Low Sodium help

knifeskunk
knifeskunk Posts: 11 Member
edited November 2014 in Food and Nutrition
Hi all! I weigh about 365 now. When I started all this a year ago, I was almost 500 lbs, around 485-490 I'm not sure as I couldn't weigh myself. I've made it this far without a doctor (no insurance) and I feel wonderful! I've gone from eating probably 4500-5000 calories a day to anywhere between 1200 and 1900 depending on the day (my daily alotment starts at 2100 I think but I can never eat that much and properly balance it between macros and micros, so I cap myself at the above range, so long as I don't feel hungry.

I work out every day in some capacity, whether its a cumulative hour or so of walking the dog (I average 2-3 miles of walking a day) or a shorter walk coupled with 30-60 minutes of cardio, or in summer I just make sure to walk or swim in our pool each day. It's worked wonders. I'm very obviously losing weight, and I feel generally better, not to mention I've quit smoking since this past August and just generally I feel a ton better.

My issue is thus: A few weeks ago I bottomed out at 363, lighter than I've been in YEARS. But ever since then I've fluctuated between 363 and 367ish. It's been about a month and a half I've been doing that.

Do you think it's fluid? What's this plateau even about? I don't want to eat less than 1200 calories a day since that seems very dangerous. I think it might be sodium? No matter what I do I can't get my family (with whom I live - times a rough these days) to stop high sodium stuff like pastas and canned stuff, etc etc. And if I don't want to buy my own stuff (which, making roughly 80 dollars a month doing odd jobs for people, I can't), I eat what they eat, at least at dinner time.

As a result my sodium levels constantly go over (sometimes absurdly so) the 2300 limit myfitnesspal has given me. I know going a little over 2300 isn't bad, but, well, these ladies love their processed, canned, preserved foods.

Halp me, Obi Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope. (not really but I'm curious for opinions)

Also worth noting; how much too much water? We do a lot of bottled water and I drink between 8-10 cups a day, more if its a heavy workout day. (I don't really do soda or juices except occasionally)

Replies

  • JenniferIsLosingIt
    JenniferIsLosingIt Posts: 595 Member
    First off GREAT FREAKING JOB!!!!!You are doing an amazing job. Secondly, for me personally sodium is a killer. However, if you have been eating that low on calories at some point your body will slow wayyyyyy down in losses. Reevaluate your portions etc (mostly because nearly every MFP knowitall will say you are not doing it right if you dont measure every single thing) for people our size it is harder to maintain on such a deficit. Try taking a one week break from such a low calorie allowance. Try eating around 2200 or 2300 for a week and see what happens. Our bodies are like furnaces and with furnaces if you dont steadily feed them fuel they eventually burn out. I feel our bodies are very similar to this. You could even try changing the exercize routine up, try some strength training or zumba. Just something different from what you have been doing. Most of all...NEVER GIVEUP. You are amazing in all your accomplishments thus far. I started at 412 and am hovering at 332 for the last three weeks or so. SO I totally understand the frustration...
  • knifeskunk
    knifeskunk Posts: 11 Member
    Aw, thank you. You're so sweet! And Congratulations to you too! I do have a cheat day, and the only reason I call it that is that it's sort of a family tradition that we either eat out or order pizza on Fridays so I don't stringently adhere to my budgeting on Fridays; I usually don't have any issue getting back to snuff on the weekends either and even if I do eat more for the next couple days I still exercise. (Weekends in the winter I take a 3 mile walk, in the summer I take an hour long swim)

    I drink probably at or a bit under a gallon of water every day, sometimes more. My only other indulgences are the occasional vanilla coke zero or fun size candy bar and I have coffee in the mornings but I drink it black. This compared to when Little Debbies and Coca Cola made up 70% of my diet.

    My typical breakfasts is a few slices of toast with peanut butter, and some watermelon with feta cheese on, or conversely a two-egg omelette with feta and a half cup of chopped veggies. Or just an egg and english muffin sammich.

    Lunch I usually do a weight watchers smart-ones meal, which is more out of convenience than anything, failing that I usually steam some brown rice and toss some chopped up veggies and spices in, and sometimes chicken or turkey sausage.

    Dinner's the wild card; I have little say in that, because my mom loves salt, my grandma can't have anything spicy, and my aunt and I don't feel like hearing them whine about health food so we concede the point lol, but my dinner almost always winds up being the days biggest meal, sitting somewhere between 450-600 calories, and usually consisting of meat, potatos, frozen veggies, and bread/pasta. (Rarely is any of that whole/unprocessed) :/

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