My thoughts on Plateaus and weightloss

[leo 4]

Hey everyone, just wanted to blab a bit about these things called plateaus...

Yes, just that word instills fear in all us bandsters But really its overrated, I have been on so many plateaus its just not funny. But you know what? They always went away, just ignore the times when your loss seems to have slowed down to a crawl, enjoy the weight you have lost up to the plateau. And eventually the loss will start up again. I posted a chart of my 1 year of weightloss, you can see that 3 or 4 weeks plateaus are very common, the longest one was for nearly 4 months, during that time I only lost 1 lbs a month. Thanks to my band buddy I didn't get the chance to give up and revert back to my old ways of pigging out.

And now my weightloss has once again accelerated, I have lost 4 lbs just this month! Well enough of my blabbing out!

[Alexandra 55]

Leo, thanks for posting that! I completely agree, it's never worth getting bent out of shape about a plateau. Even if we kill ourselves trying to end it and we succeed, I think they're natural and normal and would probably end anyway without superhuman effort. And certainly without wasting mental/spiritual energy on worrying about them!

All that matters is the top number and the fact that the current number is way lower. The smoothness of the route in between is immaterial.

[La_madam 20]

Thanks Leo for the encouragement about plateaus

I agree with you. Just go with the flow. I look at it as long as I'm not gaining I can ride through those plateaus.

I haven't really hit one yet since being banded but have had many over my years of dieting.

[Penni60 45]

Leo: Thanks for posting this. IT is very encouraging to see. I have hit plateaus in my former dieting days and it was horrible. I have also hit plateaus in this banding process. IT is still horrible but then I have to tell myself I am NOT gaining so that is a plus.

Plateaus are normal and will happen. IT is a fact of life. We just have to ride them out.

[blossom 2]

Thanks, Leo! You have posted some great info on this board, and for a newbie like me, its priceless information!

[bushbaby 8]

So then if a plateu is normal when do you know when to get a fill?

[New Hope 37]

Thank you, experienced bandsters for those "pearls of wisdom". I know that I will reach several points where I'll need encouragement. This is the first place that I will come.

[MeganA 35]

I wanted to chime in here on the plateau issue.

By tracking my weightloss over several months I discovered something very interesting about my metabolism and the way I loose weight.

I don't loose for two to three weeks...and then in the fourth week I will loose 4-5 pounds. Then I maintain again for two to three weeks, then I'll loose about 3 pounds. I've been watching this happen for 8 months now.

Now, if I'd follow Jesse's advice (from Smartbandsters) about getting a fill if you haven't lost in two to three weeks, I'd be way too tight. But, because I keep track and weigh myself once a week- I can see that I just have to hang in there a little longer to see results. Right about the time I start to panic, that fourth week will hit and I"ll be down.

The only time I've gotten fills is when I've actually gained weight for more than two weeks. That seems to rule out Water weight gain and that time of the month stuff.

I just thank God I got the band because I always thought I was a failure at dieting...when really if I would have stuck with it for another week or two I would have seen results. But my band doesn't let me quit and it helps insure my success. I have to keep plugging along.

Megan

[leatha_g 4]

Originally posted by megan0318

I don't loose for two to three weeks...and then in the fourth week I will loose 4-5 pounds. Then I maintain again for two to three weeks, then I'll loose about 3 pounds. I've been watching this happen for 8 months now.

I do this also and it can be very frustrating, especially when you get on and off that scale everytime you come within 20ft of it!!

However, it's very interesting how we maintain this 'weight' but at the same time our bodies are compacting. I would keep watching the scale, cursing it for not moving, but my clothes were falling off of me. :banana :banana

[leo 4]

Originally posted by bushbaby

So then if a plateu is normal when do you know when to get a fill?

Knowing when to get a fill isn't a precise science, it's different for everyone, and you really need to use your own judgement. But normally its when you have lost most or all restriction and haven't lost for any weight for more then 3 weeks.

But like most other say, plateaus can last for 3 or 4 or more weeks and then suddenly you lose again. So, never over fill. If you do have restriction and are just not loosing try to ride it out for a while to prevent being to tight.

Or keep track of your weightloss like megan and me, www.fitday.com has this great way to do that. Just use the weight part of the site. and run a report and it will give you the graph. Once you have a couple of months of data, you will most likely see a weightloss partern similiar to mine and megans develop.

[Alexandra 55]

I agree with Leo. The standard line about not having lost weight for 3 or more weeks being an indicator for a fill doesn't go far enough, in my eyes. There are lots of factors to consider when deciding if your fill is adequate, and getting overfilled can be dangerous so it's very important to look at the whole picture.

Everyone is different, but I'm like Megan and really learn from my daily weigh-in. I plateau every single month, most of the month, and then in a week or two I'll drop five or six lbs. Then I'll bounce around that new number for another month and the cycle will start again. My fills tend to tighten up weeks after the fact, and I would never have known that if I obsessed about plateaus and went running off to get a fill after a 3-week plateau.

I could be tighter, but frankly I don't want to be. My current level of restriction stops me from eating any more than enough, but still enough to feel mentally satisfied. See, while I'm not a fast loser and lots of people reading this might think I'm no one to take advice from for that reason, what's important to me is my quality of life. Constantly battling a too-tight fill is no fun, can be embarrassing, and potentially dangerous. As long as I feel a level of restriction that tells me when to stop eating, I don't need a fill.

[donali 57]

So then if a plateu is normal when do you know when to get a fill?

Rica, I think this is a very important question that many people don't think about. Many bandsters will just keep getting filled until they can hardly keep down anything because "they're not losing weight."

I looked more at the amount I was consuming, WHAT I was consuming, how I felt, and what my usual calories each day were.

If I was hungry too soon after eating what I considered to be a decent amount (normal people portion, or a little less), and I wasn't having any problems with vomiting/reflux, then it was time for a fill.

If I was eating about the amounts I thought was "normal" and hitting my calorie range most of the time, and feeling satisfied between meals with the occasional exception, it was time to ride out the plateau and work on getting in all my Water and making more nutritious choices most of the time.

The band is NOT about being so restricted you can hardly eat anything (IMHO), it's about being satisfied with the amount of food that meets your caloric requirements. If you're doing everything right, feeling good, moving your body occasionally, then the weight will continue to come off, even if you plateau for months at a time.

Patience is a virtue on this front.

Again, IMHO.

[DeLarla 22]

Thanks, Megan for that post, because I'm the same way. I stay the same weight for a couple weeks, then I'll lost 2 pounds at once. Works for me!

[hagerteresa 3]

I also find this thread very helpful and informative. Since I haven't even had a fill yet and am still riding it out from the initial surgery, it just confirmed my initial feeling about fills. People have asked me, why haven't I gotten one yet? I try to explain I am STILL losing, why would I need one yet. I typically feel satisfied off of my meals till the next one, etc. I read about those over filled people and it makes me cringe. That would be the last thing I would want to do with myself, make it so even eating small amounts is unbearable and painful. How awful would that be. At least I get my baby dinner sizes now. LOL. Thanks all for you input on this thread. Teresa

[leatha_g 4]

As long as you are losing an average of 1-2lbs per week. A fill is not necessary. Also, too-tight fills are one of the culprits for band slippage. This is a very important thing to remember because it can be costly to your body, your band and your pocketbook!