43 and so unmotivated and other changes...

francinecowart
francinecowart Posts: 84
edited September 28 in Chit-Chat
hey everyone...i'm 43...i runied my metabolism for 12 years...stopped doing that 7 years ago, so i thought my metabolism would be "normal" again....for those 7 years or less, i have eaten next to nothing on a daily basis...for the last year solid i eat here and there, couple of bites here and there and exercise and i'm not losing a thing....i was at 224lbs, then i added a diet supplement with the healthy eating....i've gotten down to fluctuating between 179.0 and 186.0...i'm in a lull...well i got with my doctor a week ago and he said lets try this....no diet pill, water, less coffee, (i use sugar substitute and fat free powered creamer) and eat healthy and exercise....well i'm not losing anything....now i'm discouraged, depressed, not motivated to exercise and just plain lost...i know i should do what he says, but here i get no support in the house....they say your body chemistry changes at a certain age, but my goodness....ruined metabolism, menopause (TMI), and now totally feel yucky and discouraged....

i guess my question is....what is going on and what can be expected....lol, wish my doc. was here so i could ask him...lol

Replies

  • _Aimée_
    _Aimée_ Posts: 190
    You are starving yourself.
    Why your doctor didn't point out the stinking bloody obvious I'll never know.

    You simply will not loose weight whilst eating 'next to nothing' and exercising. You body is in starvation mode. Your metabolism is probably even slower as there is barely any food going into your body. You body will be clinging onto fat as it isnt getting enough from your diet.

    You don't need to starve yourself thin, where did you get that idea from? To put it bluntly, its ridiculous.
  • BeastieGirl
    BeastieGirl Posts: 76
    Hi,

    Totally agree with the above post. I know it's sounds bonkers, but you have to eat (right) to lose weight. Your poor body is in panic mode and holding on to that fat cos it's not sure when it's gonna get some food!

    You only saw your doctor a week ago. Give it time to work, stop worrying about losing weight and start concentrating on looking after your health, physical and mental.

    Eat right and exercise and then eat some more good stuff. Don't be ruled by scales, try not to weigh yourself more than once a week (I try very hard to stick to once a fortnight) and take your measurements. Drink lots of water.

    Add me as a friend if you want some support. Sorry if this sounded bossy, but it's your body and your life, take control of it :smile:
  • CarolynB38
    CarolynB38 Posts: 553 Member
    You need to start eating the number of calories that MFP recommends for a while and eat at least 1200 calories every day. You may find you put on weight for a couple of weeks while your body adjusts. To start with it will hang onto every bit of food for dear life because it has been starved so long, but as it gets used to getting enough food your metabolism will adjust, you'll have more energy and you'll feel better. After the first few weeks if you stick to the number of calories MFP recommends and you try to get some sort of exercise you should start to lose weight again. There was a great article on here a while back that explained starvation mode in great detail. If I can find it I will post if for you to read.

    Basically you need to start eating again to get your metabolism back up to normal and then you should start losing weight.

    If you go to your profile page it lists what topics you have contributed to on the left hand side near the bottom. I hope that helps you find the thread again :smile:
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    yes it is, not an idea, just no appitite...i've thought of that but i'm eating what i can stomach...i told him about it and all i can visualize is hes thinking that will change with time...i don't know, hince the questions...i'm just kinda wondering if all these chemistry changes are responsible for my appitite and not losing....thanks for the response
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    Hey there. I'm 43 too and thought I'd ruined my metabolism with previous unhealthy choices. however, by sticking with exactly what calories MFP recommends, exercising regularly and eating back most of my exercise calories (I need the energy!) I'm seeing a gradual weight loss. Good luck and add me as a friend if you want support :smile:
  • realrayne10
    realrayne10 Posts: 388 Member
    I was the same way...I only ate when I felt hungry, then ate a lot of the wrong stuff. But you know what? The more I started eating on a regular schedule, the more I have been able to eat. I eat 5 - 6 small meals a day and if I get off my schedule, the cravings start and the bad thoughts start to creep in. So baby steps, little snacks that are healthy, and lots of water.

