Can I still make goal?

OK here goes: I am 13 months out and have only lost 86 lbs. I have been stalled at this point for a couple of months now and at 6 months my weight loss slowed to a snail crawl. I had lost 70 lbs at 6 months and only 16 since. So my question is have any of you farther out lost a significant amount of weight after the one year mark? I started at 299 and I am sitting at 213-215 back and forth the past couple of months can I still lose 40-65 lbs it seems as impossible as 150 did before surgery. I know that seems crazy but thats how I feel. Any comments suggestions words of wisdom or any other type of feedback is appreciated. By the way my dr said call the nut make an appt and see me 3 months after if the weight loss still isn't good then we will run a barium swallow etc... urgh that is 4 more months away Thanks Tina

I started at 278# and lost around 110# after 18 mos. and stayed the same for ~2 years (168#). At around 3.5 years post op I caught up with what I looked like and realized that I look good, even better, but I wanted to look and feel my best. Nearing the end of my fourth year post op renewed my commitment to lose vs. maintain and have lost 30# since the beginning of February 2005 (as of this AM I weigh 138#). So yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus. Your dreams can come true. Karen

Karen, Thanks so much for a reply. I guess I know I can still lose I just needed to hear that others have done it. When I weighed 300 lbs I could eat so much more and work out so little to lose weight because I was so big now I have to eat way less and work out much harder! I can do this and I will do this. It's time for me to stop talking and start working. Thanks Again Tina

BTW, here is what I do...take it or leave it: *Stay within a 1200 to 1500 calorie daily intake. *Keep a food log (write it down within 15 minutes of eating anything) and count the calories at the same time so I know throughout the day how much I have eaten and how many more calories I have to "play with." *Before I eat I ask myself "on a scale of 1 (not hungry) to 5 (starving), how hungry am I?" This has helped me to be aware of eating to live vs. living to eat. *I typically eat the same things daily. Sameness works well for me. *I plan my meals for the week on Sunday, this includes a trip to the grocery store to make sure I have on hand what I need to stick to my plan. *I eat the same genre as my family but not necessarily the same meal. I have a house full of males *****quire a lot more food than I do...also, I am lots more experiemental with vegetables and grains than they could ever be. *I order an appetizer as my main course when eating outside the home. *I always have a little bit of dessert (if it is something that appeals to me), because when I was MO I never ate dessert in public and would go home and eat everything sweet that was not nailed down which led to lots of useless calories consumed in a frenzy to satisfy my yearning. *I work out 6 days a week...2 with a Personal Trainer, 4 on my treadmill doing a interval training program (slow/fast/high/low). *I weigh myself every day (I know, very controversial but it works for me and keeps me honest.) *I pig out one day a week. Eat whatever I want. Don't write anything down. Don't exercise. *I get up the day after the pig out and get back on the scale and back on my program of reasonable, comfortable and healthy...and yes, I continue to lose weight. So there is the abbreviated version of my plan...clearly I am not the model WLS post op...I have no idea how much protien (or how to spell it) I need, I don't count carbs, I only count calories...but what the hell...it works for me! And most important, I don't feel like I am on a diet, I feel like I have a lifestyle that is simple and reasonable. Continued success to you, Karen

Hi.....Like your ideas on weight loss and congrads on your loss. Do you drink all the water that we are suppose to drink and do you weigh and measure everything. Also do you eat carbs? I am really struggling and have not lost for over 1 1/2 years and you give me hope. Thanks. Betty

I did not want to bore anybody with all of the details of the plan that works for me... Yes, I drink about 64 oz. water/daily. I Weigh and measure everything so that I know how much I ate and can calculate the calories properly. I can eyeball most things by now. I eat food. All kinds just like normal people who are not on a diet. Carbs, fat, crap the whole deal. I just plan my calories accordingly and have gained the inner strength to tell myself that just because some is good it does not mean that more is better. I am so far from being the ideal WLS post op, but I can tell you that my plan works for me! You can do this, just figure out what works for you...continued success! Karen

I am never bored listening to others success plan. Thanks so much for the reply. You have inspired me. Betty

fabulous response. reasonable plan. similar to what I do. but I generally am 1600 - 1800 calories a day and maintianing for 21 months with in a 5 pound range except for some fluctuation with plastics, swelling and illness. it has worked well for me. exercise daily, try to stay fairly active outside the health club too. daily weight is a MUST for me. keeps reality in the forefront and is a boost to see I am maintaining. I sometimes order an appetiser if they have something low fat and healthy, otherwise I just order what I want and take 3/4 of it home with me. I occasionally share a dessert for the reasons you mention. And I don't feel shame for eating it like I did when I was huge,afraid people were watching and judging.

Go Willow! Sometimes I wonder if I am nuts for taking this thing head on and realizing that it is like a full time job. I already have one of those. Between you and me I prefer the full time job that will insure wellbeing and success for life...the payoff is truly priceless! I don't order entree portions because I am in touch with past behaviors which would lead me to take home uneaten portions and the minute I got in the door open up the take home container and eat the rest. So I try to avoid ordering more than I plan to eat. However, this does not always work and my husband's expanding waistline is a true testament to my unfinished meals! Keep eating dessert in public. Not only is it so liberating, it freaks so many people out (those who know about your WLS)! Continued happiness and success to you! Karen

You are an inspiration and give me hope. I met goal of 125 after 10 months of surgery. Now 18 months out and fighting tooth and nail to stay at 135. What should I eat??? I feel like the more I obsess the more I get out of control. I do not dump, never had. I feel like I could eat all the time. I am getting better with water, I exercise 3-4 days a week (lots of cardio and weight training) and most of the time eat well, however when I do what I am supposed to for a few days I tend to slip and eat something I'm not supposed to and before you know it I'm eating like crap. My question is, how did you get back on track after so many years???