Okay everyone, I need some help here. 8 days ago I started the 5dpt and overall thought I did extremely well. I followed almost everything to a tee. Needed more water, and had to decrease sodium. At one point I lost 1 lb. Then yesterday morning I was up the pound, but had been out to dinner the night before and had some beef fajitas (only 1 with tortilla) and no add ons like sour cream. I did well during the day yesterday, but then we had Super Bowl company. I ate some chips and salsa, quite a few. I also ate a small bowl of chili and some carrot sticks. So today I'm up 2 pounds. Go figure! So after 8 full days from when I started the 5dpt, I'm up 2 pounds overall. Help!
Michelle

Here is my suggestion...log all of your food intake (whether you're on the 5DPT or not) for three or four days. Fitday.com is free and easy. Get an idea of the calories that you're taking in, the amount of protein and carbs...you will no longer be blindly sailing through with confusion. You'll have the numbers right in front of you and you'll know what you're dealing with. 1 ounce of chips has between 150 and 200 calories. Yikes! I don't know about you, but I can't just eat an ounce. How many ounces are in a bag??? That would be a serving to ME. To burn off that one ounce of chips, you need to walk for an hour. Just putting it into perspective for you.

Chances are you have not gained anything but water weight...salt in the chips and such. However, let's nip this grazing in the bud and get back on track! This post-WLS life is FOREVER. No end in sight. So, get comfortable with it and enjoy the new life that you have...there is so much more to it than the chips!

I agree that the best way to nip this in the bud is to track everything you eat. I use FitDay too. I really helps to see trends. However, I have to say that chips and salsa are not the answer if you are still needing to lose. If you have to, have the salsa because it is low in carbs and you can have it on a chicken breast or with celery or cucumber sticks. I know it isn't chips but you really don't need to eat them if you are trying to lose. You need PROTEIN!

Michelle, I agree that fitday is a good way to keep track of your intake. That being said, it would have taken about 7000 calories worth of chips/salsa to gain 2 lbs. The likely scenario is that you are experiencing "carb bloat" right now.
Stick to eating well for the next day or 2 and weigh again. The bloat should be gone.

IMO, it's just a little slip. Hop back on the track and you'll be fine. It's when you allow that one slip as an excuse to have another and another. "Oh well, I blew it, I might as well have a box of cookies!" Just get back on day 5, and re-gain that motivation. Also, realize you'll probably have to fight the carb monster today. Once you allow him back in your life, it's hard to get rid of him.

And stop weighing yourself every day!!

Sorry, but for me...I can gain like that too...just from the extra sodium...so when I know i've eaten more sodium...I REALLY UP my water the next few days...those pounds come off in the next day or so.

Just a suggestion because the scale can dipict how our mood is and how our day goes...not worth it to me. I made that committment a long time ago when I almost drove myself crazy the first year after weight loss surgery!

GOOD LUCK!! I hope you find what works for YOU!

Tracking your food is good if you have time to do all that. Personally, I dont want to take the time to do it. It's too tedious on fitday (this of course is MY opinion). IT seems to work well for alot of others!!

Julie

Thank you all for some great comments! You are all so very encouraging! I almost gave up yesterday, but no, I kept on plugging away! So today, I'm down the 2 pound gain. And maybe I will quit weighing every day and just back that off to every other day. I just can't wait a week. I will try to log everything on FitDay, but I know me well enough, I probably won't stick with it after a few days, but at least it may identify what I don't realize I'm doing calorie wise. I am going to win this fight no matter what and preservere! Thanks everyone!
Michelle

Hi MKB: I'm so happy for you that you've been able to turn this around! I really can relate to what you said about probably not posting your stuff on fitday after a few days. I've found that making myself accountable on here really helps me stay with the program. And that helps my entire program. Knowing that I'm going to have to 'fess up to a few folks really helps me make "wiser" choices...

Good luck on your journey, wishing you all the best.

Sorry I missed this.

Glad to hear you turned this around. Power to you. YOU are in control.

Update: I logged everything I ate and drank yesterday into FitDay.com and WOW, was I surprised. 1500 calories, 98 grams of protein, but 70 carbs. Eck! Through it all I still managed to loose a pound. Thank you everyone for recommending FitDay, it's a wonderful tool and everyone out of control should use it. It's clearly an eyeopener for me. Today I will do better!
Michelle

good luck today and everyday as you move forward....hugs

Wow, I too can relate to what you said, weighting my self everyday and comparing my weight loss to others. I have to stay off that scale. It can really mess with your progress. I had my 6 month check up and my Doctor is very happy with my loss so far. I need to look at that fit day.
Antoinette