Weight loss

[Kt4920]

My Dad is struggling to lose weight in order to get a transplant. Does anyone have any success stories related to weight loss?

[ksaab31]

I’m in the same situation. Went through transplant evaluation and told to lose weight to become active. I’m halfway to my weight loss goal in about 5 months. See a nutritionist. Use a fitness app to track calories, nutrition and activity. I use MyFitnessPal. Exercise to whatever level he’s able. Keeping the food diary is eye opening and motivational.

[Kt4920]

Congrats! Do you mind sharing details of your workout plan and how often? I've been thinking about a personal trainer for him. Also, do you create your own meal plan or does the dietician lay it out for you?

Thanks so much for your response, appreciate it so much!

[ksaab31 in reply to Kt4920]

The dietician spelled out my daily limits. Total calories, carbs, sugars..etc. I plugged that into the app and I tell it what I eat. It tracks my intake each day and I can adjust as needed. Has a great scan feature for barcodes as well. Of course, the choices of food are limited to kidney-friendly foods but you just need to be a bit creative to keep it interesting. As far as exercise, I do at least 45 minutes per day (usually 6 x per week) on a stationary bike and I walk as much as possible. I wear a Fitbit to track steps (although I think the app does that too).

[Mindy73]

Have him go to sparkpeople.com, they also have an app. You track calories, fitness, weight or whatever you want really. There's articles, videos, challenges, forums and they even have a newsfeed on their homepage sorta like Facebook where people put before and after pictures and inspirational quotes and pics and you can also friend people like Facebook but you don't have to though. The other people on there are so encouraging and helpful. It's really great and I can't sing their praises enough. I lost 50 pounds in a year and I wouldn't have been able to do it without them. The challenges are doable and really helped me out in the beginning. Tell him good luck from me and I wish him the best!

[Kt4920 in reply to Mindy73]

Thank you so much for sharing!

[marcyc NKF Peer Mentor NKF Ambassador]

Most transplant centers could refer him to a medically managed weight loss program. Give your center a call or ask his Nephrologist. Good luck.

[Kt4920 in reply to marcyc]

Never heard of a medically managed weight loss program. That would be so helpful! I'm scared to push him to exercise too much because I don't want to do any harm..this would be nice. Thanks!

[marcyc NKF Peer Mentor NKF Ambassador in reply to Kt4920]

My husband had to loose over 40 lbs prior to transplant. It is difficult especially if on dialysis. His doctor referred him to a medically supervised exercise program in addition to eating better. Good luck.

[Drdetroit]

My solution to lose before my transplant was to eliminate sugar & simple junk carbs all together & walk 2-3 miles every morning weather permitting or on a treadmill. If & when on dialysis keep protein level {albumin} above 4,0 GOOD LUCK.

[kahn2000]

Yes! Me! I lost 60 lbs doing a program that not only changed my body but also got me mentally prepared for everything we as kidney transplant patients go through. I ate 6 times a day and drank lots of water and learned new healthy habits to keep the weight off long term. I lost the weight after my transplant.

[Kt4920 in reply to kahn2000]

This is incredible. Congrats on losing so much weight! By program do you mean the medically managed program? Or just by diet, more water intake?

[kahn2000 in reply to Kt4920]

I did a program called Optavia. I became a health coach to help others. Let me know if you want to talk.

[SwissArmy]

I was told about a year ago.

(Paraphrasing with a bit of snark...)"You're too fat. We can't help. Goodbye" l asked..."Wait, how much would I have to lose?" I think it was about 50lbs. I succeeded and managed to get on the list..

I lost the weight, mainly due to CKD itself, causing a marked decrease in appetite. My nephrologist advised to watch salt intake which I did, and I think that may have contributed to curbing my appetite as well. After getting on the "deceased donor list", I shared my story on Facebook and elsewhere seeking a living donor.. My son came forward to be tested. We are scheduled for surgery in about 6 weeks.

[SwissArmy in reply to SwissArmy]

Two years ago...not quite. But over 1.5 years. I received my 35 yr old son's kidney in November 2018 at age 70.

Quite soon in my recovery I began to feel much younger. So..nearly two years past and it's made a world of difference.. I have a little trouble keeping the weight off. But generally I feel very well. Two months after transplant I did have a setback from Bilateral pulmonary emboli. It was treated with an amazing procedure in which they put a catheter through my neck.thru my heart and to my lungs. They were able to paste clothing buster to the clots and then actually aspirate some of the clots. It was 3 hours and I was fully awake. Just amazing. Since then no major issues.

Jim

[Alfredmynewkidney in reply to SwissArmy]

Congratulations on your transplant and feeling better!! I'm 7 weeks out from mine and the prednisone is not helping trying to lose weight. I'm so hungry!

[Kt4920]

Yup. We are hearing the same responses currently everywhere we go. We've literally changed his diet greatly he walks 3 days a week at the local gym and we don't see improvement at all, which is very discouraging. I know we can add in more days to go to the gym to walk but he's currently just so tired and drained probably from everything that's going on internally. We've been told 30 pounds at minimum. So did you lose all the weight after dialysis started? With the diet change and all that? I'm happy to hear you've found a living donor though! I'm praying for you and your family!

[LisaSnow]

What is the maximum BMI you are allowed to have in order to receive a transplant?