Fast weight loss for hernia surgery

BARBnKS

Saw the surgeon today to discuss abdominal hernia repair surgery & he said I have to lose a great deal of weight before he will perform the surgery because it would be easier on me & less risky. I'm 280 after a 10 lb. loss this month and at this pace it sounds like it could take a year to lose at least 80-100 lbs. in order to have this surgery. A previous surgeon told me the same thing & wanted to do weight loss surgery to get me down to a safer weight for the hernia surgery but I am reluctant to go that direction. Because of knee osteoartheritis & back pain and the hernia exercise is very limited so my dilemma is how to lose the weight fast so I can have the hernia surgery without weight loss surgery. I am eating 1400 calories a day now & thinking of reducing my calorie goal to 1000 per day but will this be safe? I hear so much talk about starvation mode with low calorie intake. Wiith weight loss surgery I think the calorie intake would be much lower so what keeps these people who have weight loss surgery from going into starvation mode?

stormsusmc

Honestly, in your situation I would seek out a nutritionist and a personal trainer. That coupled with eating clean, no sugar, only good fats etc will help. Drinking more tea, and water.

TeeNico1191

I agree with Storm. Pls seek professional assistance!!!
If you restrict your diet too much, you are putting yourself at risk. I was looking to loss weight fast however, during my research found it to be risky and it creates adverse results. Plus, I came to the realization that I did not gain the weight fast, or overnight, so how can I expect to loss it fast!! One of my favorite is Ann Louise Gittleman, Ph.D C.N.S. I have experienced her guidance through her books and have seen the best results in my weight mgmt and overall health even better that when a Master Fitness Training in the US Army!!! . Gittleman nutrition regime is for health and WEIGHT Loss is and added result! i recently pulled out how books! Google her and you find her easily. Now my battle is that I don't like cooking!!! lol learning to get over that tho. for financial reasons and for greater health. Make sure you'll eating breakfast and getting physical at rise!!!!

BARBnKS

Thanks Storm! It would be interesting to hear from someone who has been in this same situation & to know what they did. I would not know where to start looking for a nutritionist & trainer, I bet that is costly You are right about drinking more tea & water, I do need to do that.

stormsusmc

Just google nutritionists in whatever city you live in..find one who has reviews...go to your local section on here and see if someone has advice...for now, stay eating as lean as possible, veggies, water, tea...what type of movements can you do?

vanillarama

Can you do aqua exercise?

vanillarama

Have to agree with storm though- yeah, there will be a cost, but think of it as a long term investment that will definitely benefit you

BARBnKS

When I asked my family dr. a couple years ago for a dietition he sent me to a weight loss program which required me to drink only shakes everyday. That was a waste of several hundred dollars with the same results I am getting now just logging my food on MFP, it was a loss of only 12 lbs. which I quickly gained back after I quit. I do love the water exercises & would love to take a water class again. Haven't been able to find a swimsuit to fit & then it has to be altered to work with my breast prosthesis. Hopefully I will find something that will work soon.

TeeNico1191

Ann Louise Gittleman, Ph.D C.N.S. Fatflush

econut2000

If the surgeon is recommending weight loss, he should be able to refer you to a NUTRITIONIST. Many health plans cover the cost of seeing a nutritionist. Check out what your health plan covers and make sure the doctor gives you the name of a licensed nutritionist not a weight loss scheme.

Good luck!! :flowerforyou:

butterfly_wishes

Hi,

I am currently trying to lose weight as we are under the fertility specialist and at the moment it looks likely we may have to consider IVF.

I need to lose 112lbs to enable me to be eligible for IVF - In just over seven weeks I have lost 21lbs so I have 91lbs left to go....
I have done this on my own at home, with the support of my husband, by eating only healthy meats and fish and sticking very strictly to what I eat. I do an exercise workout dvd at home and cycle about three times a week and have increased my water and fruit tea intake.

