What if I am just meant to be fat?
Replies
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According the the national weight loss registry, here's what works: exercise about an hour a day--do something you like. watch less tv. eat about 100 grams of protein a day--it fills you up longer, and is more satisfying. real life includes chocolate (or whatever your treat is). eat the smallest amount of it that you need to enjoy your life. that's what works. You need a CONSISTENT calorie deficit. Days off blow your hard work. this is my biggest problem. I am working on moderation and consistency. ugh.0
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I count every single thing. Even coffee creamer. I feel some people here are quick to judge and automatically assume I am overeating and not aware of it. I'm not a newbie to weight loss. I have been down this road before about 10 yrs ago. I hit 168 and freaked out. I started learning about nutrition and all that and did weight watchers along with 5 days a week in the gym. I lost maybe 4 pounds and knew something was wrong. I went to an endo and found out I was hypothyroid. I was put on the right medication and along with what I was already doing I lost 50 pounds and maintained that until about a year ago.I get my thyroid checks every six months and it is fine. The only other thing that changed was I got off the BC pill in 2012 and got an IUD (the hormone free one). My hormones were probably always very off balance and i just never knew because I was on the pill for so long. Maybe I gained weight due to the change of not having the pill. It just doesn't seem like that alone would be the reason for gaining this much.0
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That was my excuse for a long time. I had to get over it. Yeah, I have a large frame. I'll never be skinny like the models and actresses. But there's literally no reason I should be over 200 pounds. None at all. I shouldn't have to hold on to extra fat because of my large frame.0
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When I was a kid in the '80s and a teenager in the '90s, an overweight child was a very, very, very rare sight. They existed, but they were the extreme exception.
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Yeah ... but he was the only one in the entire movie. And he grew up to be pretty freaking hot.When I was a kid in the '80s and a teenager in the '90s, an overweight child was a very, very, very rare sight. They existed, but they were the extreme exception.0 -
Hello!
So many suggestions. I followed the most successful weight loss plan for 25 years! I started in my teens, made my goal & had a few slip ups, but maintained that for 25 years. The past 2-3 years have been HORRIBLE! i GAINED 40 LBS OVER 3 YEARS! I have been actively trying for 2 years to lose, without much succes, even wHen I was perfect. So, I read about MFP and following it diligrently has been great! I compared both plans for 2-3 weeks and b/c the other doesn't "count" MOST fruits & veggies I was eating too many calories. 200-300 extra/day. That was it for me & I run. I'm a few years older than you, also no kids, 5'1". Exercise does not help me much in weight loss. And as you get older, you gotta do a LOT more. And different activities.
What I changed: 1. I used the NIH BMR calculator to assess my BMR @ goal weight (1100 kcal). MFP says 1200 is minimum. Make your decision from there. iT MAY BE MORE FOR YOUR HEIGHT & GOAL WT.
2. I log EVERYTHING. Seems that you do already.
3. Exercise: change it up. If you do the same thing ALL the time, that is part of your "activies of daily living." Doesn't necessarily count. I live in a walking city & walk my dog 3-4 miles daily. DOESN'T COUNT!!! i GAINED 10 LBS! (Prior to MFP).
4. I DON'T EAT MY EXERCISE.
GOOD LUCK!0 -
I agree the scale can be cruel ,sometimes success is measured by the way our clothes fit and how we feel!
I know it is easier said than done I have been riding this weight loss roller coaster for a
Long time, but just trying to hang tight and NOT fall off this time!0 -
Have you seen a doctor and had blood work done? I know with me, I wasn't losing and it turned out my thyroid is out of whack. People are often quick to say "You're not doing things correctly". Sometimes there is a legitimate medical reason.0
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Never mind. Just saw your post above about being diagnosed hypo. I know it can take time to get the meds at the right levels and get stabilized. In the meantime, do you do any strength training? That has worked for a lot of people I've talked to who are hypothyroid.0
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You are right your body is fine with it. Everybody's body is fine with it. It's how we are built. You are not special in this regard.