    Good luck!
  • CarolynB38
    CarolynB38 Posts: 553 Member
    This is quite an interesting post about starvation mode. He recommends increasing your daily calories by 100-200 calories and keeping it at that level for one week before increasing again. This way you don't shock your system too much and it should be a manageable increase if you have little appetite at the moment. Keep increasing each week until you reach a the level MFP recommends. You may find you need to work up to your maintenance level and stay there for a couple of weeks and then change your goal to 1lb loss a week. At this point you should have more energy, be feeling better generally and hopefully losing weight. Keep going. You'll get there :smile:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/208407-how-to-repair-a-damaged-metabolism-stavation-mode
  • CassieLEO
    CassieLEO Posts: 757 Member
    You are starving yourself.
    Why your doctor didn't point out the stinking bloody obvious I'll never know.

    You simply will not loose weight whilst eating 'next to nothing' and exercising. You body is in starvation mode. Your metabolism is probably even slower as there is barely any food going into your body. You body will be clinging onto fat as it isnt getting enough from your diet.

    You don't need to starve yourself thin, where did you get that idea from? To put it bluntly, its ridiculous.

    Yup, what she said!
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    yeh i thought it would be an interesting post...lol...i'm thinking the same thing as well and am glad you guys are reaffirming my thoughts...thank you very much:)
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    hank you, i'll do that:)
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    lol, puter skips letters...can't get on mine yet:)...thanks again:)
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    This is quite an interesting post about starvation mode. He recommends increasing your daily calories by 100-200 calories and keeping it at that level for one week before increasing again. This way you don't shock your system too much and it should be a manageable increase if you have little appetite at the moment. Keep increasing each week until you reach a the level MFP recommends. You may find you need to work up to your maintenance level and stay there for a couple of weeks and then change your goal to 1lb loss a week. At this point you should have more energy, be feeling better generally and hopefully losing weight. Keep going. You'll get there :smile:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/208407-how-to-repair-a-damaged-metabolism-stavation-mode
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    it is interesting, and i can't believe so few replied....to the ones that did, thank you so much:) being able to discuss it with others is a good thing....keeps, well me, motivated....
  • _Aimée_
    _Aimée_ Posts: 190
    Your post has only been up an hour, please forgive the rest of the world for having a life to get on with and not coming to your aid.

    Do you think you are perhaps not hungry because thats what you are so used to eating? I remember when I was eating like a pig I would get hungry every hour or so, would crave huge portions. Now my diet is completely different and I only get hungry enough for sensible sized portion. Maybe try eating just a tiny bit more, and slowly building the amount of food up.
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    wowwwww knew you would take that , that way...some people one dreads answering the post....uh yeh sure do and am getting on with mine, kids up and off to school, etc.....you may want to get on with yours and stay out of mine...didn't join the site to get my head bit off by angry people in general.....
  • keepitoff99
    keepitoff99 Posts: 117
    Thanks for posting.

    I agree that you need to increase what you eat. Eat foods higher in calories for a while and if you aren't that interested in eating to at least eat 1200 calories a day. It's true that weight loss takes time and you might not notice things happening for a while. but hang in there. Just by commenting on here is a good step and I sincerely hope that you can get the encouragement that you deserve.
  • joeysrib
    joeysrib Posts: 158 Member
    What is it that Bob Harper and Jillian Michael both say? You've got to eat to lose. Right? Good luck, I'm rooting for ya!
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    thank you very much:)...rootin for you and everyone else too:)
  • _Aimée_
    _Aimée_ Posts: 190
    Francine, I can't decipher most of that post it doesn't make sense, but from what I can gather you have misinterpreted my frank input as being angry and biting your head off. I'm not an angry person at all, and I'm sorry you took it that way, but thank you for essentially telling me to *kitten* off and leave you alone.

    Good luck with the weight loss. Peace out.
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    ok, wowwww still goin at it....the post was self explanitory.....and good luck to you too:) have a nice day:)
  • JacqsP72
    JacqsP72 Posts: 19 Member
    Ladies!

    There is no need for any of that!

    Francine - as the others have said, you do need to up your cals - your body can't cope - but do it gradually and you'll get there. Another thing to consider - do you really need to lose weight or is it something that is so conditioned in you you can't break the habit. Could you take a long objective look in the mirror and think about your body? Could you learn to love what you've got?

    And needleknievel - is there really a need for that much sarcasm?
  • francinecowart
    francinecowart Posts: 84
    hey:) yeh i listened to what they said...well actually that pic was taken a month ago...i'm still the same weight...181.something....i'm only 5"2 1/2 the doctor said....so yeh i need to lose...i guess the cam i have takes off 10lbs...lol...but yeh i have a way to go...i appreciate what you posted and its great advise, but for health reasons i need to lose:) thanks again
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