Already Feeling Discouraged

[DebH 1]

Monday it will be two weeks since I was banded. The first 9 days after surgery I only lost 4 lbs. and this morning I got on the scale and even gained a pound. I am eating less than 600 calories a day, getting in my Protein (about 60 grams) and exercising every single day. It took me 2 years to prepare myself for this surgery and my greatest fear was that it would not work and already I feel like it will be just another failed attempt for me. I know that I will not lose overnight, but I did expect to be moving in the right direction not gaining. My surgeon and bariatric nurse said the 4 lbs was okay and I should start calulating loss from there, but what if I don't lose? I am scheduled for my first fill on the 18th. Does anyone have any insight for me?

[Cangel76 1]

Oh hon I haven't lost any weight in the first week. It is not always to be expected. There are a couple of things that could be happening.

If you did not exercise before you can be putting on muscle, which always weighs more than fat so that may be 2lbs in muscle gain and 1lb in fat loss. Also, if you didn't move your bowels before you stepped on the scale you could have gained.

There is also always the off chance that the scale was moved from one place to another in the house, can alter your readings.

Your band is not filled yet therefore you do not have a true restriction yet. Don't get discouraged, be patient and before you know it the weight is going to fly off. First week in, well 5 days and I have not lost any weight at all, but I know I am still healing and sore. One day at a time. Relax, you will get there.

LOTS OF HUGS (gentle cause my belly is still sore) to you.

[mabinty 3]

Don't give up it will happen!!! Just keep the faith:)

[vlp1968 83]

Don't be discouraged. They put saline in your iv after surgery, that is probably why you only lost 4 pounds. I think 600 calories is too low. Your body may be in starvation mode. I would try uping your calories to about 1200 and see how you do. Also, if your cleared for it, start excerisisng. It was key in my weight loss. Good luck on your journey!

[KAS1971 0]

I am 7 weeks out from surgery and only down 24 pounds, most of which was preop. My NP reminded your band is hardly doing anything right now but sitting there, and although the scale day to day may not blow me away ignore the little blips since I'm still averaging 3 pounds a week. She thinks I am expecting too much, perhaps she is right. It may only be 24 pounds but it's 24 pounds I have yet to loose on my own prior to surgery ..:eek:

[thsisme 14]

Debh, don't get too far down in the dumps! as the others have said before this post, many factors could be at work here! Take a look at uping your calorie intake it is amazing that we spend our lives being told that less calories means weight loss, but if we get to a certain point our bodies tell us otherwise. Slowly increase your caloric intake up to 1200 cal/day. keep your Protein up and see where your body takes you. I went from less than 500/day to 800cal/day and increased my protein intake to approx. 70gs before the old body wanted to drop some of its' beloved poundage! :eek:

[♥LovetheNewMe♥ 1,216]

Monday it will be two weeks since I was banded. The first 9 days after surgery I only lost 4 lbs. and this morning I got on the scale and even gained a pound. I am eating less than 600 calories a day, getting in my Protein (about 60 grams) and exercising every single day. It took me 2 years to prepare myself for this surgery and my greatest fear was that it would not work and already I feel like it will be just another failed attempt for me. I know that I will not lose overnight, but I did expect to be moving in the right direction not gaining. My surgeon and bariatric nurse said the 4 lbs was okay and I should start calculating loss from there, but what if I don't lose? I am scheduled for my first fill on the 18th. Does anyone have any insight for me?

Deb,

Do not allow yourself to be a slave to your scale. We are all in this with you, we have all had failed diets and we all have the same fear that we won't loose weight. None of us have done this without thinking through all the pros and cons and praying that this time this will work. It is hard not to weigh your self because we all need that little number to go down so we can feel that instant gratification of knowing we are loosing weight. So all of that being said, just keep doing what you are doing, taking in your protein watching your serving size and think about all the healthy food your putting in your body and the weight will come off, slowly but remember the difference this time is, "It is going to work". Good Luck and keep believing.:eek:

[Melissannde 41]

Monday it will be two weeks since I was banded. The first 9 days after surgery I only lost 4 lbs. and this morning I got on the scale and even gained a pound. I am eating less than 600 calories a day, getting in my Protein (about 60 grams) and exercising every single day. It took me 2 years to prepare myself for this surgery and my greatest fear was that it would not work and already I feel like it will be just another failed attempt for me. I know that I will not lose overnight, but I did expect to be moving in the right direction not gaining. My surgeon and bariatric nurse said the 4 lbs was okay and I should start calulating loss from there, but what if I don't lose? I am scheduled for my first fill on the 18th. Does anyone have any insight for me?

I agree with several other previous posters, that 600 is probably too low. However, we all vary greatly on what we need for weight control. I would bump it up slowly, maybe by 100 or 200 calories a day for a week and see what that does.

If you will keep track of your weight on a website (I like thedailyplate.com) you will probably eventually see that it looks like rickrack.. up and down, up and down.. but overall.. it will be downhill.

