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So this week I went to my surgeon for my 3 month post op visit. 3 months!!! ALREADY! Wow, I cannot believe how fast the time goes when you are so focused on a goal! So, I went there and first off got weighed by the nurse. She says to me, "Wow, you are down another 26.3 pounds since the last time we saw you just over a month ago!" So I tell her about the hair loss and the little bit of worry that I have about the loose skin, and she gives me some fliers about what other Vitamins I can be taking for the hair loss (BY THE WAY, ANY ADVICE IN THIS AREA WOULD BE GREAT!!!). She then tells me to ask the Dr. about the skin and what he thinks. So the Dr. comes in a few minutes later. Says to me, "Hello, Kim. I'll tell you, you used to look like someone I would perform surgery on, but not anymore!" So I smile and turn beat red (i'm sure) and then he looks at the chart again and says, "Kim! Do you realize you have lost 90 pounds in 4 months!?! NO ONE has ever lost that much that fast in our program!" Thats when it hit me. I have officially "lost" my 12 year old niece. WOW! Now for the bad news... My hair is 1/2 gone. Thank goodness I had a really thick head of hair to start or I would be bald by now. It's horrible! Every time I touch my head I loose a whole hand full of hair. I am really starting to worry about it but don't know what kind of vitamins to invest in so that it at LEAST slows down. HELP!!!! More bad news: I'm on another stall. I wanted to start the new year off in Onederland. I haven't lost in over 2 weeks. I am 10 pounds from Onderland and am stuck. Go figure. I just hope I can be within 5 pounds of Onderland at least by the New Year. Over all, I am happy as a lark and LOVING my new life! Thanks to the surgeon, their wonderful staff, and the sleeve I am happier than I have been in a very very long time. I finally feel good about myself and therefore am able to tackle the everyday things that used to tax me to even think about. I don't have a lot of full body pictures to post but I do have just a few to share. The first two pics is from a wedding I was in this last June (5 months ago). The last three were taken just this week. I will do my best to find some full body pictures this week and get them posted. ONDERLAND HERE I COME!!!!!!

I use the term 'three week stall' because that tends to be when that first stall happens but for some it does so earlier or later.. as long as you follow your program it will drop pretty dramatically when it ends.

Hi all, The title saids it all the stall is finally over! I lost the first 25 quickly the first five weeks then spent the last three weeks bouncing up and then down 2-3 pounds! Finally this week I dropped another five!!!! I so hope I can lose another 20 so I'll be an unbelievable 150 for Christmas. Nancy

Losing 40 lbs is awesome. I went through the same thing. I lost about 40-50 lbs for the first three months after my surgery didn't move much for about a month. I talked to the Doctor about six weeks post op your body will stall so that it can adjust to what's happening. Stalls are okay, it's just your body adjusting to the rapid weight loss.

. Hello fellow sleevers! It's Day 76,almost eleven weeks since my surgery and I have lost about 45 pounds. I went on vacation, had a few white wine spritzers, went out to eat sort of, well, all the time, and it was great. I came home two pounds lighter, so even with *extreme* inattention to any sort of caloric or nutritional rule ( except, of course, Protein first) the scale went down, not up. But for the most part, I've been in a serious stall for about two weeks. It makes sense. My calories are up. I am healing and getting used to real food, logical portions, and nourishing myself in general. Two weeks of happy time made me come home absolutely exhausted. I haven't really upped the exercise but I've still stuck to a schedule of swimming for an hour three times a week. My size eighteens are getting looser and my waist and hips are down an inch. Also, right after the vacation came a dental surgery which necessitated a short course of steroids. I was really pissed to find out about this because you know there is no way your body will part with an ounce of anything when you're on steroids. Then I got an allergic reaction to another medication and had to take Benedryl -- another weight gainer. So for about three weeks it's been pretty darn slow. But not at a standstill, and in the meantime my body is changing and growing a waist. I can't believe the jeans I'm wearing fit. Actually I can't believe the jeans I'm wearing *didn't* fit at one point. These things would not even go halfway up my thighs only a few short weeks ago. These were the *fattest* jeans I owned at one point and I'm just...amazed, then, at how fat I was. If I am fat *now*...good god, what did I look like? I took some reference pictures right before the surgery and then right after. I took another set last night but I'm not ready to put them up. I'm still fat, as I said...but holy mackerel, what a difference 45 pounds makes. My calories are up to about 1200. I keep thinking I should cut back a little bit but I feel good and I'm still losing. My goal when I decided to get surgery was to refuse to obsess, to eat normally to the best of my ability, eat what I want. and to enjoy my life instead of letting food and weight issues hold me back. . So. Almost eleven weeks, 45 pounds gone and still? Not dead.

