Morbidly Obese But Trying to Change

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Puppybear1
Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
in Introduce Yourself
I am a 40 year lf woman who gave up on dieting a long time ago. At my highest I topped 500 lbs. I have hovered around 400 pounds for the last 3 years. Due to medical issues I decided it was time to try again. I am doing a low carb diet but refuse to deprive myself of brussel sprouts to keep my carbs under 20 grams so I am all protein and veggies and some dairy. If you are looking for a friend, please add me.
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  • 603PIPER
    603PIPER Posts: 115 Member
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    Welcome, and congrats on taking a big step to help better yourself! Im on a LCHF and it can be frustrating when some of your favorite veggies are very high in carbs. I still aim to keep my total net carbs under 30 for the day.
  • tress29
    tress29 Posts: 614 Member
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    Your brussel sprout carbs are so much healthier than French fry and white bread carbs! Keep at it and you'll do great.
  • Puppybear1
    Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
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    Thank-you! :) I appreciate your support
  • Bruno7735
    Bruno7735 Posts: 4 Member
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    Carbs aren't bad, you just have to eat the right ones. You can't go wrong with filling up on veggies. Lean meat and veggies are the things to eat and fill in with other things in moderation. Diets need to be something you can maintain forever not just to cut wait quick. If you cut back to much you won't be able to stick with it for very long. At least that's my opinion
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
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    Best of luck with the weight loss! I was morbidly obese 5 years ago and now I'm at a "normal" weight.

    You don't have to go 20 grams low carb. Is there a reason for such a low number? I'm not going to shove high carbs on you, but if you love veggies and fruits, you can do semi-low carb like under 100 grams (not sure if you count fibre or not, some do some don't).
  • dharmadriven14
    dharmadriven14 Posts: 1 Member
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    You can do it!! I started logging at 277, when I was weighed at the Dr's office on the 19th. I am down 11lbs since then. I put in 2.5 hours a day, sometimes more, 6 days a week, and I watch EVERYTHING! I am so glad for My Fitness Pal for keeping track of my food. Without it, I would probably be working hard for nothing. I recently added HIIT on the treadmill, which for a chubby person is harder than usual, but when we really want something, we do it. You can, and you will!! Best of luck with you on your challenge!
  • Puppybear1
    Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
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    Thanks so much for the advise and support. I have a very healthy heart but have diabetes, which is why I chose low carb. (I doubled the carb count to 40 so I can eat vegetables :)
    Intolerance to sugar runs in my family. (We are all very big). I've enjoyed this diet immensely so far. Its really easy to swap out high carb foods in my fav recipes and still eat mostly the same foods I was eating. A few changes (No pasta in the stroganoff, cauliflower mash instead of potatoes) I feel like I can maintain this diet permanently. (I am still going to increase my carb counts once a month for birthdays/holidays) As long as I can stay away from sweets. (I can't even look at them right now) I think I can do it.
    Animal fat has been shown to decrease cholesterol and help the heart, so any meat seems to be pretty healthy, right?

    I am super inspired by both of you. You prove it can be done. You don't know how it helps me to know that you and others like you are real :)

    Thank-you so much for taking the time to post.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    Protein, veggies, dairy. OK, On the topic of dairy, do some research on kefir, dairy kefir. WIth a small purchase from various on-line suppliers of starter grains you can have the resources to make your own kefir. Log your food accurately and honestly. Stay within your calorie target. The weight will fall off. Stay on the plan.
  • N0703989
    N0703989 Posts: 97 Member
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    Hi Puppybear I'm not following LCHF but I do recognise that the results are amazing for those that do. I am a child of the seventies so it's very difficult for me to lose the low fat indoctrination, however, I am here everyday and happy to support all success (and hiccups)!
  • Puppybear1
    Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
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    Awesome! I'm a child of the 70's too. My first diet was the "Figurines"diet. lol! I'd love to be friends:)
  • OrlaKane339
    OrlaKane339 Posts: 50 Member
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    Hi Puppy,

    Would be delighted to be friends.

    I've always struggled with my weight and last year I lost 43kgs/95lbs BUT then I got pregnant and put it all back on.. Oops, so now that my son is 5 months old, it's time to start all over again. So I initially clocked in at a whopping 154kgs just over 3 weeks ago.

    It's been 3 weeks and so far I've lost 4.1kgs/9lbs. I'm really looking forward to sharing this journey with others. Good days/bad days and life in general.

    Morbidly obese is such a scary term so let's change your future and mine, together.

    Orla :-)
  • DEBOO7
    DEBOO7 Posts: 239 Member
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    I've been eating LCHF for nearly 3 years now and have gone from 210lbs to 133lbs, with about another 10 to go.
    It's a great way to eat for health... and brussell sprouts are ok in moderation :-)
    If you're on Facebook there's a great support group called KetoDiet support group. Well worth joining.
    More than happy to add you.
  • eaf8974
    eaf8974 Posts: 2 Member
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    zyxst wrote: »

    You don't have to go 20 grams low carb. Is there a reason for such a low number?

    Actually there is a good reason for such a low number of carbs for people who are morbidly obese or highly insulin resistant (which go hand in along with metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes.) The condition is one of such chronically high insulin levels that fat is being stored like crazy at the same time that the metabolism is being slowed down and hunger is increasing. The stored fat can't be released from storage to use as fuel because of the high insulin.

