Am I losing too fast after Gastric Sleeve?

[Shanibani 4]

Hello,

My name is Shannon but everyone calls me Shani.

I am 34 years old and my start weight was 335 as of January 09, 2020.

I didn't get to have my surgery until January 11, 2021 due to Covid and other medical issues... I'm sure a lot of people have had frustrations over that... I could've had it in July, but sadly, that didn't happen.

Instead, I had my surgery January 11th, 2021 at which time I weighed in at 309. - I'm a 5'8 female, so I'm kinda tall... built more like my father than my mother...

I don't have another appointment with my doctor until mid-April, but my family keeps freaking me out saying I'm losing weight too fast.

I'm down to 265.4 as of today's date. - I've been watching the scale every day (not as a bad thing, just to check every day... if I lost, I lost, if I didn't, oh well) and I've noticed my weight can range anywhere from .80 of a pound to 2.0 pounds in a day.... so, like I said, I've lost about 44 lbs as of this conversation...

Obviously, I'm only 2 months (and a couple days) out from sleeve surgery so I'm still in soft food diet area... and I know my ideal weight is gonna be somewhere around 160-170 most likely... At the rate I'm going, if I didn't plateau somewhere, in six months, I'd be at my goal weight.

I am the pickiest eater to begin with, so when the doctor told me I'd have to go on a strict diet, I had no issue with this... I told him, just give me one to three things I'm allowed to eat, and I'll be fine... he said, eggs, canned chicken, soft veggies... so, that's exactly what I do.

My meal every day consists of 2 handfuls of frozen peppers/onion mix, 1 egg, and a third to a quarter can of chunk chicken, mixed together like an omelette, with a few dollops of salsa on top for the spicyness of it and two tablespoons of spicy sauce (only 25 calories per 2 tablespoons).

I eat that in a bowl twice a day RELIGIOUSLY - nothing else. If I eat a third bowl (like for dinner) I start gaining weight. ( tried eating 3x a day for 4 days, I gained 5 lbs).

I can only get down 2 bottles of Water (16.9 oz) every day, else wise I get nauseous from the water intake.

I gym 2 times a week, basically because I don't have a car, and my mother or sister have to take me but I do simple things at home to try to exercise as well...

Gym days I plateau. I don't lose weight. Like at all... and yes, I know muscle weighs more... so it's a non-issue for me...

But my family makes me wonder if I'm losing too fast, too soon... My sister had the bypass, ( she only had to lose 70lbs though, where as I have to lose 170 to get to my ideal weight.)

When I first spoke to the doctor back in February, he saw no issue with my weight loss amount... Said he sees it more in men than in females but it's not uncommon (ergo why I said I'm built more like my father than mother) and that each person is different...

Should I be worried that I'm not eating that third meal? I'm not hungry for it, so I don't feel like I need it... not to mention the weight gain it gives me that I don't like... I've even tried just doing some hummus and carrots as a third meal, and still gained weight... so I dropped it back down to 2 meals, and boom, I'm back to dropping 2 lbs a day for 3 days straight... today I lost .8 lbs... which brings me to 265...

Any thoughts?

[Jaelzion 1,122]

I would trust your surgeon on this one. A lot of different factors go into determining how fast you lose. You started with a higher BMI, which often translates to faster loss (especially early on). You're eating a very restricted diet. You're tall, which means your base metabolism rate may be higher than average, so you could be running more of a calorie deficit than a lot of us would. You're going to the gym twice a week, so building muscle. While it's true that muscle does weigh more than the same volume of fat, adding muscle mass ramps up your base metabolism rate so you burn more calories even when you are at rest. Even your previous dieting history can affect how quickly you lose - having yo-yo dieted all my life, my body is quick to start compensating for a drop in calories. If you haven't dieted as much, your body may compensate less, leading to quick weight loss. I don't know how old you are but if you're relatively young that helps too. Be diligent about getting your blood work checked and if it continues to look good, you're probably fine. If your doctor is not concerned, I'd just stick with the program and enjoy the ride.

[Shanibani 4]

Thank you @jaelzion

My family has had me so worried as of late, telling me that I'm going to end up in the hospital like my mother's best friend's daughter (who had the bypass) because of my fast weight loss, that it's not only worrying me, but also upsetting me... I would tell them my weight via text all the time when I'd hit a mile marker, and then once I did, they'd message me saying something like "holy crap, that's a lot of weight." until finally tonight my mother called and was so worried...

Mind you, they're all incredibly supportive about the weight surgery, but now they think I'm restricting myself so much, and not eating enough, that I'm going to end up sick.

