Plateaued for 4 months now

[sweetsam2005 9]

I am so frustrated it's not even funny! I spent all of this money for this surgery... went through all of the pain and all of the new life changes and yet I am struggling with my weight loss. I have had two adjustments and currently at 5cc in a 10 cc band... I really just want to be in the green zone but unless i can pick my weight loss up my surgeon won't do another fill.

Part of the problem is that for the last 4 months my life has been in utter chaos. I seemed to lose the most weight just after surgery.

I hate going to my follow up appointments because I feel like such a disappointment to myself and to the surgeons. I just cant stand how terrible I am doing. I would be happy with 1lb a month even but I literally have not lost a pound since October. My weight goes down 4 then back up 4 every single week it's the exact same. I cannot get it to stay down and keep going down.

I know my eating habits are getting terrible again and part of that is because I have a hard time finding foods that I like that I can make easy.

BLAHHHH I guess i just needed to vent.

[laurigee 545]

This is the time with the band that you have to decide to work with it or fight against it! You HAVE to change your eating habits, portion size, and get some exercise! Until you hit the correct amount of fill it is a struggle! You will still have to eat the amounts and calories your given by your nutritionist or surgeon or nothing will happen! You will be hungry, but you can get through it! It's time to change your lifestyle! If you don't, no matter how much Fluid you put in your band it won't work! You will get to a spot when the band will start helping you and it will get easier! Remember, the band isn't intended to do it alone! You need to look at what you've been doing, see it hasn't worked, and have a change in plan! It takes a lot to understand how our bodies work with the band because we are all so different! I have had the band for 6 years now and I'm just starting to get the hang of what works and doesn't work for me! It can be a long process. However, in the end our goal is to be a healthier version of our current self! Therefore, don't obsess with the scale and use that as your marker of success! Start eating right and moving and the weight will follow! Good Luck to you and I hope you start to get the results your looking for!

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

I'm very sorry you're struggling.

It sounds like you already know what you need to do to be successful. Healthy eating really doesn't have to be a chore. There are so many yummy yet healthy recipes out there. Here are two of my favorite sites for food, have a look:

http://www.emilybites.com/

http://www.skinnytaste.com/

The thing you have to remember is, losing weight boils down to basic math. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. The best advice I can give you is to start logging your food and counting calories. Not only will this help you stay in your daily calorie range, but by logging your food you keep yourself accountable too. It's a lot easier to rationalize "Oh today sucks, I'm having cake!" when you don't have to see it right there in front of you in your food logs and see how it effects your overall daily calories.

Perhaps a visit with your nutritionist may help, too. Tell them what you're struggling with and let them help you establish food guidelines that work with your lifestyle.

Remember, the band is just a tool. The work will always be yours to do.

Best wishes to you.

[line-dancer 810]

Well, for me the fills are the tool when I hit 6.5cc in my 10 cc band that was it for me I am not hungy....but you still have to be on a diet clean you house out now the worst thing I have in the house yogurt and strawberrys. Maybe the doctor just wants to see that your sesiou and losing some on your own.

[FLORIDAYS 3,040]

It's time to learn to become one with your band. it is possible learn to live with your band instead of fighting it. I hope you chose to get back to basics, count your calories and track your food. Get back to monthly visits with your dr. They have seen it all and are there to help you not judge...even tho it might feel like it.

Only you can decide to use your band as an effective tool. It's not a "set it and forget it " mode during the losing stage. That happens when you are maintaining.

Best of luck in your decision.

[ktsped 42]

OMG!! I can totally identify with what you are going through. I had my surgery on April 16, 2012 and have lost about 43 pounds but ever since Sept/Oct I have been stuck!!! I thought I hit the green zone but then my band was too tight and they took some out in November. I was finally getting back on track and went for a fill in the beginning of December but then got very sick. I was on antibiotics and steroids which put a stall in my weight loss. So basically I have been going up and down the same 3 pounds since October. I just want to be out of the 200's!!!! So yesterday I went for a fill and the doctor was happy because I stayed the same this month which he was happy about since I just finished the steroids. I am PRAYING that I stay healthy and finally make it to the green zone. I am going back on March 6th and hope that I can be under 200. If you have any ideas of what to do or any advice anyone please let me know....I am still happy that I took this journey though...

