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Today makes a month since the surgery. I've been struggling with acid reflux during the night, it wakes me up--otherwise, I'm feeling fine. I cannot eat more than 4 bites of anything. I'm living on protein shakes, soup, and scrambled eggs. When I get to school I make the Jimmy Dean egg bowl that also has small bits of sausage and it takes me nearly the whole day to eat it. I take small bites here and there. I don't think I've ever eaten a whole one. But it has 19 grams of protein. I can do that forever if I need to. I'm not the type that needs variety. Yesterday hubby cooked for the kids (they are 31 and 32). I had one fried shrimp, I had to eat it in 3 small bites. Maybe two fries. I've read that my weight loss might be slower since I started out at less than 200. In my mind, that shouldn't matter. If a person goes to eating about 1/8th of what they used to eat --there should be more than a 4 pound loss in a month. This really seals it for me that without the surgery I certainly would have never lost anything. They are delivering my Nordic Track Treadmill Tuesday. I will see if walking helps TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS SINCE SURGERY 4 POUNDS. I am extremely discouraged.

Hello fellow losers! You know how you read that Sleevers lose 80% of their desired weight...well, that's me! I would LOVE to lose another 10-20 pounds, but I'm down 82 pounds and feel GREAT! I did not work out and still don't...but I have been so happy with my results. I keep saying that I am going to get serious and start tracking again...and lose a few more pounds, but then something comes up (like visits, vacations, happy hours, dinners out) and I am just happy to stay below 200 pounds! One-derland!

I’m glad to see this thread popping up again! I was reading it OBSESSIVELY this time last year. 😄 I’m doing well…far better than I imagined I would do. I’m still glad that I’ve done the surgery. I’m down 145 lbs from my pre-surgery weight of 299, and surpassed my original goal. I’ve reset my goal to 145 lbs, so just another 8.4 lbs to go. I honestly don’t know if I’ll hit my new goal, but I’m okay with that. I feel good, I’m off all prescription meds, my resting heart rate is waaaaay down, and a 4-mile daily walk has become a pleasurable habit. I love that my legs look muscular, that I can shop for regular sized clothes and can tie my sneakers without a fuss. I still am very uncomfortable with having non-healthy foods in the house, and don’t trust myself with tempting foods being close by. I worry about ‘boredom eating’ so I’m working on that. I am trying to adhere to the philosophy of making good choices most of the time. I am in the process of figuring out what “most of the time” means to me. I’m working from home so it’s been a slow process of encountering my friends and coworkers. I can see the shock in their faces at my weight loss and just say that it’s been a ‘year of health’ for me. I am continually surprised at all the diet advice / opinions I get from people now, and so much of it inaccurate! I’ve been told that walking for exercise is useless (!), metabolism never changes (I am 55 and it most certainly has), the types of calories consumed doesn’t make a difference (I wish that was true so I could go back to eating more carbs!). It’s all stuff that we’ve all heard before. I’m thankful that I’ve had the past year to log my food and figure out for myself what works. @IWantTheDream I know a hip replacement is in my future, and I worry about that. When did you know that it was finally time to get it done?

Congratulations on getting to the 200's, that must feel so good! Yes, you can see a change in your face for sure. Keep us posted & good luck in continuing your weight loss process.

You need to request another dietician. There are good ones & not so good ones about but you have to find one you’re comfortable with & you feel has your best interest at heart. Mine wasn’t great but she was always supportive, would explain things & made some useful suggestions about things I could try in my diet. I can understand your dietician’s concerns about the psyllium husks - they can be too coarse to eat in the beginning & they tend to swell. If they swell in your tummy they’ll fill you up & you won’t be able to eat as much of the nutrients you need. (Look for non swelling soluble fibre to add to your diet.) But she should have explained this to you. Berries tend to have fewer carbs, less sugar & are lower in calories than bananas & bananas can cause constipation (which we already battle with). Again she should have explained this to you. The bananas & psyllium can be added back to your diet as you progress. Your weight loss will slow as you get closer to your goal & your weight loss will vary week to week. Everyone experiences fluctuations when losing & when maintaining. (I fluctuate about 2lbs in maintenance.) As long as your weight loss trend is going down you’re doing great. My protein goal while losing was 60g. In maintenance I was told it should still be 60g. By my current weight it should be about 40g based upon the 0.8g per kg of weight recommendation. I average about 55g. There is no right or wrong way to consume your calories & meet your protein goals. Some eat three meals a day, some snack, some graze on smaller meals, some do combinations. I had two snacks a day (afternoon & after dinner - fruit, cheese &/or yoghurt) from about month 3 or so. Helped me get my protein in. I still snack about 4 times to get my protein & calories in or sometimes I graze - finish off an earlier meal. Some need more calories some fewer. I eat about 1200 to maintain my current weight but I’m not overly active, am in my mid 50s & have a smallish frame. I was barely eating 900 calories when I hit my goal at 6 months. But that was me. My dietician was always happy with my food choices & eating habits. We’re all different. You have to find what works for you in regards to diet & eating habits. That’s what your dietician should be helping you to discover & advising you upon while you’re losing & then in maintenance. I hope you’re able to find a better, more supportive dietician.

