How common are plateaus?

 I have heard they are common in any form of weight loss, but I haven't lost anything since my one week post op appt.  The doctor expected I should lose another 20-30lbs by the time I see him next which is June 8th.  I haven't lost but maybe a pound according to these scales at home and it's been two weeks since my post op visit.  (May 3rd was my surgery date.)  I know I am eating healthy, nothing but veggies, soft meats and eggs.  I am not eating more than three times a day, sometimes not even, which I was told is fine as long as I get my protein and vitamins in.  The one time I made a boo boo, I got sick and threw it right back up.   I feel like I am failing at this already.  Any words of wisdom?

I'm right there with ya.  My surgery was 03/22/11, I lost 32 pounds before surgery and 30 pounds the first month after surgery.  I regained about 8 and finally lost it again but I've so been "stuck" for the last several weeks and it is getting so frustrating.  I am trying to do things right.  My exercising needs to improve but I've been doing a lot of outside work (mowing, planting, etc.) to help with that.  Everyone says I'll start losing again but I, like you, am wondering if this is going to work for me.    Hang in there............that's really all we can do right now.  I'm about ready to go back to all liquids but don't think I'd be able to do that because of the nausea which finally ended when I was able to start solid foods.  That's my sign that I need something in my tummy, instead of hunger pains like I used to have, I get slightly nauseated if I don't eat when I need to. 

I believe you are in your 3 week stall which is VERY common!  Nearly everyone hits that and your doctor should be aware of this too and should not chastise you for not losing since the last time you saw him.  You are not failing you are right on track with 99% of us.

Plateaus are different for everyone. Some seem to have them all the time *insert finger pointing at me* and some steadily lose and hit them every once in a great while. We are all uniquely us in this journey. 

Oh yes!  In fact it sounds like you are smack dab in the lovely 3rd week stall.  Most experience a true stall from weeks 3-5.  Please don't stress, just keep doing all the right things.  As long as you're working it, the weight will have no choice but to keep falling off.

Hugs!!  :)

yup.  very common and i think the 3 week one is especially common.  i found that i lost in the 1st 2 weeks mostly b/c i couldn't eat really anything so was getting like 300 cals a day.  since then (after my 3rd week plateau which lasted a couple of weeks, i'vr lost about 2 lbs a week, slow but steady.  i'm sure i have another plateau in my future.  they totally suck, i'm not gonna lie.  but your body is getting used to what you just did to it, so it's probably confused and holding on to some calories.  it varies a lot from person to person and you WILL get there!!!!  ((((((((hugs)))))))

I stalled after 1 week also.  It lasted about a month and then all the sudden I lost like 10lbs overnight.  Then I stalled again and it has been that way the whole time. I will drop 8-10lbs in one day and then stall for a month.  I have never lost weight like this before but whatever I've lost almost 45lb in 3 months so I guess it's ok but so fustrating day after day of not losing.

Here's my standard answer to "pauses" that everyone calls a stall:

A stall is something that last 6 weeks or more.  You are in a correction period.

Weight loss is like a teeter-totter....

One one side is pounds, the other inches....

If you stop going down on pounds, the inches will go down .  Are you measuring? 
Then the inches will slow and pounds will drop...


this is normal and NOT a stall, it's a correction period that your body uses to catch up.....

Make sure you eating enough...if you don't...your body will go into "starvation" mode....

Excellent post Father Don!!!  That's actually the best explanation I've heard yet.  And it's so true.  Right now I've been losing SLOOOW, but my body is losing inches right now.  It just looks "skinny" all of a sudden... LOL

So, I'm really expecting some major droppage on the scale soon.

 Thank you everyone for your words of wisdom.  I am very short so my weight loss seems to be different than everyone else's, or so it seems that way to me.  I see what Father Don means about inches.  I haven't measured since I've lost yet, but I did fit into a smaller pair of jeans so that must mean inches are falling off, right?  OH only saved half of what I entered into health tracker, so I will never know the total amount of inches, but it's enough.  I guess what has me discouraged is what the doctor said... "You should lose another 20-30lbs by the next time I see you."  Knowing that I won't be able to hit that makes me feel somewhat of a failure.  

Yes, in the three week stall.   My question for you is, are you allowed to eat veggies yet?  I would think mostly protein, vitamins, fluids.