What do you do...

teachfl2

What do you do when you have tried everything for the past 15 years and nothing works? I have only lost alot of weight twice, once after high school on Weight Watchers, and again about seven years ago on South Beach. Since then, I go up and down the same 10-15 pounds. I can easily gain 3 pounds in a week.

I have tried every exercise program, diet and lifestyle change that you can think of. I have researched and read book after book. I am very well versed in how food works, what foods are good, what are not, best times to eat, worst times to eat, how the body processes foods etc. I have a lot of background knowledge in this subject, but nothing seems to work.

One of my hurdles is I have major stomach problems, I am constantly bloated. My stomach looks like it is 9 months pregnant most days. I have had an endoscopy, colonoscopy, celiac disease test, and gallbladder test- all of which were negative. I did have an allergy test and was positive for wheat, egg yolks, vanilla, and perch. I have tried eating gluten free, but that doesn't seem to help. I have cut out frutis and vegtables because they are gassy, but that doesn't help. Basically no matter what I try or do, nothing helps.

I look for suggestions anywhere I can find them. My next step is to talk to my ob-gyn and see if there are some tests I should have done to rule out anything. If you have any comments, I would love to hear them.

ak_in_ak

I would look at the similarities between the WW and south beach. What all diets have in common is that you are creating a calorie deficit, so if you are doing that you should lose weight. I felt like I knew a lot about food, I was eating all the right stuff but wasn't losing weight. Then I got a food scale and it all came together! I also started tracking my sodium and lost pounds of retained water! Anyways, it is hard to say what is happening but really take a hard look at what you are eating and how much. I would also recommend checking out the movie Fat, Sick, and Nearly dead.

hbrittingham

A couple of things. I used to have a very bloated stomach, and not all because I was fat, but I found it was because I couldn't tolerate a lot of yeast. I was a beer drinker back then, so I stopped drinking beer, avoided things that are extremely high in yeast, such as bakery bagels and donuts (people used to bring them into the office all the time, well, actually still do, but since I don't eat them, I don't notice). You might want to see if that's your issue. I used to get horrible heartburn after I ate things high in yeast, too.

Second is that I want to address the "lifestyle change" comment. A lifestyle change isn't a short term fix. It's something you have to be committed to. You don't go on and off a lifestyle change, you don't decide that you're tired of the lifestyle change and you don't cheat on your lifestyle change. It's a commitment for life.

Good luck!

mea9

sugar. Too much sugar for too long changes the bacteria in your digestive system. You can just really cut back on sugar (even in fruit). There is a product called yeast buster you can get at the healthfood store. It helps really fast although you should be warned there is a "detox" period of up to a few weeks when you feel like crap.

Coffee may be bugging you too. A lot of people are VERY sensitive to it.

You need your veggies though. Try them lightly steamed rather than raw or fried or even baked.

Good Luck!

teachfl2

I have been trying to lower my sodium intake by not eating out too much, using Mrs. Dash, and I always drink tons of water. The yeast could be why I lost a ton of weight on South Beach because I didn't have any bread for two weeks. But it was so miserable!

As for the lifestyle change comment- here is what I meant. I get that a lifestyle change is long term. What I meant was...I have tried things that I can change for life, not just for a quick diet. Things such as drinking water, eating wheat instead of white, eating baked instead of fried, eating more fruits and vegtables. Things that would be for the long haul instead of for a "diet" per se.

I also forgot to add that I was previously diagnosed by two gastroenterologists with having IBS. But I know people who have IBS that are able to lose weight with exercise and eating right.

mea9

It does sound like you have a problem with yeast. It's not just about bread. Sugar feeds the yeast which then grows in your digestives system. As the yeast digests it's own food it produces gas. You aren't getting all your nutrients (yeast is eating it) so you eat more and have cravings to accomodate that. It's a really vicious cycle. Once you kill back the yeast (you need some) you will feel much MUCH better. Just a guess - you might be having some trouble in the bathroom and be a bit itchy?? Google it.

PamelaRose88

I know a lady who literally would have 2 bites of food and her stomach would be so bloated it was unbelievable! (She is a very tall, thin woman). She tried many different things and had many different tests done, but her doctors never did figure it out! She started to try alternative health products and she ended up finding that hemp seeds really helped! She said she made smoothies with it and put it in yogurt etc.

Good luck on finding something to help!

teachfl2

Thanks for the suggestions. I don't think I have looked into yeast allergy before, but I googled some info and I sure do have alot of them. The problem it seems with digestive issues is the symptoms can overlap at times. It's really is hard, but you have to try something and then rule it out. I'm going to give it a try and see how I feel after a week or so. At this point I am desperate for a cure!

gdortiz

not sure what you can do with your bloating problems, I feel for you though. good luck.

don't worry about dieting, life style change, nothing dramatic like that.

what i would do is work hard to determine your ideal weight. what do you want to weight?

determine how many calories you have to eat to maintain your ideal weight, and start eating that amount until you get to your ideal weight.

i am sure that during that process of eating the calories of your ideal weight you will have an "ah ha" moment and realize exaclty how much in excess you were eating at your un-ideal weight.

diets are band aids, you need to reteach your self exaclty what your food limits are.

i got this philosopy from this blog:

http://www.debramoorhead.com/blog/index.php/how-i-lost-25-pounds-in-one-month/

WiiFitFan

Try some probiotics. They may do the trick to get your stomach flora correct.

teachfl2

I've tried Align but it made me more bloated! The lady at the health food store said to try Saccharomyces Boulardi. At this point, like I said, I am desperate and will try anything!