Question:
I've only lost 23 lbs after 7 weeks (post-op), is this normal?
After losing 8 lbs the week previous to surgery, I thought that after surgery would be a breeze... NOT SO! I've been stuck at 20-25 (lost) lbs for 3 weeks! I eat right and cannot exercise the way I have been told I should. Even so, just the extreme lower intake of food should result in something!! My energy level is plummeting and I'm beginning to think this surgery was a HUGE mistake! Does anyone have any advice or words of encouragement???????????? — pattschiele (posted on September 11, 2008)
September 11, 2008
hey there.. your pre op doet, was basically losing water weight, and that
is why u lost 8lbs... after surgery.. everyones body is different. So
since you might not be as rapid as some people.. the norm is 5-10lbs a
month... so your 25lbs is right on track... have to be patient , and keep
up with your diet... doesn't happen over night.. :)
— smittys13
September 11, 2008
Hi, I had surgery the week after you and have only lost 33 lbs and have
been stuck at the same number for 3 weeks. I have upped my water and
protein, but I too dont see the scale moving. I eat exactly as told, I see
the nutritionist every week, and still I'm stuck. All I can say is your not
alone. I read how people loose so easily, well I have resoved myself to the
fact that it isn't how it will be for me. I have had regrets from th
beginning, but honestly whats done is done. You have to look at the
brighter side, your down 25 lbs and thats great!!
— poohisme2
September 11, 2008
I felt the same way!! I'm 11wks out and I have only lost 45 lbs. I have
noitced that some weeks and drop 4 to 5 lbs and some weeks I barely lose 1
lb. It's hard but it really is worth it. For the first time in years I was
finally able to say that I lost 45lbs instead of gained 45 lbs. Keep eating
correctly and do your proper protein and water intake. Just think about how
much weight you will lose 8wks from now, it will be double the amount you
have lost so far. I promise you that. You're on the right track. Keep up
the good work.
— Kbrisbon
September 11, 2008
You should see the brighter side at least you are not gainning weight, your
body will adjust to the amount of calories that you eat so it wont starve,
you need to exercise and are you taking your vitamins and B shots?
Different people react different ways there is no magic to this it is hard
work but dont give up and try to at least walk everyday for 20 minutes you
will see a huge difference
— anachoi
September 11, 2008
Your body is adjusting to the surgery, the lower food intake etc. that's
why you "feel" as if your "going no-where fast" but, as
my physician's office has told me whenever I complained about the weight
loss being to slow "How do your clothes feel? How do YOU feel?
"These markers are just as important as the numbers on the scale!!
I'm a year out and below goal but it wasn't a total breeze. I had my
plateaus and frustrations. Would I do it again? You bet! I feel better now
then I ever have and I have more energy then I could ever imagine. You're
doing well, don't lose hope as you WILL get there.
— Leprechaun
September 11, 2008
I had lap band surgery in dec of 07 and to date have lost 50 pounds. I have
spent many nights crying about how slow my weight loss has been. I walk two
miles a day and eat about 3 to 4 cups a food a day. I had to comes to terms
with the fact that i am just one of those people that lose weight slowly. I
wanted it to come off so quickly and it has been the opposite. I to at
times have thought i made a mistake by having surgery but then think about
how much i would weigh if i never had surgery. You are always gonna have
ups and downs to having surgery but in the end You'll be thankful you had
it done.
— willish
September 11, 2008
Ah the three week stall leaving you down in the dumps....
You did not make a mistake, I felt that way just a few short weeks ago. I
was stalled for 3 weeks and was depressed and dealing with the fact that I
could not stuff food down my gullet to make me feel better...You will get
past it...Do not dwell, take a break from the scale and just concentrate on
your eating and how you feel...it helps take your mind off the scale...You
may find that even if the scale says nothing your clothes say
different...Keep up dooing the doo. and you will see results, before you
know it you will be down another size or two and you'll be happy because
you feel good and people start to notice...
— lori042499
September 11, 2008
Get enough protein and take a good "liquid" vitamin / mineral
supplement like VEMMA. This will get your energy back up. Go to
www.TrySomeVemma.com Also has 1000 IU of vit D3, very important.
— [Deactivated Member]
September 11, 2008
First off, weight loss is not always a straight line loss. Some times
there are plateaus. Some times there are gains. There are a few
possibilities that you need to consider. The first is: Are you retaining
water? The second is: Are you getting enough protein and exercise? In the
FIRST scenario, the issue will probably resolve itself given time. In a
few days or a week or so, you will lose the water and lose the weight. The
SECOND scenario is actually a GOOD thing if it is occurring! If the SECOND
scenario is the case, what is happening is that the protein that you
consume is being turned into lean muscle mass on your body by the exercise!
