Getting Implanon- will it impact my weight loss/lifts?

NotJustADieter

I've lost a good amount of weight, between calorie counting and working out. I also have lost some inches and gained a lot of strength. I'm about to get the birth control implant in my right arm, so I don't have to worry about a baby for a few more years. I have two big concerns- that it will somehow impact my weight loss, and that it will impact my lifts.

With the weight loss, my main concern is I tend towards addictive eating. My family has a history of addiction and my vice of choice was food- it's how I gained weight. I'm concerned not that the implant will "slow down my metabolism", but that it'll encourage my compulsions. Any tips?

As for the lifts- pretty self explanatory. I know it goes between the bicep and triceps, and I worry it'll screw with my lifts. Being a petite, narrow female, upper body strength is hard to build and harder to hold onto, and I don't want to lose my gains.

Anyone have any experience with this?

kshama2001

What I did to manage addictive eating was:

- Eat more protein and veggies and less carbs. The less carbs I eat, the less I crave. (I also get plenty of fat.)
- Yoga.

How Yoga Can Help End Binge Eating

One breath at a time, end the suffering of binge-eating

...According to Juliano, yoga gives people the skills to stay with what they are feeling, rather than turning to food to escape. People who are obese or suffering from eating disorders have a tendency to dissociate from their bodies -- to choose not to feel what they are feeling when they are angry, anxious, or sad. Often, they turn to food to numb themselves. "There's this sense that I have to feel better right now, " Juliano says. "There is a complete intolerance of what is happening right now." This need to escape unpleasant feelings triggers a binge.

When you eat to escape what you are feeling, you lose touch with the experience of eating, as well. This is one reason binges can spiral out of control. "You have no understanding that you are full, way past full, into uncomfortable, because you're so out of it," Juliano explains. "You have no connection to what you're eating. You're eating a pint of ice cream and can't even taste it. Or you go to make yourself some toast and before you know it, half the loaf is gone."

Mindful yoga directly challenges the habit of dissociating from your body and your present-moment experience. "The whole point of yoga is to stay connected to your body. You learn it through practice, through breathing, and through breathing through the sensations."

Read more: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201007/how-yoga-can-help-end-binge-eating

NotJustADieter

I use mindful meditation and do yoga 3 times a week- I also attend OA and AA. It's an addiction issue, not escape. Hard to explain the separation but there is one.

And I've been eating low carb for a little over a year. Having a T1 diabetic in the house makes it fairly easy.

kshama2001

Sure, the drive to escape can lead to addiction, but they are indeed two different things.

Is your addictive eating under control now? If so, for how long?

SezxyStef

Birth control itself will not cause weight gain nor will it slow your metabolism...the side effect stated typically is "increased appetite" if you are mindful of that and get the difference between appetite and hunger and log as you have been, continue lifting etc you should not have an issue.

I personally have used depo/mirena for the last 15 years...just got my shot Thursday..bench day.

I didn't want the shot spot touched but it didn't affect my lifting.

NotJustADieter

It comes and goes with my anxiety and other triggers. Think of it in the same way as alcoholism and drug addiction- I can often control it, but when I lose control, it's bad.

anxioushero

I have anxiety disorder, "food addiction" and the implant, and can't remember if I gained when I got it, but I lose weight incredibly fast, like 3lb a week when I eat 1200 cals

NotJustADieter

@anxioushero - do you have any issue with lifting since getting it? How long was the healing process and the adjustment process?

kshama2001

I find these CDs very helpful for anxiety: Yoga for Emotional Flow (How to Ride the Wave of)

Here's a good review, although he left out that the first CD also talks a lot about modern psychology:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/RXK1W9YS138VH/ref=cm_cr_pr_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=1591790530

This set consists of two CDs. The first CD provides a simplified introduction to yoga thought and covers concepts such as duality, interdependence and the distinction between feeling an emotion and acting out. It also talks about the development of witness consciousness, introduces the concept of an energy body and talks about how this is related to working with emotions. The first CD also briefly discusses yoga as a physical practice and an overall life philosophy. It's a good introduction for those who know very little about yoga, but have some real curiosity about the very basic concepts.

The second CD is where the real value of this set comes in. Disc TWO begins with an exercise called the daily body scan which puts one in touch with the sensations that are occurring in the body. Since emotions are related to what is occurring in the body and awareness of changes in these sensations, the overall effect is to heighten awareness of emotions as they are expressed or held in the body.

The second exercise on this CD talks about riding an emotion as a surfer would ride a wave. It builds on exercise 1 and helps the individual to disidentify with their emotion it while fully feeling it. This causes a felt shift and perhaps a healing transformation. This often happens in therapy, so this is not exactly a foreign concept.

I particularly like the third exercise on this CD which you do before you fall asleep. It is similar to exercise 2, but it brings in the events of the day and has a very relaxing phase that quiets the nervous system through deep and relaxed breathing. Physiologically, by extending the exhalation by relaxing the abdomen and avoiding chest breathing, the parasympathetic branch (calming) of the nervous system is activated. If you don't like deep explanations, then all I can say is it will help you with problems with insomnia.

If you are interested in working with emotions in this way and would like to read further, I suggest THE POWER OF FOCUSING and/or FOCUSING and Tara Bennet-Goleman's excellent book EMOTIONAL ALCHEMY. For a truly great and comprehensive introduction to yoga, I highly recommend THE YOGA TRADITION by Georg Feurenstein. If I could rate this book a 6 I would and it is a tremendous bargain at under $30.00.

anxioushero

NotJustADieter wrote: »

@anxioushero - do you have any issue with lifting since getting it? How long was the healing process and the adjustment process?

None whatsoever, I don't even notice it's there. It only kind of hurts for the first few days, it's never been annoying

PixelPuff

I've been looking at this too, so it is good to know!

emmy15rocks

You shouldn't have any trouble with lifting, I don't even notice mine is there at all! (Might be a little sore for one or two days after getting it maybe????)

As for weight gain. I have gained weight but I think it's my own fault. I haven't noticed an increase in appetite so I think I was just eating the wrong things- totally unrelated to the implant