Question:
I am 2.5 years post op , 75 pounds down . I have stayed between 145-150 the last 1.5

I would like to get down to around 115 and then have some P.S. So therefore I need to lose 30-35 more pounds.I tried Atkins.It was very hard as I like carbs. I have never "dumped" and this makes it harder. I lost 6 pounds in almost 1 month. I goofed one day as I was cooking things for my kids and in 1 day I gained back 4 pounds and can't lose them (no my period is not due) that was last weekend. So I was wondering for the long termers(2 years and over) have you done weight watchers or other things and what gave you the most sucess? I am really depressed here as nothing seems to help. It seems I can eat and drink just about anything with no problems and am in an ongoing battle to not eat all the time. I have never liked exercise but am doing water aerobics and trying to walk everyday.    — Lynne K. (posted on January 21, 2005)

January 21, 2005
I use the South Beach Diet when I need to lose. It's easier than Atkins since you can add back whole grains and fruits after the first two weeks. It's also healthy in that it's low fat. The whole program really helps me to stay on the wagon. You still need to stay away from white flour and white sugar though.
   — mom2jtx3

January 21, 2005
Have you looked at the Grad list? Many of us are/have been where you are. I think that if carbs did NOT appeal to us, we'd never be in this club in the first place. However, their appeal is part of the disease, not a character flaw. No guarantee that you'll get the rest of the wt off, but there's also the trick of maintaining the loss you have achieved. There is a lot of combined long term experience on this list and I'd recommend it in conjunction with this site and any local lists you use. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Graduate-OSSG
   — vitalady

January 21, 2005
Just because we have had surgery, there is still no miracle way to lose those stubborn last few pounds. What works for me may not work for you. But I will tell you anyway what I do. I count protein and sugar grams ONLY.
   — dorothy S.

January 21, 2005
Just because we have had surgery, there is still no miracle way to lose those stubborn last few pounds. What works for me may not work for you. But I will tell you anyway what I do. I count protein and sugar grams ONLY. I dont avoid carbs but rather because i concentrate on the protein part first i find i am too full for the extra carbs i can usually consume. I do eat some and so dont feel cheated. I also allow myself one "bad" snack every couple of day -- i am partial to Godiva chocolates- hey why not go for the good stuff if i must be "bad".But in order to earn those snacks i must have consumed my goal protein and water for the past couple of days. I am almost 2.5 yrs out and have never gained back any weight . I have lost a total of 165- 170 lbs so far. I plan on losing about 20 more. I am in no rush to lose those last few pounds -- I only lost 20-25 this past year and that is ok for me. hile what i am doing is not perfect -- it works for me. Good luck.
   — dorothy S.

January 21, 2005
Have you tried the south beach diet? It is similar to Atkins, but I feel it's better. I lost 50 lbs on South beach diet. However, you do need to be careful about eating too little carbs. I was recently hospitalized with influenza A and they did a urinalysis and one of the results was that my kidneys were in jeopardy of kidney failure if I kept up not eating carbs. With The south beach diet, I was eliminating carbs altogether. But that is not what you are supposed to do. After the first 2 weeks of no carbs, you are supposed to eat some. Like Whole Wheat Pasta, Whole wheat bread, brown rice, etc. No white breads,rice or pasta. Whole wheat has the same amount of carbs as the white except the difference is that the whole wheat is more refined carbs, meaning they don't stick to you like the white does.
   — mzb2u

January 22, 2005
the average post op loses about 75% of their excess weight. Have you met that yet? Sometimes the weight that is right for our bodies is not as low as we might like it to be. If you want to be smaller than your body's comfortable weight You might have to eat a lot less and exercise a lot more. As for me I am a little heavier than my ideal weight but I am happy to be able to maintain and eat my banana every day. (kind of like having your cake and eating it too only banana instead of cake, LOL) Keep in mind you will lose pounds with plastics, and the excess skin is part of the weight you are carrying. I took off 9 pounds wih my LBL, And probably will lose a couple more when I can afford a thigh lift. But then, the breast implants I want will add another pound! The most important thing in my opinion tho is 1. Love yourself and your body, 2. appreciate how far you have come, 3. measure success by the improvement in health more than the number on the scale. I also think btw, that the height & weight charts were developed by people who smoke crack !
   — **willow**

January 23, 2005
Try Weight Watchers it's great and very similar to what we should be eating PROTEIN! You can pick what you want to eat and they provide great support. Remember, the surgery we had is a DIET TOOL and sometime we need a little more help to get us to our goals. I'm almost two years post op and have lost over 180 lbs (was 329). My goal it to get to 130 lbs. I have about 20 or so to go. I need to be accountable to myself and Weight Watchers helps. I go to a monthly support group for people who had ByPass Surgery, but I need more! What you didn't mention in your note is are you EXERCISING? Very Important for weight lose. My problem is I started to add carbs and this is when the weight loss stopped and I became lazy (add back a few lbs). CARBS (bread, etc) will do this to me! So I started eliminated this from my diet again and started adding more protein drinks (40 grams ea.) each day (2 a day). As for PS I just had the lower body lift done (butt, hips, and stomach) and he took off about a yrd of skin. Didn't lose a lot of weight after the skin was removed but lost inches which is what matters most. Weight is just a number. When it comes to PS I want to give you some advice. EXERCISE before you plan on having surgery. The better shape you are in (muscle tone) the better it is for the surgeon. It gives them a better canvas (you) where they need to cut, lift, etc. It will also help you heal a lot faster and it's possible to have less pain. I was cut around my entire lower body and pain level was only a 3 out of 10. I was able to walk the next day. I'm very happy with the results. Next procedure is a thigh lift and I'm done. Good luck to you.
   — Linda R.

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