"We have changed the environment that we live in over an incredibly short time--one generation or perhaps two generations at most, and this has challenged our ancient metabolism, which for thousands of generations has been geared to fighting famine."

People who undergo weight loss surgery are often heard to say, "The surgery was on my stomach, not my head." It is true there are some complicated mental and emotional issues that manifest following WLS, but what is often overlooked is the fact that we take our brand new digestive system and new life style rules right back to the very environment in which we became obese. No wonder we get wonky in the head! 

Losing weight is a matter of health: it is not a competitive sport. Contrary to popular culture, weight loss is not a contest. Weight loss is a lifesaving initiative owned by the one taking action. This is your journey: enjoy it at your pace.

5DPT Bulletin: WLS is not a contest

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Learn to measure your worth by means other than the bathroom scale. Focus on your whole self: your intelligence, social grace, spiritual

Always practice kindness. Be kind to yourself, our ongoing theme. Express gratitude for your weight loss tool and for your personal empowerment.
Celebrate doing the best you could to find a middle ground to respect yourself and your traditions and your new WLS body. This you deserve."

How much protein have you had so far today? "As a group, we are not eating enough protein and this shortfall is putting our health at risk." We know that after weight loss surgery we should follow a high protein diet. We call this "Protein First" - the first of the Four Rules of WLS. Mainstream studies of people managing their weight without bariatric surgery continue to indicate a diet high in protein supports weight loss and weight management in addition to promoting health.
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This month's 5DPT Bulletin takes a look at some of the pitfalls that derail us on Days 1 and 2. I then give solutions and suggestions to avoid these pitfalls so we all may successfully get back on track with our health and weight management using the weight loss surgery tool in the manner that serves us best. Little things make a difference and I think if you give Days 1 and 2 another try a pleasant surprise awaits you come Day 3.

To all of our Neighbors affected by Superstorm Sandy I send my heartfelt wishes and prayers for your safety and health. My heart aches for the suffering and destruction brought about by this act of nature. I am supporting your recovery efforts with a contribution dedicated to all LivingAfterWLS Neighbors to the American Red Cross. May peace be with us all.

This November 5DPT Bulletin is all about taking little steps to manage our weight with surgery. There is no question that the 5 Day Pouch Test has helped thousands of people get back on track with their WLS goals. One reason for this success is that the plan forces us to look at the very basics of the WLS lifestyle and return to the behaviors that helped us lose weight initially out of surgery. Sometimes all we need is a reboot, a reminder, an ah-ha moment of rediscovering a tool or technique we may have forgotten. Today's Bulletin is loaded with tools and techniques that work in our weight management and we can use them as part of a successful 5 Day Pouch Test or a less-dramatic reboot.  I know I need the occasional back-to-basics refresher course; I hope you will benefit from my experience.

Be sure to check-out today's Featured Recipe:Turkey Filled Colorful Peppers. Enjoy this on Days 4 or 5 of the 5 Day Pouch Test or anytime on Day 6!

Business Note: Shipment Delays. Due to Superstorm Sandy shipments from the LivingAfterWLS General Store in the US Postal System are taking longer to reach our valued customers. Please check the Shipping Policy on our store's support page for updates.

Feeling empowered is not just a good turn of luck:

Feeling empowered means working and taking control of your destiny. It is a state of mind cultivated with education, thought and validation.

The LivingAfterWLS philosophy states, "Personal empowerment is not borne of the statement "I am empowered." It is a state of mind cultivated with education, thought and validation." The following are three keys to achieving personal empowerment.

Rationality: Ayn Rand said, "To know one's own desires, their meaning and their costs requires the highest human virtue: Rationality." Loosely defined rationality is the logical pursuit of goals. So cultivate some rationality. Face the fact that morbid obesity is a disease that when treated with weight loss surgery can be controlled. But the burden of that control is not on the surgeon, the insurance company, the spouse or the child. The burden is on the patient. Accept the rationality and embrace the burden. Empower yourself to become a WLS success story.

Productiveness: Engage actively in making life after surgery successful. Become an information sponge. Learn about nutrition, healthy cooking and eating and physical and mental fitness. Pursue knowledge and living with a zealous heart. Celebrate your chance to make right an unhealthy life by becoming fanatical about good living both of body and spirit. If you feel defeated then start today productively taking control of your post-WLS life. It's not too late.

Pride: Pride refers to a strong sense of self-respect, a refusal to be humiliated as well as joy in accomplishments. Give yourself permission to be proud of your decision, proud of your success, proud of your soul and your appearance. This is difficult for recovering morbidly obese people because we are better skilled at humility and self-degradation. Stand tall and walk proudly. Share a smile with a stranger. Cultivate your self-confidence because you have earned the right to be proud.

Easy?  Are these three keys easy to accomplish? No. Can you have them overnight? No. But any day that you empower yourself in pursuit of personal ownership and success is a day far better than one of torment and self-loathing. On days of empowerment you will speak aloud, "The question is not who is going to let me fail; it is who is going to stop me from succeeding?"

