How to find out if I have a medical condition preventing me from losing
workout_ninja
Posts: 524 Member
I have been consistent, ive lost weight before (5 years ago) and I eat less now than I did back then and I cannot lose weight. I maintained the same weight for 4 of those years, then I went on holiday and gained 14lbs and now that wont come off. Im consistently eating under 2000 calories, I am healthy (lots of fruit and veg) no bread, pasta or rice and I weightlift, swim and run 6 days per week and Im honestly *kitten* miserable that nothing changes, absolutely *kitten* nothing. Doctor doesnt beleive me that Im doing all this - im obese (BMI 30). can anyone offer any kind of advice that will help me??!
2
Replies
-
Why "under 2000"? Why is 2000 your upper limit?
Are you weighing and logging your foods?6 -
yes, according to those online calculators, I should be eating about 2600 calories to maintain my weight so I eat less, averaging between 1700-2000. I do weigh and log2
-
workout_ninja wrote: »yes, according to those online calculators, I should be eating about 2600 calories to maintain my weight so I eat less, averaging between 1700-2000. I do weigh and log
Have you entered your information into MyFitnessPal?4 -
An endocrinologist can check for thyroid and other metabolic issues. A gynecologist might also be helpful. Also, if you can, find a more sympathetic doctor. It sounds like yours is not working with you as a team - and that is so important for good medical care.
Good luck and (((hugs))).5 -
Find a different doctor.2
-
Are you weighing ALL of your food?
Did MFP give you a goal of 2000 calories per day to lose 1 lb/week?
There are enough big questions in your post that I would not assume you have a medical disorder just yet. Most of the things you mention, such as what you eat and how much you work out, do not cause weight loss. Weight loss is caused by ensuring you are consistently in a calorie deficit.16 -
When people "can't lose weight", maybe about 1% or less it is due to some sort of medical condition. 99% of the time, it is because they are not actually in a calorie deficit. So my first guess would be that you are either eating more than you think or not burning as much as you think. Medical conditions that prevent people from losing weight are quite rare.24
-
Would you be willing to temporarily make your food log public? There are really common logging errors that we might be able to catch with fresh eyes.
It's also possible you are over-estimating the calorie burns for your exercise. Can you give more detail - height, weight, workouts?
A thyroid problem could slow down weight loss, but if you were in a 600+ calorie deficit daily it (or any other medical condition) wouldn't stop it.
How long have you been eating/exercising at this level, and how much weight have you lost in the last 4 weeks?9 -
There really isn't a medical condition preventing one from losing. There are conditions that cause an increase in water weight, but this is not related to metabolic activity.
If you aren't losing and 5-6 weeks have gone by, then you are not in a consistent caloric deficit.14 -
OP, on your profile it says you weigh in the 180s. I don't know your height or age, but it seems like 2000 calories is a pretty high estimate for that weight level. You say "according to those online calculators" you should be eating 2600 but I am fairly sure MFP wouldn't give you that estimate.
As others suggest, I would try putting your information into MyFitnessPal and strictly logging (with measuring & weighing) for a month or so. You may be surprised at your results and findings by doing this.11 -
workout_ninja wrote: »yes, according to those online calculators, I should be eating about 2600 calories to maintain my weight so I eat less, averaging between 1700-2000. I do weigh and log
You are apparently using online calculators that incorporate your general activity level including exercise. What is your day to day activity like outside of purposeful exercise? Do you have a desk job? My preference would be to fill out the MFP profile, choosing your activity level based on your activity not including exercise, and log your individual workouts separately. And as others have said, being very strict about weighing & logging for a month.8 -
I don’t mean this to sound rude or ugly, but I suspect at some point many of us were convinced there was a medical reason we couldn’t lose weight.
I couldn’t understand how I could walk 7-8 miles a day and do yoga four or five times a week and just barely maintain at 220.
I honestly thought I could go for a thirty minute walk, come home and scarf down a bag of Geneva cookies and I would zero out.
It wasn’t til I visited a dietician who recommended MFP and I started tracking calories, linked to a smart device that counted burns, and, particularly, lurked the MFP community daily that I got an eye-opening education. It’s all laid out there for you in black and white, if you’re willing to open your eyes and follow the map.
