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Last night at work was SO good for my ego. I had three different people at work tell me how great I looked. My Husband (God love him!) has always told me I look good, but rarely (?never?)has anyone else mentioned to me, out of the blue, how good I look. Last night at work. I had three different individuals come up to me and tell me they noticed how I had lost a lot of weight, and that they just had to tell me they thought I looked great. One of them was this tiny little doctor who can't weigh much over 100 pounds herself. She told me "not to overdo the weight loss thing"! Not that I will ever be as tiny as she is (she is only like 5 feet tall, and probably weighs all of 110!) When I told her I had another 35-40 pounds to lose she asked me "where? off your big toe?" Now my friends and co-workers, who know what I have done, have been very supportive. But these were people who didn't necessarily know that I had been sleeved, but just realized that I had lost a bunch of weight. All three of them told me how fantastic I looked. I had one of my new pair of shorts on when I went to work, and one of them told me that my legs looked absolutely great with my nice tan! I almost floated clear up to the ceiling I was so thrilled to hear somebody give me a compliment like that! In the future, every time I get discouraged about not losing fast enough, not being able to eat all I want to eat, every time I hit a stall, anything, I am going to replay that memory in my brain's DVD player to remind myself how great it is to look and feel good! I am going home for a ten day visit in about 2 1/2 weeks, and am hoping to loose a few more pounds before I go home. My husband is excited to see me. He has NEVER known me at this weight. I weighted around 200 when we met, got married, and all our married life (41 years!). So he can hardly wait to see me. I was just at the 200 mark when he left for home in August. He said he is going to get a sign that says "Kathy Warren" on it and hold it up when he picks me up at the airport, like limo drivers do when they are picking up someone they don't know, since he is convinced he won't know me! Funny Man! I am just a little over 180 now, and hope to be in the 170's by the time I fly home. And I can't wait to fly home. For years now I have HATED to fly, cause I had to ask for a seat belt extension (SO embarassing!), and then I sort of "spilled over" into the seats on either side of me, if I was in the middle seat. This time there should be NO "spill over"! And certainly no seat belt extension needed! The last few times I flew, I even went to far as to purchase a first class ticket, so that I would have the advantage of the larger seats and more room in First Class. Now I love to fly First Class, BUT it is so pricey! Am loving the savings that I am going to get by being able to fly economy, but of course, will miss the individual attention and service that comes with First Class! But I keep telling myself, I can fly home more often when it doesn't cost as much! Well, should close. I only slept four hours and then woke up. Am going to try and get back to sleep for a few more hours, as I have to work all night again tonight. Hope all you Post Op sleevers and potential sleevers are having a Great weekend. The weather here in the Central Valley of California is great. Hope you are all outside doing something special. Later........

sounds like you've entered the infamous "three-week stall" a little early. Almost all of us go through our first stall sometime within the first month after surgery. It's usually the third week, but not always. Mine was weeks 2 and 3.

Good for you .. You look amazing i have lost 31 pounds since jan ive stalled dont know why for about three weeks today is hard for me to eat im hoping to lose 50 more pounds getting lil upset the scale has yet to move in weeks

Our gym has a pool and Water aerobic classes three days a week. I have been stalled (scale-wise) for a while but I am getting smaller. Well a few water aerobic classes has the scale moving again. Most of the people in the class are much older than I am (47). Some of them have limited mobility. It is a very good workout, and not intimidating at all, even though (OMG!) I am in public in my bathing suit, which is now kind of too big! lol

Yes, it is completely normal. Your stomach tissue was extremely swollen right after surgery which caused the problem with Protein drinks the first few days. As your stomach heals the tissue swelling and inflammation starts to decrease and you can handle liquids and food better. I even told my doctor's PA at my two week checkup that I wasn't sure they actually did the sleeve! He laughed and said they hear that a lot. And the first stall at around 3 weeks is also completely normal. If you search "three week stall" you'll find hundreds of posts about it. If you stick to your surgeon and nutritionist's recommendations you should be fine.

