Sort of Starting all over...unbrainwash me please

Pinupdollrawr

Ok so I want to make a long story some what short. I'll try I mean. Long ago in valleys unseen there was a...

Ok so I lost a lot of weight previously through dieting and exercise. Intense exercise. Mainly weight lifting. HIIT or jump rope for cardio but mainly weight lifting. I wouldn't measure calories as much I'd just space out lean clean meals with few cheat days here and there on leg days. But average intake was about 1700+ cals. I am 5'4. Fast forward working more active job still eating same but BAM gain 35+ pounds in 1 month. Yep 1 month. Got diagnosed with Hashimoto's a thyroid autoimmune disorder. Finally regular labs and right dose of synthroid. But I have been still slowly creeping up on scales or when I try to create a deficit yo yo the same 3 lbs only! Endocrinologist and PCP say 1200 cals or 900 cals to lose weight. Now I know this is just dumb...lol but I do it bc I figure well this time it might be true since I have a thyroid condition. Nothing!!! So I went to the AWC ( Army Wellness Center) get into a Bod Pod for body composition, and get connected to that Bayne mask machine to get a more accurate RMR. So now I need to eat 1744 Calories a day with my current lifestyle at work etc. My BMI is 30.1 and my body fat % which I can not believe is 43.5% almost 65% increase from first diagnosis of Hashimotos.

I am sorry for the long post and I am sure I am going to hear some gripes from the audience. But I need support and help eating all that, lol. I also need help of where to start with the physical fitness aspect due to schedule, current fitness level, and exhaustion from hashimoto's. I try to walk for 30 mins straight 3x a week even though I hit well over 20K steps a day at work. My current fitness level is not what it use to be due to hashimotos as well as asthma attacks etc. But I want to lose FAT I do not care what the scale says, that's only a plus. Any helps will help and be taken into consideration. xoxoxo Sorry.

rmgnow

Well thyroid conditions are one of the things that directly affect weight loss
You might need to see a doctor about that.

AliceDark

Where did that target of 1744 calories come from? Is that your target to maintain your current weight or to lose weight (and if so, at what rate of loss per week)?

The most effective thing you can do to start is to get a food scale and start tracking your intake as accurately as possible. Choose an intake that should give you a moderate rate of loss (maybe 1 pound, although that depends on the amount of weight you have to lose) and stick with it for 4-6 weeks. Don't freak out over fluctuations on the scale; be as consistent as possible for 4-6 weeks in order to give your body time to adjust. After that, you can make changes to your plan based on the results you observe over that time.

Regarding exercise, add some in if you want to, but it's not necessary to lose weight. If you don't have the available energy to exercise right now, start with your calorie intake and see if you start to have more energy after that initial 4-6 weeks.

Pinupdollrawr

The 1744 comes from have my RMR measured and I also did a various of other body comp tests. I didn't take the Vo2 bc I have not had steady cardio or been trying to work on that. So this is the ultimate break down for RMR etc
RMR ( 1744)
Lifestyle ( 524)
Exercise ( 0)
2268 Kcal

Food
(1768)
My job is very very active. That is taken in consideration to given numbers.
The above info is on a print out and those numbers are on an image of a scale.

AliceDark wrote: »

Where did that target of 1744 calories come from? Is that your target to maintain your current weight or to lose weight (and if so, at what rate of loss per week)?

The most effective thing you can do to start is to get a food scale and start tracking your intake as accurately as possible. Choose an intake that should give you a moderate rate of loss (maybe 1 pound, although that depends on the amount of weight you have to lose) and stick with it for 4-6 weeks. Don't freak out over fluctuations on the scale; be as consistent as possible for 4-6 weeks in order to give your body time to adjust. After that, you can make changes to your plan based on the results you observe over that time.

Regarding exercise, add some in if you want to, but it's not necessary to lose weight. If you don't have the available energy to exercise right now, start with your calorie intake and see if you start to have more energy after that initial 4-6 weeks.

RodaRose

What is your one main concern?

fiddletime

If you aren't losing at 1744 then go to 1644. But, you need to weigh foods and be as accurate as you can. Don't eat back your walking calories. You might have to tweak it a little but the 1744 is a good start and you'll have to do it rigorously. No more of "spacing out lean clean days with a few cheat days". That isn't going to work anymore.

VintageFeline

Your RMR (resting metabolic rate) is 1700, that's not taking into account your daily activity, that would be your TDEE and that can't be measured by a machine.

Edit: I see your TDEE is 2200. So you could lose 1lb per week eating 1700 assuming the numbers are correct. What is your job?

Pinupdollrawr

There are several machines that can measure rmr. Otherwise scientific studies that prove or disprove certain weight loss fat loss methods would not be known. My job is to complete and average of 20,000+ steps within my work schedule of 8 hours while pushing humans and objects. I do transport throughout an army hospital mainly patients on Gurney's or wheelchairs alone. My average step count which does include up and down stairs is 20,000 on a slow day it will be 15,000 steps 5 days a week.

asteriskthat

rmgnow wrote: »

Well thyroid conditions are one of the things that directly affect weight loss
You might need to see a doctor about that.

