Counting calories after weight loss surgery

For the last several weeks I have been stalled in my weight loss. After reflecting on my food intake, I learned that counting calories was actually leading to my weight plateau. I wrote about it in my blog, and thought I'd offer my thoughts with anyone interested or anyone struggling with their own plateau: http://justsleeveit.blogspot.com/ 

I'd love to hear your thoughts about this. Thanks.

Plateaus. Hated them. The always scared me, especially the first one. 

But eventually I realized that they were going to happen,  seemingly without rhyme or reason and I stopped worrying about them.  The best cure in the end was to weight myself once a week. Which ended the emotional roller coaster.

Btw I still got to my goal weight. Worrying doesn't help. Good luck. 

It is so easy to get obsessed with a stall. Thanks for the reminder that it will right itself in the end. Congrats on making your goal weight :)

Totally Sarah!  

That's what we're here for :-).

Stalls will happen, unfortunately.   There is no reason to it and no way around it.  You can increase protein, cut back on the carbs and still the scale won't move or will move very little.   Your body WILL start losing weight again, you just have to be patient and try not to go stir crazy while doing so.   Being 15 years post op, I know that I used to get so upset about the fact I wasn't losing weight, but my Surgeon used to tell me "your body is catching up to the scale, you won't see it move, but you will see changes in your body"  So, I would try on clothes that I knew had not fit before during the stall and sure enough, they would fit.  It was then, that I quit using the scale to measure my success.  

~Nik  

I am with you on this- although your 'rules' listed aren't the same for everyone. I consider 64 oz of fluids the minimum, and 60g protein is the minimum according to the docs office, but for me I consider 80-90g the minimum. While I don't always- I can eat up to 5-6 times a day. To me there is no real difference between a meal and a snack, I just think we are conditioned to think that way.

I found using My fitness Pal made me too obsessive, and I would not necessarily listen to my body and would eat more because I thought I still had calories available. That being said I have still used it occasionally and would again for an occasional - record for a week- spot check on what I am doing..because calories do count in losing and keeping the weight off... so it is a tool for being honest with ourselves.

While I don't count daily calories and carbs- I do look at the calories and carbs in individual items and decide if it is nutritionally dense enough for me to include in what I am eating.

This is the exact reason why I logged on today. I am 5 weeks out and haven't lost a pound in almost 2 weeks. I dropped a bit quickly but as soon as I started incorporating regular food back into my diet, all weight loss stopped.

I don't even feel like I had the surgery ****il I try to drink a big gulp of water!) 

it is very common to have a stall sometime in the beginning. Look up 'week 3 stall'... I stalled for 3 1/2 weeks in the beginning. Stick with it, it will happen.

Hi MelodyMay!  I'm on a plateau too.  It's 1 week for me that the scale has not budged!  I still gotta take small sips of water too, and I'm not a fan.  I want to just drink 'normally'!

Omg thank you Melody for making me remember.

Youre ok. I can totally empathize with you.  I hit my first plateau after only ONE week, within the second, and I was going crazy because I too felt like I could eat way too much. 

As I posted earlier It Just Happens. 

But I'm sending you a huge cyber hug of understanding.  Keep doing your protein and you will loose again.  I promise. 

(((((((Melody)))))) 

Christian