Thyroid disorder, 5'3, 56 year old, who can't lose weight!

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August_1958
August_1958 Posts: 110 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi Fitness Pals!

I hope that I can find other females, around my age group that suffer with thryoid disorders (hypothyroidism) and find it more difficult to lose than our younger female friends!

I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism about 15 years ago and was placed on Synthroid medication daily. I have a yearly check up with blood work and shows that my levels are within normal range. I still have the same symptoms as before however.

I have never been morbidly obese, but since hitting my 50's, find myself about 60-70 pounds overweight. If I cut out all sugar and breads, and count my calories as MFP suggests, I can lose about 15-20 pounds pretty easy. Then the road block arrives and my weight does not move. No matter what I do. I can maintain that loss for about 2 months, then it all comes back on.

Also since hitting this mid-life age, my weight has shifted... UP! My legs, hips and thighs are no longer the biggest part of my body, but now my smallest. My upper body weight is the heaviest, with my torso or belly being the largest. It is getting so bad, that I am having trouble fitting in most size clothes. I cannot wear anything according to the size charts given by manufactures. The size of my hips and thighs, I am a size 10. By my waist, I am a 2x! I've learned to buy big shirts and elastic waisted pants. If I don't, the leg sizes are 3 times too big.

I have considered asking my PCP to recommend an Endocronologist to see if my dose of Synthroid needs altered.

Is there anyone out there with these same issues? Maybe your stories will help me and others fighting this battle. Thanks for listening!!

Replies

  • marmaladepixie
    marmaladepixie Posts: 83 Member
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    Have you had any other hormone panels done besides the thyroid?
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    You still have hypothyroid symptoms like fatigue, feeling cold, dry skin, brittle nails?

    Obviously, your PCP doesn't know how to treat hypothyroidism. You can be corrected to within normal range with medication, but still not be corrected enough to receive relief from symptoms. Everyone with hypothyroidism seems to have a certain sweet spot on the range of normal where they feel their best.

    Get to know your numbers. And yes, get a referral to an endocrinologist and make sure they will treat your symptoms and not your numbers.

    Once you're on the proper dose of medication, losing weight should work as well for you as it does for anyone. It's simply a matter of finding the right amount of calories to eat for your height and age, logging properly, and sticking to your deficit.

  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
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    There's a normal "range" for a reason instead of one magic number. Just because you're in the normal range doesn't mean you're normal for what your body needs. Your doctor needs to work with you on what your normal is--where you get back your quality of life. I do better at the lower end of the normal range.

    If you haven't already, I'd ask your doctor for a Free T3 and Free T4 test in addition to TSH. You and your doc will get a more complete picture that way.

    Your body is supposed to convert T4 to T3 and if it's not there's an additional medication you can take (Cytomel).
  • Chrysalid2014
    Chrysalid2014 Posts: 1,038 Member
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    Hi there; I am hypothyroid also. Last year my endo started me on combined T3 (liothyronine) and T4 (thyroxine); prior to that I had been taking thyroxine only. Since the addition of the T3 I have stopped gaining weight and have more energy. You might want to ask your endo about this as apparently some people don't convert T4 to T3 optimally.
  • kellykneppergrundy
    kellykneppergrundy Posts: 234 Member
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    It's worth considering Cushing's Syndrome if you feel your abdominal weight is extreme compared to the rest of you. Also consider any medications you may be on. I found the antihistamine i was taking had me piling on weight even though that wasn't listed as a symptom. I was able to stop taking it and that weight started coming off very soon after. Finally, if you are hypothyroid there is a very good chance you are deficient in vitamin D, as there is a strong correlation between the 2. I have had hypothyroidism for 10 and was convinced my synthroid levels weren't right due to having ongoing hypothyroid symptoms. It turned out i was very deficient in vitamin d. Certainly in my case it caused a lot of issues when i tried to lose weight. Just a few ideas to consider with your doctor. Best wishes for your health.
  • August_1958
    August_1958 Posts: 110 Member
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    marmaladepixie wrote: »
    Have you had any other hormone panels done besides the thyroid?
    No, just the TH levels.... which always come out "within the average".
  • August_1958
    August_1958 Posts: 110 Member
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    Great information, thanks everyone! I will check with my doctor and try to get in to a specialist and get those extra blood tests taken.
  • heathervazquez75
    heathervazquez75 Posts: 33 Member
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    I am hypothyroid and take levothyroxin. Sometimes I feel really tired. Like unusually tired especially after working out hard. My dr says my levels are normal for a long time now. Weight loss seems to be harder the older I get. I had better success with weight loss when I was younger. I had more energy to do HITT. Now I am content to lose weight slower and I am definitely doing that. My goal is to keep the weight off once I do lose it. That has been my biggest challenge.
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,179 Member
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    IvoryWings wrote: »
    Hi Fitness Pals!

    I hope that I can find other females, around my age group that suffer with thryoid disorders (hypothyroidism) and find it more difficult to lose than our younger female friends!

    I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism about 15 years ago and was placed on Synthroid medication daily. I have a yearly check up with blood work and shows that my levels are within normal range. I still have the same symptoms as before however.

    I have never been morbidly obese, but since hitting my 50's, find myself about 60-70 pounds overweight. If I cut out all sugar and breads, and count my calories as MFP suggests, I can lose about 15-20 pounds pretty easy. Then the road block arrives and my weight does not move. No matter what I do. I can maintain that loss for about 2 months, then it all comes back on.

    Also since hitting this mid-life age, my weight has shifted... UP! My legs, hips and thighs are no longer the biggest part of my body, but now my smallest. My upper body weight is the heaviest, with my torso or belly being the largest. It is getting so bad, that I am having trouble fitting in most size clothes. I cannot wear anything according to the size charts given by manufactures. The size of my hips and thighs, I am a size 10. By my waist, I am a 2x! I've learned to buy big shirts and elastic waisted pants. If I don't, the leg sizes are 3 times too big.

    I have considered asking my PCP to recommend an Endocronologist to see if my dose of Synthroid needs altered.

    Is there anyone out there with these same issues? Maybe your stories will help me and others fighting this battle. Thanks for listening!!

    You said it yourself: when you count calories, you lose weight. As you lose weight, you will need to adjust your calories to lower, or you will not keep losing. And as you grow older, you will need less calories, and will tend to store fat more easily. It is how it works for everyone, you do not need to be hypothyroid for it to happen.
    Go to a tdee calculator, like this one: http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/
    change just the age in the settings, and see how tdee gets lower and lower as you grow older :(
    Up your exercise and start thinking of the dietary changes as lifestyle changes, not something that will happen for X months. The calories your will need to restrict, it is for life. If you start eating like you did pre MFP, you are back to where you started, as you have seen already.
  • August_1958
    August_1958 Posts: 110 Member
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    Let me add, that I do lose weight... for about 4 weeks. then it stops. No matter what I do, my weight loss will not budge. I could understand if I only had a small amount of weight to lose, but I need to lose at least 60 pounds. I stop losing after 1 month. Surely this isn't normal? I stay at my 1200 calorie allowance.
    I lost weight easily when I was younger, even though I only needed to lose 10-20 pounds.
    Surely a plateau shouldn't arrive within 1 month of watching your diet?

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