I haven't had to have bloodwork since well before surgery... so perhaps i'll talk to my doctor about it at my next appointment to see when/if I need it... - I will say I have a hard time with these supplement chewables that I'd much rather just get swallows, but I know these are what they want me on...

Sad to say, I hate taking anything from a bottle, so even the swallowable ones would probably never get taken either...

I need to start remembering to take them.

[mswillis5 127]

I go with your surgeon that you may be losing quickly but it seems to be similar to me and my wife. I was 260 during preop on October 27th and am only 172 today and that is over the last 140 days. If you average that over the time period, I have lost 0.63lbs every day since starting preop. The weight loss for me was around 1-2 lbs per day for the first 3 months or so and has started to slow down with plenty of stalls in between where I only lost 1 lb in a week. My wife has been similar in this weight loss with around 1 stall for 1 week every month. She was 274 during preop and is down to 198 today. You might be losing quickly but it seems to be inline with what my wife and I were able to achieve and we were a bit less weight than you were.

Edited March 16, 2021 by mswillis5

[JMJames92 113]

I wouldn't worry about it at all. The weight comes off the fastest at the beginning and eventually it will slow down and even plateau at some points. When I had my VSG surgery I lost 30 pounds (give or take) in the first two weeks. I had my surgery at the end of August in 2016 and weighed 271 on the day of my surgery and by New Years Day I was down to ~180. Right after this I plateaued for a while. As long as you aren't having any health issues as a result of this rapid weight loss I would recommend just riding this weight loss wave for as long as you can 😆

Congratulation on your surgery and good luck on you weight loss journey!

[momof3_angels 465]

18 hours ago, Shanibani said:

Hello,

My name is Shannon but everyone calls me Shani.

I am 34 years old and my start weight was 335 as of January 09, 2020.

I didn't get to have my surgery until January 11, 2021 due to Covid and other medical issues... I'm sure a lot of people have had frustrations over that... I could've had it in July, but sadly, that didn't happen.

Instead, I had my surgery January 11th, 2021 at which time I weighed in at 309. - I'm a 5'8 female, so I'm kinda tall... built more like my father than my mother...

I don't have another appointment with my doctor until mid-April, but my family keeps freaking me out saying I'm losing weight too fast.

I'm down to 265.4 as of today's date. - I've been watching the scale every day (not as a bad thing, just to check every day... if I lost, I lost, if I didn't, oh well) and I've noticed my weight can range anywhere from .80 of a pound to 2.0 pounds in a day.... so, like I said, I've lost about 44 lbs as of this conversation...

Obviously, I'm only 2 months (and a couple days) out from sleeve surgery so I'm still in soft food diet area... and I know my ideal weight is gonna be somewhere around 160-170 most likely... At the rate I'm going, if I didn't plateau somewhere, in six months, I'd be at my goal weight.

I am the pickiest eater to begin with, so when the doctor told me I'd have to go on a strict diet, I had no issue with this... I told him, just give me one to three things I'm allowed to eat, and I'll be fine... he said, eggs, canned chicken, soft veggies... so, that's exactly what I do.

My meal every day consists of 2 handfuls of frozen peppers/onion mix, 1 egg, and a third to a quarter can of chunk chicken, mixed together like an omelette, with a few dollops of salsa on top for the spicyness of it and two tablespoons of spicy sauce (only 25 calories per 2 tablespoons).

I eat that in a bowl twice a day RELIGIOUSLY - nothing else. If I eat a third bowl (like for dinner) I start gaining weight. ( tried eating 3x a day for 4 days, I gained 5 lbs).

I can only get down 2 bottles of Water (16.9 oz) every day, else wise I get nauseous from the Water intake.

I gym 2 times a week, basically because I don't have a car, and my mother or sister have to take me but I do simple things at home to try to exercise as well...

Gym days I plateau. I don't lose weight. Like at all... and yes, I know muscle weighs more... so it's a non-issue for me...

But my family makes me wonder if I'm losing too fast, too soon... My sister had the bypass, ( she only had to lose 70lbs though, where as I have to lose 170 to get to my ideal weight.)

When I first spoke to the doctor back in February, he saw no issue with my weight loss amount... Said he sees it more in men than in females but it's not uncommon (ergo why I said I'm built more like my father than mother) and that each person is different...

