losing weight with cfs/M.E

missvincent23

ive already lost 38lbs without doing much exercise i do alot of walking due to the fact i have two young children who go to school and nursery. does anyone have any tips/ideas some days i cant do much cause of the pain and the severe fatigue. im eating healthy i love fruit. i track everyday but im not loosing much at all. its so gutting. i used to be such an active person at the gym all the time. then i got sick. it sucks big time!!

xox

AstorMiles

Hi there,

From reading your post, it sounds to me like you should be very proud of yourself for the accomplishment you've made already. It seems like you're doing a good job of trying to stay healthy while also taking care of little ones and dealing with chronic fatigue - I would have thrown in the towel long ago! So first and foremost, congratulations!

Hitting a plateau during weight loss is perfectly normal, and it sounds like you've lost a good deal of weight already. It's easy to get discouraged, but try to keep up the healthy behaviours. You may not see much of a difference on the scale for a while, but your body is going to be thanking you every single day no matter what - and this is what's most important. In terms of pain and fatigue, I have no experience with cfs and I can't imagine what it must be like to try to exercise when you're bone tired and achy. I suppose (but don't have the knowledge to back this up) that listening to your internal cues is probably very important - if your body is really not feeling it, perhaps it's best to take it easy? Maybe on those days you can try a bit of yoga or something similar that allows you to move the muscles without making you exhausted... I've been doing free yoga videos on Youtube on my "off" days and I'm finding them pretty effective. There are oodles of them - you can choose basically any style and duration.

Last, but not least... I may be stating the obvious here, but I think it's worth remembering: small changes to your lifestyle over the long term will add up, and anything that you can easily incorporate into your life is going to help you reach and maintain a healthy weight (and a healthy attitude) much more than, say, running 2 hours a day and eating nothing but carrots for a month. You'd be amazed at how many studies lend support to the idea that a small, consistent reduction in calories over the long term (even as little as 100 kcal per day - the key being CONSISTENCY over the years), coupled with similarly small, consistent modifications in physical activity (again, perhaps just taking the stairs more often, getting up and moving around for a few minutes once an hour every hour, walking a few more minutes every day), will make the difference between remaining at a healthy weight or becoming obese over time. I can actually speak to this from personal experience. I find that I feel my best at times when I stop obsessing about calories (easier said than done, I know and just try to eat a balanced diet (lots of vegetables, whole grains, beans and seeds, fruit and homemade meals - but again, not obsessing and not beating myself over the head if I reach for the occasional cookie). I also exercise a lot, but I look healthiest when I walk and move around more during my workday. I've had times when I was training pretty hard for sports events, but I never look as healthy as when I'm just doing my moderate, maintenance exercise routine topped up with simply moving about a little bit more during my workday. I know that what I'm saying is probably obvious but easier said than done... Nonetheless, I think it's important to state it because any health-oriented, permanent modifications we make to our lifestyle, no matter how small, really do make a difference. Every little thing counts, and it sounds to me like you are working very hard on taking good care of yourself!

All the best and good luck!

AM