What else besides diet and exercise?

leahhelene
leahhelene Posts: 18 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Background:
After 20+ years of dieting and exercise, I know the limitations of the success I can have and I am intimately familiar with my body's reaction (or lack of reacation) to every diet ever created. The best I've ever done is 1-2 pounds a month and it took me 9 months of total deprivation to lose 20 pounds.

The good news is, I neither gain or lose weight easily. I eat a healthier diet than anyone I know, and thankfully have no sweet tooth. There is no limit to my willpower. The bad news is I'm stuck at overweight. I became this way very slowly over a 30 year period, after starting out as a very skinny kid and young adult.

Question:
I cannot be the only person with this issue. Here is my question.... what beside or in addtion to diet and exercise has worked for you? I am totally confused by all the thyroid information/diet aids/pills/hormone therapy and up until now have resisted the temptation to try any - assuming mostly hype. Now I am ready to try something to rev up my efforts.

Has anyone found a secret weapon that works along with a very dedicated diet and exercise plan???? Please tell me what you know about any diet assistance products and therapies. How do they work? Do they work?

(Please do not say moer diet and exercise.... they do not work for me. I can give you a thousand examples of everything I've tried in those categories, but that is just BORING).

Replies

  • str8bowbabe
    str8bowbabe Posts: 712 Member
    My first suggestion...rule out thyroid problems. Talk to your doctor about it. Then add some weights if you do not lift already.
  • leahhelene
    leahhelene Posts: 18 Member
    funny you should say that. I have been "borderline" on my thyroid, but I know there is at least one expert out there that says not everyone's normal is normal. I think it really is my thyroid, so would be interested in also hearing from anyone who has gone down the road of trying to fix a thyroid when the standard test say you are "normal"?

    I will add weights. I need more strength anyway
  • maca416
    maca416 Posts: 142 Member
    Sounds like surgery might be your answer if you have tried everything else.

    I personally don't think surgery is a good idea as a first point of action to lose weight but if all else has failed & you really are on a good healthy diet but not loosing then there must come a point where your health will badly suffer if you stay overweight therefore surgery might be the only way forward.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    You say you eat healthy but do you track your food consistently? Your diary is private so I can't tell. Food tracking is one of the best tools in my opinion. You can still gain weight eating healthy food if you eat to much of it. Also, if you track, make sure you are measuring and weighing your food. It's not something that needs to be done all the time, but I think it's good for everyone to try. If you have no idea how much a proper serving actually is, you can't accurately track.

    Again, not sure what you're doing for exercise or how consistent you are. Are you doing the same thing all the time or mixing it up doing several different things? The body will adapt to a routine after some time so you need to make sure you're continually challenging yourself. If you walk, try walking faster or incorpirating more hills or do running intervals. And definitely do more strength training. It's not only good to maintain muscle mass as you lose weight, which helps burn calories at rest, but it is also very good for your bones.

    And I agree, if you think you're doing everything right then talk to your doctor about it. Get blood tests done to rule out of the usual suspencts and talk to him/her about any meds (Rx or OTC) you take that might be hindering your weight loss. And any suggestions for supplements that might help. And I'm not talking about diet pills but other healthy things that might help. For instance, my doctor told me a few years ago that some research indicates that fish oil can help you maintain a lower body weight along with all the other wonderful benefits.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    Getting enough sleep. Minimum of 7 hours, ideally at least 8 hours.

    Makes a huge difference in ... everything. I've backslid on my sleep hygiene and even though I've been trying to lose slowly again (after maintaining for awhile) I'm staying stable instead of losing.

    Sleep deprivation messes with cortisol, insulin levels, and ghrelin/leptin levels.

    http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/lack-of-sleep-weight-gain
    http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/18/lost-sleep-can-lead-to-weight-gain/

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