Is a 4 week stall possible?

Omnomlala

Hi guys! I never really post on the forum, and my situation is a bit weird, but this is driving me nuts and I hope someone might have an answer for me.

I had a gastric sleeve done when I was 18. I weighed about 280 pounds (5'6) and because of a genetic disorder (EDS) my stomach was horribly stretched out and I had an unbearable hiatal hernia.

About 13 months later (2 months ago) my stomach was the exact same size as it was before the surgery, but I was down to about 236. My EDS was not cooperating with having a pouch, my hernia came back, and I developed acid reflux to the point that I couldn't eat without really horrible pain. My surgeon told me I either had to convert to a bypass (which I didn't want to do) or have my esophagus dialated every few months.

So I had the bypass at the end of July. It took no time at all for me to be able to eat normally (the doctor said this was unavoidable given my condition) and while I still have to eat small-ish portions, I can eat a slice of pizza or a package of ramen, which is good because I'm poor and in college (:P) and bad because I haven't been eating the healthiest food. Regardless, I belive in calories in/calories out.

That said, I usually have a quest bar or yogurt for breakfast, and then two small but "normal" meals (carbs+veggies+a little protein) and then a protein shake for a snack or a greek yogurt popsicle (yasso) for a treat. This adds up to 1,100-1,300 calories on a given day, and that is usually with some sort of over-estimation because I can't always finish my meals.

I work out 3-4 times a week running for an hour on the eliptical. I am not cleared to start weight training for another month because I heal slowly (yaaay EDS) but I intend to get back into that as well.

My question is, though, that I have weighed 217 pounds for the past 4 weeks. I am really confused as to why my weight has stalled, and I really don't want to go down to eating the 700 calories that most weight loss surgery patients think is okay. I understand that that is the design of the surgery at least in the beginning, but it isn't sustainable or healthy in my opinion and I didn't really want the bypass in the first place.

I measure and log every thing (I have a food scale, and a lot of the food I eat is pre-made anyway) and do not eat back my calories because I usually just can't.

If anyone has any ideas that would be awesome! Thank you!

(I am a vegetarian if that is at all relevant, idk.)

seska422

Are you logging every single thing you consume? Drinks, fruits and veggies, cooking oils, "just a bite"s?

DeguelloTex

It's possible. Even with logging errors, it would be hard to get from 1300 to maintenance at 217 by accident, so that doesn't seem like the issue.

I'd give it another couple of weeks, at least, then maybe ask your doctor if there are any other factors at play in your situation.

Omnomlala

seska422 wrote: »

Are you logging every single thing you consume? Drinks, fruits and veggies, cooking oils, "just a bite"s?

Yep! I measure butter & oil and log it. As for bites and tasting they don't really happen, since I can't drink within 30 minutes of eating anything and I drink water all day long.

It's nice to know that this wouldn't be totally unheard of though.

lorrpb

I believe that MFP generally defines a plateau as 6 weeks with no loss so 4 weeks is totally possible. You have a lot going on in your body, do def talk with doc about your concerns & plan. Good luck.

lindsey1979

It's totally possible, my worst plateau was 7-8 weeks, but they usually start to get worse as you get leaner.

You might also want to consider switching up your macros to see if that shifts anything. There is evidence out there that HOW you create you deficit can yield dramatically different results.

For example, there was a study done a couple years ago with obese women who were insulin resistant and those who were insulin sensitive. The insulin sensitive women lost nearly twice as much weight with more carbs. It was the exact opposite for the insulin resistant women. They lost nearly twice as much with less carbs. The protein and caloric deficits were the same across all groups -- so same amount of calories proportionally, but how they created their respective deficits yielded dramatically different results. If I could lose nearly twice as much weight by simply adjusting my carbs, I'd definitely want to know about that!

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1038/oby.2005.79/full

Almost half of the US adult population has insulin resistance (at prediabetic or diabetic levels) and the vast majority of them don't know it. That's why it can feel like a magic bullet or a small miracle for people who didn't realize they were insulin resistant and reduce carbs and see dramatically improved results.

So you may want to look at your diet and see how many carbs you're eating. If you're eating something like 60% (like the insulin sensitive women), then you might want to consider dropping it down to something like 20-40%. If you're eating only 20-40% of carbs, then you might consider upping it to more to see if something shifts.

DeguelloTex

lindsey1979

DeguelloTex wrote: »

What do you mean by this?

Omnomlala

lindsey1979 wrote: »

DeguelloTex wrote: »

What do you mean by this?

I don't really get how that relates to this either

But I see what you mean about maybe playing around with my macros. I do eat a lot of carbs because I'm a lazy vegetarian. I might try to go low-carb for a week and see if it does anything. Thank you!

lindsey1979

Omnomlala wrote: »

lindsey1979 wrote: »

DeguelloTex wrote: »

What do you mean by this?

I don't really get how that relates to this either

But I see what you mean about maybe playing around with my macros. I do eat a lot of carbs because I'm a lazy vegetarian. I might try to go low-carb for a week and see if it does anything. Thank you!

Keep in mind that you don't need to cut out all carbs or go crazy low carb. Just dropping things down from 60% (if you're near that level) to 40% may be enough -- those were the shifts in the study. Of course, feel free to experiment with lower amounts too, but it's not the only way to adjust carbs. Sometimes just avoiding the fast acting ones -- like bread, pasta, etc. -- will cut down your total numbers significantly.

pmm3437

Considering you are 7-8 weeks removed from having bypass surgery, I wouldn't be asking for advice from anyone except your physician. That is a drastic change, and the only informed opinion will be theirs.

Having said that, plateaus are completely normal, and can last for extended periods. The longest to date for me was 5-6 weeks, where I retraced the same 2-3lbs.