Weight Loss at a Crawl and I'm Worried

[mnmlst 249]

I'm starting to worry about my weight loss. I'm almost 4 months out of surgery. In the past few months, I've lost 2 lbs here, 0 lbs there, 1 lb, etc. This entire month is shaping up to be less than a 5 lb loss (unless something changes quick!).

Is it me? Should I be worried? Is this normal at this stage? I still want to lose another 30 lbs, and I'm worried that this is where my weight will settle.

Is this a stall? I'm still losing a very little per week. If it's a stall, when can I expect the weight to start moving again?

Help!

[mnmlst 249]

Note: My diet hasn't been perfect (nor has it been horrible) and I've been trying to tighten that up, without much success so far. I am exercising regularly, but not daily.

[AlanaRN 419]

I was like that too between months 3-4. Then it picked right back up. It was so frustrating. Only difference with me is that my diet was and still is perfect. I've never eaten anything I'm not supposed to. Not really sure why this happens. I'm almost 5 months out and I find some weeks take the whole week to lose a lb and then the next week I'll drop 5 lbs quickly. Makes no sense to me!

[aSleeveStory 128]

It's never too late to re-assess where you stand with everything. Are you drinking more sugar? Less Water? Little things can all add up when piled together.

All in all though, stalls are different for everyone else. Sometimes I'm told the last 20-30 lbs are the hardest to lose... exercise more... push through it... don't let the stall win. Eventually, you'll restart the loss... even if its a trickle.

Don't get discouraged!

[MrsSugarbabe 727]

It's good to know this period of slow weight loss is fairly typical because I'm experiencing a slow down myself. It can get discouraging, but I figure if we keep doing what we know we're supposed to be doing re: food and exercise, we will continue to lose the weight even if it is at a snail's pace. Hang in there!!

[IcanMakeit 1,318]

To me it's not a stall if you're still losing. Every pound lost is a victory. When you get frustrated at slow weight loss, console yourself with the fact that slower weight loss results in less loose skin in the end.

Inconsistent weight loss rates happen to many people. If your diet and exercise is on track, don't worry about it. You'll eventually lose the weight. But if you have been slipping, it's time to tighten up. Are you journaling your food? I find that is my best defense against diet creep. MyFitnessPal is a great tool.

[Rogofulm 2,440]

Hi, @@mnmlst! Good to see you here too!

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

Only you can know (from what and how much you're eating) if you're in an actual stall -- or if you're just learning how to eat around your sleeve.

And if you really don't know which it is, then I urge you to journal your food intake and find out. My Fitness Pal works great for me.

FYI -- I lost 9-11 pounds each of the first four months. Then lost 7 pounds in Month Five. In Month Six I lost 5 pounds. The factors involved in that slowdown for me were: (1) I'm 73 pounds lighter now than when I started and (2) during Month Five I ramped up my daily calories from 800 to 1,000 to gradually turn up my metabolism. I expect it'll take me another 3 months to lose the last 12 pounds before I reach my goal of 150 pounds.

Good luck.

[Stevehud 1,790]

Stalls are common as everyone says, heartbreaking to a degree as well. But its still probable that your body is changing to a more fit, more muscular you. I am a big proponent of the measurement effect. that is i measured most parts of my body ( don't go there...) prior to surgery and if I get discouraged I will check those measurements to see the actual changes in writing. Sometimes we associate all changes with the scale, rather than the actual physical changes taking place. It is important to remember this. There's lots of advice, some say to eat more to break a stall, others say that jumping back on liquids only for two days will help to break a stall. Its important to do what everyone here has already said, stick to your plan, keep up the good work, and the results will follow.

You Can Do This!

[Lani789 128]

I'm frustrated, too, since I've stalled over a month. I started back on liquids only today so I'll see where that goes.

The good news is I also track body fat and that has dropped from 42 to 37% in this timeframe. I added 3 1/2 hours per week of cardio to my strength training so I know things are happening. Clothes are looser AND I can finally hold a plank. Whew! Now to increase the time. The scale doesn't reflect any of this in pounds lost. . I wish it did!

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

I can't tell from what you have posted... but it looks to me like you have lost alot of weight relatively quickly for a woman... the body does seem to need to "catch up".Closer you get to goal, the slower it goes. I was losing like gangbusters still (by gangbusters I mean 10 or more pounds a month which is really good for a woman) but then i still had a lot to lose! It took me 14 months to lose 150 to get to goal. I had to change things up a few times to make that happen.

[MBM1Forever 107]

I used to be frustrated with the loss and the slowness of such. I decided that I just need to be ok with how it goes because it is what it is.

[stephh 634]

Thanks for posting this question! I'm 4 months out, and having the same problem. I track every single thing every day. I did lose an extraordinary amount of weight the first few months though. I'm glad other people saw this happen and I'm glad to know that sometimes your body just needs time to catch up. I just wish mine would think that it's caught up and get on with the weight loss already!

[AuriP 420]

I'm nearly the same, I've hovered between 200 and 208 since Janurary 2nd. I lost down from 208 to 201-202 right after 2/2 and it's been this way since. Not even a pound in that whole time, I exercise 3x a week, cardio, getting in at least 2 miles a day. I'm beyond frustrated and in the mind frame of its never going to happen. I've lost 50 lbs but I still have 70 to lose to get to goal.