Old habits?!

[mmarie 1]

I'm beginning to find myself eating and eating ... Like snacking throughout the day and not on healthy good choices. I do not understand why I am beginning to crave the sugar and pop again I am a little over a year out and have lost about 138lbs and really starting to feel happy about my body. I do not want to gain the weight back but I seem to be at a loss on what to do to kick myself back into a good habits!

Any suggestions?

It almost feels like I have forgot what I need to be doing or something

[DLCoggin 1,788]

Are you maintaining a food log? Do you have a daily calorie goal? Have you gained any weight? How far out are you from surgery? If you can share a little more info with us you'll get some great responses. It's just a bump in the road and folks run into it all the time! You'll be back on track before you know it!

[mmarie 1]

I am a year and couple months out from surgery, I have not kept a good log recently ,.. I do have a my fitness pal which I'm going to start following again ... I am also going to try to get more Protein in!

[tewksy 0]

I am going thru the same thing. I had surgery November 2012. Reached goal weight in nine months lost 110 pounds lately all I want is candy soda anything with sugar I use fitness pal but not everyday. I have regained three to four pounds depending on the day . NEED HELP please

[DLCoggin 1,788]

When I gain a couple of pounds, I reduce my calorie goal by 100-200 calories for a day or two and my weight comes right back down. I've done it many times. But failing to log your food in MFP every day dramatically reduces the value of the log. For example, one of the advantages of a food log is that it makes you accountable to the most important person in the equation - you. Log the good days and not the bad (or vice versa) and you're only getting half of the story. Odds are good that your weight is responding to the half that you aren't logging.

Logging also gives you confidence that you are managing your weight as opposed to your weight managing you. Nothing builds confidence like making a calorie adjustment and then seeing the results on the scale. When you do that three or four times and you see the results every time, your confidence soars. You know you are in control and that is a great feeling. It also works the other way. If your weight drops below the number you have established as your minimum (I have a five pound "window"), you simply increase your calorie goal 100-200 calories for a day or two and you'll see your weight come back up.

One of the strongest features of MFP is the ability to customize almost every aspect of your weight management. For example, you are struggling with sugar. Go to the MFP website and login (you cannot do most customized values from the phone app), go to My Home > Goals > Change Goals and then choose the Custom option.

My daily sugar goal was set (by MFP) to 60g. A few days ago I decided that was too high so I changed it to 40g (20g would be even better but "baby steps" are usually a wiser way to go). Just knowing I made that change increased my awareness. In the last few days I have consciously chosen to pass on relatively high sugar temptations that I was pretty sure would have resulted in my exceeding my goal. So far I have not exceeded my new 40g goal. Perhaps a small victory. But in my mind an important one. And one that has been relatively painless. MFP increases your awareness which in turn encourages you to make better choices.

I believe that it's crucially important to treat not only your calorie goal, but all goals in MFP as "averages". Using my new sugar goal as an example, I want to "average" 40g a day. That doesn't mean that I can realistically expect to never exceed that goal. Special occasions are part of life and often involve food relatively high in sugar. So when (not if) I have a day where I exceed my sugar goal, I simply make a mental note to reduce my goal for the next couple of days and I'm right back on track with my average. As long as you log everything you eat, every day, your weekly summary of all of your nutrition information is a tap away. Divide any given number by seven and you have your average.

Next to the surgery itself, food logs are the single most powerful tool that you can have in your arsenal. Commit to MFP for 90 days, get to know it, experiment with different values for calories and nutrients, and it will teach you the numbers that work best for you and your lifestyle. You'll see the results where it matters the most - on the scale!

Edited March 13, 2014 by DLCoggin

[mmarie 1]

Thank u so much for that great response!! What u said was very true ... My nutrition advisor also said to increase my Protein and make sure I was getting adequate amounts daily! Oh and also drink Water and war fruit when u have a craving for sugar.

[amayzme 15]

Thank u so much for that great response!! What u said was very true ... My nutrition advisor also said to increase my Protein and make sure I was getting adequate amounts daily! Oh and also drink Water and war fruit when u have a craving for sugar.

