Search the Community

Hey y'all! I had my surgery on 2/17, was discharged on 2/18, and back to work on 2/21 (against my doctor's advice). I have been in the gym almost everyday for an hr on the treadmill and I'm down 15lbs so far. My doctor thinks I'm nuts for going back to work so soon, but I sit at a desk all day and I honestly have very little pain. I don't even use the pain meds. My only struggle is eating pureed foods for another week. My doctor skipped the liquid diet and put me straight to pureed foods. My starting weight was 280lbs and 1 week later I'm at 265lbs. I'm excited !! Just curious as to when others started noticing that a smaller wardrobe was needed?

I feel you. I have read that a few week stall was normal. Most everyone seems to have them. I too went into a LONG stall at about 5 months out from surgery. Had surgery in May and the last time I really lost any good amount of weight was Oct. I stalled, then spoke to my nutritionist in Dec, made some adjustments then lost like 3.7 in January but haven't lost again since! That's like only a 3.7 lb loss in about 5 months!!!! CRAZY!! You MAY be able to explain your stall away because you have been indulging in foods more off plan (chips, diet soda, etc), but I haven't even been doing that! I have not had any other drink but for water since last March! But for the occasional alcoholic drink (like once a month). So yeah, your guess is as good as mine. You can read more about my issues (if you want) in my thread that I have going. Explains more about what has been happening, my exercise routine, etc. Hopefully you will get things moving again soon. Maybe cut out those foods and see if that helps? I also suggest speaking to your nutritionist. They may be able to help you get yourself back on track. Are you tracking your food?

Your workout routine is really intense. And that's a good thing. But... if you weren't very active before, it's extremely likely that you are gaining muscle, particularly since you are doing weight/resistance training. While that isn't going to explain away 50-60 lbs, it's probably worth spending a little bit of money (should be under US$50) to get a DEXA scan and see what your body fat percentage is, instead of using the BMI which is horribly inaccurate. Are you doing body measurements? That's probably a better gauge given your activity level than the scale. I still have 30-ish pounds to lose and have been bouncing around (just tiny bumps down every now and then), but I also suspect I have gained muscle since I do weight training four days a week—and the continued shrinking of my midsection despite the traitor scale's refusal to move means that I'm replacing fat with muscle. (I have a DEXA scan scheduled for mid-March to mark six months after surgery.)

Thank you all so much! I am moved by the support 💕 I just made a care.com account and found someone. She responded really fast and we spoke. She is OK with picking me up super early and picking me up after surgery. The hospital is a good drive but she does not mind. Today is my say day 1 of liquids surgery is next week! I hope this thread will help others. I'm new here too lol

I am five-months post gastric sleeve and in the middle of a five-week stall where I have not lost any weight. While admittedly after being impacted by Covid my exercise (walks) did go down, but over the last two weeks have been walking an average of 8000 steps compared to an average of 4000 steps for the first four months post op. Unfortunately, owing to mental stress have also been somewhat taking liberties with the diet, especially with occasional ice cream, and chips at night and also diet coke. For information, my surgery weight was 330 lbs with current weight 268 lbs with a total weight loss of 62 lbs over exactly five months. Reading the forum I understand stalls can happen but am concerned about no impact for around 6 weeks despite increased physical activity. Any insights on the following will help: a. How often does the stall last, especially if anybody has experienced around 5-6 months post-op. b. Any specific foods that can be included in the diet to trigger weight loss. Glad to be part of this group. Cheers

Hooold up! It took me 6-8 weeks for the nerves in my stomach to heal to help me feel restriction. Your new stomach may simply be numb still. So tread carefully, you'll get the restriction soon.

Thanks. Well I lost 90 lbs since last March. I didn't have the surgery until May 19th so like 72 lbs since surgery. I don't use the laxatives on the regular. But I did try them twice wondering if maybe I was backed up but as you see, that didn't make a difference so then I knew it wasn't that and didn't do it again. My nutritionist told me to stay at 800 calories a day (most days I do but some days I go up to around 1200 and that's ok with me), 50-75 grams of Carbs (no more than 100 for sure), and 60-70 grams of protein a day. But I had been routinely getting in double the protein because the surgeon said it would help with the hair loss and I believeD it was also making a difference and helping me drop pounds. UNTIL I stalled again. Sigh

I'm sorry you're struggling. YOU'VE LOST 90 LBS!!!! That's great! Remember that many/most people who have WLS do not end up with a "normal" BMI. I can't tell you anything your dietician hasn't already told you. Stalls DO happen, especially as you get closer to your goal. DON'T use laxatives for weight loss. That is not healthy mentally or physically. How many calories are you eating? Sometimes people need to eat more/fewer calories to get their weight to move. I assume you've already discussed this with your dietician, as well as weighing and measuring your food to make sure your calorie counts are accurate. Your exercise plan is really amazing. I keep getting tendinitis and can't do anything...

