Search the Community

I too am a slow loser, but so far I have lost consistently each week with the exception of the famous three week stall that lasted 3.5 weeks. My surgery was 12-28-11, I have lost 29 lbs since my surgery and that includes the pre- liquid diet. Most people think I've lost much more. So far the skin is pretty good considering I'm and old lady. I have always been a slow loser, have less than some to lose and have age against. It came on slow, so I will be patient. I see huge life changes already. At to months I was afraid my Dr would be upset, she was elated, also counted the weight I lost prior to surgery and thought percentage wise I was ahead of schedule. I had feared her reaction and she actually made me feel so successful. Keep up the good work!

In two days I hit my three week mark, and I've noticed a stall also. I've gotten so used to dropping weight so fast (46 lbs so far) I got bummed but then realized I've hit the phase where it's going to drop less now I've already lost all the water weight. Just be patient and don't loose the good habits you've gained ????

Just wanted to share my story so far. I had my 1 week appointment at the Dr.s today. I had my surgery last Thursday 4/14. It has been an easy recovery for me. I was out of the hospital the next afternoon, Friday. On Saturday, I had promised to dogsit and went to walk dogs three times. I also grocery shopped. Sunday was two more walks and some errands. I have been out every day since. I have been doing doing some walks with my husband and yesterday we did almost three miles. The doctor said everything looked great. I am down 18 pounds, 10 since the surgery and 8 from my five day pre-op liquid diet. My starting weight was 237 and I am 5'7" tall. I can't see or feel any difference in my body yet though. Getting the Protein in is tough. I do not like the shakes but have been able to tolerate the Isopure drinks which is a big help since a 20oz bottle has 40 grams of protein. I usually get my 64 ounces of Water in and am getting about 60 grams of protein. I am averaging around 400-500 calories a day. My eating plan was nothing at all the afternoon/ evening after surgery, then 2 days of Clear liquids followed by 12 days of full liquids. Next is 2 weeks of purée and then 2 weeks of softs. Full diet taken slowly starting 6 weeks after surgery. 7 more days until pureed food which I am looking forward to - only to try and get more protein through food. I'm not hungry and making meals for my family hasn't bothered me. I am dreading the thought of an upcoming stall. I am also fearing losing my hair as it is super thin to begin with. I am off pain meds and have been able to sleep on my side since the second night. My only problems are slight nausea here and there, but not bad enough to have to take the meds they gave me, and diarhea. I was also lucky as my surgeon did not put in drains. My other issue is that i had the top of my hand turn black and blue, but it was not the hand that had the IV. I know others have had more issues after their surgery and I feel bad as I read their posts. I just wanted to share my experiences so far. Please excuse any typos as I am typing this on my phone and it won't let me go back and reread or edit. Good luck to all the upcoming surgeries!

I am 6 weeks post op today...I have been stuck between 229 & 227 for three weeks. Its so frustrating that I have stopped losing this soon out...and being self pay, it makes me feel horrible that I have spent so much money! I too, am trying to focus on the NSV's and I am loosing inches....although not a lot. I would love to hear if there are any folks out there who hit a long stall soon after surgery....but went on to make your goal weight.

Congratulations on the recovery! My recovery went very well also. Just be sure to still take it easy and allow your body time to recover. Just as a heads up...many of us experience a stall at three weeks. It's completely normal and weight loss will start again. Best of luck and welcome to the Losers' Bench!

