how do you handle feeling weak and dizzy on weight loss programme?

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  • Luna3386
    Luna3386 Posts: 888 Member
    1. Eat more in general
    2. Eat more protein
    3. Have a good balance of carbs and fats
    4. Eat more frequently thru the day (this helps with low blood sugar)
  • cherys
    cherys Posts: 387 Member
    Thanks Loun and Luna. I've upped my protein and salt - both were a bit low. I wasn't feeling hunggry between meals so had no planned snacks but then got that dizzy feeling and ended up eating fruit and dark chocolate to get some sugar, so would be better off, probably, eating some protein-based snack between meals - a few nuts maybe, or some chicken.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    I have been reading through this thread and thinking. You say you get this reaction when you diet - so you don't normally feel this way. This means that "doctor" probably isn't the answer, but a closer look at what you do when you diet! Many people do a lot of crazy and unnecessary things to lose weight. To sum up the usual suspects:
    Drinking way too much water
    Reducing salt intake too much
    Reducing calorie intake too much
    Overexercising
    Unbalanced and less varied food intake, usually reducng fat, but also carbs, and sticking to a few "safe" foods.

    If you want to lose weight to improve your health, this seems counterproductive. One of the most important life skills you can aquire, is to listen to your body (this means "mindfulness", not being controlled by your emotions, important distinction!). So this makes me a bit sad Had a small apple, an orange, a cup of tea and three squares of 85% dark chocolate - which is better than the vast slice of ginger cake I wanted Maybe cake actually would have been better for you?
  • cherys
    cherys Posts: 387 Member
    Kommo - I understand what you are saying. Thing is - I used to have a very healthy attitude to food. Never dieted, ate what I wanted, when I wanted, stopped when full, never ate when not hungry and was never overweight - my BMI was absolutely bang in the middle of the chart. And I exercised a fair bit.

    But a couple of health issues and some lifestyle changes meant I ended up on medication that slows you down and had a sedentary job and the weight really piled on. I found myself craving carbs (side effect of the medication). So it's quite helpful and empowering for me to look at ginger cake and think - no, I'll have fruit because if I eat ginger cake I'll have a slice the size of my hand and then be growling for more sugar all evening. Whereas fruit and dark chocolate got rid of the dizziness and put me back on track and in under calories. The ginger cake was dripping with treacle and biutter - even a small slice would have been about 450 calories.

    So, for me, part of the process is working out how to get back to that healthy attitude to food and one thing is to avoid sugar trigger foods while I'm still on medication that tends to make people crave carbs.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    I have had to work on my relationship with food, too - I have been overweight and/or worried about my weight for many years. Lots of things to learn (and unlearn, which is really hard). Both overeating and demonizing food can create the habit of overeating. Learning to feed oneself responsibly is difficult, but important, and wonderfully empowering.
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