Need Advice!

I was banded 3 weeks ago. Prior to that I went on the liquid diet for 2 weeks and up until a week ago I had lost 27 lbs. I have started eating real foods now and sometimes get 1000 cals in and sometimes less. I have gained back 8 lbs in the last week.

I feel discouraged and don't know why I am gaining. When I drink I can gulp water and even know I eat less than before the band I am not lossing weight. I have never vomited my food back up, but I find chicken can get stuck at times. I haven't had a fill yet and am eating about 3/4 cup to 1 cup of food at meal time.

Why am I not lossing weight is my body thinking it is starving?

Right now I am not super active as I am on vacation and not at work.

Help me with some advice.............please?

Are you eating a lot of sodium?

You're in bandster hell. As you progress to fuller foods, you begin to gain a little weight. Your foods are "heavier" so you get a little heavier. It's absolutely normal.

I had to eat about 1200 calories in order to lose weight. Otherwise my body went into starvation mode. Try upping your calories a little more. I usually suggest to stay between 1000 - 1200 calories.

I have not been banded yet, but when I diet, I have found that sometimes I have to eat more in order to lose weight, if I eat to little I do not lose. I kind of wonder if this will be the same as when I get banded.

I don't add any extra salt to my food, but maybe I am not getting enough cals and maybe not eating enough protien.

If I eat my 1200 cals per day and Protein at every meal when do you think I will start to lose weight, a week, 2 weeks or am I supost to notice in the next couple of days?

I feel frusterated and discouraged!

Every person is different. But you also need to make sure you exercise. Exercise is just as important a tool as the band. You don't have to go out and run a marathon, but walking around your neighborhood would be a good place to start.

Once you do start doing some more in depth exercising, you still need to put those calories you burn back.

Exercise is not my favorite thing by far,

but walking is something I think I can do. Right now I am on vacation from work, by usually work is a really active place for me as I am rushing from one place and thing to the next.

I do feel like i have good restriction as I am full after eating about 3/4 of a cup of food and don't need to snack between meals, but this weight gain is getting the better of me.

I agree with the above, you have to keep a journal everyday to see how many calories and protein your are getting. I find the days I don't eat enough I protein or eat too little, I don't gain, but I don't lose either..One day at a time..M-

If I eat my 1200 cals per day and Protein at every meal when do you think I will start to lose weight, a week, 2 weeks or am I supost to notice in the next couple of days?

Every body is different. Mine GAINS on 1200 calories a day--this was identified before I was banded, and is the reason I pursued banding. I need to stay in the 800-900 calorie range WITH daily (or twice-daily) exercise in order to lose. Luckily, that's pretty easy accomplish, now that I have restriction. I am very careful about the foods I choose (because stomach real estate is limited)---and do emphasize protein, getting carbs only from veggies, legumes, a bit of fruit, and a bit of dairy. This approach has worked very well for me.

Something to keep in mind, though: you're pretty freshly postoperative. Your body simply is not all the way healed from the trauma. Right now, you may not need to focus on tweaking your diet at all---you may just need to wait out the swelling, etc. (If you decide to relax a bit, do make sure to get plenty of Fluid, adequate protein, and take a good bariatric Multivitamin.)

Another thing to remember: your body has ample reserves of energy--so you do NOT likely need to increase calories in order to lose. There is NO peer-reviewed research that supports the notion of "starvation mode." If you have excess body fat, your body knows it's not starving. For every pound of excess fat, it has 3500 calories to spare. And it's HAPPY to give these up, though it may occasionally become stubborn and "readjust" during a plateau.

I know it's really frustrating at the beginning--but most of us don't lose a ton right out of the gate.

I agree with the above, you have to keep a journal everyday to see how many calories and Protein your are getting. I find the days I don't eat enough I protein or eat too little, I don't gain, but I don't lose either..One day at a time..M-

I love the scale pic!!!!:thumbup:

I am also 3 weeks post op and had a similar problem. I only lost 6 pounds on my pre-op diet, lost 10 pounds my first 2 weeks and gained 4 lbs at the end of last week, when I started soft foods. I am not a calorie counter but I know that I don't have no more that 1,000 per day. I dont eat very much at all. I have a protein shake in the morning after I exercise, have protein water and a snack around lunch time and eat like 1/2 cup for dinner. Making sure that I get all my protein in is very hard for me, but I don't want to lose my hair so I do it anyway. I decided to work really hard this week to get those 4 pounds off and I did. I do about 2-3 miles a day on the treadmill and am think about joining a Zumba class. I was very frustrated and disappointed in myself when I gained those 4 pounds and was driving my husband crazy. Then I realized that once I get a fill then I will have true restriction. Even though I don't eat much now but I am sure the pounds will start to fall off quickly then. I get my first fill on the 25th and am really excited for some more progress. Just try not to put so much pressure on yourself at this point about the weightloss it will come. I started measuring myself and even though I'm not seeing the numbers I would like on the scale, I am seeing the inches fall off!! It will get better. Good luck!

There is NO peer-reviewed research that supports the notion of "starvation mode." If you have excess body fat, your body knows it's not starving. For every pound of excess fat, it has 3500 calories to spare. And it's HAPPY to give these up, though it may occasionally become stubborn and "readjust" during a plateau.

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Thanks for your post it go me to thinking and actually do some research, there is ample evidence to debunk the starvation theory

here is a good one:

Fatty Fights Back: MTYHBUSTERS: Starvation Mode

I will have to jump trains and get on the "your just not counting ALL your calories wagon".

I cant use it for an excuse to eat more too, Dang!:thumbup:

I am in bandster hell and I am employing all my dieting experience in order to stay the course. It's rough.

As far as the starvation thing, I agree - we have enough energy stores to keep our bodies going - but I also agree that everyone has an optimum place to be losing weight.

My doc say stay at 1000 calories and I journal like crazy because I need to learn what 1000 calories feels like (if this makes sense).

When we panic about lack of weight loss, I think we need to stay the course and tell our bodies, NO WAY, things aren't changing and I am serious this time. Burn the fat, stop waiting for more food :thumbup:

Hang in there....bandster hell is the worst place to be, but know that there IS a light at the end of the tunnel! I remember I gained a few lbs prior to getting my first fill...and it wasn't until after my second fill that I started losing, and very slowly at first. Don't get discouraged, know that you are on a trek and it will take TIME, it won't happen rapidly, but you are on the path to healthy-ness!!! You can do it!!!

Hi Guys,

Thanks for correcting me on the "Starvation Mode".

I stepped on the scale today and now it says I have lost 2 lbs. Yeterday I tried really hard to get 1100 cals in. Maybe that is the amount I need for my body to lose weight, I don't know? But its only been one day and I will have to continue trying to get 1100 cals in per day for the next week and see what happens.

I will also commit to walking the dog in the evenings, I hate physical activity but I know now is the time to start a routine to get into a healthery life style.

I am trying to stay off the bread, starch vegetables like potatoes, corn and the salt as I know that I do gain weight after eating things like that. I will increase my Protein and eat more salads, veggies and a bit of fruit.

Lets see were that gets me.

Maybe I am being to hard on myself as this is all new to me, but I don't want there to be a chance to slip back into old habits. If anyone has diet advice I would really love to hear it.

Oh ya and I am using this website called MyFitnessPal.com to track my cals and diet. I think it will really help.

i think it is definitely you're not doing exercise....plus if your body is used to working, well then it needs to burn more calories. try doing some form of exercise and you'll notice the difference. goodluck and wish you the best.