Hi Maddie, A three week stall is a long time. I know you're frustrated! You're just now six weeks out, so you are starting on 'everything'. Carbs can bring you to a halt fast depending on what you are eating. To kick start a plateau, I'd always up my Protein and Water, do a little exercise and it worked like a charm every time. Protein for me was normally 60 - 65 and I'd go to 70 - 80. My calories when I was where you are were between 500 and 650 per day...and I did good to get that much in. During my losing period I averaged 675 per day. I had great restriction, I still do. I call cottage cheese, the Breakfast of champions, I love it. 1% of course. Eggs; steamed shrimp (i keep a bag on hand for lunch), tuna, I measure 2 TB of lite mayo for a can; whatever meat you want at night; stay away from bread, rice, Pasta, all sweets, nothing until you reach goal; chips; if it's in a bag or a box....chances are, you shouldn't have it!!! The exception, Special K Crackers, a few with tuna rather than bread are ok - recommended by my dietitian. They even have a little Fiber. I have two glasses of skim milk per day. I get liquid and 16 grams of protein, killing two birds with one stone, so to speak!! Greek yogurt, the plain, has TONS of protein in it, add Stivia or some other artificial sweetener to it, or sugar free jelly....a little fruit, be creative, just nothing you shouldn't. Great source of protein. I hope these suggestions help!!! Three weeks is a long time, you can overcome this, I promise you!!! Good luck, this tool works, just work with it!!! Also, I still weight and measure EVERYTHING....and keep an on line food log, it's good to know exactly how much you are eating and to keep track of your protein and calories!!! Just a suggestion!!

What you are experiencing is a very normal, necessary, and natural part of the process. We all experience stalls, especially about three weeks after surgery. This will not be your last stall. Embrace the Stall! http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

So I had my sleeve done 11/6. I am on a liquid stage right now. Had to go out to any event to Celebrate my son's birthday and were around family that did not know I had surgery. I had Soup and then tried to eat a few bites of mashed potatoes so that it appeared I was eating like everyone else. I was only able to eat three bites of mashed potato. I'm just wondering once I get to real food next month. Is there going to be a point where I'm going to be able to eat an amount that is not so noticeable that everyone's gonna ask why only take five bites of food ? I'm just wondering if it's always only going to be a few bites of food or what? I want to eventually be able to go out and have normal social life without all the questions or why I'm not eating? So that's my only concern. For now obviously just being on shakes and yogurt etc. i'm already down 20 pounds since my surgery date. Still doesn't really feel good to eat yogurt even then I do better with just liquids. I go back to work this week and I feel fine other than that. I've been able to get up and walk around and be active almost since the first few days I've been home. So no complaints here. More just questions about the future. Happy that I will never be able to sit down with a huge plate of food And eat til my stomach hurts. Just knowing that makes me much more sure about my future. Making better choices and this tool helping for portion size it's really a win-win. Now I'm approaching this three-week stall keep hearing about but I have no complaints 20 pounds even for one month it's nothing to complain about. So far every day still more and more weight is gone. My doctor told me last Friday that that weight loss would slow down but I've lost another 3 pounds since then. Cheers to that!

I was three weeks post-op on Wednesday, and haven't lost a pound since then. (will be one week of a stall). This also coincides with moving into soft foods per my doctor's plan. Should I go back a stage in the food plan or keep going with the soft foods?

None of us lose weight at a constant or steady rate. We all experience stalls and slow downs. Stalls are a normal, natural, and necessary part of the process of losing weight. We all stall and just about everyone stalls about three weeks after surgery. I highly recommend that if you are going to obsess about the numbers on the scale that you plan to weigh infrequently. Early out, I chose to weigh only at my doctors appointments. Now, weigh no more frequently than once a week. Embrace the Stall http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

If this is upsetting to you then you have some very unrealistic expectations, You are not guaranteed to see a loss on the scale every day. I would highly recommend that early in the process that you only weigh at doctor's appointments early in the process. At the very least, try not to weigh more than once a week if your mental state is dictated by the numbers on the scale. None of us lose at a constant rate, and in the first few weeks after surgery you are dealing with fluids from your IV, swelling, healing, dehydration, etc, etc. Focus on doing what you are supposed to do: get in all of your Protein and fluids, take your Vitamins and supplements when and as instructed, and exercise when you are cleared (walk as much as you can in the first few weeks). And, stay off the scale. Stalling is a normal, natural, and necessary part of the weight loss process. One day of no change in the scale is not a stall, but you will experience a stall at about week three. Embrace the Stall! http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

Stalls are a normal, natural, and necessary part of the process of losing weight. None of us lose at a constant or steady rate. We all stall and most of us experience our first stall about three weeks post-op. Just follow your program. Focus on getting in all of your Protein and fluids. And, stay off the scale. Embrace the Stall http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

Almost all have hit the stall at two or three weeks out. You body is just catching up. Take your measurements during this time and I bet you are loosing inches. Keep positive the weight will start coming off again. Put the scales away.

