Why did I gain a pound back if I didn't even eat!

"Guess we will see" was in response to the idea that someone knows exactly what will happen to me. In other words, I guess we will see if you know everything like you think, or if I will be successful in counting my calories properly, eating properly, working out properly AND taking the "evil little pill". I don't understand how it can be possible to automatically be labeled as "lazy" when I'm putting the work in as well. If I were taking the pill and just sitting around and not eating, sure you could call me "stupid", "uneducated", or accuse me of "not firing on all pistons", but that is simply not the case. I don't expect this to be an easy journey, and contrary to what it seems as though people believe will happen, I PLAN (there's the word you're looking for) to continue to eat properly and exercise after I reach my "goal". And BTW, I don't say "goal weight" because I am more concerned with getting this under control and forming new HABITS that will last me a lifetime. Goal means healthy. Some people need surgery, some people take pills, and some people don't do anything extra. You shouldn't put someone else down just for doing something different from you.

So, I don't even care about the pills. All I was talking about was posting what you did on a public forum and having an expectation that people weren't going to say negative things. I was thinking of "the definition of insanity", but it's not quite the same. In 100% seriousness, I am glad to hear that you see a counselor. I manage mental illness myself (and I take pills for it, horror of horrors! but there's no talk of how I'm going to manage when I stop taking them, because there is no such time to look forward to), so sometimes I make light of it. If that is the case for you too, but you do not appreciate jokes about it, I sincerely apologize.

If the kind of counseling that you do is cognitive behavioral therapy, then something you might want to keep in mind is, if you have to start out by saying "Y'all don't badger me, but..." on a public forum, you might wanna rethink that course of behavior. It's not likely to lead where you want to go. It's a little bit like starting off with "I'm not a racist, but...", if you see what I mean. It's a red flag.

I understand where I went wrong in this. Point well made, and I am sincerely thanking you because that was something that I honestly did not even think about. So again, thank you.

I think these pills have such a low success rate because people don't change any of their habits. They expect these pills to be a miracle "take this you'll be thin" type of fad. But I've not seen where using the meds (in the manner she is using them: with regular meetings with her doc and therapist, having a healthier eating plan/patterns and exercising) won't help her control her out of control eating patterns (while doing the aforementioned) and form new habits. So that when she comes off the meds (which you typically do around the end of month three right?) she already has these healthy habits in place which will help her in future cravings and if used correctly could have completely new eating patterns. I mean you'll fail with the pills if you don't change behavior, but she is saying she is changing behaviors. Who is to say she'll not form new healthier habits that will be sustaining in the long run?

No one has answered this yet. I've been given "no one is saying ______" but other than you, I've not seen any real support for the method I am trying. Seems like the answer I'm getting from everyone is "Workout every day all day, eat clean, win!"

I think these pills have such a low success rate because people don't change any of their habits. They expect these pills to be a miracle "take this you'll be thin" type of fad. But I've not seen where using the meds (in the manner she is using them: with regular meetings with her doc and therapist, having a healthier eating plan/patterns and exercising) won't help her control her out of control eating patterns (while doing the aforementioned) and form new habits. So that when she comes off the meds (which you typically do around the end of month three right?) she already has these healthy habits in place which will help her in future cravings and if used correctly could have completely new eating patterns. I mean you'll fail with the pills if you don't change behavior, but she is saying she is changing behaviors. Who is to say she'll not form new healthier habits that will be sustaining in the long run?

No one has answered this yet. I've been given "no one is saying ______" but other than you, I've not seen any real support for the method I am trying. Seems like the answer I'm getting from everyone is "Workout every day all day, eat clean, win!"

For some people changing behaviors is easy for others, not so much. I do believe that weight loss is as simple as less calories in versus burned. But I will never believe that only one "Behavior" is the way to get there. We all come from different environments and different psychosocial factors that can drastically effect our behaviors. To me modifying them should take these into account as well.

Eat actual food, stop taking lax, see a doctor, get a life coach.

There are no absolutes, but the percentage of success with phentermine and keeping the weight off WITHOUT isn't in your favor. You MAY be one of the 10% who succeed, but I wouldn't count on that.
What you can count on is that if you CAN do it without the medication now, your chances of weight gain will be greatly reduced.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

So then just stop taking it and hope for the best with only the exercise and tracking my food intake when that hasn't worked in the past?

Well you're on a prescription medication, so you should speak with your doctor before you stop. Don't take medical advice from yahoos on the internet.

That said, exercise and food tracking work. Well, let's rephrase that. You can track all you want but you won't lose weight unless you consistently hit your calorie goal. So let's not pretend that wouldn't work. It does work. It works all the time for everyone. Calorie deficit is literally the only thing that works.

You have issues with foods, you have cravings, etc. The critical thing for you is to exercise control over those cravings, and thus exercise control over your intake. That's what you'll need to do for the rest of your life.

