Can hormones really stop weight loss?

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annahooker80
annahooker80 Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
From what I've been reading, weight loss is a simple matter of creating a deficit. I am positive I am creating a deficit, yet have seen virtually no weight loss (been yoyoing a couple pounds, probably water weight) for nearly 2 months. I am weighing my food, and I am using a bodymedia. I am breastfeeding though, and wondering if my hormones are somehow stopping the weight loss. Since I am at a deficit, that should be impossible, right? I should have a 500 cal daily deficit from nursing, and I am making a 500 cal deficit from food, so I should be losing about 2 pounds a week. If the hormones can stop weight loss, thequestion is how? Is there anything I can do about it to encourage the weight to come off anyway? Just keep chugging along, and wait for something to happen?

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  • kmurph_910
    kmurph_910 Posts: 5
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    Your post caught my eye because I have dealt with the seeming evils of hormones! Here is my story...

    In short, YES hormones can absolutely disrupt weight loss! I am not a doctor and personally have never breast fed before so I do not know how hormones may be affected in terms of that, but I battled with my hormones for months until I finally addressed it. About a year ago, I went off birth control after being on it for 8+ years, and my body completely went into retaliation mode. It felt like it was fighting me from the inside out... all of a sudden, I was having hot flashes, I was exhausted ALL of the time, my face started breaking out like a 13 year old boy, my hair was coming out noticeably in the shower... and I was gaining weight for seemingly no reason. I did not change my diet, in fact, I lowered my calorie intake and increased my exercise to try to battle the weight coming on. I was doing everything right, but gaining at a steady rate. I was depressed and devastated. After an emotional breakdown I decided something was wrong with my body and went to the doctor, a hormone specialist that was referred to me. She ordered a bunch of blood tests and found that my hormone levels were all over the place... some were super high while others were super low. She had me do a 3 or 4 day cleanse (special shakes and vegetables) and put me on medication to recalibrate my body, and within the first month 10 POUNDS fell off, like that. I know it sounds unbelievable, but I believe my body was holding on to all that extra weight and once it got back to normal it was finally able to get rid of it. Since that kickstart, I have been steadily maintaining without much thought to my diet or exercise (I eat pretty healthy as it is and am a teacher so I walk around a lot) but recently decided I wanted to lose a few more pounds so I joined MFP :)

    I don't know how this relates to breastfeeding, but it is my own personal experience with the power of hormones and I just wanted to share and let you know you are not alone!
  • _Terrapin_
    _Terrapin_ Posts: 4,301 Member
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    During weight loss it isn't uncommon to hit a plateau for many weeks. Keep weighing your food and logging. Give it time.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    I just posted something about this on my wall. PM me if you want to hear my experience, as I'm not really keen to post it here. cheers and good luck!
  • Dragonwolf
    Dragonwolf Posts: 5,600 Member
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    A thing to note -- up to a certain point, the body will prioritize the baby in situations of pregnancy and breastfeeding, to help ensure the baby's survival. I highly recommend dropping that extra 500 calorie deficit and use the one provided to you by breastfeeding. Otherwise, you risk depriving both you and your baby of fuel and nutrients you both need.

    Yes, hormones can and do play a part in weight loss and gain, especially in women. Right now, you're likely not sleeping much, which raises cortisol levels (stress hormones). When the body is in a state of stress, digestion and other functions slow or shut down entirely. This may seem like a good thing for weight loss, but it decreases both input and output. When processes are slowed, they use less energy (less output), and when digestion is slowed, it decreases the amount absorbed (less input). That less input causes the body to "think" that there's less food than there really is, thus prompting the body to further slow things down (even less output).

    Then, there's the matter of insulin. A common disorder among women is polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), and can include elevated insulin levels (hyperinsulinemia) and insulin resistance. When there's too much insulin circulating in the blood, the body gets the message that there's energy to be stored (since that's what insulin does -- shuttle glucose and protein to cells for use or storage). When the body gets that message, it shuts down the message to release body fat for fuel. The problem, though, is that when there's no food intake, the body also gets the "starvation" message and is prompted to slow down the output half of the equation. (There are actually studies that have shown that women with PCOS have a metabolic rate as much as 400 calories less than anticipated.) To make matters worse, this situation also tends to increase appetite (hunger levels), prompting the woman to eat more, doubling the fat-storing impact if she listens to her hunger signals.

    There are other hormones, too, that control weight. Many of them interact with each other and are affected by the foods we eat and the conditions we're exposed to.
  • Rainboots80
    Rainboots80 Posts: 218 Member
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    How old is your baby? Are you exclusive breastfeeding or has the baby started solids or supplementing Formula at all? You can only count on the 500 calories if you are exclusive and usually this is with a baby under 6 months. I only counted 300 calories after 6 months of age. Then after 1 year I dont even count it as a deficit.

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