Lifestyle Change To Lose Weight vs Surgery To Lose Weight
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I had gastric sleeve nearly 3 years ago. Best decision I ever made strictly for my health. You still have to use tools like MFP to get the job done healthily. There are no easy fixes. Every option on the table can be sabotaged. It's a long and sometimes very difficult road, but worth every minute when you're waking up feeling well and fueling your body rather than punishing it.2
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Let me start off by stressing this is not a shot at those that have chosen surgery as an option.
Every time I've seen/heard/read anything about surgical weight loss I've heard the same thing. Firstly "I had to lose X amount of weight before the surgery" and secondly "You still need completely change your eating habits and rigorously manage your calorie consumption after the surgery" and this is what has me confused.
If you need successfully lose weight to get the surgery and even after the surgery you need to actively manage your weight anyway. Then why not just continue doing what you were doing prior to the surgery that was seeing you successfully lose weight and employ the same habit changes and calorie consumption management that would be required post surgery without the surgery?
Again, this is not a shot or a go at people who've had surgery. It just seems so illogical to me to undergo a procedure when a) you're already successfully losing weight and b) you'll need to do all the things to continue/maintain your weight loss anyway. Why not just skip the procedure?
I'm obviously missing something so I thought I'd ask.14 -
Let me start off by stressing this is not a shot at those that have chosen surgery as an option.
Every time I've seen/heard/read anything about surgical weight loss I've heard the same thing. Firstly "I had to lose X amount of weight before the surgery" and secondly "You still need completely change your eating habits and rigorously manage your calorie consumption after the surgery" and this is what has me confused.
If you need successfully lose weight to get the surgery and even after the surgery you need to actively manage your weight anyway. Then why not just continue doing what you were doing prior to the surgery that was seeing you successfully lose weight and employ the same habit changes and calorie consumption management that would be required post surgery without the surgery?
Again, this is not a shot or a go at people who've had surgery. It just seems so illogical to me to undergo a procedure when a) you're already successfully losing weight and b) you'll need to do all the things to continue/maintain your weight loss anyway. Why not just skip the procedure?
I'm obviously missing something so I thought I'd ask.
My understanding from the cinematic masterpiece My 600 Lb Life is that surgery is supposed to be for people who need to drop a lot of weight quickly to avoid major health complications. On the show the surgeon gives his patients low calorie goals that they could not sustain without surgery but then they can drop like a pound a day for a while. Obviously most people are not that extreme but I think it's the same idea, it's supposed to help with compliance to get someone out of the 'danger' zone fast.
I also agree that for the vast majority of people, this approach does not make any sense.1 -
I would choose lifestyle over surgery for ANY condition for which a life style change would bring desired results. Surgery is fraught with risk and possible complication and the benefits need to substantially outweigh the risks. Even minor surgical procedures have been complicated for me (8 weeks of dealing with cellulitis one time, 4 days in the hospital following hemorrhage another time), which is the context for my opinion.
That's my philosophy as well.1 -
singingflutelady wrote: »Based on all your previous threads under many user names you are not ready for surgery
This.4 -
The same weight loss principle applies either way. Eating fewer calories than you burn = weight loss. The only difference between the two is that the surgery renders you physically incapable of taking in more than very few calories at a time. Honestly, I'd say it's much more of s "lifestyle change" than losing weight the regular way.3
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Let me start off by stressing this is not a shot at those that have chosen surgery as an option.
Every time I've seen/heard/read anything about surgical weight loss I've heard the same thing. Firstly "I had to lose X amount of weight before the surgery" and secondly "You still need completely change your eating habits and rigorously manage your calorie consumption after the surgery" and this is what has me confused.
If you need successfully lose weight to get the surgery and even after the surgery you need to actively manage your weight anyway. Then why not just continue doing what you were doing prior to the surgery that was seeing you successfully lose weight and employ the same habit changes and calorie consumption management that would be required post surgery without the surgery?
Again, this is not a shot or a go at people who've had surgery. It just seems so illogical to me to undergo a procedure when a) you're already successfully losing weight and b) you'll need to do all the things to continue/maintain your weight loss anyway. Why not just skip the procedure?
I'm obviously missing something so I thought I'd ask.