Best answer in this thread. IMO

VintageFeline

Pinupdollrawr wrote: »

There are several machines that can measure rmr. Otherwise scientific studies that prove or disprove certain weight loss fat loss methods would not be known. My job is to complete and average of 20,000+ steps within my work schedule of 8 hours while pushing humans and objects. I do transport throughout an army hospital mainly patients on Gurney's or wheelchairs alone. My average step count which does include up and down stairs is 20,000 on a slow day it will be 15,000 steps 5 days a week.

This would make you TDEE higher than 2200. Something isn't adding up.

My point about the machine is that it measures RMR, it can't tell you what you need to maintain or lose beyond that because of individual activity. Where did the additional 500 come from? 500 calories for an average of 20'000 steps seems a bit low.

Something isn't adding up here. If your thyroid is now under control there's no reason for you to not be losing if logging accurately and consistently.

Hoshiko

If your labs and meds are on track per your doctor (and it sounds like they are) then you should be looking at your intake. It sounds like you have a pretty accurate measure for your RMR, so the first thing I would do personally is get a food scale and measure every single thing you eat for a couple of weeks. Be as completely accurate as you can, and aim for your 1744 number above.

I say give it 2 weeks, because sometimes when people are making many changes at once water weight can mess with the scales. Be patient, and you should see some progress and be able to re-evaluate things.

sympha01

You sound like someone who knows what you're doing but I do have to ask: are you measuring your portions, or are you eyeballing them? When you describe your past experience with weight loss it sounds like you did okay just guesstimating. But if you have developed an endocrinological problem, I'd suggest that you might benefit from a few weeks at least of measuring pretty strictly just to get a truly accurate handle on what your current calorie intake really is. For healthy and very active people miscounting calories by a couple of hundred here or there might not make a big difference, but once your burn rate gets out of whack based on hormones, you might need to re-measure in order to accurately re-calibrate? It's so easy to be off by quite a lot, even with good intentions. Lots of people on here saying they KNOW they're eating 1600 cal /day or something but basing that on eyeball measurements. And it turns out that that 1 cup of fruit was really 2 cups, that 1 tbsp of peanut butter was really 3, that 3 oz serving of meat was really 10 (!), 1/4 cup of oatmeal that they logged was really 1/2 cup or more, and it adds up.

Also, when I hear your doctors advising eating 900 calories a day I have to say this. Anyone -- including your doctor or endocrinologist -- who tells you how many calories you need to lose weight, I think you should respond back with a "can you refer me to an accredited dietician?" Bottom line: medical advice is critical for medical issues, but just because someone is a doctor doesn't mean they know much AT ALL about nutrition and diet, sadly. Get a referral to an accredited dietician, and in your case, ask for someone who has experience dealing with clients with endocrine problems.

FWIW my PCP told me his first job out of med school was actually with a weight loss clinic and he was the first to tell me that he didn't trust his own nutritional advice, let alone other doctors'. Doctors just aren't required to know much of anything beyond the very basics about diet and weight loss (it's like the equivalent to one class for half a semester in med school, a lot of it really biochemistry to help them understand other stuff, not really practical weight management info). And sadly, what many doctors DO know about it is often colored by clinical practice of helping patients do otherwise unhealthy weight loss to prepare for important surgery (i.e., shed some subcutaneous fat fast so it's easier and safer for a surgeon to cut into them for any reason). Which means doctors often know something about VLC diets (i.e., diets of 900 or <1200 calories / day) but don't seem to remember that those are basically supposed to be for short-term "emergency" health reasons only, not general weight loss or long-term weight management.

Good luck!

VintageFeline

Hoshiko wrote: »

If your labs and meds are on track per your doctor (and it sounds like they are) then you should be looking at your intake. It sounds like you have a pretty accurate measure for your RMR, so the first thing I would do personally is get a food scale and measure every single thing you eat for a couple of weeks. Be as completely accurate as you can, and aim for your 1744 number above.

I say give it 2 weeks, because sometimes when people are making many changes at once water weight can mess with the scales. Be patient, and you should see some progress and be able to re-evaluate things.

For women I generally recommend 4-6 weeks. I can see nothing on the scale for that long then have a big whoosh. If I reassessed after just two weeks I'd probably have cut way way too hard often.

Hoshiko

VintageFeline wrote: »

For women I generally recommend 4-6 weeks. I can see nothing on the scale for that long then have a big whoosh. If I reassessed after just two weeks I'd probably have cut way way too hard often.

That's a great point, and I think you're right. 4-6 weeks is definitely better, and I know that it personally took me a few weeks and a food scale to start seeing good results.

Pinupdollrawr

Thanks ladies for all the advice. My labs and thyroid hormones are in check and I go ever 6 to 8 weeks. All in great range. Having my cortisol checked too. And what someone said about always measuring even though I have done it thousands of times before and not guesstimate I will definitely do. Intake wise I haven't measure EVERYTHING.
Also I think the 500 they are putting there is from work it's under lifestyle. I will measure everything and start reusing my scale for meats etc again. And yes my last success workout wise was epic but I didn't have a thyroid issue. :-( I will also ask my doctor for a referral to a dietician. Bc I am tired of the 900 to 1200 calories reference. It drives me crazy. Lol