Plateaus Questions

Hi Guys~ I am almost 5 months post op. I have lost 107 lbs since my pre-op weigh in.  I have been exercising regularly and I added a weight routine to my work out this past week.  Since then, I haven't lost a lb. It's only been a week so I am not too freaked out yet.. but any of you guys out there that waited to incorporate a weight lifting routine to your exercise regimen have any problems with plateaus?  I still have 75 lbs to lose and I don't want to get too frustrated yet but I know it gets harder and harder to lose as you get closer to your goal weight.  Any advice out there? Steve PS. I am new to this forum so any help will be appreciated.

My experience is your weight lifting isn't the guilty party.  It seems right around 100 pounds down this happens to some of us and it si the way you will probably continue to lose.  It isn't as exciting as you'e experienced to-date but change is still occurring and you awill still be losing if you are sticking to the protein and water and not chaeting yourself with frequency. At 4 months out and down 114 total, 80 from surgery date, I hit my first plateau.  Since then its been drop 6-12 ponds and hold steady for 4-6 weeks, repeat.  I am eating right and drinking right , and exercising, and sometimes it gets real frustrating then BAM, in 2-3 days I'l drop the 6-12 lbs. At my last two checkups (6 and 9 month), I questions and expressed my concerns.  The CNP was quite pleased with my los and to hear I was losing this way.  She told me it was the healthiest long term way to be losing to keep it off. Don't be discouraged.  The weight loss window from surgery was usually 12-18 months and losing this way meant it would be longer and slower but healthier and it was a good thing. Not any less frustrating but hope that can be some good news for you to hold on too as it is for me. Joe

Don't worry. It will end. Mine took almost a month. I don't know if it was 100# mark, or starting weight training as they both happened at the same time. Just keep doing what you ought to and ride it out.

This question comes up a lot.  I have plateaus, sort of a week on, week off thing.  (3 loss this week, no loss last week, 8.4 loss two weeks before, no loss three weeks ago.)  Maybe the weight lifting has something to do with it, particularly in making your hydration levels more volatile (using muscles makes them hold more water during recovery).  I'm also using creatine, which may make things worse. All I can say is long term, eating right plus weight training plus cardio is the surest way to get to and maintain a good body composition.  So cutting out the weight training to lose weight faster just doesn't make good sense.  It gets harder and harder to lose as you get closer to goal because your calorie deficit is getting smaller and ability to eat is increasing.  But there is no magical "window" after which you won't lose.  In the end, we are going to eat X calories and need Y, and our bodies will move to the weight that equalizes those numbers. Let's assume for a minute (based on a premise I don't accept, but just for argument's sake) you quit working out and get to goal two months earlier than you would have.  But your metabolism will be slower and you'll have five fewer pounds of muscle burning calories.  That's going to mean you're body burns 200 (or more) fewer calories per day at rest.  All things being equal, what do you think that means for 1-2 years later if you eat 2400 calories a day? My final comment (preempting where your mind might already be heading) is that it's a lot easier to maintain five pounds of muscle than to build it from scratch, and a lot easier to maintain a fast metabolism than speed up a slow one. ETA: We had surgery around the same time and have nearly identical weight losses: for me, 81 since surgery and 106 since mid-February.  So we got to about the same place on different approaches (I've been lifting almost the whole time, you've probably been doing cardio more).  My body fat percentage has gone from 56% to 35% (so body fat is down about 115 pounds).

Hey Steve, First- Welcome to the Men’s Board! Now, bout those plateaus….. I had about 3 on the way down. Longest one for me was 3 weeks. Here’s some suggestions and some info I’ve picked up over the years… Pull back from your ‘daily’ charting, and look at a weekly or even monthly. There are up and down spikes each day, But if you ‘graph’ the highest to the lowest, I’d bet there is still A downward slope over the course of the month. There’s an 8 to 10lb. volume of "wiggle room" due to water alone. And it comes into play a lot. This has to do with our bodies using glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, But it is stored in our muscles for quick energy – One pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of water to keep it soluble, And the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, (Like when you drop down to your calorie intake) Your body turns first to stored glycogen, Which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, You also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it Voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of any diet. As you stay in caloric deficit, however, Your body starts to ‘realize’ that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue And burning fat for energy. But your body also ‘realizes’---- (by way of your liver releasing hormones signaling low Cal intake) ---That fat can't be used for short bursts of energy – Like, to outrun a sabertooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, And rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, --even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, (Thus showing negative Calorie load overall) Your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while As you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored. Yes? The whole ‘weight-loss’ process is not a straight "Slide" down the scale. More like "Stair-Steps," (Down then forward, then down, then forward, etc... As your body cycles fat out of "deep storage" and through the Liver Into the muscles as Glycogen. The muscles and Liver can hold about a 3 weeks supply. This is why many people find that their "Stall" or "Plateau" Breaks when adding a bit of exercise And upping their water intake, or in the case of an "extreme exerciser," The total Calorie or Protein Intake, To signal the liver to let go of more Glycogen. Fear not, many people who are now enjoying life at a normal BMI Once had a few weeks or so of thinking- "...my weight loss has been awfully slow, has it stopped..."? There are a number of Exercise/weight training gurus here I'd say they have a bit more insight into that angle From personal experiences. I’m just "the Wordy One." or in other words---- Keep up the Exercise, but maybe change up and add more protein Without adding Too many Calories. And, keep the water intake high. For yet more info- Dx Version of PlateauBuster

Hope this helps some. You are doing Great! Keep it Up! Best Wishes- Dx

I am quite new here as well and I am having the same problem.  I hit the 100 pounds down on July 5th and I have pretty much been stuck there since.  I am hoping that this breaks soon because it is frustrating even though I have expected it sooner or later based on the many posts I have read here as well as my doctor warning me ahead of time that they will come.  Does anyone know if going back to a protien / liquid style diet can help trigger movement? And if you up the water, what would the recommendation be for daily input of water during the down time? Thanks, Dan

I'd make sure you are getting 120-180 gms of protein so your body can maintain or even increase muscle mass rather than canniablize muscle for required protein for energy. Water, minimum of 64 oz but too much water can stretch the pouch so take it slow, no gulping and 20-30 minutes per 16-20 oz bottle of water. The best thing you can do is to hang tuff, stick to the recommended regime and get some exercise so you are building and maintaing muscle mass for long term lose and tone. DxE's plateau buster article is excellent, long but he explains whats going on with how to do it. The other advice I've read on thsi post is also excellent and I have experienced it works. All of my weight loss since 4 months Post op has been through plateaus and each one lasts 3-4 weeks with one lasting 6 weeks. DxE's glycogen description fits exactly with what seems to be hapening and agrees with the response I got from my concerns being expresed to my CNP. But the loss continues and monthly I am still dropping an average of about 10 a month, which is a good rate. Slower but good. Be good and keep the faith. May the FARTS be with you!!

Thanks Guys for all the helpful advice.  I'll keep and eye on it and let ya'll know how I make out.  Steve