i have been doing just liquids for the past week post op and have lost almost nothing. i'm beginning to panic. i had surgery and i'm having the same problem as before!

You should not worry about losing any weight until 4 weeks until your healed. The first 4 weeks are all about healing and healing only. Your surgeon should have stressed that too you. After that once you start getting your fills and good restriction I promise, the weight loss will come. I had pretty good restriction after surgery for 4 weeks. Then got one fill, and nothing, two fills and nothing and then after the 3rd fill the restriction was there and you just won't eat much. I lost 50 pounds the first 4 months and then now it's been 5 months and I've lost 60. Just be patient and don't expect a whole lot until you get your fills and restriction. Just try to get all healed up and it will come. Take care of yourself and congrats on your surgery.

thanks so much. can i ask another question? if i am not eating anything but broth, how come weight is not coming off? it's not like i'm eating food!

All I can say is just remember that if it were easy for you to lose weight then you wouldn't need the surgery. Most people who are fat try harder than anyone I know to lose weight.

Remember drastically cutting calories makes your body think you are starving. So your body tries even harder to hold on to the weight.

I am glad to know mentally that the first 4 weeks are about healing and not losing weight. But I will be disappointed emotionally if I don't lose weight right away. I may make this site my home page right after the surgery to keep myself on track.

Good vibes are coming you way from me...

Hi, I got banded Dec. 1st. I am down 14 lbs but I can tell I am levaling

off. Don't forget your body is probably in "starvation mode" which means

that the body knows something radical has happened and is holding it's

weight. This doesn't go on forever, all of a sudden you will drop some

wieght. Do you watch The biggest loser? this happens to them alot.

Also, I am walking every day and trying to make each day a little tougher.

I know this will help you too!

Hugs, Giantangel.

Edited for MAJOR tyos! Wow!

Your body isn't in starvation mode - this is a common sort of urban legend. Starvation mode can happen, gradually, over a very long period of time, but you won't be there in one week. Not even close.

Lots of things could be going on. For one - some broths are very high in fat/calories. For two, you could just be not losing weight. Sometimes we lose, sometimes we don't. If I understand correctly you're newly post-op, so your body is healing. You may or may not lose weight during this time. If you're "regularity" hasn't kicked in - that could be several pounds right there.

Hang in there, it has just been a week. It will happen.

I don't think it is a myth that the body goes into starvation mode relatively quickly. It really only takes a few hours for your body's glucose levels to drop and your metabolic rate to become depressed. That is why almost all diet recommend that you eat small meals every few hours. It prevents the flucuations in your metabolism that occur with insulin spikes and drops. That is also why eating Breakfast is so important. After not eating for 8-12 hours, your body is in a fasting state. Eating breakfast 'wakes up' your metabolic rate by at least 5%.

While it does take longer for your body to actually start losing muscle mass, that also doesn't take that long. Muscle is the most metabolically active tissue in the body and so if your body doesn't have to maintain it, it won't. In people who lose weight using very low calorie diets (The American Council on Exercise recommends never going less than 1200 calories a day for women) as much as 45% of lost mass can be muscle tissue. After an injury muscle atrophy can start as soon as 24 hours.

In my opinion, a week of pre-op and a week of post-op dieting along with a major insult to the body (surgery) could at the very least cause the body to start to conserve energy and at the most could be enough to start muscle loss.

if it is any consolation...I put on a bit of wait during my liquid period post lapband...my dr didn't really care as his thought was the first period is for healing not loosing! You may not really notice a difference in your weightloss until you actually get to solids..so don't be disheartened...just give it time.

You'll be allright! Make sure you keep us posted still.

becky

you are all right. i am going to my dr. today to discuss my concerns and ask more questions. while i did research and tried to listen pre op - i think i was in a haze. just plain hoping it would be the answer to my lifelong battle.

i didn't even consider the "regularity" issue. that's been a whole other problem!

thanks to all of you who let me share, you are who i have....

Thanks for all this great info..in regards to the "regularity" question, when should be expect to become more regular when we are on a full liquid diet? I am 1 week post-op this week and down 13 lbs, but have had no regularity and am concerned about that. Thanks - this is a very personal and sensitive topic.

Some very good advice here...also keep in mind that a lot of broths are high in sodium, this could be causing Water buildup and retention......it has happened to me. When I was on the liquid phase I was drinking commercial brands of broth....I got concerned also because I felt there should have been at least a slight adjustment on the scale. After 3 days of this type of broth I switched to homemade broth and what a difference....the scale dropped 5 lbs about 3 days later.....and I started to pooh a little more regular and didn't feel bloated when I got up in the morning.....I can attribute all of that to a lower sodium intake.

Carol