Getting Back on Track

[Sullie06 1,047]

Hi all! I had VSG back in Dec of 2016. I was very involved in this community for a long time. I lost 124 pounds over about 18 months and maintained a 105-110 pound weight loss for almost 3 years.

Then the pandemic hit. Then I had some non related medical issues. I went on a medication that caused weight gain. I got frustrated. I fell off the wagon and tumbled down the road and I’m now facing a 60 pound weight gain in about 4 years. I made a lot of excuses! I also started picking up bad habits like drinking alcohol, not counting calories and indulging in carb heavy Snacks.

But hitting 260+ again shook me. I was only 15 pounds down from my surgery weight. It’s time to get off the pity wagon and get back on track.

so I’m back. I’m counting calories. Eating low carb. Cutting almost all alcohol, bread as Pasta out! 10 days down, forever to go!

My Stats:

SW: 305 SD: 275 LW: 181 MW: 195-200

RW: 263 CW: 258 GW: 200

[GreenTealael 25,545]

Good luck ❤️

[Spinoza 1,501]

Sounds like a really rough time. I hope you can be gentle with yourself.

I hear people here say that going back to Protein first, veg second and carbs a long way back in third can help them get back on track. I'm 3.5 years out and regained 7kg last year. I'm working at getting it back off.

Have you kept going with exercise and if not can you reintroduce that too?

Please let us know how you're progressing.

[Mspretty86 444]

You can definitely do it. We are here for support. Unfortunately, this obesity is a lifelong disease that we have to fight and battle. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. We have to reduce eating the things we love we have to incorporate movement. It's a lot of things it takes a lot of work. Glad to see that you're getting back on track sometimes we have to do a reset and get back to the basics of what helped us lose in the first place. It's not fun, but it has to be done.

[Sullie06 1,047]

On 4/5/2025 at 5:40 PM, Spinoza said:

Sounds like a really rough time. I hope you can be gentle with yourself.

I hear people here say that going back to Protein first, veg second and carbs a long way back in third can help them get back on track. I'm 3.5 years out and regained 7kg last year. I'm working at getting it back off.

Have you kept going with exercise and if not can you reintroduce that too?

Please let us know how you're progressing.

So I’ve never been a big fan of the gym. I literally hate going. But, I love taking nice long walks so once the weather breaks I will be walking daily. I usually do a mile every day at lunch at work and then 3-4 miles after work 2-3 days a week!

[Sullie06 1,047]

4 weeks in going to update the stats:

SW: 262 CW: 254 GW: 200

Down 8 pounds in a month which I’m happy with. Hoping for similar results for the next month!

[MrBeeswax 6]

Good luck. I’m pre surgery and eerily. We are roughly the same weight stats. At the end of next month I’m going to pick a procedure and I’m worried about durability. The pandemic was a once in a century event, but this person’s story is not unique. Therefore, I’m worried if VSG is the best surgery for durability. Aside from BPD/DS I see VSG patients having a lot of regain on this platform and on the FB groups, there’s less, but still a fair number of RYGB patients with regain too. Most didn’t just go full on ultra terrible diet, so I am now reading and watching videos to avoid regain. Are there any books on the topic?

[Mspretty86 444]

@MrBeeswax I feel that no matter which surgery you receive when we suffer from the disease of obesity and we Detour from eating properly then we're gonna experience weight gain. Obesity bodies are different than regular bodies who metabolize food normally. We who suffer from obesity have a metabolic disease, so when we get surgery and start back creeping in those "comfort and emotional eating foods" that we KNOW our body loves to store FAT with such as chips, cakes, Cookies, unhealthy CARBS, refined sugars, just SUGARs period in access then we're gonna regain unfortunately we have a horrible disease that requires very proper planning for success. I lost a lot of weight really fast with VSG and I credit my success to 1.Meal prepping for success 2. Being organized 3. Movement.

i honestly don't think the type of surgery matters.

its that HAND TO MOUTH MOVEMENT what are we putting in our mouths 😂

Edited April 30 by Mspretty86

[Dub 10,001]

On 4/21/2025 at 10:43 AM, Sullie06 said:

4 weeks in going to update the stats:

SW: 262 CW: 254 GW: 200

Down 8 pounds in a month which I’m happy with. Hoping for similar results for the next month!

