So the talk of 'excess weight' has me thinking... (Dangerous, I know)

pammieanne
on 6/1/17 8:22 am - OK
RNY on 05/16/16

What exactly do people measure as 'excess weight'? Isn't that kind of a fluid thing? Because sometimes I see people's heights and weights, and their 'goal' weight, and they are much higher than I would expect (and a few much lower).

So like if someone that is my height (5'5"), and my starting weight (260)... would ALL of their excess weight be the number that puts them into the normal range (150), or something more like 135 which would put them into more of the middle of the normal range (strictly speaking BMI scale ranges here)?

I haven't ever figured out my 'excess weight' formally... and now I'm curious if everyone is playing on the same scale here so I CAN figure mine out

OK... so already being at my goal, I'm jumping into the pool a bit late... but jump I will anyway!

Height 5'5" HW 260 SW 251 CW 141.6 (2/27/18)

RNY 5-16-16 Pre-Op 9lbs, M1-18.5lbs, M2-18.1lbs, M3-14.8lbs, M4-10.4lbs, M5-9.2lbs, M6-7lbs, M7-6.2lbs, M8-8.8lbs,M9-7.8lbs, M10-1 lb, M11-.6lbs, M12-4.4lbs

catwoman7
on 6/1/17 8:38 am
RNY on 06/03/15
catwoman7
on 6/1/17 8:39 am
RNY on 06/03/15

I don't really know, either, because normal BMI ranges are pretty wide. I'm 5'6" and a normal BMI range for someone my height is something like 115-154 (I know the 154 part for sure - not as sure on the low end since there's no way I could get down that low with my frame - but it's something around 115). That's a 40 lb range. I went by the high end of my range (154) re: the point at which I'd lost 100% of my excess weight, although I'm lower than that now (138-142)

RNY 06/03/15 by Michael Garren (Madison, WI)

HW: 373 SW: 316 GW: 150 LW: 138 CW: 163

Gwen M.
on 6/1/17 12:25 pm
VSG on 03/13/14

And BMI was designed to measure weight for a population, not for an individual.

VSG with Dr. Salameh - 3/13/2014
Diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder and started Vyvanse - 7/22/2016
Reconstructive Surgeries with Dr. Michaels - 6/5/2017 (LBL & brachioplasty), 8/14/2017 (UBL & mastopexy), 11/6/2017 (medial leg lift)

Age 42 Height 5'4" HW 319 (1/3/2014) SW 293 (3/13/2014) CW 149 (7/16/2017)
Next Goal 145 - normal BMI | Total Weight Lost 170

TrendWeight | Food Blog (sort of functional) | Journal (down for maintenance)

Jester
on 6/1/17 9:08 am
RNY on 03/21/16

That's a good question. I've always assumed it was calculated from the top of the "normal" BMI range, but that is just an assumption on my part. It would be hard for me to understand how the weight from the middle of "normal" to the high-end of "normal" could be considered excess weight.

Kathy1212
on 6/1/17 9:46 am

I'm 5'4, and randomly chose 145 as my goal weight...then when I checked the BMI, found that is the end range of the "normal" weight scale. Then I changed it to 144 because my starting weight was 304 an I wanted the numbers to match better, lol. I'm nowhere near my goal at 4 months out, so I'll have to wait and see what my body looks and feels like as I go lower, to see what my actual goal should be.

Pre-Op Visit: Jan. 10, 2017, weight 304, surgeon: Dr. David Lindsay, St. Joe's, Toronto

1st Day of (3 weeks worth of) Optifast: Jan. 11, 2017

Surgery Date: Feb. 1st, 2017

  Kathy  

RosieHawk
on 6/1/17 9:48 am - Ottawa, Canada

My goal was calculated at middle of normal BMI, as I lost weight it was quickly realized that when I hit the low end of normal I was a skeleton. So for me I don't go by the BMI calculators and strictly go by look and use a weight as a ballpark.

HW 290/ SW 250/ GW 140-145/ LW 120/ CW 168

REACHED GOAL IN 8 MONTHS WITH MY DS!!!
FEB.22/ 08>> DS & JAN.23/ 09>> Breast Lift, Fleur de lis abdominoplasty, hernia repair
NOTE: My weight crept back up over the last 2.5 years, but I'm gonna stop that shit NOW!

Deanna798
on 6/1/17 9:57 am
RNY on 08/04/15

I think it's going to be different for everyone. I hate the BMI scale, because it can really make someone feel bad even when they are at a healthy weight.

I think your excess weight is the weight that puts you to a point where it bothers you. Be it a physical issue, or a mental one. At 291 pounds, which was my weigh in at the Bariatric Seminar that I went to, I was unhappy and completely unhealthy. Right now I'm sitting between 160 and 165 on average. I dropped down to 154 last fall, but popped back up over the holidays and have been struggling to get back down there.

Do I think that 165 is my ideal weight? No, I don't think so. I don't hate this weight, but I do want to get back down to the mid 150s. Early on I said that I wanted to get down to 140, which is when I would go from overweight to normal weight at 5'3". BUT, I honestly don't think I care about the BMI scale and what constitutes "normal" on that scale. For me it's unrealistic, because I don't want to be that thin.

So, I think you should look at your body, feel your body, and decide for yourself what your ideal weight would be. Personally, I think you look fabulous just as you are, but we all don't have to live inside each others shell.

Age: 44 | Height: 5' 3" | Starting January 2015: 291 | RNY 8/4/15 with Dr. Arthur Carlin| Goal: 150

Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. ~Proverbs 19:20

CC C.
on 6/1/17 10:21 am

Found this online from a paper abstract about using the Met Life tables: "In bariatric surgery, ideal body weight (IBW) is used to calculate excess body weight (EBW) and percent excess weight lost (%EWL). Bariatric literature typically uses the midpoint of the medium frame from older Metropolitan Life Insurance (MetLife) tables to estimate IBW. This is neither universal nor always clinically accurate."

This was the method my surgeon used. That number for me is 155. He said he'd consider me a success if I ended up at 183. I want to be 170 or as I've been there and that felt perfect for me.

Laura in Texas
on 6/1/17 10:50 am

Ah. Good to know. Thanks. This gives me the same goal weight I have had since I was in my 20's (5'7" tall and 140 pounds). I guess subconsciously there was some method to my madness

Laura in Texas

53 years old; 5'7" tall; HW: 339 (BMI=53); GW: 140 CW: 170 (BMI=27)

RNY: 09-17-08 Dr. Garth Davis

brachioplasty: 12-18-09 Dr. Wainwright; lbl/bl: 06-28-11 Dr. LoMonaco

"May your choices reflect your hopes and not your fears."

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