Stuck for 3 months

[Frodo's Mom 23]

I had VSG on 10/20 , and haven't lost any weight since Thanksgiving. What gives? I've only lost 21 lbs total.

Edited February 16, 2016 by Frodo's Mom

[Onmywaytothinagain 29]

What are you eating? Are you tracking your food. I had mine on 10/12 and have lost a little over 40. 10lbs a month is good depending on how much you have to lose. Are you eating a bunch of carbs? I would do a few days of liquids to reset yourself.

[FrankyG 1,450]

Are you tracking every bite, every sip of food and drink? Are you getting in at least 64 ounces of Water daily? Meeting your Protein goals? Calorie levels? Eating lean meats, veggies, complex carbs in moderation? Avoiding simple carbs and fat/sodium laden foods? How much exercise are you getting now?

[Frodo's Mom 23]

I haven't been exercising or tracking - mystery solved I guess. How much are you exercising?

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

I had VSG on 10/20 , and haven't lost any weight since Thanksgiving. What gives? I've only lost 21 lbs total.

Without more information it is impossible to know. I could guess that you aren't following your program.

If you aren't tracking your food, it would be impossible to know whether or not you are getting in all of your Protein.

Start by making sure you reach your Protein and Fluid targets (at least 64 oz.) every day.

Why not make an appointment with your NUT to talk about strategies for reaching your goals.

Embrace the Stall!

http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

[FrankyG 1,450]

I haven't been exercising or tracking - mystery solved I guess. How much are you exercising?

I'm almost 14 months out now, and I still track every single bite of food, probably will the rest of my life because I like the accountability. I hit my Protein target every day. I might have some days I go over on fat or carbs, but they are rare.

I now exercise 6 days a week, walk/jog 5+ miles a day (today I did 9 miles total) and do yoga and bodyweight routines 3x a week as well. In the summer, I'll swim 5+ days a week and go biking. I actually enjoy exercise now, and I get antsy and sad when I can't go out and hit the trail. So weird!

I never thought I'd be at the point I'm at now, but I worked hard to get this far.

It sounds like you expected your sleeve to all the work for you. That's not how it works.

You get a limited amount of time where you don't feel horribly hungry all the time, and the restriction helps you adjust to eating small portions. But the main thing you should be doing after surgery is relearning how and what to eat - healthy stuff - but Protein first is the mantra. With the weight loss, you should start feeling more energetic and able to exercise and also feel good enough to get a decent exercise routine established before the honeymoon period of about 12-18 months ends. After that point, the weight loss will stop as your body will have adjusted its metabolism to your smaller portions and activity level, and if you didn't get healthy eating habits and exercise figured out, you will possibly regain weight.

And while exercise is great for overall health, it has a small effect on weight loss. The way you lose weight is controlling how much and what you eat. It is the most important thing to figure out and really pay attention to, because while exercise will help build muscle, stamina, increase your bone strength and make you feel better... it is almost impossible to exercise enough to counteract a consistently poor diet.

You definitely need to go back to the beginning. Protein first, then veggies, and then if there is any room complex carbs. Find an app to track food and exercise. Log every single bite, and get a food scale and measure the food until you get the hang of it, so you're not guessing. Find out from your NUT what your calorie goal should be at this point. Set up goals to drink 64 ounces of Water, get at least 80 grams of protein (unless your NUT tells you more) and keep your carbs under 100 grams/daily. Try to start a basic exercise of some kind 2X a week that you actually can enjoy and slowly work up to doing more.

Once you know what and how much you are eating and see where you might be eating wrong things, you can come back here and get help on food, recipes and other specifics.

It will be hard since you will be starting over, but if you can get all of this going and get yourself back on track (and tracking) then you will be well on your way to losing weight and getting, but more importantly staying healthy for the rest of your life. Good luck!

Edited February 17, 2016 by FrankiesGirl

[Emmasue53 35]

I'm 2 months post op and I have reached my first stall my weight varies between 289 to 295 range. I am drinking Water and trying hard to reach my Protein goals and I'm also exercising. I'm trying very hard to stay positive and embrace the stall but it is a very difficult phase to accept.

[FrankyG 1,450]

I'm 2 months post op and I have reached my first stall my weight varies between 289 to 295 range. I am drinking Water and trying hard to reach my Protein goals and I'm also exercising. I'm trying very hard to stay positive and embrace the stall but it is a very difficult phase to accept.

@@Emmasue53

Good for you for sticking with your water/protein/activity levels!

I know it can seem like you shouldn't have to deal with stalls since you went through surgery, but try to think of them as rest breaks for your body to catch up. You couldn't run flat out for 100 miles without a break - you'd need to stop every so often and catch your breath, have a few swigs of Water and get revved back up to hit that trail and run fast again. That's exactly what your body is doing - taking a breather in preparation to performing another sprint (drop a few pounds). Sometimes it might need a short rest, sometimes it might need longer (weeks). But if you keep giving it what it needs (water/protein/exercise) you'll start sprinting again.

