2 Years Out. Weight loss halted.

A lot has happened since my surgery. I feel amazing-- my life has changed in many ways.

I went from a size 26 to a size 12 (I do own a pair of size 10, but they're waiting for me.)

My relationship of 11 years ended. I was 19 when we met, so this breakup was a big deal. It was stressful and agonizing and liberating... all at the same time.

Did my weight loss suffer? Not at first. In fact, single life kept me out dancing and kept my mind off of food. But then winter hit and reality of life and its stressors set in.

I went on birth control 2 months ago, in January. I felt an instant increase in my appetite. On came about 8 lbs in 3 weeks. I work out 5-6 days a week for an hour at a time and had started lifting more weights at the same time I started the BC, so I thought perhaps I was building muscle. While I think that was part of it, I definitely can say that a lot of it is food related. I catch myself eating mindlessly and emotionally. Binge eating. Restriction? I miss it.

I took myself off the birth control this week. It was messing with my emotions anyway, or so I think, but it also is possible that my I am emotional because of my cir****tances, unrelated to WLS. Just other life changes. It will be interesting to see if my mood regulates after discontinuing the BC, but more importantly, if there is a change in hunger.

Based on my experience, I think nutrition is about 85% and 15% exercise. I look back at photos from when I actually weighed more and had more body fat, yet my stomach was flatter because I was being so much more careful about WHAT I ate. Yes, the carbs haunt my diet occasionally. And it's a slippery slope. Do you hear me, newbies? Slippery slope!

So enough beating up on myself. Now what? Help me to help myself. Any suggestions for getting back to the basics. I'm upping my protein and lowering my carbs and all of that-- is the pouch reset bogus? Can I get rid of this growling stomach or is it too late?

It is not as dramatic as I am making ot sound, but it's enough to make me write this post and ask for help. I want to quit while I am ahead and get back on track. I still have weight to lose and I am determined to get there. I have worked too hard to stop here or worse, gain weight.

Tell me your success secrets.

1. Put MyFitnessPal on your phone.
2. Get a food scale.
3. Get a bathroom scale that measures weight, BMI, fat, muscle, bone and water content.

Regain at two years out is called bounce back. It is almost universal. When it happened to me, there was nothing going on in my life or my diet to cause it.

I gained five pounds and did not really care because I was still under goal. Then a month later I gained another five and was suddenly two pounds over goal. When I gained five the next month I went into panic mode.

I joined Weigh****chers, changed my diet around, did more exercise. The gaining stopped but the excess stayed. The only thing that finally took the weight back off was weighing my portions and counting my calories.

For me, I need to stay at 900 calories a day to lose one pound a week. When in diet mode, I count every ounce and track every calorie. I weigh daily and track weight, BMI, fat, muscle, water, and bone weight.

I wear an exercise tracker and keep track of my steps. I know longer call it a lifestyle change, I call it a diet.

I was never cured of obesity. I wake up every morning and start the battle anew.

Welcome back. :) I find that sticking around here really helps with my accountability and staying on track. The good news is that you can do this!

I recommend that you start by tracking everything you put into your mouth using something like MyFitnessPal. This is important because you can't know how to change your diet if you don't know what you need to change. Weigh, measure, log. (And, yes, the pouch reset is bogus, not to mention you don't have a pouch. What isn't bogus, though, is that kicking those unnecessary carbs to the curb WILL help to remove the cravings for them. It'll take 3-5 days, but it will help.)

From there, you ask about basics. Here are mine, yours might be slightly different:

1. Prioritize protein and water
2. Deprioritize carbs, especially the refined and processed ones
3. Make the most of healthy fats
4. Eat three meals a day with no snacks
5. Avoid liquid calories (breakfast protein shake is the exception)
6. Weigh portions, log everything consumed
7. Eat mindfully and with no distractions aside from real live people
8. Move as much as possible
9. Weigh myself daily
10. Be kind to myself

So you also mention potential binging. About 11 months ago my dad died. I'm pretty sure I had Binge Eating Disorder prior to surgery, but I managed to manage it WITH surgery, my newfound resolve, willpower, whatever. But when my dad died? Yeah, I lost ALL of that ability and the BED came roaring back full force into my life. Having had the respite from it for about 2 years, I think it was even worse because I could see exactly what I was doing but felt completely incapable of stopping myself. So I did research, talked to my therapist, tried to find a psychiatrist for a diagnosis and treatment, and finally turned to my PCP for those things because I had no luck in finding a psychiatrist. (I'm going to try again this coming week because I have some free time.) I started taking Vyvanse and it has been a HUGE game changer for me. I've binged once since I started on it and, um, that was this week. I have a feeling it was triggered by my half marathon. Not cool. :P But, in short, Binge Eating Disorder is real and there is a path to getting help and treatment. I've lost about 30 pounds since I started medication (I had gained 10 after a VERY long plateau) and, at three years post-op, I'm still losing weight when I eat the way I'm supposed to eat.

