In Japan, with Hashimoto's Thyroid Disease

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tokyoshorty
tokyoshorty Posts: 18
in Introduce Yourself
Hello, all.

The name I go by here is Tokyo Shorty. You can call me Shorty, or Tokyo, or Toks. I am a 28-year-old American living in Japan, working as an English Teacher at a small private language school.

I am currently approaching 200lbs (196lbs) and am very worried about my overall health. When I was a teenager, my family moved around a lot, disrupting a prior active lifestyle and healthy diet (which was replaced with 14+ hours of sitting in a car or chair a day, and Burger King for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, since that was what was available).

When I turned 18, I weighed 185lbs and knew I was overweight. My mom, my sister and I all went on the Atkins diet. I was really careful (mostly lean turkey or chicken; no beef) and did well on it. In 7 months, I got my weight down to 145lbs and felt much healthier than I'd ever remembered. I was living in California at the time, so it was easy to switch to an all-organic, healthy diet after that.

The only problem is that I had a mysterious health issue regarding my menstruation, hair loss, and weight gain that developed soon after. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroid Disease that year, tried a thyroid supplement that my body didn't take to, and then sort of dropped the ball on it all.

I moved to Japan three years ago, and at the time I weighed 165lbs. I knew I needed to lose weight then, but fruits and vegetables are so expensive over here (three stalks of asparagus for $4), so haven't been eating the healthiest.

I started having even more serious problems with my body, and went back to the doctor this year to get looked at. Turns out my thyroid was inflamed to almost double its size, and all my levels were way, way off. So, I'm on a new medication that is fixing that. The problem? I can't do a low-calorie diet on this drug, as it screws up my levels again, and stresses my body out too much. (I tried a simple 1,100 calorie diet and my hair started falling out in clumps.) This, coupled with the fact that I only have one day off a week currently (as a kindergarten teacher, so high stress/low activity) and another issue with my gall bladder, has frustrated me beyond end. I looked into joining a gym (memberships start at night-access for $120/month in my area... can't afford that on my salary), finding a pool, etc... to no avail.

However, I'm determined. I downloaded myfitnesspal, in addition to Couch to 5k, and Moves (to count calories), and plan to exercise my way back to a reasonable weight since my doctor "outlawed" any low-calorie dieting.

I'm looking forward to giving and getting encouragement here as I work back down to my goal weight of 145lbs (I'm 5'7"), meeting new people, and taking a gander at the various groups.

As they say over here, Yoroshiku! (Nice to meet you!)

Replies

  • gigglesinthesun
    gigglesinthesun Posts: 860 Member
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    welcome :-)

    1100 calories is not a simple low calorie diet, that's actually really really low, so in order to lose weight you actually need to just eat less then you use. Now with the thyroid issue you might actually use less then other people would with your height and weight, so it'll probable require some experimentation for you to find a calorie level that is appropriate for you.

    Another thing is the hair thing solely a symptom of the disease or are you actually, when you are saying that your diet is not the healthiest, missing some nutrients?

    Are all vegetables and fruit very expensive or solely the 'western' ones? Are there any markets that you can get to that might sell fresh produce at a more reasonable rate? The reason I ask is because Japanese cuisine is not known to be lacking vegetables (they just use different ones) and it seems odd that they could be priced as a luxury item.

    It is not necessary to eat healthier to lose weight, you can just eat a little less of your regular food, but if you are also missing nutrients, shifting the balance to eating a little more vegetables and fruit probably isn't going to hurt.

    How tall are you?
  • tokyoshorty
    tokyoshorty Posts: 18
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    Thanks gigglesinthes,

    Yeah, I was given 1200 calories a day as my base calorie intake on MFP the first time I used it, because I didn't have any time or anyplace to go to exercise. That has since changed, and I am making a goal of 3, 30-minute jogs a week, so that I'll focus more on burning calories than limiting them.

    The thyroid issue is weird. My mother and sister both have thyroid issues (not the same though), so they were telling me once my thyroid trouble got worked out, I would be losing weight regularly. In fact, the opposite happened, and i have gained 10kg in two months since started the meds. So I realize a lot of this is going to be working uphill (hence, again, forcing myself to get out there and exercise, or nothing will happen and I'll just get disappointed again.

    The hair loss is a disease side effect. My thyroid problems have affected my hair growth (I have abundant hair on my chin and arms, like a man, and lose hair on my head quickly. It also grows incredibly slow), my digestion (to the point that my gall bladder has become over-reactive and I have to be really careful about how much and what I eat or suffer pain), and my period (I have between 10-11 periods a year, so my cycle has been off ever since it started).

    I eat lots of Japanese veggies, and fruits, but they're not as tasty to my palette as western veggies. About the only cheap veggies over here are cabbage, bok choy, lotus root, seaweed and tomatoes. I know I need to experiment more, but I also know it's going to require a lot more learning on how to cook, prepare and spice them up... In any case... :tongue:

    I am 5'7", 28-years-old.
  • AKEBONOJR
    AKEBONOJR Posts: 10
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    Yoroshiku to you as well! It sounds like you have some rough stuff to deal with concerning the thyroid problem and all but you sound like a very intelligent person so i am sure you can find a way to shed the pounds and deal with your disease at the same time. Good luck!
  • zenalasca
    zenalasca Posts: 563 Member
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    I can't say I know much about Japanese cuisine but I really like daikon! And sushi! And Nikujaga! How can you NOT lose weight with things like that?? I am learning Jap too so if you add me maybe you can teach me Jap and I advise you on good uses for veggies LOL
  • sharinganxphunk
    sharinganxphunk Posts: 15 Member
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    I lived in Japan for a year so I can definitely empathise with you about the price of certain fruit and vegetables over there D:
    Wishing you the best of luck with your weight loss!!
    As the Japanese would say; "Ganbare!" :P
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    I have Hashi's and take 88mcg Synthroid. I lost more slowly than most MFPers, but I lost—by setting a reasonable deficit & being very patient.

    Read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    MFP has a Hypothyroidism and Hyperthyroidism group: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/770-hypothyroidism-and-hyperthyroidism

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