However I disagree with some of the stuff being said here.
1. It doesn't matter what you eat just how much you eat.
Frankly this is technically correct and actually DEAD WRONG. If you eat nothing but microwave meals and sweets and calorie count you can indeed lose weight. But you will be constantly hungry for all the stuff that your body still needs. You will be miserable and unhealthy. When you are at a deficit you really should be making most of your calories count. I'm not saying you can't spend a bit on treats and stuff. But really most people will have a much easier time and be happier with their health and their body if they try to eat healthy food most of the time.
2. You can lose weight only in the kitchen. Exercise is unnecessary.
Once again technically correct and in practice outright dangerous. It tempts people into depriving diets that malnourish their bodies in all sorts of ways. And if you work hard in the gym you absolutely can afford to eat quite a bit more and still lose weight. Not only that but you will probably retain much more lean mass and suffer far less from micro nutrient deficiencies. You will be fitter healthier and just plain better looking and feeling when you finish. Plus exercise is a great way to distract yourself from boredom or depression based food cravings.
Personally I think it's wrong for a health and fitness site to condone the idea that exercise is optional and that nutritional quality doesn't matter. Weight loss is a wonderful thing. But it shouldn't be elevated above other less obvious aspects of bodily healthy.
Absolutely right!!!!0 -
Exercise
Eat properly. Use MFP's calculator if you want, or look for one in other sites
Stick with it
success is 100% guaranteed. If you don't get good results, then you're doing one of the above 3 things wrong.0 -
I count every single thing. Even coffee creamer. I feel some people here are quick to judge and automatically assume I am overeating and not aware of it. I'm not a newbie to weight loss. I have been down this road before about 10 yrs ago. I hit 168 and freaked out. I started learning about nutrition and all that and did weight watchers along with 5 days a week in the gym. I lost maybe 4 pounds and knew something was wrong. I went to an endo and found out I was hypothyroid. I was put on the right medication and along with what I was already doing I lost 50 pounds and maintained that until about a year ago.I get my thyroid checks every six months and it is fine. The only other thing that changed was I got off the BC pill in 2012 and got an IUD (the hormone free one). My hormones were probably always very off balance and i just never knew because I was on the pill for so long. Maybe I gained weight due to the change of not having the pill. It just doesn't seem like that alone would be the reason for gaining this much.
People aren't "quick to judge," nearly every single person here who posts a thread and claims they can't lose weight is eating too much. If you want to cling to the idea that you are special, go for it, but I don't really know what the point of this thread is. Fishing for sympathy because you are the only person who can't lose weight?
I am also Hypo and take BC and can lose weight when I eat at a deficit, but I weigh every single thing and log every single thing.
Guess your body just defies the laws of thermodynamics, and no one here can help you further.
ETA: This is a totally crabby answer, I know. I'm just tired of these threads. "HELP ME" gets a bunch of helpful, factual answers "I am already doing everything right. Stop judging me! You think I'm a liar??" *facepalm into headdesk*0 -
I know for a fact that I have to eat less and work harder to lose weight than some people (my spouse being the most obvious) but I can still do it. I went through a period of time when I was quite resentful (internally) about it, but once I accepted it I am slowly making progress. It can be very discouraging and make it easy to give up. But I have found that if I don't give up, and keep working at it, I do eventually lose weight.0
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I ate a paleo diet last year for 3 months and didn't lose but I didn't gain during that time either. I make good choices and I like healthy food. I also drink a gallon of water a day.
I wanted to comment on this section separately. It doesn't matter how "healthy" the food is you eat, if you eat too much of it and achieve a calorie surplus you will gain weight.
