Coworker insists she can't lose weight through calorie restriction -- info wanted
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Dont bother. she's lying to herself and you. why even try to have this conversation wiht her
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The real question is, why do you care?
You're her coworker, not her diet coach or doctor. If she insists she's a special snowflake, that just means she's not ready yet. Most people aren't... until they are. You can't do anything to change their minds until they come to the conclusion for themselves.
Focus on you. Don't worry so much about what others are doing.
I'm not worrying about it -- I'm wondering.
Why do I care? Because I'd like to be nice to her about this.
She brings it up regularly in the staff room when people are chatting about lunch,recipes, resolutions, workouts, etc. She has a lot of intense, outspoken, energy about it. It's hard to know what to say to her because she doesn't seem to be making any sense, and so I was gathering some information to help me understand her.0 -
NoelFigart1 wrote: »Losing weight is not a moral imperative. Let her manage her body in her own way and concentrate on your own goals.
I am.
That's why I've kept my mouth shut. She's a nice enough lady, but she goes after those of us who are counting calories. I've been biting my tongue, but wondering about what her issue might be. I would never grill her about her health and weight.
You're not keeping your mouth shut or biting your tongue. You're talking about your diet at work, because otherwise how would she know who's counting calories? You are judging her all the time, as you are right now, in this thread. She knows you think she is a lesser person (or weak, or stupid, or lazy, or whatever) because she's fat and not dieting. So that is why she gets defensive and angry, because you're being mean about her weight. Maybe not in what you say TO her directly, but she can read between the lines.
Keep your mouth shut, talk about something besides your diet, and do your best to show her some respect regardless of her body type.
Good grief.
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Okay. I'm done with this thread.
I'll reiterate one last time that I was merely seeking some information from health-minded individuals regarding possible medical conditions that may prevent weight loss. I have not been nor will I ever be haranguing this woman about her weight or beliefs about weight loss.
I got some helpful information from several kind posters.
I also had my head bit off by some folks who seem to have misunderstood (and perhaps not even read) my original question.
Good night, everyone. Keep counting those calories!0 -
crimsonsunset79 wrote: »There are a few medical conditions I can think of that are known to make losing weight difficult, and it really is not as simple as a calories in calories out equation - the types of calories, the way your body breaks down different fats and calories, can effect the equation in a negative way. That being said, the blanket statement that calories don't contribute to weight gain/loss is in her head. The calories may not have as big an impact on her as most due to a condition. I know for myself weight loss is insanely difficult due to a few things medically I have going on, and calorie counting is not the best method due to these for losing weight but must be used in conjunction with other methods.
- PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome)
- Thyroid
- Diabities
- bowel issues
- depression/anxiety
These are all known to cause large amounts of weight gain despite calorie counting and working out.
Anything that impacts the way your hormones opperate will effect weight
Those medical conditions may make it more difficult to burn calories but they do not override CICO.0 -
If she does a huge calorie deficit her body will go into starvation mode and store body fat. It is also possible last time she dieted she had high sodium and had a lot of water weight. I have not heard of anything else... but I am not expert either. I do find some people hold on tight to false ideas for a variety of self motivated reasons
NO!0 -
I think she's lying to herself about her intake, most likely. But I think some people's bodies do have a wide range of adaptive thermogenesis, too. They start restricting and their body starts moving less in ways not even conscious to the dieter. They sit more and fidget less and maybe nap more, etc. There are a lot of variables we can't really see. So if she eats 2000 and burns 2000 normally, then restricts to 1400 and consequently burns 1500, it seems like she's not really losing weight because it'd take over a month to lose a pound. Though that's a little extreme, but who knows. And I think it takes some time for that down-regulation to occur, in most of us.
Odds are many things are happening-- underestimating intake, metabolic adaptation, water weight issues. People aren't very patient when it comes to restriction, often.0 -
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Leave her alone. She does not want advice from you.-2
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I suspect she is sailing on a river in Egypt, either in regards to how much she takes in or how much she uses for fuel. Most likely both.
EXACTLY.
I kind of get it, though. She's probably never TRULY & honestly tried it.
That was me for 20+ years.
I would eat like, a cucumber and some hummus and a turkey sandwich every day for a week and lose no weight and come to the highly scientific self-diagnosis that I had a bad metabolism and it didn't matter what I ate, I'd always be around 270-ish lb.
