Not-so-success Story. In Need of Tips.
parvina
Posts: 28
I started my weight loss journey back in 2010 (97kg) and around April 2011 I was in my lowest (57.6 kg) that later on went up to 59kg which I managed to maintain for over a year. However, in summer 2012 I started slowly gaining weight. It would bump up overnight regardless on even harder dieting and increased exercise intensity. In May 2012 I still was 59kg, in June - 60kg, August - 64kg and since November I've been struggling to stay between 65-68 kg.
If I manage to lose a kg over a couple of weeks, I would get back over night and I would have to struggle for weeks again.
I tried turning to doctors, they checked my thyroid, insulin resistance and even cortisol levels and everything expect for cortisol was fine, while the latter they referred to stress. They also advised to cut on food some more and increase the exercise intensity. So I did, but then my muscle mass started dropping rapidly (3kg muscle lost in a month) while fat % would go up, so I was advised to stop exercising altogether and take a long break.
So I did... along with stopping listening to doctors and trying to listen to my body. Some time ago, when I finally felt I had some energy, I picked up exercising again and I no longer suffer from fatigue for days after a workout but now... I'm sleepy and sluggish all day. I sleep over 12 hours and can't get enough. I'm also trying to eat more but I don't have much time left.
I'm torn between trying to eat more calories and being afraid of gaining more weight that I apparently can not drop.
Has anybody been in a situation like this? I really needs some tips and, to be honest, some support because I've never felt this desperate.
If I manage to lose a kg over a couple of weeks, I would get back over night and I would have to struggle for weeks again.
I tried turning to doctors, they checked my thyroid, insulin resistance and even cortisol levels and everything expect for cortisol was fine, while the latter they referred to stress. They also advised to cut on food some more and increase the exercise intensity. So I did, but then my muscle mass started dropping rapidly (3kg muscle lost in a month) while fat % would go up, so I was advised to stop exercising altogether and take a long break.
So I did... along with stopping listening to doctors and trying to listen to my body. Some time ago, when I finally felt I had some energy, I picked up exercising again and I no longer suffer from fatigue for days after a workout but now... I'm sleepy and sluggish all day. I sleep over 12 hours and can't get enough. I'm also trying to eat more but I don't have much time left.
I'm torn between trying to eat more calories and being afraid of gaining more weight that I apparently can not drop.
Has anybody been in a situation like this? I really needs some tips and, to be honest, some support because I've never felt this desperate.
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Replies
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Your diary is closed to us. Opening it might help people give you better answers. How much are you eating now and what does your exercise routine look like?0
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I haven't kept a diary for a very long time as I've usually been sticking to the same eating plan for months and months, years actually.
Let's see, these days I usually eat 1-2 eggs over one slice of toast bread along with 3 small cucumbers and 8-10 tiny cherry tomatoes for breakfast. A bowl of lentil soup with a slice of bread or a slice of bread with a match-box piece of white cheese, 3 cucumbers and 8-10 cherry tomatoes for lunch. A 200gr. seabass (whole) or 1 chicken breast or tenderloin and a cup of salad for dinner. I also have a protein shake after my workout.
For example, today my day was like: sleep for 9.5 hours - wake up - work out - protein shake - shower - breakfast - sleep for 3 hours - lunch - sluggishly move around the house - dinner - and now I'm sleepy again. Luckily I'm on vacation, I don't know how to pull off work like this.
I do allow myself some alcohol these days too though, but the picture wasn't any different when I was having none. As for snacks, unfortunately these days, I have no time to fit them in.
As for my exercise routine, I've been mainly doing programs like Chalean Xtreme, Turbo Fire, Insanity. Right now I'm doing Focus T25, strictly sticking to the exercise program.0 -
Have they looked at chronic fatigue or similar as a possibility?0
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So if you aren't tracking what's going in... but doing a ton of different exercise programs...
track. If you know what's going in, it's a LOT easier to figure out the rest of the equation at that point.
those will help.0 -
Nope, they haven't.
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You sound like you are undereating for the amount of exercise you are doing. How tall are you?0
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I do not use the scales, but the rest I do. Although the heart rate sensor is confusing me big time these days. If we assume that one can not speak in anaerobic zone then my zones have dropped a lot. Before it was around 160+ to me to feel my heart in my throat, now it's 145+0
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1.60 cm or 5'3" but my BMR is down from 1400+ to 1300+ calories (don't remember the exact number right now, but if needed I'll look them up).0
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If you eat and do the same thing over and over again, your body is just used to what you do and it's not going to lose weight. Tracking what you eat as well as weighing what you are eating will probably also help you. You seem to like tomatoes and cucumbers but what about other vegetables? Broccoli, carrots, radishes, bok choy, leeks, asparagus?
