SLOW LOSERS...read this

[mini_me 3]

It seems like there has been an increase in folks posting about their concerns over low rates of weight loss. I want to encourage you to not lose hope. keep reading the advice offered by others...keep following the rules. I know we all want to see some dramatic results, quick like, but truth is....many folks DON'T lose the weight so fast. Below i have included a link to a thread where i discuss my weight loss time line. I know about slow losing. I know about hitting that one year mark and only showing 15 or so pounds of loss. I know about having moments of discouragement. I kept coming back to this board to get support, and i encourage you to do the same.

know that if you keep following the rules, each pound you lose is gone for good. know that if you keep following the rules, you are wayyy more likely than not to lose the weight. the band is a tool, not a magical cure. sometimes, we have to just trust that our body will eventually get on board with the program.

Good luck yall...

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f15/all-you-slow-losers-54591/

((i just noticed that on the link, i have the years wrong on my dates. my dates range from 2006-2008, and they are in the proper order, just with the wrong years attached...and i can't edit the post (??). so anyway, good luck yall))

Edited May 1, 2008 by mini_me

[mini_me 3]

Thanks Jack! You're the best!

[jennifer_n 0]

could slow loss be due to you not exercising? congrats on your weight loss thats the weight i wanna be at..but its very discuraging to here it took double the time..im going to be bannded on mon may5th and im 230..i plan to excersise alot to speed up the process..although people who have lower bmi's take longer two years upsets me..lol

[mini_me 3]

the short answer to 'did you exercise?' is no.

the long answer is that while i did not have a regular exercise routine, i would exercise regular for 6 weeks here, then get lazy for a month, then exercise for 4 weeks, then get lazy, etc. i am one of those people that have quite a bit of muscle tone under the fat, i just have to lose the fat to get to it. i never saw a real difference working out. HOWEVER, when i started school again, i attended a very hilly campus, and after fighting to get a parking spot, i had to make a 5-6 minute sprint across campus. i did this three times a week, and this corresponded with the biggest part of my weight loss...right along with the wendy's chili and small frosty lunches. lol...if you have not been banded yet, then i dont think you should expect epic results. prepare for the worst, then you wont be disappointed, and if the best happens, all the better.

my girlfriend at work was banded a few months after me, and she religiously hits the gym every single day. cardio/strength with a trainer. after almost two years, she too, has lost at a slow rate. she has lost even less than i have. she started out ten lbs heavier than myself. ((she was 227))

i have seen very few low bmi'ers hit their goal within the first year. mary_b is probably the only one i can think of off the top of my head. for most of us low bmi'ers, it takes a little longer to see drastic results.

i am very happy with where i stand now...a year ago, i was seriously questioning whether the band would work for me.

[Ang1982 4]

if you have not been banded yet, then i dont think you should expect epic results. prepare for the worst, then you wont be disappointed, and if the best happens, all the better.

I just wanted to say that I do not think that this is a fair assesment to give anyone who is just starting out in getting their band. You cannot compare yourself to anyone else as everyone is different. To tell someone to expect to be a "slow loser" doesn't really instill a lot of confidence in this person's decision to have the band. In my opinion (from what I have read) the percentage of "slow" losers compared to "average" or "fast" losers seems to be a lot less.

Don't go into banding "preparing for the worst" go into banding preparing to kick ass and take names and see how things go - there is no point in upsetting yourself in advance for something that may or may not be accurrate. Anyone getting banded should be aware that some people lose faster than others and that there are risks and complications that *could* happen, but to go into it thinking "omg I'm going to have a band slip or errosion in x-months" is unreasonable/unrational thinking.

[Hastings 3]

When she said "prepare for the worst" I think she meant slow losing. I think people often have unreal expectations about the band. How fast they will lose, what foods they can eat, etc.

I approached it with cautious optimism and was prepared to be a slow loser, reckoning that it was better than gaining, which is what I would have done.

[mini_me 3]

When she said "prepare for the worst" I think she meant slow losing. I think people often have unreal expectations about the band. How fast they will lose, what foods they can eat, etc.

