Only 35lbs lost in 3months - feeling discouraged

[avatarkorraa 4]

Hey there everyone, I'm currently about 3 months post op VSG and I had my surgery on September 19th. My highest weight ever was 310 pounds about 3 years ago. I started my pre-op liquid Optifast diet at 285 pounds and was on it for 3 weeks, got down to 265 on the day of surgery, and I'm now 230 pounds 3 months out. So I've only lost 35 pounds since my actual surgery.

I'm feeling quite discouraged because I feel this is a very slow loss for someone 3 months out.

With regards to my eating habits, I weigh absolutely all of my food and am consistently getting between 60-80grams of Protein and anywhere from 600-850 calories a day. I can eat a little bit more than I could a few weeks ago, and I can get in about 3oz of lean protein in one sitting. However I can eat about 5-6oz of food spread out over a few hours. So sometimes I'll weigh out 4oz of meat and 1-2 oz of veggies with some cheese or hummus and eat that over 3-4hours to make sure I'm getting in enough protein in a day. I do this because I'm trying to get all my protein from food and not have to rely on Protein shakes or bars anymore. Occasionally I will have a Protein Bar occasionally and I usually add protein granola to my yogurt. Some things that I eat on a regular basis are greek yogurt, hummus, cheddar cheese, almonds, beef Jerky, chicken, beef, eggs occasionally, and vegetables like broccoli or brussel sprouts. When it comes to Water I'm getting in about 1 - 1.5 liters a day. Also, here is my fitnesspal where I've been logging everything I've been eating everyday for the past 2.5 months since I started pureed foods: scale Any support would be great, thank you!

Edited December 9, 2016 by avatarkorraa

[sc101071 398]

You're doing great. I don't know if adding Water leads to greater loss but I this 2 liters is more in line with what you should be getting.

Also. Try on some clothes and don't worry so much about the scale. You are well on your way and doing things the right way.

[FrankyG 1,450]

35 pounds in 3 months is WONDERFUL. You should be very, very proud of that. I never EVER lost over 10 pounds a month consistently, and I imagine it is the same for you, so it is a great job there!

Please don't feel so discouraged. Your body is going to lose weight exactly as fast as it wants and comparing yourself to others' loss or some arbitrary number you or even your doctor decided is no realistic.

As long as you're doing things correctly - getting in your Protein, calories, Water, and moderate movement/exercise - then you're going to be fine.

I also suggest you take a tape measure and check things like arms, waist and hips. The scale can't tell when you're losing fat and gaining muscle, and muscle is much leaner and less bulky than fat, so you may be exchanging fat for muscle and not seeing movement on the scale, but still making good progress. If your clothes are fitting differently, that is a great sign, but measurements are much more encouraging when the numbers on the scale aren't moving fast enough.

Finally, slow loss isn't the end of the world. I was a slower loser and while I am seeing the hangy skin (darn it), it's not as bad as I would have expected since I lost slower and allowed my skin more time to adjust.

The only things I'd suggest is watching things like hummus and other high fat foods. At this point for you, you should be optimizing everything you eat towards Protein and then if there is any bit of room after eating your protein portion, eat high Fiber veggies. Small amounts of fat are good, but they shouldn't be the main part of your meal.

And also, don't continue to eat over several hours and add larger portions because you can eat them if you take longer, that is eating around your sleeve's restriction. Meal time should be about 15-20 minutes total, and once you've eaten something like 3 ounces of protein and if there is room after consuming all the protein, go for 1-2 ounce of veggies, but stop if you get any type of full sign (mine is burping. Sigh). And no drinking for 30 minutes after eating (and no drinking during eating either - washes food down faster).

If you need a snack in a few hours, then have a cheese stick or small yogurt, but don't eat more just because you can.

[2ndSpring 350]

Frankie gave some excellent advice, so I just want to add that including your 3 week pre-op, you've lost 55 pounds in 4 months, that's awesome!!!!!

[lmcp 10]

Speaking for myself I had to keep my carbs at 25 or below to lose quickly. Also you might try to eat less packaged food. The sodium content can be really high. Good luck you re doing great. Stay positive.

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[suzzzzz 1,005]

Our bodies don't know pre op loss from post op loss. It is total loss and needs time to adjust. You are doing great. It may sound strange, but my experience has been a combination of losing and stalls. I've only had 1 big drop in a weeks time that was recently at 5.5 mths. If you do your part with Protein and Water your body will respond when it wants to.

[MHBTS 14]

I'm similar. 10 weeks and 35 lbs. I had a 2 week stall with nothing. I started going to the gym this week and doing elliptical 30 mins and weight lifting. I'm also watching my carbs as I was eating oatmeal in morning. Switched it for eggs. The weight may not be as fast coming off as others but my clothes sure are getting looser. Let's stick in there. I'm sure with consistency we will continue to loose. Good luck.

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[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

Drop the hummus, yogurt and granola. Increase your calories to 1000 to 1200.

Increase your Protein to 90g.

It sounds like you are eating clean but your are eating a decent amount of low to no Protein junk. Dump that stuff at 3 months you don't have room for all those extras.

The first time I had hummus post-op was at 15 months and I had 2 tablespoons at a resturant on a date. I only have extras when I have met or exceeded my protein goals.

[Dorothy sanchez 0]

I really recommend you to use baritastic app better than my fitness pal.. this app is designed for people like us. Do not be discouraged .....your doing great 35 pounds is a lot! This app has body measurement, count your total carbs, track your weight, the exercise , and you can set your own goals.... for example you can set up your carb,fat, Protein, Fiber each week

.

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