Hey everyone so I’m 2 weeks post op and have now started puree foods and I can’t tell when I’m full. I eat slowly and chew as much as possible I’m not drinking when I eat and yet I don’t feel full ever. The only way I seem to tell is when I finally throw up or I just guess. Does anyone have this problem or advice?

Haha you are literally my surgery twin in appetite lol Exactly my same feelings when I experience food. I didn’t have to do a 2 week because I lost weight prior to the 2 week getting my BMI down 3 points. So I’m in my 1 week preop. Surgery is Monday. I got so weak yesterday from the slight carb withdrawals but today is much better, they always say the 3rd day is the worse. Today is my last day of full liquids, tomorrow I start clears. I’m packing my hospital bag now which will be very light. Lol I love this forum so much, we get so much real life information. Good luck to you! Feel free to reach out a anytime!

UPDATE: I figure it's been a while since I made an update so, why not. Anyway, I wish there was something good to report but there's not. As you may or may not know from my previous postings, I contacted my nutritionist in December after being in a stall since Oct 25th. I made the changes she suggested and was able to drop a few more pounds (and inches) and got down to 237.6 on January 26th and now NOTHING since............AGAIN!! So unlike before when my lowest on October 25th was 241.2 but I would constantly hover between 243 to 248 (despite getting down to that) I now got down to 237.6 on January 26th but NOW CONSTANTLY hover between 241 and 243.8!!! It has not gone below 237.6. I AM SO SICK OF IT!! So it pretty much breaks down to I lost ONLY 3.6 lbs in FOUR, going on FIVE, months!!!!! I have done everything she said. I have since doubled my protein, make sure I'm getting my water in, staying within the correct carbs/calories/etc. she suggested and have been exercising regularly for weeks!! Exercise consists of, as per her suggestion........ Mon/Wed/Fri: Start with 20 min on exercise bike. Followed by Back Squats/Bench Press/Deadlifts (with weights that has me really pushing once I'm at the end of my sets). I then walk the treadmill for 30 min at a slight incline at 3 to 3.5 mph! Tue/Thurs: I will do more upper body type workouts with bands and free weights. Some stretches and again, walk the treadmill for 30 min at a slight incline at 3 to 3.5 mph! The types of exercises (and weights) are varied on Mon/Wed/Fri. They vary between back squats, bench presses, deadlifts, standing overhead press, barbell rows, etc. I've done everything she said. Made the changes to my diet, log my foods and started doing not only cardio but also a weight lifting regimen. Not even sure anything else will work for me. Not sure there is anything else for me to do. I mean, if there is anything I would consider not so great in my diet it would be the occasional quinoa or whole wheat pasta. And I'm talking like 3 to 4 times a month, that's it and it's never more than 1/4 cup. Of course I say not so great cause things like that have always seem to mess with my dieting in my life even though every damn doctor says those are good things to eat. I don't know. I'm probably wrong but I'm just not seeing where or how I'm going wrong here. I'm not snacking, not eating sugars or bad carbs, sticking to 3 meals a day (as suggested). I've even tried laxatives thinking maybe I was backed up. OTC water pills, NOTHING! NOTHING makes a difference. At first I really thought the changes she had me make were gonna make a difference since the scale DID move.......SOME. But I guess I was wrong as it was short lived. I still have at least 57/60 lbs to lose. Not sure that will ever happen. My surgeon said at a year out they expect my weight to be between 201 and 234. I guess I AM ok and on track IF I follow that but, it still seems off for me not to be losing regularly.

