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@SanDiego Girl : Ok, first the disclaimers: Disclaimer 1: I am not a medical professional/nutritionist...just an avid reader/googler. Disclaimer 2: The values below are very generalized and assumes that you have more or less an average metabolism, average functioning insulin regulation, average body fat percentage for your stats, etc. etc. TL;DR: If you want to skip my very long-winded dissertation below, the gist of my message is this: you may want re-evaluate your calorie consumption-activity level combo, cut the sugar, and manage your expectations. Now, your weight today is pretty much what it was when you had your metabolism study, so let's assume you still have a BMR of 1486. This means that if you all you did all day was sit like a statue and breathe, then you would burn 1486 cals for just existing. Your reported exercise can be classified as "Moderately Active" (30-60 mins of sustained elevated heart rate sessions 4-6 times a week). Add this to the regular activity of every day living (i.e., just moving), and your daily caloric needs would be approximately 2150 cals a day to MAINTAIN YOUR WEIGHT. To lose weight, you will need to consume under this amount (or up your activity levels) CALORIES Without knowing exactly what's in your lunch salad, nor what consists of your meat/veggies dinner, nor what amount of each, I calculated the you are probably consuming about 1750 calories (I arbitrarily assigned 300 & 400 for each of lunch and dinner). This means, using the oft-used statistic that a deficit (or gain) of 3500 cal results in a 1lb loss (or gain) of body weight, you theoretically should be losing on average 0.8 lbs a week. This assumes that you NEVER go over 1750 cals a day, and you sustain your current activity level. Based on your original post, it sounds like you aren't. **Note that this is not an exact science, and I personally think 3500=1lb is an overly simplistic assumption, but for the purposes of this post, lets just keep it simple. I digress...** Soooo....if you would like to lose a bit more, a bit faster, try cutting your current cals by a couple hundred (your teams suggestion to aiming for 1200 is sound in this case). Your reported typical daily menu above includes 880 cals of JUST SNACKS. Perhaps try cutting out the Starbucks and 1/2 the nightly Dove chocolates. Doing this alone will save you 245 calories a day. SUGAR Another more controversial suggestion would be to cut all (or drastically reduce) sugar/sweeteners. Not only is sugar poor nutritionally, excess amounts causes spikes in glucose levels, which may to lead insulin resistance: which means the cells in your body aren't as efficient at removing glucose in the blood, so it will store it as fat. Which is weight gain. Further, it is theorized that sugar begets sugar. When you are eating it, you want more. So if you can white knuckle it for a few days and get it out of your system, it is suggested that you will find that your sugar cravings will subside. EXPECTATIONS Lets say you keep your cal level at 1750 & moderate activity levels (and do not deviate from it). This still means you would theoretically still be losing 0.8 lbs a week. This also means you would reach your 180 goal in 50 weeks. Are you ok with this timeline? Can you sustain at most 1750 cals a day for 50 weeks? If you go above this level you will extend that timeline accordingly. Edited to add: remember that this 1750 max cal level will reduce as YOU reduce! You are quite a ways out of surgery and unfortunately don't have the extra tailwind that recently sleeved people have. Its very easy to get frustrated and give up when your hard effort results in what is perceived as slow weight loss. The typical manifestation of this frustration is to eat (and usually its like pizza or cookies and NOT carrots and yogourt). If you can figure out how to deal with the frustration for just longer periods of time (I mean no one actually expects this to be completely solved immediately by sheer will), you will already be a couple steps up in the game. Good Luck! ❤️ P.S. Am really sorry that this was so long. P.P.S I think its worth noting here again in the postscript the Disclaimers noted above: Disclaimer 1: I am not a medical professional/nutritionist...just an avid reader/googler. Disclaimer 2: The values below (sic) are very generalized and assumes that you have more or less an average metabolism, average functioning insulin regulation, average body fat percentage for your stats, etc. etc.

Thanks for the reply. So to clarify, you also GAINED weight for about the first week but beyond the week you ended up losing? It's just something I haven't read anywhere - I've read stagnant/ no change or minimal loss at first. But continuous weight GAIN is not something I've read in anyone else's experiences. If that happened to you and others and then you ended up beginning to lose despite increasing food intake over time, then I would feel a lot more 'normal' about myself right now.