    For some of us who have been insulin resistant for many years we can't maintain dietary ketosis with much more than 20 total grams of carbs in a day. (Not net carbs. It makes a difference for us.) The dietary ketosis or fasting is the primary way that we can be fat-burners. Keeping stress down and incorporating some high intensity interval training helps deal with the insulin resistance too.

    I recommend looking up some online videos by Jason Fung, MD who explains this very clearly.
  • bwy1129
    bwy1129 Posts: 4 Member
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    Real food is medicine. It heals and sometimes even reverses more health problems than there are pharmaceuticals invented for health ailments. (And thinking of food as medicine may help you stay on target easier by changing the psychology from "the foods I'm eating/missing" to "following my daily food prescription".) My definition for "real food" is, "If it grows on a plant, it is real food. If it is made in a plant, it is processed food." Always follow your doctor's advice and that includes carbs limits, but discuss this concept (that real food is medicine) with him and see what he says about consulting with both you and a nutritionist at the same time (the three of you in his office, or in a conference call) to discuss if you can raise your carb limits *by adding veggies* and/or having two carb limits: those that come from vegetables and those that come from everything else.

    I have found that veggies also have a surprising amount of naturally occurring sodium. Since morbid obesity and heart disease are linked, you may want to include a discussion about sodium in that same conference with your doctor and a good nutritionist.
  • bwy1129
    bwy1129 Posts: 4 Member
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    P.S. I am *NOT* advocating limiting or reducing or ignoring pharmaceuticals. FOLLOW YOUR DOCTOR'S ADVICE!!! I am *NOT* saying food is "better" than prescriptions. I'm saying that your body is made to grow, strengthen, heal, and survive on REAL FOOD and that makes real food the world's first, and sometimes still its best, medicine.
  • Puppybear1
    Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
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    Hi Kaneorla! You are so inspiring! I added you immediately :)
  • Puppybear1
    Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
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    eaf8974 wrote: »
    zyxst wrote: »

    You don't have to go 20 grams low carb. Is there a reason for such a low number?

    Actually there is a good reason for such a low number of carbs for people who are morbidly obese or highly insulin resistant (which go hand in along with metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes.) The condition is one of such chronically high insulin levels that fat is being stored like crazy at the same time that the metabolism is being slowed down and hunger is increasing. The stored fat can't be released from storage to use as fuel because of the high insulin.

    For some of us who have been insulin resistant for many years we can't maintain dietary ketosis with much more than 20 total grams of carbs in a day. (Not net carbs. It makes a difference for us.) The dietary ketosis or fasting is the primary way that we can be fat-burners. Keeping stress down and incorporating some high intensity interval training helps deal with the insulin resistance too.

    I recommend looking up some online videos by Jason Fung, MD who explains this very clearly.

    Thank-you so much for the information. I often feel misunderstood in weight loss forums because people don't understand that sugar is a drug for people like me. My entire family is diabetic. It seems to really hit right around age 20. If I eat sugar at all, I crave food in an almost uncontrollable manner. I think it is the body's way of trying to absorb the sugar more slowly. If I eat a few peanuts after consuming carbs, my blood sugar doesn't skyrocket, though the strong urge to eat is still there.
    In grad school, we studied mice. If you stimulate a specific portion of a mouse's brain, they will eat, literally, until their stomachs explode. (I don't advocate animal testing in this way. It was most alarming, but undeniably insightful.) I am convinced that sugar stimulates that part of the brain for some people.
    Anyway, I am happy that you commented. I feel less alone now that I know others also experience the extreme insulin resistance that I do.
    I grew up in the high carb low fat culture. The harder I tried, the fatter I got. I feel like Atkins and others like him finally "Broke the code" Everyone's body chemistry is different, but they hit the Bulls eye for me.

    Thank-you so much for taking the time to comment!
  • Puppybear1
    Puppybear1 Posts: 35 Member
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    bwy1129 wrote: »
    Real food is medicine. It heals and sometimes even reverses more health problems than there are pharmaceuticals invented for health ailments. (And thinking of food as medicine may help you stay on target easier by changing the psychology from "the foods I'm eating/missing" to "following my daily food prescription".) My definition for "real food" is, "If it grows on a plant, it is real food. If it is made in a plant, it is processed food." Always follow your doctor's advice and that includes carbs limits, but discuss this concept (that real food is medicine) with him and see what he says about consulting with both you and a nutritionist at the same time (the three of you in his office, or in a conference call) to discuss if you can raise your carb limits *by adding veggies* and/or having two carb limits: those that come from vegetables and those that come from everything else.

    I have found that veggies also have a surprising amount of naturally occurring sodium. Since morbid obesity and heart disease are linked, you may want to include a discussion about sodium in that same conference with your doctor and a good nutritionist.

    Thanks for the advice! I agree that food is medicine. I have been eating low carb for 6 days now. My blood sugar is finally under control after a whopping scare of a reading (500). And...I haven't used ANY insulin. (I thought it was better to chance another high reading than to go too low. )
    Medicine is an amazing blessing in many ways and for many ailments, but sometimes it is a crutch to avoid dealing with the root of the problem. I agree that choosing to go off medications is something that should be done under the care of your doctor. You did not come across as encouraging others to be irresponsible. I respect your opinion and I thank you for it :)

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