Help! Nothing is working
JBWILLOW
Posts: 108 Member
Ok so I am a bit of a yo yo dieter. But short story is, I was put on an antidepressant 2 years ago for anxiety disorder. The side effects of gaining weight for me happened, and I'm not blaming the pills but my appetite was off the chain and the weight crept on. I have gained like 30 pounds on them. I have been doing keto with no success. I don't really give it enough time I suppose. But when I'm on something as restrictive as keto, and I don't lose a single pound in over 2 weeks, I give up 
Doctor also said I have high cholesterol so he doesn't want me on keto, but in the past keto is the only thing that worked and worked fast.
Any advice would be helpful. Is it possible keto just stopped working for me? Any other WOE that I should try. (Yes I workout)
Doctor also said I have high cholesterol so he doesn't want me on keto, but in the past keto is the only thing that worked and worked fast.
Any advice would be helpful. Is it possible keto just stopped working for me? Any other WOE that I should try. (Yes I workout)
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Replies
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Buy a food scale. Weigh and log everything you eat, no skipping, cheating or forgetting. Eat what you like. Stay within your calorie allowance.18
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Are you counting calories? If not, start there. If so, tighten up your logging.7
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Forget that keto nonsense if it's not working for you.* The only thing that works to lose weight is to eat fewer calories than you use. If you aren't losing weight, you are eating too many calories, so figure out how to eat fewer in a way that works for you. Logging can be a great tool for that, but the important thing is to make changes in your eating habits that you will stick with. You CAN do this!
*I recognize keto works for some people, but it is just another eating plan, not magic. Nonsense meant to be tongue-in-cheek.
ETA: and do try and get away from this idea that weight must be lost in a hurry. That's what leads to yo-yo dieting, which is really hard on your body and usually results in overall weight gain.11 -
Are you logging food here? Open your diary and ask people to help you figure out what you might be doing wrong.4
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Have you tried sticking to a calorie deficit? That's the reason behind the success of any diet with a "name".7
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What everyone has said here is TRUE! Buy a food scale. Make sure you know what a portion size looks like. Count your calories. Drink your water. And exercise. The #1 reason people don't lose weight is simple: they eat too much and exercise too little. Period. Overly restricting your foods, even for short periods, sets you up for ultimate failure. Set a short term goal (week one I will drink only water) and a long term goal (I will lose 'X' pounds by October 1st). Commit to consistency, check in and log in MFP everyday, and you will see results.4
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Thank you guys. I have lost weight in the past by simply sticking to my allotted calories and working out. I guess I need to continue to do that. I just feel that he reason I always go back to keto is because it is so strict that I don't sneak in sweets and stuff here and there. And I guess I have it in my brain that carbs are the enemy BUT, I suppose I could try adding them in again and just start logging better 3
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Thank you guys. I have lost weight in the past by simply sticking to my allotted calories and working out. I guess I need to continue to do that. I just feel that he reason I always go back to keto is because it is so strict that I don't sneak in sweets and stuff here and there. And I guess I have it in my brain that carbs are the enemy BUT, I suppose I could try adding them in again and just start logging better
There's your answer! Use a food scale for all solids if you don't already, measure liquids, and double/triple check that the database entries you're using are accurate.4 -
Stop thinking diet and start thinking lifestyle change. You are needing to reduce calories to create a slight deficit and then give it time to take the weight off. Its simple math, deficit you lose and surplus you gain.4
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You also don't need to sneak in sweets. Just account for them and you'll still lose weight if you're in a calorie deficit6
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Do you all think it's impossible to lose weight while taking an antidepressant? Sometimes I wonder if that's why...1
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My daughter has struggled with her weight since she was 10. She started taking antidepressants when she was 19. When she was diagnosed with depression and anxiety she was told she needed to get her diet and exercise under control and she did. She dropped 35 pounds and has kept them off for 5 years. So no, if you are committed and consistent, you can lose the weight regardless of the antidepressant.6
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Do you all think it's impossible to lose weight while taking an antidepressant? Sometimes I wonder if that's why...