Hi, My sleeve was done about 9 days ago. Initially, I slept for 3 days with very minimal oral intake. Ended up 9.8 lbs DOWN when I woke up post-op day #4. I assume that wasn't fat loss since it had only been 3 days - probably just loss of water weight from no food/ limited water intake in those first few days when I wasn't awake enough yet, which I know is temporary artificial weight loss. But I didn't expect that I would start gaining again literally starting post-op day #5. Since then, I've been gaining it all back. 1-2 lbs per day. I'm on a full fluid diet still as required with Plus 2 protein shakes a day. Max 500 kcal per day for now. Yet my weight has been going up starting on post-op day #4 onward, ~5 lbs in ~5 days. I'm nearly back at my original weight pre-op about 9 days ago. I know that weight re-gain is a common thing post sleeve but I thought that was after months or years. Has anyone had the experience of weight gain starting basically right after surgery? And if so, can you tell me if your body eventually caught up and started losing and by what week after surgery did you start losing? If I'm not able to start losing on such a restricted immediately post-op diet with 300-500 kcal per day max right now, how can I expect to start LOSING when my intake inevitably goes up to something resembling more of a sustainable level of intake? Thanks.

Congratulations!!!! Yes, the water weight gain is normal from the IV, and you will start peeing your brains out soon! LOL!!!

This is my third month after gastric sleeve total weight loss till now 40 pounds I started at 248 I’m stuck I don’t lose weight anymore and gaining one pound and losing it the following day this pattern been for two weeks I don’t eat sugar or carbs only focusing on protein I drink my water also some days I feel I can’t eat nothing at all but other days I eat up to 800 calories but most days 500 calories I’m so stressed I wonder if I’m going to lose the rest or what am I doing wrong could you please help me and provide me with what you eat in your day thank you

Glad to hear your are doing so well! I did not weigh myself for almost a week after surgery, so I can't comment on the weight gain. I had a leak that needed to be repaired, so I didn't feel great for the first few days. After that, however, I was pleasantly surprised at how little pain I felt and how relatively easy the recovery was!

I just got my authorization for an appointment with the biatric team. Now its up to the case manager. I am crossing my fingers and hope she approves my revision !!! i really hope my Gerd and weight gain qualifies me to get REVISION !

I'm not sure if there's a WLS solution for heartburn in your case since you've already had bypass - that's usually the revision they recommend for sleeve for those sleevers who have severe heartburn (i.e. sleeve to bypass). Although maybe there's some other type of surgery (non-WLS- related) they can do for that?? Not sure. the only "revision" they can do for bypass is tightening the stoma, but I've read mixed reviews of that. And I've heard the same as the above poster - people usually lose about 20 lbs with that. as for insurance coverage, some policies will cover revisions if they're done for medical reasons (GERD is one - but then, you've already had bypass, but again, maybe there's some GERD specific medical treatment out there? Not sure). I don't think many policies, if any, would cover it for weight gain. I'd talk to your PCP or a bariatric surgeon. I don't know what your options are since you've already had bypass. Sorry you're going through this - GERD is awful!!

So, I am thinking of revision too. I think for insurance (overall) you can get it if you get heart burn/ulcer, or had significant weight gain, which I think 40 pounds would cover it. Or if you never got to your goal weight. I wouldn't suggest gaining weight. the most common revision which is just tightening the pouch and stoma, typically people lose like 20 pounds with that. Are you thinking of like a more malabsorption gastric bypass or duodenal switch?

Hello, thank you for your kind words. The reason I decided to go below my goal weight was this. I kept hearing about a 20 lb average weight gain at around 2 years out from surgery. I figured if that was a possibility, that I should prepare for that. I am 3 years 3 months out from my surgery date. Fortunately, I didn't gain the 20 lbs. I don't feel like I am too thin. Flabby yes. It has been a struggle to exercise since Covid19. I am sure I'm not the only one struggling. When will you have your surgery? What surgery did you decide on? I am praying for everyone playing the waiting game due to covid19.

Welcome back! Don't beat yourself up -- this has been a rough year for everyone and A LOT of people have had weight gain during the pandemic. It's not too late to get back on track. There are a lot of options for working out at home. I have no desire to go to a gym (plus, I live in a rural area and it would be a long drive to get to a gym), so I would rather work out at home. I do a YouTube video for cardio every day. There are so many free workout videos available (my favorite is Leslie Sansone). And you can do strength training with an inexpensive set of resistance bands. Maybe you could try cutting out snacks completely. For me, snacking was a big part of my weight problems in the first place, so I am now sticking to three meals per day and not snacking at all between meals, other than protein drinks (and the occasional sugar-free hard candy). I'm only 6 months out from surgery, so I'm sure it's easier for me than it is for you, but I find that a warm beverage fills me up for a while. I think tracking your food intake is really important. I love MyFitnessPal, and something that helps me is to enter my food BEFORE I eat it. If you're not up to that detailed tracking, you could try an app like Ate Food Diary. All you have to do with that is take a picture of what you eat and say whether it's on path or off path.

