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Ditto, three week stall, it's your body adjusting to all the changes. Mine lasted 2 weeks, but haven't hit any since.

I am feeling great! I know it's still early in the post-op phase, but I still haven't found a reason to be anything but grateful for my VSG. I am healing well and wearing jeans again. I have been a little crazy with the scale hoping for a huge weight loss number. I think 22.5 pounds is a pretty good start! I am thinking I am about to hit the dreadful three week stall and not looking forward to it, but I think I have made my mind up to stay away from the scale and maybe do a little measuring. I don't have to be ONE with the scale all the time!!! RIGHT? Actually, I am now down 23.4 pounds since my surgery date and that is working with me! I have started my work out schedule and actually have enjoyed getting up and working out (mildly). I am still a little slow on the walking, no brisk, fast paced, hard core walking yet, but I know that will come in time! I think I am most happiest about finally being able to eat again (chew, chew, chew) and not having to sip my meals! That sure was hard, but looking back, it seemed time went so fast! I wish anyone thinking about one of the surgeries, doing one of the surgeries, or has already done one of the surgeries the best of luck in every aspect of this great life! twenty15

I would suggest something about the infamous three-week stall. It seems like there's a post almost every day from someone who's about three weeks out, frantic because they haven't lost any weight in several days. I really wish more clinics would tell patients about this early stall, because it happens to the majority of us, and most people don't know about it ahead of time so they freak out when it happens. also, something about how the rate of weight loss is dependent on many factors, some of which you have little to no control over, like genetics, how muscular you are, starting BMI, age, gender. And also not to expect to lose 30+ lbs the first month, because that's not common with people unless they're the size of the people on "My 600 lb Life". Just let them know that if they stick to their clinic's plan, the weight WILL come off. Their ultimate success is dependent on how compliant they are, not their rate of weight loss.

Take your vitamins and KEEP weighing. It is very good to know where you are at in case you need to adjust your routine(Like in this case). Keep drinking your water and the weight will move. During my three week stall I gained 3 pounds and thought WTF!! I now stick to 600-700 calories and low carb, woohoo!! Keep going, no worries, you can do this!!

do a search on the "three week stall". Happens to almost everyone. Stick to your plan and the stall will eventually break. I promise.

I just got over my three week stall and Liz is right, the scale wasn't moving but I was losing inches. I am glad for the stall cause I was a little scared losing two pounds a day. Congrats on your 53lbs. I can't wait to say the same, I am at week 4.

I just hot the three week stall. I'm down 29 lbs and couldn't wait to say I am down 30! Well, that may not happen right away. But I am so relieved to know that a "3 week stall" is actually a thing that others go through too. If I didn't know about this ahead of time I'm sure I would be really hard on myself...and I don't want that kind of negativity when I'm working so hard at this!

do a search on this site for the "three week stall". I can pretty much guarantee you'll find hundreds of postings on it

OHHHH dear one- the conversations we've had today on this forum about stalls!!! I am in one as well. Mine started at...guess when....three weeks!!! Yes, it's referred to around here as the "three week stall." I found a great explanation for it today from one of our seasoned sleevers. Check it out: (This was a post on another thread by "Tiffykins.") This is why you are in a stall. It's normal and expected. Your body will never go into a stall as long as you have body fat to burn: Weight Loss Stall or Plateau A weight loss stall or plateau is an extended period of time during reducing efforts where is there is no weight loss according to the scale and no loss of inches according to the tape measure. This is why it is so important to take your body measurements before surgery, so you'll have a reference as your weight loss progresses post-op. We suggest you take measurements of your chest, waist and hip, neck, upper arm, thigh and calf. Be aware it is very common for your weight loss to "stall" shortly after surgery. Diana explains the reason for this below. The Inevitable Stall By Diana C. A "stall" a few weeks out is inevitable, and here's why. Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of Water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it -- voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet. As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy -- like, to outrun a saber tooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored. Breathe, and fuggedaboudit for a few days. What You Can Do About a Stall or Plateau If you are experiencing a post-op weight loss stall or plateau further out there are a few possible causes. First, check that are you really in a stall. If the scale has stopped moving you may be losing inches, so check your measurements. Too Many Carbs? Carbohydrates can start sneaking into your foods without you being aware of how quickly they are adding up. For more information on carbs, see our section onCarbohydrates. If you are struggling with your weight loss you may want to examine your daily carb count. You can try to keep your carbs under 50g a day and see if that makes a difference in your weight loss. Do not eat carbs before bedtime as it triggers insulin and initiates fat storage. There are some great web site resources you can use to keep track of what you are eating.