And get out a tape measure and take measurements NOW. Arms, chest, waist, hips and thighs. You'll see during those stalls that you might just be dropping fat (it gets burned off and replaced with muscle). Since a pound of fat and a pound of muscle weigh the same, it might not show up on the scale, but fat is MUCH bulkier than muscle, so you'll see it in the tape measure and how your clothes fit.

Stalls are vital. Stalls are GOOD. It means you're hitting a new peak and getting ready for some weight loss coming up.

Edited February 17, 2016 by FrankiesGirl

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

Stalls are good at least for me. After I stall out, I lose a lot of weight fast, it comes off in chunks. Then I stall, lose inches. Repeat.

[Emmasue53 35]

Thanks that's really encouraging

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

I'm 2 months post op and I have reached my first stall my weight varies between 289 to 295 range. I am drinking Water and trying hard to reach my Protein goals and I'm also exercising. I'm trying very hard to stay positive and embrace the stall but it is a very difficult phase to accept.

@@Emmasue53

Good for you for sticking with your water/protein/activity levels!

I know it can seem like you shouldn't have to deal with stalls since you went through surgery, but try to think of them as rest breaks for your body to catch up. You couldn't run flat out for 100 miles without a break - you'd need to stop every so often and catch your breath, have a few swigs of Water and get revved back up to hit that trail and run fast again. That's exactly what your body is doing - taking a breather in preparation to performing another sprint (drop a few pounds). Sometimes it might need a short rest, sometimes it might need longer (weeks). But if you keep giving it what it needs (water/protein/exercise) you'll start sprinting again.

And get out a tape measure and take measurements NOW. Arms, chest, waist, hips and thighs. You'll see during those stalls that you might just be dropping fat (it gets burned off and replaced with muscle). Since a pound of fat and a pound of muscle weigh the same, it might not show up on the scale, but fat is MUCH bulkier than muscle, so you'll see it in the tape measure and how your clothes fit.

Stalls are vital. Stalls are GOOD. It means you're hitting a new peak and getting ready for some weight loss coming up.

Well said.

Complaining about stalls is like complaining that you need to sleep. It's part of the process. As far as I can tell, it would be a physical impossibility to lose a substantial amount of weight without stalls.

[tlemieux220 138]

I haven't been exercising or tracking - mystery solved I guess. How much are you exercising?

I'm almost 14 months out now, and I still track every single bite of food, probably will the rest of my life because I like the accountability. I hit my Protein target every day. I might have some days I go over on fat or carbs, but they are rare.

I now exercise 6 days a week, walk/jog 5+ miles a day (today I did 9 miles total) and do yoga and bodyweight routines 3x a week as well. In the summer, I'll swim 5+ days a week and go biking. I actually enjoy exercise now, and I get antsy and sad when I can't go out and hit the trail. So weird!

I never thought I'd be at the point I'm at now, but I worked hard to get this far.

It sounds like you expected your sleeve to all the work for you. That's not how it works.

You get a limited amount of time where you don't feel horribly hungry all the time, and the restriction helps you adjust to eating small portions. But the main thing you should be doing after surgery is relearning how and what to eat - healthy stuff - but Protein first is the mantra. With the weight loss, you should start feeling more energetic and able to exercise and also feel good enough to get a decent exercise routine established before the honeymoon period of about 12-18 months ends. After that point, the weight loss will stop as your body will have adjusted its metabolism to your smaller portions and activity level, and if you didn't get healthy eating habits and exercise figured out, you will possibly regain weight.

And while exercise is great for overall health, it has a small effect on weight loss. The way you lose weight is controlling how much and what you eat. It is the most important thing to figure out and really pay attention to, because while exercise will help build muscle, stamina, increase your bone strength and make you feel better... it is almost impossible to exercise enough to counteract a consistently poor diet.

You definitely need to go back to the beginning. Protein first, then veggies, and then if there is any room complex carbs. Find an app to track food and exercise. Log every single bite, and get a food scale and measure the food until you get the hang of it, so you're not guessing. Find out from your NUT what your calorie goal should be at this point. Set up goals to drink 64 ounces of Water, get at least 80 grams of protein (unless your NUT tells you more) and keep your carbs under 100 grams/daily. Try to start a basic exercise of some kind 2X a week that you actually can enjoy and slowly work up to doing more.

Once you know what and how much you are eating and see where you might be eating wrong things, you can come back here and get help on food, recipes and other specifics.

It will be hard since you will be starting over, but if you can get all of this going and get yourself back on track (and tracking) then you will be well on your way to losing weight and getting, but more importantly staying healthy for the rest of your life. Good luck!

Thank you for this information. I too am going to do this. I have been stuck for 3 months now and my one year anniversay is coming up and I would like to hit 70 lbs by then I am hoping for, I know I can do it.