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A protein shake is really a meal replacement so you are having more than a meal or two. And no, don’t load up on junky snacks or empty calories. Look too foods that will add additional nutrients: fruit, complex carbs i.e. whole/multi grains, good fats like avocado & nuts, boiled egg, cheese stick, etc. Keep the deli/luncheon/charcuterie meats intake low too - highly processed, high salt & high fat, lower protein. Better to buy a bbq/rotisserie chicken& package it up in single serves & eat that. Give your body time to settle. It takes time for your body to work out what it needs to function effectively & for you to physically be able to eat appropriate sized portions & meals. My hunger didn’t really come back until about a year so after I reached goal at 6 months & it played a part in my continued weight loss. And it took a while to work out the calories I needed. When my weight first stabilised at around 18 months I was eating 1300 odd calories - it took me all that time to eat that much. At 4 years I was eating 1500/1600 & still maintaining much the same weight so it took that long for my body to work out what it really needed. Your lowest weight may not be your final weight either. There’s the quite common 5-10lb bounce back regain around the 2 or 3 year mark. Or lifestyle choices may mean you settle a little higher. And finally, your goal weight might not be your body’s goal weight (your new set point). My new set point was 11kg/24lbs less than my goal.

Really interesting to read about the “starting weight”. I booked my surgery on January 30th and was 96kg (my highest ever weight - stepping on the scales and seeing I was closer to 100 that to 90 was a real shock - I dug out some insurance papers from February 2020 - I was 58kg then and allready heavier than I like to be). My surgery was 3 weeks later because I had to stop smoking first. The day of surgery I was 91.1kg so I lost 5.9kg in the three weeks prior ( I basically did a broth fast and didn’t eat anything solid, only clear broth and tea and coffee). Im now 70kg so since January 30th I’ve lost 26kg (57lbs) in 16 weeks (average of 1.6kg or 3.6lbs a week) so I’m very very happy with the weight loss even if I’m over the weather! I do have a goal weight which is my pre pandemic weight of 52-55kg (114-122 lbs) because I know that that is the weight at which I function best and that feels the best for my legs ( I mentioned earlier in the thread that I have very minor cerebral palsy - I have the impression that the extra pain I have for every gram I weigh over 55kg just isn’t worth it and really impacts my standard of living and my mobility. Because of the CP I have very minimal flexibility so being even slightly over weight just makes moving so so much harder for me as I can barely bend my knees as it is and have no upwards ankle flexibility what so ever. I’m easily out of balance and I fall over often ( the best way to picture it is to imagine the mobility of someone who has had about 3 beers too many), I’m used to it and my physiotherapist always says I’m a very good « faller », a part from bruises and a bruised ego I’ve only ever seriously broken things ( shoulder, wrist and double arm fracture all in one go!) once since being an adult. But being heavier has meant having more issues getting back up after falling over and more and bigger bruises. So my goal isn’t an esthetic one ( even though it will be nice to not be the fattest person in the room anymore - and because I live in Paris where the average female BMI is 21.3 the bar is low!) but a functional one. So I have 15kg (33lbs) left to loose, I know the rate of loss will slow, but I’m hoping to be at least nearly there in September when I take a new position, I really want to do my transition speech feeling ( and looking) like my old self ( just with some extra wrinkles and grey hair). My handover is September 16th - that leaves 17 weeks so I’m not sure I’ll be at 55kg by then because it would mean continuing to loose an average of 0.9kg ( 1.95lbs) a week which is a lot given my current weight. However if I manage to loose an average of 0.5kg (1.1lbs) per week ( which seems a more attainable bar) I should be 61/62kg by then, and I can live with that! ( I’m an unapologetic numbers girl - I don’t track what I eat because that’s not sustainable for me long term - I try to eat protein but other than that - YOLO - but I do track my weight every day if I have a scale and my steps and my activity) A very long post once again. Thanks all for being here. And here is a picture of a Greek island morning! That’s the 9.30AM light!

I am SO bummed. Tomorrow I will be 1 week post-op and I've lost 0 pounds. I finally made it back to my pre-surgery weight today.

