4 Month Plateau, PLEASE HELP, IM STUCK

I had surgery 7/27/05 and since I have only lost 72 lbs I weighed 312 and I am stuck at 240 and have been stuck since Feburary. I am starting to feel like this is a failure and wanting to give up again and I notice I am starting to try foods I shouldn't. I don't want to give up on myself, but when I was doing everything right I don't understand why my body is not working with me, (eating right and excersizing) causing me to want to throw up my hands and feel like maybe I am meant to be fat forever. I feel like I am sinking and I have waited on asking for help cause I felt ashamed in a way cause I am not a super looser apparantly. I really need some support right now and I have to know how to ask for help sometimes and now is the time. I don't want to spiral out of control. Thanks to anyone who can offer a word or a suggestion or wo has been where I am and overcame it. Thanks Leem

Leem, without knowing what you foods you are eating it's hard to fiqure out what you need to eat .. I can tell you that if you go back to the four rules of this surgery it will help you.. #1- Fluids.. Drink!!! Flush your system with lots of UNSWEETED beverages.. i.e. Water, Crystal Light, Iced Tea, #2- Up Your Protein intake.. LeanProteins means.. Chicken ( no-skin) Fish.. Broiled, steamed, grilled NO FRIED FOODS for now!! lean red meats.. cheese in moderation...#3- NO SNACKING! Just 3 meals.. If you are doing Protein shakes that will up your Protein also,, if you having a hard time losing right now. keep the hell away from Protein Bars. they are high in calories and are NOT A SNACK...#3- Exercise.. You got to move honey.. be it walking fast..bike riding, swimming, working out.. Do something.. We all have to realize that this is a life style CHANGE. we have to be compliant to the rules or weight loss will not just happen. With a RNY YOU HAVE TO WORK THAT TOOL!! I'm pulling for ya.. peace Mo

...#3- Exercise.. You got to move honey.. be it walking fast..bike riding, swimming, working out. This should read # 4-... I also really hope i didn't come off as snotty or overly opinionated.. ( who me? yeah right but, I just thought I shouldn't suger coat this subject... There will be people saying things like "We all lose at different rates" and we do.. But there is no reason why you cannot jump start your weight loss Leem. And following the 4 'rules' of surgery will help you to do that. peace Mo 290/183/150 soon baby soon...

Okay Honey............ I'm honored that you came to us with this. Please, please consider this and Mo's advice. Please don't see this as me on my soapbox or preachy. I want to give you a new perspective, new motivation. First of all.........DO NOT feel ashamed!! This wls stuff affects each of us differently and emotions are a huge part of the reason so many of us were overweight. I think you are very brave to put this out there and ask for help. Let these emotions be the force that kicks your weight loss back into gear. We are all motivated by something. For me it's.........regret! I DO NOT want to get to the end of this journey and regret not giving it my all. I risked my life, the life of my son's mother, my mother's child, etc...... to have this chance. You did too. When we laid on that table, we laid or life on the line to receive this second chance. Also, there are sooo many people out there wishing, hoping, wanting to have this surgery and cant, dont qualify, haven't the funds and on and on.......This makes me take this wls stuff seriously. I feel sooo lucky to have had this amazing gift given to me. It's become precious to me in a corny way. This surgery isn't a fix-all. It's a mulligan. A do-over, for the lack of a better term. It's two-fold....the weight falls off in the beginning and at the same time we are re-learning new habits. However, we get to a point where the surgery loses it's effectiveness and we must rely on these new found habits. We are at that stage right now! I wont repeat what Mo said, It's all good advice though........listen to her. I WILL add this.... I was 230 lbs when I started jogging. It ws tough, but worth it. The weight started to fall off a couple of weeks in. Nobody, but you really knows if you are complying. In fact...YOU might not even know unless you are tracking your intake. This IS where I preach! I say this ALL the time. Go to fitday.com and track your intake everyday!! You might not realize just how many calories and carbs you are consuming everyday unless you track it. It's time to be COMPLETELY honest with yourself.....you answer to no one else. Be honest..........are you really doing everything that you should? Is there room for improvement in any of these areas mentioned by Mo? As far as food goes.......I said this today already. Stock up on the "Holy Trinity" of wls snack foods.....protein bars, rotisserie chicken and cheese. One thing I learned from my nutritionist.......I think about this all of the time......weight gain and loss happens within a few hours of overeating or exercising. In other words....if you eat 500 calories and don't burn it off before you eat again, it gets stored. This is why they tell us to eat small meals every 2.5 hours instead of three big ones. (Sorry Mo for the contridicting advice) It also keeps our sugar levels steady and keeps us from having hunger spikes. On the flip side is exercise! The fat that we burn while exercising comes off immediately. Then it continues for several hours after we exercise. (SCORE!!) I love this idea of immediate results. It really helps me stay motivated to keep up the exercise. That's all I can think of at midnight......I'll touch back if i come up with anything else. (Like this wasn't long-winded ENOUGH!) Good luck to you sweetie! Keep us posted! Channan