It takes an investment of time, mindfulness, willpower and energy, but if you do these things, you will see the weight fall off. It hasn’t been as hard as I expected myself, and some of it has been pretty darn fun. The rewards far outweigh any effort.23 -
Sorry but I'm on the side of your Doctor.
If you were in a consistent calorie deficit that deficit must be being made up from your body's energy reserves and you would be losing fat.
Suggest you either open you diary so people can help you with very common logging issues or simply reduce your calorie goal. 2,000 calories is frequently given as an average amount for a woman to maintain weight.9 -
workout_ninja wrote: »... I eat less now than I did back then ....can anyone offer any kind of advice that will help me??!
Do the work to be sure that your claim is accurate. What does that mean?
It means - get a food scale for the kitchen, and weigh every thing before you eat it, and portion-correct as needed to stay within the goals MFP set for you. THEN log it into MFP.
Do this for a month and see what kind of difference it makes. (a month will get you past the first flush of retained water that can be misleading).
good luck to you, and good fitness to us all!
6 -
springlering62 wrote: »I don’t mean this to sound rude or ugly, but I suspect at some point many of us were convinced there was a medical reason we couldn’t lose weight.
I couldn’t understand how I could walk 7-8 miles a day and do yoga four or five times a week and just barely maintain at 220.
I honestly thought I could go for a thirty minute walk, come home and scarf down a bag of Geneva cookies and I would zero out.
It wasn’t til I visited a dietician who recommended MFP and I started tracking calories, linked to a smart device that counted burns, and, particularly, lurked the MFP community daily that I got an eye-opening education. It’s all laid out there for you in black and white, if you’re willing to open your eyes and follow the map.
It takes an investment of time, mindfulness, willpower and energy, but if you do these things, you will see the weight fall off. It hasn’t been as hard as I expected myself, and some of it has been pretty darn fun. The rewards far outweigh any effort.
This is almost exactly how things finally clicked for me, too.11 -
springlering62 wrote: »I don’t mean this to sound rude or ugly, but I suspect at some point many of us were convinced there was a medical reason we couldn’t lose weight.
I couldn’t understand how I could walk 7-8 miles a day and do yoga four or five times a week and just barely maintain at 220.
I honestly thought I could go for a thirty minute walk, come home and scarf down a bag of Geneva cookies and I would zero out.
It wasn’t til I visited a dietician who recommended MFP and I started tracking calories, linked to a smart device that counted burns, and, particularly, lurked the MFP community daily that I got an eye-opening education. It’s all laid out there for you in black and white, if you’re willing to open your eyes and follow the map.
It takes an investment of time, mindfulness, willpower and energy, but if you do these things, you will see the weight fall off. It hasn’t been as hard as I expected myself, and some of it has been pretty darn fun. The rewards far outweigh any effort.
That was me too. I thought I was doing all the "right" things, like eating "healthy" and exercising. When I didn't lose weight doing those things, I thought I must have some medical condition that meant I couldn't lose weight. I had PCOS, so it was very easy to blame my lack of weight loss on that.
It turns out, of course, that eating "healthy" isn't the same as eating in a deficit, and I was eating far more calories than I realized. I also wasn't burning nearly as many calories in exercise as I'd wanted to believe. Once I ensured I was consistently in a calorie deficit, I lost weight.
If you are not losing weight over a month or more of trying, there is an almost 100% chance that you're not in a calorie deficit.4 -
For a doctor to figure out if a medical condition is blocking your weight loss, you'd do the same thing you'd do to lose the weight, with *exacting thoroughness, compliance, and record keeping.*
I have several conditions that effect my weight, so I track. I use a food scale. I wear a fitness tracker. I track my sleep. I have records. Months and months of exacting records which I take to my doctor. After looking things over for trending, and interviewing me for other symptoms like strength loss, pain, insomnia, etc, my doctor(s) will generally sort out some blood tests that may help identify what is going wrong.