[laralen02 38]

I'm plateaued also. Since a little before Thanksgiving. I track my food, eat a ton of Protein, drink a lot of Water, and exercise 1 hour 4 days a week. I eat 900-1200 cals a day. I have not gained anything, but I haven't lost either. I'm so frustrated because I'm doing everything RIGHT but nothing is happening! I have lost 80lbs since my surgery in March, but I still have so much more I want to lose. The only thing I can think of is that I switched my birth control right about that time...I wonder if my hormones just need to equalize?

[honk 780]

Are you measuring your portions? Research shows if you don't measure you will underestimate how much you're eating. Buy a digital food scale and start weighing your Protein my doctor says 3 ounces.

[Ladybandito 516]

I also had plateaud for a good couple of months, up and down the same three pounds. I just recently cut way back on my carbs .. Less than 20 grams per day... And that has gotten the scale moving again and my motivation back. I will not continue the severely restricted carbs ... It was just to get me going back in the right direction. I had been terribly frustrated until this month, so I know how you feel! If you are heavy on the carbs (even in fruit form) you may want to give this a try.

[willowcat 93]

This is a post from Newsho from a long time ago. Maybe her approach will help you? I've just copied it and pasted it below. Good luck.

LENGTH ALERT! (This has very detailed tips and tricks, so this is not a short post. Just a "heads up")

People asked me a lot how I went from Slow Loser to getting to goal. I did better my second year of banding and when the weight came off - it really came off.

This is something that worked for me, and I recommended to other Bandsters.

Granted, these are tips that's not in any LapBand brochure or doctor's manual, and YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY - but if you already think of yourself as a Slow Loser like I was, then maybe you will be open to trying something to shake things up a bit.

When I needed a weight-loss push, I didn't cut down on calories much (if I'd recently had a fill adjustment, that's different) but in general:

I *added* Protein to every thing I ate.

This helped me to lose steadily (although it sped up my weight loss, more importantly it kept it steady). And it worked! Some Bandsters in my same banding date were better at counting calories - I wasn't. Some were better at counting carbs, I wasn't, but I excelled at ADDING Protein. And I did well and later, other fellow Bandsters were asking me for help and tips.

How did I do it? I did not reduce calories or the amount I consumed (without a fill it wasn't much need to try that) and yet, I still lost. (I added a little bit of Beans, or a sprinkle of cheese (my favorite), or eggs - whatever I could. I didn't reduce what I ate, but I "upped my protein" - and it worked.

With the band, if you eat more protein, you generally will find yourself eating less overall - it doesn't feel that way but you do.

Every single time I added more protein to my regular Band-friendly meals, I lost more weight, even though I wasn't eating less calories sometimes. Sounds crazy - but in my particular case, if I didn't keep my protein levels up, my body held on to calories a lot more. Who needs their bodies "hoarding" calories?

If adding a bit of food meant I would lose more, it was worth a try. It worked.

And I paid attention to the TYPE of protein I ate. (Even before banding, I didn't eat beef or pork at all. And the band was developed in other countries where the pork and beef consumption is a lot lower than it is here in the 'States. I'm not a vegetarian, I just eat seafood and poultry only. My doc said this helped my weight loss a lot because the protein I ate was leaner, not fattier protein like pork/ham/bacon or beef/hamburger/fatty red meat. So I didn't have to regulate my portions as much as some Bandsters did. My can of tuna did more for me than a hamburger ever would have.)

Also, I'm a single/childless Bandster who lives alone, so I eat out for almost every meal. If I could make it to goal - while eating out - ANYBODY can.

How did I do it? Here were some tips.

