Eating tips during lockdown following bariatric surgery
With Sydney facing lockdown until at least the 28th of August, knowing that we are not alone while other states continue to go in and out of different levels of social restrictions, these uncertain times have made serious changes to our day to day lives. Whether you’re having to homeschool your children, can no longer get to the gym for your regular classes, or even meet that friend for coffee as you usually do each week, things are definitely different for most of us. This can be especially difficult for those who are adjusting and adhering to a new healthier lifestyle following bariatric surgery.Â
Adapting to new eating and activity habits can be difficult enough, without the disruption of social restrictions enforcing that we remain at home whenever possible. Today we want to share some crucial tips from our Dietitian Tania Chaanine.Â
Be Organised – Plan your food and meals for the week ahead, to avoid missing out on any essentials that you need to ensure a healthy week of eating. Meal prep is a great way to avoid the temptation of ordering food delivery services on a regular basis.Â
Get Creative – It’s the perfect time to pull out the recipe book that we provided you (if you are one of our bariatric patients, if you aren’t we are referring to Your Complete Guide to Nutrition for Weight Loss Surgery by Sally Johnston) and make some of those healthy meals that you never got around to making.Â
Stock Up – Stock up on healthy foods such as chicken breast, lean mincemeat, eggs, fish, dairy foods, tofu, legumes, fruits and vegetables. And don’t forget that frozen fruit and vegetables are just as nutritious and fresh, and are perfect to keep on hand during times like these. Make sure you stock the pantry with healthy essentials too, such as tinned fish, tinned legumes and wholegrain cereals. Having a kitchen stocked with healthy food will help avoid the temptation to detour from your healthy balanced meal plans.Â
Snacking – It is inevitable that you may want to snack sometimes, so make sure that you have healthy, portioned options available such as high protein yoghurt, grainy crackers, low-fat dips such as hummus (which is great with the grainy crackers or crunchy vegetables). Avoid buying discretionary foods right now, as they can be a big temptation that you probably don’t need.Â
Be Active – We know that it’s difficult for some to find the motivation for exercise right now, and with the stay at home/work from home orders, not many of us are as active as we usually are in general. But try to include a daily walk of at least 30 minutes (not forgetting your mask of course), which will not only help contribute to keeping you on track with your eating but also help your mental wellbeing too.Â
We hope that everybody is staying safe and well during these uncertain times. If you feel that you are struggling with maintaining your weight during lockdown then please contact us or your GP to discuss options to help keep you on track.Â
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I have put on about 15 kilos. I still am only be able to eat small meals but Ive put it on making wrong choices ie chocolate and sweets. Which is the best way to start to aim at loosing this weight Ive gained. I do aim at having mainly protein foods on a daily basis. But Ive had binge eating ie chocolate bar every now and then. Unfortunately i drink alot of tea and have 2 sugars. A habit which is hard to eradicate.