I'm in the same situation with sleeve in 2013 and now surgeon is suggesting a revision to bypass or LINX to help with the severe GERD. However, they strongly recommend bypass so I'm here to do all the research I can on the experience others have had with similar situations. Would love to have the GERD gone and weight loss would be nice but terrified that bypass will actually be way more painful than I am expecting and have worse side effects like weight gain and dumping and maybe I should just deal with the GERD. Feeling really confused and hoping this forum helps me come to terms with a decision.

I had my Gastric Bypass Surgery and Galbladder removal on Aug 24th 2020, just almost 20 weeks ago. I have lost 68 lbs since Surgery and 88 lbs since my heaviest weight in May of 313, Im about 224.4 now. Everything is going along pretty textbook except for 1 thing. I have horrible Aching Continuous Pain in my legs (especially my left leg, outer thigh close to the side of the knee and a lil in the outer calf sometimes. It's not fatigue and I get plenty of all my vitamins and supplements plus I eat a high protein, nutrient rich diet and add electrolites to my 64+ oz of fluids each day. I am having Telemedicine appts with my Surgeon and my Nutritionist today thankfully and I plan to consult them on this but have any of you experienced this? Tylenol muscel creams and some stretching usually helps but I have had nights where they just didn't cut it and it felt like my bones were on fire! I definitely cannot continue to endure this nightly as I have for the last few weeks. I understand that a large quick weightloss can change your gate and how your body carries the weight causing nerves, tendons and muscles to respond this way but Jesus It's awful and it quickly goes away if I get up and walk around. It starts promptly with lying down in bed and persists regardless of position. I have chronic severe back issues that began about 12 yrs ago, My pain & loss of mobility along with weight gain topping me off at 313 lbs (I'm 5 ft. 3") got so severe that I had 7 back surgeries in a 3 yr period that ALL failed. DDD Degenerative Disc Disease, Spinal Stenosis and a some herniated discs prompted my Back Surgeons to declare me officially inoperable, so they along with my Primary Dr. & Counselors recommend I have Bariatric weight loss syrgery & I'm so glad I did! Its very frustrating for Me now tho to have regained about 80% of my mobility and reduced the regular daily & constant pain in my back by about 60% so far only to have this awful pain in my legs at night every freakin night now. I'm losing sleep nightly causing me to be tired all day, get less done, not exercise, be easily irritated in the day, agitated and frustrated. I NEED this to go away and I cannot take any opioid pain meds outside of the required serious post op situations. I am in long term recovery from a physical addiction to pain meds caused by an over prescribing horrible Pain mngmt Dr. Side note: That Pain mngmt Dr. is No longer allowed to practice medicine. Any shared experiences and info is much appreciated 🙏

Did you surgeon give you an idea how much you may be expected to lose over the weeks/months? My surgeon didn't have any expectations (or if he didn't he didn't share them with me). I didn't set myself an amount to lose each week or month, I just kept to my post op guidelines. If I didn't lose one week I knew the scale weight would catch up. Weight loss after surgery is a bit fraught with danger, some people expect to lose a lot of weight quickly, but the reality is a lot different. There is the post op weight gain from iv fluids and inflammation, there are stalls along the way that could last from a week to many weeks, sometimes there will be temporay gains due to various reasons. Some experience a stall within weeks of the surgery....the infamous three week post op stall...it doesn't always occur at three weeks out some experience it a little quicker for others it may be delayed. Some people are fortunate enough not to experience stalls in the first few months. Generally each of the surgeries has an average weight loss after year 1, year 2 etc, but some people will have lost less than that, others will have lost more than the average.

The bypass and sleeve are very similar. I’ve seen you comment about people who’ve gotten back their weight, but my girlfriend and her mom did the sleeve 5 years ago and they have kept all their weight off. I have friends who’ve done the sleeve 2-3 years backs and they are still in great shape(no weight gain after 2-3 years). People who gain weight years after are people who start eating unhealthy and don’t follow the plan their Bariatric team has given them. My friend was 298 and in 9 months lost 150 pounds. She exercised and followed her diet. Simple. What is this myth you talk about? 18 month window? You’re always going to keep losing until you start eating to maintain your ideal weight. There is no window that magically stops you from losing. Who is giving you this information?

