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You're likely stuck in the third week stall. It's normal and it will blow over. Not everyone gets the third week stall (I didn't) but stalls happen frequently and as annoying as they are it's just your body adjusting. They usually last a week or two. I've had three so far and I'm 5 months out.

You're in the very well known and discussed three week stall. It happens all the time, and there are literally hundreds of threads just on this forum alone about how a person is panicking since their weight loss has stopped. Stalls will happen ALL THE TIME over the next year for everyone that is losing weight. No way to tell how long they will last, or how often they will happen, but as long as you are sticking to your doctor's guidelines for food, Protein, and Water intake and doing some gentle activity (ramping up to real exercise as soon as you are cleared to do so), the stalls eventually break and you'll be just fine. Stalls are the body's way of taking a breather and ramping up for the next round of weight loss. No one loses weight steady; it's always going to be lose some... stall for a week. Lose some more; stall for three weeks... rinse and repeat. http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/351046-embrace-the-stall/ And no, you can't stretch your pouch or sleeve out from eating and drinking foods you're supposed to be eating/drinking. Even if you overate, you'd likely just throw up. The stretchy part of your stomach is gone if you had the sleeve surgery. Your stomach will eventually relax once the swelling has gone down and by a year out, it might hold slightly more volume than at 3 months, but it won't grow back or otherwise stretch.

Hi...at 4 weeks I was on full liquids and pureed chicken ,fish, or turkey . I'am at 6 wks out now and have been having a nice little stall for the past three weeks...yes it's bugging me and yes I've asked on here and to my medical team ..."is this normal?"....and yes it is normal. Your body is adjusting to what we just put it through and trying to get back to "it's normal". I'm having a hard time just letting it do it's thing...but there is nothing else I can do but get my protein, water in and work out. That said it sucks...but I not gonna get too upset.....Good luck.

Omg stalls are the worst!! I’ve had about three since surgery and I now know it’s part of the process and once you start loosing you really lose. I made my husband hide the scale and I only weigh myself once a week. I have lost 50 lbs so far so it is working!

Great responses so far - agree with all of them. 1. Only weigh yourself once a week - your weight will fluctuate daily and it will be discouraging when you see it temporarily go up. 2. You will have stalls - they are normal. At around 3-4 weeks is when your liver will return to its normal storing of glucose, plus when the liver dumped its stores pre-op it causes dehydration - temporarily looking like more fat loss than really occurred (the pre-op diet shrinks it to help the surgeon) so a stall here is usual. Search "stalls" or "three-week stall" for more posts on this. From what I've read here, stalls will happen occasionally throughout the weight loss process but often the inches will continue to come off. It's the bodies way of taking time to adjust. 3. You didn't mention which surgery you're having. If it's gastric sleeve then initially your sleeve will be swollen so when you start on solid foods it won't hold much at all. But once the swelling goes down it will hold a little more (ounces.) Everyone is different. But don't worry, you didn't stretch your sleeve! That takes "one extra bite at a time over about a year" according to surgeon Dr. Duc Vuong. 4. I started losing right away, and write down everything I eat in a food journal. Don't ever allow fattening, unhealthy foods in again and especially not high calorie drinks - you can override the surgery and regain the weight even eating smaller portions especially if eating every couple of hours. 5. If you haven't discovered him yet, on YouTube I highly recommend watching as many of Dr. Duc Vuong's videos as possible. His breakfast green smoothie is what I've been doing since surgery and plan to continue forever. 6. When your clothes start falling off you avoid spending on new clothes - visit the local Goodwill or thrift store. You'll turn them in for smaller ones the following month after month. It's fun! And costs little. I've found so many nice clothes in good condition available that frankly this will now be the first place I go to shop even when I reach my goal weight. 7. Take your vitamins and get enough protein (and don't forget some healthy fats.) It will help keep you healthy plus temporary hair loss at 3-6 months is frequently talked about here but getting enough protein and the proper vitamins may help either prevent it or make it less than otherwise. They say it grows back - I'm only at two months so haven't reached that point yet. 8. Immediately post-op know that pain meds cause constipation so will keep the gas in causing more pain. By all means if you're in pain and need to take them do so at your surgeon's direction! But be sure to drink enough water/liquids and walk as mentioned by others here. Good luck! Having weight loss surgery was the best thing I've ever done for myself especially for my health. And my knees are no longer aching as well. Whew! Who wants knee surgery?