This is my first post! Hope it's okay. Today I talked to the dietitian. I'm not stalled out but I wanted to make sure I was correctly on track. She recommended 500 cals/day. I'm 6 months out and I've lost 99 pounds after RNY. Here's the kicker! The last three times I've seen the nurse practitioner, she's recommended I eat "more" calories, because my activity level is too high for this amount of calories. Also, the last time I went, she told me I hadn't lost enough weight. So I've seen the nurse practitioner three times. The first time, I was eating 500 cals/day, and complaining of exhaustion and dizziness. She gives me the ok to up to 600 cals. The second time, I was eating 600. She didn't say anything about my rate of weight loss, but again recommended adding more. She did not mention a specific number. Third time, I'm eating probably 700, she tells me I haven't lost enough and that again, I need to up more. I ask for a specific recommendation and she says that I need to let my morning weight determine my eating plan. I stopped exercising after this visit since my activity level is clearly "too high." It's been maybe 6 weeks since I saw the NP, so in an effort to get back on track after Christmas, I called today and asked for a recommended amount of calories. There's a long distance bike ride in my hometown in April that I'd like to train for. After all, part of the reason I had this surgery was to be able to do more things. The dietitian says to stay on 500 cals until I lose 75% of my excess body weight, and then I can up it to 600 MAX. What?????????????????????????????? In her defense, I didn't mention the long distance cycling or anything but I did mention I was going to the gym 3-4 times a week and riding the bike for 45 minutes. I guess maybe I didn't tell her explicitly enough that I'm actually exercising and not just slowly riding the bike? I don't know. My husband checked the bariatric road map they gave us when the program first started and apparently at six months you're supposed to just be "walking" and not really getting your heart rate up. I know bariatric recommendations are like the wild west out here and no two programs are the same. I know that I should be listening to my dietitian. But how is it possible that these two people are so far off? I was eating 800-1000 calories because I calculated my total daily energy expenditure, and 1000 should have me losing 2 pounds/week. Why aren't they on the same page??? SW: 316 CW: 217 75% excess body weight: 186 GW: ????

Yeah, I had the three week stall and it lasted a couple of weeks. WIth my pattern of loss, I am now seeing that I can just expect to stall for a couple of weeks, lose 3-4 lbs in a hurry, and then stall again. So I think I just need to get used to it.

There seems to be an infamous three week stall. I personally just hit it and it lasted 3.5 weeks. Many supporters here had warned me and although you expect it, it makes you doubt if the sleeve is going to work for you. Keep doing what you're suppose to and your body will adapt and before you know, you will start losing. Eat your protein and lots of fluid and you will be rewarded. We all lose at different rates. For me it seemed the stall started when I went from liquids to solids. As if my body was in starvation mode and held on to everything I put in my mouth, once it realizes that you will continue to feed it, it let's go of the choke hold. This was a very depressing time for me, one night I just let it go emotionally on this very site and the next day I had lost. Good luck to you...

I know exactly where you are coming from. What kept me going, even at my highest weight... I held down a job. I had to get up and go to work. It was a daily struggle, my feet hurt, my knees hurt, tired and did not feel good. There were a lot of days that I called into work because I just could not push myself any further. Right after the surgery I did not want to leave the house and did not want to move. I set infront of the TV for the month that I was off work. Of course I was loosing weight slowly and stalling because I was doing absolutely no exercises and had every excuse in the world still. As the months have passed....I have started feeling better. I have started parking further from my building and forcing myself to walk four times a day to my car and back. It has been five months now and I'm starting to feel decent again. Everyone at work has made comments about me getting around a lot better (I would sit at my desk all day and wouldn't even get up and go to the bathroom because the bathroom was too far away). I bought an ellipitical peddler for under my desk and I use it several times a day. I have some weights that I lift when I sit infront of the TV. I have more energy now and each day is better. I am getting a shot the next three weeks in both of my knees and then hopefully I will be more mobile. You have just got to make up your mind just the same as you did when you decide to get the surgery. Go back to what motivated you to do the surgery.....was it to live? be healthy? for your children? sick and tired of being sick and tired? and use these motivations to get you up and moving. Get into a local WLS support group. This will really help you when you see and hear other people going through the same thing. You can do this and we got your back!!!

