IS THIS NORMAL???? ONLY 22 pounds lost in 4 months

[mbridgeman27 0]

Hello guys,

So I was sleeved Jan. 18 2011. I weighed in at 194. Today I weighed in at 172. I just dont get it, I barely eat, I get most of my Protein and Water in and I take my Vitamins. I do admit somedays I snack on a candybar or chips, but I NEVER go over 800 calories! How is it possible to only have lost 22 pounds. SOme people loss that in one month. Im getting so discouraged, I feel like Ive failed. Now, Im please with the weight loss but it dont seem like its coming offf fast enough. I had plans to be on the beach in a bikini this summer. It dont look like thats happening, at least not this summer. Also I heard the first few months is when the most weight loss comes off. Im scared that if I dont loss all I should now, I wont get no where near my goal! TIFFYKINS PLEASE HELP....lol

[meggiep 57]

Are you exercising? I know that helps a lot.

The other thing- when you admit you snack on candy or chips I think you have already answered your own question. I have learned a lot in my research going in to my sleeve and it is not just about calories. My surgeon really got me to understand how important it is to get lots of Protein and to count carbs. He said that you have to deprive your body of carbs to make it burn the fat. Have you counted carbs? Those chips and candy alone could be stopping you from realizing the loss you are hoping for. Most everyone I have seen do really well with the sleeve counts carbs to a varying degree. I plan to take in no more than 40-50 net carbs a day. If that doesn't work well enough, I will lower it.

I am only at two weeks but I already make sure I get 80 grams of Protein a day and all my Water, and a max of 60 carbs I am giving myself a little more carbs while I finish healing. After that I am determined to maximize the honeymoon period of weight loss. You have plenty of time to do that yourself!

[bilka 6]

I totally agree with meggiep. I completely avoid carbs twice a week and have them once a day the other days (very small amounts, not a full meal). I also try to avoid completely snacking or if I do, I normally have something healthy like a milkshake of strawberries and milk.

Don't get me wrong, I do have social life, so sometimes I'll have a glass of wine with my friends or dinner, but just sometimes.

I see that you started your journey at a relatively low weight, it normally comes off quicker when you are heavier. Now that I am about 155 lbs I am struggling much more than I did at the beginning (and I am only 3.5 months out). It's coming off, this is the important thing. Keep on working on it. If it's not this Summer it will be next and then all the ones after that!

[Nichelle 21]

I agree with Meggie that there is still time to get what you can out of your sleeve. No more Snacks. Protein and Water, protein and water, exercise, protein and water. I know it's all we read on these boards, but its probably because it's what works for those who are successful. I would just be more aware of your diet and put the work in to making this sleeve work for you. You have already decided to change your life now you just have to go for it and put forth a great effort. I hope the best for you and good luck.

[iegal 460]

Hello Mbridgeman;

You sound so frustrated, I am sorry. Good news is that you have lost weight. I think your body is in starvation mode and needs MORE calories. Try it for a week or two and see what happens. As others have stated, watch your carbs. Tiffykins mentioned once before I had surgery to have no more than 30 carbs a day. I followed this mantra almost without fail. If you are in ketosis, your teeth feel fuzzy, you have horrid breath (like something died) and you lose weight like a mad man/woman. You need to find this sweet spot. shake things up. Track everything you eat, track your Fluid intake - carbs, sugars, Protein. Come back next week - stay away from the scale until then and let us know how you are doing, okay?

Do not give up...the sleeve works. Even if you are a slow loser - look at Coops, I love her, she is almost a year out and is not at goal yet but keeps going, keeps positive and follows the diet. You can do this!

[MelissaAnd 3]

We are all loosing weight, but at different rates. I agree, you need to write down everything that you are taking in. I hit plateaus about every 6 weeks and I don't loose anything for a week. It is really hard to stay focused when I hit these stalls. I usually can kick off my weight loss again by increasing my exercise and increasing my Protein by just a small amount. So far, it has worked, but I am also not loosing a huge amount. There are a lot of on-line resources that can help you track your intake. The most important thing is to not give up! This will work for you. Set small goals for yourself and Celebrate your own success. Don't get caught up in to comparing your loss with anyone else. Keep your chin up and celebrate that you have lost weight! Re-evaluate your own goals and work towards those! Hang in there! You can do this!

[Can'tweight 41]

I am 10 weeks out and my nutritionist increased my carbs to 70gms and calories to 900-1000. She said to get in 40gms fat, 70gms or higher in Protein, and at least 64ozs of Water. I did ask her if there was such a thing as TOO much protein, and she laughed. She said, "maybe 200gms! But you won't be able to even get close to too much."

