Weight Management Services

Weight Management Center: Lifestyle Change

Attitude

Goals and Expectations

When setting realistic and achievable weight loss goals, the UPMC Weight Management Center’s staff works one-on-one with each patient to assess individual goals and expectations. Setting sights on a quickly and easily achieved new body is unrealistic and can lead to disappointment, frustration and ultimately failure. To determine if weight loss goals are reasonable the following questions must be considered by each individual: 

    1.    How much weight do you expect to lose each
           week?
    2.    How soon do you expect to be thin?
    3.    Will your life be different when you are
            thinner?
    4.    Do you expect that losing weight will 
            be relatively easy and quick?

To ensure that goals and expectations are realistic, bariatric specialists at UPMC’s Weight Management Center use the following tools to guide each patient through the goal setting process:

1. Determine a realistic and healthy weight:

• consider suggested weights for adults
• calculate body mass index (BMI) using our BMI Calculator
• measure hip-to-waist ratio

2. Consult with your physician to determine if any
    pre-existing health conditions must be taken into
    consideration when developing a weight loss plan.

3. Compare weight loss goal to recommended target
    calorie levels. Keep in mind that a calorie
    reduction of 500 calories daily is required to lose,
    on average, one pound per week.

4. Diet is only part of the equation. To be successful, 
    activity levels must be increased.

Body Image

Accepting both your body’s positive and negative characteristics is vital to successful weight loss. Measuring ourselves by the unrealistic images that are portrayed in the media will only serve against our efforts to lose weight and improve health. The following strategies facilitate the development of a positive body image and realistic weight loss expectations:

• Look at yourself.
  Do not avoid reflections of yourself.  It is important to see ourselves realistically, this includes the good and the bad.
• Challenge the assumption that appearance equals self-esteem.
  Do not give physical appearance more power than it deserves.   
• Be realistic.
  Establish weight loss and body image goals that reflect realistic expectations based on personal history and genetics. 
• Your body is a gift.
  Your body allows you to do many things. Focusing on the virtues of the body can result in a less antagonistic relationship with yourself, ultimately facilitating long-term happiness.

For further reading about self-acceptance and weight loss, try a book available in most libraries: What Do I See When I Look in the Mirror? Helping Yourself to a Positive Body Image, by Thomas F. Cash (New York: Bantam), 1995

UPMC Patient Education Materials

• Diet and Nutrition
• Weight Management Tips - Exercise (PDF)

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