Needing Help Please... :)

I am new to this group but have been reading / enjoying the posts. I reached my goal almost 2 months ago but I feel myself slipping into old habits. 

I find myself getting one piece of chocolate candy,,, then another,,, then another. YES, I know!!! This is totally wrong! I even find myself getting one chocolate chip cookie but won't get another since it is bigger than the tiny piece of chocolate candy I had the day before. I am not drinking my 64 oz of water daily,,, not exercising. I have gained 4 pounds in the last two months. I need to get back to the basics to get those 4 lbs back off before it turns into 10 lbs! I have removed the candy/ cookies out of my site. So, that has stopped. I would like to lose those 4 lbs I gained plus 5 more to have wiggle room. Does this sound reasonable? I had the VSG in Dec of 2014.  I am 5'4'' age 59. My starting weight was 240,, reached goal of 140 two months ago. I need help from you all to get my head straight. There is an inner voice telling me I will gain all my weight back. PLEASE help me to get back on track! How do I get back to the basics? How do I know if I stretched my stomach? I needs advice and direction please. Thank you so much!! 

Karen

We have similar stats (height and starting weight and I'm 50) and I also met goal in December. My surgeon's goal for me was 128-130, I was fine with 135. I've set upper and lower red lines to keep my weight in check. My upper red line is 133 and my lower red line is 123 which puts my surgeon's goal right in the middle. If I start to get too close to either line, I add/reduce calories and or exercise as needed.

In reality, I'm most comfortable at 125, so I start to adjust if I vary 3 lbs. either way from there. I like to have the wiggle room and would rather be a bit under then a bit over.

The key for me is to track everything I eat, and that includes the chocolate chip cookies and chocolate and ice cream that has drawn me in at times too! I also try to stay within my macros which I have set at 40% carbs, 30% fats and 30% proteins (I'm not always successful here - carbs are my weakness even if they are mostly good carbs). Many here do better with less carbs! I also exercise 45-90 minutes at least 5 days per week (unless I am recouping from surgery, like now!). I do aerobics (walking, treadmill, step, snow shoeing, hiking), yoga, resistance training and circuit training via boot camp workouts. I like to vary it so I don't get bored and have a nice balance of cardiovascular, resistance training and stretching/flexibility/balance exercises.

You are smart to get a handle on it at just a 4 lb. gain, it will be much easier now then at 10, 20, or 50 lbs.  To lose the extra, you need to go back into weight loss mode. If you are maintaining right now, a good starting point is to reduce your current calories by 500 per day until you lose the weight you want. The rest you already know - dense proteins first, then non starchy vegies and lastly grains/fruit if there is room. I also encourage you to add in exercise. While exercise doesn't really help us lose much weight, studies have shown it is key to maintaining weight loss! The recommended amount is 45-90 minutes most days of the week for successful maintenance of weight loss. Here is a nice article on that https://www.acsm.org/about-acsm/media-room/acsm-in-the-news/ 2011/08/01/acsm-position-stand-on-physical-activity-and-weig ht-loss-now-available

Best of luck! Glad to see you posting here!

Thank you for responding Paula! I was afraid people would read and scroll on down with no response. Thank you! I need all the help and suggestions I can get! I have been thinking of resetting my goal weight. I remember weighing 125-130 thirty years ago and I felt great. Wondering being older, if I could get back down to that weight again. ??? I think I have the sugar cravings under control now. I have been drinking protein drinks most of the day and my last meal, I have been eating just dense protein. I am only doing this for a few days to get my metabolism back on track. Then I will replace my protein shakes with dense protein and veggies. How does this sound? I am legally blind and it is hard for me to count calories but I can do it and I guess I should, right? As far as exercise,, I will start back on my elliptical,,, got to work up my time. Please if anyone else is reading this,,, please help me with more suggestions and encouragement. Thank you so much. I refuse to listen to my inner voice that I will regain my weight. I have so many people watching me to see if I will fail. I have more people wanting me to succeed. I have spent SO much $$$ to get this off and I refuse to go back to the 240 mark. Any suggestions on what to eat that is simple would be grateful as well. I usually eat the "same" thing "every" day..... protein shake, greek yogurt, chicken, turkey sausage, very little veggies,,,, some fruit. This may be my problem...... I would love to see what others eat that is simple to fix. Thanks again!!

I think the re-set with protein shakes is fine and the dense protein you are eating is good too. I also eat a lot of Greek yogurt and chicken as well as salmon, shrimp, and some lean beef and pork.

I do think tracking your food - calories and macros is important. If you can find a way to do it with your sight limitations! I use My Fitness Pal  http://www.myfitnesspal.com  and find it pretty easy to do.

Thank you, Paula..... You are right.... I do need to track my calories. I found myself today drinking the protein drinks (which is protein powder which has 23 grams protein, 0 carbs, 125 calories mixed with 1/3 cup nonfat powdered milk, one envelope of SF Swiss Miss hot chocolate mix mixed all in ho****er) 4 times today. Later I had 4 turkey sausages and late tonight,,, I was craving ritz crackers 5-6 of them went in my mouth. I am wondering if my protein drinks are loaded with calories and need to add good carbs like fruit to it? Wondering if that is the cause of me craving the carbs and going for the ritz crackers. ?? I do need to track my intake.  I have tried fitness pal in the past. It is great but it is hard for me to see the screen.  I will    start using a marker and notebook. :)  Look over my protein drink,,,,, do you think it is too many calories? Do you know why I am craving the carbs late at night? I really appreciate all your help here. I feel like I am getting a handle of it now. Thank you again for your comments.  

Your protein shake looks fine and shouldn't promote cravings for carbs. The Ritz crackers will though!

I like the book Skinny Jeans at last. helps some. 

https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0076QJT9Y&preview=new tab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_5LCYwb0C2VKM8

and i am currently reading Why Weight a guide to ending compulsive eating.

http://www.amazon.com/Why-Weight-Ending-Compulsive-Eating/dp/B007CIOCES/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1456065034&sr=1-1&keywords=why+weight+guide+to+ending

hope that helps.

Thank you for the book selections. I will check into that. :)

Hi Karen, 

Welcome!!!!!   You and Paula have already had a good exchange of information!  I'm 52, 5'3.5 inches, VSG 12/14 and declared goal in Dec.  We are practically twinsies!  

I'll emphasize a couple of Paula's points:  track your food and the processed carbs must go!  I wouldn't be adding fruit to protein shakes, personally. I find that I am most successful if I plan my meals in advance.  Would it be possible to rid your environment of the cookies, crackers, etc? 

We are all in this together....so glad to find you here. 

Shel

Thank you, Shel!! 

I started back tracking my food today. :) I believe this is really going to help!! Knowing what "really" goes in will  definitely help me see the calories and carbs. As far as the cookies and crackers..... well, they belong to my grown son and hubby. I told them to HIDE them from me. There is one cabinet door I do not open! It has worked for me for a year,,,, I just need to track my food and be honest on what goes in and that cabinet door will be easy to avoid then. :) I think by not tracking my intake,,, it led me to denial of what was going in my mouth. That is my 3 goals this week.... track food,,, ge****er in..... exercise and stay focussed. :) Hope you are doing well!