This is all about YOU and not about THEM.
 
Hey! Sometimes it needs to be said. Today I am going to say it. 

Let’s stop looking down at the scale and beating ourselves up while stressing ourselves out!

Folks, enjoy your journey and stop comparing what “so and so” is weighing or how much “so and so” is losing. 



COMPARISON IS THE THIEF OF JOY.

We’ve made sacrifices to have our bariatric surgery. We’ve paid a great deal of money to get this done. We’ve had fights with our family and friends. We’ve boarded airplanes and traveled across the country. We have had our bodies modified. That’s a BIG DEAL.

Now, let’s collectively enjoy the journey. I promise you that this is not a race. This is a marathon. Let’s say you get to your goal weight tomorrow. That’s wonderful and I salute you, but you probably already know this … maintenance is a bi#*ch. She’s also a struggle. It’s not just some kind of magic that you get to maintenance and then stop worrying. Nope. It’s just a different kind of worry now. It becomes a different ballgame but nonetheless, it requires work to maintain your goal weight.

I want all of us to take a little break from looking DOWN at the scale and getting soooo caught up in the numbers. We have the morning weigh-in, the ounces of water, the grams of protein, carbs, and fat. It’s a long list of numbers that can begin to make us feel crazy. It can even take the joy out of our accomplishments. We are constantly comparing ourselves to others who are on this same weight loss journey. 

Now, where is the fun in all of this? When did it get so competitive? Why don’t we just stop, and breathe, and smell the roses, and do a victory dance for all the NSV moments that we are allowing to pass by? 



Celebrate all your victories! Not just the numbers!

What about the wedding ring that fits again, or your favorite jeans that fit again! What about the fact that your feet are getting smaller or the fact that you can cross your legs comfortably! How about your favorite person putting their arms around you and telling you how tiny you are feeling! The steering wheel in the car … isn’t it more comfortable now? 

Hey, what about the last time you visited with your doctor and they got to tell you how great your labs are looking! What about your energy levels, and your improved sleeping patterns?

Do you know that person who lost 90 pounds in 4 months? Well, they may have started at a very different point. They may have been 400 or 500 pounds when they started their pre-op diet. You cannot expect to lose the same amount of weight as them.

Do you know that girl who lost 20 more pounds than you did over the past 3 months? Well, she may be 15 years younger than you are. She is going to lose weight more quickly.

Do you know the person who is ahead of you by 20 pounds? Well, they may be walking a 10K each day. Their activity level may be completely different from yours.

Why are we killing ourselves and trying to compete against people who we will NEVER beat? Let them win. Encourage them. You Do You Boo!!

Instead of looking over your shoulder, or looking down at the scale, look UP. Look straight ahead. There’s nothing for you on the ground. This is your amazing journey. Who cares if it takes three months more than it took Karen to lose her weight? 

Collectively, like bariatric-bad-ass-bosses, we need to sometimes take a little break from those numbers. We need to eat more intuitively. Let’s try something together… let’s put away the scale and weigh ourselves twice a week. Check your weight on Monday, and then check it again on Friday. 

I’ve been speaking to clients who are stepping on the scale 3 and 4 and 5 times a day! Why??? Please don’t do this to yourselves. It will only drive you crazy. It will make this journey unbearable. It will make you cry. Don’t fall into this trap.

If you have a stall, you have a stall. It’s such a normal part of the journey. If you are following a good diet, and making healthy choices, there is no reason why the stall will last more than a few weeks. Just keep doing what you are doing. Rinse and repeat. Make sure to increase your protein food (not supplemental protein), drink sufficient fluids, take a walk each day, sleep 7 to 8 hours a night, stay away from the snacks, stay away from the processed and refined carbohydrates.

Now, look up, not down! Look at how far you have come! Make this journey about YOU, and not about anyone else.

I am so proud of you. You are doing such a great job.

Healthy Hugs,

Sheri Burke – your bariatric RHN

I spend a few hours each day on the phone with post-op bariatric clients.  We chat about the journey, how things are going, how are they feeling with the new foods they have added back,  how their weight loss is going.  We have plenty of topics to cover.

What is the biggest question I get from distraught post-ops? 

Here it is …. “I don’t know what I am doing wrong, but the scale has not moved in two weeks”. 

YUP, the dreaded stalls along the weight loss surgery journey.  Oh, it’s real, and we need to be very prepared for them.  You cannot lose 100 pounds and expect it to be linear.  There are going to be times that weight loss comes to a grinding HALT.  

