Question:
I DO NOT WANT to lose weight too fast. Can I slow it down?

Scheduled for Rny ByPass July 7th, 2009. I DO NOT want to lose weight too fast. I only want to lose a total of about 50 pounds anyway. Is there anything "safe" and "healthy" I can do to slow down the weight loss after my surgery so I can maybe avoid the "saggy skin" problem? Thanks!    — Dazed-n-Confused (posted on May 8, 2009)

May 8, 2009
Hi there..I'm really not trying to knock your decision to have surgery, but if you only have about 50 lbs to lose, is there any reason you are not doing the lap band? With the RNY you will lose much faster than you typically would with the band. In the beginning there really won't be any way for you to slow your weight loss down because you can't eat hardly anything..As far as the saggy skin goes, everyone is very different and since you don't have a lot to lose, you might be okay. I had over 200 lbs to lose and I thought I'd be okay with my skin cause I'm still fairly young, but that didn't make a difference! ;-) Anyhow, I wish you good luck on your journey and hope that you don't have saggy skin!
   — Brandy H.

May 9, 2009
I'm just going to be totally honest with my feelings here because I read some of your concerns on your profile...First of all, I do not know how you got approved for RNY surgery with much less than 100 lbs to lose...You do realise that 100 lbs is the average weight loss after a year for most RNYers? With only 50 lbs to lose, I cannot imagine going thru all the risks and long term tradeoffs of tedious vitamin schedules and labs, and possible complications, etc! Unless your health is seriously at risk, I can't even imagine having WLS at your lighter weight than most WLS patients.... The lifestyle changes needed to maintain RNY weight loss along with exercise is probably all you need with NO SURGERY AT ALL! I wouldn't even consider lapband with only 50 lbs to lose...You look great now...and having surgery will only force you to start making changes that you can do without altering your anatomy...I'm not one to talk someone out of surgery...or promote it either for the most part because it's a very personal decision similar to picking a mate! LOL I wouldn't tell someone who I think they should marry either!LOL...I know what it is to suffer from obesity on so many different levels of humility and health problems...vanity included...But you have a chance of just changing your lifestyle by eating healthy and exercising WITHOUT surgery...By all means you do what is in your heart...but you cannot slow down the weight loss until the year is up and only your body will determine if that is even possible with the little weight you have to lose and the HUGE restriction and malabsorption that happens completely out of your control! Good luck! And may you be blessed with whatever YOU decide!
   — .Anita R.

May 9, 2009
We all wish you the very best, but given the information on your blog I also would revisit whether you need WLS and especially RNY. I had RNY and yes I am ecstatic for the changes and the wt loss but if I could have had the band or been able to be succesful at dieting, I would have not gone through with something so extensive. It almost sounds like you need a second opinion - please look at ALL you options before you have RNY. Only the best wishes for you!
   — AuntPamcakes4six

May 9, 2009
You know, I felt the same way when I started my journey. According to the scales and insurance, I could lose 130 lbs to be the ideal weight. However for me, I wanted to only lose about 80 or 90 lbs and be that size "I" wanted to be. I think this move mentally helped me sabatoge my efforts because I tried so hard to be able to eat a bit more than they said we should be able to eat. I did the surgery in 2004 and in the end, I only lost 60 lbs in all and have already put back on 30 lbs of them. So I went through the intense surgery of RNY for only a net of 30 lbs. So as the other posts mentioned, you may want to rethink this seriously if you only want to lose 50 lbs. On the other hand, I have a friend who did lose over 100 lbs, more like 160 lbs lost. And she wore herself out with exercise. She does not have a lot of hanging skin as a result of it. She has some sag on her stomach but she doesn't jiggle and some regular support pantyhose keeps the stomach looking smooth. Her arms aren't bad either. If she lifts her arm, you see some looseness, but no sagging. She does't have those wings. She just looks a bit soft. But when her arms are down, you don't notice anything. Wishing you the best!
   — poodie

May 11, 2009
If you have surgery you will lose weight fast. If you excersize, do the weights adn cardio you can avoid hanging skin if you have only a small amount to lose. You need to decide if it is worth it for you. It will be a big change in how and when you eat.
   — trible