Don't know if you're still working on this or not, but I just passed my 1 year anniversary of my surgery so thought I would share my numbers. 1. Basics: GENDER, AGE, HEIGHT Male, 32, 5' 6" 2. Total Weight lost in the 6 months BEFORE surgery (if any) 24 lbs. 3. Weight on DAY OF SURGERY. 389 4. Weight at 1 MONTH POST surgery 358 5. Weight at 3 MONTHs POST surgery 320 6. Weight at 6 MONTHs POST surgery 275 7. Weight at 12 MONTHs POST surgery 217 8. Type of Surgery (Sleeve, ByPass, etc...) Bypass

Sometimes we have the best ideas at 3am 🤣 Very much the case - I know I am guilty of not realising just how much work goes into this post-surgery, even with being well informed. There is a difference between reading about it, and living it! It is so strange to me now to look back on how I was, even though I am not too far out yet - I was binge eating on a massive scale, and my weight was just rising so quickly. I think back to that little 12 year old girl I used to be, who struggled with her weight back then, and I genuinely feel grief for her. This surgery has given me the ability to not be controlled by food - yes, it is still important, but I don't think about it 24/7, I don't have to crave sugar and I feel so much better already. And you guys on this site have all contributed to me just biting the bullet and going for it with the surgery!

I find the calculator on the Mexico site to be rather inaccurate for me, but everyone varies. Age and surgery type, as well as co-morbidities all impact weight loss rate. It thinks I should be at 212lbs at 6 months but I'm at 240 with 6 days to go. Not gonna happen. It also thinks I should be at 170 by 12 months, but that's not very likely either. I've always used the following one as it takes into account the different surgeries and looks just like the one my surgeon uses. They calculate from the highest weight, it is important to include that because if you have a lot of weight loss before surgery your percentages may track differently and your post op weight loss may be slower. I've seen this happen to several people with surgeons calculating it improperly, or applying the bypass trajectory to a DS patient, which is a disaster and very stressful for the patient! This one takes into account much more like your age, ethnicity, and pre-existing conditions: https://riskcalculator.facs.org/bariatric/?_ga=2.112690692.1282950073.1698781773-393992475.1698781773 According to this one I should be at 78 lbs down for my DS surgery at 6 months. I'm at 80 lbs down. My weight loss has tracked along with this thing pretty steadily, give or take 15 lbs, since surgery, except for my 6 week stall. It puts me at 202 by 12 months out, but DS patients lose for 18-24 months post op, so I should be at 170 sometime in that 12-24 month period! In the end these are all just estimation tools. Our bodies do what they will and we make the most of it. Still, it is nice to have a loose guideline to follow.

I had gastric sleeve in Mexico in 2008. It was a good experience and I lost over 80 pounds in less than a year and reached my goal weight. My sleeve was wonderful and it was a good decision for me. I kept the weight off with ease until 2014 when I tore my right rotator cuff at work, was put on steroid treatments for almost a year until the insurance would allow surgery. While on steroids and following the first rotator cuff surgery, I tore the left rotator cuff in 2 places ( starting a powerwasher) which required an additional year of steroid treatments and more surgery. In the process or healing the left side, I tore the right rotator cuff again which caused more steroids and physical therapy and another surgery. In physical therapy they caused damage to the nerve in my left elbow which required the nerve in my elbow to be moved into the muscle. This was a very painful surgery and was difficult to overcome, hence more steroids, Gabapentin and pain meds for nerve pain. Needless to say, 2015 thru 2018 was difficult and I began to put on weight ten pounds here and there that I could not take off. No matter what I did, the weight sticks to my mid section and thighs. After trying for several years, I had just given up the battle. I had regained all of my weight by 2020 and am now able to eat just as much as always. I developed a cough in 2012 that my doctors said was asthma. Meds rarely help it. The heavier I get the worse it gets. I am starting to developed sleep apnea and rather than being put on a breathing machine at night, I am determined to get the weight off and then see where I am with sleeping issues. I contacted my doctor in Mexico and requested information on the sleeve revision and they also discussed the Bypass with me. I was accepted to have either one and due to an out of state job I am on at the time, I am tentatively scheduled for revision surgery in mid August. I have until the end of July to pay the difference and elect to have the bypass if that is what I choose to do. I am looking for information on both and looking for surgery buddies that may be having bypass or sleeve revision surgery in August that may want to share information or may have suggestions to help me decide which surgery to elect to have. My surgeon recommended the bypass or the min-bypass as the best option for me at my age and indicated that I would lose more weight with the bypass than the revision. I was recommended to visit this site to see others experiences and suggestions. Anyone out here have any information they want to share?

