Why am I putting on weight

[Anab4]

Hi how can I loose weight I'm having real trouble I eat a low fat diet ensuring I eat at least 5 portions of fruit and veg a day. I start my day with cereal fruit and semi skimmed milk. I very rearly eat bread as this bloats me. I make home cooked meals with fats cut off and no butter i do have the occasional treats takeaway but can't seem to shift any weight. It's slowly creeping on and I feel tired because of it. Help??

[Marz]

Leaving out fat could be a mistake ! We needs fats - the good ones. Try looking at the website thetwodaydiet.co.uk where you abstain from carbs and sugars and eat strictly for two days. Does include 5 tbsps. of olive oil or other fats on those two days

Fruits contain a great deal of sugar - so just one piece on restricted days...cereals also contain large amounts of sugar....

Are you a thyroid sufferer ? - sorry have not checked other posts....maybe your dose needs increasing.

[Pandapower]

Ditch the sugar completely!!! Look up ksfl. Follow that for three to four weeks then relax it a bit to suit. It's amazing the difference in how you feel.

[Pamboz]

Stop eating low fat, it's all full of sugar, and you need the fat to metabolise vitamins. Cut out all sugar and wheat and eat low carbohydrate high fat diet and you will loose weight and feel better.

There is now loads of data available to show this is the correct way to eat and that we have been misled for years because the food industry wants us eating fad diet foods. Google Paleo or Low Carbohydrate High Fat and start reading, you will be astounded to learn the damage the foods that convert to sugar in our bodies do to our metabolism. Natural foods, not man made. Good luck

[girl66]

I had success with weight watchers and lost over 2 stone. It just gets you on the right track with the right foods and importantly portion sizes. Because you write everything down you can see where you are going wrong!

Good luck! Xx

[valjo18]

Hi Anaba4 - I see you are a newbie!

The members on here will need to know if you have a thyroid problem and then you will get the best advice possible! They will obviously need blood test results to be able to really advise and help.

Maybe another post with details ......

Good Luck x

[slakin57]

Eating low fat and healthy isn't enough. You need to pay attention to the energy equation - if calories eaten is less than calories expended you will lose weight. As others have said low fat means high/er carb which tends to favour body fat formation. If you are hypothyroid you will almost certainly have a lower than average metabolic rate (unless you are over medicated) and will need to reduce calories further than the average person to lose weight. When hyper (T4=46, range 10-20) I could eat 2500-3000 calls and still lose weight. When hypo (T4=10, TSH=10.8, range 0,2-4.0) however I did not lose weight on 1500 calls/day, in fact I put a pound or two on. So start to count calories and eat less/move more! It's the only way to ensure you get the equation right. You may find an app like MyFitnessPal helps - and it's still free I think.

[Glynisrose]

You probably need extra selenium to convert T4 to T3. Low fat diets do not work, I have heard that a high protein low carbohydrates does. I did weight watchers for a year, stuck to the points and put on 2 1/2 stone!!

[shaws Administrator]

When you are not on sufficient medication to raise your metabolism, weight gain happens. It is also a clinical symptom of hypothyroidism. This is a link which may be helpful. If you get a print-out of your latest blood tests for your thyroid gland, with the ranges, post for answers.

web.archive.org/web/2010032...

[soulgirl]

I am the same, i have put on 2 and half stone since diagnosed with underactive thyroid, they told me when i got on the medication that i would lose weight, i didn't just kept putting it on. I have just increased the doseage but still no weight loss.

[greygoose in reply to soulgirl]

What are you taking, soulgirl? Just taking the medication isn't enough, the medication has to have the right conditions to work.

I don't know how much you know about thyroid, but it's the T3 that's important. And if your T3 is low, you aren't going lose weight. It's as simple as that.

All your vitamins and minerals have to be optimal for your body to convert T4 to T3. And they are usually low in hypos because we have trouble absorbing them due to low stomach acid. Get testing as many as you can, and get your T3 tested somehow. Then you will know where you are and how to proceed.

