again, I'll get it off.  

Lynn,

Oh Boy, this is a tough but telling post!

I do drink diet soda, I was totally addicted to it before surgery. In fact, I remember talking to my regular doctor about it and she said don't worry about it. Everything in moderation...Since surgery, I do drink it but not NEARLY as much as I did presurgery.

I drink with a straw sometimes, but I was told that after 6 months we could??
I stopped logging my food about 9 months out, haven't gotten back to that!
I drink a cup of coffee in the morning, then I stick with crystal light packets with water. If I feel sluggish or know that I have a busy evening I stop for another cup of coffee, but that is not every night!!

As far as getting in all my fluids, somedays yes and other days nope!

No, I have not dealt well with regain. I have put on about 15 lbs back and have been really lax about doing something about it, like it is going to magically come off!?!?

I guess it all comes down to accountability...
Thanks for making me think about it and be accountable to myself!!

Love, Beth

Hi,

I am 18 months out today!  Just realized that.

I do not drink soda, I had given that up a few years before surgery.

I always drink with a straw, especially coffee, my dentist taught me that keeps the coffee off my teeth, hence less staining.

I just started logging my food again this week on The Daily Plate, keeps me from those bad bites, licks and tastes all day.  I want to lose at least 15 more pounds and I know I have to be accountable to do it.

I do have 1-2 cups of regular coffee every morning, and decaf other times of the day.

I get enough water in each day, could do a little more I guess.

Deb

Thanks everyone.

As for me....

I am shocked that Diet Pepsi tastes good to me again. After New Years I slipped back into drinking it every day and know that it replaced too much of my water. As I said, I have been more bloated, thick around the waist, etc. So I am letting it go (again). OTOH - I do like to use diet root beer or ginger ale to mix vanilla protein powder. Once in a while.

I am glad to see I am not the only one drinking with a straw in public. Great tip about minimizing coffee stains on the teeth! I too do NOT like drinking from a glass in a restaurant.

Food logs - not me. But I do keep mental track of protein each day. I still have a shake every morning to jump start the protein requirement.

Caffeine - fortunately I have kicked this, except for that lapse with Diet Pepsi.

Fluids - I am good on this.

Regain - Today I was at 168. My lowest was 153 (for about 10 minutes once). THat is 15 lbs and I need to clearly designate my MEALS and my SNACKS and eat ONLY those foods. I think grazing is my issue....

Lynn,

Late to the party, but there were good reasons I was not here yesterday . . . anyway. . .

I can count the number of times I've had diet soda and it was so I could indulge in a root beer float with no sugar added vanilla ice cream, one bottle lasted weeks, but it was a nice treat in the summer. . . otherwise I do drink caffeinated coffee first thing in the morning, after that I switch to decaf anything, though winter months, I cannot tolerate cold drinks, so I mostly drink decaf coffees or teas, I do believe limited quantities of caffeine are ok, supposed to make up the caffeine with equal parts, extra of water, without decaf in the winter months I would not make my fluids, but generally I do get the required amounts in.

The straw thing, for some reason, I seem to think it was considered a no no early out, but not necessarily further away from surgery, but I'm fuzzy on that, as I don't use a straw much anyway. I am dealing with my regain, like you I saw the 150s for a hot minute and rebounded to 160s, where I was ok with myself, but as I have made quite clear, a further regain of weight, has me wanting to lose 15 lbs. and it is not easy, but I know from others it is doable, but all about balancing, what we take in and what we put out via physical activity. If I go over 1400 calories a day, there is a change in my scale, so as has been said, portion control through weighing, measuring is a good option and one I am starting to implement. Losing the regain is slow, but can be done. I know you can do it.

Laureen