Weight loss has slowed with exercising

Post Op Week 11. I'm in my second week at the gym. Mostly aerobic classes and the treadmill. About 5 days a week. I walk about a mile and a half to the gym and back for additional exercise. Attended a few strength training classes (Low weight). My weight loss has basically stopped since starting an exercise program. My diet is the aprox 1100 calories daily whi*****ludes about 90 -100 grams protein. I'm trying to increase my water intake, but it's difficult. Any suggestions or is this normal? Also, how will lifting weights affect weight loss long term? Thanks  Waterman (Michael)

I'm a non-op, but fairly well versed in wls at this point - a good friend has had wls this past July (we looked into it together - she's on the team, i'm not, but i digress) Looks to me like there is many mini-plateaus in the wls thing. That is the number one reason you're sticking right now! Past that, you can try to shake up your current exercise plan, as you will always need to do anyway from time to time.  For me, i try to try other things every 6 weeks or so. Try to do interval training - jogging or walking MUCH faster than you do now, for a minute here and there in your routine. Bike and swim if possible once a week.  Weight training will build your muscle and keep your body needing somewhat more calories to support that muscles growth. Translation:  makes it easier to keep weight gain down. But don't go crazy with that notion as you get older! Not like you can suddenly eat what you want - not too many people are actually blessed with that type of metabolism. And especially as we age!  In reading you see that "simple" weight loss equation:  calories in, calories out - and not to completely bash on that notion, but the type of exercise MOST of us do is not really enough to burn off all that much - we probably more likely do damage control - erase an extra helping here and there. Unless you are a marathoner, or something!!!! I am a nearly 50 yo woman, so long ago, i focus on the "other benefits" of exercise rather than the help with weight loss.  Toning, basic aerobic stamina, skin clarity, mind clarity, etc.

Hey Waterman, Must be nice to be able to walk to the gym. Only about 8 degrees here today...ain't going to happen with me. You're probably just gain back some of the muscle you lose that first couple of months after WLS. You want that. Right after WLS you're on starvation calories and not all that active and lose a lot of muscle with the fat. Now that your calories are up and you're more active, even just walking, you'll gain back some of that muscle you lost. That's a good thing. Get some kind of bodyfat percentage test done or take measurements. In general, if your waist keeps shrinking, don't worry about the scale as much. Just stay consistent and you'll see the scale go down again, but after a certain point the numbers on the scale aren't that important. Good luck Earl

My guess is that this is just a coincidence. Aerobic exercise will NOT build muscle and even if you were doing all weight training which WILL build muscle, it's very hard to build muscle.  It is, however, completely normal to have days, even weeks when you won't lose even though you are doing everything right. My advice is to keep doing what you are doing but add in more weight training.  (this is SUPER important as you want to keep as much muscle as possible as you are losing weight and the only way to do this is by keeping protein high, weight training and rest.) Hope this helps :) Caroline -225 lbs www.AButterflyEmerges.com Certified Personal Trainer

Hi Caroline, Thanks for replying. I also want to say thanks to the others who also replied to my post. I usually weigh myself on the weekend and this weekend the scale has moved (3lbs). I knew it would, but was curious if starting an exercise routine would have slowed the weight loss. I attend mostly aerobic classes, but I have been attending a strength training class called "power pump". It involves all the muscle groups by use of small weights. I have also attended the AB workouts and a new class called "bootcamp" I will start this week. That one sounds like an hour of fun! I have been walking to the gym and use the treadmill as well as a warmup to my workouts. I'm having a blast. I feel great and look forward to my gym workouts after work. Thanks again. Michael

I'm 22 months out, and didn't really start a seriously jacked up exercise program until this past June, when I was what, 16 months out? Until then I did a low-intensity 2 mile walk daily (min 4 days/week). I started my new program on a Friday I think, a weigh-in day, and stuck to it 6 days a week, vigorous cardio & weight training with a trainer. I did not lose a single pound for about TEN WEEKS. I went up a couple and came back down, but did not drop below my weight from the starting date for many weeks. It drove me insane on one level (muscle weighs more than fat, they'd say! to which I'd reply, a pound weighs a pound grr! :) but on another, I could see and feel the differences in my body and knew I was building muscle during this time. I also read an article, so sorry I can't remember where, but it was just last week online, saying that many stall or gain when beginning an exercise program that involves strength training (or upping intensity) because the muscles, when they are being worked harder, swell and hold onto fluids for the "expansion" they're undergoing. Made sense to me. Did you up your protein to 90-100g in conjunction with starting your exercise program? If 90-100 was your protein target before you jacked it up, then you might want to consider upping your protein 20g a day or so, to give your body something more than it's used to for the extra work & building it's doing (of course check with your nutritionist or bariatric professional - I'm relating what I did on the advice of the pros I consulted). If you did increase your protein along with the intensity of your exercise, then I would just keep doing whatever you are doing - your body will go thru a period of adjustment, and then you will start to see results on the scale again (you may well see them in the mirror and feel them in your clothes long before they show upon the scale). I believe lifting weights affects weight loss long-term in a POSITIVE way - by building muscle mass, we increase the size of our fat-burning engine, right? That's how I think about it. I'm no expert, tho. Hang in there! You're doing great! Kathy