Search three week stall. Tons of people have gone through the same thing. Also losing a lot of weight in a short amount of time kind of shocks the body. It does need time to adjust. Are you measuring? While weight might slow or stall from time to time, you could be losing inches.

It's so common it even has a name! "The Dreaded Three Week Stall" Most everyone goes through it, and everyone gets through it! There is a sub forum called "Don't Sweat the Stall Stuff" you might want to check out. No fear! Keep doing what your doing and you'll get through it in a week or two...

Our bodies are complex systems, not simple machines. @@Babbs has a great explanation of the technical/biological reason for the three week stall.

I had a three week stall at week three that I just finally have come out of. I tried changing around everything, increasing Protein, walking, Water, decreasing carbs. Nothing helped. I have no clue what eventually knocked me off the stall, but I do know one thing - it sucked! I can't imagine how you're feeling six weeks into one. My clothes don't feel a whole lot different, but I was slowly losing an inch here and there, so if you're not measuring, maybe that'd help you keep going? I know you already acknowledged the low water, but that would be one thing to add. When you work out it can be really important to replace water. Hmmmm...Have you tried switching up the type of workout you do? I know other times I've reached plateaus in diets I was able to get over the plateau by exercising at a different time of day, for example, moving it to early morning to get my metabolism up. Or changing which workout I was doing so that I wasn't stuck in the same thing every day. On that same token, are you eating the same types of foods every day? That's another thing that will throw me into a plateau. My brother is a creature of habit and has the exact same lunch every day. If I do that, I will stay put at the exact same weight. My body likes it when things are consistent and will try its very best to keep them there. Are you getting in enough fiber? That might help keep your digestive system moving. I'm not sure if it will help the scale, but it would be a healthy thing to have in your diet. I'm not sure what else, but you will get through this! If you are doing the right things your body will eventually have to give up and let the scale move. For the mean time, maybe put the scale away (I know this is so ridiculously hard to do, maybe you'll be better at it than I was!), set some fitness goals instead of scale goals, and measure. You can still be successful even when the scale isn't moving.

I was sleeved on May 26th and weighed 300 lbs. I am 5 weeks out and weigh 271 lbs. Fotunately I did not hit the dreaded three week stall or maybe I did and just didn't realize it. My relationship with the scale has definitely changed. I still weigh myself almost daily but I have found that the number no longer sends me into a frenzy. I think reading so much here I finally realized that the scale does not make or break success. I am on soft foods and dabbling with some regular foods. Had chicken and some pulled pork. No beef. I really want a salad and some fresh fruit. Waiting to here back from NUT. I truly have found that this forum prepared me for surgery and post-op.

I am experiencing the “three week stall” right now. Rest assured though, you can’t eat what we are eating and not lose weight. I think our bodies just fight it cause they literally Think we are trying to die.

it's the three week stall. Almost everyone goes through that. Although you're right, keeping up with your fluids is always important...

I just did a search on this site for you. There are literally 17,501 posts on this early stall. Pretty much everyone has it. I really think bariatric clinics ought to warn people about this because it happens to almost everyone, and people really freak out about it. Just stick to your plan and your weight loss will start up again. Stay off the scale if you have to. It usually lasts 1-2 weeks. Here are all the posts on it. Really - over 17,000 of them. https://www.bariatricpal.com/search/?q=three-week stall

Did any of you go through the famous three week stall?

I am officially 3 weeks post op, and have not lost any weight for the past week, whereas I was losing a couple of pounds consistently each day for the first week. The first two or three days of this stall I experienced in complete denial. It's water weight, I would think to myself. Day six and seven of my stall brought me to google searches for answers. I've read countless reasons as to why I am possibly stalling, the following being more believable (at least to me) than others: It is a normal bodily response to drastic water loss and decreased caloric intake Your body is storing every bit of calorie you take in to burn for the healing process for your surgery, instead of burning actual fat itself My searches also brought me various methods, or "tricks" people used to break them from the vicious three week stall: Take in 200 more calories a day Increase physical activity Get one more hour of sleep each night Make sure you are drinking 2 liters of water every day, and 70-120 g of protein I have yet to be cleared safe by my surgeon to hit the gym just yet because at this point, I am taking in so little calories each day (300 to 500) that I would be so dangerously exhausted. As for increasing my caloric intake, I will have to do it in the form of protein shakes. I am still on a full liquid diet (thick liquids), so solids are out of the question for me. I also finally brought myself to sign up for a gym membership for the first time in three years. I work three days a week which leaves me 4 days of nothing but free time. Hopefully this will allow me to get back into a steady routine for the next year. At least I'd better get in there regularly! For one year of membership, it cost me $459 total but with no monthly payments. I'd be lying if I said I'm not excited about going to the gym. I vaguely remember the feeling of my body after a seriously intense workout. How I somehow just felt "light", and my limbs ached and felt like jell-o because I pushed myself harder than the last time. I also felt stronger. Anyways, I hope this week three stall breaks soon.

