gaining weight on 1200 calories and gym 2-3 hours a day

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  • Slasher09
    Slasher09 Posts: 316 Member
    OP, how low is your sugar? Blood sugar too low will encourage your body to store fat...even if you are diabetic you want to be in a good range. You could also get your thyroid bloodwork done again...weight gain can be a HUGE sign that you need your meds adjusted...especially if you're also having hair/skin/sleep changes. If all those are fine...as a pp said you may have a slowed metabolism from a long time at a low amount of calories. Hope all the best for you!
  • bpt54
    bpt54 Posts: 17
    It is easy to gain some back. You are 60 years old and your activity level is amazing. The young people on here should look up to you with admiration at your accomplishments both with your 120 Lb loss, and your determination to be healthy and fit.

    Weight gains could be attributed to one of 3 things. Either you are gaining muscle, but not fat; on a new medication; or it relates to your food diary.

    I suggest you go back to your diaries or journals from when you first started gaining weight and see what changes you made to your foods. Weight loss is 100% food. You should be able to find the culprit. Go back to clean healthy eating and the weight should start coming back off. Make sure you are drinking your water!

    Thanks for the encouragement!
  • bpt54
    bpt54 Posts: 17
    OP, how low is your sugar? Blood sugar too low will encourage your body to store fat...even if you are diabetic you want to be in a good range. You could also get your thyroid bloodwork done again...weight gain can be a HUGE sign that you need your meds adjusted...especially if you're also having hair/skin/sleep changes. If all those are fine...as a pp said you may have a slowed metabolism from a long time at a low amount of calories. Hope all the best for you!

    I get bloodwork done every quarter to check my average blood sugars over that time period. I have had my meds adjusted to where I am now on minimal meds, but I definitely will speak to my doc about this. You could be right about my thyroid med as well. Thanks!
  • truddy6647
    truddy6647 Posts: 519 Member
    OP ask your doctor what your TSH number is at for your thyroid.....I am a CMA and have found that many doctors just get the target range that the lab says a person should be in, however, this is often not the correct target range according the association of endocrinologist. Research that I have read state that most women feel the best when they are between a 1-2 however often labs show a tsh of 4 to be normal. I have also met one thyroid doctor who targets someone to be between .5 to 1 when they are trying to lose weight or individual needs to lose weight.... at my last check my TSH was at a 0.4 which I feel great, my brain fog is gone, it is easier for me to lose weight than what it ever has been.
  • bpt54
    bpt54 Posts: 17
    OP ask your doctor what your TSH number is at for your thyroid.....I am a CMA and have found that many doctors just get the target range that the lab says a person should be in, however, this is often not the correct target range according the association of endocrinologist. Research that I have read state that most women feel the best when they are between a 1-2 however often labs show a tsh of 4 to be normal. I have also met one thyroid doctor who targets someone to be between .5 to 1 when they are trying to lose weight or individual needs to lose weight.... at my last check my TSH was at a 0.4 which I feel great, my brain fog is gone, it is easier for me to lose weight than what it ever has been.

    Good idea...I will do that! Talked to my doc; he is referring me to a nutritionist first.
  • robot_steve
    robot_steve Posts: 12
    With your diabetes and thyroid issues, I'd urge you to print off your calorie count/measured meals for a substantial number of days (2-3 weeks?) and ask your doctor for a consultation. He may refer you to a specialist, in fact I'd hope he does, in which case bring even more updated records with you to the specialist. They should be able to help you more than we can, especially throwing those health problems into the mix.

    This right here is the best advice that I've seen so far!

    I agree.

    to the OP, just a bit of advice, always take the word of a doctor over that of people on communities like this one here. Not everyone who posts on the Internet knows what they are talking about, so be cautious about whose 'wisdom' you adopt. Especially if you have medical issues like the ones you described. Some people on these fitness sites are real nutjobs.

    You said that you lost a lot of weight and kept it off while walking a lot; if this worked for you, then I would consider returning to it, or at least incorporating it back into your routine. After all, results are what matter here, not methods; if Zumba does not help you reach your goal but walking does, then go with the walking. On the other hand, you could also find that while walking helped in the past, its not enough now and you need something more intense; this may not be the case based on your description, but the main point is that you need to be flexible in your exercise programming. If something works, use it. If it does not work, throw it out and try something else. No one knows you better than you know yourself. You can get ideas and tips from others, but ultimately your own personal experience through trial-and-error will be most valuable.

    Good luck!
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
    It's so great that you are doing weight training, OP :) I've never heard that older folks can't build muscle, just that they usually don't have much and need weight training. Weight lifting staves off osteoporosis, etc. Awesome job!

    You need to be able to eat to feed the muscle, although for all I know you are getting enough calories for that if the endocrine problems are bad enough. ????

    Definitely see more than just the nutritionist, because they aren't going to know enough about the endocrine part of the equation, probably. I love the idea of a very exact log, too, because the doc could just assume you are eating more and don't realize it.

    Make sure to mention your actual weights somewhere, too. I had a knee problem that the doc said was OK to lift with because he assumed I didn't lift heavy at all, lol. The next time I asked him about it again and mentioned the number I lifted and it caught him by total surprise. If you lift at all heavy, folks won't expect it; that's all I'm sayin' ;)

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