So I called the Dietitian regarding the stall....

[aglb]

4 1/2 weeks post op and in a 2 1/2 week stall... except for one tiny pound lost about 3 days ago. I am a extremely compliant patient. Exercising 6 days a week on the treadmill 2.5 miles, eating roughly between 550-650 calories a day (though my dietitian told me not to count calories, just count protein) - but I am using myfitness pal to track protein & water so you can't help but see the calories. Though getting my protein in the first two weeks was a challenge, I am consistently getting in 60-70 g protein daily now on the soft diet thanks to canned chicken, tuna, fresh salmon, eggs, protein shakes, cottage cheese & yogurt. I probably only get in 4 glasses of water a day but that is because I forget until it is time to eat and then you can't drink. My regular dietitian wasn't available but I called them yesterday & spoke with one of the other Dietitian's I have seen in the past. She said "only 500-600 calories?" "No!" - "you should be at 800-900" I reminded her that I am just over 4 weeks post op and I knew we were working up towards the higher goal but I wasn't there. She asked how many carbs am I getting & I told her probably 65-75 a day and she said the body needs a minimum of 90 for brain function especially if you are exercising. I told her I had been told to eat protein first and since that is pretty much all I can fit in a small meal that I hadn't eaten ANY additional carbs (no bread, potatos etc) - that the only carbs I am getting is from homemade bean soup or in the protein shakes. She told me to up the carbs to 90 and the calories to 800 day & see if that moved the scale. Now I am just plain confused. I have a doctor appointment next Wednesday & I am almost embarrassed to go & step on the scale. I haven't "cheated" or made not even one bad choice on food & yet I am only down a total of 22 pounds from the start of the pre-op diet 6 weeks ago. (16 since surgery, 6 during the 2 week pre-op). - only 6 pounds down from seeing my doctor almost a month ago because most of the weight was lost in week 2. I understand that the scale will move eventually, but if it doesn't move this early on when I can't eat much, what are the chances it is going to move as I start adding more into my diet? This dietitian essentially told me that my too low of calories slowed down everything and I needed to wake everything up by eating more. I am starting to think that no one really knows the perfect recipe and it must be trial & error. This is extremely frustrating because I played this game along with most of the rest of you all my life with dieting, losing, stopped losing, get frustrated & go back to old habits. It certainly isn't the easy way out. The surgery was a breeze but good grief I never anticipated I would spend this much time post surgery dealing with food, (preparing little protein rich meals, planning, & worrying about) and I never anticipated the weight would come off this slow if I did everything right. :-/

[reading mom]

Everybody is so different! Some people appear to lose weight post sleeve effortlessly and then for the rest of us we struggle for every pound. I too have been disappointed at my slow rate. But here is the beauty of the sleeve. It is permanent! Even when we are feeling discouraged the sleeve is still doing its job of helping us keep our portions small. It's up to us to keep choosing healthy foods at our meals. Hang in there! It does get better! Remember your body is still doing a lot of healing! Exercise will become more important. This will work, but for most of us it takes time! We didn't become obese overnight and we will not become healthy overnight. We can't control how quickly the scale moves, but we can control how we follow our diet and exercise plans. I'm glad to see you're using my fitness pal. That has been a lifesaver to me. I have shifted my focus from the scale to seeing my goals met at my fitness pal. When the scale is moving slowly or stalled for a while it brings me peace to know I'm successfully meeting my diet and exercise goals. That's all we can do! And for me it is working. I am slowly losing and I have gone down many inches along with the weight. I advise you to stop weighing yourself frequently, once a week is plenty. Keep logging every bite at mfp. Notice how your clothes are getting looser. Mentally prepare yourself to have many stalls during your weight loss and accept them as a normal part of the process. I tell myself it's not about how quickly we lose, it's about losing the weight permanently! Others say our journey is not like a sprint, but more like a marathon. Slow and steady wins the race. Be patient with yourself and you will get there!

[toutdesuite]

It sounds like your metabolism is slowing down and the "other dietitian" is trying to rev it up by adding more calories to your diet.

[Louise78]

I am 4 weeks post op, so just a bit behind you. Don't be so hard on yourself! You have lost 22lbs!! That's awesome!!! Think of how much that actually is, more than two large bags of potatoes!! I have lost 26 so we are both doing about the same. I am too trying to get in a few carbs due to my own past experience & docs advise. You can't maintain long term without good carbs. Good luck & keep us posted on how it goes with your diet changes!

[sraebaer]

I totally agree that no one knows the perfect recipe and this journey is trial and error! But I also know it is impossible not to lose weight on what we are eating. You will lose your weight! Don't worry!