Listen and work the advice that Mo and C have given. Also start tracking everything you are eating. I have used a free website called fitday.com it is very handy for tracking food intake. Also one of the things that my nutrionist and nurse are always stressing to me and I know not everyone on the boards views this the same way but, potien shakes are a meal replacement NOT a snack. Most shakes have around 200+ calories and are thus not a snack. Also you have NOTHING to feel ashamed about. H#ll you have lost over 70# that is something to be proud of. Just keep working the tool, remember as we have all been told, this surgery was not a "magic" fix it is just a tool to help us. As I tell my students in class all the time I will "help" them with things but I won't do the test or homework for them. We have to do the work of WLS, the surgery is just there to help us. I know it is easier said than done but I'm sure that you can stick to the WLS plan and you will get to where you want/need to. Keep your chin up and we are all praying for you, Pete

It ain't over till it's over and it ain't over... I bet that once you engage Mo's advice , you'll again be losing, albeit more slowly than some of us. Perspective... you feel and look better and I bet your bloodwork and exams prove it! In your corner, Dave

Thanks everyone for your support and perspectives, My surgeon does want me to do three meals a day although I do find that tought to do. I am gearin up I know what needs to change and what habits are trying to rear their ugly little heads. I am really glad for the support it is helping me not feel so ashamed to ask for support when I need to. Thanks Again Leem

I completely agree with Mo and Channon ... their advice is on the dot!! I have to be honest and say that sometimes (okay alot of times) I fall off the wagon too and eat really bad and way too much ... especially on the weekends. But I always get back up and keep on trying!!! This exercise thing has been the most challenging for me and some weeks I do well every day, then I fall off for a 3-4 days and then start up again. It's not easy, but you have to try and probably the first step is to get back to the basics! I know its easier said than done, but remember ... you are the only person that can make this work. Its a lifestyle ... not a crash diet! Good luck my dear and thinking of you. Oh and please please do not be ashamed, we are all here for each other and we are each others motivation!! Keep that head up and keep on trying!!!! M. 318/203/170

Leem, Okiedokie. Here we go. I am in the same boat - I was 173-174 in January of this year. I am now 172 - 173 in May. I THOUGHT i was eating right. Nuh-uh. I snacked way too much. Stopped having protein drinks (not good for a vegetarian, anyway..) And I fooled myself that walking at Walmart and shopping was exercise. I KNOW in my heart that it's me, and my behaviors and I have to work through all this stuff and change habits. But sometimes it takes some of us longer than others. Teehee I like to think I am an old soul in this bunch and have the excuse of saying "hey, it took me longer to get here, so it's gonna take me longer to change." Now - here's the upside. we are SO fortunate to have had this surgery. Because we have this built in mechanism to help us control the way our habits work against us, right? Yes - but only to an extent. Ultimately, WE have to make lasting changes to our daily lives. So, in that spirit - like mo said - evaluate what you eat, sweetie - put it into fitday.com and check out how the calories and carbs and proteins and so forth weigh up. Go walk around the block everyday at least and while you are watching TV or on the computer, scrunch in your stomach 50 times a day. Drink a freakin crapload of water or herbal tea or whatever liquid. And make for dang sure you get all your vitamins, calcium, b12 and biotin. Easy for me to say, huh? Yeah, well, I write this stuff so MY BRAIN gets that I need to be doing it as well, so I am trying to motivate my lazy ass too. But you came to the right place - the more you talk to us and the more we talk back atcha - the better your chances of success. We ALL need each other as a support structure! Love you, keep the faith and work toward small changes, Nan