All the information you need is here on this forum. You may not know many people in real life who have been through this surgery, but everybody here is in some stage of the process of weight loss surgery. If you haven't already, I would strongly recommend that you spend some time looking through the archives of this forum -- it's a gold mine! YouTube is also a great resource -- there are quite a few YouTubers who make videos about their WLS experience. I was pretty well prepared for surgery because I spent months reading this forum and watching YouTube videos about WLS. It seems like the most common questions that come up include: Stalls - Almost everyone has a weight loss stall within the first two months after surgery (commonly called the "three week stall" but it can happen earlier or later). Do not be alarmed. You didn't do anything wrong. The surgery didn't fail. Stick to your plan and you will start losing again. Weight gain from surgery - Many people weigh more when they come home from the hospital after surgery than they did before surgery. That's temporary and it's because they pump you full of IV fluids in the hospital. You're better off not even weighing yourself for the first couple of weeks after surgery because it is honestly meaningless. Fluid & protein goals - It's almost impossible to meet your fluid and protein goals in the first couple of weeks. Most surgeons tell you to get at least 60 ounces of fluids and 60 grams of protein per day. It sounds easy but it's not at the beginning. Do your best and don't worry if you can't quite get there. Dehydration is a serious thing that can land you back in the hospital, so you do need to sip as much as you can, but it's not the end of the world if you can't get 60 ounces. Pro tip: try warm fluids (tea, broth, protein hot cocoa) if cold drinks are difficult. Hair loss - Most people start losing hair around 3 months after surgery (it's a phenomenon called telogen effluvium), and there's not a whole lot you can do to avoid it. Protein and iron deficiencies can contribute to hair loss, and some people say that biotin can help to prevent hair loss, but you will almost certainly have some hair loss no matter what you do. It will grow back. Vitamins - Your surgeon should have given you a list of vitamins that you will need to take. This varies a bit from one surgeon to the next, but most say to take a bariatric multivitamin (or a double dose of a drugstore vitamin), iron (which can be included in the multivitamin), calcium citrate (most drugstore calcium supplements are calcium carbonate, so make sure to check the ingredients and buy calcium citrate), and B-12 (sublingual, injection, or nasal spray). You'll have to take chewable vitamins for at least the first month or two. Vitamins come in different forms (chewable, melt-in-your-mouth, capsules, liquid, patches), so if you have issues with one form, try something else. The BariatricPal store has a great selection of vitamins and they frequently have sales. I purchase most of my vitamins from there (BariatricPal brand). Constipation - Nobody likes to talk about toilet stuff, but constipation is no joke. A lot of surgeons recommend taking Miralax daily (note: Amazon has a generic brand that is much cheaper). Don't wait until you get constipated to take something. Prevention is easier than treatment. Other than that, the one thing you should do today if you haven't already is take your "before" pictures and measurements! Most of us have very few "before" pictures because we didn't like the way we looked before weight loss and avoided being in photos. You will want to have some pictures for comparison when you reach your goal weight. You will want to have your starting measurements so you can see how far you've come. Good luck! Stick around and let us know how it goes!

So you've lost about 40lb in two months, that is excellent given your start weight, I would say your fluctuations are just that and no cause for panic. The small weight gains you've experienced (along with the excellent weight loss) may be your weight loss pattern. Very few people lose weight on a continually down pattern...most of us have stalls, weight gains and and losses, this is just how our bodies are even with weight loss surgery.

It would be helpful if you filled in our profile particularly your start and current weight along with your height, it gives context to questions and helps those replying to give a relevant response. Even with weight lost surgery scale weight can fluctuate on a daily basis due to a lot of factors: hormones, exercise, dehydration or rehydration, medication, sodium intake etc etc. Are you eating to your surgeon's and/or dietician's post op guidelines? If you are fairly tall or carrying a significant amount of weight, less than 500 calories may be too low for you and you won't be meeting nutritonal goals...you don't want to lose too much muscle weight you want to be losing body fat. The weight gain and loss may well be your weight loss pattern, keep track on a daily basis if you are going to weigh daily (but if you can't cope with the daily fluctuation of scale weight don't weigh daily) and you will be able to spot the trends. Its all good as long as the long term trend is going down.