I have been referred to see a dietician and my appointment is in November but most of the time now I feel like I don't need to be told what to eat, because really I know, I just chose to never be sensible.

I think my biggest tip though would just be to add lots of flavours to your main meals. I have been using the BBC Good Food website for all of our main meals, because you can sort by calorie content etc, and myself and my husband both agree that we have actually been eating much nicer meals since we started dieting, so much so that a lot of the time now I don't actually even feel like I am dieting. This is the start of our eighth week of healthy eating so it has taken a very short time to feel differently about it.....

I think there is something in that word 'dieting' which makes people think that the food can't be nice, I know this has definitely been the case for me in the past, but this time I have really planned ahead with our main meals and chosen recipes which have lots of different flavours, and I honestly feel like I have started to retrain my brain in regards to the way it thinks about food

Good Luck

nsblue

On Feb 25th 2011 I seen my surgeon for a hernia repair I had...(my gut was fully outside my abdominal wall) I was 430 at that time.(i had lost 170lbs doing no exercise and eating 1500 cal diabetic diet in a 17 month time frame previous to seeing him.) He said he was putting me into their Weight Loss Program.. I was to lose 30 pounds and he would do WLS to get me down to 250 to do the repair...I am 5'10". Determined I went home, followed their program...which is basically 1200 cal and cutting and fine tuning carbs etc, a few weeks trial of liquids to prepare for surgery, working on behaviours and exercising at least 1/2 hour a day. I did it all....and pushed my exercising to alot of walking, swimming, dancing, weight lifting etc. By Dec 6th I was 238lbs... I was seen by a dietitian...and doc...with blood work etc ...everything was done proper....and am healthy as a horse..and my hernia is repaired.
So yes YOU CAN lose it for that surgery... best of luck on your journey...and hernia repair.

n oh yes, I still went ahead and had the "sleeve".... and my calories went from 600-1200 during different times of weight loss...and I didn't ruin my metabolism and didn't go into starvation mode. DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO with the consultation and support of your doc,,, HEALTH IS WEALTH

Having bad knees can slow you down... just take small steps....get your heart rate up sitting in your chair or standing..move them arms to music..get that cardio up and watch what you eat...the weight will come off.....

BARBnKS

Just an update to anyone who replied to my earlier post. I am still around, luckily although I had a big scare almost 2 yrs ago. Because I never had the hernia repair I had a bowel strangulation as a result & had to have an emergency surgery to repair the bowel & hernia. a large mess was put in place & it was done without making a large incision & although I did not have a huge incision it took over a year to finally start moving again. Never knew why & dr. could not tell me why I had such terrible back spasms & I still have to be careful not to make quick movements or lift anything heavy. My weight loss is still slow but have finally taken a step forward & doing an arthritis water class.

ShashayLee

great to hear & welcome back. Nothing wrong with a slow weight loss Good to hear about the water class. Becoming more active starts with one small step. All the best to you

HippySkoppy

Welcome back.

Sorry to hear of your extra health problems. At least now you can focus on losing your weight without the added pressure of meeting the hernia repair deadline.

I started out at a similar weight to you at 278 lbs....I started out without the advantage of knowing and using the resources here at MFP. I encourage you to be persistent and committed to changing your life for the better. Slow weight loss is better than none at all.

Be patient too....know that weight loss is never linear. Some weeks you may lose nothing others you stall and then other times there is quite a drop in weight. Set yourself reasonable attainable goals, eat the foods you like in moderation and keep well hydrated.

Great to see that you are getting in some exercise, although it isn't necessary for weight loss it IS great for your overall health and getting some happy hormones going so that you feel better about the whole 'journey' that you are on.

I wish you all the best and can't wait to see more posts from you as you continue to strive for your goals.

middlehaitch

^^^^^^^^+1
Well said @HippySkoppy

@BARBnKS keep up the good work. Aqua fit is one of my favourite exercises, I hope it helps with your back spasms.

Cheers, h.