Should I Restrict Cals--READ BEFORE YOU SAY NO

bookworm131313

I am 22 years old, size 12, 5'9." I weighed about 188 lbs. in January. I have been about that weight since I was 18, and have been trying to lose weight all this time; I ran and ate 1200 cals a day--nothing worked. I was diagnosed with MS in January and spent about two weeks at my grandparents house, not eating much because I wasn't really hungry. When I went back to college, I was down to about 174 lbs. I walked every day and maintained that until my graduation in May without much trouble at all. But I've been back at home since then, and got a job; a combo of my lack of every day exercise and my mom's homecooked food has put the weight back up to 186. I really abused my body all summer, eating everything in sight and not really doing exercise but maybe once a week. Now what I'm wondering is if I should have another period where I severely restrict my calorie intake until I get back to that healthier weight. Could that work?

Phoenix_Warrior

You have to find something sustainable or the cycle will continue. Find your TDEE -20%, log everything. weigh and measure everything and above all else, be honest with yourself. You need to create healthy habits. If you restrict, then relapse you're back at square one. This is a life long struggle, not just a "until I hit this goal" deal. I wish you luck on your journey!

FP4HSharon

No, slow & steady wins the race, if you try to rush things it'll only make you more likely to put it back on. Also with MS, your health is a huge factor...if it's like most neuro conditions, it's usually improved if you eat healthy (& a healthy amount of calories), exercise, & get enough sleep. I'd be afraid that the calorie restriction could worsen the MS. Don't take chances like this w/your health. Eat at a healthy level, healthy food, exercise, you'll feel better & as long as you stick to your diet, you should lose in a healthier way.

nomeejerome

How about find your appropriate calorie needs instead?

JesterMFP

Could set you up for a lifetime of yo-yo dieting.

It doesn't have to be one extreme or other. Get back to not "eating everything in sight", and start exercising more often (depending on what extent, if any, that's affected by your MS). Consider cooking for yourself, or offering to share the cooking duties with your mom, or jut eating what she makes but tracking it accurately.

cheryl2361

my question is , whats wrong with being a size 12 ??????

snejkaxo

Here is the problem with yo-yo diet. Your body remembers your highest weight point. So when you stop dieting, and you do what you did all summer long, your body takes you right back to your highest point that it remembers and add a few pounds extra for good measure, because it also remembers that you put it through hunger and restriction. Then you lose weight again, then fall off the wagon again and boom, now your body goes to new highest point and add a few extra pounds to that number for good measure. Well, you got the picture. That is why people who yo-yo get bigger and bigger every time they fall off the diet wagon. So to answer your question, yeah, you can go on temporary strict restriction to get to your ideal weight faster, but then you can never repeat what you did this summer ever again. You will have to be strict and mindful of what you eat, and not many people can do that without doing it slowly, and re-training their brain how to eat right, exercise, have different lifestyle, etc. So this is the question you should ask yourself, if you have enough will power to just snap your fingers and change your lifestyle for good, or should you do what most people do, and take it slow, and over the years learn how to respect your body and live healthier life. I hope this is helpful.

Zakiya05

I think you should really watch what you are doing with your diet. Because MS is such an unknown disease there are millions of theories out there. One thing they all agree on, like with many other diseases, inflammation and stress can exacerbate the disease.

There also theories out there that you can control your episodes by eating a diet low in fat. They all start from there, and thing get more extreme, with exclusion of nuts, dairy, legumes, sugar, eggs, and so on. Theory behind excluding all of these is decreasing the inflammation that might be caused as a reaction to eating foods that are common to not sit well. With the eggs/beans it's something about the protein that mimics a protein that causes the body to attack. I am not saying you should get rid of all this food, just giving you some info on what's out there. In any case, practicing a healthy diet is key with MS. I would not set an extremely low calorie count, because that might warrant fatigue, and fatigue is one of the most common persistent symptoms of MS. You don't want to do anything that will overly stress the body and send it into fight mode. That's the issue with MS, your body is in fight mode too much to the point is attacking your own healthy cells.

