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I think these are really valid and helpful observations and questions. I know they help me really think and own my spit. You know? I never want to rationalize my own "poor" behavior or stinking thinking by convincing myself that my viewpoint is the only right one. I also am hopeful that this might benefit someone else who might not want to post their stuff here--be able to work through some things and gain insight into their eating behaviors that both keep them thin/losing or are contributing to gain. Right? So there is no doubt that I am goal driven. I've never in my life reached my target weight goal--even as a young kid dieting (dieting since 9). 😕 And it became very important to me as I went "all in" with this surgery, that I achieve my goal weight--even if it's only for a day--or an hour. It's just a milestone that psychologically I feel like I need. And knowing what my sis (who is 2 inches taller than me) looked like with a similar build to me -- at 120lbs, she did not look anorexic. Knowing that at 23BMI today on the scale and that in real life, I still have very jiggly fat filled aspirin bottle and thighs, makes me feel like I do still have extra fat available that I can at least achieve that burning drive to 130lbs. At the very least. *I'd have to review the BDG once I get to 130lbs. Cuz it really may not be realistic for me to even hit it. There is NOOOOOO doubt I have body dysmorphia. No doubt. I work on it daily. And the struggle is real. I def don't see myself as super thin. Just normal for a 56 year old woman. Flabby flat as* and all. TY for telling me how awesome I look! Sometimes I can actually feel it - nowadays. Yesterday (no pic) I felt great in my outfit until I looked in the mirror in my white shorts. And felt I look huge in my thighs and ass--so didn't bother snapping the pic. I still wore the outfit and got so many complements including a, "You are so skinny" comment that I was a little "proud" of. I've never been a member of the you-are-so-skinny-"normal"-girl-barbie-tribe. You know? And I'm not gonna lie. It's a seductive group. Great T & A and tiny waists among all of those bi*ches! hehe. I do think I will be thin enough. That's why I think 130lbs will be end of the line for me. Cuz when I was sick just before surgery, I was 131lbs and I felt "right". Even though I was craptastically ill at the time. But yeah, that BD funhouse mirror plays wicked mind games. So the only way to tell is once I get there. I know I have no interest in going deep dive to the low 120s and maybe not even anything under the 130lbs. I keep cals that low and deeply nutrient rich cuz I flat out maintain or even gain weight in the >850 range. And that terrifies me! I'm not like @ms.sss who is having issues deterring weight loss at these levels. I WISH! Right? Cuz if you look at my graph, I'm maintaining. And I'm super terrified I've forked my metabolism. I also know I take a hormone blocker for cancer remission that puts me in supre menopause. So I am trying to restore my body fat hormones while having one hand tied behind my back via the blocking of all female hormone production. Which really sucks cuz the regulation of those hormones really drive a lot of the insulin and hunger hormones response to fat loss. Also being hypothyroid also contributes to the lowered metabolic rate. Sorry for the book. I didn't want to just blow off your question, but rather offer some glimmer of where my thought process and logic is taking me. My hope is that once I hit my 130 Goal #3 weight, then I can officially say, "I'm goal baybeeee!" And then I will be able to maintain at 1000-1400 cals with a day or 2 of fasting thrown in per week like Dr. Fung discusses. Cuz that would be sweet! But my body is resisting going lower right now. And it does not reward me with a scale drop when I up cals and give a treat day--rather it rewards me with the predicted weight gain. Also, I'm not going quietly into that good night. I will fight that fuc*ing bounce like a demon. I am not gonna accept that it has to happen. And if I start looking like I'm eating crap I really want you guys to call me on it and hold my toes to the fire! Cuz I will need y'all more than ever if/when backsliding enters the equation. Right? Ok, so yeah. There you have it. My full 10lbs of crazy shoved into the 5lb can! Certifiable? Yes or no? Here's my weight graph of the past year. The last big jump is from surgery and IVs. But you can see, I'm having trouble maintaining right now post surgery and struggling with huge hunger. I attribute it to IV antibiotics and disruption of gut biome/gut hormone disruption and insulin surges as a result. There is a study just out about this. I think @catwoman7 may have posted this on another board? Can't remember...

