Has anyone felt like they aren't...

[Globetrotter 1,340]

I don't think our psychological frustration has anything to do with not understanding how this all works, I think one of the first respondents to this thread had it right; we've yearned for this for so long that any length of time in achieving our goals feels really long.

I'm one week out post-op today and I haven't lost a pound. My clothes do not feel remotely loose, nor my bras, nor my rings. I am not yet able to get in my quota of liquids or Protein, no matter how hard I try.

Most everyone who has the surgery is pretty well informed on how things will work, even before they have the surgery, we can be logical and sensible. But that does not stop the heart from secretly wanting ourselves to be the exception to the rule and lose wild amounts right off the bat. My surgeon expects me to lose 75 lbs by the end of my first three months!!!! I wish!!!!

[Nayna 0]

I was so glad to see this post, I have been feeling like I am stuck, I was sleeved on May 19, 2010, and have lost 37 pounds, which I am thrilled about, and that puts me at 79 lost since before the surgery, but I have hit a plateau. I do Water aerobics 5 days a week, but this week in an effort to kick start my loss again joined a hot yoga class (I've only been doing it 2 days but expected major loss after two days) we'll see how it goes after the 10 days I signed up for. Glad to hear I am not alone in my battle of the plateau. If exercise isn't your thing, I highly recommend water aerobics. Low impact and lots of fun, but a great workout. Good luck everyone.

[Lisalu 89]

All of ya'll are losing wait , but it's not fast enough. Did any of ya'll put on 25lbs in 2 or 3 weeks before? Could any of us loose 25 lbs in 2 or 3 weeks before the surgery. This shit takes time ladies. It's a tool not the fix it all.

Really, Sumthingwong, this isn't a fix it all, it's only a tool? I never knew. I thought the weight (not "wait" BTW) would just evaporate immediately after surgery. Sheesh, dude, lighten up.

[imagine.dream.inspire 0]

I think you're all losing great!!

38 pounds in a month? 50 in two months? Wow.

If you girls think your weight loss is slow, mine is snail pace. LOL. :biggrin0:

[Snoop101 0]

Yep have felt the same - 48lbs since the start of the journey, 40lbs of that post surgery in 11 weeks.

Have to keep reminding myself that my obsession with instant gratification is how I got to be so big in the first place!

Then I get some perspective on it and acknowledge I have dropped 4 dress sizes and feel better than I have in years. People are noticing the weight loss and giving me compliments - which is great! I have had to give away nearly all my pre-surgery clothes... costly but liberating!

Best thing is I am seeing muscles starting to emerge through the blubber - and I ran up a flight of stairs without thinking the other day! Concentrate on your NSVs - it seems that your scales sometimes take a bit longer to catch up with the changes you feel and see!

Good luck and chin up to all yopu losers!

[Mommydog14 1]

I was sleeved on May 11th and have lost 31 pounds, and I'm pleased with that. I was a lightweight, so a two pound a week weight loss is alright with me. What's the hurry?

[lillita 18]

Hi.. I know that.. But, it is a mental thing.. Knowing that you are eating less than 1/2 of what you were before and exercising -- you would think that one would lose more. That's all. I am quite aware that it is a tool and not a magic pill however, I guess we all hope that it will be quicker than what it is. So, yes it takes time but at least for me, I am always afraid that I will be that ONE that it doesn't work for even doing the right thing.

All of ya'll are losing wait , but it's not fast enough. Did any of ya'll put on 25lbs in 2 or 3 weeks before? Could any of us loose 25 lbs in 2 or 3 weeks before the surgery. This shit takes time ladies. It's a tool not the fix it all.

[Lisalu 89]

I think (hope) I found a solution for myself. I've decided to weigh myself only once a month. Let's see if I can stick to it, but it should be easier since there isn't a scale in my house.

I believe I got the one-a-month thing from a friend in OA. I tend to be obsessive and if I bought a scale, I'd probably be weighing myself 5 times a day(at least). The other thing is, weighing myself isn't going to change my behavior, just my mood. I mean I couldn't be eating LESS if I tried. I drink about 3 Protein drinks a day to get my Protein in and about 1/4 c of tuna salad or cottage cheese for lunch. Tha's probably 600 calories a day. I'm exercising as much as I can right now with my level of fatigue. That's it, that's all I can do; so I guess I just have let my body lose the weight on it's own timeline.

It's been 6 days since my last weigh-in and I feel better already. Clothes are looser and I'm not obessed with the numbers.

My next weigh-in is August 1. Anyone care to join me in a weigh-no-more-than-once-a-month club? I'd love the solidarity. Maybe we can free ourselves from the tyranny of the scale.

[Jane_J 117]

When I was heavy the most I could do was walking, and I just upped that when I felt able to. Just a little walk in the evenings will burn calories (especially if you are carrying alot of weight) and will also help with Constipation. And remember it's not a competition to lose the fastest. I was quite slow really but the main thing is I got there and seem to be staying there.

Jane x

[MINI-Me 196]

It's hard not to do it, but try not to compare yourself to someone else. I'm near goal now & not quite 6 months out. But, if you go back and research some of my early posts, I was saying some of the same things. We all have different points in our journey when we stall & where it just falls off. You will have yours too.

Keep the faith ... keep the Protein ... keep the Water ... keep the exercise ... it won't fail you!

