So very frustrated!

It has been an extended amount of time since have I posted and visited the OH site. Our family moved to Arkansas in June and I have lost my support system from San Antonio. I have visited the Arkansas forum and am seeking support from members in that area and have plans to meet with some of them at a support mtg. later this month. I'm slowly building my support system back up. However, my biggest frustration is how completely stalled my weight loss has become! Please give me some room to vent...and then offer advice. I need it! Here are my most recent stats: Wt. at consultation (July 2006)-302 Wt. on DOS (4-9-07)-327 Wt. as of today-232 I have been sitting at 232-235 for the past 4 weeks! My goal was to have lost 100 pounds by my 6 month date and it doesn't look like it will happen. I am working out 5 days a week for 45 minutes (on an elliptical). For some crazy reason I thought I had passed my 6 mo date (???) but realized today that I'll be there next week. I guess I'm losing my mind...not the weight right now. I went back to Tx a few weeks ago for the 6 mo. follow up and my surgeon said I looked great and had made wonderful progress. That made me feel good but didn't really help in the area of "where do I go now?!?!" I was devastated to read a handout his office provided that said I am "close to (my) settling weight and can plan to lose approx 15-25 more pounds." What?!?!?! I'm not even close to my goal yet! I wanted to lose 100 pounds (since surgery) by the 6 mo. date. I also talked to him about my longer term goal of being under 200 by Christmas. He said it would be very difficult but he thought I could do it. Is that a realistic goal? In my original dreams I had planned to eventually settle around 160-170 pounds (by my 1 yr surgical anniversary). Maybe that wasn't realistic after all. Now I'm sad and have begun to doubt myself. I will be honest and tell y'all that I am not always making the best food choices (backsliding a little), so I could use some help in that area. I am losing gobs of hair and he *did* tell me that the hair issue should settle down within the next 2 months. --Good thing God gave me lots of hair! I also need to increase my calcium. Other than an iron infusion every 6-8 wks and a B12 shot every month, in addition to daily vitamins, what else can I do? I do know that there are days where I don't get enough water, so I know I can improve in that area, as well. I've been reading some of the other posts so I know I'm not in this boat alone. I forgot to mention that I *did* stop exercising for about a month when we first moved to Arkansas...wishing now I had never done that! Please help me restart my engine and kick the 230's to the curb! I look forward to hearing from y'all. Christy

Hi Christy, First off, congrats on your fantastic weight loss and isn't it great how much better you must feel!! I know I do. I have at least 2 weeks a month of stall. I eat 900 to 1000 calories a day, sometimes 1100 or so. 75 to 85 grams protein and 8-10 glasses of water a day, and I walk 7-10 miles a week (not all at once!). The stalls are very frustrating, but the weight is coming off. My surgeon has a 100 lb loss by six months and seeing as that's 9/26/07 for me, it's not gonna happen, but as long as I keep losing, it's all good. Please try not to get hung up on the numbers. If we do that, it's the same pattern of failure that we've created for ourselves and why other diets failed us. Make sure you are tracking your food (I use sparkpeople.com) and if you stick to your nutritional guidelines, continue with the exercise and water, it will come off. It does get harder, as many of us April 2007 veterans are seeing, my loss was about 10-12 pounds a month, in month five it was 7.5. Hey, that's better than any other diet, so again, don't get hung up on numbers. Get back into your exercise routine, track your food, drink ALL your water and then some and your stall will break. Please make sure you are getting enough calories so you don't go into starvation mode, and all of your required protein. The stall will break. It's not easy to get to goal, and gets harder, but it is not impossible, I have seen MANY people do it, and I want to be among the many. The way to keep losing is Protein, Water, Motion! Inky (the slow turtle of weight loss)

Hi Christy, from what I've seen, the dreaded 6-month stall is a part of the process. I've noticed that some April people are exercising a lot, and some hardly at all; some are strictly following the "rules", and some aren't, but we all seem to be losing pretty similar amounts. Don't be discouraged by your surgeon's handout about your "settling" weight. You can get to goal. Take a look at peoples' OH profiles who got to their goal weight-there are a lot of them! I've seen many people on the boards who keep losing for 2 years and even longer! Inky has great suggestions, and you can't go wrong if you follow those ideas. It's so crazy how every surgeon has a completely different timeframe and weight loss goal. My surgeon told me that if I could get down to 150 that would be great (I'm just 5' 1 1'2"), but when I saw a fellow of his last week, he told me my goal weight should be 130! And the nurse practitioner that I saw at my first consult told me that anything under 180 would be good, so who knows!? Relax; just keep exercising when you can, drinking water, taking all your vitamins and supplements, and getting enough protein. You'll be fine!

Christy Just remember, it's not a race. Try not to compare yourself to others. Have you tried mixing up your exercise routine? The body will get used to certain exercises and it is important to add, change or try something new. Maybe switching to the recumbent bike or treadmill. Also, very important to add weight resistance and core work. When you do that type of exercise the body keeps burning calories long after the exercising is done. Always remember too, to eat protein first and try to get at least 60 grams a day, but 80-90 is what you should be aiming for. And never dount yourself, look at how far you have come and all you have accomplished. Think back to a year ago....did you ever think you'd be down almost a 100 lbs and exercising every day? I sure the heck didn't. Chin up, you will break the stall and look back and think "What was I so upset about"... In friendly spirit, Jody Robinson

Christy, I agree that you need to switch up the exercise, along w/ Inky's suggestions. Your body gets used to the same exercise, plus it is a good time to lift weights and help build muscle to burn fat. We all need to make sure that we are keeping as much muscle as possible during the rapid weight loss. Protein will help w/ this and the kick start also. good luck. Shana

Hey Christy, I guess along with everyone else, I stall every month... I can feel my body readjust and people tell me that I look like I am losing weight... but then suddenly I will drop 10-15 lbs. I have been hung up at 230 for a month. I know I need to drink more water and eat better. I have been hung up on eatting Kasha for the past few weeks and while it seems to be healthy, I think it is full of carbs so I have to do something different. But the protein content is great. I come on here to see what everyone else is doing and it re-invigorates me to do something different. Hang in there... and don't give up. Camai

Thanks so much for all of your suggestions. The good news is the scale is beginning to show a slight decrease. I am looking at adding a water aerobics class to my workout...but I'm afraid that I'll join the Y for the water aerobics and go for a few months and then stop. That's always what happens. I have been in my new job for a couple of months and am just starting to get my schedule of patients worked out, but I'm afraid I'll sign up and then not be done with work at the right time on those days and I'll be wasting the money. I *will* say that I'm so very happy with myself for sticking to an exercise routine for as long as I have. Yes, it has made a huge difference. However, if that elliptical machine wasn't in the room next to my bedroom, I don't think I would have been able to stick with it this long. I have really upped the water intake. Inky, I don't think it was my post, but maybe another one who is in the same boat with me where you suggested the protein/fat intake guidelines. I wrote those down and am going to be taking a closer look at what I'm eating. I am also going to check out that website you mentioned. Y'all really are wonderful...oh btw, my avatar picture is pretty old...I haven't changed it since May...guess I need to take care of that! Everyone else is lookin' great! I'd still love to hear more suggestions...and a huge thanks to all of those who have already commented! Christy