Any one out loosing weight with Thyroid issues

I've been on thyroid medication for 20yrs. My weight has yoyo'd during this time but I think it had more to do with old bad eating habits than my thyroid

I've had a rough time- been on an ever increasing dose of Synthroid for ten years now- I finally got my endo to try Arour instead (for other hypo symptoms) and I'm hoping for better results... You can definitely lose weight, but ime, it takes a long time! The boards here are very helpful. Good luck!

I have been on .25 mcg of Synthroid for about 4 years. I noticed ever since then I have had a lot more trouble losing any weight. I am just a little over my BMI but I just seem to stay the same no matter what I do. It is frustrating.

I have been on thyroid medication three weeks now and I don’t see any big changes in the speed or amount in my weightless that I can attribute to the medicine.

I have been hypo all my 43 years! Losing weight is tough, keeping it off is even harder. But it can be done. As you have been advised, make sure your medication is accurate dosage. Also, get plenty of sleep but not too much, and exercise. Keep the calories down. I just had a simple metabolic test done, and that was interesting. Now I know my basal metabolic rate, it was very close to the BMR that I got using online calculators actually. I can say that I have lingering "issues" related to my congenital condition...an abdominal apron of sorts and some old "fat" lines on my neck. Those I have to learn to live with, but I can say that both areas look much better at a lower weight than they did when I let myself go.

Hang in there, good luck. Feel free to "friend" me if you want.

Well up until my thyroid took a crap and my medications needed to be re-adjusted to accommodate it (again) I lost 15 pounds. An underactive thyroid can make losing weight difficult but NOT impossible, as long as you are taking your medication and eating/exercising like normal you shouldn't have too many problems.

I have been on Thyroid medication for 11 years, my initial gain was because of my thyroid but in all honesty the reason it stayed on was because I was a lazy sack on the couch.

Here is a group you can sift through
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/753-hypothyroidism-and-hyperthyroidism

It took me 3 years to get where I am, hard work, and never giving up. A lot of exercise, eating less processed foods, eating more fruits veggies and lean meats. The occasional sweet and glass or two of wine. It can be done! I feel better now that I'm taking T3 with the synthroid and the weight is a little 'easier' to maintain, so maybe talk to your doc about that. Good Luck!

Me....most people do not so well on synthroud/t4 only meds. Most need t3 added to.their t4 meds or better yet, straight t3 or ndt which is t3/t4 combined. Visit stop the thyroid madness.com for lots of great info. For me staying away from sugar abd being lower carb helps. I did not lose all my weight that way, some initially was WW. Also if your not optimal in tour meds...you will have a hell of a time losing. You can not only go by blood work..also by how you feel. Your free t3 levels shoujd be near top of range and ft4 mud range....TSH is not the only test for thyroid..talk to your doc about some of the above.

Bump

As long as you are in a calorie deficit from your maintenance then you will lose weight, and yes you can keep it off. Takes hard work but it's possible

I've lost 37lbs since June and am on thyroid medications. I just do the same thing everyone else does to lose - eat less, move more and drink lots of water. There's nothing complicated to it.

Also, I eat 40% carbs/30% protein/30% fat, which I think helps a lot. You can look at my diary if you're interested.

My thyroid was diagnosed as being underactive about 15 years ago and it has got progressively worse. I am now over the recommended maximum dose of thyroxine daily. Since I started on mfp I have been astounded I have been able to lose weight as was told just to accept my weight and give up on trying to shift those pounds. It will probably come off slower than the average person but it is still possible, I am living proof. And I have been in a wheelchair the whole time due to ankle reconstruction so have shed the pounds with no exercise either! Stick with it and you will see results!

Just wondering how people loose weight with an under active thyroid and keep it off. I go up and down in weight like its nothing. Have been on a thyroid medicine for about 3 years and have ranged from the same 40lbs throughout the whole time.

Thanks
Amber

Yup, I've been on thyroid medicine since right before I started this journey a little over 3 years ago when I was still obese. I found that it was not a magic pill. I still had to do the hard work.

There is no mystery to weight loss, everyone thinks something is wrong, their metabolism is broken, they have low thyroid, they have menopause or whatever issue, they are as unique as a snowflake, whatever. I thought a lot of these things once too but once the doctor helped resolve the health issues for me I learned there is still no magic pill. Most people eat more than they need to and are not at good at estimating calories as they think they are. Most people have a lower BMR than they think they do. The only way to know for sure is to go to a lab and have it tested. It doesn't seem fair to have to eat less and feel a little hunger. It's hard to face the truth of it, very hard. It's not fun. It's drudgery at times. But if you learn to enjoy your smaller amounts of food (necessary to lose weight, since the reason we got fat in the first place was eating too much whether we knew it or not), and rejoice in your victories it can be done.

Your body loses weight in chunks, not linear. I have found that you can do everything right and your weight loss seems to plateau but if you are patient and keep exercising and eating at a deficit (however slight) you will lose it, it will suddenly "whoosh". There are so many variables for the scale; water retention, digestion, hormones, allergies, sodium, carbs, water intake, DOMS, inflammation, the list goes on. People mistakenly think they lose or gain weight when they eat more or less because of these fluctuations.

Losing weight requires tremendous patience. You will not lose it when you want it or where you want it. The body does its thing. Some apparent plateaus can last a month or so. You cannot make it happen faster. You must focus on two things; calories and exercise. Nothing else matters. Scales and metrics don't matter. The day in and day out grind of exercise and calories are all that matters. It is not very exciting until things fall into place. You get your victories and you ride one victory to the next.

The scale is a trend tool. The scale is good but put it away and only check once a week and only use it as a trend tool. It will fluctuate, it does not matter. Take front side and back progress pictures at least once a month. You will see differences that the metrics won't tell you and it's that little bit of NSV that will keep you going until the next victory.

If you plug in all your info (typically age, gender, height and weight) into one of those calculators what you get is the average metabolic rate of a group of people who share your age, sex, height and weight. What you DON’T get is YOUR EXACT calorie needs.

To say eat more is wrong.

To say eat less is wrong.

To find the exact calories needed for YOU to be in a healthy sustainable calorie deficit is the right answer. Wait, if you need to adjust by 100 do it, wait, adjust, wait, adjust, wait. The tortoise wins this race.

All that matters is calories. A healthy balanced diet within a calorie budget for a deficit that is right for YOU is all that matters for weight loss. Don't make it complicated.

Too many changes at once can be hard on some people. I've always eaten healthy so it easy for me to simply eat less. Eating at a calorie deficit is hard on people; even a small deficit puts your body in a state of flux with hormones and such. Everyone is different. Some people can handle a deeper calorie deficit than others, this is not right or wrong, it just is. Stress in your life affects your hunger hormones; lack of sleep, fatigue, job stress, family stress, financial stress, etc. Add in emotional eating issues and it gets even more complicated. Most people can only handle so much change/stress at once, they try to do too much and fail. Sometimes it might be a better strategy to eat at maintenance and make some small changes first, it really depends on how much stress you are taking in at the moment.

I've been taking 200 mcg levothyroxine for hypothyroidism (Hashimoto's Thyroiditis) since June of 1999. I'm also diabetic, have PCOS (poly cystic ovary syndrome) and a family history of obesity on both sides. I was also diagnosed with fibromyalgia a few years ago. All the odds seemed to have been stacked against me. But I believe that's all excuses to not reach our full and well deserved potential. Anyone who truly wants to lose the weight & get healthy will do so simply through educating themselves and being consistent and persistent with healthy eating and an exercise program. It's not rocket science but it does require a total commitment and a certain mindset. Best of luck to you.