This post helped me when I started to compare my story to others on this forum. I have reprinted it with permission from Cheri, the author. I hope this helps you stay positive. Please stop and do the math by Cheri People get completely freaked out by what I feel are unreasonable expectations. They fly into a panic. They assume that the first time they don't lose on the scale that their loss is done. They think that two weeks at one weight is a massive stall. They look at other people's large losses and forget that we don't all lose at the same rate. First - if you did a pre-op diet you are not going to have the same loss your first month as someone who didn't do one. Your pre-op loss should get counted into your loss calculation if you did a pre-op diet. Second - a stall is three weeks or more at the same weight with no fluctuation. Are you panicked after that? Well, my friend coops once spent twenty one MONTHS at the same weight. She finally broke through and never regained during that time, and even lost two sizes while not budging on the scale. Is it the miracle cure you may have been hoping for on the scale? No. But stalls are not the end of the world. They are certainly more normal that flying to goal in six weeks, I promise you. Third - losing anything more than a pound a week is good. Are you eating less than ever before? Yes. Does that guarantee you'll lose faster than ever before? No. I had two nine week stalls - no movement except upwards for my monthly cycle. I had months where I lost but only in the tenths of a pound. It's not normal to expect a big loss every time you step on the scale. It's setting yourself up for disappointment. Fourth - your pattern is your pattern. You can compare yourself to other people sleeved the same day or with the same stats but it doesn't matter. So much of this is individual. So if you're constantly seeking out other people and comparing your losses to theirs, you are eventually going to discourage and frustrate yourself. Fifth - are you closing in on goal? We all lose even more slowly the less weight we have to lose. So if you only have sixty pounds to lose but shed thirty in your first three months, please don't be hysterical because you're "only" losing a pound a week now that you're past the halfway point. It's normal. Stop. Breathe. Do the math. Adjust your expectations. This is not a race. You do not get a special award for reaching goal more quickly. Your surgery was not pointless or worthless if you manage to get to goal in two years instead of six months. The real goal is not losing the weight. It's keeping the weight off. That's real success - that's what we're here to do. It does not matter if you hit goal in nine months or two years - the real challenge and the real journey begins with maintenance. How quickly or slowly you lost does nothing to change the challenges you'll encounter there. I am not ranting at anyone in particular. I just feel that this is an issue that comes up constantly and it's actually pretty silly for people to fly into such a panic without really thinking. I've seen folks upset when they're logging losses of upwards of four pounds a week. Point to the diet that helped you accomplish that and was easy to maintain prior to surgery.

I have heard of three week stall but I am coming up on two weeks and havnt lost anything so it scares me to stall in 3rd week. I have lost zero since coming home from hospital. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Google "three week stall." Right now, your body is desperately trying to heal. Stick to your plan, meet your protein and water goals, walk when you can, and stay off of the scale. The weight will eventually start coming off. And get used to the stalls. I have learned that nothing about post-op weight loss is linear. It is frustrating, I know, but if you just trust in the process and do exactly what you are supposed to do all of the time, you will be successful. Good luck!

Yep - I weighed daily, but only officially recorded it weekly, so a week without loss (or a bit of gain) I chalked up to being a "stall". I only had one week without loss until I started ramping up my calories to slow down the loss leading into goal (and my "three/third week stall was maybe a day - it's a big YMMV thing.) There are too many water weight effects to worry about daily fluctuations.

I had the surgery on March 28th... I stalled not once, not twice but three times so far. I'm down 35 pounds so far, and am currently in my 4th stall. My body is in a routine of staying the same 1.5-2 weeks and then randomly dropping 5 pounds in one day, just to do it all over again. Its normal, just keep doing what your doing, stay positive, and the scale WILL move, I promise!!!!

I just hot the three week stall. I'm down 29 lbs and couldn't wait to say I am down 30! Well, that may not happen right away. But I am so relieved to know that a "3 week stall" is actually a thing that others go through too. If I didn't know about this ahead of time I'm sure I would be really hard on myself...and I don't want that kind of negativity when I'm working so hard at this!

I was sleeved Oct 30 and I am down 61 pounds. At three weeks I hit a stall that lasted 3 weeks. I upped my Water and Protein. That seemed to break the stall for about two weeks. Now the last week the scale has barely moved.

The three week stall is so common. I am sure there are threads on this forum and others devoted to nothing else. I did not have it (and I was expecting to), but based on what I have seen, I might be in the minority. Folks say to simply stay on track with your program and it will break. You are so early post-op it is not anything anything you did or didn't do. It is your body adjusting.

