:huh2:Is anyone stuck at where you are at> What are you doing to change your habits?

I have between 30 & 70 lbs to go, depending on which scale and doctor's chart I go by. Personally I'm sticking with right around 50 left. I've been here for a few months, bouncing back and forth. I've gone as low as 238, and as high as 256, with an average around 246 and a goal between 180 - 190 (I'm just under 5'11).

But I have no right to complain because I'm not doing what I could be to make it better. I haven't been to the gym in a good 3 months, and although I have been doing a ton of stuff around the house, it's not the same. I've also gotten a lot more sloppy about what I eat (as I sit here muching on a handful of Cheetos), but not all the time. I don't have a hard time staying on track, I'm just not militant about it. If I have 2 sloppy days, I will ensure I have 2 - 3 good weeks.

My loss is definitely slower than it was the first 6 months or so but it is also winter time here and I am not outside as much. I am hoping once it gets warmer and i get a bit more active I will start dropping again.

Yup, pretty much stuck juggling the same 5 pounds up and down since October.

What am I doing about it? Well... had a fill this week, for starters. And now I'm back to way I was doing things as a newbie: Counting calories and Protein, eating when I should, etc. (Oh, and trying to get that exercise in.... Yeah... that one's a bit tougher. I'm doing better but not as much as I should.)

Now that I've made it through the holidays and have re-looked at my "system", I'm hoping I'll be back on the losing track soon. I'll check back and let you know.

I have been stuck for a bit as well. I cleaned up my food - yep, I had to give up some of my trips to mexican restaurants. I started exercising; I've been really lazy in this area. And lastly, I got another fill.

Since I made these changes I have lost 4 pounds. It is still slower than it was for the first 6 months. It also shows me just how bad I was eating

went to a support meeting--speaker said its NOT the food...hummmmguess its time for some serious soul searching!! and maybe a counselor,,,I wonder how long I can dig my heels in on this one LOL!! banded 6/13/06...lots of problems with the band...unbanded/rny converted 11/27/07 Feel SOOOOO much better and finially having decent BMs Thank G-d!! total loss 140lbs...35 to goal!!!

I was banded in late-May 2007, and the weight melted off. Lost about 75 lbs by October. I walked (and still do) everyday, but aside from that, not much effort. I let the band do the work, and it did.

I hit a plateau at that point. I gave it 1 - 2 weeks without worrying. Then 3. Then 5. Finally around 6 or 7 weeks, I got discouraged - and snuck some Snacks into the mix at night. Strangely, I didn't really gain, or if I did, it was very little. I would hover around a "setpoint" weight, and fluctuate 2 - 3 lbs higher or lower from that. It was like my body was "set" for this weight, and it wouldn't move. Despite being "good" or "bad." My interpretation subjectively - not a medical or scientific claim.

I just got a fill in January, and feel much tighter. That was encouraging. I proceeded to lose about 8 - 10 lbs in those first 2 - 3 days because I was on liquids. Now, a week later - I'm holding steady with that weight - and I'm eating very little (about 1/2 cup like expected, good quality food). So it might be too soon to officially say I've plateau'd again, but I'm worried that I'm a little lower and THAT will hold for several more months.

Has anyone else hit a plateau for MANY months and eventually had it break without doing something drastic? Or what has anyone done? My next option is to start jogging to get some cardio and burn more calories than my 45 minute daily walk. But I hate running and I'm not sure what kind of quality of life I'm going to have knowing I have to jog 10 miles a week. If I could've done that already, I wouldn't have needed the surgery.

I need to break out of this plateau - and I'm hoping it will happen naturally. Like my body will adjust. I'm worried that this is my "final weight" and I'm locked in. Which is better than pre-surgery, but still 40 lbs more than my ideal goal. Any advice or experience about slowing or stopping weight loss would be appreciated.

My plateaus are generally broken by changing something up, either diet or exercise.