I seem to be losing more (although slowly) now that I have increased my intake. Tricking the body seems to be the name of the game. You may want to talk with your nutritionist to see if you are getting in too little at 4 months out!

Hang in there!

[Tiffykins 672]

I recommend tracking those 800 calories. If you're taking in processed carbs and sugars, your body is going to burn those instead of the fat stores. I never counted net carbs during my losing stage. A carb is a carb, your body is going to burn that glycogen regardless of the carb source. I also didn't have the time or energy to sit there and figure all of that crap out. I also read from a veteran sleevester that she had a really hard time trusting labels on Fiber counts, and I feel the same way. So, I never bothered with all of the good carb vs. bad carb mantra, a carb was a carb, if it crossed my lips, I counted it. Hell, I even counted the carbs in my multi Vitamin. Also, you're considered a "lightweight" I know we all hate those words, but unless you are 4'2" inches tall you probably only have 50-75lbs to lose, right?

Have you been tested for insulin resistance, or do you have any other metabolic issues i.e. thryoid, or PCOS are 2 common issues that lead to slower weight loss. Have you started any type of hormonal birth control, or changed your bc since surgery? Are you on any other medications? Exercise is important, but I can tell you that I didn't exercise for 4 months, and was less than 20lbs from goal when I started. Your body might need more movement. I had a lot of weight to lose so I lost faster than some, but when we break down my % of weight loss over months it took me to maintain, I was just slightly ahead of the curve.

How much weight do you have to lose from heaviest to goal?

I would need to know your height because if you only have 50lbs to lose, you've lost nearly 50% of your EW(excess weight) which is actually on target for 4-6 months out.

I recommend tracking your intake with Protein, calories, and carbs. Increase fluids, get some labs pulled to ensure you are not deficient anywhere, and ensure your metabolic panel is within normal ranges. Introduce some healthy fats to your diet such as avocados, Peanut Butter, cook with olive oil, cut carbs, use full fat dressings for salad, or the oil based dressings and push Protein. If you're still using protein supplement drinks/bars for Meal Replacement, ditch them, and start getting your protein and calories from food sources.

[mbridgeman27 0]

Wow, thank guys for the encouragement! Your advice sounds about right. I do exercise, but not like I should. So I will step up my exercising and Protein. I will stop snacking!!! Thanks so much! I feel better. Oh @ Tiffykins, I'm 5 feet tall. I did lose 5 lbs preop, so actually I've lost about 27 pounds total since Jan. So I guess that's not too bad after all huh?.

[misspatrice 5]

Yeah I agree with what was said. Look at the amount of weight you have to lose as a percentage instead of the numbers. You don't have nearly as much weight to lose as a lot of others that are heavier at date of surgery. That plays a HUGE role. I think you are doing great. Dont be so hard on yourself.

[To Be Thin 2011 80]

Hi! I had a week that I kept calories under 800, carbs under 35 and kicked in more excersise I thought I was going to really lose weight. Instead, my body went into "starvation mode" - because I was depriving it of food. I talked with the NUT @ my doc office and she said we have to take in small amounts of protien through out the day, to give our bodies fuel... especially since I kicked in with more excersise. So for the next week I did the six small meals of high protien, I got my calories up to 1200 and I lost 3 pounds! I weigh myself once a week, every Tues, I weighed myself today and lost 4 pounds, all with the eating small amounts of protien throughout the day and kicking the exercise into high gear - at least for me its high gear! I am doing 2 miles 6 x a week on the treadmill - 2.5 speed.

Some of the posts above mentioned carbs, and food choices... I was really warned about this prior to surgery and so far... I have not introduced any bad food choices, no chips, no potato, no Pasta, no breads --- I have totally been following Protein first and avoiding the other stuff all together.

Good luck,,, keep trying...

[meggiep 57]

I recommend tracking those 800 calories. If you're taking in processed carbs and sugars, your body is going to burn those instead of the fat stores. I never counted net carbs during my losing stage. A carb is a carb, your body is going to burn that glycogen regardless of the carb source. I also didn't have the time or energy to sit there and figure all of that crap out. I also read from a veteran sleevester that she had a really hard time trusting labels on Fiber counts, and I feel the same way. So, I never bothered with all of the good carb vs. bad carb mantra, a carb was a carb, if it crossed my lips, I counted it. Hell, I even counted the carbs in my multi Vitamin. Also, you're considered a "lightweight" I know we all hate those words, but unless you are 4'2" inches tall you probably only have 50-75lbs to lose, right?

Have you been tested for insulin resistance, or do you have any other metabolic issues i.e. thryoid, or PCOS are 2 common issues that lead to slower weight loss. Have you started any type of hormonal birth control, or changed your bc since surgery? Are you on any other medications? Exercise is important, but I can tell you that I didn't exercise for 4 months, and was less than 20lbs from goal when I started. Your body might need more movement. I had a lot of weight to lose so I lost faster than some, but when we break down my % of weight loss over months it took me to maintain, I was just slightly ahead of the curve.

How much weight do you have to lose from heaviest to goal?

I would need to know your height because if you only have 50lbs to lose, you've lost nearly 50% of your EW(excess weight) which is actually on target for 4-6 months out.

I recommend tracking your intake with Protein, calories, and carbs. Increase fluids, get some labs pulled to ensure you are not deficient anywhere, and ensure your metabolic panel is within normal ranges. Introduce some healthy fats to your diet such as avocados, Peanut Butter, cook with olive oil, cut carbs, use full fat dressings for salad, or the oil based dressings and push Protein. If you're still using protein supplement drinks/bars for Meal Replacement, ditch them, and start getting your protein and calories from food sources.

Certainly after reading here it seems different to do net carbs but my nutritionist recommends it- and I will see if it works. It basically rewards you for choosing carbs like an apple, etc.I am willing to try it to see if it works for me and if not then I am off on my own - counting carbs period.I'll be reportin ;-P

As for trusting the nutrition label though- if you don't trust the Fiber amount why do you trust the carb amount? I sometimes wonder who monitors this stuff!

[Tiffykins 672]

Certainly after reading here it seems different to do net carbs but my nutritionist recommends it- and I will see if it works. It basically rewards you for choosing carbs like an apple, etc.I am willing to try it to see if it works for me and if not then I am off on my own - counting carbs period.I'll be reportin ;-P

As for trusting the nutrition label though- if you don't trust the fiber amount why do you trust the carb amount? I sometimes wonder who monitors this stuff!

I agree that it works for some people, and some people want to be able to eat a more varied diet. But for me, I literally didn't have room for carbs(even an apple) if I wanted to get in my Protein grams in 4 meals per day which is what was prescribed by my surgeon. As for carbs on labels, it's hard to screw up carbs on fresh or frozen (no preservatives, no salt, nothing added) on green Beans, broccoli, pinto/black beans(which I made from raw form) and romaine lettuce which is pretty much the veggies I ate through my losing stage. I even skipped using mayo/miracle whip and subbed in greek yogurt for a lot of my meals for chicken/tuna/egg salad, with a little mustard, or dry ranch dressing.

I also relied on the glycemic index for veggies/fruits intake for counts. If it was over 55 points on the glycemic index, I never ate it in my losing stage. My goal was to lose as quick as possible. I won't deny that at all. For me, my goal was to hit goal, and worry about maintenance when I got there. I should add that because eating carbs even the "good ones" didn't work for me in the past. I was diligent with weight watchers, and my body fought to lose with eating little portions of "good foods". I did the points system and the "whole foods" program numerous times, and both had minimal results.

I didn't see it as a diet, I never felt deprived so that could be why I was so stringent on my intake. I think people just have to find what works for them, and how they want to lose weight, change their relationship with food, and really change their habits. My losing stage taught me a lot about what I was able to tolerate, what I could eat without feeling deprived, and I learned tricks to make food more "sleeve-friendly" while not losing flavor.

I live an extreme life of moderation in maintenance because it's what works for me. I drink soda, I eat bread, Pasta, rice, potatoes, all veggies, alcoholic beverages are weekly indulgences (before the pregnancy) so by no means do I live a life of dieting or monitoring all my intake like I did during my losing stage. For me moderation in maintenance is what works for me, also that moderation can easily get out of hand, and luckily, I can go back to "better choices" cutting carbs to an extent, and still lose weight. I should add that I had another driving force to losing quickly. My husband was deployed during my revision. After my complications, and a slow start with weight loss (I was fed 1800 calories a day for almost 2 weeks via a TPN bag/picc line so I didn't lose a ton of weight), a 2nd hospitalization that resulted in weight gain again, I had a goal to lose 60lbs before his return in 4 months from the day of my revision. Because I was so stringent on my intake, I had dropped about 80lbs by the time he came home and he walked right by me at the airport. So, there were some other driving forces to me losing quickly, getting healthy, and making a full recovery after extensive complications. I had to "get better" before he came home. He wasn't allowed to come home during my complications, he was in a shithole of Afghanistan, dealing with the the mental issues of deployment on top of his wife nearly dying due to complications, he was worried that I was going to be "sickly" and not myself.

Sorry for the ramble, I just thought I should clarify some of my reasoning and what all went into my decision-making process during my losing stage.