Hypothyroidism and frustrated

ercarnes

I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism around September 2011. I have only lost 9 lbs. I lose then I gain. It is a constant struggle to get this weight off. I am on Synthroid .125 and my TSH is .03. I am should be losing but not happing. Not sure if I should change my medicine or not. I eat a low carb diet with eating only 1300 calories a day. Interested in what anyone else with hypothyroidism has to say or your experience. Also friend request me.

fittocycle

Hi! I'm on .50 of Synthroid for hypothyroidism. I tend to lose much better if I eat a very clean diet. No processed foods and lots of whole grains. Also, exercise seems to be the key-especially weight training! I don't know if that helped at all but I wish you luck in your weight loss journey!:flowerforyou:

lizard053

I'm hypo too. While my TSH was around 0.02 I was having a HORRIBLE time losing. We actually decreased my thyroid meds and now I'm starting to drop again. I use Armour now. I was using Synthroid (generic) as well, but my doctor finally got rid of it.
Low carb and low fat is the only way I lose. It's horribly frustrating. I managed to lose a lot of weight before I was diagnosed, it took about a year to lose 50. But I've gained it all back, twice. Never got heavier than I was before I started at least.
There are a couple of Thyroid related groups here. The one on hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism is fairly active.

ranobles

Have your heard of Shakeology? I have heard of others with the same condition as you that use this product to help them with losing weight and from feeling fatigued.

tekwriter

Hi, I was diagnosed several years ago with hypothyroid. I never lost either. I keep my numbers slighty hyper, just over the edge not in a dangerous zone. I work with my Dr. I take 188 of syntrhoid name brand every day. I went on weight watchers last summer and lost 44 pounds. I was surprised almost every week because I expected a gain. Use a healthy diet and stick with it. It will work, and it doesn't start talk to your Dr. I keep logs of my meal plans or blood sugar, diabetic also, and I take these to my Dr. and she works with me on what to change. Good luck!!

ForeverChasingTheSunsets

I also suffer from hypothyroidism and am on 125mcg synthroid. Since early September, my scale has not moved... 1lb up and 1lb down.... every week. Frustrating!

MammaC66

I also have hypothyroidism, and have had for many years. As long as your levels are right, and it looks like they are, you should be able to lose weight just fine. I don't know what your weight is, but I took a peak at your diary and noticed two things. One is that you don't seem to be logging consistently, and the other is that your calories are set really high. If I were you, I would try to be really consistent and drop your calories to around 1500 or 1600 and see how you do there. You can always go up or down from there. I wish you the best. I don't give much advice on here, but I really want you to succeed. You can send me a friend request if you like.

happycauseIride

I will send you a friend request. I have been Hypo since 2006. I am on 125 mcg of Levothyroxine. It sucks. I gain weight just by looking at a piece of bread or anything with sugar.

A few things that I have found that have been working for me are to do away with diet pop and anything with Aspertame. I will use Splenda occasionally, but Aspertame causes puffiness and water retention.
I also will still eat carbs, but seem to lose better when I limit them at night. I eat my carbs at breakfast and lunch and try not to them at night. I can't always do that, but it works better if I do. I may eat a sweet potato when the rest of the family eats a baked potato. Or make hamburgers and not eat the bun and salad instead of the fries.
Lastly, exercise is crucial. Our metabolism doesn't work very well so we need to work twice as hard and other people. Cardio and weights both. It is a must.

I'm no expert by any means, but these are a few of the things that I have found that work for me. I lost 70 pounds in 2005 doing this, but exercised like crazy, got burned out and quit. Gained all 70, plus 50 more. It's a never ending battle that can't be cured with meds. We have to do the work.

