Our Bariatric & General Surgery Blog
Eating What You Want Within Reason
By Michele Lubin, MS, RD, CDN
Think back to the time you were preparing for your weight loss surgery. What were your expectations? You must have heard from your doctor, nurse, dietitian, therapist or other patients that “this is only a tool…..you need to follow the healthy lifestyle guidelines to be successful.” Although patients may hear this, that concept may be interpreted to mean: “I can eat the same foods I was eating before surgery, but in much smaller amounts and still be successful; I can eat what I want within reason and in moderation.”
Slow Thyroid – Separating Truth from Myth
by Patricia D. Cherasard PA-C, MBA
Chief Bariatric Surgical Physician Assistant
NYU Langone Long Island Surgical Associates, PC
You’ve been diagnosed with a Slow or Underactive Thyroid (aka hypothyroidism). What does that mean? It means your thyroid gland is not making enough thyroid hormones. Low Thyroid hormone levels can make you feel tired and weak. Untreated it can cause lasting effects to your whole body. Slow thyroid comes with many generalized symptoms that are often mistaken for other conditions such as aging and menopause. It typically affects middle-aged more than younger adults and women more than men.
Exercise Outside of the Gym
By Elizabeth Schledorn RN, MSN, CNOR, CBN, CHHC
While some of us have visions of walking into the gym in perfectly coordinated athletic gear, killing it in cardio class and weight training like a boss, others of us don’t remember how to drive to our gyms, forgot the membership card is on our keychain, and only recall a gym interior of a gym from Jersey Shore. And the truth is, that’s all fair.
Working out in the gym is not for everyone. Fortunately, getting great exercise does not rely on formal gym attendance, expensive personal trainers, or any expensive group trend in exercise. Let’s explore some options as to how you can get the exercise you need by taking the “G” our of “GTL.”
5 Reasons Women Should Train with Weights
Many women come to the office with frustrations of not accomplishing successful weight loss goals through their daily exercise regimen. They understand that the key to achieve and maintain a healthy weight is by maintaining a lifestyle of healthy food choices and exercise. In reviewing their diet and exercise regimen often times a lack of proper resistance training workout is usually the root cause of disappointment. The main excuse given is the lack of time after completing a cardiovascular/areobic session to focus on weights. The truth is that there are two factors attributing to the disinterest in weight training. The first is intimidation of the weights and the second is the lack of benefits behind a weight training routine.
Here are the five reasons why women should train with weights :
The Bariatric Kitchen Makeover
Smart Substitutions that Satisfy!!
by Antonia Pinckney, RD, CDE, RN
The New Year is a time for many new beginnings. Why not start the season anew by “making over” your pantry, refrigerator, and freezer ?
You’ve heard the guidelines before – protein, calorie free beverages, lots of fruits and veggies, and whole grains. Now it’s time to apply these principles to your home environment, and do an honest assessment of your “local” food supply.
The Quick Guide To Love Your Body
by Barbara Brathwaite, RN, MSN
You’ve taken the big step and had weight loss surgery. Now is the time to focus on the new “you” and the lifestyle changes required to support the new “you”.
Three important steps in this process include prioritizing your need, seeing the positive and adopting an attitude of gratitude
Ways to Avoid Last Minute Choices
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!
Every weight loss sutrgery patient should adopt this statement as a mantra. Making choices on the run as you dash from work projects to afterschool soccer games to dinner reservations and special social events is akin to putting your life in the hands of someone else. You cannot rely on being able to just “pick something up” on the way or “fitting in” a workout without having these non-decisions effect your WLS success in the long run.
Unfortunately, because of the hectic pace in which we live our lives, many of us do just that…and then wonder why we fail to attain our weight loss goals or why the weight is slowly creeping back on.
When Zero Calories Does Not Equal Zero Calories
“I can eat as much of that candy as I want…it’s sugar-free and fat-free!” If this sounds too good to be true, then of course it is! Eating too much of anything, especially at one time can potentially cause a myriad of problems. This can include immediate regrets such as a stomach ache, dumping syndrome, bloating and diarrhea to longer term effects like weight gain. So, don’t be fooled into thinking a packaged food is good for you just because it makes specific “health” claims. Be wary of phrases such as sugar-free, fat-free and even calorie-free. These foods may technically be all of those things, but never are they calorie free (or even healthy), especially when consumed in amounts larger than a serving size.
Your Efforts Make a Real Difference
Choices are something we make every day. We choose what time to get to bed, to wake up and what time to eat. These seem like small insignificant moments in an extremely hectic life, but they are choices we make every day. If you don’t go to bed early enough, you will be tired in the morning. If you don’t get up when the alarm clock rings, you will be late to work or school. The choice is yours, just as the choice for a healthy lifestyle is yours as well. Ensuring that all of your efforts to support a healthy lifestyle is paramount to your success in achieving and maintaining weight loss.
10 Things to Do Instead of Overeating
You’ve worked hard all day. You went to work prepared with a lunch bag filled with protein-rich, nutrient dense foods. You’ve filled and refilled your trusty water bottle several times throughout the day. You tracked every morsel that went in your mouth, as well as the time spent at the gym. You attended your support group meeting and scheduled your next follow-up appointment at your Doctor’s office. As far as you can tell, you’ve done everything right.
So why, at 8 pm, do you sit on your sofa fighting the urge to dive head-first into the refrigerator?