primitive missing weight loss

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=337x4491

Oh my.

no_hypocrisy  (1000+ posts)      Wed Jan-06-10 10:54 AM
Original message
 
What am I missing?

I've changed my eating habits and lifestyle and I'm still 30 pounds too heavy. The numbers won't budge. I look 4 months pregnant perennially.

I'm talking about:

Walking two hours (800 calories and 5.5+ miles) on a treadmill 5-6 nights a week (3 miles/hour on an incline)

Portion control

Low sugar, low fat (hardly any confectionary treats e.g., candy, cake, pie, etc.)

Rare red meat, rare wheat products, rare dairy products

one meal vegetarian out of three daily

daily calorie count about 1500

normal sugar levels

thyroid fine except for immune antibodies reading

Should I be checked for insulin resistance?

What is my problem? I used to think I was doing all the right things but not enough of them. I'm confounded.

Uh, one suspects more than "hardly any" of the bold area, above.

Sweets and candy are a major major part of the average primitive diet.

supernova  (1000+ posts)        Wed Jan-06-10 12:25 PM
Response to Original message
 
1. Wow, that's a toughie and you sound a lot like me in the I exercise a lot and can't seem to lose weight category. In my case I suspect that I have a thyroid problem, but I won't know for sure until I can get tested-- no insurance. I had the standard test a handful of years ago which only tests for T3 I believe. That was normal. But I've read that you can have problems if either T4 or TSH are low as well or are at the low end of the acceptable range. So you need a full profile.

Back to you. Do you drink a lot of caffeine? especially coffee? Coffee makes you secrete cortisol. It's the fight or flight hormone, but also a "store my fat" hormone! Try omitting coffee if you drink it, and stick to things like green or white tea.

Insulin resistance (aka metabolic syndrome) is tricky, you have to be careful about what carbs you are eating, at least initially. Are you sticking to v*****s and some fruits (mostly berries and melons) that are low on the glycemic index? These are foods that are processed more slowly and don't give a quick energy boost followed by an equally quick "crash" into fatigue, even sleepiness. Low GI foods release their energy more slowly and at a more stable rate than other foods. Anything made from flour is out or most grains really, and fruits and v*****s with a high sugar content. (If you omit them and start losing weight, then you know these foods were a problem. You can slowly reincorporate them as you reach your goal weight, and probably not eating them as often as you did before.

That's food.

For exercise, have you been doing the same things for a while? If you have, you might consider switching to intervals training for cardio. Do you do any strength training with weights at all? Putting on muscle will help burn calories faster. Fat doesn't use as many calories as muscle does.

Glycemic Index: http://www.glycemicindex.com /
Interval training: http://www.intervaltraining.net /

wildflower  (1000+ posts)      Wed Jan-06-10 12:27 PM
Response to Original message
 
2. Some people can't lose weight unless they eat very few calories

Because of a low-running metabolism. According to this literature I've read, this can mean having to go as low as 1100 calories to be able to lose weight.

You may want to (1) keep a food journal to double-check the calories you're eating, and (2) get more tests done on your thyroid, as well as things like insulin resistance, PCOS, etc.

Maybe someone more knowledgeable about metabolism and these medical conditions can weigh in.

Big Blue Marble  (1000+ posts)        Wed Jan-06-10 04:30 PM
Response to Original message
 
3. This may surprise you but you maybe working out too much.

Your calorie level seems good. But when you subtract your calorie burn that only leaves about 800 calories per day. That is a starvation diet to be sure.

At these caloric levels, your body is in a starvation response and most likely is protecting you from famine. Your metabolism may be slowing down.

After struggling with my weight for 15 years, I finally lost 35 pounds last year while eating more food and doing less exercise than I ever had on any weight loss program.

I am doing high intensity interval training 3 times a week for 35 minutes each session.

I am also following Jon Gabriel's model for weight management: The Gabriel Method. Jon's theory is that our bodies will weigh what they want and we must learn to work with them not push them to give up the fat. He calls it turning off the fat programs
and turning on the "SMART Programs." He personally lost over 200 pounds with his method.

I had insulin resistance. Everyone who is overweight does. I also have always had a slow metabolism and a sluggish thyroid. On these plans, it did not matter. The weight came off. It is a slower process. But it came off never-the-less.

And it came off around my waist. I am down 3-4 sizes from a year ago

Two other things I do are eat a low glycemic diet which it looks like you are already
doing and hold my eating accountable by using Sparkpeople.com to track what I eat.

PM me if you have more questions. Jon's says people who are attempting to lose weight are the most disciplined in the world. It is clear that you are in this category. With as much effort as you are willing to do, you deserve to see results.

City of Mills  (1000+ posts)        Fri Jan-08-10 10:10 AM
Response to Original message
 
4. I don't think walking is enough

I'm not an expert BY ANY MEANS - so take it for what it's worth, but I don't know...is there any way you can jog for a half hour instead of walking for two hours? I don't know your limitations, but I know when I was walking a lot I really didn't gain/lose any weight, it just sort of maintained...I had to do something more strenuous (something that made me breathe harder/sweat more) before I lost any weight.

Our bodies seem to adapt so quickly to our routines, so in order to break through you might have to figure out an alternate exercise as well, maybe even something like jumping rope or if that's not an option, invest in a punching bag and some boxing gloves...it's a good workout and therapeutic too

To be honest I'm not exactly a heavy person or anything but I am fairly health conscious...good luck to you, it sounds like you're at least on the right track with your eating habits and your commitment to an active lifestyle

AwakeAtLast  (1000+ posts)        Fri Jan-08-10 05:55 PM
Response to Original message
 
5. I'm going to say add some kind of strength training

And I am not any kind of expert either. I think building up some muscle might help you burn off what you need to.

I'm surprised the weight loss expert, the gigantic primitive, hasn't shown up at this campfire.

[BadCat]

What is a "rare dairy product"??

[GOBUCKS]

Gabriel, cortisol, thyroid, shmyroid. All a crock. Body fat accumulation or reduction is simply calories in food vs. calories burned. Nothing else. DUmmies always look for a magic bullet.....or, rather, in the case of DUmmies, fairy dust. Sort of the lardass version of the free pony.

[The Village Idiot]

What is a "rare dairy product"??

I don't really want to know.

[Randy]

Gabriel, cortisol, thyroid, shmyroid.

Those are all cover names for the glandular problem they all really suffer from, overworked salivary glands.

[franksolich]

Those are all cover names for the glandular problem they all really suffer from, overworked salivary glands.

Damn, you're good, sir.

Admirable.

[Duke Nukum]

Get a Wii Fit Plus, have fun, don't obsesses about your weight.  Be healthy.

[happy1ga]

Probably like me, I dont really eat sweets, but can pound down the Coke. Then I bitch about the extra weight, knowing exactly where it came from. That and sitting on my fat duff.