Good morning! I am new to this. I am 6 weeks postop and feel like I'm doing this all wrong. The scale is not going down like I though it would. Since surgery I have only lost 29lbs and I am afraid I am screwing this up.. I'm very upset and afraid.. what should I do

what was your starting weight? I am 5 weeks out VSG. I lost 10 lbs during the 2 weeks before surgery and have lost an additional 21 lbs since surgery. I feel like I am on the right track but have had a few small stalls...??? maybe update your profile so others can see your information about starting weight, current weight, surgery type, etc. My surgeon told me I should be loosing around 0.5 lbs per day for the first 3 months. I think 29lbs is great!!!

Edited February 23, 20215 yr by Moon2408

My starting weight before surgery was 303 when I started the process. Day of surgery I was 282 and now I'm 254. I feel like it should be less

1 minute ago, Jmaster2 said:

My starting weight before surgery was 303 when I started the process. Day of surgery I was 282 and now I'm 254. I feel like it should be less

That seems right on track to me!! Did you notice any stalls during the past 6 weeks? Just keep going! You're doing great!!

There has been some stalls but then it breaks and then stalls again..its frustrating..thanks for the support!!!

at six weeks out I'd lost 22 lbs. And I started at over 300 lbs.

Your loss is pretty normal. I think a lot of people come into this with overly high expectations because of shows like "My 600 lb Life". You have to remember that the people on that show start out at a MUCH higher BMI than the average WLS patient. Most of us lose somewhere in the range of 15-25 lbs the first month after surgery. You'll always find some that lose more or less than that, but they're the exception. If you've lost 29 lbs in six weeks, then I'm guessing at one month out you were in the average range (15-25 lbs down). So your loss is totally normal.

What is it that you think you are screwing up?

Are you following the plan your program/surgeon gave you?

On most days, are you taking in adequate liquid and protein?

Are you feeling well?

If so, you are doing fine. Not everyone will lose at the same rate.

Remember you have had major surgery, the stalls are very common and expected and are your body's way of settling into the next phase. Be patient, this is a marathon and not a sprint ?

29lbs in 6 weeks is great. You’re averaging a good 4lbs a week. In that time I’d only lost about 10kg (22lbs) & that was considered a good rate for my starting point which was less than yours.

The general rule is the more you have to lose the faster you’ll lose at first. The rate slows as you get closer to your goal.

You’re not going to lose large amounts like they do on My 600lb Life cause they’ve a lot more to lose than you. But when they get down to around 200lbs their rate is more like 15lbs a month.

Celebrate every pound you lose. You’re doing well.

I'm 6 weeks out as well. I've Only lost 16 pounds so far. I've definitely stalled this week but I'm also not meeting my protein goals or calories this week. Never meet my fluid goals although I try. I'm just feeling so blah and frustrated and probably shouldn't look at the scale anymore because I'm not tracking macros or anything else. I started at a lower BMI but I guess I still expected more than just muscle loss and fatigue. So basically it's my fault. Also I got the Covid vaccine on Monday and feel weirdly depressed since. Not sure if it's related, or just my high stress job. Hopefully I can get back on track and the numbers start moving again.

Just

8 hours ago, Gloworm860 said:

I'm 6 weeks out as well. I've Only lost 16 pounds so far. I've definitely stalled this week but I'm also not meeting my Protein goals or calories this week. Never meet my fluid goals although I try. I'm just feeling so blah and frustrated and probably shouldn't look at the scale anymore because I'm not tracking macros or anything else. I started at a lower BMI but I guess I still expected more than just muscle loss and fatigue. So basically it's my fault. Also I got the Covid vaccine on Monday and feel weirdly depressed since. Not sure if it's related, or just my high stress job. Hopefully I can get back on track and the numbers start moving again.

Just continue what your surgeon and team said to do. This will work but you may be looking at over a year to get to where you want to be. This is a tool, continue the appropriate diet and exercise and you will lose!

That seems like a good weight loss so far, considering you're likely to keep losing for at least another year or more.

I'm about 7 weeks out. Lost about 20 lbs. I started at 194 though so it's proportionally probably a bit higher % loss.

All that said, I am more worried about losing too quickly! Outside of the surgical weight loss world, too rapid of a weight loss doesn't give the skin time to adjust and might lead to more sagging later, at least that's what I've heard anecdotally.

As long as I achieve something close to my ultimate goal within the next year or so, I'm personally comfortable losing it more gradually. I'd rather my body has time to adjust, have less saggy skin (if the stories about rapid weight loss are to be believed), and that the weight lost is permanently gone.

23 minutes ago, kim0221 said:

That seems like a good weight loss so far, considering you're likely to keep losing for at least another year or more.

I'm about 7 weeks out. Lost about 20 lbs. I started at 194 though so it's proportionally probably a bit higher % loss.

All that said, I am more worried about losing too quickly! Outside of the surgical weight loss world, too rapid of a weight loss doesn't give the skin time to adjust and might lead to more sagging later, at least that's what I've heard anecdotally.

As long as I achieve something close to my ultimate goal within the next year or so, I'm personally comfortable losing it more gradually. I'd rather my body has time to adjust, have less saggy skin (if the stories about rapid weight loss are to be believed), and that the weight lost is permanently gone.

I'm not sure if the speed of weight loss really makes much of a difference - but you have less weight to lose than a lot of us, so you may be OK. At any rate, you probably won't look like a Sharpei puppy, like I did!

P.S. I did google it and saw a couple of articles that said rapid weight loss can mean saggier skin, but I think when you're talking massive weight loss (100+ lbs), most people's skin is pretty damaged and probably isn't going to bounce back.

Edited March 5, 20215 yr by catwoman7

29 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

I'm not sure if the speed of weight loss really makes much of a difference - but you have less weight to lose than a lot of us, so you may be OK. At any rate, you probably won't look like a Sharpei puppy, like I did!

P.S. I did google it and saw a couple of articles that said rapid weight loss can mean saggier skin, but I think when you're talking massive weight loss (100+ lbs), most people's skin is pretty damaged and probably isn't going to bounce back.

I had to google Sharpei puppy... so cute! lol

I agree, > 100 lbs is a lot of weight loss and skin becomes an issue. But even less than that, some people who starve themselves (either on purpose or due to illness as I've seen) and drop dramatically, they end up with skin sags. But I'm referring to very fast wt loss!

You are losing weight perfectly and definitely at a great pace. It definitely takes time. For the sagging skin issue, after 100lbs of weight loss I definitely notice some sagging skin but I have a lot of skin elasticity and shouldn't need plastic surgery. My wife however had skin rolls before surgery and after she is in maintenance we are already financially preparing for her plastic surgery as we know she will have lots of loose skin.