Gaining crazy amounts of weight...begging for help!

mccowan8952
mccowan8952 Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone!
I've tried every where else and no one seems to be able to help me so I thought I would come here in the hope that someone has struggled with this problem before as well and found a solution they would be willing to share with me! A little about me: I'm a 28 year old female who has never had health problems or trouble with the scale until I tried to lose weight. I have an underactive thyroid that I am on medication for as well as long term antibiotics for rosacea (still haven't decided if antibiotics are contributing-yes I'm that desperate.) My activity level is high. I workout at least five days a week for 45-60 minutes with HIIT workouts on the treadmill and heavy weights. My body is muscular. My diet is 85% clean high protein, moderate amount of carbs, Around 2,000 calories and a goal of a gallon of water a day. I weigh over 250 pounds. My problem is that despite all my workouts and obsessively tracking my diet, I'm gaining weight and inches. I've been to various doctors and had every thing checked that they will possibly checked. They have ruled out everything! If someone has advice, please help!
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Replies

  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Do you use a food scale to weigh everything?
  • mccowan8952
    mccowan8952 Posts: 5 Member
    Yes.
  • ReaderGirl3
    ReaderGirl3 Posts: 868 Member
    My initial thoughts-are you accurately tracking all your food intake? Your diary is locked so we can't see it. Are you using a food scale, set in grams, to measure out correct portion sizes? And when you say 'around' 2,000 calories a day, what does that actually mean? And is 2,000 calories the number that MFP set for you?
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    edited April 2016
    If you weigh everything, do you pick the right items from the database? And how long have been tracking your intake? Your diary is closed.
  • mccowan8952
    mccowan8952 Posts: 5 Member
    I do use a scale to measure out everything.
    Around 2000, meaning on days that I don't workout I eat less than 2,000 where as on days that I might have a longer more intense workout and burns large amount of calories I might eat more. 2,000 is the number my trainer gave me.
  • cavia
    cavia Posts: 457 Member
    Can you open your diary? Do you feel your hypothyroidism is well-controlled with replacement levothyroxine?
  • mccowan8952
    mccowan8952 Posts: 5 Member
    Yes, I do feel like it's well controlled. My levels have been within normal range for the past year. I'll unlock!
  • debsdoingthis
    debsdoingthis Posts: 454 Member
    What numbers did MFP give you when you plugged in your stats? At 250 I was eating about 1600 on non workout days and up to 1800 on intense days. Losing average of 1 lb per week.
  • mccowan8952
    mccowan8952 Posts: 5 Member
    How long did that work for you?
  • itsthehumidity
    itsthehumidity Posts: 351 Member
    In addition to seeing the doctors you've seen already, who have already prescribed medication for a thyroid issue, I recommend you see a dietitian. That's a registered, clinical professional who can work with your conditions and get you where you need to be.
  • pcpop7
    pcpop7 Posts: 161 Member
    mccowan8952 wrote: »
    Yes, I do feel like it's well controlled. My levels have been within normal range for the past year. I'll unlock!

    Have you unlocked ?
  • Kelleygirl79
    Kelleygirl79 Posts: 71 Member
    OP: How tall are you?
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
    edited April 2016
    If I was in your position, I'd change my calorie goal to 1700 and stick with it for a few weeks, regardless of exercise.

    Do you eat back exercise calories?
  • tiffanylacourse
    tiffanylacourse Posts: 2,986 Member
    Another good question: how long have you been on this plan? If it's only been a few weeks, you could need to wait it out a bit longer.
  • cavia
    cavia Posts: 457 Member

    peleroja wrote: »
    2000/day seems like rather a lot for a woman with an underactive thyroid trying to lose. And honestly, if you're gaining weight on it, that's pretty much proof that it's too much for you to lose weight on.

    I am lighter than you but pretty active apart from my office job (around 20,000 steps a day and I run about 30 miles per week) and 2000/day is pretty darn close to my maintenance.

    I'd try a few weeks at 1500-1600/day (and doublecheck your logging to make sure you are weighing/measuring absolutely everything accurately including beverages, condiments, cooking oils, and nibbles) and see if that helps.

    Not necessarily. If her hormone replacement therapy has been optimized then she should lose normally. I'm hypothyroid and currently losing 1lb/week on 2000cal/day. My guess is it's a logging issue but her diary was still locked last time I tried to look.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    What are your exercise burns like, and how are you tracking them? I'd bet it's an issue with over-estimating exercise burns, especially since you've been checked out physically and you know that there aren't any other contributing factors that you can find.