I really don't like the logic of why people follow the paleo diet. The idea here is that if you eat like humans did in the Paleolithic era that you will be healthier like they were. That logic is terrible, first have you even seen a person from that era and thought, man he looked amazing? You realize that people in that era also didn't have a guaranteed meal and had to gather / hunt and kill for their meals as well? Driving to the local whole foods doesn't count as hunting, sorry.
Paleo works in my opinion due to the amounts of restrictions on the diet. You can't go to McDonald's, or eat twinkies and ice cream and all of that jazz. So if you eat fresh meats, veggies and fruits then it's less likely you are going to over indulge. There's no stopping by starbucks every morning for your double double white mocha with extra whipped cream, cavemen didn't have that.
The problem with following a restrictive diet like paleo is it won't last forever. How long can you really last on a diet that doesn't let you have all of your favorite foods? There's nothing wrong with cutting out processed foods from your diet, in fact I wish they would just call it the no processed food diet, but I guess that's too boring. You get really good at eating paleo and maybe even lose the weight you desired, but then you go back to eating like you did before and all the tips and tricks you learned eating paleo are useless now.
Better idea, eat all of your favorite foods and still lose weight. IIFYM is a flexible dieting technique that in addition to watching your over all calories for the day you also track the amounts of fats, proteins and carbs you consume in the day. I love flexible dieting because as long as I reach my fat minimum goal and protein minimum goal for the day I'm doing well, and if I go over those goals its ok, I just consume less carbs. Best of all, following IIFYM is something you can do the rest of your life.
My problem with the Paleo diet is: Why do people assume that cavemen had the best diet? They were scavengers, hunters and nomads for the most part- they were physically strong because they had to be in order to survive. They walked EVERY place they went, ran full blast after an animal and killed it brute strength and stone clubs. Their activity level was far higher than anyone in the modern era and their meals were far from consistent. I just have a hard time believing the Paleolithic era was the pinnacle of human nutrition. I know they say its what man "evolved" eating- but if you look at it truthfully, what man "evolved" eating was different all over the world. In order to stay in line with what your people ate during their evolution you would have to trace your lineage back to the paleolithic era, which would be pretty hard.
If I had to pick a time period, I would say Ancient Romans probably had the best diet. They had consistent access to food, it was minimally processed, high in good fats (fish, olives, nuts), had plenty of protein (Roman soldiers were required by law to eat a certain amount of meat each day) and I think you'd be hard pressed to find a civilization that was more physically fit. But regardless of the quality of food, quantity is what determines whether or not you will lose weight.0 -
I count every single thing. Even coffee creamer. I feel some people here are quick to judge and automatically assume I am overeating and not aware of it. I'm not a newbie to weight loss. I have been down this road before about 10 yrs ago. I hit 168 and freaked out. I started learning about nutrition and all that and did weight watchers along with 5 days a week in the gym. I lost maybe 4 pounds and knew something was wrong. I went to an endo and found out I was hypothyroid. I was put on the right medication and along with what I was already doing I lost 50 pounds and maintained that until about a year ago.I get my thyroid checks every six months and it is fine. The only other thing that changed was I got off the BC pill in 2012 and got an IUD (the hormone free one). My hormones were probably always very off balance and i just never knew because I was on the pill for so long. Maybe I gained weight due to the change of not having the pill. It just doesn't seem like that alone would be the reason for gaining this much.
People aren't "quick to judge," nearly every single person here who posts a thread and claims they can't lose weight is eating too much. If you want to cling to the idea that you are special, go for it, but I don't really know what the point of this thread is. Fishing for sympathy because you are the only person who can't lose weight?
I am also Hypo and take BC and can lose weight when I eat at a deficit, but I weigh every single thing and log every single thing.
Guess your body just defies the laws of thermodynamics, and no one here can help you further.
