Another Newbie - San Jose, CA
myalienbody
Posts: 15 Member
Oops...apparently I posted my 'intro' onto someone's post by mistake. Sorry! Here it is again below...I'm new at this...sort of....
Hi! I'm new to myfitnesspal (a new fitbit owner as well), diagnosed with Celiac about 5 months ago (never doing an upper endoscopy again...like, ever) and a thyroid cancer survivor. My ability to lose weight plummeted after thyroid removal, despite thyroid hormone medication, so this is my last stand! Everyone I know who went gluten free dropped oodles of weight. Me? Over 7 months and only down 20 pounds. It is an achievement, I recognize that...but it has taken Herculean efforts to drop that weight. I'm using my fitbit and myfitnesspal to get an accurate picture of what I'm doing (or not doing). So, here I am! :-)
Hi! I'm new to myfitnesspal (a new fitbit owner as well), diagnosed with Celiac about 5 months ago (never doing an upper endoscopy again...like, ever) and a thyroid cancer survivor. My ability to lose weight plummeted after thyroid removal, despite thyroid hormone medication, so this is my last stand! Everyone I know who went gluten free dropped oodles of weight. Me? Over 7 months and only down 20 pounds. It is an achievement, I recognize that...but it has taken Herculean efforts to drop that weight. I'm using my fitbit and myfitnesspal to get an accurate picture of what I'm doing (or not doing). So, here I am! :-)
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I'm new too, to GF, though not to MFP. I am not diagnosed Celiac, but my daughter and I are trying GF for a couple of weeks to see how we do. I am hypothyroid too, so there's that hurdle to overcome. Thankfully, I've been able to lose well doing intermittent fasting. I'm in central California. Welcome!0
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Wecome to the message board! I was diganosed Celiac in August of 2012. Since then, I've lost 45 lbs. I think what helps is I don't try and substitute foods I can no longer eat. Since most bread is made of wheat, I just stopped eating it. Gluten free bread still has many of the carbs of the orginial. Same with pastas. When I need filler, I use wild or brown rice, and even then, just a cup. I don't have issues with my thyroid, but I do have diabeties and lactose-intolerant. I have to eat constantly, even when I'm not hungry.
One of the things I did in the beginning was to eat my dinner in reverse. Meaning, I eat my veggies first, then my proteins, and I would become more full before I reached the rice. When making your plate, try putting over half of it as fresh or steamed veggies (I'm partial to the frozen Steamfresh I can shove into the microwave).
Not full yet? Well you're not really supposed to be full. Full means you probably should have stopped eating about 5 minutes ago. Drink some water -- 8oz. or more. Wait about 20 minutes. Are you still hungry? Eat a cup of yogurt, a handful of nuts, a piece of fruit, or the rest of the veggies from your Steamfresh package.
By the way, I'm the laziest dieting person that I know. Most everyone spends hours in the gym and I don't do anything past walk my dogs. I don't even count it as exercise because I know my heart rate isn't increasing.
As I type this, I've been working on eating 2 carrots that are chopped up into 1" pieces in a Rubbermaid container. It's taken me almost 20 minutes. I don't let my stomach go empty, therefor I never feel the urge to go running off to the vending machine of death. I can carry cash safely past a soda machine and not look at it twice.
Good luck!0 -
Hi! Yeah, I do the same thing...still weight loss is extremely slow for me. When I went totally gluten free about 5 months ago I cut out all the things I used to eat and did NOT replace them with GF products. I decided I wanted to cut those gut busters out of my diet. The only thing I do buy, which I eat maybe twice a month, is GF pasta. My stomach can't handle the GF breads anyway. I stay away from cakes, cookies, muffins...all baked goods. Once a month I buy GF cookies from my local market - 6 to carton and then I'm done. I don't eat much rice either - white or brown. I've drastically cut my carbs, I eat lots of veggies. I don't eat a lot of dairy products either. I know how to eat, what to eat, etc...I know all the 'right' things to do, but my body does not cooperate. It's very frustrating. Weight loss is not impossible, it is just very very slow.0
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Hi! Wow, you've lost 115 pounds? That is fantastic! I just recently finished reading _Wheat Belly_. I totally recommend it. If I didn't have Celiac, I'd be considering going gluten free (or at least Wheat free). The terrible stomach issues, fatigue and joint pain went away shortly after I stopped eating all gluten. It was amazing. Good luck to you!0
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Yep, I've lost 115 and couldn't be happier. I'm about a third of the way through Wheat Belly now, and that's what led to the decision to try GF for a bit. I have been substituting GF breads and cookies for my daughter, but not for me, though I'll probably have them sometimes just because I'm not trying to lose any more weight and I want toast or bagels once in a while.0
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Yep, I've lost 115 and couldn't be happier. I'm about a third of the way through Wheat Belly now, and that's what led to the decision to try GF for a bit. I have been substituting GF breads and cookies for my daughter, but not for me, though I'll probably have them sometimes just because I'm not trying to lose any more weight and I want toast or bagels once in a while.
That's fantastic! Congratulations! I very rarely eat GF substitute products, because my body doesn't seem to like too much of the alternative flours, but an occasional treat is divine! :-) I'm trying to figure out how to reply properly to a specific comment...I'm trying the 'quote' feature to see if I get it right this time.0 -
I'm also in the bay! I live in Fremont and work in SJ! I have hypothyroidism caused by Hashimoto's. I went to see a holistic nutritionist in December, and she immediately suggested that I do a 30 day elimination of gluten, dairy, corn, soy, eggs, and nightshades to test for food intolerances. We decided from the beginning that I was going to be gluten free forever and avoid corn and soy as much as possible. When I started testing the other foods, it turns out that I am also highly intolerant to eggs and some nightshades make the arthritis in my knees flare up.