You are not alone and you are not crazy! I can relate with you about the food not tasting as good as my mind told me it was going to be. I had been experiencing similar affects in the weeks prior, I ordered Wendy's chicken nuggets and they just tasted like cardboard to me (minus the honey mustard). I had a similar experience with other foods, a lemon shortcake that made my mouth feel like it was just coated in shortening - which I was happy to experience because that had previously been one of my favorites. So have you started your 2-week diet yet? How's it going? I'm on day 3 and I feel good. I was successful in cutting out caffeine and sugar(for the most part) out prior to this start. I'm having some cravings - but only when I see food, smell food, or see a commercial with food - to which I just look away and try to ignore it. I am losing about 2lbs each day, so that is encouraging! All the Best

I had back pain a few weeks after surgery. This is common as you lose weight because you carry yourself differently. Do NOT take anti-inflammatories (ibuprofen, aleve, aspirin) without talking to your surgeon as they are not recommended after bariatric surgery. Talk to your doctor about what medications are safe for you and what you can do in terms of heat or stretching that might help.

Exactly this: I was so hungry after surgery and everyone was saying it was just head hunger, but I knew it was TRUE hunger because I would have eaten anything. I couldn't figure out if I was going crazy or if my surgery was wrong, but then I talked to the therapist at my bariatric center and she said about 20% of her patients don't lose their hunger after surgery. I eat three meals and 2 snacks a day and I'm 5 months out. The surgery center is very happy with my progress. Don't worry about stretching your stomach. Newer research suggests this is not really a thing, and it may not be possible. The stomach normally stretches and contracts all the time.

I’m exactly 3 weeks post op and been suffering with very bad constant back pain for the past 4 days. I can’t sit still at work, I can’t stand or walk for too long either. Im not sure whether it’s gas pain or something else. I also have stomach pain and bring up foamy stuff whenever I have a drink of water. Anyone experienced something similar?

It just so happens I was doing a bit of light reading this week on the ASMBS.org website. I discovered stats on bariatric surgeries including revisions. Check out this link to the ASMBS site: https://asmbs.org/resources/estimate-of-bariatric-surgery-numbers When you take in the numbers holistically. Revision rates are climbing rapidly.

Nothing that first week is normal, you're eating virtually nothing. Even with prescribed laxatives, my BMs in the liquid phase were virtually nonexistent. Pureed stage I was lucky to pass something every third day. It's normal. Relax. xx

Pooping or not pooping will be one a bit of a daily focus while you’re losing & constipation begins a regular occupancy. As @catwoman7 said your not eating much & what you are consuming your body is squeezing every last nutrient out of it so little to poop out. But do try to keep on top of constipation as it can be a battle to break it & not very pleasant & even painful when you do. If I hadn’t pooped for three days, I’d take a stool softener. I remember being told by an older woman many years ago that jumping up and down will get get things moving 🤷🏻‍♀️. I thought it was a bit risky after surgery as I didn’t want to risk a more ‘explosive’ conclusion. 😉

Hello All I also have a early date next month. I'm doing my two weeks diet and it a little hard but I'm going to make it thru Good luck to everyone about to make this step.

Again, it's in plenty of plans from weeks 3-4. How is this helping OP?

Make sure you have a change of compression stockings. The hospital will give you one set to take with you. You really should wear them for the first week or so to prevent clots. Make sure you get up and walk, walk, walk as soon as they say you can in the hospital. Most likely within a couple hours of getting out of the recovery room. You will be glad you did. Force liquids....

In the early weeks I had trouble with eating the proteins so had 5 tiny meals a day. I tried for 6 but never made it. At your stage I really didnt get many calories in, maybe about 300 to 350 a day . My dietician said just do your best and don't count calories. Every body has different instructions so just do the best you can within them

I never went for over a week and I was on lactalose not nice at all then the next time I went was a week after which I decided to take a little more than I should have and bot did I know about it now I know what dumping is couldn't even make it to the toilet lucky enough I have a very understanding husband thank God hope all goes well when you've been you'll feel so much better

docusate should be fine. It'll come - eventually! Probably soon if it's been a week already...

At 2.5 weeks out, how much food should I be consuming? If I feel hungry between "meals" (If we can call it that!) is it phantom hunger? Is it possible for me to be hungry if my stomach is so small? This is so confusing. I don't want to eat too much, I'm afraid of stretching my stomach and getting used to food too quickly. But what does the hunger mean? I tried drinking instead of eating (bec I'm low on drinking anyway, so kill 2 birds with one stone) but it doesn't help.