When I start all over again in trying to get into a healthy lifestyle, I skip exercise and focus on what I'm eating and how I'm eating. How many fruits and how many vegetables am I having?
I personally like to get recipes from cookinglight.com and I stick to recipes that are 300 calories or less.
I'm not perfect (still have 10 lbs to goal weight), but food tracking works for me. You only have to track the days that you want to lose weight
I would love to hear how it goes for you as you start to weigh and track your food. Just try it for 1 week.
GL!0 -
I think you need to track/log your food and go a bit easier on the exercise. It sounds like what you are doing is wiping you out, and that's no good. Make notes about how you are feeling after each meal and each exercise session. If you find something that energizes you, do it more often.
Exercise suggestions: yoga, walking, dance aerobics, step aerobics on the lowest level, and add some resistance exercise 2-3 times per week.0 -
To me, definitely only something that could be solved through careful tracking.
You don't know how many calories you need in a day.
You don't know how many calories you eat in a day.
You don't know how many calories you burn in a day.
If you want serious help, you need to track these sort of things. Especially when asking for such help on a site specifically designed to track them.0 -
Well, cucumbers and tomatoes are easy, so they are my first priority when it comes to breakfast as I'm in a hurry with it. As for other vegies, I could try adding them but the problem is that I'm still low on protein, as they say during measurements, and I can't fit much more food in.
I'll gladly check out the recipes though, at least my fiance would be happy.
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You don't know how many calories you need in a day.
According to the tracker, 1700. According to my BMR + sedentary life style - 1500.
800-1300 according to the tracker.You don't know how many calories you eat in a day.
I could try wearing a sensor for 24 hours, I guess that would be the only somehow accurate way to find it out.You don't know how many calories you burn in a day.0 -
My doctor can't find anything wrong with me, except high cortisol. I had 13 viles of blood drawn, xrays, ultrasounds, etc. I've cut my carbs, I track EVERYTHING, I make sure I have sufficient calcium (I don't eat dairy), and high protein. I take a woman's multi-vitamin, and I increase my cardio. So far so good, but it's really slow going. Good Luck, and think positive, not negative!0
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hmmmm....a diary would be more helpful, even if you eat the same thing every day.
I don't think you are eating enough. If you are doing workouts like Insanity (I know about that one!!!), I think you need more food.
I stuffed my face when I was doing that, and still lost 20 lbs. I wasn't tired either.
If you can rule out CFS or Mono and stuff like that, you might just need to eat more food. I don't know what your calorie intake is so it is hard to judge.0 -
You don't know how many calories you need in a day.
According to the tracker, 1700. According to my BMR + sedentary life style - 1500.
800-1300 according to the tracker.You don't know how many calories you eat in a day.
I could try wearing a sensor for 24 hours, I guess that would be the only somehow accurate way to find it out.You don't know how many calories you burn in a day.
So you're not eating enough. 800 a day is far far far too low oh and you also need to eat your exercise calories back if your cal measurement is based on sedentary.0 -
Withing being intrusive....do you suffer from depression? If you do, that could be a big factor in motivation. I am not at all
Just curious based on your responses - your motivation to track seems a little low. I agree with everyone that tracking will help you to determine where you are..over a period of time.
I stuggle with the scale moving as well - it seems to only go up. But, I have toned and look and feel better.
Sorry you are stuck. I hope you find support here.0 -
Yes, I realize that, but all my attempts to eat more end up with me gaining weight, which puts me off. Perhaps, I should stick to it for months, hoping that the gained kilos will drop down once my body reorganizes itself, but I can't find courage to stick to this plan for long.0
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Withing being intrusive....do you suffer from depression? If you do, that could be a big factor in motivation. I am not at all
Just curious based on your responses - your motivation to track seems a little low. I agree with everyone that tracking will help you to determine where you are..over a period of time.
I stuggle with the scale moving as well - it seems to only go up. But, I have toned and look and feel better.
Sorry you are stuck. I hope you find support here.
Nope, no depression that I'm aware of.
My motivation to track is low indeed though, mainly because whenever I submit my diary, the trackers tells me I will be far down the scale in 5 weeks, which never happens.