Then I finally gave it a real try and got to the 160s.
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I'd suggest worrying about your own weight and leaving her to hers. Unless she asks for your help, leave her be.
Guessing and gossiping about what her problem might be is pointless, IMO.0 -
If she keeps bringing it up and insists on blaming it on a medical condition you could casually ask if she has seen a doctor or registered dietician about it0
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Your coworker is in denial, and not being honest with herself, or you.
There is no legitimate medical reason for being unable to lose weight. There is one-and-only-one reason for not losing weight: Not maintaining a calorie deficit. That's it.
She can scream and whine and cry "water retention", "thyroid", unspecified "conditions", "starvation mode" or any number of bulksh*t FatLogic excuses but in the end, it's failure to maintain a calorie deficit.0 -
If she is gaining weight… then bottom line, she is still eating more than she is burning. There can be a variety of different factors that can play into how much she is burning… there are some legitimate medical issues that can mess with metabolism and therefore someone might have to restrict their calories to extremely low levels (something she cannot or is not willing to do) in order to lose weight... but it doesn't mean the equation is wrong.0
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Certain meds change how your body deals with certain foods for example prednisolone a steroid changes how the body deals with carbs so in order to lose weight this has to be taken into consideration. A low carb diet may therefore be more effective if you take this drug. Pred also drives up your hunger levels so you need greater resistance to avoid eating too much a friend described it as feeling like you could eat the wallpaper off the walls!
Also bear in mind that people taking these meds do so because they are ill. Try and imagine for example having a really bad cold or flu and how this would affect your motivation to diet and exercise. Yes you can lose weight with some of these conditions and meds but it is hard. When I lost weight on pred my doctor said I was the first person he'd seen do so but it also took 10times as much effort compared to dieting when I was well. Meds aren't an excuse not to watch your weight but boy can it make it harder.0 -
She's talking cr*p but you won't convince her. I'd just leave her to get on with and you happily carry on with your weight loss success.
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At one point I didn't think I could either. But it's because I didn't have the mental capacity to actually eat less. It's all mind over matter and the ability to tell yourself NO a lot. Some people need to be "ready". I was also one of those that "thought" I had to eat practically nothing and for someone that is 5'11, that didn't work mental for either. Now I know I can lose on 1600/calories a day. Not 1000.
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Edited: January 7th? Why can't these old threads be locked so you can't reply?0
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It's always hard to tell with people. Sometimes people got fat because of a medical condition OR sometimes obesity can be the cause of a medical condition that helps keep you fat.
A symptom of PCOS is obesity. But, I believe the jury is still out as to whether obesity causes PCOS or the PCOS causes the obesity. Depending on what camp your Doctor belongs to, you can either get quality care or treated like you are a bag of walking garbage.
Anyways, I would leave it alone. More than likely the real problem is that when she restricts calories she ends up hungry and binge eating at the end of the day. Or she restricts to 1700 calories a day all week long to lose that one lb, than there's some work meet or personal engagment that means eating out at a restaurant and the hard work of a week is trashed and then some.
For some people, there is a quagmire of emotional baggage associated with losing weight.
What's important to know is that just about no one wants to be fat and yet many of us are. I weigh 225 lbs and I hate it every single day. I do my best to beat it on a regular basis. I've done it before and know how weight loss works for me. I have a digital scale and I have the support of family who doesn't mind making their own dinner so that I don't have to be tempted. Even with that support group, I find it difficult.
Imagine how much more difficult it would be if your brain didn't work well enough for you to even BELIEVE you could lose weight.
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Have read all the replies but just leave her alone. Antagonising her over her food and weight choices isn't going to encourage her to do anything. Perhaps she, like me, refuses to believe because the prospect of losing weight is daunting and frightening and you don't feel that you have the willpower or deserve the results so you make excuses. I was always a "i would hate to be one of those women that know the calorie content of everything, i couldn't do it". If she wants it she will change her mind but taking the piss out of her here isn't really in the best spirit of the community is it?-1
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Not to mention starvation mode (metabolic slow down) does not even come into effect until your body fat hits below 11 percent.If she does a huge calorie deficit her body will go into starvation mode and store body fat. It is also possible last time she dieted she had high sodium and had a lot of water weight. I have not heard of anything else... but I am not expert either. I do find some people hold on tight to false ideas for a variety of self motivated reasons
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