ETA: This is a totally crabby answer, I know. I'm just tired of these threads. "HELP ME" gets a bunch of helpful, factual answers "I am already doing everything right. Stop judging me! You think I'm a liar??" *facepalm into headdesk*
This post+++++
OP, nobody is quick to judging here, just trying to help you understand. The fact is outside of some medical condition you are gaining weight because you are eating too much. Your body can't change the laws of physics, sorry you're not a special snow flake. You've been to 9 doctors and none of them are seeing a problem with you, maybe that means there isn't one.
I'm pretty sure I know what your problem is, you're not weighing and measuring your portions properly. You've dodged this question repeatedly. Do you or do you not have an electronic scale that measures in grams? Are you sure the entries on MFP are the correct ones? I find myself checking nutrition labels all the time because the entries aren't always correct on the website. You could be eating up to 30% or more than you think you are eating. a calorie surplus of 100 calories a day adds up quickly quick over the course of a month and years.0 -
I ate a paleo diet last year for 3 months and didn't lose but I didn't gain during that time either. I make good choices and I like healthy food. I also drink a gallon of water a day.
I wanted to comment on this section separately. It doesn't matter how "healthy" the food is you eat, if you eat too much of it and achieve a calorie surplus you will gain weight.
I really don't like the logic of why people follow the paleo diet. The idea here is that if you eat like humans did in the Paleolithic era that you will be healthier like they were. That logic is terrible, first have you even seen a person from that era and thought, man he looked amazing? You realize that people in that era also didn't have a guaranteed meal and had to gather / hunt and kill for their meals as well? Driving to the local whole foods doesn't count as hunting, sorry.
Paleo works in my opinion due to the amounts of restrictions on the diet. You can't go to McDonald's, or eat twinkies and ice cream and all of that jazz. So if you eat fresh meats, veggies and fruits then it's less likely you are going to over indulge. There's no stopping by starbucks every morning for your double double white mocha with extra whipped cream, cavemen didn't have that.
The problem with following a restrictive diet like paleo is it won't last forever. How long can you really last on a diet that doesn't let you have all of your favorite foods? There's nothing wrong with cutting out processed foods from your diet, in fact I wish they would just call it the no processed food diet, but I guess that's too boring. You get really good at eating paleo and maybe even lose the weight you desired, but then you go back to eating like you did before and all the tips and tricks you learned eating paleo are useless now.
Better idea, eat all of your favorite foods and still lose weight. IIFYM is a flexible dieting technique that in addition to watching your over all calories for the day you also track the amounts of fats, proteins and carbs you consume in the day. I love flexible dieting because as long as I reach my fat minimum goal and protein minimum goal for the day I'm doing well, and if I go over those goals its ok, I just consume less carbs. Best of all, following IIFYM is something you can do the rest of your life.
My problem with the Paleo diet is: Why do people assume that cavemen had the best diet? They were scavengers, hunters and nomads for the most part- they were physically strong because they had to be in order to survive. They walked EVERY place they went, ran full blast after an animal and killed it brute strength and stone clubs. Their activity level was far higher than anyone in the modern era and their meals were far from consistent. I just have a hard time believing the Paleolithic era was the pinnacle of human nutrition. I know they say its what man "evolved" eating- but if you look at it truthfully, what man "evolved" eating was different all over the world. In order to stay in line with what your people ate during their evolution you would have to trace your lineage back to the paleolithic era, which would be pretty hard.
If I had to pick a time period, I would say Ancient Romans probably had the best diet. They had consistent access to food, it was minimally processed, high in good fats (fish, olives, nuts), had plenty of protein (Roman soldiers were required by law to eat a certain amount of meat each day) and I think you'd be hard pressed to find a civilization that was more physically fit. But regardless of the quality of food, quantity is what determines whether or not you will lose weight.