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 have heard of three week stall but I am coming up on two weeks and havnt lost anything so it scares me to stall in 3rd week. I have lost zero since coming home from hospital. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Hello everyone! I was sleeved on August 1, 2014, as of today I am down 40 pounds. I am so beyond happy with this weight loss but I have been at 40 pounds for about three weeks I know in my head I need to start exercising and getting more protein in. Please let me know what exercising you have noticed work the best and what your food diet is. I feel my doctor just says good job and sends me on my way. I have another doc appointment next week and my stall started right when I saw him last time. I almost feel like canceling my appointment cause I haven't lost anything since I saw him last! Help please! Any info how to get past this stall would be great!

Why can't you play volley ball? SOme people do not start loosing till they start eating regular foods, others loose a ton. Some people loose it fast others loose it slowly. All seem to stall for a while. The things I always tell people to check...... (and I need to recommitt to!) 1) are you gettingin all your Protein ? 2) are you drinking enough Water / liquids? 3) is your Fiber enough? (I have to take the special K fiber water.....it has 40 % and that always makes it go better for me) 4) are you getting 20-30 minutes of exercise at least three times a week? remember that stalls are normal and physics says eventually you will start to loose.......less in and more energy out means it will come off....just sometimes very slowly! (and we all hate that!) I wish you the best of luck and try to begin your knew life with the positive attitude, that your family is negative.....try to ignore that and go on and live your life!

I was going through a little stall. I was eating about 60 carbs per day (as advised by my NUT). I decided to drop down to 40 carbs just to see what would happen. I started losing again, in fact three pounds in a week. I also got some advice to workout first thing in the morning before eating (if that is hard, just eat a little bit of protein). This will force your body to use fat stores for energy. I try to get in at least one morning workout a week. Plus, working out in the morning bumps up your metabolism and you burn more calories the rest of the day. YOU WILL BREAK THROUGH THIS STALL!!!!

Hi, I had my bypass on April 2nd of this year. I'm at that point where I'm still physically not hungry but "I could eat"... I have a couple of questions that I could really use some input on... Eating just because I'm told I have to, not because I'm hungry. Had my followup with the Nutritionist and -- being the data geek that I am -- showed her all sorts of charts from MFP as to calories, She is all over my butt saying "you MUST eat three meals a day, plus your two shakes". I've been doing that anyway, but it's NEVER because I'm physically hungry. Just because she keeps kicking that dead horse. I'm now up to an average between 1000 and 1300 calories a day, sometimes whether I feel or need them or not. (360 to 400 for the shakes, 500-900 for food) It has become a "habit" to eat something and not a "need".. The problem in my mind is that since going from Fluid to mushy to regular (officially cleared), my weight loss has gone from 1-3 pounds a day, to 2-3 pounds a week, to pretty much 1-3 pounds every 7 to 11 days... I "get" the need for the shakes, and I'm doing my best there despite the fact that I'm completely burned out on them, but am I supposed to be eating something when I'm not hungry JUST because it's on some checklist of stuff that the average post-op is supposed to do? It seems entirely counterintuitive. I feel like I'm getting crappy guidance, but there may be a real reason for it. I dunno. Calorie / other counts after surgery.... Again, being the data geek that I am, I go by statistics and charts to tell what I'm doing (right or wrong). During my followup, I asked my nutritionist DIRECTLY "How many calories, how much sodium, etcetera am I supposed to be getting?". Her reply -- which really burns my butt -- was "I'm really not worried about calories or that other stuff right now. I'm just focusing on you getting your protein"... A complete evasion and non-answer which I find useless and non-helpful. At 6'3" and now 245 pounds (down from 300 when I started the surgery route in October), how do I figure out how much *I* need to consume in order to make sure I can get to my 200/210 goal? MFP doesn't account for WLS, so I'm completely in the dark here. The average I'm consuming now, let's say an average 1200 calories, has me stalled at 245 and getting frustrated when I was told by the doctor that I could realistically expect 210/220 pounds... Thanks for any help you might be able to provide. If I'm just being silly, that's ok too, but "be gentle" about telling me that I'm an idiot.. Wayne