Not at all... I lost weight while I was on an antidepressant because that's how my depression manifested itself--I didn't feel like eating, so I didn't. I gained weight when I went off my antidepressant--again, because of my eating habits--I got back into the swing of things, my appetite came back, and I was lazy and didn't watch what I ate.
Antidepressants can mess with hunger cues and such--if you were practicing intuitive eating previously and you were successful you might not have continued success.
Track/weigh/measure what you eat and if you eat less than your TDEE you should lose weight (or at least not gain).2 -
Do you all think it's impossible to lose weight while taking an antidepressant? Sometimes I wonder if that's why...
The meds aren't the problem. You need to log accurately for MFP to work. Calorie deficit = weight loss. It's that simple. And it's not going to come off "biggest loser" style in a few weeks. It's going to shed off slowly and STAY OFF if you make lifestyle changes and are patient.4 -
Umm... depending on the antidepressant it most definitely CAN impact your ability to lose weight! You can check the website for the medication to see if that was one of the clinically reported side effects. (It's a bit technical medically but it will give the side effects.) There are plenty of good meds for depression/anxiety and you may need to see what works best for you. Do NOT go off your medication without doctor supervision!
Also, the calories in, calories out weight loss theory has also been refuted. For the most part it is true, but depending on the underlying issue; it can impact weight loss. For instance, people may have an undiagnosed thyroid problem, or water retention due to something... So my best advice is don't get discouraged, and log EVERYTHING! (Including how well you sleep - there have been a couple of obscure studies that seem to correlate sleep quality with weight loss/gain.) You can then use that great information to see what may impacting you. (Also, what you eat today may not appear on the scale for a day or two.)
Finally, it is rare, but some people "sleep eat". If you live with someone, ask them if they have noticed any odd sleep behavior. There is a correlation between depression and the amount of REM sleep some people get. So it may be worthwhile to ask if anyone has noticed you sleep walking or sleep eating. (A good at home way to try to curb that is to keep a glass of water by your bed and even a stick of celery. ;-)
Good luck and just keep trying! I've struggled with weight issues and depression for years. Take it one day at a time.21 -
Sorry one more point: Please check to see if you perhaps have a food sensitivity or allergy. Logging your food meticulously will help identify if a food sensitivity is perhaps impacting you. For instance, I don't care how few calories I eat in a day, if I eat a potato; I won't lose weight for 3 to 4 days. (I may also gain a half pound.) Also melon does a number on me.
You may need to be a bit of a detective to figure out what works best for you.11 -
People aren't saying you have to start eating carbs in order to start counting calories. You just need to be cognizant of how many calories you eat, even on keto diets. It's possible to eat more calories than you burn, even when you're not eating any carbs, and its possible to maintain or even gain on keto. It's not a magic bullet, its a way of eating that for many people naturally reduces their overall calorie intake.3
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Umm... depending on the antidepressant it most definitely CAN impact your ability to lose weight! You can check the website for the medication to see if that was one of the clinically reported side effects. (It's a bit technical medically but it will give the side effects.) There are plenty of good meds for depression/anxiety and you may need to see what works best for you. Do NOT go off your medication without doctor supervision!
Also, the calories in, calories out weight loss theory has also been refuted. For the most part it is true, but depending on the underlying issue; it can impact weight loss. For instance, people may have an undiagnosed thyroid problem, or water retention due to something... So my best advice is don't get discouraged, and log EVERYTHING! (Including how well you sleep - there have been a couple of obscure studies that seem to correlate sleep quality with weight loss/gain.) You can then use that great information to see what may impacting you. (Also, what you eat today may not appear on the scale for a day or two.)
Finally, it is rare, but some people "sleep eat". If you live with someone, ask them if they have noticed any odd sleep behavior. There is a correlation between depression and the amount of REM sleep some people get. So it may be worthwhile to ask if anyone has noticed you sleep walking or sleep eating. (A good at home way to try to curb that is to keep a glass of water by your bed and even a stick of celery. ;-)
Good luck and just keep trying! I've struggled with weight issues and depression for years. Take it one day at a time.