You got this.

I was also active on here in the years following my sleeve.

Had a life event occur that knocked me down. Stayed in a hole for the past few years....but started resuming normal life recently.

Addressing the regain. That part is going well.

Staying in my lane, been alcohol free the past 6+ years, working long hours and taking care of yard work & house chores on my days off.

[Sullie06 1,047]

On 5/1/2025 at 6:34 AM, Dub said:

You got this.

I was also active on here in the years following my sleeve.

Had a life event occur that knocked me down. Stayed in a hole for the past few years....but started resuming normal life recently.

Addressing the regain. That part is going well.

Staying in my lane, been alcohol free the past 6+ years, working long hours and taking care of yard work & house chores on my days off.

Thank you for the support! Once I put my mind back in track it’s actually felt really good to refocus and put myself 1st.

I've also been much more aware of medications and side effects that affect weight and advocating to not use them. I should have listened to my guy originally, I would have saved myself a lot of pain.

[Sullie06 1,047]

6 week update:

Down to 252. So officially 10 pounds down. I feel good. Clothing is fitting better. Snacking habit broken. More energy from eating better foods.

[Sullie06 1,047]

2 month update:

Down 11.1 pounds as of yesterday. Clothing is fitting much better. Feeling healthier already. Goal for this month is 4 pounds which will put me at 15 down in 3 months and solidly in the 240s.

[waterwoman 188]

Congratulations! So good to see your success!

[SpartanMaker 1,234]

22 hours ago, Sullie06 said:

2 month update:

Down 11.1 pounds as of yesterday. Clothing is fitting much better. Feeling healthier already. Goal for this month is 4 pounds which will put me at 15 down in 3 months and solidly in the 240s.

I LOVE that you're losing at a sustainable rate. There is so much data to suggest that crash diets almost never work, so losing ~1-3% of your total body weight per month is the sweet spot. I'd take it even further and say 1-2%, which is right where you're at.

If I could give advice to anyone either trying to maintain after initial weight loss, or fighting regain like you are, it would be threefold:

1. Focus more initially on learning to eat a healthy diet and less on the weight loss itself. People that follow the fad diet du jour when losing weight almost always regain because they very quickly go back to their old eating habits. If instead you focus on first learning to eat like a normal weight person that eats a healthy diet, you'll be setup for real success. Many people find that if they do this first, they don't really have to "diet" because their bodies actually start to self-regulate calories. Part of this is because when we eat a wide variety of foods that are nutrient rich, our bodies don't fire off signals to eat more. If that doesn't happen for you, there are strategies to slowly reduce intake while still maintaining your healthy diet.
2. The second thing is to focus on instituting a regular physical activity routine. I feel like way too many people skip this, but the data is clear: up to 90% of people that have lost a lot of weight and successfully kept it off for years do a lot of exercise. In fact, the average for those successful losers is ~1 hour per day on most days of the week (roughly 300+ minutes a week.) This is twice the minimum recommended amount to stay healthy, and twice what someone needs that was never significantly overweight. I want to be clear, this is not really a huge factor in weight loss, but in weight maintenance, it's critical.
3. Finally, focus on behavioral modification. Let's be honest. Most of us got as big as we did because we had an unhealthy relationship with food. We may never actually "cure" ourselves of that, but we can learn to fight back. Probably the best thing to do is work with a therapist that specializes in behavior modification, especially regarding weight. I realize this is not an option for everyone due to cost or availability, but there are also lots of good resources available online.

Anyway, best of luck and keep up the good work!

[Dub 10,001]

Making the mental, dietary and exercise changes is like climbing a steep hill and reaching the top.......the hardest work is done. Keeping on track is the next part....the faster and more exciting downhill leg of your hike.

You are going to keep winning and feeling the victories along the way.

Acknowledge them and enjoy your progress of busting through each milestone.