After weight loss surgery, you may find it physically impossible at first to turn to food when you’re not physically hungry. Eating too much might make you physically sick. However, it’s still possible to sabotage your weight loss goals after surgery if you:

• Primarily eat fatty or sugary foods
• Eat more often than you need to
• Eat very soft foods or drink while eating so that you can eat larger portions

In other words, it’s possible to “cheat” the weight loss surgery if you really want to. Of course, having weight loss surgery is a sign that you don’t want to cheat; you want to lose weight and be healthy. However, your relationship with food may get in your way if you don’t take a closer look.

Before and after weight loss surgery, ask yourself:

• Do I eat because I’m stressed, lonely, or sad?
• How do I feel before and after I eat?
• Am I most likely to overeat or eat unhealthy foods in certain environments or social situations?

These types of questions can help you identify why you eat when you aren’t physically hungry so that you can begin to address these potential obstacles. Perhaps you need to make a list of alternative stress relievers or find new activities to do with your friends. Taking the time to answer these questions will help you be more successful after weight loss surgery.

Most people don’t plan to lose weight and then gain it all back after hitting a goal, but only about 5 to 10% of people who lose weight manage to keep it off long-term. Why do so many people find themselves regaining the pounds they worked so hard to lose, and how can you keep it from happening to you?

Some people find that they slowly regain lost weight because they begin to eat a little more and exercise a little less once they’ve achieved their initial goals. But even if you’re sticking with a lifestyle of healthy eating and exercise, you may notice a few extra pounds. Many experts believe this is because your body is actively working to gain weight in order to maintain a “weight set point.”

In much the same way that your body works to keep your temperature within a set range, it also works to regulate how much you weigh. In order to keep your weight as close to your set point as possible, your body will adapt by burning fewer calories or increasing your appetite. As you gain weight, your set point increases. As you lose weight, you can also lower your set point, but it’s believed that lowering your set point is more difficult than raising it.

How can you change your set point? Lowering your set point takes time and gradual changes. Calculate your caloric needs for maintaining your weight. Slowly work your way toward that goal by increasing your daily calorie intake by 150 to 200 calories per week. Monitor your weight during this transition period and only increase your calories again when you notice that your body is able to maintain your current weight at your new calorie levels.

Tips for Thinking Positive Before You Lose Weight

• Pay attention to what you like about yourself. Remember that how you look is only one aspect of your identity and practice focusing more of your energy on some of the other aspects that you can more easily appreciate.
• Look for realistic role models. Put away the fashion magazines and find examples of people who offer you more realistic standards to aim for. Instead of choosing a role model based on appearance, you might also look for someone whose positive attitude inspires you.
• Spend time doing things you enjoy. If possible, find activities that get your body moving and put a smile on your face.
• Get something done that you’ve been putting off. This can give you a sense of pride and accomplishment that may help change your negative self image.
• Dress in clothes that make you feel and look good now. Many people promise they’ll buy new clothes once they’ve lost weight, but being happy with how you look today can actually improve your chances of losing weight in the future.

A few small changes can help you break out of the habit of negative thinking. Once you’ve proven you can achieve small things, you’ll be more likely to take on and achieve bigger goals needed to improve your health.

Tips for Setting Weight Loss Goals

• Make your goals personal. It might be tempting to base your goals on someone else’s achievements or someone else’s idea of success. Instead, focus on goals that are based on your own capabilities and limitations. Your goals should be based on what motivates you, whether that’s how much you weigh, what size clothes you wear, what you can accomplish, or simply how you feel at the end of the day.
• Set realistic goals. If you set goals that are impossible to achieve, you’re setting yourself up for failure and disappointment. Instead, focus on what you can accomplish in a certain period of time. Remember that most experts suggest a healthy weight loss rate of just one to two pounds per week for most people.
• Create process goals. Making a goal to lose 50 pounds doesn’t give you much guidance for how you’ll lose that weight. Process goals, like “exercise 6 days a week for 30 minutes” or “consume 1,300 calories a day” help you focus on daily steps you can take to get long-term results.
• Write your goals down. Studies have shown that written goals are much more effective than simply telling yourself what you want to accomplish. Give yourself something you can look at every day and you’ll be more likely to achieve weight loss success.