Can you elaborate? How much did you gain back? What is your diet and workout routine like? I would suggest getting back to basics with your diet and start moving your body again.

Any advice helps I’ve regained 40 pounds and I want to get to my goal weight which is 66 pounds away I’ve went back to basics but struggle mindset wise and can’t afford the therapy part 😭 any advice?

you don't have your stats listed, but keep in mind that most of us experience a 10-20 lb rebound weight gain in year 2 or 3. I was really worried about going too low - and for months I was pretty gaunt and bony, but I've put on about 30 lbs since then (I'm almost nine years out). The first 15 was welcome -and expected. I'm not that happy with the last 15, and it's a bear getting anything off. So be careful what you wish for. On the other hand, if you're so low that you're unhealthy, then that's another story. The commenters above have some good tips.

Congratulations. You’re doing so well. Your weight loss is certainly noticeable. Sometimes the scales don’t move but the numbers on the tape measure gets smaller or our clothes get bigger. I think our body makes small adjustments to the location of our fat as we lose. It certainly goes through a noticeable resettling after maintenance begins & our weight loss stops - we look less gaunt, our body shape changes, etc. It’s why those of us who’ve been here a little while often suggest taking body measurements instead of weighing yourself during a stall. Looking forward to seeing what their next months bring you.

that's totally up to you. Some people count their highest weight, others count the day they start their liquid diet, and still others count the day they had surgery. It makes no difference.

For all my currently stalled folks, I want to offer some hope. I hopped on the scale this morning (like I do every morning) and I was down another 2 lbs. Since yesterday! That makes 6.4 lbs in a week, which is more weight than I've lost in one week since my very first week on my pre-op diet. I am in shock because I was so convinced deep down that the stall was going to be the beginning of even slower weight loss for me, especially now that the magical "first three months" was over. So don't lose hope! In other news, I finally bought that air fryer I've been thinking about for a year, so hit me with your simple, go-to air fryer meals!

I am so glad that you are still reaching out to your team and posting here. I won’t get too far into my story but because of “confusion,” about my mental health, interactions with meds and embarrassment the help I got from my team was not working for me and I gave up. I continued to gain and now I am back here facing revision weighing a little more than when I started this journey. People here are very helpful and understanding but your team should be giving you answers too. Sounds like they have a plan for the next step if need be and that’s great. if all else fails, The phentermine is the one medication that I could try which did work amazing during the day for me but I suffer from insomnia and when I can’t sleep I eat. So, the meds worked wonderfully during the day but at night, with my larger sleeve and being awake so many times, I was able to consume too much for the whole day and I still gained. But I can see how if you sleep throughout the night it really could work. I didn’t get to try mountjourno or any of the other brands it’s sold under because of financial reasons but if you can swing it, I have heard AMAZING things about that medicine too (there are some side effects for some people to consider). People claim they think they must know how skinny brains feel after taking it. They just don’t ever have to think or worry about food. One lady has to set alarms if she is busy to remind herself to eat something. Another drawback is how long you have to take it. Some say when you go off it you start to gain. They are doing studies now where they are trying to work out a maintenance dose that may be less than the regular dosage though. There are also places that are starting to “compound” it at compounding pharmacies. I wouldn’t necessarily trust the stuff from random sites online but my PCP was telling me they were working on getting it in their office and it is less than half the normal cost that way. I don’t know much about the other weight loss drug options because I couldn’t take them with my bipolar meds Interestingly, i just seen an ABC special Oprah did on weight loss injections the other night. (Ironically it was the day I went back to see my surgeon so I thought maybe it was meant to be which is why I inquired about them with my PCP). I’m really hoping that reached someone that has the power to change how accessible these meds are. I asked my pcp and she said it’s probably going to take a little while like everything else and she thinks at this point I shouldn’t wait on surgery for that but if your interested keep asking questions because these things tend to just change in the middle of the night and the word takes a while to reach you if you not the one asking. Anywahs, kudos to you for not giving up. Let your team do all they can to help you and keep posting here!!. I think when I stopped that I lost all hope. I was so isolated. Surrounded by skinny family and having only one heavyset friend who is perfectly content being that way I don’t have a lot of real life people who understand me the way that this community does. I felt so ashamed and I didn’t want to drag down the vibe here with my failures. Since I have returned I have been welcomed with open arms and honestly don’t know why I ever doubted that I would be. Keep doing what your doing and you will work this out. I know it. 🤗

