Hello fellow bandsters,

Please indulge me while I vent a little. I have lost about 40 lbs including the pre-op diet since my surgery on Jan 11. I am happy with those results, though I think they could be better compared to others I have seen on here.

Anyway, I set a mini-goal for myself to be at or below 200 by my birthday which is July 29th. I set this goal a couple of weeks ago - to do it evenly, I'd have to lose 1.5 lbs/week which I thought was quite reasonable (average loss for a bandster). The first 2 weeks, I was successful. This past week, has been a different story. I go up and down, but as of today I am .5 lb more than I was a week ago. Needless to say, I am very frustrated. Everytime I feel I am making a little headway, I feel there's a big step backwards.

I count every calorie and exercise 3x a week (I can't do anymore because I have knee issues and two small munchkins). My bodybugg shows I am consistently at a deficit of 1000 or more every day (should only require a deficit of 750 to achieve 1.5 lb loss per week). I get 80 g a Protein a day and keep under 50 for carb intake.

Does anyone have any advice for me?

First off; there is no average loss for a bandster. Some of us are men, some women, some 300 pounds overweight, others 50 pounds overweight, some motivated, others lazy slugs, etc... Do NOT compare yourself to others.

How many calories are you averaging a day? You may need to cut it down a little or maybe even add a few.

Are you drinking at least 64 ounces of Water a day? It's needed to wash the waste from your system.

How much sodium or caffeine are you consuming? Both of these can lead to Fluid retention.

Also, rethink what exercise actually is. It doesn't have to mean running of to the gym. If you bounce your kids in your lap for 30 - 60 minutes a day that is exercise.

OOPS!! I forgot to say congratulations on your progress so far!!!

Hi there. First congratulations on your weight loss. 40 lbs is awesome!

Honestly, I am pretty much at the same point you are right now. My bugg is telling me I am in a 1000 calorie deficit every day (sometimes more), I'm exercising 4 to 5 days a week and I am once again playing with the same 2 lbs, so I am interested to see what responses you get from this.

How much Water are you drinking? I know that this can definitely be a factor and your Protein looks good, so maybe it could be water intake? What is your average calories? Perhaps playing with that a little regardless of what the bb is saying would help (maybe dipping lower one day and then closer to what it tells you to take in?)

Just know you're not alone and this plateau WILL go away. I wish it could be easier for us all to figure out, but then again, what fun would that be ?

Hang in there!

I feel like I am drinking all the time - always have a Water bottle with me - so I think I am getting enough water. My doctor told me to stay around 900 calories, so that is what I am doing. Though, when I noticed that the loss was starting to stall, I started varying it this past week as I've seen many people on here suggest to do - so my range this past week has been 800 - 1100...with zero results!

Also, I should mention that I do not have good restriction yet. I go for a fill (at least I'm going to ask for one) on July 1st. I think I have 4.6 in a 10 cc band right now. I am not staying full for very long after meals (maybe 1 -2 hours) and trying to drink water in between to try to keep the hunger away.

It's very frustrating at this point because it feels like a normal diet. I know the band is a TOOL, but I don't feel it's doing it's job at helping me out right now.

I understand your frustration. It took me 3 fills before I felt any restriction. Hang in there, it will happen. I would start weighing yourself less frequently, that might alleviate some discouragement. Once a week is probably a good idea. Your weight will naturally flucuate from day to day. Keep doing what your doing and that damn scale will move! Keep us posted.

Can you move your fill up a week? Sounds like you need one! In the interim, maybe cut the carbs some more? I was in a serious plateau and started the scale moving again by having a protein shake for breakfast and chicken or fish for dinner with some, but really minimal, fruits and vegetables. Not a good lifetime plan but it really worked to get me over the hump. Best of luck!