[niamh]

You have a relatively lower starting weight, so your weight loss will be less than other people here. Stalls are common, and they don't mean anything in terms of whether or not you're doing the right thing. Accept that stalls will happen, focus on nutrition and recovery at this stage and trust in the process. I lost about 17-18 pounds in the first month post-op, and that included a stall that lasted somewhere between one and two weeks (can't remember exactly). I stalled regularly throughout my weight loss, and I never changed a thing to try and speed it up. I'm now about 14.5 months post-op and 12 lbs under goal - don't stress. Only stress if you're really going off plan (which you're not). Breathe .... relax .... enjoy that this is all going well and will be fine.

Personally, I'd also consider the idea that you might be doing too much exercise for the low amount of calories you're currently able to get in. Are you planning on exercising like this every day/week for the rest of your life? If not, consider cutting it back to what is feasible for permanent lifestyle change. One of the best things for me about this surgery is that now I exercise for health, not to try and control my weight. I didn't do all that much exercise early on post-op, but as my weight dropped I noticed I felt more energetic and picked up more. Now I'm very active - but because I enjoy it, not because I feel I must.

[SueHoo]

I know it's hard to get in the fluids, and I am forgetful too. But you can't metabolize fat to burn without water. I often will refill one water bottle all day and mark off on it every time I finish the contents. It is hard, but if you can get in at least two more cups, I think you will see a difference.

If you truly need to add more carbs I would suggest switching things you already may eat, like milk and yogurts, to versions with a bit more carb, before adding starchy things like potatoes.

Are you noticing inches being lost during the stall? I stalled at week 2 for a full week. But I was still getting "smaller" and it was odd to hear it from others when the scale said nothing.

[StacyD]

You might want to entertain at some point going to get your thyroid checked. Though that is the outside extreme case you never know. Sometimes and people will say no but I know when I pull back drastically with calories my body fights back with slow to no weight loss. I'll be curiuos to see how it goes after my surgery. Stick with it and I wish you good luck

[ProHeadhunter]

I am not an expert by any means but at my last visit with the PT she suggested a very light exercise regimenin the beginning for you can not consume enough calories to manage your BMR and the exercise. It may be, you're starving your body and its eating your muscle which weighs more than fat. Its not sleeve wisdom but basic bodily function.

[ucjes]

So I feel the same way you do. 6 weeks before surgery I lost 19 pounds on my own which included a 2 week liquid diet. I was sleeved on Nov 18 and lost ten pounds during the 1st week. Even though I knew that was mostly water from all the fluid they pumped into me at the hospital and plus all I was putting in my my mouth was water that 1st week Anyways I was happy about my loss. 2nd week was full liquids. I was drinking milk and had some yogurt and lots of water. I weight every day for a week and half and all I did was stay the same. I got fed up after that and threw the scale up into the closet so I wouldn't step on it every day. Last week I started purees and this week worked in some soft foods. I finally weighed again this past monday and I gained 2 pounds. This coming monday will officially been in stall for 3 weeks. I think I might stay off the scale until I go back to the dr on the 2nd because I feel like it will be the same story especially since "that time of the month is coming up." It is very discouraging and Im probably not eating enough either. It ranges from 500-800 calories day. I've been getting a lot of protein in and water. I mean I'm doing everything right but still very discouraging. Our bodies are having to adjust and eventually we will start losing. I'm trying to stay positive about the situation but it's very difficult. I'm trying to not feel like a failure. read this it might help

there is a website called ds facts and you can find the section about stalls and platueus it might help.

[aglb]

my 5 week followup with the physician was the week later and I dropped 2 pounds just the day prior, 12 pounds down since the last visit 4 weeks ago - so despite the fact that it went a whole 2 weeks without dropping an ounce - it still apparently averaged out to 3 pounds a week. I am not breaking any records in weight loss but slowly it is coming off. I almost feel I need to not just stay away from the scale but also this forum because I actually get bummed when I see people posting weight losses of 30-40 pounds that had surgery within a week or so of me - meanwhile I plug along - I think I am somewhere around 18 pounds since surgery 5 weeks ago. The doctor did agree though - too few calories - they want you up at 800 and around 90 in carbs minimum especially if you are exercising so that I what I am working towards - I am up around 725 most days trying to get just a bit higher. :-/ Just very embarrassing when even the people who support you keep asking & saying wow, I thought it should be so much quicker than that!

[Grace]

Some folks find that dropping dairy helps.....

[Bluetattoo]

are you still taking your vitamins especially your b-12?

[aglb]

Never took b12 - they just want me to take 1 multi & 3 calcium a day - I do see some people take b12 - why is that?

[niamh]

Your multi will include some B-12. No need to specifically take it additionally unless there is evidence of deficiency. You'd know if you had significant B-12 deficiency - get very tired.

You must be looking at the forum very selectively - compare yourself to me if you want to feel ok about your rate of loss - it's very similar to what I lost in the early days. Relax and feel good about it. Much less likely to lose your hair and have gallbladder problems with a slower rate of loss.