Measuring Weight Loss Progress after Weight Loss Surgery

Planning to lose weight is a lot like planning to save money for a major purchase. If you decide that you need to set aside $1,000, you probably don’t wait until you can put that money aside all in one go. Instead, you put aside a little bit at a time, paycheck by paycheck, until you reach your goal.

This is budgeting 101, and is something that everyone learns as they start to work and earn their own money. The same principles apply to working towards any other goals, including your weight loss goal. Weight loss surgery will put you on a path to lose a great deal of weight, but thinking about that total weight loss in one single increment is a lot all at once. Weight loss takes time, and the best way to manage that weight loss is to think of it just like you would when saving money. Work on losing a little bit at a time, and set up checkpoints along the way to ensure that you are making regular progress and staying on track towards your goal.

Measuring Progress towards your Weight Loss Goal

Weight loss surgery can help set you up for success and make it possible for you to overcome obstacles that have prevented you from reaching your weight loss goal in the past. But even when you make the decision to embark on a weight loss program like bariatric surgery, you still need to make sure that you are keeping yourself on track along the way.

Knowing the destination is a crucial component of any journey. After all, if you don’t know where you are going, you’ll never know if you get there or not. Setting a strong weight loss goal is a major component of setting off on a strong weight loss plan. But just setting the goal is only where the journey starts. Setting up milestones for yourself along the way can help assure that you are staying on track towards reaching your ultimate weight loss goal.

Here are a few ideas for setting checkpoints for yourself as you lose weight:

• Keep a weight loss journal and keep regular track of what you eat and how often you work out. Make weekly and monthly entries regarding your weight loss and progress.
• Instead of focusing entirely on your weight, focus as well on your fitness level. If you start working out and have difficulty walking a mile, track your progress over the course of a month or even longer, and see if you can improve your speed or distance as your physical fitness level improves.
• Schedule regular weigh-ins with an accountability partner. This could be a friend, a weight loss support group, or a spouse. If you don’t have anyone that will help you with accountability, talk to your weight loss surgeon about finding a weight loss support group in your area.

At the start of your weight loss program, your bariatric surgeon will work with you to set up a weight loss schedule that will help you progress towards your goals. Thinking about these goals regularly will help you stay focused and on track. Make sure that you are setting up weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly checkpoints so that you are staying on top and working towards ultimate weight loss success.