Inability to lose weight/slow weight loss and weight gain

Istanforshoes
Istanforshoes Posts: 1
in Motivation and Support
Hello,

It has taken me (with a very limited carb diet) nearly a year to lose about 25 lbs.
I barely see a difference in my body, I still wear the same pant size :(

Now, juxtaposing this with the effort that I put in this is extraordinarily slow. I have been to doctors and they claim there is nothing wrong with my thyroid, although the normal test results are highly disputed in the medical community.

In the last week I went from ~85 kilo to 83.7 kilo. This is profound for me in a short period of time (~2 days) the day after I weighed myself I ate the same thing that I had for the days prior, ~1500 calories, didn't workout (so no muscle building), and gained 2 kilos.

I figured it might have been bloat so I didn't panic. I drank a lot of water and took a couple of diurex. It has now been 4 days of eating low calorie, cardio, and drinking lots of water and I haven't gotten the weight down. I am going nuts. I certainly didn't eat 7000 calories in one day. What is going on????

I have lost 25 lbs and I feel huge. Just as fat as I did when I started.

What should I do? What could be causing me to lose weight so slowly (I mean, literally I will lose a pound, gain .7, lose .3, gain .1, lose .5..... Etc)? What is causing the sudden weight gain?

Replies

  • Jmchao
    Jmchao Posts: 27 Member
    I wish I could help, but I'm in the same boat. "Eat less than you burn" they say. "Eat more, you're starving your body" they say. "Eat less" they say. "Exercise more" they say. "Drink more water" they say. "Be honest and measure everything" they say.

    Been there, done that, doing that, and still have gained a total of 8 pounds in less than 2 months. I posted something similar a couple of weeks ago and no ideas. I am scheduling an appt with my doctor as I do know I have an underactive thyroid, so am going to have all that checked again to see if any changes need to be made. Otherwise, I'm at just as confused as you are.

    If you find an answer, I'd be curious to know!! Good luck on your journey.
  • trying18
    trying18 Posts: 14 Member
    ladies , misery loves company. i am in the same boat. Posted about this and did not get an answer. if you find anything that works let me know
  • MissAmber215
    MissAmber215 Posts: 14 Member
    I feel your "pain". A few things I have done in the past 4 months is completely changed my diet and work out plan. More fruits and veggies, lean protein (chicken breast, tuna (white albacore in water), white fish (tilapia, whiting), salmon. I also cut out a lot of salt, NO sugar, subsititutes like Splenda are good. Whole grains brown rice, green veggies are a great source of fiber and iron, skim milk, as well as other yummy things. My workout consists of at the least 30-60 minutes of cardio 5 days a week. And lots of water. Decaf green tea is good also. Add me as a friend I like seeing everyone's positivity and progress. Hopefully this helped out a little bit. Good luck!!
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,148 Member
    When I have mystery weight gain (not overeating, exercising, watching sodium, etc.) for no logical reason, I blame it on being female and the whole estrogen thing. I'm just coming down from a 3 week gainfest that happens about every 4 months.
  • Tonnina
    Tonnina Posts: 979 Member
    I've been in the same boat before. I have found that changing your diet can help as well as changing your workouts. I've dropped a few lbs after a stall by lowering my sodium intake. At another time I lost 10lbs by flowing just the dietary part of the Atkin's diet for a month (That was about all I could take of that! More power to those who can pull that one off!!)
    I have also been told that as you lose weight you might want to visit a Chiropractor for an adjustment. Your body is changing in more ways than you think and sometimes it needs a little help... Even if you don't feel sore!!
  • pittbullgirl
    pittbullgirl Posts: 341 Member
    OP-Have them recheck for anything metabolic going on with you. You may have to fight them for it and insurance may not cover it so be pre paired for that.