Hi Everyone:

I am very new to this board, don't really know how it works, but I will say what I have to and anyone can email me give me feedback and let me know how to find my responses. Thanks. Well on July 10, 2007 I had the lapband surgery. I lost about 30 pounds, going back and forth from 28 to 30. I had shoulder surgery, waited a little too long for my first and second fills, then quit smoking, and I gain about 4 pounds since that time, but I am maintaining, so far so good. I go for my third fill on Tuesday the 4th. I really hope to see some improvement. I already feel like I was robbed, because I waited four years fighting with my insurance and they would not cover the surgery. So I paid cash, well credit card, and this was in July, 07, after that time here comes the Holidays and there is a special $11,900.00 for people paying cash, and I paid $15,900.00. I sure could have waited four to five months after waiting four years, but whatever, it's a done deal now. I just don't know about the future, does this lapband thing work for you or do you work for it???At first it was a great decision, but since the time, I am soooo discouraged and feel like I wasted my money that I didn't have to begin with. I guess I will have my answers after my next fill, just very impatient, frustrated and depressed. Let me know if anyone is going through this or do I have a right to feel the way I feel or am I just maybe tripping. I need help and advice, Thanks, (kclang@myway.com)

I just don't know about the future, does this lapband thing work for you or do you work for it???

You have to do the work for it. It is only a tool not a miracle. Think of it as a hammer. If the hammer is just lying there with no one using it it would be useless. If someone picks it up and starts hammering away the work is getting done. The 88 pounds I have lost I have worked my ass off for. Yes the band absolutely helps with the eating, especially when I want to really pig out on something, but I am still the one making the choices as to what I put in my mouth. I am the one exerising daily. The band is only there to back me up.

I'm in about the middle of my healthy weight range at 72kg (about 158, 160lb). I really really want to drop another 14lb. I'm tall and finely boned, thin is what I should be. I'm not one of those people who can weigh 180 at my height and look my best. And I love my running and really, for a runner, the lighter the better.

I've been at this weight for 6 months now. But I've done jack sh$t about it, lol. I run, I eat well but I am not dieting, which is what I really need to do to lose weight when I have so little left to lose. I really need to get strict, count calories, etc.

For me, maintenance is absolutely effortless, I simply dont think much about food anymore, but I'm sure running has a lot to do with that. Since I got to about 180, weight loss was no longer steady or easy, I'd plateau out and maintain for a few months, then have a few weeks where I ate much less (like on holidays when I was busy) then 10 more lb would suddenly come off, then I'd maintain again for months.

My plateaus are generally broken by changing something up, either diet or exercise.

What's an example? Like you normally did one thing (walking) then did something else (aerobics or biking)? I've done no real cardio to this point, so I'm injecting that into the mix now. I just wonder if I'm going to be locked into jogging 4X a week if I find jogging starts my weight loss again. Not that I can't jog 4X a week - just wondering if your change that you mentioned was just something temporary to shock your body, or if it was indeed a gradual "ramp up" of activity that stayed with you, cumulatively having to do more and more as the weight was harder to drop.

LIke walking, turned to running, turned into more aerobics or jogging/biking - and then farther/longer. Thanks for your advice.

I really think exercise is key, and you will see great results if you are not doing it right now. I notice I drop weight more consistantly when I exercise than when I don't.

I usually change up my diet somehow. I will do Atkins for a few weeks and drop 10 pounds, or I will count my calories and drop some weight. Most recently I have been on a vegetarian kick (almost vegan) and I have lost 16 pounds since the end of December. Mind you I have lost this eating anything I want that does not have meat in it. I actually feel a lot better than I have in a long time. I know it goes against the protien first concept but it is working out fine for me.

And to really answer your question, I only lose weight if I am working out, when I stop working out I only maintain weight. If I pig out and don't work out I gain. If I pig out and workout I maintain. You have to find out what works for your body.

I need spring to get here!! I'm too cold these days to get outside and do my jogging :biggrin:

I was losing faster when I was exercising (which I haven't done a lot of)

I plan on joining my gym again once my daughter turns 12 (1 1/2 years to go). There's just nothing she can do there except go to daycare and swim in the pool w/ an adult. My son loves it cause he has free reign of the place.

sigh

wombat

Well, I've jogged 2 miles in each of the last 2 days, and big surprise - the scale is moving again. Lost 3 lbs alone in those 2 days. It's not a scientific study since it can fluctuate and it's only been 2 days, but there you go - cardio helps. Duh. What's crazy to me is I burned the same calories for that run as I would've for the same 2 mile walk (I think?) that I do daily anyway - but I guess not all calories are created equal. Getting the heartrate up must make your body react differently and search for or use energy differently.

So that's encouraging anyway. I'm going to do some bike-spin today at lunch instead because I'll get bored with running quickly - need to mix it up. But getting the heartrate up has helped already, if you look at the results after being at a plateau for awhile.