Discouraged 8mo

[GACaldwell 112]

Hiya..So here's the deal..

I'm 8 months post op tomorrow. I was self pay in Mexico, so while I understand, the whole "talk to your Dr" thing isn't going to help me since he's 1000+ miles away and there are ZERO Bariatric Drs in my area.

HW: 226 CW:170(ish) GW:135 And I'm 5'1" because hey..it matters! I've lost 55(again..-ish) lbs. I was supposed to hit 135lbs by April of this year. That's not happening.

I'm really really discouraged with the whole thing right now. I'm struggling every day with hunger & headaches from it. I TRY to stay between 800-1100 calories a day, I always eat my Protein first and I have no issues getting my liquids in. I still crave sweets but even with that, I eat VERY small amounts or just a Protein shake. I track daily, i exercise 3-4 times per week (Yoga, dancing & cardio).

I've been gaining and losing the same damn 5 lbs for 3 months! UGGGHHH!! It doesn't matter what I do, it's the same. I exercise more, I eat no carbs or more carbs, I up the Water..Nothing! I've gotten really really down about it and i find myself sinking back into bad habits...especially the thinking of "This isnt working so why bother?"

This is, quite honestly, my ultimate fear ever since I decided to have surgery. I KNOW there are people that don't lose weight or gain it all back after the sleeve. I'm terrified that I went through all of that, not to mention PAID all of that money...and I'm still considered obese. I feel like I'm doing what I'm supposed to do and my "tool" is not working. and i just want to cry. At 8months in, I thought I'd still be having the weight loss.

I weigh my food but I still feel like I can eat more than most people. I don't think it's head hunger but what do I know? Maybe I'm wrong about that. I'm so very lost in this.

I found a dietician here who I'm seeing but she has limited experience with bariatrics. She's trying to help but to her, my 800-1100 per day and eating logs makes sense. But she also says that 135 is going to be difficult for me to achieve and that stings. Heck, 135 is STILL considered overweight for me!! UGH. :-(

Support & suggestions welcome. TYIA

[courville 6]

Maybe your calorie intake is too low? So your body is holding on to everything (starvation mode? )

Just a thought.

[BigViffer 3,544]

Who said you were "supposed to hit 135 by April"? There is no way to map out where and when you will obtain an arbitrary weight within set amount of time.

The big thing about any WLS is that it enables people to lose something like 70% of their excess weight. Not total or gross weight. The last leg of the weight loss is going to be all up to the individual. Also, the timing will be different for each individual. I didn't hit my weight goal in the first year but my surgeon was still thrilled with my progress. I eventually hit it and surpassed it, but it was around 15 months.

There have been many men on here with similar stats to mine that hit goal weight or even "onederland" well before the first year. Sure I had a pang of envy, but there are far more that never even achieve my results. Don't focus on what you have not obtained, rather Celebrate what you have already accomplished.

So in short, just keep on doing what you are doing and focus on maintaining your habits you have spent the last 8 months establishing. This isn't a race to the finish line, it's a lifelong marathon.

[Samara1974 116]

1 hour ago, courville said:

Maybe your calorie intake is too low? So your body is holding on to everything (starvation mode? )

Just a thought.

I agree with this advice, try varying your calories by day have one day that is 800 calories, the next day you max calories, then something between the two. Try to have no more than two days the same.

Have you done the calorie calculations for your goal weight? That should be your maximum calories for your high day.

[GACaldwell 112]

The goal weight/April expectation was set by the Dr & Nutritionist.

*nods* Im going to talk to the Dietitian about upping my calories..see if it helps. I haven't figured my calories for my goal weight but Illl look into that.

I truly am happy with what I've done so far..just discouraged for the most part and confused when ive been doing what I was told to do.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[BigViffer 3,544]

2 hours ago, Samara1974 said:

I agree with this advice, try varying your calories by day have one day that is 800 calories, the next day you max calories, then something between the two. Try to have no more than two days the same.

That runs contrary to everything I have read outside of fad diets. The one key ingredient to a lifestyle change is consistency. The idea of trying to confuse the body to achieve a goal weight just doesn't sound good long term. I would think it would drive the metabolism into a state of holding onto every fat cell. A long term plan to force the body to adapt would be a better idea. I agree with the idea of finding the goal weight macro.

