I try to measure my food all the time. Not a problem when I'm at home, I use my food scale.
But what to do when eating out like at family and friends?
I was given this chart by my nutritionist, I find it very handy and wanted to share it with anyone interested
servingcard7.pdf
As you know I reached my goal a couple of months ago and am now in the maintenance stage of my journey. Simple, all I have to do is maintain my weight.
I still check in with my doctor every four weeks (my choice not his).
This last month has been full of ups and downs with a lot of changes, basically life has been happening. I had to battle the head hunger on more than one occasion.
Then about a week and a half ago I started noticing that my daily calorie intake was creeping up. 10 calories more, then 20, then 30, etc… I was starting to get hungry (physical hunger) in between breakfast and lunch, this hasn't happened since bandster hell.
That was the deciding factor for me, I needed a fill.
I went for my four week checkup today and to no surprise I was up two pounds. After discussing things with my doctor I got the fill I wanted (just a small one .2cc).
My point here is that once you reach your goal you’re not done. In fact, It’s harder to maintain your weight that to loose, in my opinion.
Guess I need to change my ticker now.
Do you admit when you are struggling?
Or eat wrong?
Or over eat?
Or do you just hide it??
I feel like I have been successful at my weight loss, I’ve lost 75 pounds in 10 months and I’m at goal. But, was I an A student the whole time? NO!
I slipped more than once during my journey. I had nights where I munched on peanuts and chocolate chips, didn’t measure them out so I have no idea how much I truly ate. I also had times when I ate more carbohydrates than protein and times when I ate so fast that I was PBing my food back up.
What I did do was be honest with myself. I tried to log everything in my food journal (I had to estimate some things). And I got back on the saddle as soon as possible.
Perfection is not required for success; my doctor told me if I could give 80% I would see results. And I did see results.
So to all of you struggling know that for every success story you read there are behind the scenes struggles, too.
Remember starting a new school? Having to make new friends? Trying to find your way around? Everything was so different and you hated it….
Remember moving to a new town? Not knowing anyone? Having to leave all your friends behind? Everything was so different and you hated it….
Well here we are, starting a new school…..
Alex has built WLS University (BariatricPal) and within that university are the specialty colleges (Lapband, Sleeve, Bypass). It is all new and SCARY! We don’t know where to go, we don’t know where our friends are…… and we are expressing feelings of dislike.
What if we meet some new friends? Learn about their struggles with their WLS? What if we gave them support? We all know the one similarity we share is that WE have a problem with our weight and WE had to do something about it. That problem didn’t go away when we had surgery. We just started a new journey of healing. A journey that is for life. The same journey for all of us.
Let’s embrace what Alex has provided us, a place to go for support, for help and for education. I know it is scary right now, we are only 2 weeks into the new school. (Don’t know about you but I keep getting lost.)
But, in time this new university will be our old familiar stomping ground. We will be running into all our friends all the time. We will know the layout like the back of our hands…..If only we give it a chance.
Thank you Alex for building us this beautiful WLS University called BariatricPal.
Thanksgiving is next week and with that is the all too famous family dinner…
I will have my band portion, 3-4oz of turkey, ½ green beans, sweet potatoes & carrots, ¼ cup stuffing. I will be first in line and first to sit down at the table (my family makes me go first cause it takes me longer to eat).
I will take my small bite and chew chew chew, then I’ll wait about a minute. In the mean time I’ll watch as my family members take bites the size of Mt Everest, chew 3 times and swallow while preparing the next bite…
“Did you taste that?” “Can you taste the juices in the turkey?” “What about the stuffing? Can you taste the pecans and bacon?” “Oh my, don’t forget to breathe…”
Wow, do people eat fast? My family sure does!
So, I eat and watch. Everyone is finished except me. I tell my mother to go ahead and serve dessert while I finish my meal. Again, they wolf it down. “Hey, savor the bites I spent hours in the kitchen making those pies. Enjoy them, please!”
I finally finish my dinner as my mother and niece finish clearing the table. The men make their way into the living room moaning and groaning about how full they are….. Me I am satisfied!
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!
The band is a tool and will only work if used correctly, we know this and state it daily.
We have another very important tool, our doctor. He (or she) is the one we trusted to cut up our insides. But this tool doesn’t stop there, we pay them for our after care. I’m not talking just for the post op diets. I’m talking months and years of after care, whether it is fills or just checking in or complications we need this tool as much as we need our bands.
So why would we not use this tool? Why are we afraid to call the doctor? Why don’t we want to go back to the doctor? Who loses out when we don’t use this tool? The doctor doesn’t. He’s off helping other patients who are using their tool. We lose! We keep spiraling out of control, gaining weight, feeling like we failed, and hating the band.
I use my tools to the fullest capacity!
I lost 80 pounds in 10 months and have maintained my weight for the last 7 months. And, I still see my doctor once a month. Why? Because I am using my tool. I often don’t get a fill, I weigh in, ask any questions I may have and say hello to everyone. I am there so much that all the staff know me by name. They may get sick of seeing me, but hey I pay for this tool and by golly I’m going to use it.
