When you consider the option of Bariatric surgery to begin losing unwanted weight, it will be emphasized by the surgeon that weight-loss surgery will not work alone. You cannot continue to eat unhealthy and avoid exercise like in the past. There has to be a commitment to changing your lifestyle for the better. This includes avoiding junk food which can be a challenge to break. This is because for years you have been use to eating whatever you like, say it be from your favorite fast food restaurant or unlimited amounts of snacks at home. Vegetables and fruits may be cringed at, but they will have to become a major part of the new diet plan since they carry tons of essential nutrients that the body needs.  The chances of succeeding with the new diet can be slim if you are not guided and motivated. Fortunately, many patients can get the support and guidance through a Bariatric program. There are some behavior modification techniques that can be implemented to increase your success following the surgery. 

When it comes to grocery shopping, a list should be made and stuck to. This means not putting junk food into your cart. Buying only the necessary items and avoiding purchasing foods that other people in the household will eat will help to control the temptations of snacking on unhealthy foods at home. It is best to take a visit to the grocery store on a full stomach so that your stomach is not eyeing up the foods for you. Once at home, foods should be not visible. You are less tempted if you cannot see foods on the counter or on the kitchen table. Instead of eating too large of portions, leftovers should be quickly stored or thrown out.  

Eating slowly is very important after surgery. This is because if you eat too quickly you may vomit. Mealtimes will be longer than prior to your surgery. You may need between 30 to 60 minutes to eat your meal. Small bites that are chewed into a liquid consistency are the ideal way to eat. If you like to eat when you are bored, depressed, or anxious you should find activities to avoid eating. This can be simply by going for a walk, listening to music, doing yoga, or finding a new hobby. Anything to keep your mind away from going into the kitchen will help to avoid overeating.  

These are just a few of the ways you can try to help assist you in staying on the right path of maintaining a healthy diet and losing and keeping the weight off. Changing one’s diet can be difficult, but with the right support and knowledge, you will have the tools to accomplish your goals.   

Focus 28 www.focus28.com

Bariatric surgery is a step towards changing one’s life for the better. It can either be an easy decision to go forth with it, or a scary one. This is why it is very important to have support to help before the surgery, afterwards, and through all the lifestyle challenges once the healing process begins. No one wants to be alone and not have anyone to listen to their fears and struggles. They need to be able to discuss their journey and get encouragement in some form of support. Having support from family and friends should be the easiest form. When deciding on whether to have Bariatric surgery your family and friends may either be very supportive with your decision or against it. If they are not supportive it could be over fear. They may not know all the facts of weight-loss surgery and feel it is too risky for you to go through. A good way to change their feelings is by taking the time to talk with them about why they feel this way and inform them of the aspects of the surgery and why you are leaning to go forth with it. Hopefully by doing this, they will understand that even though it is a major surgery and there are risks, the benefits are greater since it will lessen your chance of medical illnesses, and make help you achieve a healthy life. 

Support groups ran by Bariatric programs is another way to cope through the entire weight-losing journey. The programs are often times ran and moderated by a healthcare professional such as a dietician or psychologist. It is a great way to get support since they consist of other people who have the same goals as you, and will understand what you are going through. Even through struggles they can lend their support which will help you get through challenging times. With the internet becoming more and more popular, online support groups can be found. It is very convenient to turn on the computer and access online support groups that understand what you are going through. You’ll be able to make new friends and read their stories and encouragement. Since it is online, there are things to be watchful of. Some people will complain endlessly on the support group which can have a negative effect and should be avoided. It is best to meet people who are positive. There sometimes will be people who claim to be experts who are not, so their words should not be taken seriously as a real expert. 

Fortunately, your journey through weight-loss surgery does not have to be alone. You can have your family and friends to share your challenges and accomplishments with, join a support group where you go to meetings with fellow people in your situation, or log online and write and read for support. You could even do all of the options! Having the adequate support will give you the boost you need to stay focused and achieve your weight-loss dreams.      

Focus 28 www.focus28.com

“Live and Learn”! Now there is a great statement for you. It is the uttermost truth that you have to live by in order to learn.  For some of us, it takes a lifetime to learn things, but it is the information that we pick up along our journey that teaches us.

