Not sure if anyone else is going thru same things but....

I can relate to your trouble losing weight. I am currently 37 years old. About 2 1/2 years ago now, I was on a 1200 calorie supervised diet for 6 months and exercised a minimum of 3 times per week for 60-90 minutes each time and only lost about 22 pounds total and then couldn't lose anymore. Later I was finally diagnosed with PCOS, but was unable to take BC to help control the symptoms due to a previous blood clot. I was not put on metformin either. Not sure why since the most common meds used to control PCOS are BC and metformin.
In the past when I was able to take BC, I was able to lose weight and had lost 100 pounds at one time and managed to keep it off until I was taken off BC due to a blood clot.
Anyway, I had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, arthritis in my ankles, knees and hips (on daily meds plus had SynVisc shots every 6 months in both knees because it was that severe), my feet and legs would swell, I had migraines and had battled with infertility for 6 years (6 years off BC and never gotten pregnant).
So last November at 325 pounds, I had VSG surgery. Since then I have lost 93 pounds and am off all my meds except for my high blood pressure medicine and my PCP thinks I can come off it in August. So no more arthritis meds, no cholesterol meds, no migraine/headache meds, and no Synvisc shots. I am able to exercise without being in severe pain, enjoy being active with my family again and have energy to do those things.
I am not saying you should or shouldn't have surgery, but simply sharing my story.
Best wishes to you with whatever you choose!
Sherri

Have just come across your call for help. I don't know how your diet compares with the information I outline below but references worth a read. This is what I wrote to another MFP pal:

I can understand how frustrating this may be but sounds like you need to look deeper into the causes of your weight gain rather than curing the symptom (of weight gain). I have a friend who is in serious diabetes denial in that they do not take control of their diet but keep upping their insulin doses figuring 'what the hell!', not that I am suggesting that this is your problem or case!, and in doing some research into the whole insulin issue I happened to come across some very interesting insights about how it is important to understand insulin resistance creep over time and it's effect on cravings etc.

I find the about.com website pretty good generally. I started researching diabetes and insulin resistance then I followed the links to what diet is right for you. VERY educational as low carb high protein isn't for everyone! Much depends on your insulin function. If you are insulin resistant lower carb higher fat will give you the greatest weight loss on a calorie controlled diet. If however, you are insulin sensitive higher carb lower fat will give you the best results on a calorie controlled diet. So Atkins definitely not for everyone! Those with insulin problems seem to do best on Atkins. See link below :
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/science/a/diffdiets.htm

Also I discovered that metabolic syndrome can begin to develop years and decades (from your early twenties) before you can be diagnosed as having a problem with insulin and metabolism. All this has an effect on your diet choice now. For this reason I found Ruth's Story very interesting:
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/science/a/diffdiets.htm

After reading these articles and a few more I more than before can better assess what I need to be cultivating in terms of a life time plan with checks and balances. Hope this helps you get out of the ' same-old-same-old' routine you must be feeling.

I'll be totally honest...

If what you're doing isn't working -- then it is time to do your own research. Have you had all the bloodwork necessary to insure you don't have any underlying medical conditions that COULD be hindering your weight loss? If you've had them done and all is well, then it is time for research.

As strange as it may sound, you may actually not be eating enough. I would start by finding out your BMR (basal metabolic rate) - which you can actually find on this site in the tools section. Once you know your BMR, then I would find your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure - this is how many calories your body burns an entire day). Once you know these two numbers, you'll have a better idea of where to start with your daily calories. Make sure that you deduct your deficit off your TDEE and NOT off your BMR.

Read articles. Talk to people on this site. Look through the forums, ask questions, private message people who've had success losing and maintaining their weight. The key to success in this journey is to figure out what works best for YOU and YOUR body.

That takes time, patience and determination.


You can do this and you can do it without surgery.


Good luck.

