The bariatric diet is what you will follow for the first 2-3 months following your gastric bypass surgery. It is something you will spend time learning about before your surgery and you should have the products in your home before you come home from the hospital. This diet has four stages that last approximately 2 months total, but then what?

The first 2-3 months are going to be very structured and you will be following the gastric bypass diet that was ordered by your dietitian. But this is a very short time in the grand scheme of things. It is the next several years of your life that will determine your weight loss, whether you maintain it and if you are able to shed your obesity related health issues.

The first six months to a year you will lose weight without trying. The weight is going to come off just because you are not able to consume more than a quarter to a half a cup of food at any given time. You will spend a lot of this time learning about what your body will tolerate and what it will rebel against. This will be an exciting time as you see the pounds come off. You will be able to see your feet again and you will be able to do many things that you have not been able to do for years or maybe you have never done.

But the weight loss will eventually slow down and then stop. From this point forward, the maintenance will be on you. This is where you are going to have to put into practice everything you have learned about nutrition and fitness. You have been blessed with a healthy weight and a changed life, but it will not stay that way if you do not nurture it. If you think that because you have had this surgery that it is impossible for you to gain weight, guess again. There are forums filled with people who have gained weight after surgery and are trying to get rid of it.

Keep those bariatric protein shakes and tennis shoes handy. This is the best advice I can give someone that has lost weight. Exercise regularly and eat meals high in lean protein and low in fat. Eliminate sugar as much as possible. It has no nutritional value and can do a lot to sabotage your efforts at a healthy life. This does not mean you have to give up the things that you love, but you have to learn to set limits. Learning what it takes to be healthy and living by these principles eighty percent of the time will keep your healthy weight.

Staying on your diet can be a challenge for anyone, but for a busy working mom the challenges can be especially tough. A busy lifestyle can make it impossible to get to the gym for a daily workout, prepare your meals ahead of time, or even to remember to pack your lunch for work each day. Being in a rush can make it difficult to stick to your diet when it’s so easy to grab something at the drivethrough. Here’s a collection of hints and tips from other busy women that will help you stay on your diet despite all the temptations.

Don’t try to ‘save time’ by eating on the run, or snacking at your desk while you work. No matter how rushed you are, take the time to eat like a civilized human being, to quote my mother. Set the table, put your food on a plate and have a meal. You’ll eat less and feel fuller – and not feel the urge to snack because you ‘haven’t eaten anything all day’. 

Cook just what will be eaten. Ignore all those homemaker articles that suggest that you ‘cook for tomorrow’ to save time. Cook one portion per person at each meal. That way you’ll avoid the temptation to finish off the leftover – and teach your family healthy eating habits. 

Get up early enough to eat breakfast at home. The morning rush to get ready may make it tempting to grab something on the way to work, or skip breakfast entirely. Don’t do it. You’ll end up eating up all that saved time – and a lot more calories – with midmorning trips to the snack machine, or fight off the blahs all morning long. Stock up on easy breakfast foods. A piece of fruit, a container of yogurt and a slice of toast are a healthy, balanced start for your day.

Most diets suggest that you drink at least eight 8 ounce glasses of water a day. If the thought of drinking a half gallon of water makes you queasy, there are ways to make it more appealing. Stock up on flavored bottled water in the fridge at work and keep one icy cold on your desk. At home, float mint sprigs or lemon slices in a crystal pitcher. There’s no added calories, but oh what a difference in presentation and flavor!

Trying to lose baby weight can be frustrating. You want to take it off as quickly as possible – but your body may not be cooperative. Keep in mind that your body is designed to nourish a child for up to a year after you give birth. Putting it on a starvation diet will kick it into survival gear, making it even harder to lose the extra weight. Instead of fighting your body’s natural tendency to store up nutrition for the baby, eat healthy portions and increase your activity level. And if you’re breastfeeding, remember that your body needs up to 1000 more calories a day than usual. Don’t skimp – you’ll just convince your body that it’s starving. 

Employ the buddy system for moral support. Making a pact with a friend to exercise together makes it easier to stick to your resolution. Instead of meeting with friends for lunch, challenge friends to a tennis game, or take a brisk walk in the park together.

Remember that a healthy, active lifestyle and a nutritious diet are the true keys to losing weight permanently. By choosing a diet that makes sense for your lifestyle, you’ll make it easier on yourself to lose weight, and keep it off for good.

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A profile of Dr. Robert Atkins, the diet doctor diet whose theories on nutrition have changed the way Americans think about eating. Atkins’s low-carb approach and 4-step program have become an obsession for many people at a time when two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese. But the Atkins diet has its detractors, some of whom say that its emphasis on high-cholesterol foods can make it dangerous. Please visit Lowcarbshow.com and subscribe to our podcast where we discuss our on going struggles with weight loss…