My weight loss has been VERY slow and in a pattern. I lose for about a week and then I stall for three. This has been ongoing since surgery. I have "only" lost 44 pounds since surgery day on September 12th and I have only lost two pounds since Christmas, which was five weeks ago. Be patient, it will happen and your body is just freaking out right now.

What is, "What are things that are painfully slow?" Bariatric surgery for $400, Alex. So for the past three weeks I have gone back and forth between stalls and losing like .5 pounds a week. I tried mixing it up--more exercise, less carbs, more carbs, less calories, more calories, more water, more protein---more hair pulling!! I was afraid of this. When I lost 112 pounds in my 20s, it was in the 220s I slowed down and got a little crazy--purging, laxatives, fasting (aka starving). Now I am a big grown woman and I can't say I have those urges again but the panic is the same. Why does it need to be like this? Why this reaction? Why can't we all just chill when we stall?

Today I am 5w 1d post-op. I'm feeling great and am back to full activity. There are no more aches and pains and I've finally managed to regularly get in over 90g of protein without reliance on protein shakes. At three weeks, I hit the dreaded stall but continued to lose inches. It was a little disconcerting for me to be in that position. Of course, inches are great but when I go to the doctor, they don't measure my waist, they weigh me to see if I'm on track. Nonetheless, I was prepared for it and had already made up my mind what I would do when it came. The stall broke today so for 15 days, I was at the same weight. In those 15 days: I increased my protein to between 90-115g per day. I increased my water to at least 84oz. per day. I increased the length and intensity of my workouts. My total calories increased to around 850. I increased my intake of carbohydrates. As I said, I'm doing a good job of weaning myself off of protein shakes. Some would say that it's too soon but I'd rather get my protein through food than a shake. I've found myself in a predicament where I have to eat something every three hours anyway so I just get the protein in at each small meal (about 5 per day). My go-to sources are chicken, fish, shrimp, very lean ground beef, ground turkey, and low-fat cheeses. Increasing my water was the hardest part because water temporarily fills me up so it takes longer than I'd like to get all my water in (and I'm past the sipping stage). However, if we jump into the Way Back Machine and go back to high school physiology class, we remember that we need water to metabolize stored fat. On top of my workouts, dehydration wasn't going to do anything for weight loss so I had to get in more. Some surgeons tell their patients that protein shakes count towards their water totals and since water is in the shake, it makes sense but I believe (and have always believed) that regular water is the best to meet water needs. My workouts started off slow because my surgeon has a sort of vesting schedule for workouts. At two weeks, she only allows walking. At three, speed walking, and it progresses from there. At three weeks, I felt fine. I had no more aches and pains so I went ahead full speed. Pre-op, I was a runner and frequently used HIIT training. I transitioned back into those forms of exercise. I gave myself about 4 days to adapt and then increased the running by about 15-20 extra minutes (about another 1.5 miles). I also reintegrated strength training. The increase in my workouts warranted the increase in my total calories. I was never given a calorie level to maintain by the NUT. In fact, she said not to count calories but to just eat according to the sleeve. The 450-500 calories I had been getting just is not conducive to long-term functionality and it was causing me to retain water. Over the course of a week or so, I increased my calories in a number of ways. For example, for breakfast, I would have a serving of turkey sausage crumbles. I started to add one serving of shredded mozzarella to it for an additional 80 calories and 6g of protein. Lastly, I increased carbs. On my plan, I cannot have raw fruit or vegetables until 6 weeks out. I can, have canned veggies and fruit though. I found some "No Sugar Added" canned fruit that has 30 calories and 6 grams of carbs per serving (1/2 can). I started eating a few slices of the fruit (because I can't manage a 1/2 can) with my protein at lunch. I'm not 100% certain about the science behind this but since our bodies need glycogen and the need to glycogen is one reason that stalls happen, I figured introducing some carbohydrates through food would help my body get what it needs without prolonging the stall. I just started doing this over the last week and apparently it worked because I lost 1.2 pounds between yesterday morning and this morning. As a final note, my surgeon's nurse practitioner explained that with the sleeve, they usually see stair step weight loss. She noted that most people will lose a large amount of weight and then level off for a week or two and then lose another lump of weight throughout the process. Although I'd like to see a weekly decrease in weight consistently, I'll take the alternative as long as my total body composition is changing. My NSV (inspite of the stall), is that I'm back at The GAP! Here's to a fashionable fall.

