Hi everyone, I'm feeling terribly depressed and discouraged. I had my VSG surgery on October 17, 2018. Day of surgery weight was 251 lbs. Now almost 3 months post op, I weigh 234 lbs. I'm absolutely devastated that I've only lost 17 lbs! I'm 5'4 have sleep apnea, pre diabetes, PCOS and bipolar disorder. I was so excited about this surgery and was hopeful most of my health conditions would start to improve. I've heard the majority of weight is lost in the first 3 to 5 months, so am feeling like a complete failure. Has anyone else lost very slowly? Do you have any suggestions of anything I can try to speed up the weight loss? Any advice or insight on why this might be happening is greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your help!

Hi Sophie11

There can be many factors to why you are losing slowly, PCOS which causes insulin resistance, bipolar to which meds can slow down loss, but mostly this thing you should look at is your current diet and lifestyle which we have no idea about.

That being said, try tracking everything you consume with an app like MyfitnessPal, meeting hydration and protein goals while staying under carb limits, and add fiber.

Check in with your team and get some answers about where they expected you to be.

Losing slowly is annoying but it all adds up in the end.

Safe Journey ?.

Edited January 16, 20197 yr by GreenTealael

I'm sorry to hear that you are struggling.

Do you log you meals?

Hi Sophie11
There can be many factors to why you are losing slowly, PCOS which causes insulin resistance, bipolar to which meds can slow down loss, but mostly this thing you should look at is your current diet and lifestyle which we have no idea about.
That being said, try tracking everything you consume with an app like MyfitnessPal, meeting hydration and protein goals while staying under carb limits, and add fiber.
Check in with your team and get some answers about where they expected you to be.
Losing slowly is annoying but it all adds up in the end.
Safe Journey [emoji324].

Thank you so much for your help and suggestions! I start the day with a premier protein drink for breakfast, hardly do any snacking and have a small meal around 2:00 each day for lunch. I'm currently not tracking my calories or doing additional exercise except a short morning walk. My doctor also said the bipolar meds and insulin resistance could be contributing to the slow weight loss. I will start tracking my food intake and see if the weight loss speeds up. Thanks again

I'm sorry to hear that you are struggling.
Do you log you meals?

Hi, no I'm not currently logging my meals. I will start today!

Are you meeting your protein goals? It doesn't sound like you could be with as little as you're eating.

Even though the largest weight loss is in the first 6 months, for VSGers, you continue to lose for 18-24 months, so don't despair - you have time! Good luck!

9 minutes ago, sophie11 said:

Thank you so much for your help and suggestions! I start the day with a Premier Protein drink for Breakfast, hardly do any snacking and have a small meal around 2:00 each day for lunch. I'm currently not tracking my calories or doing additional exercise except a short morning walk. My doctor also said the bipolar meds and insulin resistance could be contributing to the slow weight loss. I will start tracking my food intake and see if the weight loss speeds up. Thanks again

Yes, tracking will help you to see exactly what's going on for a while, if you were losing fine not tracking is debatable but when you notice that there's a problem with weight loss Always take a critical look at the numbers.

Yes, tracking will help you to see exactly what's going on for a while, if you were losing fine not tracking is debatable but when you notice that there's a problem with weight loss Always take a critical look at the numbers.

I will start tracking today. Thanks for making me feel so much better. Have a great day [emoji274]

34 minutes ago, sophie11 said:

Thank you so much for your help and suggestions! I start the day with a Premier Protein drink for Breakfast, hardly do any snacking and have a small meal around 2:00 each day for lunch. I'm currently not tracking my calories or doing additional exercise except a short morning walk. My doctor also said the bipolar meds and insulin resistance could be contributing to the slow weight loss. I will start tracking my food intake and see if the weight loss speeds up. Thanks again

Track everything! There are so many hidden carbs in the food we eat. You say here that you hardly do any snacking.. so what are you snacking on? Take a look at that and what it contains. I know my Dr. said absolutely no snacking for the first year. My snack is my protein shake outside my 3 meals. In a year i can swap it for a snack. Also, what are your meals? Protein first?? I am almost 3 months and can barely get past the protein still. Make sure if you are eating potatoes, rice or anything like that.. its absolutely last and only if you are still hungry.

Hi everyone, I'm feeling terribly depressed and discouraged. I had my VSG surgery on October 17, 2018. Day of surgery weight was 251 lbs. Now almost 3 months post op, I weigh 234 lbs. I'm absolutely devastated that I've only lost 17 lbs! I'm 5'4 have sleep apnea, pre diabetes, PCOS and bipolar disorder. I was so excited about this surgery and was hopeful most of my health conditions would start to improve. I've heard the majority of weight is lost in the first 3 to 5 months, so am feeling like a complete failure. Has anyone else lost very slowly? Do you have any suggestions of anything I can try to speed up the weight loss? Any advice or insight on why this might be happening is greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your help!