My scale isn't moving either. I'm just silently screaming at it knowing I shouldn't be paying attention to the scale right now.I feel like I am a fairly even-tempered guy, but I was about to throw our scale off of the terrace by the end of the second week of my "three week stall." But, it finally passed, and I have been in a free-fall ever since. I bet that's going to happen for both of you before too long as well! Now, if I can just get to my next milestone before the stall rears its ugly head again!! :-) Hang in there! I'm with you. Good thing there aren't any neighbors behind our house! One day I'm going to toss that thing in the lake! Not really, but I know exactly how it feels.

It's a common thread I see running around this forum.. people asking why they didn't do this years ago. I'm even young and I'm finding myself asking the same thing. Though I'm only 25.. I wish I would have done it at 18 or 20.. admittedly, maybe I wasn't ready then.. maybe I still needed time.. especially because part of my story is finding out at 24 that I had bipolar II without the usual "standard" symptoms of women docs normally see in their 20's so I was very hard to diagnose and went through a period of about three years where I alienated everyone but my very closest friends because I was so hard to be around -- with a low of winding up needing to be admitted to a psych ward to get it all figured out. I definitely learned who my friends were (and who, surprisingly, weren't...) I am also social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and depression.. so I spent the last year and a half in counseling trying to get my mental self to match the well-put together self I present to the world thanks to years of being on stage growing up. I learned to show myself as put together - graduating magna cum laude and being responsible even if I was falling apart inside. So I needed to deal with all of that first before I felt ready to confront my weight. But finally I was ready. It started about 1 year ago. I had been feeling bad about my weight for a while. I was overweight during my childhood. My grandmothers both grew up during the Great Depression.. so for them.. giving me food was the same as giving me love.. especially high calorie foods. For them eating wasn't about hunger.. it was about enjoyment and thankfulness to have food to eat. (One was thin, one was overweight). But from them I learned to love all the wrong types of food and to love them in gigantic portions.. My stomach was already way stretched by the time I was 7 or 8. I remember weighing 85 pounds in 2nd grade because we did a math thing where we all weighed in front of the class. There was only one student, a boy, who weighed more.. during school I dealt with a lot, I mean a LOT of bullying because I was mature and just different - I'd rather read a book or write a story than go out for recess and I was reading Romeo and Juliet while they were reading Junie B Jones (For the Record I like her too even though she's a huge spoiled brat). Basically I had a generation gap with my peers since my parents were born in the late forties and early fifties and their parents were much younger.. so I was already -extremely- bullied. I didn't make my first non-internet friends until college.. and those were some of the people I found out weren't true blue friends when I went through my emotional break down a couple of years ago... So yeah.. and it didn't help that I was overweight.. that was just something else to give them to make fun of me about. As it turned out.. even though I wasn't doing even as good as I am now in therapy one year ago.. I was doing better than I had been in years and that gave me time and energy to turn my thoughts to the weight I'd been unhappy to be carrying around for years. Before college it bothered me.. but I didn't think about it a lot.. it was in early college when I hit 200 and started having trouble finding clothes that would fit me in your typical stores both like Macy's but also stores that people my age like - Aeropostale, Am. Eagle etc.. that I started to have a personal crisis about my weight and be super unhappy with it. Shopping became my least favorite thing because it was an exercise in taking whatever would fit rather than whatever I liked. And by a year ago I had started to notice I couldn't do or keep up with the same types of activities most people my age do. I love showing my dog Riff in conformation and was learning that I couldn't keep up with her jogging on our down and back (jogging beside the dog so the judge can see his or her movement properly) and that getting on my knees to present her not only hurt but was nearly impossible. I started to be even more unhappy because I couldn't do the hobbies I loved that people my age are doing. And in the meantime for the past 5-10 years I'd been trying every diet known to man.. I didn't feel like any of them were sustainable for a life time because I was unhappy with them. And rather than yo-yoing I just didn't lose. Didn't matter how well I stuck to a diet, I'd find myself losing maybe 5 pounds in 7 or 8 months of hard work.. and finally I gave up.. I was near the point of accepting I was just going to be overweight forever and that was how it was going to be. I knew my issues - I don't eat for emotional reasons, I don't eat when I'm not hungry.. but my stomach was super stretched from years of eating too much and I like big portions and the wrong kinds of things. I could go and polish off a huge plate of food enough for three meals and feel "Just about right" and I didn't have the self control to starve while I waited on my stomach to shrink naturally.. I just couldn't do it. I had heard things about gastric bypass that made me say no way never.. things like "You'll never be able to have any sugar again." or "You'll never be able to have fried foods again." While I'm happy to make lifestyle changes, things like "Never again" aren't something I'm capable of. So I ruled out surgery for a long while. Finally, a year ago I looked into it again and read about gastric sleeve for the first time.. and it was a fit.. not as serious as gastric bypass.. less prone to things like dumping syndrome.. and all about moderation rather than "never agains" more healthy choices.. less bad ones.. but I didn't have to promise I was never eating Pasta or never having a fried chicken leg again - which was something I knew I couldn't agree to. There was less risk of serious complications and it was a plan I thought I could actually live with and be happy and it went right to the root of