Aw, honey.....you've technically lost 6 pounds in 8 days, right? I think that's fantastic and I bet that's better than any other diet you've been on! Give your body time and patience. It WILL come off. I lost about 12 pounds the first week (surgery 10/20), got to 288, then the last whole week have fluctuated between 288 and 285! Got down to 285 yesterday, then today shot back up to 288???!! What the hell is THAT! How you do gain three pounds in one day only eating about 700 calories! I didn't even do that when I was eating 3000 a day! But I know it's just my body trying to adjust, fluctuating with Water weight, panicking that it will never get a whole meal again, and scared to death that it's starving right now and hanging on to every little fat cell. One thing you can bet on for sure is that you WILL LOSE WEIGHT! I have not seen one person who had the sleeve who did not lose weight. They might stall, they may gain a few pounds here and there, but overall, we always lose! Hang tight, Sunshine...it'll come. I know it's hard since we're suffering a liquid diet, you'd think we'd at least be rewarded with at least a pound lost a day, but our bodies are fickle little creatures with a ton of overriding responses to starvation!

I only told family and very close friends - so many people have a strong opinion on WLS and want to offer advice. A few people have guessed because I'm losing the weight, but I felt it was for my well being not to have people judge me, etc. I hope you guys have great success - I'm six weeks post-op and have lost about 38 pounds - I hit a stall for three weeks. Had surgery 10/13/11, but since July 2011 I've lost 60 pounds. I was able to eat a little Thanksgiving food yesterday but I preferred the fresh items over anything heavy :-) Good luck!

Hey everyone! I'm eleven weeks out today and have lost 48 pounds. However over the last week nothing is settling. It stops at the end of my esophagus and comes right back up in a ball. Always nauseated before and after I eat. I have to lay down to knock it most times and to top it off I have stalled. I've been the same weight for almost three weeks now very frustrating. Any suggestions? Is this nausea and vomiting normal? I'm miserable. Help!!

I'm with you ladies! It's really tough being a "slow" loser after all we've been through. I do agree that I'm still losing more then I ever could before surgery, and I have every intention of keeping the weight off for once and for all! I read so much about stalls before my surgery, that I decided to just hide my scale for a while. I weighed in at my one week and one month follow up visits with my surgeon, and am looking forward to my three month weigh-in shortly. There's so little we can eat right after surgery, I figured I would just remove the "scale stress" from my life and just be pleasantly surprised at each follow-up appointment. I know I'll have to start weighing myself after my three month visit to ensure I'm doing the right things and tweaking things when necessary. Until then, I have enough to deal with without "scale stress!" Good luck to you all!

Alyce, Our doctor's plans vary a bit, but here is where I was at post-op (I am at 8 1./2 months now). I came home on on Day 3, permitted to drink full liquids. At week two, I went on to purees, which include applesauce, but sugar free. Sugar is still an issue for me now. I just can't afford to give my calorie balance (800 per day) over to sugar or starrch). At week three I started soft foods, and at week four I graduated cautiously to cooked whole foods. I would not accuse you of cheating, myself, but just advise you to be patient withh your team's plan. Oh, and that week three stall is coming up, just so you know.

