Never Enough

[Serra Cherub 12]

I had my surgery 9/30/14 and am down 126 pounds. Went from 330 to 204, size 26 to 16 (ish). Amazing! I feel healthier and more confident in myself... then there is the dreaded but.

But I feel like I havent done enough, lost enough. .. changed enough. I have been struggling with these last 4 pounds to get to 200 for MONTHS. I havent budged.on the scale and I'm not losing inches. I just feel like it's all stopped and that I'll never get to goal. (Doctor gave me a goal of 170/180 but personally I would want to try for 150/160 - I'm only 5ft 2in, so thats still on the chunky side).

Its so hard because I try to listen to my body while at the same time maintaining Portion Control and getting my Protein & watching my carbs. I've worked out for an hr/day 4x a week. I get more than enough Water and I dont make terrible food choices - yes, not 100% healthy but not old habits. I just feel so darn defeated and like nothing I do is enough. Like the year was my true "cut off" date for this transformation. Worst part is that all of this is coming from me. I feel guilty when I eat. I feel anxious when I dont. I stall when I work out too much. Again, I feel guilty when I dont work out. I was always a stress eater and all I do is stress myself.

Its a sick cycle.

[Ashlegal 525]

You are putting too much pressure on yourself. 126 pounds in a year is a tremendous accomplishment and you deserve to give yourself a huge pat on the back for getting to this point.

There are "stalls" in the process, I am only five weeks out and had my first stall a week ago and I am sure there are more to follow.

If you are doing everything that is being asked of you, why do you feel it is not enough? Could it be that way because you have emotional struggles that need to be addressed by a therapist? Or could it be that you are comparing yourself to a version of yourself that may not exist (for the time being). Or is it that you have established muscle which weighs more than fat and switching your exercise routine may be the answer?

Instead of beating yourself up, look for solutions in unexpected places. Maybe visit your nutritionist and get some feedback about your diet; she/he may suggest something different. Stress, sadness, the feeling of being overwhelmed won't make the scale tip in the direction you want. It may also contribute to weight gain and even worse a general feeling of malaise that will lead you down the path of turning to food for comfort.

It is going to be okay and the number on the scale does not define who you are, your worth or take away any of your previous successes.

Edited October 10, 2015 by Ashlegal

[James Marusek 5,244]

Congratulations on your weight loss thus far. 126 pounds is impressive. Your goal is an artificial number. Your body determines when you transition from the "Weight Loss" phase into the "Maintenance" phase.

Here are a few things you could do, if you aren't doing this already.

Your daily Protein requirement is the sum of the Protein that you consume from meals combined with the protein from supplements (Protein shakes, protein bars). If you concentrate on eating high protein meals, at a 13 months post-op, your meal volume should be large enough that you should be able to almost completely discontinue using protein supplements. These supplements contain calories, and discontinuing them will drop your caloric intake.

Most people consume food over a 15 hour window. This is meals and Snacks. If you can reduce this eating window down to 10-12 hours per day, that has been shown to reduce weight. Look at your "eating window" and set an end time for your window and restrict consuming food after this time. Make sure you get your 3 meals in per day but this will cut off all Snacks after you reach the end of the window. It is important to burn off the calories that you consume and you can't do that sleeping in bed.

[Roostertail2 98]

I am 14 months post op and have lost 90lbs so far. My scale has sat at the same number for over a month at times. Then suddenly another 5lbs will be gone! I am currently at 174-175lbs ( that one pound seems to come and go) and have been at this weight for almost 6 weeks. My goal when I started was 150lbs. But you know what - If I don't lose another lb I am totally fine with that! I am now in a size 12 and feel great about how I look (at least in clothes! lol). That 150lb mark may never happen for me. I know that until recently I panicked if the scale didn't move after a week or 2. And I would try to increase/decrease everything I was doing to kick start the weight loss again. Normally it worked but this go around it doesn't seem to be. Again I am ok with that. My doctor wants me to get to 150 too - but I told him the same thing - I am perfectly fine with right where I am right now! Don't concentrate on that number - concentrate on how you feel!

[xmeridith 7]

If you have never tried weight watchers, I would suggest joining for a month or two. While I could never overcome obesity with their program, they do teach truly healthy eating habits and tricks for tracking your food choices and progress. Might be a helpful way to get back on track without hunger - aka the worst part of any diet in my opinion.