Success is a commitment.

Before having surgery, you should emotionally prepare yourself for making a long-term commitment. You’ll be required to make significant lifestyle changes, including changing the way you eat and adding exercise to your daily life. In order to stick with these commitments, you may need to reach out to a support network of family, friends, and other bariatric patients. Be prepared to do whatever you need in order to stick with your dietary guidelines and exercise recommendations.

You are a priority.

After surgery, you may find that exercising, meal planning, and follow-up appointments require setting aside more time for yourself than you’re used to. While you certainly deserve this time, it may cause you to set boundaries that make you uncomfortable initially. You might find it hard, at first, to take time away from other people or activities in order to focus on yourself. Understand that your health and well-being is worth the time, and the overall reaction from your family and friends should be positive.

1.  Know Your Weight Loss Personality

Our personalities play a role in how we look at food and dieting. Your personality can also give you some insight into what obstacles you might encounter along the way and how you can prepare to overcome them.

• Impulsive. If you’re an impulsive person, you might be more likely to see a pint of ice cream in the freezer and dive in. Having tempting foods around will make dieting more difficult for you. Take the time to clear your kitchen cupboards and refrigerator of unhealthy food choices.
• Oblivious. You may not describe yourself as “oblivious” in the rest of your life, but do you notice that you tend to be unaware of how much you’ve eaten until long after you’ve overfilled yourself? Do you often find yourself snacking mindlessly in front of the TV? Avoid situations where you can eat without watching your portions. Sit down to eat your meals and snacks and try keeping a food journal.
• Uptight. People who are anxious, nervous, or depressed will sometimes eat to feel better. If you think of yourself as an anxious person, be on the lookout for emotional eating.

2.  Know Why You Want to Lose Weight

Successfully losing weight and keeping it off requires making a serious commitment to yourself. Before you decide to drastically change your eating and exercise habits, take a moment to examine why you’ve decided to lose weight.

Ask yourself:

• Am I ready to do this?
• Am I doing this for me, or someone else?
• Am I prepared for occasional setbacks or lack of progress?
• Can I focus on weight loss fully?

If you answered yes to all of these questions, you have a pretty good chance of succeeding. If you answered no or aren’t sure of your answer to any of these questions, it might be worth it to invest some time and thought into figuring out what’s holding you back.

5 Tips To Fight Holiday Weight Gain

1. Eat breakfast. Not only will eating a health breakfast help you resist the urge to overeat during the day, breakfast-eaters report being able to maintain a better mood and higher energy levels throughout the day, which you’ll need to get through all your holiday chores.

2. Drink water. Getting plenty of water is an excellent way to fight off fatigue and keep your weight in check. It will also keep your stomach full at holiday parties.

3. Avoid alcohol. Alcohol is packed with empty calories. It’s also a natural depressant and can interfere with the quality of your sleep.

4. Fill your candy dishes with healthy snacks. Skip the fudge and rum balls and set out a bowl of fruit, crackers, pretzels or low-fat hard candy.

5. Pick healthy carbs. Fall and winter months tend to increase your cravings for carbohydrates. Plan to have healthy carbohydrates around for midday snacks to satisfy these urges.

You’ll find temptation from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, but you don’t have to give in. Make the commitment to maintain your weight through the holidays and start the next year ahead of the dieting curve.

Tips for Enjoying Holiday Eating Without Gaining Weight

Have a plan. Before you head out to a holiday party or sit down for a family holiday meal, decide ahead of time how you’ll face potential weight loss obstacles. Decide to make healthy choices before you’re faced with tempting foods.

Use your plate as your guide. Let your dinner plate help you monitor your portion sizes. Fill half your plate with vegetables and split the other half equally between proteins and carbs. If you have to go back for seconds, stick with fiber-rich veggies to feed your hunger.

