28yr old Army wounded can't be active

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mverardo82
mverardo82 Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi All, I have been doing MFP for a few months and am looking for some advice. I was wounded in Afghanistan while serving with the Army which resulted in limb loss. Due to the nature of my injuries and continued surgeries I am not able to participate in activities with the exception of swimming. However due to upcoming surgery I will be out of the water for about a month. I've put on 50 pounds since being hurt and in a wheelchair and despite following a pretty good diet can't seem to take the weight off. Looking for any suggestions for weight loss without much exercise. Thank you

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  • Healthy_TJ
    Healthy_TJ Posts: 11
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    Hi! First off thank you so much for serving our country. I do not understand and probably never will, but I thank you for your commitment to serve our country. Thank you for putting your life on the line always. Thank you so much!

    As far as weight loss goes- it really is calories in verse calories out. Are you able to do some punching- that is an EASY way to raise your heart rate without using your lower body or running , etc. Are you eating at a deficit?
  • mverardo82
    mverardo82 Posts: 2
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    Thank you very much. I lost my left leg and about 1/2 of my left arm so I don't know if I can punch. I should look into that, that's a good idea. I'm eating about 1800 calories a day but think that I am used to a lot more so feel hungry a lot.
  • kavanaghev
    kavanaghev Posts: 75 Member
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    As far as a diet/not feeling hungry on 1800 cals, I would try to focus on protein at every meal. I run and lift and I am ravenous constantly, even at 2500 cals per day, but I feel LESS ravenous when I am good about my protein intake. Since your body and activity level will not likely be accounted for in typical calculators, I would consider getting a heart rate monitor or bodymedia or something (perhaps someone else may be able to recommend a specific product) so that you can track your calories/activity level to be sure you are both eating enough to fuel your body and creating a caloric deficit in order to lose weight.

    A good friend of mine also lost a leg and an arm and he uses resistance bands to do strength training. Have you tried this outside of physical therapy? He's ripped as hell, but his injury was several years ago. He can run now with the help of a prosthetic, but he does not do cardio at all.

    Thank you for your service!

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