At Breakfast, with my morning egg(s), I added a bit of cheese on top. Or I would have cottage cheese added. For protein and hunger reasons, cottage cheese did better than yogurt for me - unless I just had a fill or was very very filled or adjusted. The most filled I am, the less I eat in the mornings. So especially if you are not at your sweet spot, try Proteins that "stick" with you more to keep hunger away. Yogurt alone was not good enough of a Breakfast for me, with the band it just went through, and wasn't really filling. Now if I charged up my yogurt with lots of nuts, seeds, and wheat germ - then BAM! I'm not much of a cold Cereal eater (I prefer hot cereals) but if I had one I made sure it was a protein-packed one (I LOVE Grape Nuts Cereal best. Go Lean is awesome, and several of the Oatmeals & Cream of Wheat cereals have good protein content. I also added a few nuts to those, too. If I had a yogurt smoothie drink as a snack, I had them had a half scoop of Protein powder (a full scoop can make it too thick sometimes) or some soy or nuts.

Lunchtime was easy to get more protein in. I'd eat a scoop of tuna salad or chicken salad for lunch - and have them add some shredded cheese, some seeds and/or some nuts. I also love Soup. Usually a cup is a nice start to my lunch if I'm having a scoop of salad or tuna. If it's my whole lunch I get a bowl of Soup and eat what I can from it. My band will tell me when to stop. Almost any kind of any soup is great with a sprinkle of cheese or nuts added. Beans, too!

With my dinner I always like a cup of soup to begin. Gets me going, jump starts & 'primes' my band and it's a great protein opportunity. Then if I could, I concentrated on seafood. ANY type of fish worked great with my band - From catfish to salmon to snapper to Tilapia. Or even shrimp or my all time favorite, calamari. I enjoy oysters in season and clams all year. The weeks that I ate more seafood, I lost more weight - across the board. Usually grilled is a good choice to be honest I even ate it fried (sorry, weight loss experts) and I still did well. And with my seafood, if I could I added beans to almost everything. With my steamed veggies, I added nuts and a sprinkle of cheese sometimes. I know it's not very It really does work!

See when I restrict my calories or even when I try to cut down on fat - I usually just end up cutting down on protein. And no matter how "well" or how much less I eat, if I cut my protein my body won't 'burn' up the fat. It holds on to it. I know that protein is the fuel that helps the LapBand machine work and not trying to diet or 'cut down' was a blessing to me.

I've had other Bandsters try this, and yes they are skeptical at first but when they start seeing inches lost (muscle really does weigh more than fat, so your clothes tell you before the scale ever will) then they get on the bandwagon. So don't just 'cut down' - ADD some food on your plate. That's right. ADD MORE nuts, boiled/diced egg, beans, cheese, seeds and other yummy forms of protein. Your body and your LapBand will thank you for it. Also adding protein allowed me to eat fewer carbs and save them for what was really a nice treat - a nice martini or occasional glass of wine, with dinner. Yes, I'm a drinking Bandster. All the successful European Bandsters I knew drank a glass or two now and then and they were my role models. I can't drink a lot AT ALL - a little goes a long way, but it was nice to get to goal weight without ever missing a Friday Happy Hour. I got the band to enhance my life, not take away some of the things that make it enjoyable. I eat out at restaurants, I go have drinks with friends - and I feel and look great. BRAVO!

Good Luck to you. (And since so many people asked me the same question in private posts - that's why I am posting it on the Slow Losers board too...)

Keep up the good fight. I did it - and you can too.

[sweetsam2005 9]

Thank you all for the advice and encouragment. I really do need to get back on track with my diet and get more motivated. I really keep telling my husband to help push me more and I think I am going to suggest exercising together. I really hope I can get back to losing instead of staying the same!

Thanks

[Lady VS 1,147]

It's a month later, how are you doing?

[sweetsam2005 9]

I actually gained a total of 8 pounds back. Life is starting to calm down and we have been trying to walk and just did some healthier grocery shopping. Hopefully I can get back on track. My husband is starting to understand better how he can support me and I feel like things might pick back up with losing. We shall see.

[Lady VS 1,147]

Well good luck!