Should I be worried?

heberlonghurst

How much should I be worried if I am losing weight at a rate considerably higher than 1 lb per week?

My wife introduced me to MFP about 3 days before I underwent a surgery. Due to the type of surgery I underwent I would probably be losing weight right now with or without MFP as a Nissen Fundoplication involves lifting the top of the stomach and wrapping it around the base of the esophogus to prevent acid reflux.

As my esphogus is tighter and my stomach is smaller I am eating slower and feeling full with less food consumed (even if I spend longer at the table).

Before the surgery I weighed about 88.5kg (195lb) whereas medical tables give the recommended weight range for men of my height (1.78 meters = 5ft 10 in) to be between 58.6 kg (129lb) and 78.9kg (174lb), with the ideal weight being 73 kg (161lb). So, I went into the surgery overweight by at least 21 lb. While it is never a good thing to be overweight, ironically given how quickly I have been loosing weight since, it is probably good that I had the extra weight to lose.

Only 28 days post surgery I now weigh about 80.5kg (177.5lb) which means I have lost 17.6lb in only 28 days for a rate of about 0.63 lb PER DAY!!

One one hand I am obviously glad to be less bulky, I feel lighter and I imagine that the closer I get to the recommended range and eventually to the ideal weight the more my blood pressure will drop (is this a valid assumption?). However, the goals section of MFP recommends that we lose weight at a rate of 1 lb per week. So I wonder, should I be worried?

For the most part I feel better, there are some days when I feel a bit dizzy for about 30-60 min until I get a chance to eat. I am recording everything on MFP and except for the first 3 days post surgery (when I really couldn't eat even forcing myself) I am not getting warnings about too little calorie intake.

I am recording everthing I eat in MFP and MFP is mainly helping me avoid what used to be a daily Twix and Dr. Pepper, as well as late night snacks when I am already full, but I am still eating three meals a day and eating until I feel full. This of course takes longer, but involves less food consumption than it used to due to the surgery.

I know we are all about weight loss and encouraging each other to lose weight, but I do want to be careful about any health complications related to loosing weight too quickly. My goal is still 73 kg, but MFP recommends 1lb/week and I am losing weight at a rate of about 4.41 lb/week!!

Should I increase my calorie intake (w/ something healthier than Twix and Dr. Pepper)? Or just ride it on down to 73 kg?

Annieminnesota

Call your doctor

juleseybaby

I would call your doc. Be safe.

CarlyC08

I don't think losing 4 lbs a week is healthy. Try to up your calories a little so it's just 1-2 lbs per week. Make sure you're getting calorie dense foods. Especially after a major surgery, you need to fuel your body so it can recover! Just my thoughts.

Hellbent_Heidi

Given your recent surgery, you should ask your doctor about the best way to go about losing weight and work with him/her on this one. I wouldn't take advice from amatuers in this situation!

Good luck to you though!

italianissima

Hi there,

Similar thing happened to me when I had my tonsils taken out.
Call your doctor, but in the meantime, don't worry.
You will end up gaining the weight back, sadly. As I did. But, you can work to keep some of it off.
You may have to supplement what you're eating. Try a protein shake instead of the the candy bars and soda.

Best of luck!

sarahkatara

Doctor time! especially after a surgery like that you must be careful. call the doc and see what he thinks. it may be ok to lose as fast as you are because it's just your body kicking into gear or there could be something that you should watch out for and be mindful of as you lose. good luck on your journey and be safe!

heberlonghurst

Thank you, I've had surgeries before and I've always lost weight immediately after the surgery to gain it all back plus some (which is how I became overweight in the first place). But I've never had a surgery that involved a tighter esophagus and a smaller stomach so I've never lost weight this quickly before, which is why this is worrisome.

I have friends and family who have expressed jealousy at how much more quickly I am reaching my weight loss goal than they are, but I can't feel completely at ease.

You are all right; this is something that a competent medical expert should advise me on. I know my cardiologist wants me to lose weight, but my last visit with him was 1 week before the surgery and he probably wouldn't approve of how quickly my weight is falling. I will check with him as well as my general practitioner and the gastro who performed the surgery to see how their different perspectives weigh in.

Thank you all.