It was such an eye opening experience! Things that I loved to eat were hurting me, and I feel so much better now that I have cut them out. I am 30 days in to a 90 day fitness challenge with my friends, so I'm not weighing myself until the end, but I know I have lost. In 5 weeks, I've lost several inches, 3% of my body fat, and my friends and coworkers have been commenting on my weight loss. My pants are so big that I can pull them on and off without unbuttoning them!
I would recommend picking up "The Virgin Diet" by J.J. Virgin. It sort of simply breaks down the science behind it. Essentially, if you have an auto immune condition that makes you intolerant to something, it could absolutely mean you are intolerant to more. I started a blog about my situation, and you can find it at www.realliferealfood.com0 -
I'm also in the bay! I live in Fremont and work in SJ! I have hypothyroidism caused by Hashimoto's. I went to see a holistic nutritionist in December, and she immediately suggested that I do a 30 day elimination of gluten, dairy, corn, soy, eggs, and nightshades to test for food intolerances. We decided from the beginning that I was going to be gluten free forever and avoid corn and soy as much as possible. When I started testing the other foods, it turns out that I am also highly intolerant to eggs and some nightshades make the arthritis in my knees flare up.
It was such an eye opening experience! Things that I loved to eat were hurting me, and I feel so much better now that I have cut them out. I am 30 days in to a 90 day fitness challenge with my friends, so I'm not weighing myself until the end, but I know I have lost. In 5 weeks, I've lost several inches, 3% of my body fat, and my friends and coworkers have been commenting on my weight loss. My pants are so big that I can pull them on and off without unbuttoning them!
I would recommend picking up "The Virgin Diet" by J.J. Virgin. It sort of simply breaks down the science behind it. Essentially, if you have an auto immune condition that makes you intolerant to something, it could absolutely mean you are intolerant to more. I started a blog about my situation, and you can find it at www.realliferealfood.com
I'll check out the book...and your blog! I blog as well, but...it's random and odd stuff, sometimes food. :-)
I suspect I'm sensitive to corn as well, because I react to foods that are heavy with it...like gluten free cornbread and mixes. I didn't eliminate any of the other triggers, like eggs/soy/etc...but it probably isn't a bad idea to do so! Where in San Jose do you work? I live out by the Capitol Automall.0 -
Soy is actually really harmful to the thyroid, so it is good practice to just avoid it as much as possible. I will also be honest and say that the elimination was not as hard as I thought it would be. I like smoothies for breakfast, and then I really just focus on a protein, a healthy fat, and a veggie at my other meals. It was only 30 days, and besides being frustrated a couple of times that I couldn't just pick up dinner, I never felt deprived.
I work right by the Plant, so not too far from you!0 -
Are you eating several GF products a day? That could be why the weight isn't coming off as fast. We pay more for it, money and calorie wise!0
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Soy is actually really harmful to the thyroid, so it is good practice to just avoid it as much as possible. I will also be honest and say that the elimination was not as hard as I thought it would be. I like smoothies for breakfast, and then I really just focus on a protein, a healthy fat, and a veggie at my other meals. It was only 30 days, and besides being frustrated a couple of times that I couldn't just pick up dinner, I never felt deprived.
I work right by the Plant, so not too far from you!
You ARE close! I live off Foxworthy & Almaden Expressway. Our favorite place to walk is Communications Hill, because of the hills! Great cardio!0 -
Are you eating several GF products a day? That could be why the weight isn't coming off as fast. We pay more for it, money and calorie wise!
I rarely eat processed GF products. I don't even bake anymore, so I'm not using alternate flours and such. Nope, my metabolism tanked when my thyroid was removed. It's been really hard to lose weight. it's very frustrating. However, losing weight isn't impossible, so that's why I'm stepping up my game!0 -
Hi everyone,I am gluten free because I am gluten intolerent, not celiac. I am also vegan. How's that for a challange!!! I am also in Santa Clara County!0
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Hello!
I also have thyroid fun times! I have hypothyroidism and no doctor has been able to identify why -- I don't have hashimoto's or cancer, just a slow *kitten* thyroid. What's your TSH? What does you doctor want it to be? I found that one doctor wasn't up on the newest research on the ideal TSH level so I switched to a new one that was cool with increasing my synthroid. I know there are other medicines that some hyperthyroidism-ers have had better success with as well.
That being said! I totally understand how slow the weight loss process is. I sometimes hate MFP for telling me that I will have lost 15 lbs in 5 weeks if I eat what I ate today because I know that is simply not true for me. I do try to look at the other heath effects that working out and eating better have done for me -- like my HCL is up 10 points in the last year. I think it just helps with the mental part of having hyperthyroidism. I may still have a fat *kitten*, but my heart is healthier.
I also rarely eat GF processed foods. I will maybe once or twice a month do a pasta of some sort, same as you. Maybe once a month we'll make a GF pizza (but ourselves, not a store bought crust.) For the most part, I also have just cut out gluten foods, not replaced them.
Feel free to friend me if you'd like -- I keep my diary open to my friends. Good luck with everything!0 -
Welcome
I was recently diagnosed with Celiac as well about 2 months ago. My hubby has Medullary Thyroid Cancer (MEN 2A Ret 609 Mutation) his is genetic so 2 out of our 4 kids have it as well. They have had their thyroids removed as well. The hubby is struggling with weight as well since his was removed. Just take one day at a time you will get there. 0