gypsyeyesforyou

I also have hypothyroidism. Have had it since I was 19 and I am 37 now. My levels were always good until the past year and 1/2 and they started going crazy. Up and down and I ended up going to a specialist about it. We finally got it under control. Here are a few things I learned from the ordeal: 1) a low TSH does not necessarily mean you should be losing weight. I thought the same thing. In fact, when I was younger, I would even double my intake of my synthroid thinking it would make me lose weight. If your numbers are not in range, you won't be able to lose. 2) Never take the weight loss product Plexus Slim. I believe this may have been a factor in my fluctuating numbers. I only realized this recently when I read a review and it said there is a mineral in Plexus Slim that can cause inaccurate readings in thyroid tests. 3) I know your doctor tells you this, but I never took it seriously. Take your medicine first thing in the morning on an empty stomach! No coffee with it either! Okay...with all that said, I will share how I was able to lose weight. May or may not work for you but I had tried all kinds of diets that never worked. I was 210 lbs when I started and ended up at 155 in about two months. Now, I have begun the diet again and in a week am down to 149. I went on the Atkins diet. But rather than only staying on the introduction phase where you take in NO carb for two weeks, I kept on that part of it the whole time. Now, I know a lot of people don't like the Atkins diet, but all I am saying is that it helped me when nothing else would. Good luck with whatever you try!

butterfly10398

there are a list of foods that you should stay away from with having hypothyroidism, which include spinach, kale, mustard greens, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli and turnips, fried vegetables, stay away from gluten, also try to avoid foods that have added sugars, that are bad for you, including foods that contain corn syrup, also stay away from products that contain soy, peaches, peanuts and strawberries...

I have read up a LOT on hypothyroidism as I am managing mine without the aid of synthroid or any other kind of prescription medicines. there are a multitude of articles online that are helpful. here is one of the few.

http://www.womentowomen.com/hypothyroidism/foods-naturalthyroidhealth.aspx

Lesa_Sass

there are a list of foods that you should stay away from with having hypothyroidism, which include spinach, kale, mustard greens, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli and turnips, fried vegetables, stay away from gluten, also try to avoid foods that have added sugars, that are bad for you, including foods that contain corn syrup, also stay away from products that contain soy, peaches, peanuts and strawberries...

I have read up a LOT on hypothyroidism as I am managing mine without the aid of synthroid or any other kind of prescription medicines. there are a multitude of articles online that are helpful. here is one of the few.

http://www.womentowomen.com/hypothyroidism/foods-naturalthyroidhealth.aspx

HOLY COW that is most of my diet.

I am on 100 Synthroid and could not lose to where I wanted to be until I upped my calories to 1400. Made my goal weight and up to 1500, lost 4 more pounds. Upped to 1600 and lost 3 more before I got to 1700 plus exercise calories. You may need to eat more to boost your metabolism, I know for a fact it worked for me.

I mean, its worth a try isnt it? Put away the scale for 3 weeks and try eating more calories, but in saying that, add some low glycemic index foods like a sweet potato or qunioa. I promise it works, it really does. The hardest part for me was wrapping my head around it, but after I did, I will never look back. I am 44, 5"3.5' and lost it at around .5 lbs a week at 1400 and then .8 at 1500 so that is proof enough right there that it works.

Good luck!

reesiehen1

You are NOT alone. I am in the same boat. I am doing a lot of research on my own because when I went to see an endocrinologist and also a dietitian, I am extremely disappointed with these trained professionals treating me/us like a number and not looking into what we can and should be trying. Anyway, I have been doing A LOT of research and there are lists of foods that we can eat and others we need to avoid. I have made myself a list of the foods I saw on multiple lists. Some main foods to stay away from are Soy (as a condiment every so often is not a problem) but they don't suggest the soy proteins, soy beans, and Soy Family items; Spinach, Broccoli/Cauliflower/Mustard Greens/Kale/and other Cabbage Family Foods, Peanuts, Peaches, Pears, Strawberries, and Sweet Potato and Artificial sweeteners (have a piece of fruit instead or sugar in the raw). There are more and not sure what you like to regularly eat, so I would say trying some searches like "Pears and Hypothyroidism" or "Eating for Hypothyroidism." I JUST started this change, but I do feel like my digestion seems to be better. I was having spinach and broccoli all the time. It is suggested 1-2 times a week and cooked when we do eat it.

Good Foods listed are Brazil Nuts (LOVE THEM), chicken, salmon, Dairy, Garlic, Salt Water Fish...and so on. Also saw suggested that the Paleo diet and Gluten Free could help us as well, not just as someone selling the idea but because it is supposed to be good for our diagnosis (again, I suggest searching "Hypothyroidism and Paleo" and such.