I hope this helps!

You've received some great advice to follow.

Before your surgery did you write a list of things you would like to accomplish? Did you have NSV goals documented somewhere? Pull those pages out again and read them. Those are the words of someone who did not have surgery yet and was excited about their journey. Those are the words of someone who was willing to work, fight and win. Read those words again. It definitely helps me during those times when life is pounding down on me. Good luck to you!

Are you planning to go on a different type of BC? Fertility goes through the roof post-op so it's important to have something reliable.

I noticed I was really hungry during Shark Week when I was on the pill, but I've had none of that when I switched to an IUD. Maybe your gyno will have some other options for you?

Weight loss usually halts the second year. That's where the work begins if you still have more losing to do. That being said - a size 12 is awesome! It's going to suck, but after a few days of protein heavy eating and no carbs (except beans and green veggies was my rule), you'll find your appetite more under control. You've been through a lot. Forgive yourself, nurture your soul and regain control over this and the rest of your life. It will make your next relationship so much more fulfilling knowing you can do without it if you wish.

Today is my 2 year anniversary and sadly I've gained 20 lbs. I'm scheduled to have plastic surgery in 2 months. I'm having a hard time getting back on track.

I just reread your post from a month ago. There you said that you had regained 16, so it seems that you're still gaining weight. I have some recommendations. You were given a lot of great recommendations in your previous post. Did you make any changes based on those?

1) Cancel your plastic surgery. Not only have you not reached your goal, but you're not at a stable weight and you're gaining. Four pounds just in the last month. You need to get your eating habits under control before you have plastic surgery. You owe that to yourself.

2) In the post a month ago, you were eating a lot of refined carbs - gluten free stuff. You've got to change your diet and focus on protein. GF stuff isn't "healthy" just because it's gluten free. You're still putting unnecessary refined/processed carbs into your body when you want to be losing weight and focusing on protein. Not to mention, your plastic surgery recovery will be SIGNIFICANTLY better if you have a high protein diet. (My plastic surgeon recommends 100g protein/day pre and post plastics.)

3) You stated that you were seeing a therapist, but "not for that." Talk about your weight/eating habits with your therapist. Try to figure out why you're sabotaging your weight loss and get ideas of how you can get yourself on track.

YOU CAN DO THIS.

I have changed my eating habits and have lost 4 pounds so far.

You have already taken the hardest step by saying enough is enough and now I want to get back on track. Here are some steps I hope will help you. They helped me...

Planning/Preparing

Remember when we were preparing for surgery? How many meetings, classes and such did we attend? We were told the more prepared we were the better our chances were for success. And they were right. Go through the house, car and work place and get rid of trigger foods. Stock up on foods that will keep you on track. I removed every bad carb/sugar temptation and replaced it with lots of protein, veggies, grains and fruits.

Journaling

Get back to journaling. This will help you identify when you feel like eating, stress factors and any triggers in your life. Once you identify these factors, this will help you put tools in place to keep you from eating. It became clear I was not taking time for me anymore. I worked my day job and then spent the rest of my time caring for my husband. It was easy to reach for fast, prepackaged food. Since I purged my home I have to eat clean as there are no other options LOL

Use a tool to track you're eating and exercise like Getting Started with Health Tracker. Once I started to track ever bite and drink it became clear why I had gained.

Goals/Rewards

Make a list of goals for yourself. Make them realistic and small. Some of mine were move more, purge all junk from my home, eat more protein.

Food

In general, a long term post-weight loss surgery eating plan includes foods that are high in protein, and low in fat , calories, and sugar. Important, vitamins and minerals are provided as supplements. (if you had a different surgery adjust this to your food plan).

Water

Water is our Best Friend. I have to say I never went back to pop or any bad drinks, however I was drinking tea like crazy. What is wrong with drinking tea? I was either using sugar or 3 equals and 3 sweet n lows per 32 ounce glass. So I was either pushing to be diabetic or get cancer. I found once I started carrying a bottle of water around 24/7 (yes had one at my bedside) I lost the cravings for the sugar and I KNOW those artificial sweeteners are not good for me. Look I am old and if you add up all the artificial sweeteners I have consumed I am sure I am at the rat in the lab getting cancer threshold.

MOVE!

I can't say enough about how key this was for me. The reason I kept my weight off for almost 10 years was no matter what, I kept moving. If I could not go to the gym I would walk. I loved Zumba, bootcamp workouts, lifting weights. When I stopped, the weight started coming back. So for me I am starting slow to avoid injury by walking and using some of the workouts on my Demand TV. Find something you love to do and it won't feel like a pain in the *** to do daily.

Support

If it's an option "run" don't walk to a support group.

Keep me posted on how you are doing.