How personalized, realistic goals can help with weight loss after bariatric surgery
All of us seek weight loss help for different reasons. Whether we hope to look better, feel better or get more active, our weight loss goals lie at the heart of our healthy efforts, giving us a target to set our sights on as we stay dedicated and focused after bariatric surgery.
When you first met with Dr. Bass in Naples or Ft. Myers, you most likely discussed an eventual goal weight, a seemingly far-off number that you’d like the scale to show in one to two years after surgery. This goal is important, but it is not the only one you’ll need in your journey. To keep yourself motivated and ready for anything as you work towards that final goal, you’ll need incremental goals as well. These are smaller steps that lead you to the heights of weight loss success.
Remember: losing weight is about a lot more than just losing weight. As you make your lifestyle healthier every day, you can bolster your progress by congratulating yourself for accomplishments beyond your body weight. After all, following the scale’s minor changes every week can get exhausting, but setting your own goals is easy and exceptionally valuable to your progress. Here’s how to get started.
Be SMART.
You don’t have to be Einstein to create your own goals, but they should be SMART:
- Specific. If your goal is vague, how will you know when you’ve achieved it? Make sure you know exactly what reaching your goal will entail. Instead of “I will work out more,” try something like “I will take a 30-minute walk four times this week.”
- Measurable. Tracking your progress is important; this will help you keep an eye on how close you’re getting to making a goal a reality. It will also help you adjust your approach when you fall short. Be sure you can measure everything and record details as you go—how many reps will you do, how many minutes will you walk, how many grams of fat will be in the healthy meals you cook?
- Attainable. Sure, we’d all like to lose 30 pounds a week or become marathoners in a weekend, but these goals just aren’t realistic. Though you’re welcome to aim high with your weight loss goals, you don’t want to aim too high—working towards a goal you’ll never reach will only result in frustration.
- Relevant. Your goals don’t have to be related to your weight, but they should be relevant to your own healthy journey. Are you most interested in losing weight to pursue exciting new activities? Focus your goals around that aim. Is your biggest hope to become a healthy chef at home? Make your goals reflect it.
- Time-constrained. Your goals should always have a deadline. If you don’t reach your goal in the time you’ve allowed, you can allot more time to try again, but giving yourself too long can cause you to pursue a goal indefinitely.
After bariatric surgery, personalized goals can be a big help with weight loss. Try setting up your own individual objectives with these tips and share your favorites in the comments below. We’d love to hear about the healthy goals you’re working towards!