Very good point++0 -
I count every single thing. Even coffee creamer. I feel some people here are quick to judge and automatically assume I am overeating and not aware of it. I'm not a newbie to weight loss. I have been down this road before about 10 yrs ago. I hit 168 and freaked out. I started learning about nutrition and all that and did weight watchers along with 5 days a week in the gym. I lost maybe 4 pounds and knew something was wrong. I went to an endo and found out I was hypothyroid. I was put on the right medication and along with what I was already doing I lost 50 pounds and maintained that until about a year ago.I get my thyroid checks every six months and it is fine. The only other thing that changed was I got off the BC pill in 2012 and got an IUD (the hormone free one). My hormones were probably always very off balance and i just never knew because I was on the pill for so long. Maybe I gained weight due to the change of not having the pill. It just doesn't seem like that alone would be the reason for gaining this much.
People aren't "quick to judge," nearly every single person here who posts a thread and claims they can't lose weight is eating too much. If you want to cling to the idea that you are special, go for it, but I don't really know what the point of this thread is. Fishing for sympathy because you are the only person who can't lose weight?
I am also Hypo and take BC and can lose weight when I eat at a deficit, but I weigh every single thing and log every single thing.
Guess your body just defies the laws of thermodynamics, and no one here can help you further.
ETA: This is a totally crabby answer, I know. I'm just tired of these threads. "HELP ME" gets a bunch of helpful, factual answers "I am already doing everything right. Stop judging me! You think I'm a liar??" *facepalm into headdesk*
This post+++++
OP, nobody is quick to judging here, just trying to help you understand. The fact is outside of some medical condition you are gaining weight because you are eating too much. Your body can't change the laws of physics, sorry you're not a special snow flake. You've been to 9 doctors and none of them are seeing a problem with you, maybe that means there isn't one.
I'm pretty sure I know what your problem is, you're not weighing and measuring your portions properly. You've dodged this question repeatedly. Do you or do you not have an electronic scale that measures in grams? Are you sure the entries on MFP are the correct ones? I find myself checking nutrition labels all the time because the entries aren't always correct on the website. You could be eating up to 30% or more than you think you are eating. a calorie surplus of 100 calories a day adds up quickly quick over the course of a month and years.
For the last part: Many of the MFP foods in the data base are missing portions of the nutrition info-pro, sodium, fiber...check, check & double check!!!! Yes the exercise it calculates for cal maybe to high (my treadmill is) so I think I saw someone else do this, I go with 60% of that total value. But I'm doing my best not eat those anyway. You also posted having tried a bunch of things...maybe too much 'hopping around" and not LONG enough committment to one. And scientific research for decades cal in/cal out. It's like gas in a car. There are more efficient choices, but it's the same concept.0 -
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While I think that everyone is built differently to be ideal at different sizes, I think the type of mentality that says "I'm never going to improve, I should just give up" is nothing more than a cop-out to excuse people from actually trying anymore. I don't buy it.
If you eat fewer calories than your body needs, you HAVE to lose weight. Scientifically, thermogenically and mathematically, you have no choice but to. Unless there is some underlying thyroid issue going on.
You just have to be patient, be SURE you are in a deficit (meaning weighing everything) and not give up.0 -
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Yes actually! There was a documentary online that talked about the science behind weight loss and how at some point, our bodies are programmed to favor a certain weight. People that have been skinny all their lives are fine, but those that have gained weight and kept it on for along time have a certain weight that their body wants them to be.
That's not to say you can't lose weight. Of coarse! But after being fat, you're going to have to work at this. If I can find that documentary ill link to it. It might've been that one "why are skinny people not fat"0 -
Like you, I have a very difficult time losing weight. I cannot tell you how many times I plateaued during my journey. I lost my first 25 lbs quickly then was "stuck" for an entire year at 195. Know what worked for me? I've been on a 1200ish calorie meal plan and work out HARD 4-6x a week since November (3x a week was with a trainer...who I no longer need). I've lost of a total of 75 lbs. You can do this. Just never stop trying!!0
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Scooter, I don't beleive any of us are designed to be fat. Sometimes it's just damn difficult. But you can do this. You have to beleive in yourself and keep working at it despite the ups and downs. You'll get there. You got this.0
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If you want to see the effect of a starvation diet, just watch survivor. They all seem to lose weight though you can see that some waste away more quickly than others.0
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That's something I often wondered to myself, I tried everything I knew how to do and nothing worked. Until now. Forget everything you "think" you know about weight loss.