I approached it with cautious optimism and was prepared to be a slow loser, reckoning that it was better than gaining, which is what I would have done.

you are absolutely right. i was referring to rate of weight loss. i would never encourage potential bandsters to EXPECT complications. sorry i did not make that more clear.

i went into this banding thinking that i would have perfect body in 12 months. i wish someone had prepared me for a slow loss. it would have saved me a lot of self-doubt that first year and a half.

[Ang1982 4]

you are absolutely right. i was referring to rate of weight loss. i would never encourage potential bandsters to EXPECT complications. sorry i did not make that more clear.

i went into this banding thinking that i would have perfect body in 12 months. i wish someone had prepared me for a slow loss. it would have saved me a lot of self-doubt that first year and a half.

Sorry I probably should have put a paragraph space or something in there - I realize you weren't refering to complications in general... My comment about complications was more of an "adder" thought... It probably should have read something like this instead:

Don't go into banding "preparing for the worst" go into banding preparing to kick ass and take names and see how things go - there is no point in upsetting yourself in advance for something that may or may not be accurrate.

Also anyone getting banded should be aware that some people lose faster than others and that there are risks and complications that *could* happen, but to go into it thinking "omg I'm going to have a band slip or errosion in x-months" is unreasonable/unrational thinking.

But I'm tired and it's been a crazy day at work so maybe that doesn't make anymore sense then the other way! haha. The way I look at it - slow loser, fast loser, average loser - it's still losin!!

[mini_me 3]

amen to fast, slow, and average losers!!

it has taken me a while to learn to appreciate being a slow loser...but i sure am glad to be losing, no matter what the rate!!!

[Hastings 3]

You're right, losing is all good, when it comes to weight. :cool2:

[vcompton 0]

Thanks for your input...You are right...each person is different and very few will follow the rules 100 percent... You control your band it does not control you..Its a tool...I have lost like 55pds since my band October 2007...and I have a total of 5.0 cc's... not alot of restriction..but I also know what its like to exercise for a few weeks heavy then take a couple weeks off for good behavior..lol...but keep doing what you do and it will come off permantently for each person..Everyone has different amounts to lose..ect...so no one will lose at the same rate..but it is a VERY FAIR assessment compared to some of your other comments...Thanks and good luck with your band!

[Liz1531 3]

THANK YOU!!!! I am so happy to read this and find that I'm not the only one. It seems like everyone has lost so much weight and I can't do it for the life of me. I have great restriction and prob eat 1/4 of what I used to, BUT the weight is just coming off REALLY slowly AND I have to fight for every pound. Too much sweets in a week and I'll easilly gain 5 lbs and have to start over again. THANK YOU again. I am so happy to not be the only one. I will be one year out in Aug and don't even go to my August buddies page anymore because I am pretty sure I'm the only one whose only lost 17 lbs.

[jennifer_n 0]

you are right.. i like how you put that for me..thank you and i am getting banded monday so i have never changed my mind..i'm just listing to comments..but they won't make a diffrence in what i want and what i will accomplish..thank again!

[Oregondaisy 2,019]

I was a slow loser. I lost 22 lbs during my post op liquid diet, then I lost nothing for months. I never lost the 2 lbs a week that people talk about.

I always went on long plateaus and then all of a sudden would drop 5 lbs. As soon as that happened, I would go on another long plateau. I was very discouraged in the beginning.

But low and behold, I am at goal now. If anyone is a slow loser, try not to get discouraged. It's hard if you live far from your doctor and can't get your fill right. I was lucky that I live only 5 min from my doctor and we played around with fills for a long time until I finally got the right restriction. Having a good fill makes a huge difference.

I am also one of those people that can eat the wrong thing and easily gain 5 lbs that will take weeks to take back off. I have a slow metabolism, but after awhile, eating right and the sweet cravings went away.

Hang in there. The band will work if you don't get discouraged and get into those old thinking patterns. Before I got my band, I used to think

"I am not losing so I might as well eat what I want" Now that I have had my band for 16 months, it's like I don't even have a band. I don't think about my portions anymore, or count calories anymore. I know what size of a portion I can eat, and what foods work well for me.

I love my band and what it has done for me!

[mini_me 3]

i love my band...and i love my slow loss. now that i am a size 8, and my skin is looking great, i would not change a thing about my rate of loss!!!

good luck everyone!