I am 3 1/2 weeks post op. Things progressing fine. No problem with liquid or Protein requirement. Am able to eat soft foods prepared in the blender. Even turkey meat loaf and tuna. Cannot eat much or I feel stuffed. About 1/2 cup is my limit. Ground chicken chili with soft white Beans has been my latest. I was losing pounds fairly steadily until this week. I've lost 35 pounds since beginning the two week liquid diet on Sept 5. Now I seemed to have stalled. I've heard of the three week stall so has anyone else experienced it? My Doc says to stay away from the scales for a while because I'm replacing fat with lean muscle tissue. I just can't resist stepping on those scales every morning. Any of you sleevers experience the stall? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I feel your frustration, I stalled for almost three weeks during my long preop too. I know it's normal, but it's still hard when it's happening to YOU!

Wanted to offer some encouragement. After six weeks, the scale finally MOVED!!! Down three pounds since Sunday. Hang in there everyone, it is true, stalls will be broken:)

Whenever you start any kind of a weight loss program, not just surgery, you tend to lose very quickly the first couple of weeks or so because initially you are burning mostly glycogen - your quick reserves of primarily carbs which burn at a rate of around 2000 calories per pound; after those reserves are exhausted, then you start burning primarily fat which burns at a slower rate of about 3500 calories per pound. People often stall during this transition period, which is what is usually referred to as the dreaded three week stall. So, if you are already in that longer term fat burning mode when you go into surgery, then you won't see as big of an initial drop immediately post-op that those who didn't lose anything pre-op did (though you may see an initial gain and quick loss from the fluids they pump into you during your hospital stay.) Either way - pre-op or post-op, weight loss is a good thing and what we are here for! Good luck.

I had RNY in 1990 and regained all I lost. I always blamed myself but now know that the surgery failed due to a fistula between pouch and stomach. I didn't know that revision was even possible until 2020, just before the pandemic struck. I started the bariatric program in early 2021. I discovered that I am a food addict with trigger foods: sugar, wheat flour, rice, white potatoes, and processed food. I cut out those foods and the result was fantastic! I lost 70 lbs prior to surgery. Despite this success, I went ahead with laparoscopic revision surgery on 12/21/21 at age 73. I weighed 247 at the time of surgery, down from 317. Unfortunately, I fell in that very tiny group of bariatric surgical patients that develop serious complications. Ten days after my revision surgery, I was airlifted back to the hospital with peritonitis and sepsis, caused by a rupture of the jejunum below the anastomosis. I was hospitalized for 7 weeks and underwent three endoscopic procedures and two open surgeries before they finally found and corrected a residual abscess. I left the hospital with a 15-cm long open surgical wound, which took 8 more weeks to fully close. I am now fully recovered and am back to exercising daily. The endoscopic procedures stretched the new anastomosis so I have no more restriction than I had pre-surgery, so I still have to be very careful about what I consume. I typically go through month-long stalls and then drop a few pounds. I do lose inches during the stalls. I've dropped from size 32/4X to size 20/XL and now weigh 214 lbs., just past the 100 lb loss mark. After being on a restricted diet for over 16 months I struggle with near-irresistible cravings in the afternoon and evenings. The clinic wants me to limit intake to 800 calories. 😱 It is daunting because I know I will never be able to go on a "maintenance" diet and must continue to avoid my trigger foods forever. Even when I choose protein snacks in response to cravings, each snack adds 100 or more calories to the daily total so my daily calorie count is between 900-1200 calories. (I will gain weight at 1500 calories.) I've done a trial of weight loss drug CONTRAVE but had to discontinue due to side effects. This is a horror story, but don't let it dissuade you from your revision. Complications are extremely rare.