Firstly your body is made to store fat when you eat at a calorie surplus. This was vital for the survival of our species during our evolution because there wasn't always a guaranteed meal. It's not a curse, it's a biological advantage that doesn't have much of a purpose now that there's a grocery store every few blocks away.
To lose wight, it's a simple matter of calories in and calories out. I don't care how "healthy" you think you are eating or how much exercise you do, you will gain weight if you do not eat at a calorie deficit. To lose weight properly I have a few tips
1. Take the guess work out of measuring your food, measure and weigh everything. Buy an electronic scale that weighs in grams. Call me geeky or whatever, but I have one at my desk at work and one in my kitchen at home, I hate guesswork.
2. If you eat at a restaurant you are essentially guessing how many calories you food contains. Just because a restaurant posts nutritent facts on their website doesn't mean the cook won't be heavy handed on the butter and oils and other ingredients.
3. When you prepare you meals you need to weigh and measure everything. Did you know that if you measure peanut butter that you are actually dong it wrong? Peanut butter and items liek it should be weighed,and the difference in calories when you compare the two are significantly different.
4. Weight loss can be achieved in the kitchen, you don't need exercise. This is true, you can lose weight not going to the gym at all if you eat at a calorie deficit, remember points 1-3.
5. Though going to the gym is not required, it can help improve your general health and help mitigate muscle loss while on a weight loss diet. I don't want you to get into the mindset that you have to bust your butt at the gym in order to enjoy food, that's not a healthy relationship. By picking up a heavy lifting program like Ice Cream fitness (you can youtube it) you can improve muscle strength, mitigate muscle loss while at a calorie deficit and it will give you extra calories to enjoy per day.
6. When recording exercise you need to be careful. My fitness pal is not very accurate in my opinion. If I lift weights, I generally cut the calories by at least 30%. My fitness pal gives you an estimate and it's impossible to know the actual number, but I feel cutting the estimate by 30 to 50% helps. If you over-estimate the calories burnt while exercising and under-estimate the calories consumed in food you are in for a world of trouble.
This is great, but I'd like to add one thing as well. I was hovering at 160 +/- 4 lbs. (being 5'4") for the last year. My trainer suggested that I change the proportions of fats, carbs, and proteins that MFP so nicely breaks down for me. I also have to admit that I wasn't logging all of last year accurately (I did the eyeball method). In two weeks however, being much more careful about weighing or measuring food and trying to carefully stick to my carb/sugar proportions, I lost 8 lbs which I'm still disbelieving so I'm not logging the number yet.
Can it be as simple as sugar and carbs holding on to unwanted wanted, etc.? I'm not sure, but could it be worth a try? Definitely! I'm trying right now and it is so far working.
Or it could be the greater attention to weighing, measuring, and logging.0 -
If this is your belief, then you've already lost the fight. No one is MEANT to be fat. We are products of our environment. Being around and eating high calorie foods that exceed your TDEE will result in excess fat. Reduce it and you lose.Is this even possible??? Can your body just like where it is and that is why you don't lose? I am so sad that nothing changes despite my effort. I feel defeated. Depressed. Disgusting.
A.C.E. Certified Group Fitness and Personal Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
iIf I had to pick a time period, I would say Ancient Romans probably had the best diet. They had consistent access to food, it was minimally processed, high in good fats (fish, olives, nuts), had plenty of protein (Roman soldiers were required by law to eat a certain amount of meat each day) and I think you'd be hard pressed to find a civilization that was more physically fit.
You just gave me a great idea for a diet book: The Ancient Romans Didn't Get Fat. I'll make millions telling people to brew their own garum and put it on everything.0 -
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