Injury? 3 Ways to Keep from Gaining While Healing.

Last Saturday my legs decided to do a split in the middle of the Baton Rouge Hilton lobby.  Ugh.  This pulled several muscles in my left leg along with embarrassing me to the point of tears.  Actually the pull was very painful.  I have iced and applied heat, but for right now, all forms of exercise are on hold.  So, what does one do to avoid gaining a load of weight when you are sidelined?

1. Add some extra protein to my diet.  Chicken or fish.  Protein fills you up.  Must cut carbs because I am not doing the extra work to burn them off.

2. More water!  Water helps to fill you up as well.  So, I am going to be a water drinking fool.  It is a zero calorie snack!

3. Juicing.  I have a handy dandy juicer.  Since I am banded, getting down the daily recommended allowances has always been tough.  With my juicer, I can get loads of fruits and veggies in liquid form.

I plan on being back in action in a few days, but hopefully this will keep me from having to lose some weight once I am back in action.

THE FAMILY MOTTO

We have a running joke in my family.  The Jones family motto is: "If a little is good, then a lot is better."  This pertains to EVERYTHING!  If one tube of toothpaste is good, buy multiples and then you don't have to go back to the store as often.  If one sweater looks good on you, get one in every color!  If one roll is yummy, have as many as you can stuff into your mouth!

This is an expensive motto in every way shape and form.  My mother told me just last week, that she is on her last bar of soap from my father's stockpile.  My father passed away in 2003.  We are not hoarders in any sense of the word, though my husband might argue that point, we just want to make sure we do not run out of the things we love.  I would call us pre-hoarders.  Currently, I limit the products to buying a shower gel to store in the cupboard, the moment the last one goes into the shower.  When the kids were home full time, I made it two, as things would often disappear and I hate showering with my shampoo!

When it comes to clothes, I am the same way.  I go to the Gap and if I find a t-shirt I adore, I get one in every color.  I know I won't wear them all, some colors don't look good on me, but I will buy it, just in case.  Crazy thinking huh?  Well the Salvation Army loves me for my donations of never worn clothing!  Right now I am trying to amass a Tory Burch cardigan sweater collection, but they are expensive and I must limit my collecting to sweaters that are on sale.  Let me know if you see one!

The family motto as it relates to food.  Hmmmm.  Pre-Lapband, it was a mess!  A little is good and alot is more shopping for bigger sized clothes!  Seconds on everything!  Holidays were the worst.  Lots of favorite dishes are only made during the holidays.  Must eat as much as possible as it won't be back for a year!  Pants get tighter, etc.  My sister always says, "Lets not stop eating." A whirlwind of cakes, cookies, candy, creamy dishes, yum!  Then January hits.  We all are remorseful and we pledge to lose weight.

Post Lapband, it is much better.  During most of my banded holidays, I have lost weight.  I have had to learn that I can leave food on my plate and that is ok.  I use to think that I needed to take it home and eat it.  Now I know that I don't have to do that.  I actually lost 2.5 pounds over the holidays this year!  While there are loads of people going to the gym as part of their resolutions, I never stopped.  I knew that if I took some time off, I would have gained. 

What is your family motto?  Is it a healthy one?  Is it similar to my motto?  Perhaps, I need to change our motto to a more positive one.  All I have to do is shorten it.  Instead of "If a little is good, then a lot is better," it can be "Little is good!"

Do you have Toxic Friends?

Over the last few days, I have had several conversations with friends and family members about friends.  I guess with the year coming to a close, quite a few people seem to be re-assessing their relationships.  A good friend is very hard to find.  I have lots of acquaintances, but very few good friends.  I think you know what I am talking about.  These are the friends that if they got a phone call from me at 3am asking for help, they would just ask where I need them to go.  I have less than a handful and I consider myself lucky.  Way too often we lose the real definition of friend and allow some people who do not really care about you, make big decisions for you.  Not a good idea.

Now you are wondering what this has to do with weight loss?  Loads!  Think about it.  Are there friends that you call when you want to go and "pig out" on certain foods?  Do you have friends that are 'fat' friends?  Have you noticed that some people haven't been as supportive of your weight loss journey as you thought?  They complain that you are no longer any fun to go out with or that you are changing (and to them, not for the better).  These people are not your friends!  Friends support you!  Friends want you to be successful, even if they lose an eating buddy.   A true friend has your best interest in mind and not what you can do for them.

Perhaps with the coming new year, it might be a good time to think about your relationships.  Are some of those toxic?  Maybe it is time to count your blessings for the close friends you do have and put some distance between you and the Toxic friends.  They really aren't your friends.

