1st Week Loss

Hi everyone! I had my VSG surgery on Monday, so I'm about 5 days out now. In the hospital, I gained 7 pounds from the IVs. As of now, I still haven't really lost anything! I've heard that most people lose the most weight in the first 1-2 weeks, but I've lost nothing. Is this normal? What is going on?

I don't think that's accurate at all. Your body is going to experience swelling from the fluids and healing process and it can take some time to go down. Keep up with your walking several times per day and getting your water in (sip, sip, sip) and your protein shakes (again sip, sip, sip) and you will notice changes. Each body responds differently and you cannot use others' experiences as a gauge of your success or failure.

So many people get into the awful habit of habitually weighing daily right after surgery and getting upset if they don't lose 8,10,12 lbs each week in the first month. This is dangerous to your psyche, IMO. If I could make a suggestion, it'd be to not weigh yourself again until you hit the 1 month mark (when those extra fluids should be gone) and then limit it to once weekly thereafter. Concentrate on all the other parts of the journey/losing process (tracking food, adding in exercise, getting in all your water daily, hitting protein goals, journaling, etc. - basically everything BUT weighing) so those other factors are your marks for success. Besides, you are likely losing inches already even if numbers don't reflect that.

I was never a big number loser each week, even from the beginning. It's be 2-3 lbs per week, week of TOM might be down 0.5 lb and then one week of a bigger loss like 4 lbs. As a scale addict going to weighing 1x/week was hard but it helped me not to obsess about that number on a daily basis (which I've done all my life), and, each week I'd still see a loss when I hopped on the scale. One idea is to take your measurements and track that weekly as you will still see those numbers decreasing even on weeks when the scale doesn't move much.

Good luck on your journey and keep your focus on the lifestyle change, not just the scale number. If you are compliant and follow the guidelines the weight will come off.

I weighed monthly (on my surgiversary date) while losing so that I could always see progress. I didn't switch to daily weighing until I reached maintenance.

This is totally common to not lose because you've got to first lose the weight from the fluids! I recommend that people don't weigh until two weeks post-op, just to maintain sanity. :)

I also think there is no "most people" when it comes to weight loss. We all do our own thing and lose at our own rates. Don't sweat it. Try using something like trendweight.com that will let you focus on your trending weight instead of the daily fluctuations.

Drink lots, walk lots, stick to your plan :)

Thanks everyone! I'm still stuck at the point where I am constantly concerned that the surgery isn't going to work (though I know that's irrational). It always makes me feel better to talk with people who know what it's like. Thank again!

I feel the exact same way. I dropped 12 lbs in the most week, went home, waited a couple days and then weighed myself again. I was nearly a pound up from the Dr.'s scale. I was like this my life now, the surgery didnt work on me, blah blah blah. Lol, all I did was add another note to bring up with my therapist. It was nice reading this post because it puts into perspective how different everyone's experiences are. Best of luck to you and congrats!

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I didn't even bother weighing myself for the first month. BUT I did lose 8 pounds on the 2 week pre-op diet. If I were to compare that rate to how fast I lost after the surgery ... yeah it was more. Maybe people are counting that loss as a part of the surgery.

I am 4 days out and have lost 10 poinds since my first surgeon visit but only 4 pounds since I checked into the hospital. I think you are doing fine. I think the most weight is lost in the first 2 months not weeks. Check with your doc at your post op visit.

congrats! I look forward to hearing your progress!

Thx!