For some reason I thought I was going to be "better" than everybody else and not go through a three week stall that thousands talk about. HA! I was delusional. Lost a whopping 0.4lbs this week Oh well, at least I know its normal and to keep on keeping on.

do a search on "three week stall". It happens to almost everyone. There should be millions of threads on it in here...

unless you're the size of someone on "My 600 lb Life", 14 lbs in three weeks is pretty normal. Most of us "average" WLS patients lose somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first MONTH, so you'll end up somewhere in that range. as for stalling at three weeks post op, do a search on it on this site. I just did. There are literally 17,501 posts on it. Happens to almost everyone. To get through it, stick to your plan and back what off on weighing yourself. Maybe weigh just once or twice a week until it breaks. And it WILL break, as long as you stick to your plan. Usually lasts 1-3 weeks. And it'll likely be the first of many stalls.....

Good timing for me as well - I had one stall at 231.8 for two weeks; then started to loose once again; now three weeks later I am at a stall at 221.8 ! But the compliments just keep coming and the clothes just keep getting falling off. Today I had to move the seat of my car up closer to the steering wheel. Just came back from a work sponsored health fair - my cholestral is way down; blood pressure is perfect and BMI is down 12%. I am thrilled with all the good news. I am halfway to where I want to be; and happy with the results.

I was 338 on 10/30. On 11/1, I was 341.4. I dodnt worry about it because i the last couple of days had been closer to 1000 cals because of our anniversay and because I hadnt "eliminated". On 11/2, I was 340.6. I also had some spotting. I have mirena and havent period in years, so this was a bit weird. But the spotting has stopped. Today, I was 339.8. Its going down a bit but I realized the last time I remember having a decent size "elimination" was Saturday. Do I consider this the three week stall (4 weeks post op yesterday), some psuedo period or constipation? If stall or constipatio, what do you guys suggest to "break through"? I would really like to . Thanks HW 385 SW 359 CW 340 Sleeved 10/5/16

I have a sip or three of liquids when I eat - Not always, but sometimes. I cannot stand being thirsty. I certainly don't chug. It's hard because since I eat so slowly, one meal blends into another. I also have a few sips of club soda mixed with fruit juice on occasion. It hasn't stalled me at all so far. I got the 3 week stall, but that is a Water retaining, glycogen issue. I have been losing about .7 pounds a day.

Many people, if not the majority of us, who've had WLS experience a stall around the two to three week mark post-op. You can find dozens of threads on here discussing this if you do a keyword search of "three week stall". I was actually advised to not weigh myself at all the first month to avoid being discouraged or alarmed, but of course popped on there anyway because my curiosity was too strong. Your body is needing a bit of time to adapt. It's gone through an intense surgery, during which time you probably gained a few pounds from all that was pumped into you, and then rapidly lost a lot of weight. It's kind of like your body needs to catch its breath. There's a blogger called The World According to Eggface who has a lot of recipes for smoothies you can make during the first month out. I never would have imagined it to be possible, but I ended up having fun during that first month out trying out her ideas and others I found on Pinterest and from posters on here. I'd suggest trying out different types of protein powders so that you have some variation. I really liked the protein powders by Unjury and Syntrax Nectar. At the time I had the surgery in 2015 you could buy sample sizes of Syntrax at The Vitamin Shoppe, but in recent visits to the stores near me I found out they only have them in the large tubs now. You can still get the smaller sizes on Amazon, I believe. I'd add in nut butters (I liked making them fresh at Whole Foods), low carb fruit, Torani sugar free syrups, and even frozen sweet potato cubes from Trader Joe's (blending them with vanilla protein powder tastes like sweet potato pie to me). If you look on Amazon you'll find a lot of protein powder options, and can read through reviews. Some plain Greek yogurt brands, like Fage, have a lot of protein and are low in carbs. It's important to check the label before buying, and to avoid the flavored ones that are almost always higher in carbs. I think Fage has around 22 grams of protein, and under 10 grams of carbs. You can use it as a base to make all sorts of smoothies.

