to think that if a surgeon refuses to operate until you lose 21/2 stone than you should br offered some support with said weigt loss.

[northernsoul78]

So I need an operation. I am not a fool so know that losing weight makes sense before going under thr knife. So I asked my GP for help. They told me I didn't qualify for help as I don't get free prescriptions. This is a complete turnaround as the surgery used to offer nurse led clinics. It now does Slomming World referrals for people in receipt of free prescriptions.
so whilst waiting to see consultant I managed to lose maybe 10lbs.
I basically saw the Consultant who basically told me to come back in 4 months and they will book op if I have lost the best part of 21/2 stone.
Now I know this is a great incentive to lose weight but they are expecting me to lose more than the recommended 1 to 2lbs per week without support.
yet on the NHs podcast there is a woman on there with a lower BMiI than me who had no major health issues. She didn't want to pay out fow a slimming club so she went to GP and they referred her to dietician and prescribed Orlisat.
So it seems that support is there but not in my case. Obviously I am not asking for medication but I would have hoped they could offer something.
Realise I am probably being unreasonable but just fed up.

MrsJorah it's not a huge amount of weight to lose in 4 months, it works out at 2lb a week which is what you said was realistic

5:2 diet.

It actually saved me money.

You can get scales for a couple of quid from argos.

Sorry cheby thats awful. Fortunately I am not in pain but living with the fear that my condition could develop complications which would require emergency surgery. Ironically although I am exercising more I actually really have to watch what I do.

Yeah, sorry turn I took the figures from another post upthread at face value about 3lbs a week without doing the sums Although I think 2lbs every single week is optimistic from personal experience - I did once lose 2 stone in 4 months doing WW and that was when I was VERY highly motivated. But as you say, it's easier when you have loads to lose.

Actually I was told that calorie consumption is only affected by you lean weight and fat doesn't need calories so I don't expect it to come off fast and it hasn't so far.

Actually I was told that calorie consumption is only affected by you lean weight and fat doesn't need calories so I don't expect it to come off fast and it hasn't so far.

I don't understand this. Could you explain?

Sorry, I don't understand that either. Could you explain further?

This may be a bit obvious sorry, but have you tried myfitnesspal? It's totally free and nothing is banned, yet, if you follow it properly, it's guaranteed to work.

I don't get that either... sounds like an odd bit of naff science.

Fat deposits themselves do not require kcals as they are inert.

However the fat is weight that your muscles have to move, over and above the necessary bits of your body. Less fat deposit means your lean tissues (muscles) have less work to do and require less energy.

So reducing fat stores does affect weight loss.

I think you are being very unreasonable and entitled. Smoking cessation clinics only get you so far; at the end of the day you have to not buy cigarettes or accept them if offered by friends. It's the same with slimming classes; at some point you are simply going to have to stop shovelling food into your mouth and get out and walk. A lot.

Yes it's a sad fact of life that the smaller you are, the fewer calories you need.

I agree with a poster on another thread who said snacking was invented in the 1970s by the food companies. I reckon it's ruined many a person's daily diet (including mine).

Yabu, how much do people feel they are entitled to for free. Be grateful the operation is at least free.

A personal trainer told me this. Maybe I misunderstood.

Without wishing to be mean, PTs are often clueless as to physiology. Many of them get a few weeks training in a specific programme. They often do not have in depth knowledge of exercise physiology and so do have a tendency to marmalise perfectly good science

Eat less and move more. Excess weight makes surgery dangerous. You need to give this a go especially if the surgery is needed.

The NHS doesn't have the budget to offer lots of support. Lots of advice out there but being active is the key to a long life.

I am trying to lose weight too, so I sympathise mightily, especially as our scales are really inaccurate, and can show the same thing as weighing anything between 2.5lb and 1.8lb (a bag of flour - the same bag of flour, weighings within 5 minutes of each other!). So I don't bother weighing myself. i just assume that if I don't snack on biscuits/chocolate etc, and try to get on my dh's exercise bike every day for at least 5 mins, then eventually I will notice a difference.

I have ms and cannot walk more, or exercise much at all. I have only recently regained a modicum of control over my core muscles too; at least I can tell if I'm using them or not! Though today my pelvic muscles are absolute agony due to the bike!

Anyway, op, I have to have open heart surgery soonish. I am pretty sure they'd like me to be in better shape if I can be, for it.

So you and I can have a crap time together for a while

Losing weight is really hard for most people in our modern environment - if it was easy, there wouldn't be a diet industry.

i am sure it comes down to appetite control, but that is hard too. It is about more than just avoiding the fridge, despite what a lot of non-fat people think.
It has to do with leptin and ghrelin production and is incredibly complicated. It also has something to do with gut architecture and these processes are poorly understood. It may be that vaccinations, water quality, antibiotics and other things are all disrupting our endocrine systems at a population level, and having some sort of epigenetic effect. We don't really know. But fat-bashing is unhelpful in the circumstances.

i think the NHS could do a lot more to research appetite control and support motivated dieters in the face of all this. I am not sure slimming clubs are the answer, but I have a feeling structured programmes similar to chronic pain management programmes are going to be the way forward - three weeks with multi-disciplinary support, plus follow-ups. We are very unimaginative in our approaches to weight management.

YABU. And I'd ask for a second opinion/transfer of care. Stop comparing with other people and take the bull by the horns with regard to managing your own health and care.

'If you were asking for help with stopping smoking or taking drugs you would get a totally different response.'

On here? Hahaha.

It sounds daunting but if you can lose weight the surgery will be much safer. Is there another GP at your practice who might be more sympathetic and offer more help.

Please don't listen to personal trainers about anything remotely science-based!

Actually I was told that calorie consumption is only affected by you lean weight and fat doesn't need calories

I thnk I know what the PT was getting at northernsoul78
lean tissue is metabolically more active than adipose tissue so (for any given weight) your daily energy consumption goes up as the percentage of muscle that you have goes up.

However, for weight bearing exercise such as walking, jogging the heavier your body the more calories you burn in order to move it from a-b, irrespective of body composition.

Does my explanation makes sense?

good luck with your weight loss OP there are several support threads on here for exercise and dieting so hopefully you should be able to find some support on MN :)

OP YANBU to ask for support. You are admitting you need some help with this.

Losing weight is hard esp with pre existing conditions.

Takes the piss people cannot see that.

Do you have a smartphone? I fully recommend trying apps like my fitness pal www.myfitnesspal.com/ to track your food intake and it will help you see where you need to improve with a handy chart to show you how much of carbs/fat/protein etc you are eating.

change4life has an app too with ways to get fit. I know the couch to 5k app (the first few weeks at least) will help you get well on your way to getting fitter www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/couch-to-5k.aspx (link is on the page)

Other things you could do for support- FB support groups are worth looking into just be wary of any that offer quick fixes, juice diets, extreme dieting and/or exercise regimes.

here the local council has set up a gym V cheap sessions with a nurse to run and monitor progress. Call up your local council and see if they run a similar scheme.

Also, I agree with the last post by BoffinMum