I only lost 2lbs the first 3 weeks after my surgery. I wasn't able to eat much, on liquids & very soft foods. When I finally got to solids..I dropped 20lbs in 9 days.

You don't mention exactly what you are eating. I see lots of people on this site mention that they are still eating white carbs (white bread, white potatoes, white rice, white Pasta, all colors of corn). These are not good for weight loss. If these are still in your food plan, try to wean yourself off of them. If you want to understand why these aren't good for us.. do a search for Glycemic Index/ Glycemic Load. You'll learn alot about how these foods affect us.

Basically, you are at the beginning of the Weight Loss Journey. Don't Panic. Follow MOST of the guidelines given to you by your bariatric doctor/support staff MOST of the time and the weight should come off for you.

[DebH 1]

Thank you all for your support and encouragement. Today has just been a really hard day for me and I can't shake this feeling right now. Since I have only been on soft and puree for the past 4 days I have eaten things like greek yogurt, babyfood meat, Protein Shakes and medifast oatmeal which has 11 grams of Protein in it. So I don't think it is too much carbohydrates. I am not going to get on the scale until next Friday so I think that may help my overall mood. Any suggestions on how to get in more protein? I do a protein shot each day to supplement, but would like to do more. I don't know what I would do without this site to turn too. I just can't fail this time!

[Boo_68 6]

I completely agree with all the prior posts, but wanted to add that you are still in recovery. You may be feeling better, but allow this time for your body to completely heal. The weight loss will come in time. I remind myself that it took a lifetime for me to gain....I can't expect it to be gone overnight. Slow losses are usually permanent ones...with the occassional bump in the road....4 lbs a week leads to 16 a month to 192 in a year. Just a different way to look at things. Stay positive...Oh' and are you doing measurements?? I literally saw inches melt away when the scale wasn't moving....muscle weighs more than fat. Good luck on your continued journey. YOU CAN DO THIS!!:eek:

[chefjacki 0]

debH, don't be so down on yourself, we are all going through the same thing . It will pick up when we get a fill or two to that sweet spot and we will start losing the weight. remember, the first few weeks we need to concern our selves with healing and getting used to the body. I know we can do this, just think about the great things that are to come.............................................:smile2:

[Southern Leo 0]

Yes, great things are to come. Remember, this isn't something you will be doing for a short time and be done. We will have this change in our lives much longer than a diet we decided we would follow. I haven't been banded yet but know I can learn from those before me. Give yourself time to heal, don't let it distract you. I might need to read some of my suggestions later to remind me!!

Edited November 9, 2010 by Southern Leo
addition of afterthought

[WrenBird 11]

Two weeks after banding usually means you can start exercising. This is incredibly important to lose weight. Ask your surgeon if you can start doing exercise that will help you. If it's hard to exercise, I recommend aqua aerobics.

The eating side of things is only a small portion of the work. If you've already been exercising, switch it up a bit and change what you're doing. Make sure you continue to do that every 3 or 4 weeks.

You may also be in a plateau stage. This usually comes at around 2-4 weeks after starting new eating habits. Let it pass and be patient. If you're already exercising, you may be making muscle, to which point you'd be past the Water weight stage so you wouldn't be losing as much. Putting on weight is rare but not impossible. Your body may just be making more muscle, which will assist you in your next round after the plateau stage.

Are you feeling satisfied when you eat? It could be that you need a fill, in which case you'll probably have to wait until the 4th week, which is fine...It just means you'll have to control what you eat more. 600 calories isn't good for someone recovering from surgery, so I'd say to increase that and take a multi-Vitamin (liquid form) everyday.

Keep at it. You have a whole forum here to support you and give you advice. The band is just a tool and if you use it right, it will change your life.

The band only does 1/4 of the work, so you'll have to make a big amount of effort which I believe you can do.

You can do it!

Cheers.

P.S: you may be one of those people who lose weight slowly. This means your body is smart :-) but it can be annoying if you want to lose weight quick.

The best thing about having a body that loses weight slowly is that the weight is more likely to stay off!

Edited November 9, 2010 by WrenBird

[spoiltmom 44]

I would add in some more calories. 600 is way too low and your body may not lose if it thinks your starving it. Try putting skim or 2% milk in your Protein Shakes.< /p>

[ElfiePoo 109]

Monday it will be two weeks since I was banded. The first 9 days after surgery I only lost 4 lbs. and this morning I got on the scale and even gained a pound. I am eating less than 600 calories a day, getting in my Protein (about 60 grams) and exercising every single day.

Deb,

Another thing to exercise...patience.

Stop looking for immediate rewards. They're just a source of frustration. IMHO, less than 600 calories will, in the long term, cause you to lose more slowly and with more stalls. Perhaps bump your calories up a couple hundred and see what happens? If that doesn't work, you may have to bump them up more. I know there are people here eating 800 calories and losing, but I have to eat above 1000 calories. You'll need to work to find out what is best for you.

Also, careful with the exercise (not sure what or how much you're doing). My surgeon said nothing but walking for the first month. No lifting weights...no bending or stretching that would pull at the port area...etc. because it needs time to heal.

.