LaLaDee

Halo top ice cream!

I think having any expectation around weight loss is difficult. It’s really going to depend on: - how long ago your surgery was (it’s faster right after, it definitely slows down after 6 months - age/height/gender (never ever compare yourself to a 20 something male!!) - current weight (if your BMI is very high, you can reasonably expect a higher loss) - activity levels and exercise - your diet (how closely are you following it? What are your calories/macros? Some plans target faster weight loss, eg keto, some aim for you to lose slow and steady. - other factors, eg your hormones, gut microbiome). Even then, there will be fluctuations. Some months you will lose more and some less. This is a long road for some of us. And you will stall, and then suddenly you will drop a few rounds really quickly. And it will be annoying. My advice is to be patient and honest with yourself. If it is weight loss is slow, assess how you can improve without beating yourself up!

You may have a morphine drip in your arm. So have something you can drape over your shoulders and slippers you can easily put on without bending over too much.

I had to do multiple laps around the ward, drink water, and use the bathroom. They made us stay 2 nights, but I have seen some people doing it as a day procedure so it's obviously up to the Surgeon.

My tummy is still huge. And it hangs kinda low. But it’s not loose skin. It’s pretty firm. I’ve tried to serve my tummy fat several eviction notices but it ain’t going anywhere. In the meantime, my ass is MIA. Could easily start wearing jeans backwards.

I'm 10 months post op and I've spent the past 6 weeks in a stall, weighing between 91.5 and 92.7kg (about 204lbs). This feels like the mother of all stalls. It's really making me miserable. Interestingly, about 7 years ago, I lost 55kg (120 pounds), I got to a similar weight to what I'm at now and I stayed there for a year or so before I put it all back on. For whatever reason, I cannot break the 90kg mark or get to Onederland. I'm starting to think this is as good as it gets. This is my set point weight. I have tried to break the stall. I take all my vitamins, drink lots of water, track through My Fitness Pal. I could do better on calories (I have about 1300 daily - but I am tall), I eat pretty healthy (high protein, no processed carbs). In the past 3 weeks, I've started to exercise a little bit - only 2 or 3 times a week, but I do have rheumatoid arthritis. I have been on prednisone (a steroid medication notorious for making you gain weight) but I'm in the process of tapering off and starting a different medication. Does anyone have any suggestions? Is it normal for this to happen as you approach the one year mark? I feel like I'm tearing my hair out (and much of my hair is only 2inch regrowth!). Am I at my set point weight? Should I give up? Please help me!!!

@Fallinfast Does that mean I do 10 days on commercial protein shakes? My concern is that once I start eating more normally I would regain some weight? Have you tried the reset? I guess the answer is to be more patient. There are a lot of threads with people who are three week post op complaining about a stall lasting a few days. I resist the urge to roll my eyes but I’m not that different despite being nearly a veteran. However, because I have lost so much weight and I’m approaching the one year mark, I’m seriously concerned that this is it for me. My body is just done losing. When I met my bariatric surgeon, he said I would get to 110kg and that would be it. I applaud him for not selling me a bunch of insane expectations but in a way, I felt limited. Only when I found bariatric pal did I start to think I could smash my surgeon’s expectations and define my own goal. I saw people here determined to do amazing things. In spite of having a starting BMI of 50+, I felt like I could still go for it. Losing a little weight puts me at Onederland, gets me in the 80s (kg wise) and takes my BMI to merely overweight rather than obese. It would mean everything to get there. I hate this stall.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I think it could be the prednisone and the fact that I was at this weight previously and it’s some kind of historical set point for my body. In terms of my diet, I only eat eggs, meat (cooked in extra virgin olive oil), vegegables (no potatos), fruit, salad, smoothies, hummus, peanut butter and protein balls. I do have dark chocolate or the occasional halo top as a treat. My other treat is brown rice which I have maybe every two months. Lol. I have tended to focus less on calorie counting and more on macros and making sure I’m eating nutritious food. I have lost about 63kg/130lbs that way but it isn’t working anymore. I drink 2-3 liters of water (no idea what that is in ounces) per my nutritionists instructions. I also have peppermint tea all day and I’ll have a skim milk coffee 2-3 times a week. My Nut actually told me I was the textbook patient and that my diet was excellent. Of course, now that I’ve stalled, I’m questioning everything. Cutting calories may be a way forward. I would only want to do that to break the stall though, I can’t see how I would stay permanently on less than 1200.

I ended up sleeping in a chair on and off for two months. It was just weird pains and also reflux like symptoms. I would not buy a recliner though!

Awesome!!!!!

I totally eat that all the time! Sometimes I use a chili con carne/ground beef meat (homemade with lean meat), sometimes some shredded chicken with taco seasoning. Then I throw it over lettuce and tomatoes. Maybe add some corn or black beans. I think this is a pretty healthy meal. I’ll even do a bit of guacamole or cheese once in a while. (Full disclosure, I do a low carb, high protein, medium - high fat type diet). When I have to eat out, I often order some version of this. I never have rice, tortillas or sour cream but the rest is fine if you ask me. I was eating puréed beef chili and taco soup from like two weeks. It’s high protein and my nutritionist showed me recipes! It took a little while longer to be ready to eat lettuce. Honestly, you really can eat some version of most foods that you used to love. I have bun less burgers and pasta made with zucchini noodles, casseroles and stirfrys with cauliflower rice. Don’t be scared to mess around with healthy versions of your old favorite recipes!

