What percentage of your excess pounds is normal loss?
A little over 100%.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
Did you surgeon give you goals? I wasn't given any goals at all.....Just what I wrote here about the 65% thing. So I can only go by what people write here regarding losses. I would hate to have them not say and get to the 1st meeting after surgery and have them tell me I am doing terrible with my loss!
My surgeon gave me a goal weight, yes. It was 140 pounds, which was 100% of my excess weight. I got a little lower than that.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
My surgeon refuses to give ANYONE a goal weight because she says that only God knows what size is right for an individual body and she does not want to give someone an arbitrary goal that is not relaistic for them and then have them lose 100+ pounds (or 200+ pounds!) and have them feel like a failure because of HER arbitrary scale number. She tells people to shoot for at least something close to a normal BMI.
She also does not give people any guidelines about how you should have lost X number of pounds (or any particular percentage) by 8 weeks out, etc. because she knows how incredibly variable individual weight loss patterns are and she does not want to discourage anyone. As long as you are following the rules and the overall trend is downward, you are good.
Lora
She also does not give people any guidelines about how you should have lost X number of pounds (or any particular percentage) by 8 weeks out, etc. because she knows how incredibly variable individual weight loss patterns are and she does not want to discourage anyone. As long as you are following the rules and the overall trend is downward, you are good.
Lora
14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained
You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.
My surgeon never gave me a goal.
Remember, a goal is simply a number. A number that you might or mght not meet. A number based on charts, tables, averages. A number that doesn't take into account age, bone density, body frame type, excess skin, or muscle mass.
When I hear of surgeons who are flailing their compliant weight loss patients and telling them they're failures, I want to strangle those surgeons for being pompous so-and-so's. Particularly if they seem ignorant of some of the thigns those of us who've been around a few years are used to seeing: namely the early stall, the less-than-simple math our bodies engage in in their fight to keep from losing weight.
I set my goal based on the fact that I have a VERY large frame. Small hands, small waist, LARGE hips, BROAD shoulders, BIG breasts, Monster thighs, and wrists bigger around than my hands. (I could never be handcuffed securely, my hands squoosh down to the same size as my wrist). So I looked at "chart perfect" of 134 for my height, and said 154 sounds right for me.
Everything I did was according to that goal.
Want to see something funny:
Here are some of my home-made tickers:
This last ticker was where I got by 1 year postop. i never made another ticker, because I thought that this was as far as I would be going.
Remember, a goal is simply a number. A number that you might or mght not meet. A number based on charts, tables, averages. A number that doesn't take into account age, bone density, body frame type, excess skin, or muscle mass.
When I hear of surgeons who are flailing their compliant weight loss patients and telling them they're failures, I want to strangle those surgeons for being pompous so-and-so's. Particularly if they seem ignorant of some of the thigns those of us who've been around a few years are used to seeing: namely the early stall, the less-than-simple math our bodies engage in in their fight to keep from losing weight.
I set my goal based on the fact that I have a VERY large frame. Small hands, small waist, LARGE hips, BROAD shoulders, BIG breasts, Monster thighs, and wrists bigger around than my hands. (I could never be handcuffed securely, my hands squoosh down to the same size as my wrist). So I looked at "chart perfect" of 134 for my height, and said 154 sounds right for me.
Everything I did was according to that goal.
Want to see something funny:
Here are some of my home-made tickers:
This last ticker was where I got by 1 year postop. i never made another ticker, because I thought that this was as far as I would be going.
~Lady Lithia~ 200 lbs lost!
March 9, 2011 - Coccygectomy!
I chased my dreams, and my dreams, they caught me!
It really depends a lot on how you calculate "excess body weight" (because that means you have to have some number to use as your "ideal" body weight... ).
I lost 190 pounds at my lowest weight. I went from a highest recorded weight of 332 to a low weight of 142 pounds. I will be 5 years out next month and have been maintaining my weight between 147 and 151 for over 3 years (it took me 20 months to get to my lowest weight). I went from a size 28 (or 3-4XL) to a size 10/12 (or M) pants and a size 12/14 blouse (or a M or sometimes L... I still have huge boobs), went from a BMI of 57 to a BMI of 25-26, depending on the week, and down to 25% body fat (which is considered "optimal" for a woman about to turn 50) even with the big boobs.