I think personally the key to fight MS, along with taking medication, is to keep your body in balance. Don't give your body the need to go into attack mode. This means eating a healthy balance diet (which is why I am a bit against the "MS Diet", but do believe in a low fat/ low carb (please don't get rid of carbs, you need them for energy, make sure you follow the glycemic index for eating the right type of carbs), and eating fruits and veggies. Basically it's the classic healthy diet that really is a life-long diet. Don't get into the fad diets that will send your body out of whack and aren't maintainable. Included in eating right is exercising. You must exercise and keep those signals from your brain and your body working. Again this is only my personal opinion, I am from the school of if you don't use it you will lose it, and I think this is even more important when you are dealing with a neurological disease such as MS, where your mind has to adapt to the lesions and find other ways of communicating with your body. Our brains are amazing, and the power to improvise is amazing. In addition to the neurological importance of working out, there's also the physical. When you have an episode in some instances, you are more able to recover from it if you were in shape beforehand. Lastly, you need to get your stress under controlled. Stress not only exacerbate and often causes episodes, it also can prevent you from losing weight. If your body is in flight mode constantly, your body is going to store what it needs in the case of emergency, which means you aren't going to lose weight. It is of the most important to participate in activities that calm you. Maybe try yoga, that's a two-fer, you get you get physical and mental reward. When you wake up in the morning included in your things to do, should be "I will remain calm no matter what happens because at the end of the day my life is more important than a fleeting reaction that will cause permanent damage". I think the Serenity prayer is amazing in this scenario.
I conclude by saying you really need to learn how to read your body and know it’s limitation. So when it’s telling you it needs something you provide it before you cause unnecessary stress to it. For example, you gotta learn the difference from being lazy and cravings to warnings you are exhausted and hungry. Keeping everything in balance and harmony are key for living healthy with MS. You want to push yourself to be the optimal you that you can be, but you don’t want to overdo it either. Good luck in your weight loss journey!

God Bless!
Zakiya

frommetobetterme

Warning... this might sound a little depressing.

MS will be hard enough on your body over time that I would not 'severely' restrict calories. My dad has MS and I've slowly seen him losing his strength because of the disease and because he wouldn't do the exercises he was given by the physiotherapist. Even doing exercises would not have stopped him from getting to where he is now, but it may have slowed down his loss of mobility.

I'm no expert, but from what I've seen, I recommend you start doing weights and keep a good cardio regime to keep up your strength as long as you can. Getting fit now, and working at staying fit will help slow down how much muscle mass you lose later and help you keep your independence longer. As for your food, you can restrict your intake to lose slowly as recommended, but do not restrict 'severely', it will only harm you in the long run.

Mia_RagazzaTosta

my question is , whats wrong with being a size 12 ??????

Everyone's body type is different. A 12 on me means I'm overweight. A 12 on someone else may not mean the same thing.

action_figure

You've had tons of people telling you really good things. As an RN and someone who has friends with MS I'm telling you this: Don't do something stupid. You need to talk to the doctor who manages your MS, a dietician and come up with a reasonable, realistic plan to meet your LONG TERM health goals.

Mslmesq

I am 22 years old, size 12, 5'9." I weighed about 188 lbs. in January. I have been about that weight since I was 18, and have been trying to lose weight all this time; I ran and ate 1200 cals a day--nothing worked. I was diagnosed with MS in January and spent about two weeks at my grandparents house, not eating much because I wasn't really hungry. When I went back to college, I was down to about 174 lbs. I walked every day and maintained that until my graduation in May without much trouble at all. But I've been back at home since then, and got a job; a combo of my lack of every day exercise and my mom's homecooked food has put the weight back up to 186. I really abused my body all summer, eating everything in sight and not really doing exercise but maybe once a week. Now what I'm wondering is if I should have another period where I severely restrict my calorie intake until I get back to that healthier weight. Could that work?

I read your post and looked at your diary, including your current goal of 800 a day w/half being sweets like fudge, cookies and pudding.

And the answer is N.O. You should NOT do this. No, no,no! :noway: :noway: :noway:

Please, please, please do yourself a favor and do this the right way, or you are just setting yourself up for long term health consequences.

Zakiya05

Warning... this might sound a little depressing.

MS will be hard enough on your body over time that I would not 'severely' restrict calories. My dad has MS and I've slowly seen him losing his strength because of the disease and because he wouldn't do the exercises he was given by the physiotherapist. Even doing exercises would not have stopped him from getting to where he is now, but it may have slowed down his loss of mobility.

I'm no expert, but from what I've seen, I recommend you start doing weights and keep a good cardio regime to keep up your strength as long as you can. Getting fit now, and working at staying fit will help slow down how much muscle mass you lose later and help you keep your independence longer. As for your food, you can restrict your intake to lose slowly as recommended, but do not restrict 'severely', it will only harm you in the long run.