I am 24 days out of surgery and today I gained weight. Am I doing something wrong? Not a whole lot of weight it’s only like .4 but it’s my first gain in 23 days.

My husband and I enjoy eating out quite often, hence the weight gain. Now I’ve learned to deconstruct meals to take in protein first, then non starches, starches, then fruit. Wish food establishments wouldn’t charge for a full meal when you’ve taken out a good portion of the no-no foods.

5"4" 👵 17m PO (WLM) 135.4lbs (pre-poopy)=lol knew it would go back up again. LOL. GHDWL (Groundhog Day Weight Loss = gaining and losing the same 2 lbs over and over and over again every day...) Tuesday August 6 Menu: B1-6am-black decaff coffee x eleventy billion B2-11am-starving!-protein latte (decaf + 1oz PP) L-2pm--1.125oz Krolczyk's Turkey Jerky + Frigo Light String Cheese + 39g Good Culture 2% Cott Cheese + 38g Banyan KimChi (Tongbaechu) AS1-3:30pm--Veggies with Grk Yogurt Dip: (35g baby carrots + 33g rbp + 54g cucumber with peel) + (33g Grk yogurt plain + 1tbsp WF Bacon Ranch + 1Tbsp WF Sesame Ginger + 1tbsp Braggs UACV + g/s/p) AS2-4:45pm--2 Herbox Beef Sodium Free Bouillon + 1tbsp UACV D1- 7pm--1/2 of this meal {90/10 Airfried burger patty with cheese, bacon, and avocado (4oz raw or 3.1oz airfried 90/10 ground sirloin + 15g BH lacy swiss + 1 slice applewood smoked bacon + 1oz avo + 40g heirloom tomato + 14g purple onion + 1/2tbsp Duke's mayo + 1tsp Lowensenf Mustard + 5 asparagus spears + 4oz Idaho potato raw (roasted with 1tsp olive oil) } D2 - 8:45pm 1/2 of the rest of the D1 meal It was a snacking grazing day. I'd intended to do an 18:6 IF with 500 cal VLCD, but just couldn't do it. Interestingly someone posted an article about the use of antibiotics and weight gain/increased hunger. And with this surgery last month for my twisted gut, I had massive amounts of IV antibiotics. I'm back to my pre-surg weight and the scale isn't budging. And I'm incredibly hungry every day. And I'm letting that hunger dictate horrible choices that just fuel more hunger (hello roasted potatoes I'm talking about YOU there! Gah. LOL. Crazy much?) This would be considered an "UP" day for me, but not a feast day. Feast days are on weekends (usually a Saturday) and are more likely 1200-1400 cals.

Congrats on six years out. You are not alone in having a weight gain. Many of us working them off. Here is a link to the vegan/vegetarian bariatric forum. Hope this helps. https://www.bariatricpal.com/forum/1101-vegetarian-or-vegan-eating/

It’s been six years since I have my surgery. Lost over 100+lbs. However in the past few years, it’s slowly regaining - approx 70lbs up atm. Most because I went vegan for two years and regained a ton because I ate quinoa mostly (carb galore) ughhh...mad at myself for that. I’m a lacto-ovo vegetarian now and looking for some help. Can anyone suggest any tips on how I can jump start my weight loss again? I’m thinking about doing the 5 day pouch test to start.

My surgeon did not set a goal weight for me. He just told me to expect to get to around 160-170 lbs by my one year anniversary. I personally initially chose 120 because it was in the middle-ish of the healthy BMI range for my height. Decided to stop at 127 instead because I was thinking I was getting too small. I'm at 114-ish today. Go Figure. Edit: Adding that I also have an arm lift scheduled for mid-December (which I booked/placed deposit on almost 2 months ago)..I will be about 14 months post op come surgery day. My PS surgeon at the time of consult told me that a weight loss of 10-15+ lbs is more problematic than the same amount in weight gain after surgery. I've lost 13 lbs since I saw him last, and I am thinking I may gain that back as part of the regular bounce back after getting to lowest weight. I see him again in September, we'll see what he says then.