I like to do BeachBody workouts at home, working on Turbo Fire right now, and I have been interested in Shakeology so I searched that and Hypo, and I found a list on my Beachbody site that there are so many more out there just like us and facing the same frustrations, working our butts off with no change. Some are able to tone but not loose the pounds on the scale. I tend to have that problem as well, but it takes A LOT of work and I still want to loose the pounds so you can see the tone under it. (I swear its there, hah!)

I hope this helps, I know it doesn't help us loose the weight, but it does help me feel better to not be so alone. GOOD LUCK!!!!!

reesiehen1

MammaC66- You are lucky that has worked for you. My levels are regularly great, I am on synthroid, and I still have issues with loosing weight. No issue with gaining unless I eat bad things, but the numbers never move for me, up or down. That's what makes it so frustrating, I work out everyday, eat clean, and bloodwork comes back normal. I have now looked into foods to avoid and foods to focus on, Paleo, and Gluten Free, and hoping that helps make the changes needed.

I have recently met others that have had the same issue, its apparently more normal for hypothyroid to have that problem then I knew when I was diagnosed 3 years ago.

Psychgrrl

Hang in there reesiehen! Contrary to popular belief, and sadly many docs, the pills are not magic. Taking them helps, but a synthetic metabolism is not the same as a real one. It's not take-a-pill-and-everything-goes-back-to-normal. Mine went downhill fast. I gained about 90 pounds. I had a GREAT doctor who really took the time to work with me and listen to how I was feeling. Personally, I do better at the lower end of the normal range. And my docs have been will to work with that instead of settling for a technically normal number.

One of the most common side effects is weight gain.

I found food choices made a big difference. Clean eating makes a difference for me, as does weightlifting.

You can also ask your doctor about cytomel. It's a T3 (synthroid/levoxyl are a T4). Instead of just testing for TSH, your doc can also test for free T3 and free T4. Your body converts T4 to T3. Well, it's supposed to. Mine sucks at it, apparently. I take 15 mg of cytomel per day along with my levoxyl 88.

Medical opinions are mixed on T3 therapy. More so than a huge change in TSH, many patients in the studies cited a better quality of life.

bethfor

I was struggling with the same problem about a year ago. I was very diligent with logging my foods and staying at a 1300 calorie diet, and adding a 200 calorie shake the days I was doing heavy workouts. I lost only a few pounds doing this for over 8 months. I got very frustrated! I did some research and decided to try gluten free. Because this was hard for me initially, I stopped counting calories so I only had to focus on one thing at a time. I didn't lose from this (but did greatly reduce my migraines) so I have recently started back counting calories again along with the gluten free. I also got a FitBit One to monitor my actual calorie burning. It has only been 8 days, but I have lost 2 pounds. I will try to keep you updated to my progress.

YouCanSuceed

Hi everyone. I can totally understand your frustration. I personally do not have any thyroid issues, but I am working on losing weight\getting healthy just like everyone else. I've been wanting to join My Fitness Pal for a while and finally did. I am on this thread because I wanted to offer any help I could if anyone is interested in Shakeology, as I am a Beachbody Coach. I promise I won't bother anyone or try to sell anyone anything they are not interested in. Just wanted to give some information about Shakeology if anyone would like to know. It works to help every system in the body and truly is the "Healthiest Meal of the Day."

00NL

i lost 48 pounds in 5 months. 198-150 and i am 5'4.3. now want to go from 150 to 110.
what i think is there is really no suggestion that one hypothyroid can give to another.
i find some people losing very easily, easily, moderate, difficult, very difficult.
So with thyroid yo can never have any ranges or levels which can trigger losses. i think medical science would have found such ranges.
so take your medicines, get tests done, and keep trying may be you can get there.
& dont starve yourselves. it would hurt more than helping.
---My close one is a doctor $ she told me you cant lose a lot of weight with this condition.i mean you cant be very thin.
---$ as far as i remember before being hypothyroid i was a skinny underweight child and i became a balloon eating the same so it is really is out of our control.
--- some people may come $ say that there levels are fine and they are losing fine. still those levels may not help you lose weight so there is really no comparison.
it is overall a quite complicated gland and brings out a lot of complications.
----Maybe God wanted us to be this way. full of fat, less hair ,less energy----