Lean muscle weighs more than FAT per cubic inch so you can't measure your
progress by the SCALE at this stage of your weight loss, but you CAN with a
MEASURING TAPE! If you are NOT dropping pounds but ARE dropping INCHES,
you are GAINING Muscle! MORE MUSCLE means LESS FAT! The lean muscle mass
will help to ACCELERATE your weight loss! There is the possibility of a
THIRD option that I did NOT mention before. If one of the FIRST two is not
your problem then the THIRD option is likely. The THIRD option is that
your body's Metabolism SET Point could have readjusted itself to starvation
mode. This IS possible. Give it some time. If things don't start working
in a week or so, you may want to contact your physician and get
PROFESSIONAL advice or go to a nutritionist. A CERTIFIED nutritionist will
be able to set you up with a dietary lifestyle that will meet your
nutritional needs and your dietary preferences so that you are likely to
STICK with it. You will also be able to LOSE your weight because he or she
will be able to CALCULATE the calories that you need to consume to lose the
weight at the maximum rate that your body will allow without triggering
your body's metabolism set point. This may be the problem you are having
now. You need to eat a certain number of calories a day or your body
starts holding on to all the FAT that it has stored and actually starts
robbing your body of it's own PROTEIN instead. What your body takes
instead of the fat is MUSCLE. You do NOT want it to do that. Muscle BURNS
fat! Your body does not discriminate from WHAT muscle it robs the protein
FROM either. It will take it from your HEART muscle as readily as it will
from your LEG muscle. You need to eat a certain amount of both PROTEIN and
CARBOHYDRATE a day and for each person that amount will be different
depending upon what their GOAL is. If your goal is to lose weight, and you
are a SMALL WOMAN, the requirements will be different than if you were a
large MAN who wants to MAINTAIN your weight. This is why you cannot use
someone ELSE'S dietary program to optimize your weight loss. Your best bet
is to talk to a CERTIFIED nutritionist and have him or her outline a
PERSONAL diet plan JUST FOR YOU. In order for you to MAXIMIZE your weight
loss, you need to eat the proper amount of both protein AND carbohydrates.
For ME, that ratio is about 20 grams of protein per meal to 20 to 40 grams
of carbohydrates per meal. I eat 5 or 6 small meals a day. I am a 6 foot
3 inch tall MALE, so my needs are going to be different than YOURS. I also
have a severely restrictive diet due to MANY severe allergies. Add to
that, the fact that there are some foods that I will not eat for religious
reasons and OTHERS that I will not eat because I dislike them, and my
nutritionist had her work cut out for her. Each person should have a diet
plan worked up PERSONALLY by a nutritionist instead of using someone ELSE'S
information because the other person's information may not hold true for
YOU. YOU may be smaller or larger than the other person, and that
difference will throw off the calculations needed for your optimal weight
loss. They may also have different GOALS or be somewhere ELSE on the
journey. If you are trying to LOSE weight, and they are trying to MAINTAIN
it, you are going to be very FRUSTRATED if you try to use their diet to
lose weight. The GOOD news is that you do NOT have to give up bread and
pasta, unless you find that it causes problems for you after your surgery.
Of course, If you INSIST on eating bread or pasta, It would not HURT to
make the change from WHITE bread to WHOLE WHEAT bread. The same goes for
PASTA. As long as you are going to CONSUME these things, let's TRY to make
them HEALTHY. We can only eat SO MUCH FOOD now. We need to make sure that
it is QUALITY food and NOT JUNK. Whole Wheat products can count as a
protein as WELL as a carbohydrate. The nutritionist will be able to assist
you to figure out EXACTLY how much you can have of what item without
causing yourself to derail from your weight loss goal. If your weight loss
surgeon provides a nutritionist as part of his services, then you are set!
If NOT, I would HIGHLY recommend that you look into getting one for
yourself. The nutritionist will save you a great deal of headache and
heartache in the future, and will serve to make your weight loss a much
more productive experience. I have had the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy and
have lost 103 pounds in 6 months with the help of a CERTIFED nutritionist
and PERHAPS with the added benefit of not consuming dairy products, eggs,
pork, and red meat. Some of these I avoid due to allergies, some due to
religious reasons. I am also allergic to Cane Sugar, so I avoid ALL
products containing sugar because they usually do NOT label what TYPE of
sugar, they contain. This has PROBABLY kept me on the, "Straight and
Narrow" more faithfully than MOST. I am allergic to BEANS, otherwise
I would likely have remained a STRICT VEGETARIAN and ELIMINATED a lot of
the BAD HABITS that I had picked up such as eating FRENCH FRIES and CHIPS
to help me lose the weight. I hope this helps, Hugh
— hubarlow
September 13, 2008
Hi Patt'
Don't worry.. remember weight loss is a science and our bodies respond to
the things we eat and excercise in a metabolic way. I did the same thing as
you when I was 3 weeks out and out of no where bam! 7 lbs dropped then 8
then 2...it goes down but just in curious ways!! You did not make a
mistake..you'll see just wait till it starts commimg off again. God is
good, keep the faith keep excercising and eating right you will be
rewarded! I just woke up this am got on the scale and lost 8ibs in 3
days!!! I knew I had lost a few but 8??? What a great surprise! Just keep
goin'....
Kimberly
— kbiz888
September 13, 2008
The wisest advice to me here was "THE SCALES ARE LIARS"!! I'm
losing more inches than the pounds reflect! Are you seeing a difference in
your clothes? Good luck and God Bless!
— Susan L.
September 13, 2008
Cheer up! This same thing has happened to me. I lost 31 lbs in three weeks
then did not lose a single pound for three weeks after that. I was so
discouraged and was thinking "what the heck did I do to myself".
Then I waited 3 weeks until I weighed myself again and poof!- I had lost 16
lbs more! You will get through this, it is normal, and you are in my
prayers. Good luck to you!!!
— glasshouse
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