I think I just need to reevaluate my whole mindset on all of this. That is what I am understanding from all of this. Seems like I can't win any support or understanding with what I am currently doing, with the exception of one person. Here goes nothing. Feels like in putting myself on a plan for failure, but hell why not? Everyone seems to be agreeing that I am wrong.

I find this post encouraging.

Let's start with the one most critical, inescapable fact of this process: calorie deficit is the only means by which you can lose weight (barring some serious medical condition).

If you eat fewer calories than you use in a day, your body consumes its own mass to make up the difference.

I think these pills have such a low success rate because people don't change any of their habits. They expect these pills to be a miracle "take this you'll be thin" type of fad. But I've not seen where using the meds (in the manner she is using them: with regular meetings with her doc and therapist, having a healthier eating plan/patterns and exercising) won't help her control her out of control eating patterns (while doing the aforementioned) and form new habits. So that when she comes off the meds (which you typically do around the end of month three right?) she already has these healthy habits in place which will help her in future cravings and if used correctly could have completely new eating patterns. I mean you'll fail with the pills if you don't change behavior, but she is saying she is changing behaviors. Who is to say she'll not form new healthier habits that will be sustaining in the long run?

No one has answered this yet. I've been given "no one is saying ______" but other than you, I've not seen any real support for the method I am trying. Seems like the answer I'm getting from everyone is "Workout every day all day, eat clean, win!"

Work out all day every day? Eat clean?

No one said either of those.

In fact, this is what I recommend:

1) Set a reasonable calorie, protein, and fat goal. Stick to them. Every day.
2) Do resistance training 2-4 times per week.
3) Regularly (1-2x a week) engage in some sort of aerobic activity that you enjoy. This may be playing with your dog, playing tennis, hiking, whatever.
4) Eat 4+ servings of vegetables a day.

Done.

That's it.

No "Workout every day all day"

No "eat clean."

Reasonable food intake, regular but not excessive exercise. No magic, no torture.

That was a generalization based on what I see a lot of on MFP.

I've literally never ever seen anyone suggest that you need to, let alone should, work out every day, and especially not all day.

I think these pills have such a low success rate because people don't change any of their habits. They expect these pills to be a miracle "take this you'll be thin" type of fad. But I've not seen where using the meds (in the manner she is using them: with regular meetings with her doc and therapist, having a healthier eating plan/patterns and exercising) won't help her control her out of control eating patterns (while doing the aforementioned) and form new habits. So that when she comes off the meds (which you typically do around the end of month three right?) she already has these healthy habits in place which will help her in future cravings and if used correctly could have completely new eating patterns. I mean you'll fail with the pills if you don't change behavior, but she is saying she is changing behaviors. Who is to say she'll not form new healthier habits that will be sustaining in the long run?

No one has answered this yet. I've been given "no one is saying ______" but other than you, I've not seen any real support for the method I am trying. Seems like the answer I'm getting from everyone is "Workout every day all day, eat clean, win!"

No way, you don't need to workout every day or "eat clean." I workout maybe 4 hours a week, and I don't eat clean by anyone's definition. But I stay under my calorie goals, and it works! If you're open to it, I know it can work for you too. Best of luck, friend!

I think these pills have such a low success rate because people don't change any of their habits. They expect these pills to be a miracle "take this you'll be thin" type of fad. But I've not seen where using the meds (in the manner she is using them: with regular meetings with her doc and therapist, having a healthier eating plan/patterns and exercising) won't help her control her out of control eating patterns (while doing the aforementioned) and form new habits. So that when she comes off the meds (which you typically do around the end of month three right?) she already has these healthy habits in place which will help her in future cravings and if used correctly could have completely new eating patterns. I mean you'll fail with the pills if you don't change behavior, but she is saying she is changing behaviors. Who is to say she'll not form new healthier habits that will be sustaining in the long run?

No one has answered this yet. I've been given "no one is saying ______" but other than you, I've not seen any real support for the method I am trying. Seems like the answer I'm getting from everyone is "Workout every day all day, eat clean, win!"

I don't work out every day. I also don't eat clean. I eat whatever I want. Stop lumping everyone together in this group you seem to think exists.

Generalization was not the best word, and I did not mean what I said in the literal sense of "every day, all day".

Indeed.

I don't eat clean. I eat the appropriate # of calories to lose weight, and an appropriate combination of protein/carbs/fat.

And here we go with everyone taking a broad statement personally. On that note, I'm out. To those of you who were helpful in opening my eyes to what I need to reevaluate, thank you.

You grossly mischaracterized all the excellent advice you have been given. Yeah, people will get a little irked about that.

Many people in this thread are trying to help you. They are giving you good advice based on experience, knowledge, and a vast history of astonishing success.

Don't listen if you don't want to, but don't pretend we're saying things that we definitely aren't.

