Hypothyroid tips

burningstar28
burningstar28 Posts: 23
edited September 22 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi! I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism about 6 months ago.... Are you hypothyroid? What has helped you lose weight? How much weight have you lost? Do I really need to wait an hour after taking my levothyroxine to drink coffee in the morning?? Any tips or tricks you would like to share? Thanks! - Rebekah

Replies

  • Stephanieb325
    Stephanieb325 Posts: 174 Member
    Hey! I have hypothyroidism too, and a couple of people on my friends list have it as well and have had it way longer than I so hopefully they see I have responded to your post. I wait an hour or so before I intake anything after taking my synthroid in the morning. The only thing that has helped me with losing weight is counting calories and staying away from soy products. I have to workout daily and drink lots of water! Its harder for us to lose weight but it is possible. Making sure your medication is the right dosage plays a big part as well. I have had it for 3 years or so and its been a battle with the weight. I have been keeping it down and losing with counting calories and working out as well as having two meal replacement shakes a day. But that is just me. I know the other women that have hypothyroidism have done other things and hopefully they will respond.
  • sziemba1
    sziemba1 Posts: 34
    I have been hypothyroid for over 30 years. Yes, take your thyroid medication first thing in the morning and always wait an hour before eating or drinking any other food. You want that medication to work effectively. It controls too many parts of your body. Also, if you start a certain brand of thyroid medication stay with that brand. Don't switch around brands. Have your doctor write "dispense as written" on the Rx script. I have steered clear of generics on this medication.

    Dostors will tell you that it will be hard to lose weight if you are hypothyroid. But I recently lost 60 lbs in 16 weeks. My calorie intake was limited to 1800 calories/day while my carb level was restricted to 115/day. I got throug this 16 weeks by avoiding flour products, sugar, rice, and potaotes and I drank 8 cups of water daily. My plate was 75% non-carb vegetables and 25% lean meats/fish/egg whites. I was losing 15 lbs a month.

    Hope this helps.
  • need2succeed
    need2succeed Posts: 6
    Hi ,
    I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism abt a yr ago. I seriously don't wait an hour to have my breakfast in the morning. Half hr is enough for me, but I was told not to take anything with iron or calcium within 4 hrs of taking ur synthroid. :ohwell: I was trying to lose some weight on my own without any success:brokenheart: . I just joined MFP last month too. I m doing everything right since then, let's see where it takes me in a month or so. Good luck for your weight loss journey.:flowerforyou:
  • DeeJayTJ
    DeeJayTJ Posts: 355 Member
    hello, i have had hypothyroidism for 20 years.

    I was 6 years old when diagnosed, i am now 26.

    i started working out paying attention to what i eat 6months ago and have lost 51lbs!

    my hypothyroidism has gone untreated for the last 6 years (my own neglect, not a wise decision i know)

    just dont let it get you thinking that you wont be able to lose weight because you can!
  • tinasullens
    tinasullens Posts: 203 Member
    This is one of the many reasons I love this site!! Y'all ROCK!
  • Stephanieb325
    Stephanieb325 Posts: 174 Member
    I have been hypothyroid for over 30 years. Yes, take your thyroid medication first thing in the morning and always wait an hour before eating or drinking any other food. You want that medication to work effectively. It controls too many parts of your body. Also, if you start a certain brand of thyroid medication stay with that brand. Don't switch around brands. Have your doctor write "dispense as written" on the Rx script. I have steered clear of generics on this medication.

    Dostors will tell you that it will be hard to lose weight if you are hypothyroid. But I recently lost 60 lbs in 16 weeks. My calorie intake was limited to 1800 calories/day while my carb level was restricted to 115/day. I got throug this 16 weeks by avoiding flour products, sugar, rice, and potaotes and I drank 8 cups of water daily. My plate was 75% non-carb vegetables and 25% lean meats/fish/egg whites. I was losing 15 lbs a month.

    Hope this helps.

