CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Chambana Today) — “Weight doesn’t have a calendar,” says Kidanu Birhanu, MD, an OSF HealthCare internal medicine and weight loss specialist.

With New Year’s resolutions fading, Dr. Birhanu says long-term weight loss is more about behavior changes than setting a start date.

“Behavioral modification is very important for people to lose weight. People can lose weight, then they gain it back. But if you have a reason why you want to lose weight and you are happy with the result, you are more likely to maintain your behavior,” Dr. Birhanu says.

Lori Boaz, a patient in the wellness and weight management program at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, says her motivation is staying active with her grandchildren and qualifying for knee replacement surgery.

“I hope to get my new knees within the next year,” Boaz says.

Dr. Birhanu says OSF’s weight management programs focus on building a sustainable lifestyle, not just dieting.

“I don’t want them to expect too much or too little. After they lose weight, I always ask them what other things in their lives improved because of the weight loss,” Dr. Birhanu says.

Boaz is about halfway to her goal and says setting realistic expectations has made the difference.

“We set goals. The main goal was to lose 100 pounds,” Boaz says. “I didn’t want to diet. Because I’ve lost weight before, and I gained it back. I wanted to eat healthy and be healthy, so every choice I made I had that in mind.”

Dr. Birhanu says weight regain is common due to metabolic changes, but exercise can help when done safely.

“Exercise improves your metabolism, so we advise them how to exercise,” Dr. Birhanu says. “If a person never exercised in the past and now, you’re asking them to exercise, there are injury possibilities, so we work with our physical therapy team to evaluate them.”

Boaz says she plans to continue the program long-term.

“We’ll just set another goal! Because I’ll still have weight to lose,” Boaz says. “I think I’ll just do this for the rest of my life!”

OSF HealthCare offers weight management programs across the Ministry, including Dr. Birhanu’s team at OSF HealthCare Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Evergreen Park.

Read OSF’s full story with clips from Dr. Birhanu here.