There isn’t really a hard & fast rule about how much weight you will lose at certain points along the way. The calculators, advice from your surgeon, dietician, etc. are all based on averages so not what you WILL lose but what you MIGHT lose. At about 5 months you’ve lost 63lbs (plus the 40lbs before your surgery). It took me about 6 months to lose 60lbs & I lost at a pretty good rate. Yes, I started at a lower weight than you & we say, the more you have to lose the faster you’ll lose in the beginning, yet again this is a generalisation based on averages. I’d say you’re doing well - congratulations! My test always was what did my surgeon say. If he was happy I was happy. (My dietician to a lesser extent.) What does your surgeon say about your weight loss to date? Focus on getting in your protein. It’s essential as is getting in your fluids. It will help you get the most from your surgery. Eat your protein first, then your vegetables & if you are able any multi/whole grains you are allowed. This helps ensure you hit your protein goal. In the first months it wasn’t unusual for me to just to eat my protein & nothing else for a meal. Drink all day - in the car, out doing chores at the shops, etc. I found drinking through the night helpful too - still do. Enjoy every one of those pounds you’ve lost. Remember there’s no time line for when you have to have lost all your weight. You’ll get there in your time & there’s only right in that.

Today marks 1 month since my surgery. Little back history for me, my start weight in March during diet for surgery: 280#. My surgery day: 269#. Today, I'm at 256#. I started and am currently still at at class 3 obesity. Posting before and after pictures. I read and hear so many positive stories on how others lost 30+ pounds their first month. I should be happy with the fact I am losing weight but super slowly. I'm considered a "slow loser" apparently. I'm down 13 pounds in 1 month. I go 5-6 days plateaued same weight before I drop another pound. It's quite annoying. I've been drinking/drinking protein shakes, yogurt, cottage cheese and when I'm not working, I drink between 64-96 oz of water. When I'm working (I work as a warehouse worker and does get to heavy lifting at times), I can hardly down 16 oz of water. When I work, I get excited thinking, "I'm burning so many calories, I'm bound to finally lose that pound!" Just to be disappointed. I weigh daily, I have a separate nutritionist outside of the place I got my surgery as the nutritionist there hasn't helped much, doesn't respond or pay much attention when I try talking to them. So, I found a different one. I tried not weighing in each day, went a week, only to still be disappointed with the same weight. I do occasionally lick unhealthy items or chew and spit out just to get some flavor again. It's not often. Something different about me is I have a lot of muscle naturally. I also have PCOS. I've read PCOS can stall weight loss. I do for sure see changes in my stomach, not so much in my face or my arms...but why can't I be happy about this? Is this like a depression thing others have gone through? I'd love some others opinions, stories, how you're feeling right now.

I agree: ongoing support is necessary or at least knowing it’s there if you do need it. The ongoing support is the main reason I stay active on this forum plus being able to pay it back by offering others support because that can reinforce my behaviours. As is reading about others’ stories like yours. I’m also glad I still see my surgeon’s colleague for follow ups (6 monthly now) & I’m 4.5 yrs out. It’s probably more of a chatty catch up now but she is there if I ever need her. I also get the worrying over small weight gains. I find myself watching the grams/ounces & not just the kilograms/pounds some days. Before surgery I’d just shrug off any gain or simply not weigh myself so I could pretend I hadn’t gained. Now I think I’ve worked too darn hard to let my weight get away from me. But sometimes life gets in the way: you or a loved one has a health issue, you’re prescribed new meds, relationship, work, financial challenges, etc. arise, & you can’t control all those things. All you can do is decide how you manage them & their impact on your life. Maybe track your food for a while to check your food choices, portions sizes, nutritional content & whether you’re still meeting your protein & fluid goals. That way you can discover where you may have drifted off track. Then start by making one or two changes then in another week or two make another change or two until you’re back on your path. All the best.