Strong wrong first post.12 -
Ok so I am a bit of a yo yo dieter. But short story is, I was put on an antidepressant 2 years ago for anxiety disorder. The side effects of gaining weight for me happened, and I'm not blaming the pills but my appetite was off the chain and the weight crept on. I have gained like 30 pounds on them. I have been doing keto with no success. I don't really give it enough time I suppose. But when I'm on something as restrictive as keto, and I don't lose a single pound in over 2 weeks, I give up
Doctor also said I have high cholesterol so he doesn't want me on keto, but in the past keto is the only thing that worked and worked fast.
Any advice would be helpful. Is it possible keto just stopped working for me? Any other WOE that I should try. (Yes I workout)
Just coming back to the bold bit. Not only do quick weight-loss things not work long term, if you're already having other health issues that are leading the docs to suggest not trying keto, then you probably shouldn't do keto.
You can definitely lose weight while eating carbs and improving your cholesterol (example a: me, in the last year) - just log carefully, move a little more, and watch your cals in/out balance.1 -
Do you all think it's impossible to lose weight while taking an antidepressant? Sometimes I wonder if that's why...
Not at all. I've taken anti-depressants for over 25 years and have never found any link between them and weight. I am eating on average 500 calories less per day than my TDEE and am losing accordingly. I can also gain weight while on anti-depressants simply by eating more.
Don't make this harder than it needs to be. Don't cut out a particular category of food or choose "keto" or go "plant based" or eat "clean" or "paleo" or anything else if it makes things harder for you. Simply keep scrupulous track of how much you eat by weighing your food and recording it in the diary. Make choices that satisfy your hunger which you can determine through trial and error. That's all there is to it.
If you want to try any of the more complex activities like intermittent fasting or one-meal-a-day or low-carb or whatever, go ahead but none of them is necessary to or has a strong effect on weight loss.2 -
HeidiCooksSupper wrote: »Do you all think it's impossible to lose weight while taking an antidepressant? Sometimes I wonder if that's why...
Not at all. I've taken anti-depressants for over 25 years and have never found any link between them and weight. I am eating on average 500 calories less per day than my TDEE and am losing accordingly. I can also gain weight while on anti-depressants simply by eating more.
Don't make this harder than it needs to be. Don't cut out a particular category of food or choose "keto" or go "plant based" or eat "clean" or "paleo" or anything else if it makes things harder for you. Simply keep scrupulous track of how much you eat by weighing your food and recording it in the diary. Make choices that satisfy your hunger which you can determine through trial and error. That's all there is to it.
If you want to try any of the more complex activities like intermittent fasting or one-meal-a-day or low-carb or whatever, go ahead but none of them is necessary to or has a strong effect on weight loss.
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Thank you. This gives me hope and helped me a lot
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This process won't be fast. I realized you want it to be. But it won't. And I'm here to tell you when you hit that magic number on the scale, you aren't done. You still have to watch how much you eat, or it will all come back. Weight loss is hard, but I think Maintainance is harder. In weight loss your brain just seems to conform after a few weeks. In maintainance, my brain tends to say "you are thin again, eat how much you want" and over time it catches up to you.
You don't have to be miserable. Find a logical deficit (If you are trying to lose 30lbs, I'd set your lose per week to 1lb). Eat that amount of calories. Log everything you eat. Whatever you want, whenever you want in a 24hr period.
Now, you have to be consistant. I mean do this every day. Not for 3 days and give up on the 4th. It won't work if you aren't truthful and consistant.2 -
This has been my experience as well. When my anxiety was out of control, I didn't feel like I had the mental energy to tackle anything else. Obviously everyone varies, but for me, getting my head in order was absolutely a prerequisite for getting my body in order.1 -
THank you all for your help0
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According to Broda Otto Barnes (14 April 1906 – 1 November 1988) an American physician who studied endocrine dysfunction, particularly hypothyroidism, high cholesterol is a signal that you are hypothyroid. The blood test for hypothyroidism lies.
See the website: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/things-we-have-learned/
The fact that you are on medication for depression is also a clue.
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