So I don't know how you would calculate excess body weight given that I have big boobs and very muscular thighs (which throws the BMI chart out the window). My PCP said he thought 145 was a great goal weight, which was at the top of a "normal" BMI for me. So I guess if you use that as my "ideal" weight, I needed to lose 187 pounds. I am maintaining a loss of 180-183 pounds. That means that I lost 96% of my excess body weight. If you use the middle weight in the normal BMI range for my height, that number goes down to 92%. Pretty damn impressive either way, if I do say so myself! Losing is easy, it's the maintaining that is hard.
Lora
I lost 190 pounds at my lowest weight. I went from a highest recorded weight of 332 to a low weight of 142 pounds. I will be 5 years out next month and have been maintaining my weight between 147 and 151 for over 3 years (it took me 20 months to get to my lowest weight). I went from a size 28 (or 3-4XL) to a size 10/12 (or M) pants and a size 12/14 blouse (or a M or sometimes L... I still have huge boobs), went from a BMI of 57 to a BMI of 25-26, depending on the week, and down to 25% body fat (which is considered "optimal" for a woman about to turn 50) even with the big boobs.
So I don't know how you would calculate excess body weight given that I have big boobs and very muscular thighs (which throws the BMI chart out the window). My PCP said he thought 145 was a great goal weight, which was at the top of a "normal" BMI for me. So I guess if you use that as my "ideal" weight, I needed to lose 187 pounds. I am maintaining a loss of 180-183 pounds. That means that I lost 96% of my excess body weight. If you use the middle weight in the normal BMI range for my height, that number goes down to 92%. Pretty damn impressive either way, if I do say so myself! Losing is easy, it's the maintaining that is hard.
Lora
14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained
You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.
Wt loss rates are NOT comparable with each post op. Each is somewhat different, and not identiacal by any means. Higher BMI patients tend to lose wt at a faster initial rate than lower BMI patients. But again, it depends on your compliance with protocol, your behavior modification, etc. Some patients may lose almost all of their wt in 7-9 months, but this isn't the norm. Most pateints take over a year for total wt loss, and it actually took me 24 months to attain my max wt loss. But a max wt loss may not be where you feel or look healthy either. Gaunt appearance, pasty complexion, "boney" comments, feeling weak, etc. may not make you happy, even though you've attained a lower wt than you may have planned. You want to settle at a comfortable wt where your health is vastly improved, you are a lot more mobile, and just "happy" in general terms. I went from 365 to 186 pounds, but was not happy with my appearance. But, I do feel a lot more comfortable at around 210 pounds, which is still a 155 pound wt loss--good enough for me. I can walk, climb stairs, no more sleep apnea, and do a lot more activities than when I weighed 365 pounds. DAVE
Dave Chambers, 6'3" tall, 365 before RNY, 185 low, 200 currently. My profile page: product reviews, tips for your journey, hi protein snacks, hi potency delicious green tea, and personal web site.
I was only MO for 11 months after a pregnancy and am not big boned, despite being 6ft tall. I needed to lose EXACTLY 100lbs to get to a normal BMI and I originally lost 120lbs which, to be honest, made me look haggard (ie older than my 42 years) - and was a size 8. ( I "bounced back in years 4 and 5)
Now, 8 years later, I maintain at 100% EWL (given wriggle room of +/- 5lbs) and am a happy size 10/12 - relatively slim for my height - I look pretty good for 50 next month (still wear a bikini) and feel GREAT!!! I am a very compliant eater (mainly clean and simple food - no shakes or bars) and exercise at least 5 x per week.
I was diagnosed type II diabetic last year, but that is well controlled with my diet and Metformin and I consider myself very healthy!
Now, 8 years later, I maintain at 100% EWL (given wriggle room of +/- 5lbs) and am a happy size 10/12 - relatively slim for my height - I look pretty good for 50 next month (still wear a bikini) and feel GREAT!!! I am a very compliant eater (mainly clean and simple food - no shakes or bars) and exercise at least 5 x per week.
I was diagnosed type II diabetic last year, but that is well controlled with my diet and Metformin and I consider myself very healthy!
Proud Feminist, Atheist, LGBT friend, and Democratic Socialist
I remember my surgeon saying the data shows his RNY patients long term keep off 75-77% of their excess weight. I went from a BMI of 53 to 21 so I consider myself as having lost 100% of my excess weight at almost 4 years out now.
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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