Here it is May 2014.  I have found myself reverting to some old habits that didn’t serve me well at 424 pounds and that will not serve me well today, maintaining the 250 pound loss that I worked so hard to achieve.  It hit me this morning as I swam laps in the pool and thought about what I personally wanted to focus on this week.

For me it is being in close touch with my body and knowing when I have had enough.  My ten year old lap band is still there letting me know when I have had too much, but I am the keeper of my portion control as well as my push away from the table in a timely fashion.

Let’s investigate both of those:

Portion control:  To me this means putting on my plate ONLY what I plan to eat.  No second helpings.  That’s where it begins.  It goes on to mean chewing each bite slowly and thoroughly and putting my fork/utensil down between each bite.  This is critical because then I can pay attention to my body and give my brain time to recognize that I have had enough.  The final part is stopping right there, when I have had enough, regardless of how delicious the food might be.  There is no requirement that I clean my plate.(sorry Mom)

Pushing Away From The Table:  One of the very first rules I was given after weight loss surgery is that a meal lasts for NO LONGER than 20 - 30 minutes.  It was logical to me.  I had to chew each bite slowly and carefully.  I put my fork/utensil down between each bite.  At 30 minutes or when I felt satisfied, or when the food was gone from my plate - whichever came FIRST; I was done.  It was time to push away from the table.  I have noticed that I am getting lazy with this rule and I am focusing my attention on it for the next few weeks.  When I have dinner instead of paying attention to what I am eating and how my body feels I find myself having discussions and losing track of the time.  This has me taking longer and suffering with clean plate syndrome.  When I might have stopped earlier and been more than satisfied I am letting the food “settle” and cleaning my plate.  NO NEED.  NO MORE.

Inadvertently I have “learned” to eat around my weight loss surgery and it is I who must be accountable for using my tool properly to maintain my weight loss.

What rules are you letting slide a bit?