I'm currently in the midst of a stall as well, and while it's frustrating, I understand that it's all part of the process. I'm following my NUT's instructions, tracking my food, and exercising. As for my exercise, I've been biking (both at the gym and outdoors), using the elliptical, walking, and I started C25K this week. I need variety! For me, exercise also needs to incorporate strength training which I do 3x per week. (Upper body, lower body, and core are the three rotations that I work through.) There are a lot of smartphone apps like Mapmywalk, Couch 2 5K, and Jefit (strength training) that can give you ideas and track your progress. Stay positive and stay active! (And put your scale away--I hid mine in the back of my closet for now!) Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Maybe it's the wine? I kind of doubt it. Just a normal stall. I bet you're back under your low this week. I went to a beer festival and got crazier than intended and was up like two pounds before dropping 4 three days later. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Every stall is different. Some just last days. Others weeks. However, you need to realize there may be times you go a month or longer before you start losing again. I've known a couple of sleevers who went three months on a stall before. There's a few tricks you can try to see if you can break the stall but you really need to increase your calories, Protein and Water intake.

I am six months out and I think I am eating right. Just getting a little harder. I hope I did'nt stretch my sleeve . I basically used the portion plate for dinner. I have been having some bread which is probably a no no. I have one protein pre made shake a day or protein bar. I also started snacking at night on popcorn. Trying but have weight stall the last three weeks. So far I have lost 66 pounds from 251 to 185.9. I have ten more pounds to reach goal at 175 I am six foot one

i had my surgery on 8-16-11 and the dos i was 261pounds today i am 230...so since suregery i have lost 31 pounds....i did have the dredded stall at three weeks for about 2.5 weeks. i didnt lose anything of course during that time. once my tom came i lost 8.5 pounds in one week, which put me at the 31 pound loss. so just about 2 months and 31 pounds....not bad and average of 15 pounds a month. i will freaking take it! lol as for sabotoge.....i guess it is possible if all you do is eat crap, but i have lost the desire to eat that crap all together. i have tried, oh believe me i have, however eversion therapy has worked for me, (i have usually thrown it back up or it has come out the other side with a vengence) not something that you want to repeat very many times. in all though it really is just up to your body type, what you eat, how often, and what types of exercise you do,and of course genetics and age. everyone will be different. as for ww, i used to have a teacher that did ww....she would make fun of her old fat self and call her pictures, terry the whale. after she gained all of that weight back and then a few the picture came down again needless to say. diets just dont work unless you are locked away in a cell and cant get to real food. (that is called the prison diet btw) i work in one hehe...i always tease the guys when they come back from an extended stay at the jail house because they always lose so much weight cause the food sucks...lol

My doctor says that after the first month, the initial drop in those fat stores and Water weight, you can expect to loose between 8 and 10 pounds a month. I thought of ww too because they say 1-2 pounds a week. I have been on ww for 20 years and I have never lost that much consistently! I lost about 40 pounds once on ww and it was an average of 6 pounds a month but I didnt keep if off and it slowly came back on, even though I kept on with ww. I just got lazy and didnt keep it up as diligentlly as I should have. I am not saying ww doesnt work, I am saying its a tool, just like the sleeve is. Its not a miracle that you dont have to do anything and POOF the weight is gone. You still have to think about Protein first and getting your water, etc. Its a great tool because its restrictive and you cant gobble down everything you once did. You have to work your tool and there are very few people who have lost 2 to 2.5 pounds a week on ww consitently (the key word here). If they did, it would have worked for many of us who have tried and tried and failed. Its your decision but dont be delusioned into thinking that its an easy fix or that you dont have to be careful what you eat after the surgery. Its working great for me and I love that I am not hungry and it makes me able to make better choices and not stuff myself. I have been more successful in the first two months than I ever have with anything else. I lost 11 pounds in the past month and I think thats pretty good, for a total of 37 since surgery 8/8. thats two months and three days. It took me five months to loose that with ww and I gained all back DOUBLE within a few years. This for me is a more permanent solution to keeping my weight off and being healthy. Good luck to you! I am so thankful I saw your post. your signature line has been very helpful to me. I am 2 weeks out and only down 11-12 pounds and seem to be having my "3 week" stall a bit early. I walk, and walk and walk, and have been good with my protein and fluids - it is frustrating to hear you loose the most at the beginning and then you aren't loosing.

