not losing, help!

I haven't lost but 1 pound in the last 3 weeks.  I have been more strict than usual with my eating plan, I go to the gym to walk about 4-5 times a week.  What is happening?  Do I need to increase or change what I am doing exercise wise?  HELP!  PLEASE!

I had surgery on Sept. 16, 2008 and so far I have lost about 70 pounds.  I know that this is a good amount to lose.  I am just getting frustrated that I haven't seen the scale move in a couple of weeks. 

Suzette

First of all, step away from the scale. You will drive yourself crazy if weigh every day.

Everyone is different but sometimes you actually need to up your calories with healthy protein and complex carbohydrates instead of restricting more. Our bodies will hang on to every calorie we give it if we restrict too much. 

Has your exercise routine been the same for a while? If so, your body will become accustomed to it, so it might time to change it up or change the intensity.

Losing 70lbs is FANTASTIC! You are not done losing, everyone has stalls and they do break. I know it is hard but have patience and the weight loss will start up again before you know it.

Don't get discouraged, we are all here to help and support you.

Hi Suzette, you are not very far out of surgery, trust me, you will experience those plateaus and they are normal, I promise.  Som will last longer than others (I had a plateau last for 3 months, my nut worked with me thoroughly through it and all turned out well), and here is some inspiration for you.  Bridget Jack, a member years ago posted this, and it stuck with me for years, I love it.  Take a read:

"Plateaus in Perspective

Consider how difficult it is for you to run up ten flights of stairs all in one shot. Can you do it? I'm betting NOT unless you are a top-notch-conditioned Olympian, right? Now, of course, you could EVENTUALLY get up those ten flights of stairs if you rested on the landings periodically to catch your breath and pause for a moment before your heart explodes. You'd get up those stairs - but only if you rested on the landings or PLATEAUS. Well, running up ten flights of stairs in one shot is what we are asking our body to do after WLS in the way we want the body to lose a massive amount of weight. As our body loses weight so rapidly, it occasionally has to "rest on the landings" to catch its breath, get its bearings, take a breather. Then once it feels rested, it takes another shot at dropping the pounds again. It's remarkable that the body can drop so much weight so quickly anyway after surgery. but it can't do it all in one long shot like running up ten flights of stairs in one long shot. It has to rest on the landings or PLATEAUS. Keep this analogy in mind when you hit those plateaus. PLURAL. PLATEAUS. No such thing as ONE. you'll have many along your journey. When those plateau**** you still must do what you need to do. DON'T stop the good nutrition, the vitamins, the exercise. keep those routines going. And once your body is done "resting" in between the flights of stairs, it will kick in gear again for the next flight or two. And the more pounds that are dropped, the slower the pounds will drop too. so you will not lose rapidly during that last stretch of 25-30 pounds. it's like an athlete who gives his all during the race, sees the finish line in sight, and does all he/she can to finish. the muscles ache, the heart is about to burst. but the athlete DOES finish the marathon. some athletes "walk" across the finish line. but the point is they FINISHED. Understanding plateaus will help you relax a bit and keep you from self-doubt, which is something you don't need right now along your journey."

Your body is just resting at the landings.  Completely normal.  BTW:  In my personl experience, I am very grateful now for those plateaus, I exercised a tremendous amount then and due to the slower weight loss, I had less loose skin, which I'm thankful for.  Just to give you some perspective.   :)

GOOD LUCK!!!!!

~Shannon