But first I need 2-3 months of DATA. Accurate, recorded data.16 -
“Eating healthy” is somewhat of a generic term. It means different things to different people. Eating more fruits and vegetables are certainly good strategies for me to be able to maintain a calorie deficit. Consistently tracking your calories in and out are IMO the best strategy to losing weight. As others have recommended, a food scale can improve your accuracy. But for those who are not currently tracking at all, I’d encourage you to start where you are. Measuring cups and spoons are better than eyeball measurements. Estimated calories are more accurate than not tracking at all. Start with the habit of tracking then build on that by improving accuracy. It’s unlikely that you have a medical condition preventing weight loss, but if you do, accurate data is a great tool for you and your doctor to review.4
-
seltzermint555 wrote: »OP, on your profile it says you weigh in the 180s. I don't know your height or age, but it seems like 2000 calories is a pretty high estimate for that weight level. You say "according to those online calculators" you should be eating 2600 but I am fairly sure MFP wouldn't give you that estimate.
As others suggest, I would try putting your information into MyFitnessPal and strictly logging (with measuring & weighing) for a month or so. You may be surprised at your results and findings by doing this.
Co-sign. Great advice already.
Many people who exercise a lot end up overestimating their calorie burn, I suspect. I also have a feeling the calorie budget she has is too high.
5 -
There are mistakes that people commonly make that cause them to not lose weight that we might be able to spot if you change your Diary Sharing settings to Public: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings3
-
thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I have re-adjusted my settings in MFP and its telling me to eat 1200 calories a day. That is much lower than what ive been eating so im going to try that for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Thank you all again.2
-
workout_ninja wrote: »thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I have re-adjusted my settings in MFP and its telling me to eat 1200 calories a day. That is much lower than what ive been eating so im going to try that for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Thank you all again.
The number MFP is giving you is before exercise. It is intended that you log your purposeful exercise, which will result in more calories being added to your day that you should eat. Absolutely do not try to subsist on 1200 calories with the amount of exercise you described.
Also, I don't know your stats, but a 2 lb/week weight loss goal is generally only for those with >60 lbs to lose. It requires a 1000 calorie/day deficit from a person's maintenance calories, which most of us do not have the body mass to support.7 -
workout_ninja wrote: »thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I have re-adjusted my settings in MFP and its telling me to eat 1200 calories a day. That is much lower than what ive been eating so im going to try that for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Thank you all again.
You stated in your original post that you want to lose 14 pounds. You should be setting your pace of loss in MFP to 0.5 lb/week and weighing all your food.16 -
workout_ninja wrote: »thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I have re-adjusted my settings in MFP and its telling me to eat 1200 calories a day. That is much lower than what ive been eating so im going to try that for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Thank you all again.
You stated in your original post that you want to lose 14 pounds. You should be setting your pace of loss in MFP to 0.5 lb/week and weighing all your food.
^^^ This!6 -
ElizabethKalmbach wrote: »For a doctor to figure out if a medical condition is blocking your weight loss, you'd do the same thing you'd do to lose the weight, with *exacting thoroughness, compliance, and record keeping.*
I have several conditions that effect my weight, so I track. I use a food scale. I wear a fitness tracker. I track my sleep. I have records. Months and months of exacting records which I take to my doctor. After looking things over for trending, and interviewing me for other symptoms like strength loss, pain, insomnia, etc, my doctor(s) will generally sort out some blood tests that may help identify what is going wrong.
But first I need 2-3 months of DATA. Accurate, recorded data.
This is one of the better, or perhaps more valuable posts in this thread.10 -
workout_ninja wrote: »thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I have re-adjusted my settings in MFP and its telling me to eat 1200 calories a day. That is much lower than what ive been eating so im going to try that for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Thank you all again.
deleted since it was already stated above
1 -
workout_ninja wrote: »thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. I have re-adjusted my settings in MFP and its telling me to eat 1200 calories a day. That is much lower than what ive been eating so im going to try that for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Thank you all again.
If all you want to lose is that 14 pounds, than 1200 is needlessly low calories. Also remember that that is 1200 calories BEFORE exercise - MFP is designed for you to log your exercise and eat back the calories you earned.
However, it's important to make sure you are tracking calories accurately. And for that, nothing beats a food scale and learning how to recognize good database entries.4
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.2K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 426 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.7K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions