Sometimes you might be planning on plastic surgery or cosmetic procedure, only to discover that you will need to adjust your weight before you can have surgery. How to lose weight before plastic surgery? Losing weight can even be required before having Bariatric Surgery or Liposuction.
Why is that? If you are too far over your ideal weight before any form of body surgery or bordering on obesity, you won’t tend to get a great result. Surgery also carries higher risks if you’re not at a healthy weight yet. Additionally, Bariatric Surgeries such as gastric sleeve or gastric band procedures can help you lose a lot of your excess weight, but not all. So you’ll need to try to lose weight yourself beforehand. You’ll also need to reach a stable, readily maintainable weight before scheduling additional surgery such as body lift and body contouring.
If you want to become a Surgical Candidate with the best chances of good surgical outcomes – and minimal surgical risks – you’ll need to take some personal steps to release those excess kilos.
Read below for tips to help lose some of the excess weight. And you may find that you’ll do better if you get a Support Team behind your efforts. This can include motivational family members or friends, a caring GP, a Nutritionist, a Psychologist, and other coaches who can help you stay on track with making major lifestyle changes.
6 Tips from a nutritionist. Non-surgical weight-loss techniques to lose the last stubborn 10 kilos.
1. Get more sleep
Most of us need at least 8-10 hours of sleep every night. Research has shown that sleep helps to burn more calories and that when we lack sleep, we often eat more and have a slower metabolism. The combination means we often gain weight (or stop losing weight).
When you sleep, your fat-loss metabolism is improved, and your appetite or hunger seems more easily regulated. On the contrary, when you do not get enough sleep, your body produces hormones that leave you feeling hungrier more often. When you wake up sleep-deprived, not only does your fat loss decrease, but you also feel hungry. Less sleep is a complete no-no when you’re trying to get healthy, control your portions, and lose weight. And if sleep apnea is a problem for you, it might be part of why you’re obese! Get tested to see if you are getting quality rest that leaves you more able to control your appetite.
2. Eat healthy whenever you’re hungry
Whenever you’re hungry, always aim to eat something nutritious and healthy. Try a combination of healthy fats, vegetables, and a protein source (fish, meat, or non-meat-based protein options). Not only will this balance help to satisfy your hunger, but it will also make you feel fuller for longer periods.
3. No liquid calories
You have to cut down all your liquid calories. Say goodbye to all your aerated drinks, soft drinks, mixers, and alcoholic drinks so you don’t get unnecessary calories. Try swapping to plain water whenever you can – or try healthy liquid alternatives such as coconut water, fresh fruit juice, and herbal teas like green tea or peppermint tea. Be sure whatever you are drinking isn’t laden with hidden added sugar. Avoid most pre-packaged juices (laden with sugar or preservatives) and smoothies made with milk-based products often have extra calories you’re not counting on.
4. Do not stop exercising
Just because you’re not shedding any weight, do not stop your regular exercise. Exercise helps you to stay fit and prevents you from gaining the weight that you have lost with so much effort. At the same time, it is very important not to overdo the workout. When you feel that the weight is not being lost, you need not work out more strenuously in order to make it happen. Just continue with your regular workout regime. If you exercise more than you should, your body will be fatigued and it can also lead to muscle weakness. If this happens, you might be tempted to eat something which is not good for your health.
5. Eat healthy snacks
When people are able to lose the initial few kilos, they think that they have earned themselves the right to indulge in some sugary snacks, fried foods, or desserts. The way around this is only to eat healthy snacks, such as nuts, fruit, dried fruit, porridge, or salads.
6. Don’t be disheartened
Don’t lose heart if your weight loss suddenly slows down – or seems to stop – at a particular number on the scale. Losing your first 10 kilos or more is usually much easier than you first thought because making changes can make a major difference. But then it can become challenging. In spite of all your efforts, if the weight doesn’t seem to budge for you, still keep going. Mix up your exercising, find a new distraction, and start paying attention to what foods seem to stall your weight loss and which ones help.
Remember, also, that even small lifestyle changes towards healthier eating and portion control and regular exercises (such as walking and counting steps) can have a cumulative effect over time. So don’t despair if it’s slower than you wished it would be.
Just follow our advice and foster as much patience and persistence as possible. Give yourself credit for how far you’ve already come in your weight change journey. Get good sleep and drink a lot of water to stay well hydrated.
That’ll be the key to losing those last stubborn 10 kilos!
Do you need to be at an ideal weight (or goal weight) before proceeding with your surgery?
If you are planning on plastic surgery after losing weight – either on your own or through the help of Bariatric Surgery – you will likely need to plan your surgical journey to be adequately prepared. Body Contouring can take several years and require several different procedures, some of which can be combined and others that may best be done independently (such as an Arm Lift procedure). Dr Craig Rubinstein can help you create a custom body-shaping surgical plan to address sagging and redundant skin after weight changes.
But it still helps to have realistic expectations of what surgery can – and cannot – do for your body. That often means you’ll need to get your body more fit and healthy before you can consider further surgery to reduce stubborn fat or redundant skin folds.
Who needs to lose weight before surgery?
- Obese people are at a higher risk of suffering from heart and lung diseases, as well as skin diseases and other chronic conditions.
- This includes joint pain and reduced mobility due to being dangerously overweight.
If you have been obese or are significantly over a healthy Body Mass Index (BMI), you will have a lot of accumulated fat. Being overweight (or obese) leaves you prone to developing Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, osteoarthritis, obstructive sleep apnea, and gastrointestinal problems. It even puts you at higher risk for various types of cancers.
Related: Learn about body lift surgery after massive weight loss
How does a person become obese?
- Obesity is usually but not always – and often not solely – caused by consumption of excess food or under-expenditure of calories.
- It may also relate to genetic traits and metabolic dysfunction, chromosomal disorders, sedentary lifestyles, emotional problems, hormonal problems, certain medication effects, or a long-term lack of regular exercise.
Sadly, it is much easier to gain weight than to lose it!
Sit-down jobs do not assist us in our goals to lose weight and also leave us at higher risk of weight gain and unhealthy eating patterns.
Why is it difficult to lose the last stubborn 10 kilos?
Diet – rather, your nutritional intake – along with regular exercising – can help you to lose weight somewhat easily when you start using reasonable meal portions, drink plenty of water, and cut back on foods that are laden with calories but little actual nutrition.
If you begin to exercise regularly and start eating healthily, reasonable portion sizes, stay hydrated and cut out soft drinks, you’ll likely find you’ll reduce your weight significantly and somewhat readily.
What about those last 10 kilos to lose weight before surgery? Why are they so difficult to shift?
When it gets down to the last 10 kilos, however, it often becomes very difficult to get them off to reach your desired weight and body shape. The actual number on the scale is less important than having a healthy BMI and a good muscle-to-fat ratio, but it’s all related.
If you’re tracking your weight changes in kilos, it seems the first 10 kilos tend to come off somewhat fast, and every subsequent 10 kilos takes a bit longer. Every stage slows down a bit with time. Then the last 10 kilos seem to be stubbornly resistant to your efforts!
This is often the case even if you use gastric sleeve or gastric band surgery and other measures that limit your intake of food. For most of us, the last stubborn kilos are the hardest to shift. But the good news is, they’re not impossible to shift. It may just take a bit more patience and dedication over time. Some of us may need body lift surgery to remove redundant skin and fat from certain areas of our bodies after significant weight loss.
Since any surgery that a person undergoes can have a number of complications as well as long periods of downtime, many people opt for non-surgical weight loss techniques. And even patients who use Bariatric Surgery to treat obesity still need to manage weight loss by major lifestyle changes before and after surgery.
