Why does weight loss slow down after the first few months?

[bugsy72 117]

So, i have a question. I'm three months out now from RNY and have lost 55 pounds. Yay! I've been thinking about what my doctor said, months ago, at the information session. He said the first 7 or 8 months would be like a "honeymoon period" and weight would come off fairly easily. But after that, it would be harder, but people still COULD lose more weight for a few more months.

I'm wondering why the slow down happens. If the pouch is still tiny, then we can't eat very much food, right? So why would the weight loss slow down? Does our metabolism/body adjust to having small portions? So then we will only "require" 800 calories a day (or whatever number you wish you put in there)?

I'm just trying to logically figure out why the weight loss would stop. He did assure me that it would stop (like i won't starve myself to death) and I don't quite understand how that happens, either.

Anyone have answers?

[James Marusek 5,244]

After RNY gastric bypass surgery, your meal volume is incredibly small [2 ounces or 1/4 cup] per meal. Over the next year and a half, this volume is increased to 8 ounces or 1 cup per meal. So as your meal volume increases, the amount of weight loss decreases.

[bugsy72 117]

@@James Marusek

But still, that is not very much to eat AT ALL per meal.

Much fewer calories than "normal."

[James Marusek 5,244]

I am 33 months post-op RNY surgery. I was in the "Weight Loss" phase for about 6 or 7 months and then transitioned into the "Maintenance" phase. It all happened quite naturally. One cup per meal may seem like a small amount but it is what my body needs to sustain my weight.

Here is a short article I wrote on the "Maintenance" phase.

http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery2.pdf

The amount of weight that you will lose will also depend on the amount of weight you had to start with.

[Djmohr 6,965]

@@bugsy72

Hi there! Congratulations on getting healthy! I am 17 months post op and just a pound to go to get to my ideal weight. I am down a total of 142lbs.

I lost a lot of weight in those first 6 months fairly rapidly and then I slowed to between 5 to 10lbs per month with many stalls along the way.

What happens is your body adjusts along the way and the closer you get to goal, the slower the weight loss happens and the harder you have to work to keep it going.

I am one of those people that have had to fight for every pound because I am also restricted from excercise and have been since June 2015.

It just means you have to be very diligent about what you put in your mouth, of course having a tiny really helps you do that.

I have learned that if I stay under 1000 calories a day with 70 grams of Protein and below 70 grams of carbs I will lose. If I am somewhere above 1300 calories I gain. If I hang between 1000 and 1200 I maintain.

Maybe when I can be more active I can add more but realistically I have a hard time getting above 1200 calories anyway, not sure if that will change down the road but I am well fed at that 1000 to 1200 range.

Not sure if that makes sense but that is how it worked for me.

[Meggles07 21]

There are two things that happen as you get further out. 1) your weight decreases and therefore the base rate of calories your body needs to sustain life decreases. 2) your body is efficient and relearns to absorb the things you eat when they enter the intestines. You lose some of the malabsorption (but not all -- hence needing vitamins) over time. It is never impossible to lose weight if you need to, however it continues to be a matter of balancing what you consume and what you burn.

[MSWMike 22]

I am almost 9 months out from surgery and here's what my weight loss has been like:

months 1-3: 22 pounds lost per month

months 4-6: 10 pounds lost per month

months 5-9: about 4 pounds lost per month

The rapid weight loss in the beginning comes from your body not getting much nutrition, so your body uses your fat stores for energy- thus causing weight loss. As you progress post-op, your pouch size increases and you can take in more food- which naturally slows the process down. Think of it as an inverse relationship: as you lose weight, you don't need as many calories to sustain your weight....and as you progress post op, you can take in more calories. Eventually, you want to be taking in less calories than you burn in a day to maintain weight loss.