Lack toast & told her aunt - hilarious @vikingbeast. You’re suffering withdrawals from caffeine, sugar, carbs, … @Vicks1990. It will get better when you’re over the hump (usually about 5 +/- days). It’s called hell week for a reason! There are several different pre surgery diet plans but just like your post surgical plan it’s best to stick to the one you were given. My surgeon gives different plans to different patients based upon things like starting weight, eating habits, weight loss history, etc. The pre surgical diet is in place for a number of reasons including to shrink your liver so the surgical field can be visualised more easily, lose weight before the surgery (so you’re healthier) & break some of those food addictions & eating habits. (Better to have the withdrawals now then immediately after your surgery when you’ll have other things to manage.) Between the calories you’re eating & your fat stores you have plenty of energy available for your body function as it needs. It’s only two weeks - you’ll get through it.

The average loss is about 65% of the weight you have to lose (to put you in the healthy bmi range) after (I think) 5 years. Some end up more than this others less hence the average. And it isn’t necessarily the lowest weight you’ll reach. Some regain because they find the diet to maintain at the lower weight too restrictive &/or the exercise regime too demanding & it didn’t fit in with their lifestyle or they felt more comfortable at a higher weight, etc. I had to lose 31kg so I should expect to end up about 20kg lighter at 71kg in 5 years based on the average. I lost about 42kg & have basically maintained that. I’m only in my third year now so who knows what the future will bring. I think some surgeons tell you the average so you won’t have unrealistic expectations but it doesn’t mean that’s where you’ll maintain in the long term.

@catwoman7 is absolutely correct. Your rate of loss does slow as you progress so what you’re experiencing is usual. The only difference is some may lose at the higher rate for a little longer some fir a shorter time. Depends upon how much we have to lose & just our individual differences - gender, age, weight loss history, metabolic rate, activity, etc. I wasn’t a big exerciser - just walked on my treadmill. Started off slow & slowly increased to about 20 mins as I felt stronger. Then I struggled with low energy & low blood pressure so I stopped & used resistance bands for a while. As @ms.sss said you may have to lose more before others notice the loss. It seems the more you have to lose, the more you’ll have to lose for others to notice. A good friend noticed after I lost about 15kg - so about halfway to my goal. I was also wearing a straight line dress that had been a little snug (& pulled across my ass) before surgery but was hanging loosely when she saw me.

There’s really no right or wrong rate of losing. You’ll lose at your rate. Your weight won’t be falling off you - no 100lb a month losses like On My 600lb Life cause you’re not 600lb+ Not sure what stage you’re at yet but you won’t really start to feel your restriction until you are eating solid food (not purée or soft) & the nerves that were damaged during the surgery are more fully healed. Plus you’re likely still eating quite small portions so you’re restriction doesn’t need to warn you that you’ve eating too much. The first time you eat too quickly, too much or eat something that sits too heavily in your tummy you’ll feel that tightness across your chest. The effort you’re putting in is what will make you more successful with your weight loss this time. We used to fail to lose weight &/or maintain a lower weight in the past because we never dealt the reasons we were driven to eat and we didn’t permanently decide to eat more nutritious foods & reduce the amount of food we ate. Anyone can lose ‘too much’ just by being too restrictive in their diet & eating too few calories but ‘too much’ is individual & personal. As long as you’re happy & healthy & can live the life you want all us good. I lost way more than I thought I would be able to but I’m very happy at my weight, am in good healthy & enjoy my life. Good luck.

Finally broke the 300 mark, and now weighing in at 296 as of today. First time in the 200's in 20+ years. Never thought i could do it, the sleeve is the ticket. I have started walking in the last two months, and i'm up to 3.5-6 miles a day walks. When did everyone else start lifting weights? A friend of mine told me she thought my face lost a lot of weight. Until i saw the pic on the left in my facebook memories, i didn't believe it. Now i do.

The month of August has been rough on me as far as weight loss. I started back doing in person work and they brought in catered food every single day of the first week. It derailed me a bit. Now, I am starting to get back on track with my protein and water.

