Slow weight loss

[han27 4]

I’m just under 5 weeks post op, and feeling very defeated.

I’m just now starting to go into solid foods, soft solid foods though, and I have days where I can’t stomach much at all, but my weight loss is very slow.

In total, including the pre-op diet I’ve lost 48lbs which is great, but around 27lb was from the pre-op diet.

I read somewhere online that the average per week lost after gastric bypass was between 5-15lbs, and I’m definitely not getting anywhere near that, but then 15lb a week does sound crazy to me.

It’s disheartening that I lost so much before surgery, but since surgery I feel like it’s been much slower, even though I can’t be getting any more than 800kcals a day, most days much less.

Has anybody else experienced slow weight loss this early? Did it speed up? Was there anything you found helped?

[Hop_Scotch 1,627]

It's really hard to comment on your weight loss without knowing your start weight and height.

21lbs in five weeks sounds pretty good to me though given you lost 27lb pound pre-op. More you lose in pre-op the less likely you are to lose a lot in the immediate post op stages, however, over time weight loss will average out.

[catwoman7 10,874]

1 hour ago, han27 said:

In total, including the pre-op diet I’ve lost 48lbs which is great, but around 27lb was from the pre-op diet.

I read somewhere online that the average per week lost after gastric bypass was between 5-15lbs, and I’m definitely not getting anywhere near that, but then 15lb a week does sound crazy to me.

there's your problem - you're believing what you read online. Just don't. NO ONE loses 5-15 lbs a week from weight loss surgery. People who are on shows like "My 600 lb Life" might lose somewhere at the lower end of that range, but even THEY aren't going to lose 15 lbs a week.

the average WLS patient (and I am NOT talking people who start out at 600+ lbs, like on those shows) loses somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first month - and then it drops to about 10 lbs a month (give or take) after that. And for lower BMI patients, it'll be even lower than that. Yes - you will find people here and there who do not start out at over 600 lbs who might drop 30 lbs the first month, but they are outliers. And NO ONE loses 15 lbs a week (OK - maybe the very first week when most of that is Water weight - but after that, no. It just doesn't happen).

I started out at almost 400 lbs and lost 16 lbs the first month. 12 lbs the second. And then around 10 lbs, give or take, for the next six months or so. And I lost every molecule of my excess weight - over 200 lbs.

You are doing fine. Readjust your expectations a bit. If you are following your program, and you're seeing a general downward trend, you're good.

your rate of weight loss is fine and perfectly normal.

[han27 4]

6 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

there's your problem - you're believing what you read online. Just don't. NO ONE loses 5-15 lbs a week from weight loss surgery. People who are on shows like "My 600 lb Life" might lose somewhere at the lower end of that range, but even THEY aren't going to lose 15 lbs a week.

the average WLS patient (and I am NOT talking people who start out at 600+ lbs, like on those shows) loses somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first month - and then it drops to about 10 lbs a month (give or take) after that. And for lower BMI patients, it'll be even lower than that. Yes - you will find people here and there who do not start out at over 600 lbs who might drop 30 lbs the first month, but they are outliers. And NO ONE loses 15 lbs a week (OK - maybe the very first week when most of that is Water weight - but after that, no. It just doesn't happen).

I started out at almost 400 lbs and lost 16 lbs the first month. 12 lbs the second. And then around 10 lbs, give or take, for the next six months or so. And I lost every molecule of my excess weight - over 200 lbs.

You are doing fine. Readjust your expectations a bit. If you are following your program, and you're seeing a general downward trend, you're good.

your rate of weight loss is fine and perfectly normal.

This helped a lot, thank you so much!

[Tomo 1,138]

I think you're doing really good. That's an incredible 4.2 lbs. loss per week.

[Arabesque 6,494]

Exactly as @catwoman7 said. There is no wrong or right amount to lose each week. Yes, there are averages & ranges but treat them only as a bit of an idea of what you MIGHT lose not what you will. There are too many factors that influence your individual rate of loss & it will change day to day, week to week, month to month. Remember you’ll lose at your own rate & every pound you lose is a win.

Congrats on what you have achieved so far.

[ms.sss 14,702]

On 10/10/2021 at 8:46 AM, catwoman7 said:

(OK - maybe the very first week when most of that is Water weight - but after that, no. It just doesn't happen).

+1

[TinDE 83]

I'm just 2 months postop. I lost about 50 pounds preop. Since surgery, I've lost 24. I've been losing basically around 2 pounds a week. My dr office said that by 6 weeks they like to see 15-25 pounds....so I'm right in the middle there. But I get your frustration. I knew that losing weight beforehand would give me a slower weight loss rate -- but it's a "healthy" rate (1-2 pounds per week). AND I look at it as I'm 50 pounds ahead of the game. And if I didn't have the surgery, I probably wouldn't still be losing weight every week AND I most likely would have gained back what I already lost.

[muffin.x 37]

I’m 2 months post op right now and losing about 2 pounds a week. Sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. I’m fine with that. Pre-surgery I would lose the same amount a week on a 1500kcal diet, but I would be struggling mentally to stick with the diet. Now I’m having no trouble at all sticking to my Protein and kcal goal.

[ShoppGirl 3,397]

It seems to me that your loss is pretty normal (unless you had an extremely high BMI). Some of us are slower losers than others but time and time again I hear of people who lose the weight even if they are slower losers. I’m not sure where you read about 5-15 pounds a week but maybe they meant per month??

[lizonaplane 1,605]

I've lost 18 lbs in 4 weeks, and I thought I was doing great. I don't think you're a slow loser at all!