VSG Maintenance Group
need advice from those with desk jobs
ok, so hubby shrinking nerd is up a few pounds. he works at home at a computer so its pretty tempting to get up from desk and snack. anyone have any strategies on how to deal with this? Dr. C said padlock the refidgerator. when i had an office job it was always tempting to go get soda or snacks just to get a break from desk. who has some other options?
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I'm a teacher and am surrounded by kid snacks/candy all day long!! Some days are good and other days are horrible!!! When I'm having a good day...I plan my snacks...raw veggies, pickles, hummus chips, nuts...all premeasured. I log my food the night before. I also drink a lot of coffee and water. I do self-talk. I leave my room on my prep time. I'm up a few pounds, too. I need to follow my own advice.
Wow- work at home- potential disaster! OK- for different reasons- (financial) this is how my sister handled "food consumption control"---won't go into the reasons why she needed to do this, but it worked. It's a little labor intensive-- She basically kept NO food in the house that wasn't consumed but just for that day. In other words, she shopped daily ( like they do in Europe) for the daily meal. Nothing in the house to snack on- no snacking done... seemed crazy to me at the time- years ago-- but looking back on the idea--I'm getting ready to retire, and I can see how having a supply of potential (love to bake and make) ingredients available might just send me into excess. This is problem solving I need to think about myself..hmmm.
goal!!! August 20, 2013 age: 59 High weight: 345 (June, 2011) Consult weight: 293 (June, 2012) Pre-Op: 253 (Nov., 2012) Surgery weight: 235 (Dec. 12, 2012) Current weight: 145
TOTAL POUNDS LOST- 200 (110 pounds lost before surgery, 90 pounds lost Post Op.diabetes in remission-blood pressure normal-cholesterol and triglyceride levels normal! BMI from 55.6 supermorbidly obese to 23.6 normal!!!!
I worked from home for the first 2 years of my VSG. Honestly, I didn't find any strategies except to white-knuckle it through the afternoons - which were my worst time of the day.
Well, I guess I had some strategies. But, they were really more mind tricks - because I seem to love ******g with my own brain.
I saved most of my calories for lunch to dinner. I typically drank just a shake in the morning. No snack in between if I could make it to lunch. Then I would eat a normal lunch because that was my easy time still. When 1-4 hit, I started snacking, but I was low on protein so I kept it protein-heavy. Greek Yogurt, veggies, maybe even part of a chicken breast, sometimes protein bars. If I needed a "sweet" fix, I made some decaf coffee with my favorite SF sweetener, or some chai tea. If it got really bad, I would go outside for 10-15 minutes. I always made myself drink a glass of water before I got to eat anything. I promised myself a "treat" in the evening when my hubby got home, but I almost never had one because he isn't a huge treat person.
I had to really work on habits. I'm glad that I had that time at home to become aware of why I ate and times of the day that were hard for me, etc. It gave me a change to fix some of my bad habits. When I started working at the Library, I found that I actually still have the same problem with the afternoons, but now I know to turn to some chai tea, or a coffee instead of the crap snacks that are everywhere in the school.
not something he can do about snacks, but can he stand while he works? they do have standing desks - and here are the dangers of prolonged sitting from this link from Dr. Ann
Perhaps one of the most eye-popping and important scientific developments on the health front has been the recognition that prolonged sitting is definitely hazardous to our health. Regardless of the amount of “exercise” you get over the course of the day – sitting for long segments of time comes with a host of adverse metabolic effects that boost your risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer and can completely negate any form of exercise you may have done. In one recent study, sitting for four hours straight completely erased any exercise a person had done. According to a brand new report, those who spent four or more hours a day playing or working on a computer or watching TV had a 48 percent greater risk of dying from any cause and a 125 percent greater risk of having a heart attack or stroke. As in previous studies, engaging in formal exercise did not appear to mitigate the adverse effects of the prolonged “screen time.” (Journal of American College of Cardiology, Jan 2011)
Thankfully – studies do show that regularly getting up from sitting, even for as little as one minute at a time, can help off-set the risks. Based on the critical new understanding of prolonged sitting as an independent, high risk behavior, I have recently converted to a stand-up desk. I have been “standing up to sitting” now for 6 weeks and am totally hooked. Amongst the many positive changes I have already noted are: total resolution of my former “daily” neck pain, better focus (the more you engage your muscles the better you can concentrate), and less sluggishness at the end of the day. Here is a picture of my make-shift stand-up desk. Google “how to make a stand up desk” for instructions. I plan to transition to a real one soon.
once upon a time I had a group to talk about Binge Eating Disorder, and later one about Clean Eating.
PM me if you are interested in either of these.
size 8, life is great
I also work from home, and yes, it is a struggle!!!!!! But I love all the other bene's that working from home provides, so I can't seem to give it up.
My advice is that he continues to snack, to keep his sleeve full (if he like that) and happy, but with safe foods only, like celery, carrots, cucumbers, organic low salt chicken stock, hard boiled eggs (yolks can be removed), Kim Chee of all kinds (we spend a few years in Korea and Koreans live on kim chee), bell peppers, etc. No simple carbs laying around in the pantry. They call my name. I have two teens that need to eat a lot so I have to really use all my strength to avoid those foods.
Can he move his office to the basement? Good luck Shrinking Nerd!
HW 200, surgery weight 190, Goal Weight 140, Current Weight 140, Height 5 foot 8 1/2
Sleeve Surgery by Aceves on Feb 10, 2011