How did you go about setting your end goal? I have realised that because I have been overweight for so long I don't know where I want to ultimately end up as I don't know how it will look or feel. It is not something I have ever discussed with my surgeon either. Just wondered how others decided!

I set my own goal weight, my surgeon does not set them as a general rule, as many don't. I picked a weight at the very high end of "healthy" BMI, borderline "overweight" category. This also aligns to the 70% of excess weight loss average for WLS, based on my starting weight. Knowing that I have been obese my entire life, my goal is to just be as healthy as possible. If I could get to a weight that is in that range, that would be great! That being said, I know that even that weight is likely a stretch, so I'm focusing more on other metrics than the scale (lab results, how I'm feeling in my body, how I feel when I'm working out, etc.).

I picked a number I used to be in my 30's and that was also in the healthy category, but my surgeon chose one much higher still in the overweight category that was more achievable.

My practice hasn't had us pick one, but for my personal goal, I picked one that is on the low end of obese/high end of overweight as my "realistic/achievable goal" given my starting point. If I get there, I would have lost around 200 lbs, and by any measure that would be a major success and I'd be such a better place than I am now.

Having said that, once I get to that "achieveable goal" I intend to reassess and aim for lower. I probably will get a body comp assessment at that point to see what would make sense with my muscle mass, since I do like to weight train. My dream number is the top of my healthy range but I'm trying to take it one step at a time.

I picked two goals. One that was a weight I remembered feeling confident enough to go out and do things such as bowling league which was 180 and then 160 which is a few pounds below a “normal” BMI for me. I got to 180 fairly easily but now I am stuck at 169 and having a hard time losing. Still, even if I don’t get to 160 I feel the surgery was a success if I can maintain below 180. If I do start losing again at a steady rate I will shoot for 150 so I have a better cushion within the normal BMI range. So basically I suggest having a couple or even a few goals and adjusting as you get closer to each.

Edited January 20, 20224 yr by ShoppGirl

I picked a weight I got to over 10 years ago when I felt and looked really good. I'll be working towards that but not be too disappointed if my new set weight is above that. Hard to say this far out and honestly I licked my finger and held it up in the wind if I'm honest. I'll take anything lower than the BMI of over 40 where I started out - that's a win in my book! Good luck all on reaching your goal!

I picked a weight that had always been my lowest weight the many, many times I’d lost weight in the past. It put me at a BMI of 23. My surgeon thought it was an achievable goal & it was. I reached it by 6 months & then continued to lose as I tried to sort out my maintenance. Whatever weight you reach has to be one you can maintain without having to establish unsustainable limitations to your diet & how you want to live your life: happy & healthy.

All the best.

This makes me feel so much better about deciding where I want to end up - it's a moveable goal. I was sure that other surgeons discussed this in depth and felt like mine was missing a step but am happier now!

I picked a weight at the high end of a “normal weight” bmi for my height.
that number was 195. I have gone 10 pounds passed that at this point.
i adjusted my goal to be 165. Which means I have another 20 pounds to lose

My doc had a goal of 60% excess weight loss, which was 175 lbs.

I chose the mid-point of “normal” BMI range for my height: 120 lbs.

I ended up revising my goal and ceased weight loss efforts at 127 because I felt I was looking too gaunt when I reached that number.

Am 3+ years post op now and weighed 117.2 this morning.

My insignificant opinion is to set a reasonable goal weight and adjust as necessary given how you feel, how YOU think you look, and the efforts you are willing to put in.

Good Luck! ❤️

I got a DXA scan, assumed I would lose 5-10% of my muscle mass, and picked the weight based on wanting to be below 20% body fat. That end goal changes as my body comp changes, but I guessed 240 and I was exactly on target.