You may have seen my posts about my..what I felt to be lagging weight loss. I think your surgery was within a day or 2 of mine on 7/25? After being a bit depressed about that my husband asked me to go to a Dillard's Outlet to help him find some pants at a good price. My first thought is oh my Lord..it is hot...I don't want to go anywhere NEAR a mall...(but as well all know Dillard's is usually an anchor store so I didn't literally have to go into 'said mall'). Against all my hesitancy I went. There were some dicey moments...I had been up so much and taken so many steps outside of long loops at the hospital which were finished off immediately by sitting in the chair in my hospital room or getting back into uncomfortable hospital bed. I learned some important things even though I have NOT been able to walk much at all with my torn up knee, I actually seemed to have lost enough weight (from the START of my journey 15 months ago, not in POST OP loss)...that my knees were NOT in excruciating pain. I did have moments where are standing so still looking through hundreds of pairs of pants that I had to grasp the 'end caps' as I had several dizzy spells but they passed. I had some clear Premier Protein with me that I nursed off of. I got back and I felt better for having gently pushed my boundaries. The next day, I dropped a bit more weight. We shake our body up and it starts letting us lose. Then it plays 'survival mode' and gives us a stall....it will be a cat and mouse game but sometimes I've seen people who lose a lot of weight in the first 2 or 3 weeks having to contend with some rough stalls..and I wonder if the ppl who lose weight a bit more slowly...do they seem to have less stall..stalls of smaller durations, or ?? My Dr's office emailed a reply when I asked them to look at what my intake was as I was concerned about slow weight loss..and honestly...I have never heard this before but I will post what they said (they do hundreds of these WLS's each month): You are in what we call "survival mode" right now, everything you take in your body is storing to properly heal you. We do not begin to see the rapid weight loss until you are fully healed at 6 weeks. The weight gain is from fluid retention due to the amount of iv fluids you received in the hospital this typically takes 2 weeks to go away. Just continue to focus on sipping hydrating fluids and alternating protein shakes in between. Not sure about the 'rapid loss not occuring until I'm fully healed at 6 weeks but if it picks up the pace, then great!

Everything I like is Illegal Immoral causes weight gain or refuses to text me back promptly.😦

HELLO ALL :). So i am post gastric sleeve op day 4 and really bothered by the amount of fluid retention/weight gain of 9 lbs since Monday surg. PLEASE tell me this will go away soon?? :(

I take two antidepressants, neither of which is weight neutral, but the doctor explained that the benefits outweight the minimal weight gain they cause, so I need the healthy brain more than I need to be a supermodel. LOL!

Glad to see you back after five years. You are not alone. Many have experienced regain years out. Several are back on the site for support. Counseling and self help resources are a great place to start to find your willpower. Time to deal with emotional stress eating. doing the head work link below. Some things from my weight gain experience to try. (What works for me may not work for you) Clear out your home of temptation- go shopping for foods on your real food plan Extra carbs and real sugar cause cravings and hunger – Detox off them Satisfy sweet and salty cravings with healthy options: Example -Sweet: dannon light n fit yogurt – Salty: Jerky Hydrate and exercise/activity I’m a sleeve, I have less surgery restriction years out. Eat veggies with all the other item on your plan until full. The bulk and fiber will help fill the extra space, They keep your calories low and help with hunger. Log your food (myfitnesspal) the key is to stay within your weight loss calories and macros.(protein and carb goals) Start at 1200 calories. You can dial the numbers up or down to see where your body loses weight. People will mention Pouch reset. ( Its going back to liquids phase and progressing to real food stage) It does not shrink your pouch. Decide if this is too food restrictive. You can always start real food to reset. Years out, Find a diet that is sustainable for you long term – Vegan, paleo, intermittent fasting, whole 30, keto the list goes on. Whatever diet you chose. Log your food and stay within your calories/macros. People will mention Pouch reset. ( Its going back to liquids phase and progressing to real food stage) It does not shrink your pouch. It may help you feel restriction better. Decide if this is too food restrictive. You can always start real food to reset. Years out, Find a diet that is sustainable for you long term – Vegan, paleo, intermittent fasting, whole 30, keto the list goes on. Whatever diet you chose. Log your food and stay within your calories/macros

I am 5'2" tall and 180 lbs, looking for an advice which procedure best and safest. I spoke to my family doctor and suggested the balloon but my worry there, can I maintain my weight after taking the balloon out after 6 months or gain back? I did Keto for 4 months and lost 20 lbs but gained back when I traveled somewhere for 2 weeks as I used to do exercise and cook my keto food. Until I slowly feel that my weight gained back and can't keep my keto routine and exercise. My family doctor says Gastric Sleeve surgery is irreversible and if there is an infection and something wrong or not for me, I can't put it back. And later on, there must be a serious side effect. And now I am here, I don't know what to do. Please drop advise and opinion and encouragement here please!!!!!!!!!