    If it were me, I'd either use the TDEE method to calculate your daily target and not eat back any exercise calories (I personally like this one: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/), or I'd drop my base target from 2000 to 1800-1900, and then only eat back 50-75% of my exercise calories.
  • pcpop7
    pcpop7 Posts: 161 Member
    mccowan8952 wrote: »
    Hey everyone!
    I've tried every where else and no one seems to be able to help me so I thought I would come here in the hope that someone has struggled with this problem before as well and found a solution they would be willing to share with me! A little about me: I'm a 28 year old female who has never had health problems or trouble with the scale until I tried to lose weight. I have an underactive thyroid that I am on medication for as well as long term antibiotics for rosacea (still haven't decided if antibiotics are contributing-yes I'm that desperate.) My activity level is high. I workout at least five days a week for 45-60 minutes with HIIT workouts on the treadmill and heavy weights. My body is muscular. My diet is 85% clean high protein, moderate amount of carbs, Around 2,000 calories and a goal of a gallon of water a day. I weigh over 250 pounds. My problem is that despite all my workouts and obsessively tracking my diet, I'm gaining weight and inches. I've been to various doctors and had every thing checked that they will possibly checked. They have ruled out everything! If someone has advice, please help!

    Do you mean you have set your activity level to "HIGH" - apart from your hour a day workout what other activity do you do that qualifies as a "High" activity level. Are you also logging this hour workout and eating back the calories (how many calories are you eating back for it) ? and so are netting 2000 a day or is that your gross consumption ?

    If you are muscular then what is the issue you want fixed ?

    Open up your diary so we can help with any logging issues.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    2000 a day sound like maintenance. Take 20% away and reevaluate after at least 2 weeks.
  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
    Simple- You're eating more than you burn.

    Drop your calories.
  • Jkowals123
    Jkowals123 Posts: 133 Member
    What are all the medications you are taking? You would be surprised how many pounds add up just from meds! I was on lithium, Latuda, and lexapro and gained 40 pounds! I am now trying to lose weight without these meds! I do take supplements though! Definitely stay on the levothroxine but maybe try to wean other meds? I also am very active but my dietician put me on 1200 calories no matter what ( exercise or not!)
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited April 2016
    mccowan8952 wrote: »
    Yes, I do feel like it's well controlled. My levels have been within normal range for the past year. I'll unlock!

    Your diary is still locked. Change your Diary Sharing settings to Public here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

    Also, how tall are you?
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Jkowals123 wrote: »
    What are all the medications you are taking? You would be surprised how many pounds add up just from meds! I was on lithium, Latuda, and lexapro and gained 40 pounds! I am now trying to lose weight without these meds! I do take supplements though! Definitely stay on the levothroxine but maybe try to wean other meds? I also am very active but my dietician put me on 1200 calories no matter what ( exercise or not!)

    How tall are you?
  • Jkowals123
    Jkowals123 Posts: 133 Member
    5'1'm
  • itsthehumidity
    itsthehumidity Posts: 351 Member
    Jkowals123 wrote: »
    5'1'm

    Whoa this girl is 5 meters tall!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,222 Member
    mccowan8952 wrote: »
    Yes, I do feel like it's well controlled. My levels have been within normal range for the past year. I'll unlock!

    Did they test T3/T4, in addition to TSH? Some people have trouble converting T4 into T3, so can still have issues despite a normal TSH. (It's treatable, too.) I'm kind of grasping at straws here, but I didn't see this asked/answered.
  • mgookin1
    mgookin1 Posts: 72 Member
    I have an under active thyroid. I am not treating it with any medication because I am trying natural ways first like losing weight and eating healthier and exercise before I resort to meds.
    I am 318 pounds and 5'7 and on 1810 calories a day. I eat back usually only 100-200 of my exercise calories back.

    Chances are you are over eating.
  • flaminica
    flaminica Posts: 304 Member
    edited April 2016
    Jkowals123 wrote: »
    5'1'm

    Ding ding ding!

    Your trainer told a five-foot petite with thyroid issues to eat 2000 calories a day? Is your trainer blind? Too many for you. Plus the medication, plus probably over-estimated exercise burns, plus possible under-estimated calorie intake.

    There's lots of good advice above. Remember however that in calories, as in clothing, one size does most certainly NOT fit all.


    (Oh yes, edited to say that I'm 5'0", slightly active and when I ate 2000 calories a day I weighed 230. I maintain on 1600.)

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