Can you loose weight while on Prednisone?

I personally gained 25 kilos in a few short weeks while on prednisolone but I was on very high doses for Crohn's disease for several months. The doctor did not prepare me for the side effects at all, and I was hyper-vigilant, hungry all the time and completely irrational. Because the weight gain happened so quickly, it all happened between visits to his office. But I blame my lack of awareness about the side effects - if I have to go on it again I will totally be more prepared, and be ready to speak up if I think it's affecting me.

Yes definitely just exercise eat healthy and there should be no problem. I have been on it for a month (for Bells palsy having 1 side of my face paralysed and gaining weight) and gained 5 pounds in the first week. It took two weeks tor reverse it but it did reverse....good luck

I deal with this same problem and find that after two years of dealing with a chronic condition the best thing to do is watch what you eat. Protein mixed with water or un-sweetened almond milk, salads, raw vegetables, fish, skinless chicken breast, tofu. Things to avoid - bread, pasta, pizza (unless you run a lot). Pretty much anything that you crave or might consider comfort food avoid as you will over eat and often there are a lot of bad calories. If you have to eat bread or pasta - whole grains or oats are great to eat. but watch the carbs. I keep my load at 50/25/25 while training and off season I keep it at 50/30/20 (Protein/Carbs/Fat). While I no longer train for sports, I do train to stay in shape. With having developed this AI disease in my 40's and suffered for 2 years and putting on 60 lbs. for me to get into the gym. Currently I run 4-6 miles 5 times a week and weight lift at a high intensity as I used to when I was in my 20-30's. I go big but work high reps light weights as well. Working both strength and endurance for myself is important for it gives me muscle to burn calories while tying this and cardio to help raise my BMR (Base Metabolic Rate).

Keep at it and don't give up. It can seem like an uphill fight - and it is - but it does not mean you have to give up. Get out, get involved, and follow some of the good advice of others that have posted. I especially like the suggestion of raw carrots and celery as these are great filler foods and don't pack a lot of calories and have some great nutritional value. Finally, record everything you eat - everything. Scan it using the app and be honest what a portion size is. Sometimes we like to lie to ourselves.

last thing I do to track exercise is a heart rate monitor that I sync with myfitness pal. A great t.ool that keeps the guess work out of calories burned and making certain my calorie count is negative.

Good Luck!!

Brian

Get the book "Wheat Belly" I started a year ago eliminating wheat/grains and lost 14" off my waist. Go to http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/ if you can't afford to get the book start at http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2012/12/wheat-belly-quick-dirty-2/ While I'm still battling the appetite stimulation prednisone at least I'm not consuming bad carbs that spike blood sugar which is how we gain weight. Give it a try!

currently taking prednisone and other medications (i think like 23 total?) started working out and eating better starting jan 1st of 2014. iv already lost about 14 lbs. dont give up. you can do it if u have the will power. ;-D

I have 5 autoimmunes and a whole lot of other health issues. I've been on and off prednisone almost my whole life due to my breathing issues/disroders and the autoimmune issues as well. You can lose weight on prednisone it's just harder.

I was recently diagnosed with the autoimmune disorder Sarcoidosis, I'm on week 4 of a 12 month regiment of Prednisone treatment and immunosuppressant treatment. My current dosage is 40 mg. I've been working really hard to lose weight; walking 3x a week and following a stringent high protein/ low carb diet. I haven't gained any weight, but it's been a lot harder to lose weight for sure. Taking comfort that I'm not alone in this battle. When I get cravings or hunger pangs I drink a cup of green tea and that seems to help curb the cravings and pangs. I am most concerned with developing diabetes being on steroids for such a long time.

I've got lupus nephritis and am on presi. I was on it earlier but i was not exercising or eating better. Now I as i am on it, I have been able to loose weight alright my face is still a little bigger, but the calorie tracking and exercising are keeping my face from being as big as it was the first-time.