    Also, If you open your diary I can take a peek if you want....maybe see something your not?
  • evereves
    evereves Posts: 9 Member
    You may want to consider alternative measurements such as waist/hip ratio etc as opposed to just weight. If you're exercising regularly you will also be gaining muscle - weighs more than fat but added bonus of increasing your metabolic rate.
  • rainavsfood
    rainavsfood Posts: 79 Member
    What kind of workouts are you doing?
  • ncthomas09
    ncthomas09 Posts: 322 Member
    OP are you having your primary care physician test your thyroid or an endocrinologist? I ask because I had my primary check and he said I was fine, wound up in the Specialists office for a different reason and brought up thyroid while I was there. He retested (blood work followed by a thyroid uptake and scan) and I have Grave's disease and I am on an anti-thyroid drug. I have been hunting down this thyroid issue for a good 10 years and each time it was my primary that said I was fine but the specialist was the one who told me primaries don't do all the correct blood work all the time.
  • MrsGriffin67
    MrsGriffin67 Posts: 485 Member
    You and I sound like we have the exact same problem. No matter what I do I cannot seem to lose. Eat more, eat less. Exercise more, exercise less. I does not seem to matter. Same thing about the thyroid. I am at my wits end. I have an appointment on Tuesday with a weight loss doctor. I will let you know how that goes.
  • prattiger65
    prattiger65 Posts: 1,657 Member
    I don't mean to be insensitive, but if you create a calorie deficit you will lose weight. How you do that is a more personal issue. If you are gaining weight, you are consuming a surplus of calories. When the advice is "eat more" it is generally because the person is on a VLCD and their body is holding on to fat, it's a metabolic thing. So if you are netting less than 1200 and not losing, I would say to eat more in general. Be very precise about your logging and if you are not at very low calorie, start reducing 100 calories, wait 2 weeks see what happens. No movement up or down, congrats, you found your maintenance. Reduce 15-20% and you should begin dropping. Don't over think it and don't give up! Keep trying different things until you find one that works.
  • kristyb1982
    kristyb1982 Posts: 21 Member
    To the OP, please have your doctor check your hormone levels. It was a great suggestion above to see a specialist for more precise testing on your thyroid levels. When I started my journey in April of last year, I was losing 8-10 lbs a month. I went off of birth control for other reasons and my weight loss stopped. I could literally not lose another ounce. I have done everything. We finally discovered in March that the birth control had been managing my PCOS. Now I am being treated for that and insulin resistance, which often go hand in hand. It is NOT as simple as calories in < calories out for everyone. Please don't give up!
  • ncthomas09
    ncthomas09 Posts: 322 Member
    To the OP, please have your doctor check your hormone levels. It was a great suggestion above to see a specialist for more precise testing on your thyroid levels. When I started my journey in April of last year, I was losing 8-10 lbs a month. I went off of birth control for other reasons and my weight loss stopped. I could literally not lose another ounce. I have done everything. We finally discovered in March that the birth control had been managing my PCOS. Now I am being treated for that and insulin resistance, which often go hand in hand. It is NOT as simple as calories in < calories out for everyone. Please don't give up!

    A lot of things go hand in hand like that. I had gone to my specialist for reactive hypoglycemia which can be caused by thyroid issues. So now not only am I watching calories but I really really have to stay on top of protein to ensure that my blood sugar doesn't drop too low. I had also been having chest pain, found out it's from my heart murmur which can also be linked into the thyroid. Who knew one little thing could be such a booger!
  • tandtam
    tandtam Posts: 8 Member
    i've lost 29 pounds since jan 2nd, slow but steady. I've been doing herbalife. and god knows, i've tried each and every diet and personal trainer there is but herbalife is the best one thus far. I drank aloe for good digestion, tea for boost of energy and two shakes as meal replacements. I'm not as sucesful as my friends because i do have a weakness for sweets however i've been consistent. i started at 226 and now im 197. I've been trying to get under 200 for the last 14 years. I DID IT!!! So now, I've started excersing more, treat my self to sweets about twice a week (wow) what a change but once you see results you will tell yourself, yes this possible. I use to have restless nights--now I sleep ALL NIGHT LONG!!! so just stay focused, throw away ALL BAD FOODS in your house. that stuff will only tempt you. you can do it, we are in it together for life!!!

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