Starting to worry a little bit.

Hello everyone, I just posted earlier this week about reaching my goal of a normal BMI. It was just a few days ago. Now, without any change in my eating habits or activity level, I have lost 4 more pounds. Down to 145 pounds, after taking over three months to drop from 157 to 149. I also posted recently about getting into a size 4 in Tommy jeans. I thought it was a fluke, because Tommy jeans are cut larger. But I tried on size 4 in another brand, and they fit too. I still can wear a size 6 and size 8, in other brands though. I am concerned because my weight continues to drop and I still have a big ol bunch of skin on my stomach. What will happen when I get that removed? I have never, ever, EVER uttered these words but: I fear that I may get too thin. If my weight doesn't stabilize by the end of this monthly cycle, I am thinking I might need to call my surgeon's office and schedule an appointment with the nutritionist to work out a maintenance diet plan. I just don't understand why, after months and months of trying to get to my goal, I am suddenly bypassing that goal and moving forward with weight loss with no added efforts. I guess this sounds silly coming from someone who has always been overweight, but it does worry me a little bit. I feel okay at this weight, but don't really want to get much lower on the scales. Is anyone else feeling this way? Or am I just weird? Thanks, Sonja

Sonja, If you are concerned about losing too much, you should perhaps meet with your nutritionist or your surgeon. You'll probably have to make adjustments in your diet to increase your calories. Also, if you are exercising alot... you might want to cut it down a little bit. Instead of 5-6 days exercising... cut it down to 3-4. You'll still stay fit but won't burn quite as much. I know, for me, adding carbs into my diet tends to stall me out (aka maintain my weight). So I assume when I get to goal and don't want to lose more... I can go into maintenance mode by adding more carbs in. But, I have to say that I'm losing very, very slowly so I doubt I'll be in the position of worrying about additional weight loss pushing me too low. But then again... I met someone who was at goal but was still losing 1 lb a month at about 18-24 months post-op. Doesn't sound like alot but when you are already at goal and very happy... another 12 lbs in a year can be substantial. Plastics can yield a variety of additional loss from as little as a few pounds up to substantial amounts. I know folks on both ends of that from 4 lbs to well over 25. Depends on how much excess skin you have. For me, I'd think I'd be in the near 5 lbs of skin. I don't have alot compared to many other. I think I was lucky in that I had my weight distributed all over rather than say alot in the abdominal area. It is strange to be worried about getting too thin but there are others on this board and on the main boards that share that fear. While the body seems to find a place to level out... that isn't necessarily the case for everyone. Weight loss can continue. Good luck trying to adjust your diet and getting things to settle down. Best wishes, Kathy

Kathy, I think I may have just over-reacted a little. It just took me so long to take off the 8 pounds I needed to reach goal, then BAM 5 more gone in one week. My weight fluctuates about 3-5 pounds, then I usually finish up the month with a 1-3 pound loss. For some reason, this week, my body decided to drop 5 pounds, now I am fluctuating again. So I am sure that I just panicked. That said, I don't think I am too thin. I do have other people telling me that I am too thin. But I really think that they are just not accustomed to seeing me at a normal weight as opposed to having seen me so fat for so many years. My weight was, and still is, fairly evenly distributed. I figure I have about 10 pounds total of skin that needs to come off, if you take each body part that needs to be fixed into account. So I think when I finally get the money together to begin plastic surgery, everything will sort of settle into place and the total loss won't be so drastic. I hate to admit it publically, but I don't exercise, unless you count marathon shopping sessions, lol. My diet has a good balance of fats, proteins and whole grain carbs. I do try to limit low qualilty carbs, but indulge from time to time. I also keep the sugars low, below 13 grams per serving. I still and probably always will supplement my protein with both bars and drinks. Thank you so much for always responding and offering tons of information and support. Good luck to you as well. Sonja