There are so many "sweet tasting" Protein Bars out there. Also sugar free sweets. They might help you with your cravings.

[sumptuos 1]

I am finally admitting to myself those cravings are back. I appreciate all the suggestions. I will keep a journal again. I do eat sugar free treats but I feel guilty. Don't know why? I feel like I'm indulging myself too much. I have tried eating small amounts of fruit and nuts throughout the day and that really does help.

[mikeysmom 1]

^{I am new to this forum and the reason I joined is because I am also going back to my old eating habits. I started MFP again and I am glad that I am not alone. Gives me hope.}

[angelahigdon 0]

I am also struggling. I am 18 months out and have never reached my goal weight. In fact, I started heading the wrong direction and am feeling really bad about it. I started tracking again using My Fitness Pal and am trying to limit carb and sugar intake. What I'm usure about is how many calories I should be eating. I have MFP set for 1200 because everyone says you shouldn't go below that but as Gastric Bypass patients are our metabolisms shot?? Is 1200 calories too much for our metabolism?

[mikeysmom 1]

I am at 1200 calories. I have been a slave to MFP. I have to be. I need to be accountable or I will go back to my destructive behavior. One day at a time!

[Linda Tewksbury 2]

my questions for all you is I am faithfully using MFP and getting yelled at every day for not taking in enough calories which I just ignore but since I am exercising twice a day and using 4-500 additional calories but still keeping food calories at 1200 should I be eating more or what do others do with the calorie differential that MFP adjust to. I have gained ten pounds by being complaisant and not exercising and cheating myself so the past two weeks have been at it and retraining myself and of course scale is not moving at all so just keeping it going and hoping things will right themselves

[mmarie 1]

I have mine set 800 calories a day ... I reached my goal weight and did not gained anything back. With my struggle of keeping my food choices healthy I found out I'm pregnant ... 16 weeks now super excited but still going through hard times ... It's stressful!! I will say now that I'm pregnant my calories have increased so our baby and I stay healthy.

I am still having a hard time not going back to my old habit especially eating out of bordem. I have tried to buy only good healthy Snacks and dinners. I have talked with my husband and explained that we as a household will have to start eating better and me just not eating a small portion of something I know I shouldn't eat. I have not kept up with MFP which is something I really need to start doing again because it is a great tool

[DLCoggin 1,788]

I really believe that when you're on the weight loss journey, there is no "one size fits all" calorie goal. I am a huge proponent of MFP. But when it comes to calorie goals, MFP (and every other app that I've seen) uses a "one size fits all formula for calculating calorie goals. There are simply too many variables. The answer is to let your weight loss be your guide. If 1200 calories seems a good starting point, great. Try it for a week or two. If you meet your weight loss goal, then 1200 calories is "your number". If you don't meet your weight loss goal, then reduce your calorie goal. Nice and easy - say 100-200 calories. Now try it for another week or two. If you meet your goal, that's "your number". It's quick, it's easy and with a little experimenting, you can zero in on the exact calorie goal that will produce the results you're looking for. With the added benefit that all of your lifestyle factors (metabolism, exercise level, etc.) are automatically "built in".

You can customize your calorie goal (and just about all other goals) on MFP's website and it will stop telling you you're not getting enough calories.

You're gonna love the new you!!

[sumptuos 1]

I am at my goal. I am having the problem of people close to me telling me to eat more . You are too thin. My doctor tells me I'm healthy. I can maintain by eating nutritious foods and by making smart food choices. As I am able to eat more varieties of food it's becoming more challenging to do that. He said the main thing is to monitor your weight gain within 3-5 pounds. If you start to gain change your food choices. I also have a Protein Shake in the morning and a Protein Bar in the afternoon or evening. I'm less likely to over eat when I'm taking my Protein . Each person will decide what healthy food choices they want to make . This is not a diet anymore . It's a life style change. I'm trying to erase the dieting from my memory. Diet foods can make you fat. I look for high nutrition value in foods now because I only eat small portions and I feel full fast. I hope to hear from other people maintaining weight loss and anyone who wants to share on this topic. Thanks for sharing your ideas!