Should I be worried that I'm not eating that third meal? I'm not hungry for it, so I don't feel like I need it... not to mention the weight gain it gives me that I don't like... I've even tried just doing some hummus and carrots as a third meal, and still gained weight... so I dropped it back down to 2 meals, and boom, I'm back to dropping 2 lbs a day for 3 days straight... today I lost .8 lbs... which brings me to 265...

Any thoughts?

Everyone is different and just let your surgeon and nutritionist keep monitoring you. If you stick to the program, you will lose weight, and your surgeon/nutritionist will make sure you stay healthy while doing it. I lost 100 pounds in about 6 months to get down below my goal weight. My start weight was 221... so 100 pounds was losing ALL of the excess weight. I was a lucky one. As for diet.. get your water and Protein in first. Everything else only after you meet your goals. And make sure you are eating the right foods, in the right portions, and the right intervals... according to your nutrition instructions.

[Megan831 5]

Everyone is different and just let your surgeon and nutritionist keep monitoring you. If you stick to the program, you will lose weight, and your surgeon/nutritionist will make sure you stay healthy while doing it. I lost 100 pounds in about 6 months to get down below my goal weight. My start weight was 221... so 100 pounds was losing ALL of the excess weight. I was a lucky one. As for diet.. get your Water and Protein in first. Everything else only after you meet your goals. And make sure you are eating the right foods, in the right portions, and the right intervals... according to your nutrition instructions.

Omg 100lbs in 6 months?? Wow. Now I am worried I chalked it up to my having a lower BMI. But we started at the same weight I am 5 months post op and only loss 43lbs. What did you do?

Sent from my SM-N981U using BariatricPal mobile app

[Shanibani 4]

9 minutes ago, Megan831 said:

Omg 100lbs in 6 months?? Wow. Now I am worried I chalked it up to my having a lower BMI. But we started at the same weight I am 5 months post op and only loss 43lbs. What did you do?

Sent from my SM-N981U using BariatricPal mobile app

Well, I definitely am not hitting my Protein amount.

6 grams in an egg

6 grams in a third of a can of chicken

.21 in my 1/8th cup of cooked peppers and onions

1 gram in my 4 tablespoons of milk

x2 because that's 2 meals....

.... I'm basically getting 26.5 grams a day... and I'm supposed to be at 60... how do people DO that???? AND still lose weight??? - I'm still in soft foods - no Protein Shake because they took me off it... That's so confusing! - a third meal would only have me at 40 grams per day... and at 3 meals, I gained 5 lbs...

What did others do at soft foods?

[momof3_angels 465]

1 hour ago, Megan831 said:

Omg 100lbs in 6 months?? Wow. Now I am worried I chalked it up to my having a lower BMI. But we started at the same weight I am 5 months post op and only loss 43lbs. What did you do?

Sent from my SM-N981U using BariatricPal mobile app

I just looked at my stats... it was closer to 7 months I guess. But really I think I was just lucky. I stuck to the diet. I had my good weeks and bad weeks. Long stalls. But when it came off it came off. Also worth noting... the theory is I gained due to prolonged sleep apnea that went undiagnosed for up to 7 years or so. I treated the sleep apnea too. 18 months out and I am up about 10 pounds. I maintained until recently... I am up 10 pounds from my low.

[mswillis5 127]

1 hour ago, Shanibani said:

Well, I definitely am not hitting my Protein amount.

6 grams in an egg

6 grams in a third of a can of chicken

.21 in my 1/8th cup of cooked peppers and onions

1 gram in my 4 tablespoons of milk

x2 because that's 2 meals....

.... I'm basically getting 26.5 grams a day... and I'm supposed to be at 60... how do people DO that???? AND still lose weight??? - I'm still in soft foods - no Protein Shake because they took me off it... That's so confusing! - a third meal would only have me at 40 grams per day... and at 3 meals, I gained 5 lbs...

What did others do at soft foods?

My wife and I try to do 15-20 grams of Protein per meal. Greek yogurt is 15-18 grams of protein (we would split this up at the beginning and only eat half in one sitting). cheese wrap with deli meat is about 22 grams and we were able to eat about 2/3rds of it by our 3rd month. If you are using regular milk, take a look at Fairlife or Carbsmart milk. They are a bit more protein than the standard milks and less sugar. A tuna or chicken packet is 12-15g in just one packet and we could eat about 1/2 a packet at a time. We also found some high protein meals that we like. Taco skillet with lean beef, taco seasoning, peppers and onions and melted cheese on top. We know we were hitting at least 60 grams eating 3-4 times in a day this way when we ate 15-20 grams in one sitting. I know I have heard of others adding Protein Powder to their meal/yogurt to increase the protein content as well.