It’s the weight loss cycle. Lose then stall. Lose then stall. Some people will say to increase your calories or increase your activity to break it. I just stuck to my plan & the stall broke. This won’t be your only stall. Some last a week others may last three weeks. They’re just your body taking a breath to catch up on all the changes. You will start to lose again.

I stalled for three weeks from day 9. At 6 weeks today I am down 30 pounds total. The scale and weight loss is a constant stair step. Same a few days and lose. It also depends on my total digestion and hydration. I just keep on keeping on knowing I'm doing the best I can and trying to learn a new respect for my new normal. I am trying to slow my eating and chewing thoroughly. I am trying all sorts of foods but in moderation. Some days I just cannot stomach another shake and I'm glad I graduated to Protein bars as part of my regimen. I do know that when I workout outside and sweat from the 100 degree days, I have to stay super hydrated but usually the scale will move a little more. The best to all of you for accepting new as the hardest thing we have ever done but necessary and welcome in our improving lives.

A stall at three weeks after surgery is very common. None of us lose at a constant or steady rate. Everyone stalls, and just about everyone stalls about three weeks after surgery. Stalls are a normal, natural, and necessary part of the process of losing weight. If you intend to lose a significant amount of weight, you will experience stalls. Just follow your program. Make sure you are getting at least 64 oz of Fluid and reaching your Protein target every day. Take your Vitamins and supplements as directed. Exercise when cleared. Stay off the scale. And, Embrace the Stall http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall.

A stall at three weeks out is very, very, VERY common. You are generally back to a typical activity level and your intake has been severely restricted. You are healing, and have not been taking in sufficient calories to met your basic needs at rest. Just keep following your postop instructions. 8 kg. in three weeks is still a significant loss!

It sounds as though you hit the normal three-week stall, so no worries there. I'm a little confused--when you say you eat "4 ounces of protein at least" do you mean at one time? That seems like a lot at once for as relatively early as you are in the process. Are you meeting the water goals? I would not stress over meeting an arbitrary weight loss goal; focus more on the big four goals (per my surgeon): water, protein, vitamins, and exercise. Is there a reason you are not taking vitamins? They really are essential for WLS recipients--we can't get enough of what we need through our very limited diets at this point. Good luck!

Yes I am three and a half weeks out and stalled too. Am doing everything I should. Feeling great and exercising every day but no movement on those scales. I do am hoping it will move again soon

yeah who knew that losing TOO MUCH would ever be a concern but I'm coming up on my three-month anniversary of gastric sleeve. Have had no problems really at all ... Started at 280 with the two week pre-op diet and weighed 218 this morning. Never really stalled at all and am starting to wonder what's going to happen when I reach my weight target (190). I eat four meals a day but only 200-300 calories per meal so averaging around a 1000 cal/day. I swim 2-3 times a week and do yoga 2-3 times a week and I make sure I hit my protein goals every day. And am never really hungry. In fact my afternoon meals often leave me feeling like I ate too much. When I reach my goal how will I add calories? 1000 cal/day is not sustainable forever ... is it?

I've no idea if I had a stall or not. I was sleeved on Feb 25 and didnt weigh myself for three months... In fact, that's the only time I've weighed myself... I can feel and see how much I'm losing.. My goals are more long term than daily/weekly/or even monthly... My second weight check will be a week shy of 5 months post op (July 17).. I'm aiming for a 50kg (110 lb)loss... Good luck to you... Kinda

It's common to stall about three weeks after surgery. Happened to me, too. It's only temporary. Hang in there!

Same happened to me. I dropped 17 lbs in he first twelve days then stalled for a week and actually gained three. Now down 5 in four days.

yes.. i stalled at three weeks also. I was stalled for one month. It is frustrating, i know but hang in there it will start coming off again. Good luck!

I dropped 50+ lbs pre-surgery by cutting out all foods containing sugar, flour, white potatoes, rice, and processed foods. These are my trigger foods. I consider myself to be a sugar/food addict. I can never go back to eating these things with abandon. I started using the Baritastic app. I occasionally used liquid protein shakes during that period. My calorie count dropped to around 1000 per day. I attended water exercise classes three days a week, including swimming 1/4 mile each time. I also increased my mileage on my walking tricycle to at least a mile a day. I've lost another 50+ lbs since my RNY>RNY revision surgery. I still strive to avoid my trigger foods. It's harder to resist now and weight loss is slow going, but I'm still dropping a few pounds a month with lengthy stalls.