5DPT Plan, Recipes, Tools, FAQ
5 Day Pouch Test in Progress
5 Day Pouch Test Results

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For informative and inspiring reading please visit

Don't Drink & Eat: In the coming weeks there will be much socializing where food and drink play a starring role. This is not new to our generation. Since the human race began people have gathered to break bread and share drinks - it is part of our cultural DNA and quite frankly, I love this part of our human experience. Gathering and sharing is universally nurturing: this is obvious because the tradition endures the test of time. But after WLS eating and drinking are independent activities. We are taught to eat our meals without beverages and have our beverages without food. Take a look at the October 5DPT Bulletin where we discussed Rule #2: Drink lots of water, and the Liquid Restrictions and Slider Foods. Link Here  In a social setting keeping a distance between food and drink is challenging. Some people use the "One Hand" technique where they have either food or drink in one hand and keep the other hand free for hand shakes, fist bumps, cheek pinching, and elbow squeezing.  The one hand technique allows us to participate in the social ritual of food and drink, but also helps us better manage the food and beverage requirements of WLS.


Start the Day with Protein: If you are puzzled by the need to boost your metabolism to break a plateau or initiate weight loss start the day with protein. Aim for at least 30 grams of protein in your first meal of the day. Try adding a scoop of protein powder to your coffee (let it cool to drinking temperature before adding protein for best results). Number 1 of our WLS Four Rules is "Protein First" and that applies for the duration of our post-surgical life. Protein provides energy, essential amino acids for healthy cells, and sustains fullness without feelings of lethargy experienced after eating starchy carbohydrates. Digesting protein requires more energy (calories) than the protein contains. Find ways to include extra protein throughout the day. Convenient options include protein bars (keep sugars below 6 grams), protein shakes, and protein enhanced beverages such as Protein to Go or Special K2. Look for a variety of products in the vitamin and supplement section of your discount store or grocery store.


Appeal to your inner Vanity: Most of us with WLS profess that we had the surgery for health reasons, not for vanity. But losing weight boosts our self-esteem and it should because obesity is a stigmatized condition where we have likely been teased and discriminated against. Who wasn't hit hard by the social bias when we were obese? Weight loss is a vehicle for repairing those wounds and healing those scars and we have every right to feel good about our accomplishment. We have every right to strut our stuff! Take these feelings of confidence and cultivate them in your own style. Dress the part, walk the walk, scream and shout and celebrate your recovery from illness. When we focus attention on this --our vanity-- there is little time to dwell upon social gorging on foods that do not support this celebration of living. We know what gingerbread and eggnog taste like so we can minimize that eating experience at the same time we magnify the experience of feeling good and celebrating feelings of self-confidence and joy, perhaps a less familiar but equally satisfying indulgence.
Read LAWLS Weekly Digest - Are you a flattery floozie or Yeah-but Betty?


Prepare and Plan: Plan your menus so that you are not caught off guard and unprepared without a plan. Do not leave your nourishment to chance. Each week we have 21 meals to nurture our body and support our weight management by making thoughtful choices and following a plan. When we plan and prepare for the meals we can control stress associated with the seasons constant abundance. When temptation recedes we become better empowered to enjoy deliberate indulgences. Leaving things to dietary chance contributed to our obesity before surgery: we have already learned that lesson so no need to relive the experience. Planning and preparation does not need to be rigid, but it needs to exist or we are surrendering to chance and hoping for the best. Surgery is life changing: why would we go back to what we know doesn't work?
PDF Downloads: Menu Planning Worksheets


For informative and inspiring reading please visit
our 5 Day Pouch Test Articles Collection

    

  I saw stuffed peppers carved to look like Jack-O-Lanterns on Pinterest
Oven-baked stuffed peppers require the ground meat be cooked in a skillet before the peppers are stuffed and baked. Slow cooker stuffed peppers eliminate this step while producing a moist meaty Protein First meal.

Ingredients:
3 sweet bell peppers; assorted colors
1 (20-ounce) package Jennie-O® Lean Ground Turkey Breast
1 small onion, minced
1 carrot, grated
1 stalk celery, minced
1½ teaspoons Mrs. Dash® Original Seasoning
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
1 egg
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 to 2 cups chicken broth, reduced sodium
3 ounces shredded Monterey Jack

Directions: Wash and dry bell peppers. Depending upon how peppers will fit in your slow cooker remove stems and cut vertically so each pepper half will rest on its side; or cut top off so peppers will rest upright. Remove seeds and membranes; set aside. In a medium mixing bowl gently mix the ground turkey, onion, carrot, celery, seasoning blend, ground pepper, egg, and tomato sauce. Spoon mixture evenly in peppers; arrange peppers in slow cooker; add enough chicken broth to fill bottom of cooker 1 to 2-inches deep. Cover; set cooker to low and cook 4 to 6 hours or high and cook 2 to 4 hours. About 30 minutes before serving check meat for doneness using an instant-read meat thermometer: temperature should be 160°F. If turkey is done top peppers with cheese; return cover and continue cooking 10 to 15 minutes until cheese is melted. Serve warm.

Nutrition: Serves 6. Each serving provides 201 calories, 29 grams protein, 6 grams fat, 6 grams carbohydrate, 1 gram dietary fiber.

Try This: Prepare 2 cups cooked white rice and serve with stuffed peppers.

Refresher:
Four Rules

 LivingAfterWLS Weekly Digest January 20, 2011

   

Rule #2 - Lots of Water

  LivingAfterWLS Weekly Digest February 2, 2011 

 

Rule #3 - No Snacking

LivingAfterWLS Weekly Digest February 9, 2011  

 

Rule #4 - Daily Exercise

LivingAfterWLS Weekly Digest February 18, 2011  

 

LivingAfterWLS Weekly Digest February 24, 2011.

The health content provided by LivingAfterWLS is intended to inform, not prescribe, and is not meant to be a substitute for the advice and care of a qualified health-care professional.