Focus on the Priority

I love all the great food that shows up for the holidays.  I get so tickled at patients who put off their fill because of Thanksgiving or Christmas.  I must agree that it is hard to turn down aunt Edna's special cake that she only makes during the holiday.  I am just as guilty as the next person.  I need to lose a few pounds, yet I don't want to interrupt my holiday feeding frenzy in order to get my weight back to where it was 6 months ago.  There are white chocolate covered pecans to make and chocolate ginger cookies to consume!  Feed me, feed me, feed me!  Love the holidays!  I can be 'good' in January.

Isn't that how we all got big in the first place?  We noticed that we are gaining weight, but tomorrow is always the better time to start a diet.  Our pants got tight and we just bought the next size up, or better yet: stretch waist!  We 'tomorrowed' ourselves to unhealthy.  I think it is time to focus on the priority.  Health.  Last month at TLCEdge, Mary McNeill, our Registered Dietitian, presented a holiday eating program.  She showed us how we can enjoy some wonderful recipes and not have all the fat.  There was tasting and all around yummyness.  I have even recreated a few of her recipes with success.  If I can do it, anyone can.

So, I plan on enjoying the holidays, but within reason.  I will have a bite or two of the special, once a year, recipes, but I will give myself permission to NOT finish what is served to me.  I won't deny myself, but I certainly don't have to eat half the cake!  I am not going to get swept up with the excitement and eat and drink myself silly.  I will  weigh the same or less on January 1st that I weigh today.  I will continue to exercise throughout vacation.  I will pay attention to the scale and make sure I weigh everyday so nothing sneaks up on me.

Will you join me in a 'no gain' Christmas?

THE 'WEIGHT' OF IT ALL

"Weigh yourself once a week" is one of the most important rules we have for weight loss surgery patients, band or sleeve.  I ask pre-op patients to tell me how often they weigh themselves and almost every time, they state that they don't even own a scale!  This is not good.  I believe that many of us get up in weight because we don't weigh.  We don't pay attention.  It is easier to wear the "fat" jeans or the stretchy pants.  Before you know it, we are in trouble.

At TLCEdge, we want the patient to weigh once a week during weight loss.  It is awfully tempting to jump on the scale several times a day when you are losing weight.  At one point, I was weighing after every bathroom break, just to see if I lost any more.  This can drive you a bit bonkers.  Going to the other extreme and not weighing at all is a wrong step as well.  If you don't weigh, then how will you know where you are in your progress?  We tell banded patients, when the scale says the same number as last week, and you are adding food, you should book a fill.  Weighing is very important to stay on target.

Once you are at goal, the scale plays a very important role in your life.  No one wants to go back to their heavy weight.  If you weigh everyday, then you will be on top of any potential problems that may come your way.  I have my scale in front of my underwear drawer.  I must step on the scale in order to get my underwear.  This keeps me responsible for where I am in my progress.  I encourage people to mark their scales with a 5 and 10 pound mark.  Women will naturally go up and down a few pounds every month, but if you have the scale marked, you will know when it might be going from bloating to gaining.

If you don't own one, go get one.  Tanita makes a good scale.  There are many reasonably priced ones on the market.  It doesn't have to be a fancy scale, just one that will keep track of your weight.  Get on it once a week if you are losing and everyday if you are at goal.  Pay attention! 

Water, Water Everywhere...

One of the most important rules for good weight loss (especially with the band) is:

No Eating or Drinking at the Same Time.

This is the hardest rule to get used to and the easiest rule to break.  Maybe if it was explained a bit more, one would likely work hard to follow this rule.  When you drink, you flush food through your band or stomach.  Therefore, when you flush, you can get more food down.  Mary McNeill, registered dietitian, compares it to tuna in a sink.  If you dump a can of tuna in the sink, it will sit there.  If you run water in the sink, the tuna goes down the drain.  We want the food to sit in the upper pouch for awhile as it will help you to feel full. The goal is to lose weight, so it is best not to flush.  At TLCEdge, we ask our patients to stop drinking a few minutes before they sit down to their meal.  We also want you to wait 30 minutes to an hour after the meal before you drink.  This sounds so hard to do.  We do not need moisture to enjoy a meal.  This is Texas, and we are all used to the 3 glasses of tea lunch.  When preparing for weight loss surgery, I often ask the patient to start to train oneself to not drink during a meal.  It is more of a mental thing than a physical need.

Often, patients follow this rule for a period of time, and then somehow, get off track.  They start drinking with their meals, then they wonder why they are not losing weight.  If your weight loss is at a standstill, you might want to re-examine what you are doing during mealtime.  Have you "let it slide" a bit and are now washing everything down?  Don't let the water drown the weight loss!