Truthfully, I could care less if I'm a slow loser or a fast loser, so long as I'm a loser (of weight, that is)! I started at a 53 BMI, and I've lost 81 pounds in 4.5 months. IMO, that's the perfect rate of weight loss for ME. One thing about losing slowly is that it gives your skin more of an opportunity to rebound so you will hopefully have less loose skin when you get to goal. Losing slowly also means you are probably losing more fat than muscle, which is great! Less muscle to have to rebuild. And, numbers on the scale do NOT tell the whole story. I look for the NSVs or non scale victories. Are my pants looser? Can I walk further, do more, do I have more energy? All of those things add up, not just the pounds lost according to the scale. If you look through the gallery, ANY gallery, you'll see people who are 172 pounds that wear a size zero and people who weigh 172 who are a size 10. The differences are in height and muscle tone, usually. So the scale doesn't tell the whole story. Muscle does weigh more than fat. Muscle also helps us burn fat, so building strong muscles is important. I stall when I work out, then a few pounds will whoosh off in a day or two. But, when I work out, I lose inches. By doing basic workouts, walking, bicycle, light weight lifting, I have lost two pants sizes in the last three weeks. I also haven't lost an ounce in over a week. Am I worried? Nope. I keep eating my Protein, drinking my Water, and working out. The weight loss will happen, but I want to be a solidly built 170, not a flabby 170. The bonus of working out is the energy boost. IMO, everything looks better when you get that serotonin boost from working out and, BELIEVE ME, I can use that energy boost right now!

Yep, my stall started week 3 and lasted for three weeks. It happens. Just keep following your doctor's guidelines and your body will pick up again with the weight loss. Stalls are for your body to catch up with everything. (It helps to keep a positive spin on them because otherwise they will drive you insane.)

This may sound like a weird question but are you able to use the bathroom? I found when i was really stalled I was also really constipated and that seemed to add to the stall issue. About the calories, How many calories are your shakes? How many grams of Protein are you getting? Week three is famous for stalls! Hang in there!

three week stall. if you to do a search on it on this site, you'll find over 17,000 posts on it (and no, I am NOT kidding). It happens to almost all of us. Just stick to your plan and stay off the scale for a few days - and know that your weight loss WILL start up again. It always does...

Aah, the three week stall. Though it can happen earlier or later than that. Yes, it is common - extremely common. I liked to think of it it as my body taking a breath to catch up with all the changes. You will start to lose again, maybe in a week, maybe two or three & you’ll experience it again. Some people will say to increase your calories or activity levels. Others will say just keep on your path. I kept on my path & the loss started again (the first time after a week, the second after almost three weeks). Congrats on your surgery & weight loss so far.

Its called the '3 week stall'. Search the forums. There are millions of posts regarding it. Don't fear, stalls are normal - particularly the three week one. Your weight will drop - promise!

Hi To all! Well, here it is after Christmas and I did not gain a pound in fact I lost a pound. Pretty cool. I am still on a giant stall but I am not discouraged. I am going for a fill on Wednesday, which I am looking forward too. I still have my B-ping moments when I do not chew enough but I think that we all have that happen. My body shape feels different which is very cool. I go to the gym only twice a week to work with a trainer and do Cardio. I will be increasing the Cardio portion of my work out to at least three times a week starting next week. I still have yet to buy any new clothes, I guess I am still feeling too fat, LOL. I remember getting chubby and when I was at 170 things were not real bad but when I reached 200 I started feeling fat, so I am looking forward to getting under the 200 mark and geting more of my "really old" shape back! hehehe. One thing I can say that is really great to feel, is that when I weighed 264 I would not go anywhere and I would not want to see anyone and that was just a year ago, now I am looking forward to going somewhere on New Years Eve! Yeah! I am still very shy but at least now I am not embarrassed about my extra girth! One thing really interesting on the note of Size. Yes, I have lost 60 pounds but not very many people have noticed that I have lost weight. It must be the big girl clothes I still wear! It really makes me laugh! I will be getting rid of all the old things and on to new and more fitting garments! Well here's to the next 60 pounds that I am going to loose! 2010 will be a great year! Happy New Year to all! I love my Band! :thumbdown::drool: