#1: I never thought I would struggle this hard to lose weight. I am sticking to the plan by the letter and I'm losing, but ever so SLOWLY! It's frustrating. My surgeon wants me to lose 50 more pounds by New Years and it has taken me 4 months to lose the first 50 (post op). Coming from 400+, I expected better results.

#2: I have a friend with similar stats and she has lost almost as much as I have in one month. Crazy part is that she has lost all this weight while eating chips, white castle, and other crap... yes, in the first month post op!

#3: This week, despite doing everything "right", I have gained 3 pounds. No I'm not pregnant or on my cycle. This is maddening. Should I go back on the liquid diet?!?!?!

Ugh!!!!!!!

@@her1981 - Well 50 pounds is great. Be thankful, slower means better chance of avoiding loose skin. Are you working out? If so work with the nut to make sure your body isn't in a "fat preservation/starvation" mode. Sometimes a calorie increase actually pumps up weight loss. Track and test it.

As to your friend...they will reap the results of eating crap. They will feel like crap. Ultimately if they lose weight, they will look like crap. Don't compare your weight loss to others. Dangerous thing to do.

@@her1981 - Well 50 pounds is great. Be thankful, slower means better chance of avoiding loose skin. Are you working out? If so work with the nut to make sure your body isn't in a "fat preservation/starvation" mode. Sometimes a calorie increase actually pumps up weight loss. Track and test it.

As to your friend...they will reap the results of eating crap. They will feel like crap. Ultimately if they lose weight, they will look like crap. Don't compare your weight loss to others. Dangerous thing to do.

I just walk, but I definitely need to increase my intensity. In the meantime, I might try some calorie cycling to see if that helps. Maybe I'll go up to 1000 next week and back down to 800 the week after. Something's gotta give.

I usually try not to compare myself to others, but when she's telling me she ate crap and I'm eating chicken, fish, and Protein shakes every day, it's hard not to get a little discouraged.

I hate to break it to ya, but your friend will never keep her weight off eating like that. YOU, my dear, are doing things right! Keep up the good work!

Thanks @Babbs. Sometimes it's hard to see the big picture when you're in the throws of daily life.

@@her1981

Oh my gosh, I hear ya! I was a super SLOOOOW loser! It took me over a year to lose 85 pounds! Honestly, people lose faster without having surgery! But they are absolutely correct in saying try not to compare and just keep doing all the right things, and it will come off. You're doing just great! Even 6 months from now you'll be amazed how far you've come!

DO NOT COMPARE

Toss the scale out. As long as you are losing your are fine.

Congratulations on your weight loss!

I don't think I have ever weighed the same on 2 scales or weighed the same for more than a few hours at a time lol.

@@her1981 - You say you need more intensity. Can you do something for exercise other than walking? I know I have to work out regularly to keep my metabolism burning.

You would "increase" your calories to 1000 from 800 at four months post-op? That may be your problem. What is your Protein goal? Are you getting in all your protein every day? You may not be eating enough calories.

What does your NUT advise?

I wasn't eating 1000 calories until I was nearly a year out and I work out regularly.

I am 7 weeks out and am between 700 and 800 calories a day.

Everyone is different.

My NUT wants me to focus on protein and not calories.

Fluctuations are normal... it is the long term trend that we need to think about!

I agree with not comparing yourself to others - it is a lose-lose proposition and just isn't worth it.

However, I started with a high BMI too (52!) and I felt like i needed to really hit it hard during the honeymoon phase so that I could get to a normal size/weight. I am almost 4 years post sleeve now and while I can still lose weight, it gets harder....

If you want specific advice, it would be helpful to share a few days worth of food logs and activity level. I personally do not count calories, but I eat small, I eat moderate carbs (was low carb for awhile to help me get to goal). If calories in / calories out math were that simple, I would have lost weight better before WLS. i spent YEARS counting calories (and WW points) and it really never worked well. I have come to believe there is more to it then that and have a few things that have worked for me in the last few years. We are all different - so who knows - but without specifics it is really hard to know what to suggest.

Hang in there and Celebrate your successes! The mental game is at least half the battle!

#1: I never thought I would struggle this hard to lose weight. I am sticking to the plan by the letter and I'm losing, but ever so SLOWLY! It's frustrating. My surgeon wants me to lose 50 more pounds by New Years and it has taken me 4 months to lose the first 50 (post op). Coming from 400+, I expected better results.

#2: I have a friend with similar stats and she has lost almost as much as I have in one month. Crazy part is that she has lost all this weight while eating chips, white castle, and other crap... yes, in the first month post op!

#3: This week, despite doing everything "right", I have gained 3 pounds. No I'm not pregnant or on my cycle. This is maddening. Should I go back on the liquid diet?!?!?!

Ugh!!!!!!!

@@BLERDgirl I have a gym membership, so I'm going to start using the elliptical. I figure I'll start there. In terms of calories, I take in 700-900 but could easily eat more. I swear my restriction is minimal some days. If I do increase to 1000 calories, it will only be on the days I exercise.

@@CowgirlJane My intake is almost the same every day. Typical day looks like this:

B: Protein shake 160 cals and 30g protein

S: turkey lunchmeat or string cheese about 80-100 calories and 8-10 protein

L: lean meat with veggies and light dressing. Usually 3-4oz chicken breast. 250-300 calories 25 protein

D: Same as lunch

@@Inner Surfer Girl I'm sticking to the calorie goal provided by the doctor. He didn't like the nutritionists plan. Which to some degree, I didn't either. She recommended 80 grams of carbs a day and I wasn't losing with that. I get all of my Protein daily. See my intake in the post above.

First, I agree with everyone else - don't compare yourself to anyone else. You are losing weight at the pace your body wants to work at. Your friend eating crap and losing lots of weight? It's going to bite her in the ass eventually. Massive hair loss, saggy/sallow skin and no muscle tone.. and she will regain a significant amount of weight after a few years since she's not eating correctly NOW. This surgery is not a magic bullet; it is a tool to help kick start weight loss, but mainly it is to help YOU relearn how to eat healthy - the right foods and the right portion sizes.

I am a slow loser (way slower than you apparently!). What I started doing early on is to take measurements - chest, waist, hips, arms, thighs, calves. I'd mark down what my weight was, the measurements, and take some pics (front/back/side/arms raised). Some months, I'd only have a 5 pound difference if that. But my measurements WENT DOWN. I'd lose an inch off my hips, half inch off my arms... because in the times where it seemed like I was not losing actual weight... I was losing fat and gaining muscle. I was not stalled out unless you count the numbers on the scale. But fat is bulkier than muscle, so it wasn't obvious until I started tracking and documenting that exchange.

My NUT says to go no lower than 100 grams of carbs, but I do best on around 50-80. I don't sweat it if I go up over sometimes, but I try to stick to my goal of 80 most days. I also figure I'll be tracking my food for years and possibly for the rest of my life. I think that is a small price to pay to be healthy.

Now, I am no longer sad if the scale doesn't budge for weeks, because I know as long as I'm keeping up with my protein/carb intake and moving my (slowly shrinking) butt several times a week, I am still doing well.

And most of all, I'm retraining myself on how to be healthy for the rest of my life. Because THAT is the biggest thing all of us have to learn. And if it takes me a year of two to do lose all or even most of my excess weight, then I'll still consider it a success, because I am on a lifetime journey to change how I relate to food, how I move and how active I am - forever.

Edited October 9, 201510 yr by FrankiesGirl