1 year out and almost 100 pounds down!

I wanted to to share some before and after photos with all of you because I am really excited about my weight loss thus far.  While the last 6 months have literally been slow going...almost none-existent weightloss, I have still lost 99 pounds total.  I don't know how to post my before and after pictures in my posts, so I am hoping you will all journey to my photos in my profile so you can see the difference for yourself.

I would really love to hear from any of you who have had a massive weightloss "stall" for many months and I would love and welcom any advice as to how to jump-start my weightloss again.  I keep bouncing from 198 up to 203 and back again and have done this for months...literally!!  Please help me get to my goal of 175!!  Do you recommend a "pouch test" at this point?  I still feel restriction, just not nearly as much as I did 6 months ago!  I have never dumped on sugars (unfortunately) and probably have crept up on my carb intake more than I should have.  I still exercise 3-4 times a week but could concentrate more on strength-training.  Any advice from someone who has "been there"?

Blessings!
~katherine

Wow Kat, you look fabulous!  I'd say just keep doing what you're doing and enjoy the ride.  I lost 73 pounds in my first six months post surgery.  Then I gained a few pounds, lost a few pounds, back and forth, back and forth for a whole year!  At 1.5 years post-op (this January) I finally began to lose weight again and have dropped another 12 pounds since then.  I had a spinal fusion in November and haven't been particularly active.  Just all of a sudden, I began to feel the restriction more and more and I've just eaten less and felt a lot fuller.  So yes, I had a stall for nearly a whole year.  Now I'm losing again.  You've done so well and you look so happy and healthy.  Good for you!

Linda

Hi Linda,
Thanks for the advice.  I am so relieved to know that I am not the only who has experienced a very long plateau!  I will just keep plugging away then and hope that my body will adjust soon and allow me to get back on a losing streak.  I am really curious about what kinds of things you are eating this far out now.  Would you be willing to share with me what a typical day of eating is like for you...types of foods and amounts.  If it is too much trouble, don't worry about it.  I was just curious.  I really appreciate your reply and advice, thanks so much!
~katherine
P.S.. you look wonderful!  Keep up the great work!

I'm not really a very good eater any more.  I get up in the morning and take all my meds ( I take synthroid and estrogen and an allergy pill along with my vitamin and calcium) and then I'm full.  I get to work and have a cup of coffee.  Then maybe I'll eat a piece of cheese for a snack at about 10:00.  For lunch I usually have some Progresso Soup.  It takes me a while, but I generally will eat the whole can -- 2 cups (about 200 calories).  In the afternoon I may have a cup of tea, or sometimes I have a small handful of almonds.  For dinner I usually have a piece of protein and some salad.  That's about it.  Occasionally I'll have a snack of some cheese and crackers (I buy reduced fat Triscuits).  On some days, if I feel I need it, I'll have a piece of fruit.  I get hungrier when I'm at work, no appetite when I'm home and left to my own devices.

Linda

Wow you look great Katherine!  I actually think you were beautiful at 297.  You are starting to look and probably feel your real age - and that is wonderful.  Especially, with your family there to enjoy it.  I too remember the kids being able to put their arms all the way around my waist, and not being so crabby has to do with not hurting all the time and just having the more energy and health.

I too never dumped on sugars (or anything else) so I know it gets scary when you are able to eat more.  I say though, don't underestimate that the process is still going on after the "honeymoon".  My losing 20 pounds a month did end, but during the second year it would be a pound here, five pounds, there, nothing here, etc.  It would add up to another twenty and another ten.  Also, when your weight is lower those numbers mean more ratio wise.  I'm not very interested in a pouch test, or I think it should be renamed something like going back to basics.  I don't testing if your pouch has stretched is something to be trying to figure out.  I think  stretching your pouch is much more of a paranoia and much less common than we all worry.  Your by-pass progresses into next phases, and appetite comes back, absorption happens more than in the beginning, and we can eat larger quantities.  That doesn't mean it's over and your progress is not going to continue.  No surgeon promises it will all work just like in the beginning until all the weight is off.  This is just the beginning of "the rest of your life".  I kept my mind convinced that if I did the right basic things (excercise, water, not eating with meals, taking my supplements, getting plenty of protein (I didn't make myself eat it first-I have to rotate my stuff on my plate) it would be O.K.  I didn't vary that stuff whether I was losing or not, and the pattern second year was slow and steady.  Plus, who can't already be having a ball being down 100 pounds!  I know you want to keep it going.  It sounds like you are doing the right thing.  Gotta watch the snacking, but I did have carbs every step of the way and I don't agree there is no place for them in my life.  I try the moderation approach. 

Good luck on continued success.  You look great!

Patty

What a kind comment, thank you so much!  I didn't feel beautiful, inside or out at my heavy weight but I really appreciate your kindness.  I saw your before and after photo, and you look like a totally different person...I'll bet you feel like a totally different person too!  You are beautiful!!  You have such a healthy "glow" in your after picture too!

Thanks for all your advice and reassurance.  You are right, being down 100 pounds is truly a great thing already, I think that I am just scared that I will regress if I am not consistently losing, and with such a long plateau I think I was even more freaked out.  I will go back to the basics and see if it doesn't help to push me along.  Thank you for reminding me that this is all a process and that I need to keep all the right "basics" in mind (as I know I have slacked which hasn't helped any).  I am also glad to know that you did not "dump" but were still successful in your weightloss goal.  I have so badly wished that I was a "dumper" because I have the type of personality that needs strong "kicks in the butt" sometimes and I just knew that "dumping" would definitely do that for me....but, no luck....no dump!!

Thanks again, Patty for your help, I appreciate it so much!
~Katherine