None of us lose weight at a constant or steady rate. Right after surgery you are swollen, healing, and full of fluids from the IV. Stalls are a normal, natural, and necessary part of the process of losing weight. If you intend to lose a lot of weight you will experience periodic stalls. Just about everyone experiences a stall about three weeks after surgery. Just follow your program. Focus on getting in all of your Protein and fluids. Take your Vitamins and supplements as directed. Exercise when cleared. Stay off the scale. And, Embrace the Stall http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall.

I HATE STALLS!!! I am almost three weeks out and I believe I was in a stall last week. Week One- 17 pounds Week Two- 0 pounds Week Three- 3 pounds I was so encouraged after that first week, I figured the weight would just start falling off. Not so much, this process is difficult and NOT the easy way out. STAY STRONG!!!

Actually, I don't think 2 days with no change on the scale really counts as a stall. For me, a stall has to be longer than a week. That said, stalls are a normal, natural, and necessary part of the process of losing weight. If you plan to lose a substantial amount of weight, then you will experience stalls. Almost everyone experiences their first stall about three weeks after surgery. Just follow your program. Focus on getting in all of your Protein and fluids. Stay off the scale. And, Embrace the Stall! http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

The following extract brought it home to me totally - I can so relate to all the efforts it takes. I wish many fellow bariatric patients would read it - especially those at the beginning of the journey or trying to decide about surgery. Because let's face it: apart from a few lucky ones who can stay at their target weight without much of an effort, this is what we are all facing after loosing so much weight: Extract: "...Janice Bridge, a registry member who has successfully maintained a 135-pound weight loss for about five years, is a perfect example. “It’s one of the hardest things there is,” she says. “It’s something that has to be focused on every minute. I’m not always thinking about food, but I am always aware of food.” Bridge, who is 66 and lives in Davis, Calif., was overweight as a child and remembers going on her first diet of 1,400 calories a day at 14. At the time, her slow pace of weight loss prompted her doctor to accuse her of cheating. Friends told her she must not be paying attention to what she was eating. “No one would believe me that I was doing everything I was told,” she says. “You can imagine how tremendously depressing it was and what a feeling of rebellion and anger was building up.” After peaking at 330 pounds in 2004, she tried again to lose weight. She managed to drop 30 pounds, but then her weight loss stalled. In 2006, at age 60, she joined a medically supervised weight-loss program with her husband, Adam, who weighed 310 pounds. After nine months on an 800-calorie diet, she slimmed down to 165 pounds. Adam lost about 110 pounds and now weighs about 200. During the first years after her weight loss, Bridge tried to test the limits of how much she could eat. She used exercise to justify eating more. The death of her mother in 2009 consumed her attention; she lost focus and slowly regained 30 pounds. She has decided to try to maintain this higher weight of 195, which is still 135 pounds fewer than her heaviest weight. “It doesn’t take a lot of variance from my current maintenance for me to pop on another two or three pounds,” she says. “It’s been a real struggle to stay at this weight, but it’s worth it, it’s good for me, it makes me feel better. But my body would put on weight almost instantaneously if I ever let up.” So she never lets up. Since October 2006 she has weighed herself every morning and recorded the result in a weight diary. She even carries a scale with her when she travels. In the past six years, she made only one exception to this routine: a two-week, no-weigh vacation in Hawaii. She also weighs everything in the kitchen. She knows that lettuce is about 5 calories a cup, while flour is about 400. If she goes out to dinner, she conducts a Web search first to look at the menu and calculate calories to help her decide what to order. She avoids anything with sugar or