I know I’ve said it a thousand times.  I know you’ve read it and heard it a million times by now.  Why don’t you believe me?

We need to trust the process.  There may not be a movement on the scale, but have you tried on your skinny jeans lately?  They might just fit now.  

How can that happen?  I like to see it as the body playing “catch up” with the scale.  Even if the number on the scale is stuck, you may still be losing inches.  Take a few measurements and snap some photos along your journey. I am certain that when the scale gets stuck, you can still have plenty of NSVs to keep you motivated, and excited!  

Now, do you want a hack to use when the scale gets stuck? If you’ve “tried everything” and you are ready to throw your scale out the window, try this … throw your scale out the window.  I was joking, but not really.  Take that darn scale and put it in your closet underneath your heavy sweaters.  You won’t take it out for 5 days.

During those 5 days when your scale is hiding at the back of your closet, you will do the following…

You will follow Sheri’s secret recipe to get the scale moving when a stall hits.

What’s my secret recipe?  It’s so simple.  

I want you to get rid of the supplemental protein you are taking.  

I want you to get rid of the nuts, seeds, cheese, dairy, fruit, artificial sweeteners.

Breakfast will be eggs, any style.

Lunch will be a half chicken breast with some cucumbers.

Dinner will be the other half chicken breast with some greens.

Drink LOTS of plain water.  

Go to bed an hour earlier.

Take a walk each day.

You can substitute the chicken with turkey, fish, or lean beef.

Rinse and repeat for 4 days.

On day 5, go grab your scale from the back of your closet.  

Step on it gently.

Email me and tell me how many pounds you are down.

Once the scale is behaving, and the stall has been broken, you can add back foods slowly.

Your weight loss will continue to creep down slowly.  Maybe you want to keep that scale in your closet because the journey is much more fun when you are looking up and not always down at the scale.

I think we need to stay accountable and weigh ourselves once or twice a week, but we shouldn’t get so caught up in the numbers that it destroys our days and our weeks.  

It makes me sad when you cry because you haven’t lost any weight in a week.  I understand how frustrating it can be, but you need to know (and I will say it again here),  “Trust the Process”.  Sometimes your body needs to catch up with what the scale is saying.  Sometimes we will have times where we retain more fluid.  It is a NORMAL part of this journey.

I want you to be happy every day.  I want you to celebrate the fact that you ARE losing weight, and some of us lose more slowly than others.  Don’t compare your journey to anyone else.  You are a biochemical individual.  You are special.  That makes You, You.  You don’t want to be “Sally”, or “Karen”, or “Bob”.  Love yourself throughout the ENTIRE journey.

Healthy Hugs,

Sheri Burke – your bariatric RHN

Salad Challenge in February?

Let’s eat more fresh veg with protein.  Wait until you see my 4 salads! I’m so excited to share them with you.

I know, I know – it’s winter but I still want to have a 4 week salad challenge to motivate you to eat more fresh veggies and protein.

I’ve created 4 new salad recipes.  One chicken, one shrimp, one beef, one salmon. 

Remember, if you don’t like fish, swap it out for chicken.  If you don’t eat beef, exchange the beef for shrimp.  The protein is changeable.

Don’t eat something you don’t like.  This is my first rule.

All my salads are high in protein, low in carbohydrates, with moderate levels of healthy fat. They are all small portions for your bariatric tummy.  They all have a big flavor.

We will make our own simple salad dressings for these recipes.  Wait until you see how delicious your salad can be when you use fresh ingredients and homemade simple salad dressing.

It works like this….

We will eat the first salad recipe Monday to Friday for the first week in February for lunch…. Followed by the second salad recipe for the second week in February and so on and so on.

4 salads, 4 weeks. 

These salads are easy and packed with nutrients and flavor.  If you don’t like a specific ingredient, swap it out with something you do like.

I’ve used super simple ingredients.  You won’t need to search the city for ingredients you don’t understand.  This is just real food for real people.

Remember, You Do You Boo.  I’ll never ask you to eat something you don’t like.

Ready, Set, Salad!

Keep scrolling down to see the ones I’ve chosen for you.  If you make them, post them on our private support group and tag me.  I want to see your pretty bowls of health.

DOWNLOAD THE 4 FEBRUARY SALADS HERE

Healthy Hugs,

Sheri Burke – your bariatric RHN