I need to loose at least 10 lbs. I am starting today. I am on prednisone for an autoimmune disease. I know you usually gain weight on this medication. How hard is it to acually loose weight on this. Am I fighting a loosing battle?

I am on high doses of Prednisone as well s Dexamethasone ( plus I am older....past 65) due to almost life long RA as well as active systemic Lupus for the last three years. I have to be very disciplined in regard to my calorie intake as well as the quality of the calories I ingest. Due to age and height ( under 5 feet ) I eat 1200 calories a day and walk 45 minutes six days a week. I have lost 50 pounds over the last year. In case you are interested....my food log is open.

Hi, i've been taking prednisone for a year already decresing dosis. Now im at 12.5mg I got diagnose Dermatomyositis and besides the monthly internations at thr hospital for gammaglobuline i was on solumedrol, another steroid. At first i lost 15 lbs gained from my illness and felt good about, but after two months on 60mg prednisone got blowned up. I have always kept a healthy eating habit, but it didnt stopped the weight gain. I've gain 43 lbs and i wasnt able to exercise until a month ago, because i wasnt able to walk properly because of the illness. It has been already two weeks since i started exercise and feel much better and less like a balloon, still my weight is the same. Its sooo depressing!! Hope to friend you guys, you all understand how prednisone works and could really cheer up each other

I have a kidney disorder that, when not in remission, requires me to take prednisone. I agree with so many of you that this may be the ideal medication to treat our ailments. However, this medication is quite brutal. I found out today that I will be starting another round and decided to find out how to beat the weight gain and other "fun" symptoms instead of blame the drug and throw in the towel. Thank you all for your positive comments and encouragement! So glad to know I'm not alone in this battle!

I understand your pain. I have been on Prednisone for over 4 years for an autoimmune disease as well. i have rheumatoid arthritis, and although helps out a lot with the pain, and the amount of weight that i have gained is unreal and completely unwanted. I recently changed my eating habits to low-carb. I am thinking of becoming a vegetarian but i am not sure how that will pan out.

I know this is an old thread but I am an odd duck. I didn't gain any weight at all ( and actually was underweight while on it). Perhaps that's because I only take it when my Crohn's is really bad and I'm not absorbing much and eating is painful.

aspexil wrote: »

Get the book "Wheat Belly" I started a year ago eliminating wheat/grains and lost 14" off my waist. Go to http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/ if you can't afford to get the book start at http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2012/12/wheat-belly-quick-dirty-2/ While I'm still battling the appetite stimulation prednisone at least I'm not consuming bad carbs that spike blood sugar which is how we gain weight. Give it a try!

@aspexil welcome to MFP forums. I have read Wheat Belly Total Health about a year after I left off sugar and all grains and I agree it was an important book in my case.

In the case of @loosingit3 cutting out grains might or might not help however. I took Prednisone for many years and it impacted my joints and have been off of it for years now.

Healthy people do not become obese typically and sick people do often wind up gaining a lot of weight as I see it. My autoimmune problems lead to arthritis, IBS and obesity. The doctors had me set up to start Enbrel injections as of Nov 2014. Finally after trying to taper off of sugar and grains during Aug/Sept 2014 and totally failing I left sugars and all form of grains Oct 2014 and in just 30 days my autoimmune related health problems started to resolve without using any Rx medications. Had I done that 40 years earlier I expect my life would have been very different.

It might not work for others but when I was able to 'fix' my autoimmune related health issues by my new Way Of Eating as my health started to improve my weight started coming off and I have maintained at 200 down from 250 for the last year.

Loosingit3 I encourage you to keep reading and searching with Google about your health condition to see if you can learn more as you are doing here on MFP forums. Just keep in mind social media is not a place of trustworthy medical advice typically. Plus what advice may be great for one person might kill another so be carefully. Read as much research as you can find. The treatments for autoimmune diseases can be more dangerous than the disease itself I have found. Best of success.