How can I be a failure already?

[Mini_me007 121]

I am two weeks out today. I was weighing myself every day because, frankly, it felt really good to watch the numbers on the scale go down each day. I knew it was likely a bad habit to get into, so I decided to make Mondays my weigh-in days.

The last time I weighed before today was exactly one week ago. I had been losing right at about one pound per day. I weighed this morning and only lost a TOTAL of 2 pounds this past entire week. I have not cheated on my diet plan once, I get in all my Protein, etc. My calories range from 300 to 450 (almost always on the lower side), I drink calorie-free drinks like Decaf iced tea and flavored Water (zero calorie).

I've looked everything up and, according to surgeons, my beginning weight was high enough where I should lose at least 1/2 to 1 pound per day for about the first 4 weeks.

How is it possible to do every single thing right and only lose 2 pounds during the second week post-op? I feel devastated.

[Niki15 198]

First of all your not a faliure I am 4 weeks post op and have only lost 17 pound since surgery I have had 2 stalls so far I have a journal and logg everything and my loss has been way to slow for me .. But everyone talks about stalls so I am only weighing once a week now .

Try to keep busy and not look at the scale everyone looses weight different depends on age weight etc according to my Dr believe me I am frustrated as well but our body has to adjust to the changes ..It takes time

[WorkinOnMe 596]

Please do not view yourself as a failure! You need to remember that your body is adjusting to a major surgery & alteration. You will most likely continue to lose, but not every day & every week week be at the same rate. As for what the surgeons say ... every person is different. You can only use the data as a guideline, not a statement of fact. The other thing I would check on is your caloric intake. If you don't have enough calories coming in your body will go into starvation mode & start storing for later.

That said, I have had ups & downs with the rate of loss. I try to focus on Non-scale Victories to help me get over these hurdles. Are your clothes getting loose? Do you feel more energy?

Best of luck & keep your chin up!

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

You are not a failure. You are not even stalled (you are still losing weight). You will stall. Weight loss will occur at different rates. None of this is a reflection on you or your character.

Just do what you are supposed to do: get in all your Fluid and Protein. When you are cleared for exercise, start adding in some exercise that is appropriate for your fitness level.

And, stay off the scale!

[Graciesmom04 184]

This is what I was told by my husband....it's a marathon, not a sprint. You are losing inches at times when it's not pounds. It's going to take time...

It's easy to get frustrated but keep at what you're doing. The wt didn't come on over night, it took time. The same is going to be for the wt loss. It's going to take time to come off. Good luck, you're doing good!!

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

Oh, good grief.

Google "three week stall."

This happens to everyone somewhere around 2-4 weeks. Everyone! EVERYONE!

Surely no one promised you you'd lose at a regular clip or that your scales would behave like a car's gasoline gauge. Because you won't and it won't. Your body is a lot more complicated than that.

You're doing fine except for going all drama llama.

[MzB 297]

Patience Grasshopper....I didn't lose much weight in first few weeks. I think it was like 4-5 pounds total while only eating an average of 300-400 calories. Most of this was probably due to swelling and healing so I didn't sweat it too much. You shouldn't either.

The first few weeks are tough because of your body is recovering. Even if you lost a lot in the first week, you body is now probably saying "???? is going on? I had better hang on to Water and stuff as a safe guard!" Then your body figures out that this is the new normal and starts to release the fat for consumption. That is my take on the "3-week stall", it may not be totally accurate, but it helps me get my head around what my body is doing. Hope this helps.

[Mini_me007 121]

Oh, good grief.

Google "three week stall."

This happens to everyone somewhere around 2-4 weeks. Everyone! EVERYONE!

Surely no one promised you you'd lose at a regular clip or that your scales would behave like a car's gasoline gauge. Because you won't and it won't. Your body is a lot more complicated than that.

You're doing fine except for going all drama llama.

I know what the three week stall is. The weight loss of 2 pounds in a week happened from day 7 to day 14. I didn't realize something like this could happen this early.

[wagyu 50]

I think I had a 1-2 week stall in my first month and I am still in my first month and literally I stepped on a scale next day and lost 3 lbs and I jumped on it a few more times after that and stayed the same weight. So those 3 lbs are gone!!! Your body needs to catch up. It's all good. I hate stalls I actually went into a short whining depression session on the board and to my boyfriends ears lollll and then over a week plop 3 lbs gone. I think it has to catch up. No worries.

Edited August 31, 2015 by wagyu

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

You are doing great! We are not machines and in truth weight loss slows down pretty fast for most of us. I am not talking about a stall, but just the reality of how it works. In the end, you get there though!

[MarceMonster 161]

I think everyone has given you great advice. I too get freaked out when I see I have lost less weight then I expected, but I am trying to teach myself otherwise. You need to think of it this way, so what if you "only lost two pounds", 2 lbs a week over the course of a year is 104 lbs. that's a lot of weight! Now obviously you are not going to lose at the same rate every week, but some weeks will be more then 2lbs, some will be less, but they will average out in the end.