my issue - shrink my stomach so I can get used to a normal portion size again without having to starve. Something I haven't had since I was 6-7 years old. Within two days of researching I was ready to commit. But of course getting my medicaid to pay for the surgery wasn't as easy as deciding I wanted it - even though I looked over the qualifications and knew I met them - I still had a lot of hoops to jump through. In October I started my 6 month phys supervised diet which only convinced my doctor and I that I needed the surgery even more. I ate 1500 calories a day and walked my dog most days for 30+ minutes (which was a significant step down from what I had been eating and step up from my sedentary lifestyle) and lost only 11 pounds in all that time. And part of it came back! Getting cleared psychologically was a battle too. They wanted a psychiatrist who didn't know me to evaluate me even though my own had already sent a letter of approval.. and the psychiatrist who I did see didn't really want to clear someone who was bipolar.. it was a battle, but finally I got cleared. That by itself took over two months and delayed my surgery which should have been in March 2016. I also had to have blood work, a number of physician check ups by my program's docs and so on. But finally all the hard work paid off.. on the first submission to insurance, I was approved within a week! How excited was I! And my surgery was set for May 31st 2016. However, the roller coaster wasn't over.. I had little contact with my bariatric program from the get go... they share a department, nurses, etc with general surgery.. so calling to talk to someone there is always a nightmare.. it's a 30 minute wait to get a human on the phone, calling to talk to a nurse means a 5 hour or more wait for a call back.. and it also means a very unpersonalized approach.. they're so busy and have so many people through their program that they want everyone to be a cookie cutter mold and don't want to offer people any individualized advice because "others in the program might want the same advice." Well number one - others in the program shouldn't know what -I- discuss with my doctors so how could they want it and number two healthcare isn't supposed to be about squeezing people into a mold and making the exact same treatment work for everyone... so I began to be unhappy with my program from early on.. especially when their psychiatrist and my psychiatrist got into a fight over the phone about whether I was going to get cleared. Their psychiatrist had met me only once and knew nothing about my case history while my own psychiatrist has been working with me for about a year and half.. who do you think was more qualified to say if I was stable or not? But aparently their program couldn't understand that.. However.. I was stuck.. Medicaid wanted me in state and this program was the closest to me and already an hour and a half away.. the only other options were double or triple that commute time (Chicago). So I just kinda had to stick with it.. I've gone on to be further disappointed by them at numerous occasions - namely when my surgeon said that Water aerobics is a joke of an exercise program and only for people who can't do anything else and that I couldn't hit my weight loss goal of 130 pounds doing water exercise of any kind (there's a thread floating around about that). Clearly he's never taken a hard core water exercise class or he would know that is so not true. I took my first one Friday and I was sweating in the water! Finally I did get to have my surgery though! Before surgery I had an 800 calorie diet for two weeks focusing on Protein and lean meats and veggies and reasonable on carbs. It wasn't too hard of a diet to follow beyond getting hungry because my stomach was huge. Surgery day came but I was excited rather than nervous. especially because all of us May 31st sleevers from the forum (there was about 10 of us) made a facebook group so we could keep in touch and that really helps to have other people who are exactly where I'm at in the recovery stage. I didn't have much trouble recovering from surgery. I never had any gas pain and even though I was in pain in general the first three days they gave me lots of morphine and kept me very comfortable. While my program as a whole is somewhat disappointing - I do have to say that the nurses who took care of me in the hospital couldn't have been better. They helped me walk. They helped me get up to go to the bathroom and helped me adjust positions in bed since I needed help doing all that for the first 2-3 days. I brought my laptop to the hospital with me and spent time here on the forums and doing other stuff I like -- even played some Sims. My recovery was uncomplicated and three days later I was able to go home. My internal swelling went down fast and by a week out I was so sick of liquids that I couldn't help but try a little puree and it worked just fine to help supplement and keep me from going nuts. One thing that's been very helpful to me is Fairlife Milk. it's heightened protein milk with 13 grams of protein for a cup. I drink it straight and also add it to my Soups. It helps a lot in getting in my 64 oz of liquid and my 60 grams of protein. I've been using an app called Plant Nanny which lets you grow plants based on how much Fluid you consume then you can plant them in your garden and harvest their seeds to get more diverse plants.. it makes drinking at least slightly more fun. I also wear a fitbit flex and it's synced with My Fitness Pal. I log my calories on MFP and my exercise syncs there from my fitbit automatically and tells me if I've earned extra calories from exercise (though I rarely use those). I was never given a calorie goal to shoot for but I set a goal of 800 for myself based on the pre-opp diet and what I can eat and get in 60 grams of protein without feeling too stuffed/ too deprived. I'm on my own for a lot of it because I've only met with the NUT once for 30 minutes pre-opp about 2 months and I won't see her again until in July so... I just read and do the best I can. So yeah I'm 3 full weeks out from surgery on Tuesday and also down 20 pounds since May 18th (the start of my pre-opp liver diet). I faced the three week stall at about week 2 instead of three and I was down to a new low for the first time in a week today so I'm hoping that it's broken and I'll have a bit of smooth sailing for a while from here. So.. that's my story so far. I don't know if people post in these to update but.. every once in a while I'll post back and let you guys know how I'm doing.