My partner is Chinese and their family ALWAYS did this when we lived close to them!! They'd discuss their weight right at the dinner table, comment on how they needed to lose weight and were getting fat, then pass the dishes over for them to finish and send the leftovers home with us! Made me SOOOO pissed off. 🤣 Those close to me noticed first. My doctors were almost in tears that the surgery has been working so well! It was really sweet to see. I take pictures once a month on the 1st of the month and take measurements then too, because I wanted to be able to track for myself what was changing. It was really cool to see how my posture has changed. I keep taking pics in the same outfit and it is so weird to see the shirt getting longer even though I know the shirt isn't getting longer. LOL I saw my family at Christmas. They live several states away. I recently sent them a full body pic and they were shocked and excited for me because it was pretty clear I've lost weight and my shape is changing. Today I passed my 50% mark towards my goal weight!! I've officially lost 76 lbs since my highest weight (320) and 63 lbs since my surgery weight (307). It just feels so unreal to me...

@BlueParis, you look amazing. I wish you didn't have so much societal pressure to be crazy thin. Being a healthy weight should matter most, then feeling good. I grew up in southern California and always felt pressured to be thinner than I was. Even when I was 116 pounds, I was told, "You're getting there." Looking back, I looked sickly thin for my frame. My scars are pretty dark, too, especially the largest one. The others are quite small and not that noticeable. I saw my primary doctor today and she wasn't at all worried about my A1C being at 6.1. She said we'll take another look at it in 6 months. She was very happy with all my numbers and thrilled about my weight loss. She said I was "boring and making her job so easy." That was a first!

Medications after weight loss surgery can feel like a rollercoaster, right? You just conquered a huge hurdle, and now there's this whole new world of prescriptions to navigate. While I'm not a medical professional, I do believe in tackling health holistically. So, along with meds, focusing on mental well-being during this journey is super important. It's like giving your body and mind a high five for their teamwork! For me, staying positive and focused helped a ton. There were tough days, for sure, but resources like mentalhealthhotline.org can be a lifesaver. They offer confidential support, which can be a huge weight off your shoulders.

there have been a few Europeans on here who've had weight loss surgery in Turkey. As long as you do your research, you should be OK. As is true anywhere, there are good surgeons in Turkey and likely some not-so-good ones. Read reviews, check with people who've had it done there, etc. And make sure your GP is willing to do your follow-ups (regular blood tests, etc)

Thanks everyone. The hunger is not a welcome feeling after almost a year of making myself eat. My one year is May 1 and I'll have a body composition test at that time. I'm curious where I land. I re-weighed myself this morning in my birthday suit and I was 133. On a crazy note, at 131 I'll have lost half my starting weight... Basically, my current weight lost. 😳

1. Basics: GENDER, AGE, HEIGHT F, 52 at time of surgery, 5'3" 2. Total Weight lost in the 6 months BEFORE surgery (if any) 12.2 lbs 3. Weight on DAY OF SURGERY. 254.6 4. Weight at 1 MONTH POST surgery 235.7 5. Weight at 3 MONTHs POST surgery 216.7 6. Weight at 6 MONTHs POST surgery 192.5 7. Weight at 1 YEAR POST surgery TBD

OK so I have no experience with this because I have no interest at all in skin removal. WLS was, for me, all about the health benefits and way less about the aesthetic benefits but I totally get people who want both (and OMG see the photos on the before and after threads for detail and inspiration)! From what I have gleaned in my 2.5 years here people's weight loss is in the single pounds category after skin removal surgery. Unless you started off in the 60s or 70s of BMI? The point isn't the added pounds of loss but more the making their bodies feel more comfortable to them. I am also a huge believer in the concept of a new 'set weight' after surgery. Our bodies just seem to decide where to settle. Pushing beyond that is tricky. I would have been happy 15 or 20lbs above where I am at the minute. I didn't particularly push myself to get beyond that. But it feels like my set weight was decided by my body. I know that sounds strange. You talk about feeling happy at your current weight plus or minus the weight you might be after removal of skin and whether losing a few pounds more might cause sag that you would have to address at a later point. Honestly I don't really understand that but I guess others will be along soon who might. It might be worth discussing in detail with your surgeon what your desired end point is. Congratulations on your loss, it's amazing.

My surgery was june 4 and my appetite is returning. I’ve been going through the feeling of wanting to keep losing weight but also curious as to what foods will stay down and satisfy me. I think ill be eating soft foods soon. Tuna is all i eat. Im HUNGRY LOL. I know i have a long way to go but sheesh