phatgirl
New Member
I had a conversation last night with a post-op friend and it got me thinking so I thought I would share it with you.
I think the success of any type of weight loss surgery depends completely on gaining control of your eating. If you think about it, isn't that why diets fail as well? You have control over your eating while you are dieting, you lose pounds because you become a food micro-manager, thinking out every calorie/gram you eat. As soon as you relax that control, you return to your pre-diet habits and give the control over to the food through the cravings, head hunger and emotional eating.
With weight loss surgery, the surgery gives you temporary control on volume through restriction and the lack of appetite. With the bypass, your food choices are also limited because many of the foods you used to consume tons of will make you ill. So for a brief few months you are given the opportunity to make changes in your eating without the distraction of actual hunger and your food volume is drastically reduced. As you get further out from your surgery, your real hunger returns and you can eat larger portions. You are also going to grow more tolerance for those foods you used to love but were a no-no early days. If you get to that point without taking firm and permanent control of your eating, you may flounder and find yourself in the awful predicament of re-gain or not reaching your goal.
So, CONTROL must be found so that you are the boss and not the food. That is why when I hear someone who is struggling with control I recommend the 5-day Pouch Test. I think it is an excellent tool to exert some control when you feel you eating has gotten away from you. I admit freely that I have felt that way a few times so if you have felt that way just know you are not alone! I even wondered if I would be able to stay on track or would I fail like have done with every diet under the sun. See, I am very, very experienced at failing with my eating but I don't have experience with permanent success. So getting control of my eating has been a tough battle but it can be done and well, even if it slips and those bad foods creep back in, you can always start fresh the next day! I would advise all you post-ops to look here (even banders can use this to kick-start themselves) Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test
and give it a think, maybe stock in some supplies so that if you ever feel out of control you can jump up the next day and exert your control again. Additionally, planning your meals and snacks ahead a couple of days is a great tool to keep you on track, then you don't have the worry of looking for something to eat while you are hungry or craving. It works, I promise.
Food for thought,
Nic
I think the success of any type of weight loss surgery depends completely on gaining control of your eating. If you think about it, isn't that why diets fail as well? You have control over your eating while you are dieting, you lose pounds because you become a food micro-manager, thinking out every calorie/gram you eat. As soon as you relax that control, you return to your pre-diet habits and give the control over to the food through the cravings, head hunger and emotional eating.
With weight loss surgery, the surgery gives you temporary control on volume through restriction and the lack of appetite. With the bypass, your food choices are also limited because many of the foods you used to consume tons of will make you ill. So for a brief few months you are given the opportunity to make changes in your eating without the distraction of actual hunger and your food volume is drastically reduced. As you get further out from your surgery, your real hunger returns and you can eat larger portions. You are also going to grow more tolerance for those foods you used to love but were a no-no early days. If you get to that point without taking firm and permanent control of your eating, you may flounder and find yourself in the awful predicament of re-gain or not reaching your goal.
So, CONTROL must be found so that you are the boss and not the food. That is why when I hear someone who is struggling with control I recommend the 5-day Pouch Test. I think it is an excellent tool to exert some control when you feel you eating has gotten away from you. I admit freely that I have felt that way a few times so if you have felt that way just know you are not alone! I even wondered if I would be able to stay on track or would I fail like have done with every diet under the sun. See, I am very, very experienced at failing with my eating but I don't have experience with permanent success. So getting control of my eating has been a tough battle but it can be done and well, even if it slips and those bad foods creep back in, you can always start fresh the next day! I would advise all you post-ops to look here (even banders can use this to kick-start themselves) Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test
and give it a think, maybe stock in some supplies so that if you ever feel out of control you can jump up the next day and exert your control again. Additionally, planning your meals and snacks ahead a couple of days is a great tool to keep you on track, then you don't have the worry of looking for something to eat while you are hungry or craving. It works, I promise.
Food for thought,
Nic