Have just come across your call for help. I don't know how your diet compares with the information I outline below but references worth a read. This is what I wrote to another MFP pal:

I can understand how frustrating this may be but sounds like you need to look deeper into the causes of your weight gain rather than curing the symptom (of weight gain). I have a friend who is in serious diabetes denial in that they do not take control of their diet but keep upping their insulin doses figuring 'what the hell!', not that I am suggesting that this is your problem or case!, and in doing some research into the whole insulin issue I happened to come across some very interesting insights about how it is important to understand insulin resistance creep over time and it's effect on cravings etc.

I find the about.com website pretty good generally. I started researching diabetes and insulin resistance then I followed the links to what diet is right for you. VERY educational as low carb high protein isn't for everyone! Much depends on your insulin function. If you are insulin resistant lower carb higher fat will give you the greatest weight loss on a calorie controlled diet. If however, you are insulin sensitive higher carb lower fat will give you the best results on a calorie controlled diet. So Atkins definitely not for everyone! Those with insulin problems seem to do best on Atkins. See link below :
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/science/a/diffdiets.htm

Also I discovered that metabolic syndrome can begin to develop years and decades (from your early twenties) before you can be diagnosed as having a problem with insulin and metabolism. All this has an effect on your diet choice now. For this reason I found Ruth's Story very interesting:
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/science/a/diffdiets.htm

After reading these articles and a few more I more than before can better assess what I need to be cultivating in terms of a life time plan with checks and balances. Hope this helps you get out of the ' same-old-same-old' routine you must be feeling.

I was going to suggest asking your doctor about a lower carb diet. My story started about 8 years ago. I wanted to lose like 20 pounds, so I got on weight watchers, and I joined a womens gym ( sorta like curves). I think I am the only women in the history of the gym to GAIN 30 pounds in the first 4 months or so of working out. I went to my doctor, and she did blood tests ( due to my father's T2 diabetes) and found that I was insulin resistant. Before she put me on an oral medication, she wanted me to try a lower carb diet for 2 months to see if it reversed my insulin issues. I went back 2 months later 20 pounds lighter and 4 weeks pregnant!

My OB would not let me continue the low carb diet, so I went back to a *normal* diet with the guidance of a nutritionist. You know how things go...under the stress of having 3 children, one of whom is autistic, the healthy eating fell to the wayside, and I started medicating with hershey's and godiva, and the next thing I knew I had gained 50 pounds on my post pregnancy weight.

This past February I got a Y membership and started doing 60 minutes of cardio and 20-30 minutes of strength 3-4x a week. It took me 3 months to drop 7 pounds. Just 6 weeks ago I decided to go back to my insulin resistance diet of under 100g net carbs a day...and the weight is coming OFF. The first week I lost 5 pounds, and each week after that I lost ~1lb. I have a solid 10 pounds lost in the first 5 weeks, and should have more when I weigh in today. Obviously, my body does better with lower carb.

Hello!! I myself had never had any luck with weight loss until I started a low/carb diet. Well it was pretty much no carbs. It was great, no calorie counting and the grocery bill didn't go up at all. I weighed 333 lbs and after the 3 month program I had lost almost 50 lbs.
All you have to do is remember to eat 3-4 oz of a lean meat (red meat 1x per week only) and lots of veggies ( no root veggies) but you can eat a little bit of carrots. No corn, pumpkin or any starchy vegetable. Drink lots of water and take a fiber supplement. It really did work for myself and my husband who was over 400lbs and could not even get an accurate weight on the scale at our first appointment. He now weighs 366 and has lost over 50 lbs, we estimated his weight was around 420 when we started. If you haven't tried anything like it before you should give it a shot. Oh, the other catch was that we could not have any added salt or sweeteners. That meant no artificial sweeteners, NO FRUIT and no sugar. The salt and the fruit were the hardest part for me and my husband struggled with the no diet soda.
I am here if you want more encouragement, I am currently down to 280lbs and eating what I want, just sticking to a 1000 calorie limit per day.
You are beautiful and can do this!!!