Also, tracking hardcore is making me restrain myself even more as any entry over 1200 calories is making me feel guilty.0 -
Hang in there. It takes time to figure out what works best for you. But, the key is to track and get an idea of what you ARE doing to see if that is working. And, if it isn't you tweak until it does.0
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Sometimes you need to break a plateau. When I was thin....pre baby....I would often allow myself a binge meal each week. It made me gain initially, but then I lost more the next week. If I didn't have a splurge to mix things up and reset my metabolism, then I wouldn't lose as much. It's weird sounding I know. But I lost over 90lbs doing this and I lost it in a little over a year and a half. Granted...I need to start over now. I gained a lot during my last pregnancy...and I stress eat...after my mother died, I found too much comfort in food. But this worked for me before, so I'm hoping to get started again. Good luck.0
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You eat bread every day. Have you been tested for gluten intolerance? Have you tried switching to gluten-free bread for a couple months to see if it makes a difference? There can sometimes be a connection between increased cortisol and gluten intolerance... because inflammation stresses the body.
I sleep better and am more rested/refreshed after cutting out gluten. You don't have to be celiac to have gluten intolerance. It may or may not be the same for you, but worth a try maybe if it's something you haven't considered yet.
How do you feel after you eat a piece of bread? Does it make you want to take a nap? Food should energize you, not make you sleepy. If you're feeling tired all day, pay attention to how you feel after you eat. If you energy levels get worse after food, and you want to take a nap 1-2 hrs after eating it may be the wrong fuel for your body. If you feel great for 4-5 hours after you eat, your feeding yourself fuel that your body runs well on.
We are not all the same, some people's health food is other people's poison. Find what works for you.
Hope you feel better soon!
*edit* alcohol can also be a hidden source of gluten. (but there are gluten-free options for that too)
Also, what kind of protein are your shakes? Dairy is a common allergy/intolerance food for many people too.0 -
You eat bread every day. Have you been tested for gluten intolerance? Have you tried switching to gluten-free bread for a couple months to see if it makes a difference? There can sometimes be a connection between increased cortisol and gluten intolerance... because inflammation stresses the body.
I sleep better and am more rested/refreshed after cutting out gluten. You don't have to be celiac to have gluten intolerance. It may or may not be the same for you, but worth a try maybe if it's something you haven't considered yet.
How do you feel after you eat a piece of bread? Does it make you want to take a nap? Food should energize you, not make you sleepy. If you're feeling tired all day, pay attention to how you feel after you eat. If you energy levels get worse after food, and you want to take a nap 1-2 hrs after eating it may be the wrong fuel for your body. If you feel great for 4-5 hours after you eat, your feeding yourself fuel that your body runs well on.
We are not all the same, some people's health food is other people's poison. Find what works for you.
Hope you feel better soon!
*edit* alcohol can also be a hidden source of gluten. (but there are gluten-free options for that too)
Also, what kind of protein are your shakes? Dairy is a common allergy/intolerance food for many people too.
That I haven't considered yet indeed. I could try that!
As for the shake, it's Whey Protein Isolate.0 -
Exercise.
Track your food (just don't hit the green button)
Increase your cals to keep your energy up.
Try to eat more natural foods than processed.
Talk to your doctor about sleep apnea.0 -
This sounds just like me, I have been trying for months and months now, I even joined weightwatchers to try and see if that helps. I've only been losing 1 pound a week, where other people in the class are losing up to 6! It seems that everything I do, does not work, and I eat very healthy. I'm going to go to the doctors soon, I just dont know what to do!0
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This sounds just like me, I have been trying for months and months now, I even joined weightwatchers to try and see if that helps. I've only been losing 1 pound a week, where other people in the class are losing up to 6! It seems that everything I do, does not work, and I eat very healthy. I'm going to go to the doctors soon, I just dont know what to do!
I made the most important part of what you said bold.. for emphasis.
If you're losing 1lb a week, then you're doing it right. Going to the Doctor or freaking out about it isn't going to help any.
Changing your perspective on success might be helpful though.0 -
The most important is to keep going. Slow is still progress, so do not lose faith, you'll get there eventually.
Checking your health, however, is always a good thing to do.0 -
if you've been eating the same thing for years that alone could be holding you back. you need to keep your body guessing. start tracking and start varying your diet.0
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You sound like you are undereating for the amount of exercise you are doing. How tall are you?
^^^ This is exactly what I was thinking. You need to start logging your food and figure out your BMR and TDEE. This is one site you can use to figure those out, plus suggested caloric intake.
http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
But none of that information is useful if you aren't logging your food. Log everything. Weigh/measure everything. You'd be amazed at how our minds lie to us about exactly how much we're eating.0 -
Eat more. Track all your food. Enjoy the motivational prompt (but realize that it is a computer program, so can only work the numbers you give it). Eat back your exercise calories.
Your dieting history sounds like me for most of my life. I would deprive myself for month/years, lose some weight, and gain it back. Change your lifestyle, but continue to live life.
Good luck:flowerforyou:0
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