Responding to the points about Phentermine or any sort of drug based appetite suppression. I get the idea that you suppress your cravings so you can focus on building good habits with your diet and exercise. It sounds great in principle but there is a major flaw with that reasoning.

When you learn a behavior or a routine you have to learn it in the environment in which you are planning to operate in long term. If you want to be able to bench press free weight barbells you practice by bench pressing free weight barbells. If you instead use a machine that guides the bar you will *Seem* to make incredible gains but as soon as you actually try to switch to the environment you wanted (ie a free-weight barbell) you won't be able to lift it because all the synergistic muscles involved in balance would not have been developed.

Similarly when you try to behaviorally condition yourself to have better habits you have to do it in the environment you are going to naturally be in. If you are not planning on taking appetite suppressants for the rest of your life that means learning those behaviors while not on appetite suppressants. If you try to learn those behaviors while being ON an appetite suppressant it would be akin to doing bench with a machine. It seems to work great but as soon as you come off the suppressant you are going to realize that your trained behaviors were based completely on how you felt while being on that appetite suppressant and they will simply no longer apply when you come off of it.

People gravitate towards using machines to do bench press because its easier and you can make gains faster and feel like you are learning good habits and increasing your strength, but as soon as you switch to a free weight press all those gains vanish. Same with an appetite suppresent. Those "good habits" you are building most likely only work in combination with the drug.

When you train to lift with a machine your body is learning how to lift weights using that machine. When you train yourself to eat properly on an appetite suppressant your body is learning how to eat properly while on appetite suppressants. If you want to learn how to eat properly without use of drugs then you have to learn without use of drugs as hard as that might be.

I won't chastise you because I want you to pay attention to this. I don't know why your doctor prescribed this medication, but I'm hoping he knows what he is doing, however:

1. The literature for medical professionals says that a patient should NEVER be on phentermine more than a few weeks. You have already been on it for 16 days. I hope there is a plan to wean you off very, very soon.

2. Retaining water can be normal OR it can be a symptom of heart failure which can hit suddenly. Heart damage can be a side effect of phentermine. Do not take water-weight gain lightly while taking this drug.

Please read the medical literature about phentermine. The choice is yours and your doctor's, but you need to report any unusual symptoms to your doctor. I can understand why a quick fix can seem enticing, but since it isn't something you can do long-term anyway, and unless there is a medical necessity for you to lose a little weight extremely quickly, you might want to discuss this decision with your doctor again.

I began my MFP journey because I thought about having gastric sleeve surgery for weight loss as recommended by my cardiologist and rheumatologist. When I looked into it, the surgeon told me that I would have to maintain a 1200 calories a day diet and commit to regular exercise for it to work and for the surgery to be effective. I decided to see if I would be able to do it before I decided to go ahead with the surgery. The thing is, once I started 1200 calories a day and exercising everyday, I started to lose weight! So now I think I can do this myself, without surgery. I'm losing at a nice pace about 1.5 to 2 pounds a week -- oh, not like I would with the surgery -- but I'm happy with it. I now believe that surgery is the answer for some people, just probably not for me. Phentermine, bariatric surgery, or any of the alternative methods for weight loss still boil down to us doing it for ourselves and sticking with it for the long haul.

Take care of yourself.

Responding to the points about Phentermine or any sort of drug based appetite suppression. I get the idea that you suppress your cravings so you can focus on building good habits with your diet and exercise. It sounds great in principle but there is a major flaw with that reasoning.

When you learn a behavior or a routine you have to learn it in the environment in which you are planning to operate in long term. If you want to be able to bench press free weight barbells you practice by bench pressing free weight barbells. If you instead use a machine that guides the bar you will *Seem* to make incredible gains but as soon as you actually try to switch to the environment you wanted (ie a free-weight barbell) you won't be able to lift it because all the synergistic muscles involved in balance would not have been developed.

Similarly when you try to behaviorally condition yourself to have better habits you have to do it in the environment you are going to naturally be in. If you are not planning on taking appetite suppressants for the rest of your life that means learning those behaviors while not on appetite suppressants. If you try to learn those behaviors while being ON an appetite suppressant it would be akin to doing bench with a machine. It seems to work great but as soon as you come off the suppressant you are going to realize that your trained behaviors were based completely on how you felt while being on that appetite suppressant and they will simply no longer apply when you come off of it.

People gravitate towards using machines to do bench press because its easier and you can make gains faster and feel like you are learning good habits and increasing your strength, but as soon as you switch to a free weight press all those gains vanish. Same with an appetite suppresent. Those "good habits" you are building most likely only work in combination with the drug.

Seriously the best example and real explanation of why my view is flawed. I am being 100% serious when I say that. Thank you!

op, muscle weighs more than fat. i bet you gained muscle.












too soon?








not srs.