Help.. I am not able to lose the weight to have surgery.

I have pretty much done everything that Kaiser asks except for lose 10% of my case 45# and 75# ideally to get BMI under 60.  I have lost about 20pds since Mid July... with trying to change eating habits and just last week excercise.  I joined Weigh****chers 6 weeks ago and gained and lost each and every week.. about 10 pds... ughhh so frustrating... Should I try Alli???  I feel so helpless like I cant lose the weight to get the surgery...

You have lost 20 pounds and that isa good start.! Don't know if this will hel*****t,but I will tell what I have been doing...and I am steadily losing the weight that I need to lose before surgery.  First of all, I walk daily.  Started out walking a short,and I mean,short distance.  Each day I would add just a litle bit more.  That was 5 weeks ago.  Now I am walking between 1-1/2 miles daily and I am still increasing the distance.  Also, I have cut my portion sizes.  To help accomplish this,I quit using a dinner plate and now am just using a salad plate.  Can only eat what I put on the plate.  Most days, I don't even try to "pile it on",although I do some days. I am trying, at the suggestion of my dietician, trying to incorporate more fruits,veggies and fiber into my diet.  So far, it seems to be working.  I am not telling you that this is easy, but the weight is coming off and is definitely worth the extra effort.   I also find it extremely important to get all my fluids in daily.  Ideally, I am supposed to be drinking 64, but truthfully, I hover a little below that.  I keep working on that.   Hope it helps................you can do this................

Don't give up!!! 20lbs is GREAT!!! Adding the exercise is going to help sooo much but you have to give your body time....Brandon has some really GOOD ideas...try adding some weight training too.  YOU CAN DO THIS!!!! BIG HUGS... Deanna K P.S. I was a personal trainer before I moved here if you have any questions about an exercise routine I would be more than happy to try to help give you some ideas...

Amy: My PCP perscribed xenical to me when I 1st learned about surgery.  I lost approximately 150 lbs pre-op, I started out at 526 lbs and now I am down to 266, I am almost 13 months out.  When I 1st started taking xenical, my dr warned me about eating fat with the stuff, it will give you diahrhea.  And it did. 

Julie and Brenda and Kaiser are real sticklers about the 10% body weight.  I used to be scared to step on the scale, and I was allergic to exercise.  I now work out 3x a week with a personal trainer at LA Fitness.  Now, I feel guilty if I miss a day of workouts.  I also quit drinking soda pop, and quit going to fast food places, I have a small hamburger maybe once a month if at all.   Feel free to e-mail me anytime, [email protected] good luck, Peggy

That is so great... Do you remember what the dosage of xenical was? I just found out that Kaiser doesnt pay for the medication so should I just get it OTC instead?  THank Amy

Amy - you can do this!  You've gotten 20 lbs off already and that's GREAT!  Get some of the protein powder that you will most likely have to use after surgery.  Replace at least one of your meals with it.  It doesn't seem like a protein shake will be that satisfying, but it really is.  Pretend you've already had surgery and your stomach is small.  Go for a walk every day, even if it's only around the block.  Brandon has some great suggestions for you too.  Alli may help, but it does have nasty side effects from what I hear.  We're here to support you all the way. Linda

I can't add too much because I wasn't able to lose pre-op.  But I do want to say that if you're going to try Alli, check with Kaiser first.  They may have some silly rule that you need to lose weight on your own -- not with a prescription.  Then, if they approve, I'd go for the stronger Xenical.  I believe it is twice the strength of Alli and I took it either twice a day (breakfast and dinner) or with all three meals. It really is NASTY stuff, though.  And I only lost 10 pounds on it because I didn't eat a lot of fats as it was.  I ruined my chair at work as well as my seat in my car, too.  And you'll need to exercise by cleaning your toilet bowl often. As they say, you're left with a residue that resembles the top of a greasy pizza...  Doesn't look appealing. Anyway, if you're going to try anything, at least go with your biggest bang for your buck. But be prepared (I started to actually sit on a towel) and bring extra clothes everywhere you go. I like Brandon's suggestions.  You could try to replace one or two meals with protein shakes, too.  Or maybe Kaiser would allow you an optifast/medifast food plan to help lose the weight. Good luck and you've done great so far!  Don't beat yourself up over this.  If they want you to succeed, then they should help you get there! Lori

Amy, I know Kaiser can be pretty frustrating, but stick with it. One of the main things they are doing is seeing how dedicated you are.  At first I wasn't loosing much weight either. Are you still drinking soda (diet or regular)? If so stop drinking them and switch to water. It took a few days for my system to work out the caffeinne but now I don't miss it. I try to eat very small portions several times a day. For example at lunch I have a plain chicken breast with some vegetables. Another thing I like to have in between meals if I am really hungry is a protein bar. I like the pure protien chewy chocalate chip. It has 20 grams of protien, 0 fat and 1 gram of sugar.  The only other thing I can suggest is excersize, excersize, excersize. At first I was swimming and just kept pushing myself everyday to swim a little more. If you can't swim start with walking.  Do you go to any of the support groups that Kaiser has?  They are very helpful. I wish you luck and please let me know if I can answer any questions. I have been in the Kaiser program for 13 months now and am scheduled to have surgery on the 12th. Brenda