I did lose some pre-op (28 lbs-around there). I ran into complications in the hospital with the surgery and actually gained 13 lbs right off the bat. My stomach was amazingly purple and black and very, very swollen. I looked larger then the first day of program. After about 3 weeks or so, that weight gain of the loss pre-op came off in about a week. Then I started losing so fast those first 2 months. Two months ago, I started a job at a factory working ft with heavy lifting and running (my dept is on a line in receiving heavy boxes of merchandise). I stopped losing for about 2 weeks at that time and then it just came off unbelievably fast. I do have to see my Dr as it is much faster then I think is normal and my skin is becoming very loose. It truthfully seems like every two or three weeks I am still going down a size. Besides weight loss, most important, my measurements are really a loss of about an inch a week. Right now, I have a problem with trying to eat because of my new job and the jobs of everyone in the house. I work overnight then am on schedule for picking the kids up from their jobs, etc. so I don't really feel much like eating. I do try to get in at least 600 calories and pretty much just drink my protein powder mix with water while I'm working all night. My boss is extremely kind for giving me consideration with the surgery. Thank you for the congratulations. Losing 53 lbs before the surgery is absolutely amazing and a lot of work on your part.

Would love some BTDT success stories. I had a successful VSG 2.5 years ago and initially lost 70lbs. Sadly with the pandemic I have regained 25-30 lbs. I am crushed. I think my pouch is still small as I cannot eat large amounts of food but I’m afraid I’m addicted to sugar. Anyone able to get back on track after weight gain. ☹️

I know how "set" some of us can be on a specific number "goal" or "I am going to lose 50 pounds in X months." May I suggest that instead of looking at a number that seem impossible - and having a constant reminder of what you HAVE NOT done... that instead, pick a really logical goal or EVEN (horrors) a goal that WE KNOW we can attain. I was inspired by an acquaintance on facebook who said he goal for that year was to lose 20 pounds. I thought about it, for a couple months......and decided that I was tired of my weight gain and MY goal could be to stop gaining weight, and maybe lose 10 pounds in a year. Reversing habits that had snuck back over 8 years.... and heck....it started working. And instead of setting myself up for failure... I was; to myself; an amazing success !!! Maybe I COULD lose 20 in a year ! I had lost that and more by 7 months. I also knew what weight I COULD NOT maintain back when and how miserable I was trying to continually FIGHT and never win. So I set MY GOAL for 5 pounds over where I had managed to maintain for several years. NO, I won't be a size small or even a medium. But I started at 5'3 (now 5'2) and 320 pounds at age 53. I have lost 147 pounds. I am good with that. This may not apply to you. This may not be you. It is me. I managed to do this as a full time working 64 year old human with some auto immune disease - exercise is not something I can do much of. I practice meditational yoga, actively garden a few times a week. I take care of a small flock of a couple dozen chickens, so I rake and hoe and haul things around. I have a teenager who comes and hauls 40 pound bags for me on the weekends. But I am active even in times of Covid, grow some of my own vegetables and fruit and salad greens .... life is good. Find your Good.

With regard to the depression aspect, definitely talk to your doctor about it if you haven't already started the process for treatment. As for the weight gain, since today is Friday, why don't you use the weekend to stock up on healthy foods, and make a promise to your self that on Monday you take back your life. You did it before, and you can do it again! HUGS!!!!!

Im thinking that so long as you keep on top of total calories consumed, it doesn’t really matter how it gets in? l mean, consuming 3000 calories in 3 dedicated meals vs 10 mini-meals will still result in weight gain. And consuming 800 cals in either manner will result in a loss. I think for a lot of peeps (myself included) grazing is a necessity. There is no way I could eat all the food I eat in a regular day in just 3 meals (unless of course my “meals” were like 3 hours long or something). But of course, do what works for you, as we all have different MO’s that work for each us. Its really trial and error: follow a plan and keep following until it is no longer giving u the results u want...then change as necessary ❤️

Hi. I had the band surgery May 2010 and it only worked for a couple of years. So after gaining my weight back, about 65#, primary doctor suggested sleeve. Went through all the steps last year for my date 11/21/2019. However, surgeon had difficulty removing band and port due to severe scar tissue. Still didn't get hiatal hernia repair either. Gained back pre-surgery weight as required, started process again that April with Dietitian but after 3 months canceled due to weight gain, then in August lost 33 lbs using Optavia program by mid-November and set date Nov 30th. Since then I've lost another 19#. Well worth it. Sent from my [smartphone] using BariatricPal mobile app

I'm 6 weeks post op and have gained about 6lbs. I'm thinking its from not reaching my water goal but not really sure. I get about 2/2.5 16 oz. bottles down a day. Which I know is definitely not enough. Anyone have any ideas on how to get more water in? I use the flavor packets but its still hard to get down.