[Navigating the Wilderness 824]

54 minutes ago, BigViffer said:

That runs contrary to everything I have read outside of fad diets. The one key ingredient to a lifestyle change is consistency. The idea of trying to confuse the body to achieve a goal weight just doesn't sound good long term. I would think it would drive the metabolism into a state of holding onto every fat cell. A long term plan to force the body to adapt would be a better idea. I agree with the idea of finding the goal weight macro.

This should be pinned to the top of the board.

[Airstream88 361]

My Nutritionist is Nancy Lum and she is a Bariatric specialist that is part of my surgeon's BC/BS Bariatric Center of Excellence practice. I believe she does phone sessions. Her website is: http://www.nutrition5.com/ She may be able to work with you and your nutritionist to figure out why you are stalling.

My plan is 5 mini-meals a day - every 3 -4 hours with no eating in between. Meals include 3 - 4 oz Protein, a multigrain or fruit serving, and veggies (if there is room). Also I have 3 good fats daily - nuts, guacamole, olive oil.

[Jacket52204 35]

My Nutritionist is Nancy Lum and she is a Bariatric specialist that is part of my surgeon's BC/BS Bariatric Center of Excellence practice. I believe she does phone sessions. Her website is: http://www.nutrition5.com/ She may be able to work with you and your nutritionist to figure out why you are stalling.
My plan is 5 mini-meals a day - every 3 -4 hours with no eating in between. Meals include 3 - 4 oz Protein, a multigrain or fruit serving, and veggies (if there is room). Also I have 3 good fats daily - nuts, guacamole, olive oil.

Do you mind me asking, what is your caloric goal for a day? I eat very similar to what you described but I'm not sure if I'm eating too many or too few calories

[erica_ozzy73 241]

Maybe your calorie intake is too low? So your body is holding on to everything (starvation mode? )
Just a thought.

No such thing as starvation mode.
We all eat so little having this surgery yet none of us are starving and still losing unless we plateau for what ever reason.

[Airstream88 361]

29 minutes ago, Jacket52204 said:

Do you mind me asking, what is your caloric goal for a day? I eat very similar to what you described but I'm not sure if I'm eating too many or too few calories

Nancy doesn't give calorie goals but every now and then I total things up and I eat between 1000 and 1300 a day now at 5 months post-op. I hit the higher range on the days I work out with the personal trainer (2x a week). The biggest thing she stressed was no snacking in between the mini-meals which I do follow most of the time.

[courville 6]

32 minutes ago, erica_ozzy73 said:

No such thing as starvation mode? Citation please. Both my surgeon, NUT and other health professionals in my journey have spoken on this topic.

No such thing as starvation mode.
We all eat so little having this surgery yet none of us are starving and still losing unless we plateau for what ever reason.

Edited March 22, 2017 by courville

[Dashofpixiedust8 1,469]

My surgeon has told me at 8 months out I should be shooting for 1000-1200 calories a day because I was shooting for 600-800 and they said that was way too little at that point.

[Samara1974 116]

On 3/21/2017 at 11:23 AM, BigViffer said:

That runs contrary to everything I have read outside of fad diets. The one key ingredient to a lifestyle change is consistency. The idea of trying to confuse the body to achieve a goal weight just doesn't sound good long term. I would think it would drive the metabolism into a state of holding onto every fat cell. A long term plan to force the body to adapt would be a better idea. I agree with the idea of finding the goal weight macro.

It may be contrary but it has worked for me (lost 140lbs and only two stalls) 11lbs away from goal at 13 months post surgery.

P.S. my lowest calorie days are 800 and my highest are 1600 (max calories for my goal weight). I always get my 60+ grams of Protein and less than 50g of carbs.

Higher calorie days also correspond with workout days.

Edited March 23, 2017 by Samara1974

[Samara1974 116]

On 3/21/2017 at 10:44 AM, GACaldwell said:

The goal weight/April expectation was set by the Dr & Nutritionist.

*nods* Im going to talk to the Dietitian about upping my calories..see if it helps. I haven't figured my calories for my goal weight but Illl look into that.

I truly am happy with what I've done so far..just discouraged for the most part and confused when ive been doing what I was told to do.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Do you still have the post op paperwork? I too went to Dr. Lopaz-Corvala and I have the nutritionists email, if you want I can PM it to you.