Are you experiencing a Bariatric Stall?
The weight loss is gradual and consistent after having bariatric surgery. It is the primary reason why people decide to get gastric sleeve or bariatric surgery in the first place.
However, it is quite common that you may notice a stall after your weight loss curve goes south after a period of time. Hitting a weight loss plateau is common, and there’s nothing unusual or alarming about it.
For some people, hitting weight loss plateau occurs after a few weeks, and for some, it happens after a couple of months or even years.
Bariatric Surgery Won’t Cause a Miracle
It is important for people going in for bariatric surgery to note that it is not a miracle surgery. You should expect to lose considerable weight as excess fat is removed from the stomach region, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you stop putting in effort post surgery. It is a powerful method for obese and overweight people to reduce weight drastically, but the results are gained and sustained only with individual efforts.
Muscle Burns Too!
The loss in weight after bariatric surgery is not only by losing excess fat from the body, but the person often loses muscle too. When a person loses muscle, the person’s metabolism is impacted. It means there would be a considerable drop at which the weight loss occurs. It is what seems like hitting a weight loss plateau. As your body would need fewer calories after losing considerable weight, the rate at which the weight loss occurs or the process of burning fat internally slows down too over time.
Metabolism Gets Reconfigured
When you have lost weight through bariatric surgery and changed your lifestyle, and food habits post weight loss surgery, the metabolism goes into a complete overhaul. It reconfigures itself according to your new food habits, lifestyle, body weight, and energy requirements.
How to Overcome Bariatric Stall?
It is important to monitor your weight gain and loss post-bariatric surgery. If you have hit a bariatric stall, here is how you can overcome it.
Track Your Food Habits
Measure your portions and write them down. If you don’t have a chart of what you’re eating and at what time, it would be difficult to calculate how much calories you are consuming and whether it is optimal or not as per your weight and metabolism. Keep in mind your metabolism has changed post-op, and thus, you need to have a diet chart handy to know what you’re doing wrong. It will help you modify and change habits so that you don’t end up re-gaining lost weight.
Change Exercise Routine
The body has an uncanny ability to adapt quickly, and it may have adapted to the exercise routine you follow. Switch to a different exercise routine, including strength training and high-intensity workouts, to ensure that your body’s metabolism remains high and the fat burning process continues uninterrupted.
Manage Stress and Maintain Proper Sleeping Cycle
After bariatric surgery, do not relapse to the old habits that led you to the operation table in the first place. Stay disciplined when it comes to sleeping habits, and don’t give in to stress and start stress-eating. Lack of sleep or too much stress can make you crave, and if you relapse, things could get out of hand.
It is common or even natural for the majority of people who have gone through bariatric surgery to hit a bariatric stall. Sometimes, it is not a stall, but it just might be that you reached your optimal weight. In any case, the tips mentioned above would help you get through the stall and continue your weight loss journey without hassle.
If you have already followed the above mentioned steps and would like to speak to a weight loss expert or dietician about your bariatric stall please visit the contact page and schedule a phone call or appointment to get your concerns answered and addressed.
At Las Vegas Bariatrics it is our goal to help you real your weight loss goals and succeed at living a healthier life style. If you have any questions about getting weight loss surgery or know someone who may be interested feel free to call or schedule and appointment with one of our weight loss professionals.
If you need a support group to help you stay on track with your weight loss goals visit our facebook support group!