Eat before you go. Never show up to a holiday party hungry. If you haven’t eaten in hours, you’re more likely to overeat without considering calories and fat or sugar counts.

Be a picky eater. As you survey a buffet table, pick out your favorite foods instead of sampling one of everything.

Avoid alcohol. Alcoholic drinks are loaded with empty calories that offer little or no nutritional value. Common mixers also tend to come with their own faults in the form of extra sugar or fat.

Avoiding weight gain during the holidays doesn’t have to be all about depriving yourself. Instead, focus on being selective about what you eat and be mindful of your portion sizes.

Tips for Enjoying Holiday Eating Without Gaining Weight

The holidays are about friends, family and, in many cases, food. How can you survive the winter holiday season without gaining weight?

Take a break between courses. If you’re eating at a restaurant, ask the server to hold your main meal until you’ve finished your soup, salad, or vegetable appetizers. Allowing yourself time to feel full will make it easier to avoid overeating.

Be a healthy host. If you’re in charge of cooking the holiday meal, prepare a meal that’s healthy for you and your guests. Opt for a sit-down meal with time between courses instead of buffet-style eating. Offer plenty of vegetables as appetizers and side dishes.

Move around. The more physical activity you can fit into your busy holiday schedule, the better. Suggest a family walk to take in the neighborhood light displays after eating and pick a parking spot at the mall that’s farther away from the door.

Defend against food pushers. Some people seem to get offended if you don’t eat everything they’ve prepared, and these people can be quick to assure you that there’s no need for you to cut back during the holidays. Start off by complimenting them before telling them you’re done eating. “I love your pie, but I’m full.” If that doesn’t work, insist on taking what you can’t (or won’t) eat home. Be cheerful but firm and simply repeat yourself until they get the message.

Your effort and resolve will be rewarded when January 1st comes around and you find that you’ve been able to enjoy the holidays without abandoning your weight loss goals.

Boosting your self esteem can make it easier to lose weight because you understand that you’re worth the tough choices. A healthy self esteem also makes it easier to overcome any obstacles or set backs as you work towards your weight loss goals. What can you do to improve your self esteem?

4 Ways To Boost Your Self Esteem

1.  Avoid negative self talk. Be kind when you talk to yourself. The negative statements we make to ourselves can often become self-fulfilling prophecies.

2.  Avoid “should” and “must” statements. Talking to yourself in ultimatums can create unrealistic expectations for yourself and others.

3  Forgive yourself. Accept that everyone makes mistakes. Don’t let your mistakes define the way you see yourself. Give yourself permission to let your mistakes go.

4.  Focus on the positive. Once you stop talking negatively to yourself, you can replace that inner monologue with a more positive focus. Make note of your recent successes. Build on your existing strengths.

Remember that your thoughts are powerful and have a direct impact on your long term weight loss success. Work on feeling good about who you are now and the weight loss results will come in time.

Realistic Goals Aren’t Easy-They’re Achievable
Goals that are realistic are not necessarily easy. If a goal is easy, then it isn’t really a goal, it’s simply a to-do. Each of the goals you set for yourself should require some effort from you, but not a Herculean effort.

Realistic Goals are Sometimes Simple

Simplicity is good for a lot of difficult aspects of life. When you keep routines, goals, and deadlines simple, you make them easier to achieve and more effective than their clunky counterparts.

Realistic Goals Move You Toward Your End Goal

While realistic goals may make getting to your final goal take a bit longer, they’ll always help move you toward that end. The desire to achieve a goal quickly can make slowing the process down frustrating, but don’t rush it-you’ll get there  

Realistic Goals are Based in Reality

Setting goals for a future you has to take the current you into account.  Relying on willpower that you don’t have or eating behaviors you don’t posses places a reachable goal out of reach.  Not because the goal wasn’t achievable or simple enough or even appropriately paced, but because you didn’t have the tools necessary to make it all work. When you suspect that success may hinge on skills you don’t have, that’s when you turn to support groups or expert help. With a little help, those goals that have eluded you will come within your grasp.