I might have spent a good portion of my life trying to shed pounds, but now at the age of thirtynine, I understand I am who I am.  I have learned that I am only myself, and nobody can change me but myself! Ha ha go figure,took me all that living and learning to come up with that.

I now know that my body is a temple and I should treat it with respect and love, and that means taking care of it and maintaining a healthy diet.  I still have a lot more living and learning to do , but at least I have my temple under control!

Kerry Timmins

Focus 28 Customer

kerrytimmins@yahoo.com

www.focus28wellness.com

In most instances, individuals are successful with their diet changes following Bariatric surgery. Many studies have concluded that around 80% of patients are successful at sustaining a healthier lifestyle. They reap the benefits of not only losing weight, but also ridding themselves from weight-related issues such as sleep apnea, diabetes, hypertension, and other medical problems. Usually during the first 2 years after surgery the individual’s lifestyle changes come easy since they see drastic weight-loss results. But what about after the weight is off? It can become a challenge for people to maintain their goal wait without slipping back to their old habits.  

Once the individual is at a steady weight they may begin to slack at their exercise routine, and begin snacking on foods like before their transformation. Even though the stomach is not the same size as before, going back to old habits can result in gaining weight. For people who are trying their strongest to keep a healthy lifestyle there may be the challenge of dealing with food cravings. Their once favorite dessert seems to be taunting them by calling their name to purchase it and take a bite. If the person gives in to the craving they are more likely to encounter stronger cravings for it, this can result in them eating too much of the food and feeling guilty afterwards.  

It is best to altogether avoid the food being craved. Over time the craving will lessen and not be an issue. Fortunately there are ways to prevent the craving from threatening your diet. Since most patients have a Bariatric plan, they can discuss their obstacles with the specialists. There are also support groups that consist of fellow Bariatric surgery patients, which understand and can help give advice on coping with such an issue.  

There are some simple ways to win over the cravings. Distracting yourself is a good way to forget about the craving. This can be done in various ways such as going for a walk, doing a hobby, or reading a book. Another way to avoid succumbing to cravings is by not even purchasing the food. This may be difficult if other people in the household are not following the same diet. Finding healthier alternatives that are low in sugar, fat, and calories is a better solution. Changing activities that make you want to snack will lessen cravings. Watching a movie on the weekend may make a person crave for a bowl of buttery popcorn. Instead of watching the movie on the weekend, perhaps watching it during the day with a healthier snack will ease the urge to get a bag of popcorn popping.  

Everyone knows that dieting is a challenge. Luckily there is a lot of support for people who have Bariatric surgery. Taking advantage of the resources will help keep the patient on the right track and win over cravings.    

Focus 28 Team

www.focus28.com

Okay, so the summer is quickly approaching, and I am not ready,  physically or mentally for the season to be here so soon.

I can not speak for you, but I know that I use to dread the thought of having to, dare I say it, “Work Out”.  The time alone that I thought it would take away from my day just did not seem worth it.

As it turns out, there were some little tricks that I was lucky enough to pick up along the way, that now working out is not a chore. It is a daily routine that I have incorporated into my quite time, when the children are all fast asleep.

Here are just a few tips that have worked for me with helping me to LOOSE some inches around my waist line.

1.While sitting Indian style on the living room floor or where ever you catch up on your TV shows, grab a broom stick or a mop stick, which ever you have, rest it on top of your shoulders - behind your neck and just start twisting left to right with your upper torso only.  Do this for 5 minutes a day until you gradually get it up to a half an hour per day. This worked great for me.

2.Once you are half way through your show, start doing some sit ups or crunchs. Don’t feel like you have to concentrate on counting how many your doing, your body will let you know when its time to stop.

3.By the time your  program is over, you have just worked out for one full hour without over thinking it. Another benefit to this is that you have just given your metabilism a jump start from all that moving, not to mention you also just lost calories and are working towards losing inches too.  How great is that?  

I suggest that you measure your waist the first day you start this, then again in a week and so forth. I promise you will be pleasntly surprised at the out come, just as I was.

It does not matter how much you workout initially, as long as you are doing something. Your body will respond to what ever you do as long as you are doing it!  Exercise is not supposed to be a task or something that you hate to do everyday.  It is meant to help build endurance and of course, help you physically.  By exercising on a regular basis, it will help us look better in our favorite outfits.

