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Part of this message is me rejoining this community, part of it is seeing what's in my profile signature., I used to have a weigh loss results bar in there. I had my surgery in 2009, almost a year after my wife did. Having a built in support partner helps. I went from around 270 to 195 in well less than a year. A large part of it was this surgery and the nutritional information. Another part of of it was re-discovering my love of running. I still had running a marathon on my bucket list when I had the surgery and I ran it in 2011 in just over 4 hours. I ended up doing six more. Life was good, my wife and I were even used in commercials as sucess stories by the Bariatric Department of The Ohio State University I will mention my wife though I looked too thin at 195, so I did go to 210 during my marathons. But after 2013 my back began to fail and I had spinal fusion surgery. That slowed me down for a year or or more, but my weight crept up about 10 pounds a year until last May 7th, I got back from a 7 day Caribbean cruise. While I only gained 1 pound on that cruise it was a new post surgery high of 244. I imediately scheduled an appointment with my clinic/hospital. Backn in 2009 I had 3ccs put into a 10cc band and never had it changed. On my visit back I had .25cc added and have lost 13 pounds in about 2 weeks. Here we go again.

Ditto on the small sips at a time ALL DAY LONG. I even keep a small glass of water on my nightstand and may have a sip or two if I wake up. I also diluted the Premier shakes with decaf or hot water which makes them much easier to take---it still took me at least an hour to get one down. I now have about 1/2 of one in my morning coffee since I refuse to use powdered creamer. Jello, sugar free popsicles, Powerade Zero and Crystal Light also can count as water intake. First pureed foods I tried were baked chicken breast, steamed cauliflower and cottage cheese. Baked the chicken in broth and seasoning and then added broth, plain greek yogurt, and Duke's mayo to the food processer bowl until it came out like a moist paste. Too dry does not work. Steamed cauliflower for about 12 minutes until really soft then added some "lite butter" and Montreal Steak seasoning and this is like garlic mashed potatoes. I have also tried baked salmon (yum), canned tuna (meh), green beans (meh). Baking up some cod fillets right now. These foods worked great for me, I still have 10 days on pureed to go. At first I only put a tablespoon on the plate and have increased slowly to about 1/4 to 1/3 cup per meal. I take very small bites, savor them and swallow. No idea why but my program says no baby food, no soups.

Skip the baby food. Make sure you get your water in first and do protein shakes second. If you go with premier protein then you can get most if not all of your protein from 2 of those a day.

Hit 80 lbs down !! I feel amazing and it is surreal to try on any clothes I want to!! Super happy and healthy. So very grateful! Thank you to you all for being with me on this journey so far! You’re all an inspiration!

My first was also Cream of Wheat... which I hate anyway so, it was sort of lame having that be the first thing I could eat (I was at the hospital so I wasn't given an option...) I ate it... well, I had like 3 spoonfuls and was "done".

Sometimes I think when people deny themselves constantly...they set themselves up for bad choices. I think you've been making some bad choices with the refined simple carbs. But I don't think the answer is to swing the pendulum all the way in the other direction and starve and create an unsustainable diet again. Something drove you to crappy choices. You need to find out what. If it's an emotional issue...therapy is a good thing. If it's a diet that's too restrictive and unlivable...don't go back there....do something new. Maybe try a moderate diet with some healthy unrefined carbs (beans/whole grains/fruit) and see if they will help control your carb cravings so you don't go overboard in an unhealthy direction with refined carbs. If I eat a carb restricted diet...I crave sugar like a lunatic. Makes me crazy. But if I eat healthy low glycemic index carbs.....I don't miss it much. I feel much better physically and want to exercise more. Different people approach this stuff different ways. Keto is the big trend and people swear by it because its' great for weight loss. But some people feel ghastly on it and it's unsustainable for them. Lot of ways up the mountain. If one path keeps getting blocked, maybe look at some of the other routes? Best wishes, and heartfelt hopes for better days ahead:)

Congrats on your weight loss success! You may have gained a little but you recognize the problem and you're catching it before it's an even bigger issue. Definitely track calories and reduce carbs. Maybe switch a meal with a protein shake. You can do this! Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

since you asked LOL 1 hydration 2 protein 3 no sugar 4 no simple carbs - get your carbs from your veggies 5 no fruits if your gaining weight 6 no snacks 7 no calorie intake after dinner till you break your fast the next day - start with 12 hours and work it out to 14 over a month or so. whatever works with your schedule. 8 being hungry is normal and not a sign you are ill. 9 never eat before you get hungry - then drink a glass of water to see if you are hungry or just dehydrated. 10 work to get your mental focus off food. distract distract distract as for exercise. walk walk walk if nothing else.

Reach out to your Surgeon's office for a councilor recommendation and get some help with the emotional issues. Right now you need to shore up your mental game. cut the sugar out. not reduce - cut it all you are on a roller coaster and need to get the high and lows evened out. Lastly download a food app and get back to tracking everything you eat maybe the act of tracking and seeing your numbers will help you make the hard choices ahead. Don't wait. the more you delay the harder everything will get.

CONGRATS!! Isn't it awesome!! 21 lbs to your goal! YOU ROCK!