Big Time Stall

Hello all!

I am about 9 months out from my DS.  Have been very lucky and healthy.  Have had no major health issues related to the DS.  Eating has progressed well as has weight loss.  I am down about 138 pounds.  Have been stalled here for more than three weeks.  I have cut carbs as they had snuck up a little on me - not real high but over 80g per day.  I have targeted less than 45 now and have done that pretty consistently (except at times when I travel for work and nothing high protein is available and then I limit it as much as possible.).

Should I be concerned or just continue doing what is right and trust the DS?

Any advice appreciated.

Dave

 

Congrats, Dave!  And carry on!  Sounds like you're doing great, just getting a little (understandably) frustrated.  You are further out than me, so I don't have much to offer besides support and encouragement.  I'm sure the vets will pipe in with some good info.

It sounds like you are doing the right things. Are you getting enough fat (not that I can say what the "right" amount is.)?

I think tightening the carbs should help eventually. Keep at it. :)

I think you need to keep on doing what you're doing, and trust the DS. Your weight will start dropping more slowly. My experience was that every time I thought my weight loss was over, I would end up losing more weight. I was convinced I was going to be 180 forever at about eight months out. I am now 135 at two years out.

In the past two weeks, I dropped my carbs way low and ate high protein to compensate for a little lower protein intake the two weeks prior. I saw 133s, then 132s, then 131s.

It does work, and rest assured, when you have about given up, the scale will move again! Eat more protein. Fill up on some big steaks. Keep the carbs low. And I'm sure you will be successful!

Good luck!

What she said...trust your DS and work it. It will work. 

You and I had our surgeries about the same time. 

I've learned to be more patient with the DS and my body.  If I'm patient, I will continue to lose weight while still eating the same amount of carbs and calories.  If I force it to bust a stall, then I'm committing to less food/carbs and just slowing my metabolism also.  For this reason, I wait a month to 6 weeks before I drop my food intake.

Cutting carb creep is good, but keep in mind that if you keep cutting carbs, pretty soon you are down to 10 carbs per day, then you are shaving calories next, to try to bust the next stall.  The more you carve off carbs, the more you ping your metabolism (which slows it down - and becomes a vicious cycle).  So don't rush to cut the carbs to break a stall.

Something you might want to consider to keep your metabolism working and not getting into a rut, is to do a good carb fest once every 2 weeks or once a month.  Have 2-3 days of major carbs, then go back to low carbing.  It keeps the body unsettled and stops it from going into starvation mode and hanging onto the fat.

You have done great with your DS so far.  Keep up the good work.

 

Dave,

Sounds like you are doing the right thing - cutting the carbs.  Now, suggest you step away from the scale!  I don't understand the 'voodoo magic' of weight loss, but sometimes it just takes patience to get over the stall.  

Hang in there!

Thank you all for the encouragement! Appreciate all advice and will stick with it, of course.

Protein is the key here. Increase your protein since you don't mention how much you are getting--men always seem to need a little more than women (in my experience).

Protein is a miracle; if you need to lose weight, it'll help you lose. If you need to maintain, it'll help you maintain.  Heck, if you need to ADD weight, it'll help you do that too.

If you are relying on food for all your protein you may consider supplementing with a protein shake that is immediately available to your body.