This is true. I am sorry to hear that about your dad. Crazy thing is that there so many variations of the disease and how it will effect you. There's people in your Dad's case and there's people a lot worst that cannot even move, some that were inmoblie from their first or second episode. Still there's others that are +60 plus and still walk with the assistance of a cane. I met this one lady who was dx with MS in her early 20s, ignored the diangosis and took no medication and lived her life, and at 75 was placed in an assisted living program. I was amazed that she lived her life without medicine and just now needed the assistance of a wheelchair. I go to a doctor who was dx MS back in her 20s too and has maintained her health through diet and exercise, she is about 60. She has to walk with the assitance of a cane (but not all the time does) and her speech is a bit slured, but she is still working full-time and practing medicine. It's a whole range of ways the disease can effect you, which is what really scarry about it. Depending what part of the brain/spinal cord it attacks, it could leave you blind, have you losing your memory, or make you unable to walk, or give you something far less. Some people get new lessions once every 5 years, some people get them every year. Some people have one or two small lessions that cause severe disability, some have 10 lessions, with little or no symptoms besides the ocassional tingling of the limbs or fatiuge. It's all a guessing game as how a person will be effected by MS, each case is indvidual. But I so agree with you about building your strength and eating right and slowly losing the weight. The MS is much more of a serious issue to be worried about over the loss of a few pounds.

frommetobetterme

This is true. I am sorry to hear that about your dad. ......

The MS is much more of a serious issue to be worried about over the loss of a few pounds.

Thanks. My dad is now in a motorized wheelchair with difficulty even using his hands. It took him about 15 years to get there, but his vision is still good. It was very hard for him since he use to be quite active. The fact that he has diabetes doesn't help either. I know of someone from whom it progressed faster and that is now legally blind. I also know of someone else that is doing better than my dad is. It is, in a sense a very individual disease as progression is not easy to predict.

I hope OP doesn't have an aggressive form, especially at the young age at which she was diagnosed. As you said, staying strong and healthy should be much more important for her at this point than the number on the scale.
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OP, also don't forget to take care of your mental health. Depression and episodes of violence sometimes occur for certain people with MS (not everyone, but some do). MS is often as difficult mentally as it is physically, so don't be shy to ask help from a mental health professional if you feel that you need help coping. Some communities have support groups for people with MS and their families, and these can be a blessing.

tymberh

my question is , whats wrong with being a size 12 ??????

Everyone's body type is different. A 12 on me means I'm overweight. A 12 on someone else may not mean the same thing.

Exactly, If I were (and I was) a size 12 with my height (5 ft 1 in) I was considered obese.
Everyone's body needs something different.

FP4HSharon

my question is , whats wrong with being a size 12 ??????

Everyone's body type is different. A 12 on me means I'm overweight. A 12 on someone else may not mean the same thing.

Exactly, If I were (and I was) a size 12 with my height (5 ft 1 in) I was considered obese.
Everyone's body needs something different.

Also, w/women, there's the whole issue of vanity sizing. A couple of seasons back on Biggest Loser, they featured some of the finalists post-makeover in TV Guide, & listed their weights & sizes. There were some letters to the editor questioning how someone could be such a small size at a higher weight. They basically blamed vanity sizing. Usually the more expensive the label, the smaller the size you'd wear in it. Most of my clothes are from Penney's or Wal-Mart, mostly size 10P (I could wear an 8, but like things slightly looser). But a skirt I found on clearance at Banana Republic fits me & it's a size 2. You cannot go by size. BMI is a good estimate, unless you're doing more serious muscle building workouts. If you're doing the serious workouts, then a scale that measures body fat percentage is a good idea.

sisierra

No, because once you get back to that weight you won't be restricting yourself anymore and you'll start gaining again.

Exercise more. You may be busy, but make the time. Run early, do sit-ups and push-ups during commercials or breaks. take a walk during your lunch hour.

I've found that if I exercise about 1- 2 hours before I go to bed and don't eat anything after I'm always lighter in the morning. I'm not sure if it's healthy, but it works for me

tymberh

my question is , whats wrong with being a size 12 ??????

Everyone's body type is different. A 12 on me means I'm overweight. A 12 on someone else may not mean the same thing.

Exactly, If I were (and I was) a size 12 with my height (5 ft 1 in) I was considered obese.
Everyone's body needs something different.

Also, w/women, there's the whole issue of vanity sizing. A couple of seasons back on Biggest Loser, they featured some of the finalists post-makeover in TV Guide, & listed their weights & sizes. There were some letters to the editor questioning how someone could be such a small size at a higher weight. They basically blamed vanity sizing. Usually the more expensive the label, the smaller the size you'd wear in it. Most of my clothes are from Penney's or Wal-Mart, mostly size 10P (I could wear an 8, but like things slightly looser). But a skirt I found on clearance at Banana Republic fits me & it's a size 2. You cannot go by size. BMI is a good estimate, unless you're doing more serious muscle building workouts. If you're doing the serious workouts, then a scale that measures body fat percentage is a good idea.

Couldn't agree more with this^