white flour, which she calls her “gateway drugs” for cravings and overeating. She has also found that drinking copious amounts of Water seems to help; she carries a 20-ounce water bottle and fills it five times a day. She writes down everything she eats. At night, she transfers all the information to an electronic record. Adam also keeps track but prefers to keep his record with pencil and paper. “That transfer process is really important; it’s my accountability,” she says. “It comes up with the total number of calories I’ve eaten today and the amount of Protein. I do a little bit of self-analysis every night.” Bridge and her husband each sought the help of therapists, and in her sessions, Janice learned that she had a tendency to eat when she was bored or stressed. “We are very much aware of how our culture taught us to use food for all kinds of reasons that aren’t related to its nutritive value,” Bridge says. Bridge supports her careful diet with an equally rigorous regimen of physical activity. She exercises from 100 to 120 minutes a day, six or seven days a week, often by riding her bicycle to the gym, where she takes a water-aerobics class. She also works out on an elliptical trainer at home and uses a recumbent bike to “walk” the dog, who loves to run alongside the low, three-wheeled machine. She enjoys gardening as a hobby but allows herself to count it as exercise on only those occasions when she needs to “garden vigorously.” Adam is also a committed exerciser, riding his bike at least two hours a day, five days a week. Janice Bridge has used years of her exercise and diet data to calculate her own personal fuel efficiency. She knows that her body burns about three calories a minute during gardening, about four calories a minute on the recumbent bike and during water aerobics and about five a minute when she zips around town on her regular bike. “Practically anyone will tell you someone biking is going to burn 11 calories a minute,” she says. “That’s not my body. I know it because of the statistics I’ve kept.” Based on metabolism data she collected from the weight-loss clinic and her own calculations, she has discovered that to keep her current weight of 195 pounds, she can eat 2,000 calories a day as long as she burns 500 calories in exercise. She avoids junk food, bread and Pasta and many dairy products and tries to make sure nearly a third of her calories come from protein. The Bridges will occasionally share a dessert, or eat an individual portion of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, so they know exactly how many calories they are ingesting. Because she knows errors can creep in, either because a rainy day cuts exercise short or a mismeasured snack portion adds hidden calories, she allows herself only 1,800 daily calories of food. (The average estimate for a similarly active woman of her age and size is about 2,300 calories.) Just talking to Bridge about the effort required to maintain her weight is exhausting. I find her story inspiring, but it also makes me wonder whether I have what it takes to be thin. I have tried on several occasions (and as recently as a couple weeks ago) to keep a daily diary of my eating and exercise habits, but it’s easy to let it slide. I can’t quite imagine how I would ever make time to weigh and measure food when some days it’s all I can do to get dinner on the table between finishing my work and carting my daughter to dance class or volleyball practice. And while I enjoy exercising for 30- or 40-minute stretches, I also learned from six months of marathon training that devoting one to two hours a day to exercise takes an impossible toll on my family life..." Extract ends.

Pretty normal - go for a hunt on these threads about the three week stall, and the three month stall and you’ll see they are both common! It will pass, just stick to your plan. 50lbs in 12 weeks is amazing, of course! No diet gets you that! Bit hard to tell cos your profile doesn’t give us your weight or goal - but rest assured, stalls are normal. I often find I lose SIZE in a stall!

yes. Do a search on this site for the three week stall. There are over 17,000 posts on it (and no, I am NOT kidding...). Happens to almost all of us... Just stick to your program, stay off the scale if you have to, and trust the process. Your weight loss WILL start up again...