I'm almost 3 months too (I'm 11 weeks), and I am down 57 pounds since the start of this, and 40 pounds since my surgery date. I just came out of a pretty rough three week stall, but I appear to have come out of it. I was stuck at 202 for so long, and I'm finally in ONEderland. I haven't been at this weight since middle school! 40 more pounds to go to reach my goal! Starting Weight: 250 Surgery Weight: 233 Current Weight: 193

First let me say to all the fellow georgians who have been reaching out, I'M VERY SORRY TO HAVE KEPT YOU WAITING THIS LONG, And to all others who have reached out.A quick recap, i had surgery on Feb 19th,2010, and i have stayed away from the boards because i had a three week stall post op.I started getting extreme anxiety with shortness of breath everytime i got on the scale and it hadn't moved.I did however lose alot of inches around my waist (at least 6-7 inches) at that time which was keeping me sane.I started working out and i saw results but the only people commenting where my mom and dad saying i look like i lost weight.My hairdresser almost three weeks after surgery asked me again if i had had the surgery yet.Bummer!Flash forward,i have definetly lost weight and can see some real results.Although i've only lost 33 pounds or so, i have estimated my weight loss to be around 10lbs per month + INCHES,which is slow compared to most, but i eat what i want and workouT.People are commenting and saying i have lost alot of weight now.Prior to surgery,i started looking into Plastics, but at this rate, i wont need it.So my advice is that even if you are a slow loser, the fact that you had surgery is a motivation and it has really helped me to stay focused on the long term.There is no way i would have been this successful for this long without setbacks had it not been for the surgery.Even on my bad days or when i'm invited to an all u can eat buffet, the sleeve is still working for me.My hopes are that i will continue losing 10lbs per month till i reach goal.By the way,i dont do any meal replacements with shakes for all wondering which may also be causing slower weight loss.:cursing:

I too was sleeved 10/21 and I too have only lost 14lbs. I was stalled for several days. I am pretty sure I know some of the reasons. First, I have had trouble getting enough calories in. I believe between 600-800 is good, but I have been lucky to be hitting 500. I am trying to boost it a little, but I truly am not hungry or get full fast. But this weekend I did increase by a little and dropped a pound. Second, I think I just stalled early, didn't wait for the "three week stall". That's ok, hopefully I will get past it early too! Pre op I started changing my diet in August, at my own discretion. So I dropped almost 33lbs before surgery, so my body has already been in a "losing" mode for a while now. And finally is my activity level. I haven't been cleared to exercise yet, but I know I could be doing more. (walking) But working 8-5 and raising a 5 year old makes it hard. Plus I am in Ohio and it is dark by 5:30, when I get home. Not much for walking in the dark and cold. Could walk at a mall or the Y, but my daughter has to come with me and that is just a whole other set of issues... Ok, the last thing is truly an excuse. I need to get more exercise, period. Anyway, I am exactly at the same point as you and I am not worried or giving up. Just keep on keepin' on ( with the plan) and things will start happening again.

Oh, Neva, Everyone hits that three week stall. Yours may have come early since you have a lower BMI than a lot of us. Just keep looking for those NSVs and the SVs will follow right along! You're doing great!!!