So, if you are struggling and you haven’t seen your doctor in a while, pick up the phone and make an appointment. Use your tool! If you don’t you are only hurting yourself.
I bought myself a new water bottle this weekend. My previous bottles were inexpensive bottles. Never really liked any of them.
I have been looking for a water bottle that had a few features that seem to be hard to find.
1. No straw – a bottle that you pour the water out of (or sip into your mouth).
2. Double lined – I don’t like ice in my water but I like it cold.
3. Cap that doesn’t leak – I want to be able to put the bottle in a bag and not worry if it will tip over and leak over everything.
4. Holds a good amount of water – about 20 – 24 ounces preferred.
Well hubby & I were at Academy Sports this weekend and I found this water bottle. It meets all the elements I was looking for. It holds 24 ounces of liquid, double lined, nice mouth piece and the lid snaps closed (no leaks).
Today was the first day of full use and I filled it 7 times (7 x 24 = 168 ounces). Holly Toledo I must be floating. I drank 168 ounces of water today. Ok, I know the newness will wear off and I’ll be back to my 80-100 ounces, but hey I like my new tool (& you know my thoughts on tools).
There have been a few threads recently about water & dehydration that make me want to say I hated water when I got the band almost 18 months ago, never thought I could get in 68 ounces a day. Not possible. And today I drank that twice!
How? By not giving up, by getting a tool that I like (Yea, the Longhorn encourages me!). By mixing up my water with lemons, limes or flavor packages. I go through phases, some days its plain water others I want my water flavored. I’m currently on a fruit punch kick. Really like the Tropical Punch flavor packs by HEB. Could be something totally different tomorrow. Point is when I’m bored with something I change it.
Water can be so darn boring alone, but when you have a great tool like my UT bottle anything is possible.
PS - yes it was over the budget but WTF I’m worth it! I get an awesome bottle and show my UT spirit all in one tool!
Be careful in your selection do not choose too young and take only such as have been reared in a good moral atmosphere. Some wives insist on keeping husbands in a pickle, while others put them in hot water. This only makes them sour, hard, and sometimes bitter. Even poor varieties may be made sweet and good by garnishing them with patience, well-sweetened with smiles and flavored with kisses to taste. Keep warm in a steady fire of domestic devotion and serve with peaches and cream. When thus preserved, they will keep for years.
This is from Carla Emery’s book The Encyclopedia of Country Living.
I took my husband to Longhorn Steakhouse today for his birthday. I knew exactly what I was going to order (plan ahead is the best advice for eating out). I ordered a 6oz Renegade Sirloin Steak with fresh veggies and a mix salad, raspberry vinaigrette on the side. I also knew I would be taking over ½ of it home with me (part of the plan).
Salad comes and I have 2 or 3 bites and stopped, I wanted my steak so I wasn’t going to get full on salad. Waiter comes up and says, “Is everything alright with your salad?”
“Yes, everything is fine.”
I push my salad aside (wouldn’t let them take it away…..my chickens would never forgive me if I did).
My steak arrives; I eat about 2oz of the steak, 1 small crown of broccoli & 2 small carrot bites. I’m full.
The waiter comes up and says again, “Is everything alright with your steak?”
“Oh yes, it’s delicious.”
He walks away with the most confusing look on his face. Meanwhile my husband is sitting beside me trying to not laugh at this guy. I notice the smirk on my husband’s face and ask, “What?”
To which he replies, “You are enjoying this aren’t you?”
“I don’t know what you mean. I’m enjoying a nice steak here.”
The waiter returns and I ask for 2 to go boxes, one for our food and one for the food for my chickens (yes, I spoil them). He brings me 2 small boxes and I say “Do you have any bigger boxes; I have a lot of leftover food here?”
“I’m sorry, was there something wrong with the food, you didn’t eat very much?”
At this point my husband couldn’t hold it in anymore and started laughing. I replied, “The food was wonderful, I just can’t eat the volume you serve.”
“We do serve a lot of food here, but you would be surprised how many people can eat it all.”
He brought me the larger containers and we left, both happy with our meal.
Plus, my hubby gets steak and eggs for breakfast as well as a baked potato with everything on it (He ordered but didn’t touch) for lunch. To top it off my chickens were so very happy with their treat tonight!!