Let us know how it goes with logging and what you find that your intake is. Doesn't seem like you're getting enough protein but you never know! Our stats are similar...I'm 5'4", was 243 day of surgery (10/22) and now 215. My surgeon says I'm a slow loser. I also have sleep apnea, diabetes and hypertension. The last two of which have resolved. No PCOS or bipolar...some anxiety that I take Wellbutrin for. Also, I'm meeting with my nutritionist at the end of the month to go over my food logs and see if there is anything I can do to help the loss or anything I've been doing that's hindering. I'll share info she gives me as well. Good luck!

Track everything! There are so many hidden carbs in the food we eat. You say here that you hardly do any snacking.. so what are you snacking on? Take a look at that and what it contains. I know my Dr. said absolutely no snacking for the first year. My snack is my Protein Shake outside my 3 meals. In a year i can swap it for a snack. Also, what are your meals? Protein first?? I am almost 3 months and can barely get past the protein still. Make sure if you are eating potatoes, rice or anything like that.. its absolutely last and only if you are still hungry.

Thank you! At around 2 I have a small meal of usually fish, chicken or beef with side of rice or potatoes and vegetables. I think the rice and potatoes may be adding up more than I realize. Thanks again for your suggestions

Thanks so much for sharing with me. Congratulations on your loss! That's so great you've had most of your health issues resolve. You're giving me hope it might get better for me also. Have a great day

Part of this journey is being brutally honest with ourselves and what's going on the plate.

I'm sorry you are struggling.

I think you are honestly eating slider foods and things that taste good to you/you crave.

Unless you have phenomenal restriction and are not grazing all day, most of us need to weigh and measure in the early days.

Please log it all...every bite. Don't squander this time. It's not magic bean surgery. Most of us have to apply true control and effort to lose. It isn't all done by the surgery.

Part of this journey is being brutally honest with ourselves and what's going on the plate.
I'm sorry you are struggling.
I think you are honestly eating slider foods and things that taste good to you/you crave.
Unless you have phenomenal restriction and are not grazing all day, most of us need to weigh and measure in the early days.
Please log it all...every bite. Don't squander this time. It's not magic bean surgery. Most of us have to apply true control and effort to lose. It isn't all done by the surgery.

Thanks for your response. Honestly not too many slider foods. The only other thing I can think of that may be hindering the loss is the glass or two of wine I have most evenings. That could definitely be working against my progress. I'll have to stop or start tracking that also. Have a great day!

As others suggested it's very important to log what you eat every day so you know you're not overeating. Try to keep your calorie intake between 600-800 calories a day with a minimum of 60 grams of protein. If you do this then you can just trust the process. Sooner or later it will come off.

I also highly recommend weight training or body building so your body will consume your fat instead of your muscle. A lot of people who lose weight lose most of their muscle and get a emaciated look even when they are still overweight due to lack of muscle. Also the more muscle you have the more calories you burn.

Our bodies might fight the weight loss but if we do what we supposed to it has no other option but to lose the weight. Best of luck to you.

1 hour ago, sophie11 said:

Hi everyone, I'm feeling terribly depressed and discouraged. I had my VSG surgery on October 17, 2018. Day of surgery weight was 251 lbs. Now almost 3 months post op, I weigh 234 lbs. I'm absolutely devastated that I've only lost 17 lbs! I'm 5'4 have sleep apnea, pre diabetes, PCOS and bipolar disorder. I was so excited about this surgery and was hopeful most of my health conditions would start to improve. I've heard the majority of weight is lost in the first 3 to 5 months, so am feeling like a complete failure. Has anyone else lost very slowly? Do you have any suggestions of anything I can try to speed up the weight loss? Any advice or insight on why this might be happening is greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your help!

So sorry that you're feeling down. Take it easy on yourself. Are you taking your meds? I am just 5 weeks post-op and for the last two weeks the scale didn't move but this morning it did. So it just take patience. Our bodies sometimes have to adjust to all of the changes. Like others have suggested, it really helps to log EVERYTHING you put into your mouth, including your two glasses of wine, into a food tracker. I use MyFitnessPal.com. Also, are you getting enough water in daily? 60 g of protein daily? 64 oz of liquid daily? You've got a couple of barriers with your health conditions that's going to make it a little slower, so you just need to know that in advance and be prepared for slow but steady. Take care!