I am still pre-surgery, posted earlier in the thread...
One of the things about the requirement to lose weight and modify behaviors is to show that I can actually do it for post surgical compliance - for my own success. I changed my eating habits six months before surgery was on the table and I lost about 18lbs but I tend to stick at this weight, since I have fluctuated around this weight for a couple of decades. My doctor didn't ask me to lose weight but they were pleasantly surprised that I did.
Short term success of losing weight prior to surgery (i.e. the old fashioned way) does not always reflect long term significant success since most people considering surgery have had continued problems with losing and keeping weight off. Most doctors don't ask surgery patients to lose 50+lbs before surgery (unless their weight is too high for surgery), and in those cases they need to lose so much more weight that 50lbs is barely a drop in the bucket.
Surgery is mostly like a "reset" button - yes, a person will lose significant weight immediately after surgery and that gives them a chance to start over with managing their weight/food/exercise with the changes that they have started implementing before surgery. If they go back to their old ways, then they blew their shot.
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I did surgery (lapband) and it didn't make a bit of difference. I finally had to have it removed. There are lots of side effects from surgery and it isn't magic. As others have said you must change your lifestyle either way. I came here and lost the weight after my lapband was removed just by eating less and moving more. I have maintained for a year (over 100 lbs. lost). Surgery is nothing more than a tool. I'm not sure which surgery you are looking at but I would do some research on those who lost with it and whether they maintained the loss. Some do but some don't. It's a drastic step and I totally understand but you need to be honest with yourself about what it entails and what you will need to change to make it work. I think there's a board on here somewhere with folks who have had the surgery and they could likely tell you more.7
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Let me start off by stressing this is not a shot at those that have chosen surgery as an option.
Every time I've seen/heard/read anything about surgical weight loss I've heard the same thing. Firstly "I had to lose X amount of weight before the surgery" and secondly "You still need completely change your eating habits and rigorously manage your calorie consumption after the surgery" and this is what has me confused.
If you need successfully lose weight to get the surgery and even after the surgery you need to actively manage your weight anyway. Then why not just continue doing what you were doing prior to the surgery that was seeing you successfully lose weight and employ the same habit changes and calorie consumption management that would be required post surgery without the surgery?
Again, this is not a shot or a go at people who've had surgery. It just seems so illogical to me to undergo a procedure when a) you're already successfully losing weight and b) you'll need to do all the things to continue/maintain your weight loss anyway. Why not just skip the procedure?
I'm obviously missing something so I thought I'd ask.
The weight loss required pre-surgery is a result of the liquids-only pre-op diet. That diet is meant to empty your stomach completely, food and stomach acid; and to shrink your liver. The liver is one of the largest organs in your body, and it rests "on top" of your stomach (when you're lying down) so it would be in the way of the surgeon, making it much harder to do.
Also, another reason you can't "just continue" the pre-op diet is because it's inherantly unhealthy. It doesn't provide all the nutrients and vitamins you need, it's a very short-term diet for medical purposes, not something you can live on.
Your second point that "well, you would have to change your diet anyway", that's exactly the point! You have to change your diet to get accustomed to the physical changes in your body after surgery. You go from having a stomach the size of a small melon, to one the size of a small banana. (If you got the sleeve, a bypass ignores the stomach all together, food never enters the stomach) You physically cannot eat more than a couple of ounces at a sitting.
Source: I had the sleeve 4 months ago
Unrelated to the above, but if anyone who's had surgery, or is planning on it want to chat, send me a friend request, I'm happy to chat, share recipes, and etc.1 -
I had gastric sleeve surgery 5 years ago. I chose to do it because I was pushing 400 lbs and my situation was not good. I chose to do it because I felt it would get me out of danger faster than I could do it on my own, and it did. I am healthier than I have ever been. That said, no, it isn't easy. There is really NO easy way to lose and maintain a large amount of weight, surgery or not. It takes hard work and commitment and sometimes it's freaking exhausting, but I have no regrets and I would do it again in a heartbeat. I have a quality of life that I never imagined I would have and I feel amazing. I was very lucky that I had no complications, and I recovered quickly. I also followed my surgeon's instructions which is critical. I have found that people who have more complications and less success generally don't follow instructions.5
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