My pre surgery diet was optifast. It’s OK. I got through it. If I made the shakes in a nutribullet with ice, they were OK. I also liked the bars. I could have non starchy vegies or salad for dinner. I did a lot of experimental cooking. I remember making a Mexican spiced soup, and a cauliflower soup. I did feel a bit dizzy going from a high calorie to a very low calorie diet but I got through it! You do drop weight super fast!

I just want to get off it so badly. I hate the stuff. I cannot stop eating. I snack all day which doesn't exactly help the weight loss! I'm also bloated and moody AF. It's really charming.

Rapid weight loss definitely has a lot of drawbacks. I have had a lot of health issues from my body being in shock. Feeling dizzy and light headed. I had psoriasis flare ups (in addition to a range of complications from my auto-immune disease). I didn't mention this before, but it's very strange, psychologically speaking to lose 100 plus pounds in less than six months. It's very disorienting. You feel like a stranger in your own body. It's uncomfortable. You don't recognise yourself. I had a bit of depression (which may have been related to the illnesses), but it also was in part because I was really freaked out by all the changes. How do you stay mindful and centred, when you're dropping 6 dress sizes in 6 months? There's no time to adjust! I am not complaining. I underwent this surgery as an investment in my future health and happiness. And frankly, I wouldn't mind some of that magic rapid weight loss again. However, losing slowly does have some benefits.

I had a high starting weight and I'm tall. Also, unlike Americans, I didn't have to do any pre-surgery program to get my insurance to pay. So I was eating whatever I wanted (till the 2 week shrink the liver diet). Anyway, I think all of these factors contributed to me losing very fast immediately after the surgery. I think it was too fast, my body went into shock, and my autoimmune disease kept flaring up. I lost a lot of hair. So much hair. My loose skin isn't great to look at either, but I do think as months pass by, it's getting a little better. The thing about rapid weight loss is that it keeps you motivated. When I was losing so fast, it was easy to stay super strict with my diet because I was seeing insane results on the scale every morning. However, my weight loss has slowed the hell down now. I have less weight to lose. The honeymoon is over. My weight loss has been particularly slow in recent months because I've had to deal with arthritis and being on prednisone (which is the devil, a steroid medication that makes you eat, eat, eat). Losing weight slowly is frustrating. I would LOVE to lose 20 more pounds (10 kg), which doesn't sound like much (at one point, I was losing that in about a fortnight). I miss rapid weight loss. I find it hard to stay motivated now too. I don't know if it's because the rate of loss is slower, or if I'm just sick of #bariatriclife. So there, that's my perspective on both!!

I'm mildly lactose intolerant (and have been my whole life). For a few months after the surgery, I was very, very lactose intolerant. Like a yoghurt nearly killed me. I swapped to almond milk and cut cheese from my life. I never had a problem with normal amounts of whey protein powder. After a few months, I could have skim milk and a little bit of cheese again. I have no idea why it went away. I appreciate that being lactose intolerent, I probably should cut all lactose from my life but I just can't quit cheese.

Fantastic!! Your skin looks amazing. It seriously seems like you've never even been overweight! Also, are you a hairdresser? I wonder what it would be like to work around mirrors. I don't know if I could handle that. Most of the time I avoid full length/big mirrors at all costs! Lately, I've been catching my reflection in mirrors and getting a mild shock at my weight loss. I wonder if you accept the weight loss more if you have to work around mirrors?

Sit ups? Rolling? Massaging? Witch craft? Plastics? What is the best way forward??

Congratulations on your success! Your smile says it all!

We may have longer journeys but you still get to enjoy life every step of the way! Dont wait for goal to start your life! I’m still a big girl (over 200 pounds) but I’ve been trying all kinds of things that I thought were reserved for thin beautiful girls: Online dating. Yoga. Gym. Speaking up at work. Wearing expensive skinny jeans. Walking the dog during the day time. Shopping at real stores intead of online. Smiling and speaking to strangers. Maybe that sounds weird or small, but when you start where I started on this journey, it’s not just about losing weight. It’s losing the feelings of shame. I’m grateful for the insane, difficult, beautiful, horrible long journey that I’m on. It wouldn’t have been the same if I had only had to lose 60 pounds to get to goal. When I hit my goal, it’s going to be amazing. But I’m not waiting any longer to enjoy life! :-)

Looking good! Keep going! The stall can’t last forever!

Look, the surgery is harder for the surgeon if your liver is very enlarged, but it’s pretty rare that they aren’t able to do it. That said, I wanted to minimize any chance of being under anesthesia for longer so I was pretty strict with my diet. I just drank protein shakes. Easy. No chance to think and screw up. good luck!

@Kmccor you look amazing!!!!

Did other people have good results on the challenge? My stomach should be declared natural disaster zone

Did other people have good results on the challenge? My stomach should be declared natural disaster zone