Make sure you enjoy whatever workout you put together for yourself, if you are not thrilled with it, you will not continue it.  Don’t allow yourself to fall into that pattern. You are better then that, I am better then that.  It’s time we show the world that very same thing.

Katherine Adams

Focus 28 Customer

www.focus28wellness.com

I know firsthand how hard it is to stay on track, especially in the beginning of your weight loss journey.  I have put together just a few helpful tips that have helped me through the hard times, and keep me going to this very day.  It’s all about the changes you make to your daily routine.  The smallest change can make a huge difference.   

Here are a few tips I stick to on a daily basis in order to maintain my current weight.   I would like to share them with you, just to show you that they are small changes, but they work. 

·         I do not eat past 7pm

·         I drink plenty of water throughout the day

·         I eat 3 healthy meals a day and two healthy snacks.  These meals consist of Focus 28 Soups, Oatmeal, Cereals, and the snacks are Focus 28 healthy snacks.  It is very important to get the proper protein and nutrition

·         I walk everywhere I need to go

·         I exercise for 25 minutes, in the morning after breakfast is the best time for me

·         I put time and effort into my meals, I think it makes them taste better and keeps them healthy too! 

There are so many little things that you can do to help you in your journey.  

Good Luck, Stay Healthy, Stay Motivated!

Kerry Timmins

Focus 28 Customer

kerrytimmins@yahoo.com

www.focus28.com

“Everyday is a gift!”  That is why they call it the present.  I love that saying; I feel it just couldn’t be truer.  Through my experiences in life, I know that we are not promised tomorrow, so that is why we need to start living and getting motivated today.  All those days that I wasted, being overweight and being utterly unhappy have been wasted for me. I wish I could trade them in for happy days.  

Although many years have passed, I have finally begun to treat my days as a gift!  I could safely say “it feels fantastic!”   When your body feels good, so does your mind, and I really believe that. At least with me, it’s a proven fact.  I have lost all of my weight, I am maintain a healthy lifestyle, I am extremely happy.     

My advice to you is to unwrap each new day as if it’s Christmas or Chanukah.  Start treating yourself to things you deserve. Get motivated; get happy, it’s definitely worth it.

Kerry Timmins

Focus 28 Customer

kerrytimmins@yahoo.com

www.focus28.com

Being happy is a task that has not come easy for me.  I am happy to say that “I have never been so happy in my life!”  I am wearing things I never thought I could, I am  eating all the best and healthy foods I could, I exercise on a daily basis, and I drink plenty of water. My life is finally falling into place and it feels terrific!  

Still somewhere in the back of my head, I worry about my weight. I guess that feeling will always be there.  I am terrified of becoming the person I was ten years ago!  I have come so far, and the thought of going back, well, you could only imagine.  

I work hard, every day, to ensure that I do not fall back into those old, terrible habits.   That little voice in my head, you know the one, we all have it, is always there to stop me from being who I was, years ago.  

The more I think about it, I’m glad to hear that voice on occasion, because without it, I might just revert to my old habits. It’s that tiny voice that stops me from having that slice of pie, or that glass of soda. It might sound strange but kudos to that tiny voice in my head! 

So about that voice in my head, I have come to grips with the fact that I am not insane, that everyone has that voice on occasion.  I have come to the reality that without that voice in my head, I wouldn’t be happy today. 

Focus 28 Customer

Kerry Timmins

kerrytimmins@yahoo.com

www.focus28.com

When we hit a

I do not want to say that I hated myself when I was overweight, but indeed I did. It felt like I was trapped, and I thought I was never going to be happy.  I did not want to be that way, but I was. I made the choice to change things and I stuck with it. Now looking back I really did not hate myself, I just hated my body.  I know that hate is a very strong word, but that’s exactly how I felt.

No one is ever truly 100% happy with the way they look. Fortunately, we have help out there. www.Focus28.com is a place that we can see for ourselves, and that we are not the only ones going through the motions. If you’re unhappy with the way you look and feel, you are the only one who has the ability to change it. Make no more excuses! Change things you don’t like! Everyday is a struggle, but I focus and I remain focused!

Get motivated and you will see change everyday. 

Kerry Timmins  

Focus 28 Customer

kerrytimmins@yahoo.comn 

 www.focus28wellness.com