I joyfully kissed all my shakes away on day one week three. It was always my goal to rely on real food to get all my nutrients in & not depend upon supplements or meal replacements. My surgeon was also okay if I was not hitting my protein goal while going through the first stages as long as I was making an effort so that took off some pressure. But as @ShoppGirl said it does depend upon how much you can eat. (I wasn’t able to eat much but usually hit 40-50g of my 60g protein goal.) I found a good high protein yoghurt (15-20g) & a yoghurt smoothie (22-30g) to keep my protein closer to goal. I also did things like make my scrambled eggs & rolled oats extra milky to get in a little more protein. But being lactose intolerant I realise this isn’t quite as easy for you. Were you given a caloric goal or a recommended carb intake or limit? How many extra carbs or calories are you getting in by consuming lactose free/dairy alternative products? Because we eat so little it would take a lot to really have a negative impact on your weight loss. I drink a lactose free milk because I can’t drink a lot of ordinary milk. (No issue with other dairy though.) And even though it has about double the calories, it didn’t have an impact on my weight loss. Milk alternatives can actually have fewer calories than cows milk (per 100mls): Full cream cow’s milk – 281 kilojoules (67 calories) Rice milk – 255 kilojoules (61 calories) Regular soy milk – 241 kilojoules (58 calories) Oat milk – 213 kilojoules (51 calories) Reduced-fat cow’s milk – 191 kilojoules (46 calories) Reduced-fat soy milk – 153 kilojoules (37 calories) Skim cow’s milk – 142 kilojoules (34 calories) Sweetened almond milk – 123 kilojoules (29 calories) Sweetened cashew milk – 123 kilojoules (29 calories) Coconut milk – 95 kilojoules (23 calories) Unsweetened cashew milk – 73 kilojoules (18 calories) Unsweetened almond milk – 69 kilojoules (16 calories) Same with carb content. Macadamia milk: 1 gram of carbs/cup Hemp milk: 1.3 grams of carbs/cup Soy milk: 1.6 grams of carbs/cup Almond milk: 1.99 grams of carbs/cup Flax milk: 2 grams of carbs/cup Coconut milk: 3.38 grams of carbs/cup Oat milk: 9 grams of carbs/cup cows milk: 12grams of carbs/cup Have a chat with your dietician. They should be able to recommend lower calorie or lower carb alternatives if your intake is excessive for you to try. PS - Stalls rarely have anything to do with the calories or carbs you are consuming but are a natural part of your weight loss journey. Your rate of loss is never constant but zigs & zags, ups & downs & plateaus. Your body stalls or takes a pause (as I heard a surgeon say recently) to catch up with the changes - surgery, weight loss, change in diet or activity, etc. Think of it as your body is stressed & it needs time to recover & accept the changes. Just like you do if emotionally or mentally stressed.

This is so normal that I didn't even have to open your post to know what it said. Anything titled remotely close to "week 4 and concerned" is going to say something like "I lost a lot of weight in the first couple of weeks and haven't lost anything since. What am I doing wrong?" Seriously, do a search on this forum for "three week stall" or "week 3 stall" and you'll see multiple posts about it almost every single day. The best thing you can do is stay off the scale for a few weeks and keep following your plan. As the others have said, your weight loss will start up again and everything will be fine, but jumping on the scale frequently won't make it happen any faster! Rest easy in knowing that you are perfectly normal and doing everything right

Completely normal to hit a stall between weeks two and three. I was a "week three staller" myself. Patience is the KEY!!!! Try not to weigh yourself for at least a week. You WILL start losing again!!