how to maintain a lower body weight without a thyroid

lizzythepixie

Hi! i am trying to get back into shape after having a kid and having thyroid issues. I was diagnosed with hashimotos back in 2021. I then had a total thyroidectomy and they found cancer. I have been on a long road with a high dosage of medication since then and just cant not kick this extra 15 pounds off. i either don't have the energy to work out or I don't have the time to make the right food choices. i am highly motivated to try and get this weight off so i can feel better about myself and fit in my clothes the way I want to! if anyone wants to be friends and help hold ourselves accountable then please add me!
also if anyone is going through the same thing of having no thyroid and not being able to keep weight off, lets try and find out together what works the best! right now i am trying a low carb, low sugar diet...I guess its almost keto, but i also have an egg intolerance which makes it difficult to get the higher amount of protein in my day.

AnnPT77

Hello, and welcome!

You might enjoy this thread here, written by a scientist in the field, himself hypothyroid, who lost weight via calorie counting. (If I recall correctly, his thyroid was surgically removed, also.)

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10767046/hypothyroidism-and-weight-management

I'm severely hypothyroid, but non-Hashi's, and I do have a thyroid gland (it's just completely asleep at the wheel). I'm properly medicated for the hypo.

I was able to lose weight (obese to healthy weight) by calorie counting, and have maintained that loss for nearly 8 years since, after 30 years previously of being overweight/obese.

But calorie counting isn't the only way to lose weight, by far. My advice is pretty much always to figure out the easiest tactics that lead to weight management results for the individual, rather than shooting for fast weight loss via extreme or difficult measures. What's easiest will vary from one person to the next.

I'm also not sure what you mean about "the right food choices". IME, it's less about specific foods, more about portions and proportions. Any food that adds up to the right calories - whether we count the calories or not - will result in weight loss. The overall way of eating needs to be reasonably filling, or we'll have trouble staying the course. Bonus points, sure, if the overall way of eating adds up to good nutrition, most days, on average. Workouts are good for a body, but optional for weight management: Skipping them just means we can't eat as much while losing weight at any given rate.

Hypothyroidism can make weight management more difficult, surely. But so can lots of other things (aging, menopause, unsupportive family, mobility limitations, etc.). Figuring out how to make progress in our own context is the challenge.

Best wishes for success - the results are worth the effort.

neanderthin

Low carb/ketogenic diet dealing with Hashimoto's is pretty widely known for quite a few years and I hope it gives you relief.

lizzythepixie

yeah! its insane how much carbs and sugar now affect my body. I get headaches almost immediately if I eat processed or refined sugar. also, if I eat to many carbs I just gain and gain and gain. I know I'm not over weight or even in an unhealthy weight, but if I don't keep myself in check I might be very easily and i wouldn't even have known it.