Hi everyone! I am a February 2019 sleever and I'm down 100 lbs! Yay! But now at 6 months...the scale has been going up. It's about 6 lbs higher than what I weighed at my lowest. I have been introducing new foods and I recently got injured at the gym so I've just been doing cardio... has anyone experienced this at 6 months? A stall or weight gain? Also...what were you eating at 6months? I really just want to take this time as an opportunity and not go backwards. Thank you!! Sent from my SM-G965U using BariatricPal mobile app

Here's mine: Health aspects Your weight is at a somewhat elevated level; in our view, it may be less than optimal for your health. Contrary to the WHO classification of "obese", we hold the statement that you are only "overweight". Your body fat mass seems to be a slightly above average. But health ought not be affected provided your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels remain at moderate values. This could be more likely if you have a higher muscle mass and a lower amount of body fat. SBMI = 43/70 This assessment is based on the newly developed Smart Body Mass Index. Its ideal range is between 30/70 and 39/70. Your Smart Body Mass Index (SBMI) is calculated as 43/70 or "43 points out of 70". Weight stability At this weight level, you are at risk of gaining more weight. If you manage to maintain your current weight, you have reached your first and most important goal. Weight loss should only take the second place. Your SBMI will decrease by about one point within ten years if you manage to keep your 195 pounds stable. This is due to the fact that the optimal, i.e. the "healthiest" BMI range increases with age, thus reaching higher BMI values. Weight management The best you can do is eat healthy food and increase your fitness. This will boost your health, whatever the case. If you lose weight in the process, all the better. Your target weight of 140 pounds Your weight target is in the right direction but very ambitious. A fast weight loss of 55 pounds kilograms could be the initial phase of a yo-yo effect. It may be safer to try 11 pounds first, stabilize on the level of 184 pounds and then set a new target, if this seems sensible. By the way, being fat without tobacco is better than being slim due to nicotine. The best advice for smokers is to postpone the weight loss and stop smoking first. To curb a weight gain, the following suggestions may be helpful. Nutrition Think over your diet. Eat a variety of foods that you like, optimally including five servings of fruit and/or vegetables a day. Avoid eating too sweet, too fat and too much. Your current low-carb diet Low-carb diets may help to reduce body weight and improve blood sugar an lipid levels. However, in contrast to a Mediterranean diet, low-carb diets are much less sustainable. Moreover, they likely increase disease and mortality risk, despite short term improvement of some risk factors. If you want to stop dieting, do it step by step. Physical activity Do physical exercise at least for half an hour daily at moderate to vigorous intensity. Walking or cycling may be better for your joints than jogging.

I've been a little hesitant to post here as I've seen some very judgmental replies in other topics, but here it goes anyway.... I found out I was pregnant back in May, 6 months post op, after bc failed. Both my surgeon and OBGYN (who actually had gastric by-pass surgery and had a surprise pregnancy 4 months post op) are happy with my progress and baby girl is very healthy. I'll be 18 weeks tomorrow and while I fluctuate between 161 and 163 for the past few weeks, I haven't really gained any weight. I started this pregnancy at 175 and was so sick during the first trimester that I lost weight. While this my third pregnancy, I can't really compare it to my other two which I started at 265 lbs and 250 lbs respectively. I've brought up my concerns during my appointments and I've been assured that everything is ok and that if my body wasn't ready for pregnancy it wouldn't have sustained it. I guess I'm just looking to see what experiences others have had post-surgery with weight gain. Basically any and all (constructive :)) advice is welcome.

Thank you Cindi_Augustine your words are very encouraging! I didn't know that stress can cause weight gain also, so I'm definitely going to try to relax.

When you're sick you do what you can to get liquids in, and so don't beat yourself up about that. Just put it behind you and get back on the path. Stressing over things releases cortisol and that can cause weight gain, so don't let stress get the better of you. You analyzed the problem, it was temporary, and you knew enough to come here and get encouragement to get back on track. Way to go!!! You did great!!!

No, I was completely off track. I started eating a lot sweets, breads, pastas....hence, the 40pd weight gain. I've been slapped back into reality and I'm ready to get my butt on track. I'm heading home, I will share more when I get home.

Hello, everyone! It is great to be back, I haven't seen you all in almost two years. I had the sleeve in 11/2015 and to date, I've gained 40 pounds. I'm not happy with the weight gain, but I'm thankful it isn't a huge amount to lose. I had one bite of cake and you know the story, I was back in that crap routine of eating, crap. I'm focused now!! Alright, the point of this post. I'll get to it. ☺️ Keto or no Keto. Last October, I had to get my gall bladder out and since then, whenever I go overboard on fats, I know about it within hours. Therefore, 100% Keto isn't for me. HOWEVER, I read about Dirty Keto. Have any of you tried that and if so, what are your thought? Also, I downloaded Carb Manager, but I can't seem to get the numbers where I want them. This is what I'm aiming for: New carbs: 35 Fat: 23 Protein: 80 Calories: 80 Because this is set for Keto, it isn't letting me hit the numbers exactly. Do you think MyFitnessPal, would be a better fit? Thanks so much and again, it's great to be back! 🤗

Hi, Stayed 4 nights in the hospital (minor complications with my bladder). I got home and saw I gained 2 pounds since starting my pre-op diet last week! I had the RNY. I know there are some people the surgery doesn’t work, and I’m freaking out a tad! If it matters I started at at 305 and am now close to 308! I’m following the diet to the letter! I had a hernia repair too, as well as the removal of my nissen. Thanks!

Thank you for the reply. Even though I had a some weight gain, I still fit in my clothes which is a good thing. I am getting back on track in terms of getting back to the basics. One thing I realized is that basically nothing I was told by my surgical staff/team is true. The hunger hormone disappeared for about two months post op and returned after that. For me hunger is real. In the beginning, I lived by 4 ounces religiously for about 6 months. No one told me that my sleeve capacity would increase. It's almost like I can eat a full meal now, kind of hard to explain. Overall I am still happy and I am getting compliments from people who I haven't seen in a while which is good. No one has said I look "sickly" which I guess is a positive thing. I do have an abundance of stress in my life which I need to turn into positive energy such as upping my exercise regimen.

Here's Dr. Matthew Weiner's take on weight gain and stretching out your tool. It's a common issue. And newbies defend their position to the death: that "everything in moderation" is ok. Dr. Weiner calls it the myth of restriction and malabsorption. Love it! This isn't magic bean surgery. They operate on our tummies not our heads. So we have to do everything we can to address the head issues that contributed to our disease while maximizing the advantage that WLS provides. It doesn't just "magically" end being a tool at the end of our honeymoon periods (anything equal to or <2 years). You still have your tool. But you have to exercise it. I too highly recommend how healthy counseling is for us. Get a referral to your RD for post op loss care and also to a bariatric counselor. All of our surgeons wish that their patients come back to them when they are only at the 10lb regain stage rather than the 50 or 60 or 100lb regain stage. 10lbs in 3 months really needs to be quickly evaluated. It could be your choices, but it could also be hormonal of some nature and you need to have a complete work-up and evaluation. BTW, you should stick around here and get support and provide support. Your journey will help others just like you/us!!!! Here's Dr. Weiner on the subject.

Sorry, to the success stories in this forum, In my defense I did search for the topic post sleeve “weight gain” & I was hoping for possible stories I could relate to, y’all all sound so successful so I’ll bounce out of this forum. but Much continued success to you all!

I’m about 2 1/2 years post sleeve and I did nothing but sat back and let the weight fall off. And I admit I’m a very lazy person but now I find that I can eat more so I’ve slowly started gaining weight. And as I’ve gradually gain 10lbs in 3 months as I’ve noticed I’ve been pushing my limits, but the good thing is I stop due to that I get really sick when I do which stops me but I have noticed that I can eat more now. My question is, is the damage done? Is my pouch already ruined?