Question:
I am one year post op as of June, and I am working out at the gym three times...

I am one year post op as of June and have been working out at the gym three times per week and yet I am still only down 91 pounds. To give you an idea, I started out at 342 pounds. I went from a 4x down to a 2x and sometimes even a 1x but I am finding that these last 50-70 pounds that I want to lose are just seeming impossible for me to accomplish. Any suggestions??    — Christina S. (posted on July 15, 2004)

July 15, 2004
No suggestions. I am in the same boat. I am a size 18 from a size 30. Went to my doc the other day and he was not thrilled at my loss. I am going to try to eat less. I eat too much food. Not a lot of food, but enough to keep me from losing (ie. 1800 cals a day).
   — mrsmyranow

July 15, 2004
The best suggestion I have is to start tracking your food on www.fitday.com as it will likely open your eyes to what you are actually doing. We think we are doing one thing but when we track it, truthfully it is usually an eye opener. There are many things that can factor into the weight loss - you may have been given too short a bypass or too large a pouch, which are making it difficult to get everything off. Do you know exactly what was done to you? You are likely going to have to jump on the protein train and do like 75% or higher, protein for each meal to get things moving. I did almost 100% protein the first 4-1/2 months after WLS as it was burning the fat big time and I wasn't going to mess with success. The other woman posted that she's been doing 1800 calories a day, which if you are a standard RNY (100 cm bypassed and 1 ounce pouch) that would be way too much unless you are at goal and need that much to maintain. I eat on average 1500 calories a day and I'm sure some days upwards of 1800, but I am below goal and am struggling to find that balance that keeps my weight stable and not float up and down 5-7 lbs. Until I was very close to goal I was eating more like 1000 to max 1200 calories. We always need to remember calories in must equal calories burned if we want to maintain and more calories burned if we want to lose. Everyone's metabolism is different, so one person can eat a ton and another cannot eat even 1000 calories without gaining. We each need to adjust to what our particular bodies are doing. 91 lbs is nothing to sneeze at, that's for sure. Your body may decide it doesn't want to attain the goal weight you have set and you may need to accept that. But I'm sure with diligence you can take off some more of the weight you desire to lose. Don't forget that PS, assuming you need it, will remove quite a bit. I had 19 lbs removed with my LBL, 3 lbs removed with the upper abdominoplasty, 4 liters of fat lipo's out of my legs (not sure of the weight value for that) and I have about 8-10 lbs of skin to remove on my legs yet. The batwings are probably another 3-4 lbs at least but I'm not sure I will get them done. Keep working hard and try adjusting your eating and exercise etc. Do things to shake up both as sometimes that will kickstart the weight loss.
   — zoedogcbr

July 15, 2004
I think we all get stalled at some point. I really belive that following the basic of eating--high protein, low carbs and sweets--along with working out 6 times a week is the answer. You are coming to the point where your body is waking up, so you have to trick it again to restart the weight lost. I'm sure your doctors office has suggestions for you. Good luck, noone ever said this was easy.
   — barbara A.

July 16, 2004
I know that last stretch is so frustrating when you work so hard and don't lose. Just a couple of thoughts here. I agree that high protein - low (but reasonable) carb is the way to go. One trap we sometimes fall into is thinking that eating steak, bacon, eggs, etc. to get our protein is the way to go. I don't know if this even applies to you, as I said it's just a thought. However, those foods, in excess are LOADED with fat and calories. An ideal way to ramp up your protein is to have a light breakfast and a light lunch and supplement your protein a couple of times a day. With a high quality supplement you're getting good amounts of protein and not alot of calories. Then eat a healthy dinner. I know alot of folks don't like protein supplements but I really can't imagine there's not something out there that would please even the most finicky eater. One of my patients recently told me he couldn't stand to drink a protein supplement but that he'd discovered he loved to dip Sugar Free Banana Popsicles in any flavor of Nectar Protein and that's how he was getting in his daily protein. So, there's lots of ways to make that happen. Another thought - since we don't have alot of info in your question - are you sure you're eating enough? If you're working out but not taking in enough calories your body could be staying in perpetual starvation mode. My advice for you is to hang in there, work on the protein and keep up the GREAT work! Even though it's going slower than you'd like you're doing GREAT!
   — ronascott

July 16, 2004
I am in the same boat with you and a previous poster. I started at 389 and am now at 282-285. From a size 32/34 to a 22/24. I hope it is not over for me. I know I am still losing inches but only 3 pounds since March of 2004 which was my one year anniversary. Keep the exercise going and eating right and the weight will have to come off.
   — twin94

July 19, 2004
Don't give up keep going in due time it will come off!
   — Monique R.