Hello! I hope some people can give some advice! I have been stewing on this for a number of weeks, and I am not really sure what to do. I will start by saying that my program is in Canada, and it is set up a bit different than most Americans. I go to a bariatric clinic that includes the psychologist, internal medicine doc, Dietitian, Nurse. The surgeon you are referred to after you have jumped through the hoops with the other professions. You are assigned the surgeon who does your surgery, for the most part, you don't get to shop for one...and they have little to do with the Diet/Medical Part (vitamins, labs, etc). The surgeons are general surgeons that obviously know how to do these surgeries, but they are not solely bariatric surgeons. So essentially, if I have questions I go to the bariatric clinic, and not the surgeon. The problem is, I hate my Dietitian. I don't feel like I can ask her anything without her being weird, and control freaky about everything. She has argued with me over my food logs (aggressively suggesting berries instead of the banana I ate everyday pre-op), She got upset with me for taking psyllum husks and omega 3 after surgery because "WHO TOLD ME TO DO THAT??!". I asked her about when my protein requirement would reduce (since I am losing weight obviously), and was told never because the protein requirement was based on my height, and not weight. (????). When I ask what calories I should be at, she won't answer and tell me my calories need to be higher. She also made a point to tell me that my weightloss will greatly slow down now (at my 3 month appointment). I was never a big/fast loser since starting this. Other than the first 2 weeks after surgery...I average out at about 2.5 pounds a week. In my program, regular food started week 4 after surgery. Once I went to solid food at week 4, I eat between 1100 and 1300 calories. I have yet to eat out, the 'worst' thing I have had is a very small bite of Candy to taste it. There is no forbidden food except for carbonated drinks...and obviously they recommend staying away from overly fried, processed, sugary things. Prior to surgery, the last time I had lost weight sucessfully was in 2016 when I went to the gym 6 days a week and tracked all my calories. I used MFP and fitbit. I ruined my knees in the process of that (a whole other story lol). I still use MFP to track food. So right now, MFP has 1300 calories to lose 2 pounds...and I am still a bit over 250. How in the world am I going to keep losing weight if I am supposed to eat more? Currently, my body is doing this thing where I lose 2.5 one week....0.7 the next....2.5 the next...I feel like I stall every 2nd week or so. The dietician doesn't help at all. She always rags on me to eat 5-6 times a day. I get all my protein in, in those 3 meals and I currently still don't experience a hunger sensation at all...so why would I eat more? She wants me to eat more and I feel like what I am doing is okay. I told her I would add more snacks if I need it, and she doesn't like that. I am at 5 months out...I feel like I am trucking along...but then I get really worried that I am not going to continue to lose weight, especially when she is on me to eat more and more often when I frankly don't want to. Everyone wants to believe that they have some tailored medical diet...and we don't. Every single program is done by an expert and they are all different from each other...and it really annoys me when people say 'follow your program'...when it seems every doc has a different idea of what would be successful., and nothing is standardized. Am I too set in CICO that I am frustrating myself? How can I continue to be successful and get to the lowest reasonable point that I can?

I agree that this is unlikely to be a major problem. I initially got down to a weight that looked and felt "too thin" to me. I added a few more carbs to my diet and that took care of itself quickly, LOL. Finding your maintenance level of calories is really just trial and error. Keep adding a bit more until your weight loss stops (besides normal fluctuations), but you also don't gain (besides normal fluctuations) and that's it!

It's good to know the statistics, but it's also important to realize there's nothing forcing you to be average. I had a medical contraindication for the bypass, so I was forced to have the sleeve instead. I was super disappointed and I feared I wouldn't lose much of my excess weight. But in reality, I lost ALL my excess weight and got down to a normal BMI. I think it took longer than is typical for a bypass patient, but I continued losing over the course of two years until I was done! I'm not promising you will get that result, just saying, don't take the average as an absolute indicator of your likely outcome. A lot of factors go into your final result, some under your control (like motivation, adherence to your program, etc.) and some not (like genetics, metabolism, etc.)

Hello! Since I've had the surgery, I have realized it is taking a lot more actual effort to lose weight than I thought it would. Don't get me wrong, it is still much easier than when I had to do it on my own. But I have to be careful about tracking calories, and I have to consciously decide to make the right choices and overcome head hunger. However, I think the doctor cut my stomach relatively big because I have had no issues with any foods at all and I don't really notice any restriction. Ultimately what it means is that my weight is not just falling off of me. I think the only type of surgery patient who might lose too much would be a person who has a lot of complications or an extremely small sleeve.

From what I remember it usually goes by volume not weight when performing lipo (canisters with measurements) and even then there is a mixture of blood, serous and tumescent fluid with the fat

When I had surgery in mid-January, I had about 80 lbs of excess weight going by my height - I’m 5 ft 5.5 inches which I round up to 5 6, so 155 would put me at a normal BMI. (I had lost 70 lbs on my own pre-surgery). By 6 months, I had lost all of that plus another 5 lbs. Again, these are averages - you can lose a lot more than that or lose a lot less. Stick to the eating plan and exercise and you’ll be fine.

