I am 16 months out and down 150 lbs. I am past my original goal. I'm still very strict with my diet. Well, today is Mardi Gras and I've watched everyone eat and drink. I haven't even taken a bite of king cake in 2 years!!!! Well, we came to eat Mexican and I started eating chips and salsa which I never do. I couldn't stop. I just kept eating. I never do this. Now I feel sick and guilty. I'm afraid I'm going to mess this all up! Just needed to vent to people who understand!

My Nut said one day will not kill you. She encourages discretion and only splurging on special holidays. I think you were due for a little celebration. Now you can get back on track.

You fell off so what!!!! You probably deserved it .Just remember you are only human. Get back on track and stay focused.

This was your FIRST moment of weakness? I'd say after 16 months, congratulations! You ARE human!

You are all so right! This weight loss is such a mind game! I'm struggling with the weight loss stopping and going into maintenance. I'm so afraid of regain! Thanks for the support!

I'm with you, @@AlanaRN! I live in Maryland, but am married to a New Orleans girl and we love Mardi Gras too!!! And like you, I haven't had King Cake (or a beignet) in over 18 months. But I'll tell ya what I DO eat: crawfish (or shrimp) etouffee, shrimp creole, any type of gumbo, andouille sausage, and yes, even jambalaya. How? Easy – no rice. My wife thinks it's a sacrilege, but I've found that those dishes are even MORE flavorful without diluting them with rice. I've even found a few restaurants here that will serve me rice-free jambalaya! (An oxymoron, according to my wife.) Don't know how long this will last, but as long as I don't eat any starches or sweets, fat and calories don't seem to affect my weight too much. So all those amazing Cajun and Creole sauces are fine. I suspect that if I were to have them AND the rice, I'd blow up like a pufferfish so I just never make that choice. Can't swear that this will work for everyone, but so far so good.....

I'm with you, @@AlanaRN! I live in Maryland, but am married to a New Orleans girl and we love Mardi Gras too!!! And like you, I haven't had King Cake (or a beignet) in over 18 months. But I'll tell ya what I DO eat: crawfish (or shrimp) etouffee, shrimp creole, any type of gumbo, andouille sausage, and yes, even jambalaya. How? Easy – no rice. My wife thinks it's a sacrilege, but I've found that those dishes are even MORE flavorful without diluting them with rice. I've even found a few restaurants here that will serve me rice-free jambalaya! (An oxymoron, according to my wife.) Don't know how long this will last, but as long as I don't eat any starches or sweets, fat and calories don't seem to affect my weight too much. So all those amazing Cajun and Creole sauces are fine. I suspect that if I were to have them AND the rice, I'd blow up like a pufferfish so I just never make that choice. Can't swear that this will work for everyone, but so far so good.....

Haha! I understand. I do eat gumbo and such with no rice!!! I still haven't had rice!

I completely understand! It happens but you just get back on the horse so to speak and move on. I've found that if I indulge every now and then, a rare occurrence, I still lose weight. Maintenance is scary just trying to figure out what works best. And I think we all fear regain since few of us ever succeeded in the past pre op to maintain weight loss. Huge head game that's exhausting sometimes.

As people who've struggled with overweight and obesity most (or all) of our lives, we've had very little experience or success with maintenance. Losing, yes. Maintaining, no.

Losing weight is simple -- do this, do that, bam! But maintenance requires so many judgments and decisions.

It's no wonder maintenance is confusing and fear-inducing.

For the last 10 months I've been working at it and learning what works and what doesn't. Still learning.

duplicate post ...

I agree. I think maintenance is the hardest part. Losing the weight was easy compared to this!

I'm feeling guilty today because I splurged on 5 mini cupcakes with icing. I was just going to have one, and got carried away. I felt horrible after, physically and emotionally. Cake is my weakness and I knew better. I feel I can never splurge without feeling so guilty. I'm only 4 months out and know I shouldn't be doing this. Thanks for letting me vent too...