I see a lot of newbies asking what they can have during this or that stage of the pre/post op diet. Doctors give different diets to different patients; however the foods on the different stages are often very similar. Here are the 4 stages I had during my post op diet (straight from my post op paperwork):
Stage 1: Clear Liquids
· Water
· Broth or the clear liquid poured off of soup (strain out solids, no creamy soup)
· Black coffee (may be sweetened with artificial sweetener; preferably decaf)
· Clear juices (not OJ ~ it’s not clear); 100% juice (not from concentrate)
· Crystal Light
· Sugar-free Jello (with no solid fruit)
· Sugar-free Popsicles
· Gatorade/Powerade
· Herbal teas (caffeine-free)
Stage 2: Liquids
· All clear liquids
· Protein shakes (low-fat, low-carb)
· Fat-free milk
· Orange Juice
· Low-fat instant breakfast mixes
· V8 juice
Stage 3: Full Liquids
· All clear liquids
· All liquids
· Apple sauce
· Oatmeal/cream of wheat (thinned)
· Smoothies
· Low-fat creamy soups (strained out solids)
· Puréed soups/vegetables
· Low-fat, low-sugar pudding
· Low-fat, low-sugar yogurt
· Puréed fruit
· Low-fat ice cream/frozen yogurt
Stage 4: Soft food (aka Mushy)
· All of the items on the liquid food list
· Tuna/egg/chicken salad
· Well-cooked mushy vegetables (no stalk or crunchy vegetable)
· Thinned scrambled eggs (if tolerated)
· Baby food
· Soft, over-cooked pasta
· Soft canned fruit (in natural juice)
· Thinned mashed potatoes
· Soft sweet potatoes/yams
· Thinned oatmeal
· Greek yogurt
· Thinned low-fat refried beans
· Low-fat cottage cheese
· Soft/rip bananas
This is just what MY doctor had for ME. Your doctor will have different orders. I wanted to post this list to give an idea of some of the things on each list.
I hope this helps.
When I think of diet I think rules & restrictions. You have to eat this; you can’t eat that, you have to drink this; you can’t drink that, etc…. Doctor’s orders are diets, rules that we have to follow. Now the rebellious teenager in me (I know shocking right?!) says “What do you mean I can’t, watch me!”
When I think of a lifestyle I think choices, things I want and am willing to try. Lifestyle means changing the way you live for the rest of your life. The level headed adult in me (again, shocking!) says, “I want to change and live a healthier lifestyle”.
So what works in my head is I am not on a diet because I have changed my lifestyle. I follow the recommendations (orders) from my doctor and therefore I see success.
My new lifestyle does not restrict me for eating the things I love. I have chocolate, cookies, cakes, breads, pasta, potatoes when I want. I enjoy family gatherings (well most of them). I enjoy my new life.
This is what works for me!
This week has been extremely busy at work. I haven’t been getting home till almost 7pm each night and before I know it the evening is gone and midnight is around the corner. I have had no time for my LBT friends and boy do I miss it!!
This is the first time since being banded that life has got hectic on me. Did it affect my band? I think so, I have suffered from what I call last bites syndrome. Similar to first bite syndrome when you are so hungry that your first bite is too big and not chewed enough…. You know what that is like. Well, last bite syndrome is when you only have 1 or 2 bites left on your plate and you quickly stuff them in your mouth, don’t chew enough & swallow as you are taking places to the kitchen to wash…. Ughhh. I’ve done this a couple of times this week simply because I wanted to get things done & rushed my meal time. Boy it is the most discomforting feeling, the weight on the chest, the extra saliva in the mouth. All I can do is wait it out.
I am to blame for the discomfort, my own impatients. It is so easy to do, hurt yourself (and your band) by being careless. The band does forgive, however as this week goes on I find my band getting tighter & tighter. Stress of the week? Sinus drainage from my head cold last week? Is it in my head? These questions start running through my mind. I can eat and drink (as long as I slow down and follow the rules), so I know it’s not too tight.
I look forward to the weekend and relaxing!!!! Hopefully spend some time catching up with my LBT friends…..I miss you guys!
I was reading the forum today and read a reply to a post about snacking that said “It’s okay to be hungry.”
This got me thinking (I know scary, huh?!)
Do I really know what true physical hunger feels like? Hunger where you don’t know if or when you will eat again….. Pain and discomfort from malnutrition and dehydration.
I have never experienced true physical hunger.
But, I’m the first to say I am sooooo hungry. Why? Was it the way I was raised? Society? Or what?
Before my band food was everything. I would plan every meal to the tee and as soon as the meal was over I was talking/planning the next meal. Breakfast at 8am, lunch at noon, afternoon snacks/cocktails at 5pm and dinner at 7pm. My belly alarm would go off at each time and I would say I’m hungry. I was obsessed with my meals and eating. Food had all the control.
Fast forward 18 months and I have the control back (for the most part). Yes I still eat on the same schedule. This is a personality flaw for me, very organized and schedule oriented. It drives some people crazy. The difference is that I know this is a trigger for my head hunger and I don’t let that “I’m hungry” feeling take over. I know when I’m going to eat, I know how much I’m going to eat and I know what types of foods I’m going to eat.
So, yes it’s okay to be hungry. But, my head hunger will not control me, I will control it!
“November comes
And November goes,
With the last red berries
And the first white snows.
With night coming early,
And dawn coming late,
And ice in the bucket
And frost by the gate.
The fires burn
And the kettles sing,
And earth sinks to rest
Until next spring.”
Clyde Watson