    I just wanted to say congrats on your awesome weight loss! I think I am going to take your advice and avoid flour products, sugar, rice and potatoes... all of which I love and I eat. I have lost 9 pounds over 2 months and I think this may help out lots! Its good to hear other people lose weight while being hypothyroids! Thank you for sharing your tips!
  • nolasaints
    nolasaints Posts: 32 Member
    Hi! I was diagnosed in May and since starting MFP have been able to lose 20 pounds. I've found that I just have to try harder than before the hypothyroidism. I've been working out at least five days a week, sometimes more and doing both cardio and strength training. I've replaced the white stuff with wheat bread and wheat pasta and I limit sugar/sweets, but still treat myself to something like dark chocolate in small amounts. I also drink a lot of green tea and have heard this helps your metabolism. Good luck! :)
  • Val_Gets_Fit
    Val_Gets_Fit Posts: 210 Member
    Hi! I just joined MFP today, but I thought I'd post something quick in case anyone reading this who has hypothyroidism is feeling discouraged. I was diagnosed in May 2009 and prescribed levothyroxine. I've spent the last year and a half eating well and working out but did not start having any success until last month. It took awhile for my medication to be at the right level. Finally, it's there! I was beginning to lose hope, particularly after the scale kept going up even after medication. However, in the last month, I've lost 8 pounds! I've read some of the posts above and it is so inspiring to see people with hypo who are having success. Wish I would have found MFP sooner! Good luck to you all! (To Need2Succeed: Yes, I take my meds at least one hour before breakfast and take my multivitamin at night so that it's as far apart from the levo as possible, but 4 hours is supposed to be long enough. :-) )
  • gibran30
    gibran30 Posts: 30 Member
    I too have hypothyroidism... I have had it for about 15 years now. I have been overweight for the past 10 years and just havent done anything about it. Just kinda got complacent and tried to accept myself the way that i was. I got motivated in October of this year to start working out and counting calories... I was really nervous at first because I had heard that it is hard for people with hypothyroid to loose weight. I have lost 17 pounds so far so I guess they are all wrong.....
  • messyhare
    messyhare Posts: 366 Member
    I have dealt with being hypothyroid for about 12yrs.

    I agree with previous poster about not changing brands - I can not take the generic for my medicine, it is totally not the same thing for me!! I unfortunately found out the hard way that some pharmacies with actually automatically give you generic!! So just make sure you either have your doctor include fill as prescribed or notify the pharmacy you do not want any generics or substitutions.

    I also wondered about the 1 hr wait because I was having a VERY HARD TIME waiting an hour for my morning coffee!! My dr said just to be consistent - that was what mattered most. If I was going to eat or drink coffee after taking my meds, I needed to do it daily the same way. Does that make sense? So I always take my medicine with my morning coffee and have been for years - since he told me this.

    If you are properly medicated you will be able to lose weight! I am just counting my calories - not restricting my diet in any way, just choosing as good as I can and staying under my goal, also adding exercise and I have lost 27 lbs effortlessly!

