This is a post that has sat in my Drafts folder for quite some time now.  I’ve added to it and then edited those additions.  But at the end of the day there are a few things I want to get off my chest about my weight management and the most basic answers I have for you about what to do about yours.  I will be blunt.  But I am not trying to be offensive.  So just know that.

Some days the scales are just not my friend.  Well, that’s what I believe to be true.  They want to get me, they want to make me sad.  They, it rather, is a little bastard.

In the beginning, the honeymoon period (up to 6-9 months after weight loss surgery), the weight just falls off.
If I was a lazy person, I could have gotten away without exercising.  I am a stickler for following the rules though.  I’m actually quite a good WLS patient – I eat my protein and I drink my water and I’ve increased my exercise month after month.  But some days, some weeks, my weight just goes up and down like a bloody old yo yo.  And yes, I still weigh myself daily.

Those plateaus (however long they go for), and for that one particular week of hell each month, open the door to thinking nothing is working – and I can become easily disheartened.  This was especially true soon after such a period of dramatic weight loss so I had to remind myself to take a step back and look at the big picture.  It is less the case these days as I am more aware of how my body changes week to week – plus I’m used to seeing small increases and knowing what to do with them.

So looking at weight changes.  This is only one example of a week in my journey …

This is over a month …

And this isn’t even 12 months yet …

When I posted these screenshots from my weight management app, I was almost 12 months post op.  As I update and hopefully post it today, I’m 15 months down the track.  I know for sure that those little wobbles, those little ups and downs, are just tiny speed bumps in what has been an exhilarating ride so far.  And its far from over.

As I said, I weigh myself daily and will continue to do so.
I find the changes in my body fascinating, possibly to the point of obsession, but fuck it.  You know, I barely drink, I don’t smoke or do drugs and I don’t eat donuts so if weighing myself and writing a journal of my life’s progress is one of my worst faults – who gives a shit.
Shopping is my other addiction transfer but we will talk about that in another post!

So what do I do when the scales start heading in the other direction?

Get Real.
I take a look at my Food and Exercise journal.  And I ask myself, just what’s been going on girlfriend?
Firstly, have I been logging everything?  I mean EVERYTHING.  This is where a note or a scribble about how I am feeling, what I am thinking, also helps.  I am an emotive eater.  How I feel can influence how hungry I think I am or the choices I make.
Nine times out of 10, I am eating too many carbs and too much sugar.  I’m not being mindful of what I am putting in my face.
Usually I am eating out of packets and not directly from the ground or the source.
Often, I’m trying to make myself feel happy, or happier, by using food.

And I’m almost always not drinking enough water.

When someone asks me “how to I get back on track”, my first answer is “you need to find out where on the track you are”.  Especially if that person has had weight loss surgery.  We know the rules.  We just get complacent.  Slider foods – and drinks – creep back in.  Sometimes we need to sort our fucking shit out and get our heads back in the game.

Find your happy.  Something that cranks up your dopamine like foods do.
You know, the only problem that food is going to solve is hunger.  Actual hunger.

Count your calories – or at least keep a log.  Compare this with your exercise.  Does it stack up?

BUT you say …. but but but but but but but.  But bloody nothing.
Yes, I know there are 101 excuses.  Yes, I know there are things going on in your life that I’ll never know or understand.  Yes, I know all our bodies and diets and favourite exercises are different – and unique.  Yes, I know this journey isn’t the same for everyone.  Except part of it is.
We both have a body – right?  We both have had some type of weight loss surgery – right?  We were both told about our portion sizes, to eat our protein first and to drink 1.5 to 2l of water a day – right?  We were both told to move our bodies for at least 30 minutes per day or 150 minutes per week.  We were both told that alcohol wasn’t recommended.  Now answer yourself honestly … DO YOU STILL FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES!?

Start back at the start.  If you can say yes to all of those things, perhaps you need to go and have a session with your bariatric nurse or dietician.  Its very important to remember that once you reach your goal, you have to work at it if you want to stay there.  It is like this for most people in the world!  Our surgery is just a tool to kick us in the right direction.  Whether we get there and stay there, is entirely up to us.  No one said this would be easy did they team?  I think we will all agree though, good health is so so worth it.
If you don’t read Melissa Loses It – you really need to hop on over and read her latest post.  Melissa has just had her three year surgeri-versary so she is another 18 months or so ahead of me.  She’s just written an awesome post about The Harsh Reality of Life After Weight Loss Surgery and in that she talks about the management that she still does every day.  See team, its a fucking marathon alright!!

So, eat your protein.  Drink your water.  Count your calories.  Stop drinking alcohol.  Change up your exercise routine.  Meditate.  Get some sleep.  Find your happy.

And please know that despite being a bit of a bitch about being honest with yourself, I am truly here to help and support.
Take care of you, t X

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