A common complaint among sleeved patients, especially early post-op, is, "I'm not losing fast enough!"
In almost all instances, the truth is that you're losing just fine. Really. I'm not kidding.
People who lose fast, like a few patients do, are usually heavyweights to begin with, men (who have more muscle tissue), and younger people (who may be more active and have a higher metabolism).
I was not a fast loser. Today is my 16-month surgiversary, so I just ran all my monthly weight loss numbers, and they look like this:
Pre-op losses:
On my own 2-month diet I lost 11 pounds.
On my surgeon's 2-week diet I lost 8 pounds.
Post-op losses:
Months 1-4 - averaged 10.5 pounds/month
Months 5-8 - averaged 5.6 pounds/month
Months 9-12 - averaged 2.2 pounds/month
Months 13-16 - averaged 1.5 pounds/month
My take on all this is that the measure of our long-term success has nothing whatsoever to do with how fast we lose, but whether we create a new, healthier lifestyle post-op and consistently live that lifestyle. The weight loss phases are when we start to build those new lifestyles.
I've now lost 98.2 pounds and think, finally, this is surely the end of my weight loss. My 2016 goals are to add more muscle mass, to continue to increase my walking distance, speed and endurance, and to enjoy again the hiking / trekking life I had decades ago.
We can all reach our goals. But right now, it looks to me like this journey never ends. I cannot see a finish line.
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