    Hope all goes well with you!
  • burningstar28
    burningstar28 Posts: 23
    Thanks for all the replies! Congrats on all your weight loss and good luck with the rest! Thanks for all the tips! I have heard that it is very difficult for people with hypothroid to lose weight but I guess that's not always the case! I seem to be able to eat up to 3500 calories a day and not gain weight but I can't seem to lose any either...that could be in part because of my sugar addiction lol.
    I think I am going to go ahead and continue to drink my coffee right after I take my pills....seems to be working out ok so I am going to just go with it. I have been doing some research over the past few days and I found a ton of things that people/researchers say are helpful for people with hypothyroidism...so I thought I would pass some on to you...here is what I am going to try.. Things to add in to my diet : Cayenne pepper, yogurt, green tea every day, almonds, spinach, wheatgrass, whey protein, lots of water, much less soy (I am a vegetarian). I am going to try yoga daily, relaxation techniques, more weight lifting to raise my RMR, and get some sun 20 minutes a day. I have also read that you should imagine that your plate is cut in half, then cut one of the halves in half and fill the big half with vegetables, and each one of the small halves with starches, and protein. Those are all supposed to be very helpful...sounds like they would be good for anyone! Hypothyroid or not! :-)
  • Nemesiscl
    Nemesiscl Posts: 4 Member
    I'm a 43 year old male with hypothyroidism! In 2009 I had my gallbladder removed and then my thyroid went on me. I got so upset and depression set in. I then realized that I need to snap out of it and start to do something so I started working out again with weights and doing cardio. Recently I just started cutting out all junk food and have noticed a difference. I know it's rare for men to have this problem but my dr. told me that he is seeing more now in men than before. If there are any tips for me to lose weight please feel free to let me know.
  • zzziggo
    zzziggo Posts: 2
    I have been taking levothroixide for over 20 years and always drank it down with my morning coffee. Just recently from friends I found out that you are suppose to take with water and wait atleast 30 min. to an hour before having coffee? Checking online it seems that is the norm. I have lost 45 lbs since October staying on 1200 calories per day without excercising due to back issues. Today is my first day of trying it with water and waiting for coffee but I woke up at 5:30 am, took pill and went back to sleep until 7:30. I Can't wait to have coffee if I am up. I will try for 1 month to see if this makes a difference and will reply back. I am confused about this since as I was only told to take in morning and nothing to eat for 1 hour. Going for testing my thyroid this coming week again but have remained steady for years now drinking it down with my coffee. Hopefully taking it correctly will give me more energy but will see.
    Fitness Pal diary has been a blessing in my weight loss and so greatful for their site.
  • ruqayyahsmum
    ruqayyahsmum Posts: 1,513 Member
    I was diagnosed a year ago though my gp knew my levels were drifting up and down between 4.5 and 5 for 2 years before this and I was symptomatic too. Getting the right level of levothyroxine has been difficult, not quite there yet. I cut out bread and cut back on sugar as both make me bloated and incredibly tired, I was falling asleep while talking to people

    I've lost 70lb since I changed habits and started treatment, 22lb of that is since having gastric surgery.

    I take my meds in the morning then wait an hour to eat. I do drink water in this hour. I take my vitamins at night
  • krennie8
    krennie8 Posts: 301 Member
    ask your doctor about taking it at night. I've read at least one study that showed better absorption if taken at night, several hours after your final meal of the day of course. This is what I do. It's far less disruptive to my day. I generally stop eating around 8, and I'm generally up late, so I take my tablet around 11-12. Two hours is probably enough time though if you had a reasonable (and not gigantic) dinner.

    The only thing I will say is you need to be on the right dosage. In general this means having your TSH between 1 and 2. Even better if you can be between 1 and 1.5.
  • enipla
    enipla Posts: 46 Member
    I have been treated for hypothyroidism for over 26 years. I found that I really had to monitor my calorie intake when I lost 15 pounds a few years ago and was very active. I am trying to drop another 10 which I am having a hard time..

    I do take my pill first thing in the morning and wait an hour or so until breakfast.
  • kyleprowland
    kyleprowland Posts: 7 Member
    Hi! I was diagnosed about five years ago, and after a while on synthroid where nothing was accomplished, I switched to Armour and have been playing around with dosage since then. We finally settled on 90 mg. My doctor said the most important thing is to take it on an empty stomach--so I listen and try and wait AS LONG AS I CAN (sometimes it's not long, unfortunately) before I eat breakfast. I also get blood work done often to make sure my dosage is right--when I was on 120 mg, I had really awful side effects. Since starting a much higher dose of Armour this year, I've lost 33 lbs, so I'd say it's helping a lot.

    Hypos unite! :)
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
    MFP has a Hypothyroidism and Hyperthyroidism group: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/770-hypothyroidism-and-hyperthyroidism

    I have Hashimoto's (autoimmune thyroid disease) and take Synthroid. You must take it on an empty stomach with a full glass of water, and wait an hour before eating or drinking anything but water. If I wake up in the middle of the night, I take it then. It's a special treat to wake up & not have to wait for breakfast!

    Wait at least 3 more hours before taking any vitamin or mineral supplements. Calcium, for example, interferes with the absorption of Synthroid.
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