[dixienorco 2]

Yes, I am in my fifth week and have lost twenty five lbs. Twenty lbs were lost in the first two weeks. I feel that I am losing not losing at a pace I should and wonder if it is going to work for me. Last week was only two lbs. On the flip side, it took me six months to lose thirty lbs and I had to work at it to keep it off. I just hope my excess weight comes off slow and steady. It is hard not to compare to others that have had good weight losses off the git go.

[Sunshine 1]

I have read everyone's post with eagerness!

My surgery was Monday (it's Saturday today). And I have NO IDEA why I feel as though I should actually SEE and FEEL different....even if it's just a little progress. I've hardly had anything. Just broth, etc. I feel like a failure already. Crazy....I know.

While I was in the hospital, I got quite dehydrated. So...I ended up receiving 8 bags of Fluid. Perhaps that caused me to gain some weight. Not sure.

I know my thoughts don't compare to the people on here who have been doing this for months....but, to be honest....it IS a depressing feeling as though I haven't lost anything.

[Donna4545 13]

I have the opposite problem--I'm losing fast but I'm frustrated because I still have a double chin and I can't wear any of my size-too-small pants. It's like I've lost 50 lbs from my fingers and toes or something. The only place I see the difference is on the scale. It's depressing!

[educationrulz 18]

I think (hope) I found a solution for myself. I've decided to weigh myself only once a month. Let's see if I can stick to it, but it should be easier since there isn't a scale in my house.

I believe I got the one-a-month thing from a friend in OA. I tend to be obsessive and if I bought a scale, I'd probably be weighing myself 5 times a day(at least). The other thing is, weighing myself isn't going to change my behavior, just my mood. I mean I couldn't be eating LESS if I tried. I drink about 3 Protein drinks a day to get my Protein in and about 1/4 c of tuna salad or cottage cheese for lunch. Tha's probably 600 calories a day. I'm exercising as much as I can right now with my level of fatigue. That's it, that's all I can do; so I guess I just have let my body lose the weight on it's own timeline.

It's been 6 days since my last weigh-in and I feel better already. Clothes are looser and I'm not obessed with the numbers.

My next weigh-in is August 1. Anyone care to join me in a weigh-no-more-than-once-a-month club? I'd love the solidarity. Maybe we can free ourselves from the tyranny of the scale.

I think I might join you Lisa. I don't own a scale either and don't plan to buy one until I hit goal so I can monitor any unwanted weight gain. I've been weighing myself here and there every week or so. I just went through the dreaded three week stall. I knew from the way my body was acting the minute it hit. Against my better judgement I got on a scale (at Walmart :001_tt2:) during that time and hadn't lost a thing from my previous weigh in the week before. Needless to say, I was pissed. But, I had read enough here to know that it was common and that it would pass.

I didn't weigh again until I felt my body shifting and started to see a change in my clothes. I just broke my stall and lost 2 pounds. I wasn't thrilled that it was only two pounds, but I'll take it. After being mad for two or three days about the scale not changing I started thinking that I need to cut back to weighing even less frequently than every week. I just don't need the extra drama. I'm actually much more emotionally tied to how my clothes fit and getting smaller sizes than I am with how much I weigh, so why should I be stressing about the scale.

I think I'm going to go for once a month weigh-ins too - at least until I get closer to goal! Count me in!

[BlackBerryJuice 349]

1) I know it's frustrating. But guess what, it took me a year to lose 40 lbs the old-fashioned way - up to 10 hours at the gym a week and a good 15 miles of walking per week on top of that, and constantly leaving the table hungry and denying myself everything (then it took me like 3 months to put it back on, but that's a whole other story, haha). So you are losing REALLY, REALLY fast.

2) Think about it in scientific terms. We've all heard that to lose a pound of fat, you need to burn 3500 calories. Unless you are really heavy AND really active, the odds of you burning that much per day are pretty low. So you shouldn't EXPECT to lose a pound a day on a consistent basis. Which leads me to my next point...

3) I think it's important to LOWER YOUR EXPECTATIONS first and foremost. If you go into the surgery thinking you'll be losing a pound a day for months on end, you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Set more realistic goals and then be pleasantly surprised when you exceed them.

Focus on the positives even if you don't feel like you're losing that quickly....

4) I like what someone else said earlier - think about the fact that even if you may not be losing as fast as you'd like, you are losing this weight for GOOD. You are not going to experience the same thing I did during my torturous dieting where I had 3 drinks and one dessert one weekend and put on 5 lbs that I couldn't lose again no matter how hard I tried - I really don't think I was eating more than you VSGers 2 months out AND was hungry as hell! At least by the looks of it, most of you don't have a problem with vicious physical hunger on top of your head hunger.

5) Even if you are losing slowly....you will get to a lower weight than you would EVER get to by dieting. The lowest I've gone from 200+ was 165 lbs, and that's when I ate like 1000 calories a day and exercised for 2 hours daily. I had a BMI of about 29 at that weight, if I remember correctly. I literally couldn't imagine the amount of starving and working out I would have to do to hit my goal weight of 145 - JUST under the "overweight" BMI. But I see VSGers here reaching a weight of 130, 120, even less without feeling deprived and exhausted. The odds of you ever achieving a weight that low the old-fashioned way are essentially zero.