Hello, my name is Mme C. I am new to this forum, so please be kind. I am not aware if this has been discussed before. That being said...

At my pre- surgery Doctor assessment visit my Dr told me that the best he could predict in terms of weight loss would be 60 lbs. That doesn't even come close to what I would like to attain overall. I need to lose more than that to what I feel would make it worth my while. What do you all think? I have spinal and joint issues, as well as hip and shoulder bursitis. I realize those things may never go away, My hope is I only want to relieve some of my present suffering through MWL surgery. Thanks for listening.

It depends on what your goals are. To improve your health overall or become a supermodel. ? I don't know what your current size is, but 60 pounds is a good way toward a healthier life, less weight on your joints, and so forth. Ultimately only you can decide what's worth it for you. It's not a magic bullet, it's just a tool, not a solution.

Usually the doctors go by an equation that is 60-70% of your excess weight to get the amount that they predict (based on previous patients statistics) that you will lose. But the previous patients had some below and some above that percentage just as future patients will be. You could be one to ignore the plan and do your own thing so you don’t lose as much or stick to it 100% with higher chances to lose even more. I still never figured out what number they use as the starting weight for that formula so I really don’t know where I stand compared to that equation but I am almost to a normal BMI (the upper limits) and have seen many on here who reach the lower limits of their normal BMI which has to be a lot more than that equation would predict. Whether you lose all of your excess weight or not, most people see improvements in comorbidities just by getting out of the obese weight range so your surgery could still be successful in improving your health even if you don’t lose All of your weight. If you are like me, i couldn’t have lost 60 pounds and kept it off on any diet.

Edited February 6, 20224 yr by ShoppGirl

Bonjour Mme C.!

I'm certainly no expert at all this, but I wanted to echo some of the sentiments and comments shared above. When you think about it, 60 lbs is a good chunk of weight off of your body, and will alleviate some of the burden on your joints, hips, etc. Sometimes, in our desire to lose a lot of weight, we forget just how beneficial it is to lose even just 5 lbs. Ultimately, the decision will be yours to make. Personally, if my doctor would have told me, "you will lose approximately 60 lbs", I would still have underwent the surgery. I'm almost at 25 lbs lost right now, and I'm already feeling better. My plantar fasciitis is no longer acting up, so that pain went away....

I wish you best of luck, whatever your decision may be. ♥

most surgeons quote you the average amount that most people lose. With bypass, the average loss is 70% of your excess weight. With sleeve, average loss is 65% of your excess weight.

that being said, as with any average, that's all it is - an average. There are people who fall on either side of that average. We have people on here who have lost 100% of their excess weight, and others who have only lost 20 or 30 lbs. It comes down to how committed you are. I was very committed to my program - I almost never "cheated" until I hit maintenance - and I lost 100% of my excess weight. There are several others on here who have done the same. So it really depends on how committed you are and how hard you work at it. If you want to lose more than 60 lbs, you probably can.

8 hours ago, Mme C. said:

At my pre- surgery Doctor assessment visit my Dr told me that the best he could predict in terms of weight loss would be 60 lbs.

This is what my doc told me as well.

I don’t know how tall u are nor your starting weight, but 60 lbs was essentially 60% of my excess weight at the start of it all, which is the AVERAGE percentage excess weight loss statistic he was basing this on.

I ended up losing 120 lbs, so go figure ??‍♀️

How much you lose is pretty much up to you.

Good Luck! ❤️

Thank you all for the feedback. It makes sense that the Doctor would base his estimate on all the factors that would contribute to weight loss and a realistic goal at that. I’m just so psyched I hope this Covid business will settle down so those of us on a waiting list can get in for surgery.