Fellow Iowans, I Need help and advice!

I am almost 2 years out and am at a complete stand still and bouncing between 180-185.  I want to get down to 170 for sure if not 160.  We want to try and have a baby, but if I am not down to at least 170 before I get prego, I don't want too.  I would die if I got back to 200 when I was pregnant , so i figured if I got to at least 170, that would give a good buffer.  I am looking at maybe joining weigh****chers to get the last 20# off.  Anyone do this before?  I didn't think I would ever us a weight loss program again, but really would like to get the 20# off and will do anything to do it.  I don't excercise like I probley should, I walk about 1-2 miles a day when I have time.  Any suggestions would be great.  I eat mostly salads and I know I don't get as much water in as I should.  What do you all eat? and how did you get to goal?  Any advice would help!!!  Thanks, Jen

Jen, I am 4 years out and I am still trying to get back down post baby mind you. I would definitely add a bit af cardio to your exercise program. I would encourage you to go back to the basics from the beginning just after your surgery and see if that helps. I did that and I have dropped 27 pounds in 2 months. I also drink lots of water. I get at least 80 oz in a day. That is all I drink. No pop, milk or anything else jus****er. I never did get to my drs. goal however I did get down to where I thought I was healthy. I hope that this helps. I did weigh****chers last summer on my own and I lost 22 pounds in 5 months. It is up to you what you want to do. Good luck. Stephanie

Are you getting enough protein?  You should be getting a minimum of 60 gms a day with 80 being better.  Also check your total calorie count.  If it's less than 1200 you might need to eat more.  If you aren't getting enough calories, your body can go into starvation mode and you won't lose.  If you aren't getting all your water in, you may be dehydrated.  If you are dehydrated, you can actually gain wt.   There are a lot of us at over 2 years out that are having problems getting those last pesky pounds off.  For me, it's what I eat.  I have tended to eat too many carbs.  Part of that stems from the hypoglycemia I experienced starting at 2 years out.  I recently had part of my pancreas removed to correct this and I dropped 10 pounds in about a week.  Now I just need to keep it going.  I still haven't given up on getting to my goal wt of 142.   You might want to try the time-out diet.  You just drink 3 protein shakes a day and that's it.  It's been talked about on the WLS Grads board.  I don't have the disciple to do that but am trying to do a modified one.  We'll see how that goes. 

Dear Jen, It's nice to see someone from this side of the state on the boards.   I have heard of people joining Weigh****chers and doing well.  But I really do best when I focus on my proteins and basics.  I try to limit my starchy carbs to just one serving per day.  And of course the dreaded exercise.  I do it but still don't like it.  I find going to the support group helps keep me motivated.   Good luck, Sally