Not sure how tall you are, but we sorta had similar starting BMIs (I started off at BMI 43 @ 235 lbs…i’m 5’2”) Based on BMI 25 as “normal weight” (in my case would have been 135 lbs goal weight), my doc said he would consider me a success if I lost 60-70 lbs (i.e., 60-70% of my 100lbs excess weight) within a year. Ended up losing 120% of my excess weight (110-ish lbs in 7 mnths, and another 10-ish in the first couple months of maintenance). Been more or less sitting at 115lbs for over 2 years now. I’ll be 3 years out from sleeve surgery in October. Honestly, barring any medical conditions, you can lose as much as you are willing to put the effort in for. Good Luck! ❤️

the other posters are right - it's almost certainly due to water retention, constipation, or hormones. There's no way you could gain 5 lbs of true weight in three days unless you've eaten 17,500 calories more than what your body needs (since it takes 3500 calories to gain one pound - so 17,500 for 5 pounds)

almost everyone experiences the infamous "three week stall" (the first major stall you hit, was is usually sometime during the first month or so after surgery. It's USUALLY the third week, hence the name). If you do a search of this site of the "three week stall", you will find over 17,000 posts on it (and no, I am NOT kidding)). You will likely hit several of these stalls along your journey. When you hit one, just stick to your program and stay off the scale for a few days - and know that the stall WILL break, and you'll be on your way again. and yes - weight loss rate falls off a lot after the first few weeks because most of that initial drop is water. So much depends on things like your starting BMI, gender, age, metabolic rate, etc - but most people seem to lose somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first month, and then about 10 lbs month after that. As you get closer to goal, the rate of weight loss decreases even more. I think a lot of people's expectations are shaped by shows like "My 600 lb Life" and are therefore very disappointed when they lose 15 or 20 lbs the first month - and then 10 lbs a month after that - but you have to keep in mind that the people on those shows start at MUCH higher BMI's than the average WLS patient. You are doing absolutely fine - so stop worrying about it and just enjoy the ride! I lost 16 lbs the first month, and about 10 lbs a month after that (again, dropping off a few months later), and I lost 100% of my excess weight. And I started off at over 300 lbs.

yep - as Hop_Scotch said, it's an average. As with any average, you'll find plenty of people who fall on either side of that. It includes not only the people who fail it because they aren't following the rules, but also those who are super committed and lose all of their excess weight. If you're really committed, you'll likely lose a lot more than the 50% average.

I had HBP and was on 2 medications. I was pre-diabetic with a hA1C 0f 6.3, unmedicated because I refused it, severe GERD-took meds but nothing really helped, GI doc said only thing that was going to help was weight loss and he was right. I think I probably had undiagnosed sleep apnea but refused to get tested. I had other issues too but they aren't on your list. I had "exercise induced asthma." Good reason not to exercise, right? I made the decision to have RNY gastric bypass for these reasons-I knew 4-5 people that had the sleeve and were not successful maintaining their weight loss, my insurance only pays for one surgery and I wanted to make sure I gave myself the best chance I could to be successful, my reflux was so bad the sleeve was ruled out. My doctor recommended the DS but I decided on the RNY GB. I left the hospital on a 1/2 dose of one of my BP meds and it was discontinued at my first post-op visit. My only meds now are my vitamins and calcium. I have lost 114% of my excess weight and will be 3 yrs post surgery in October. I follow the rules I was given and track my food still, mostly to make sure I'm getting my protein. I made a decision to change my lifestyle and my relationship with food and it has become my new normal now. I don't miss sugar or carbonated drinks and those were my main "food groups" before. I eat healthy foods but not to the point of addiction! I feel like a new person! Good luck with your choices!

Daily weight fluctuations can be up to 5 pounds. I wouldn't worry about it. It's frustrating, I know, but it's normal.

Just wondering what y'alls experience has been like with weight loss after gastric sleeve surgery. My surgeon said to expect a 50% weight loss of excess weight. My excess weight started at about 120lbs, which means i can only expect to lose 60 lbs of I trust what my surgeon said. That's disappointing. I'm curious as to what some of you have lost, that have had surgery 6 months ago or longer? Respectfully, Renee Z [emoji304][emoji160]

U are experiencing what I've been told is unavoidable. I just passed my 2 week stall that happened 2 weeks after my surgery. I'm finally back on the downward slope of weight loss. Don't do anything different. Just be patient. Respectfully, Renee Z [emoji304][emoji160]