Hugs, Grey

[Anab4 in reply to greygoose]

Thanks

[greygoose in reply to Anab4]

Don't mention it.

[silverfox7]

I put on at least three stone on my thyroid journey. i don't enjoy cooking and was tired and lethargic. My bloods showed I was may be not converting and a Food Tolerance Test flagged up 42 food problem-some I was aware of but it made me take stock. I'd already been taking supplements for a few months and the weight was beginning to go very slowly. I then went on a cruise and lost even more weight! I was eating properly and found I was also eating less but satisfied my needs. The real meal change was breakfast. I'd been eating cheese omelettes and my stomach was getting flatter by the day! That prompted me to look at what I thought was a healthy cereal, nuts, oats and an enormous amount of sugar which I'm intolerant to! I still eat my 'bad' cereal some days but much smaller portions. I also got a weight App for my phone so its no trouble to put my daily weight in and a real boost to see the downward trend! I still have bad days and craving for chocolate-who doesn't! But over the last year I've lost about a stone. It wasn't as daunting as I thought. My temperature has risen and I've more energy so think the supplements are doing their bit as well!

[TSH110]

Going gluten free, switching from levothyroxine to NDT and addressing vitamin D deficiency seems to have reversed the 3.5 stone weight gain I had since becoming hypothyroid. I have shed 2.5 stone in 6 mths on the new regimen and feel much better for it.

[missthyroid]

Cereal has sugar fruits have sugar can you lessen sugar and eat more veg and salads soups home made nuts ect

[Stephsteph]

I use My Fitness Pal, a free app and website. It has a huge database of foods and calorie counts for you, you just need to put in what you eat every day. It's surprisingly easy to eat more calories than you realise and although you think you're being good, you're eating too much. It gives you a daily nutrition guide as well.

I don't like 'diets'. I won't cut anything out of my diet, I'd rather have moderation. It's easier to stick to long term. As soon as you deny yourself something, you want it more.

What I like about it as well is that if you want a treat, you can earn more calories by being active or exercising.

[Anab4 in reply to Stephsteph]

I'll give it a go thanks

[claudiasmum]

I also lost two stone on Weightwatchers BUT:

1. it only worked when I didn't add in extra points allowance for exercise nor when I used all the extra weekly ones. It only worked when I rigidly stuck to the 29 points per day (which I think they have since reduced to 26 or 27 probably because the exercise ones don't work for everybody). This must be about 1000-1200 calories per day which is quite little so you have to find very clever ways of maximising them.

2. I was in the optimum 60-80% FT3 band at that time.

The rest of the time my weight has been a struggle even though I try to stick to the WW principles.

[Hidden]

I eat 4 small meals a day on a tea plate and as much fruit in between meals as I like. I only eat food I really fancy and enjoy and often have a bar of chocolate as one of my meals. I never eat diet or low fat food. I don't feel deprived, lost over 10 stone eating like this, gained lots of weight when my thyroid was particularly underactive and now my medication is sorted I have lost 22lbs in 4 months. I am very grateful to overeaters anonymous for teaching me how to eat moderately.

[greygoose]

Low fat is not, and never has been, the answer. Low fat is NOT healthy. You need fat - animal fat - to synthesize vit D and to make cholesterol. You need cholesterol to make hormones. No fat = no cholesterol = low hormons = weight gain. See my reply to Soulgirl above.

Also, sounds like you're not getting many calories. You could be dieting yourself fat! You need calories for every process in the body - digesting, blood circulating, breathing, etc - and you need them for conversion. If you aren't taking in enough calories it's the conversion that's going to suffer - i.e. no T3!

Just to give you a little ray of hope, Since I got my T3 up to a decent level during the last two or three years, I've lost about 7 stone.

Hugs, Grey

[Angel_of_the_North]

Low fat makes you fat (unless you are an athlete). Makes you hungry, and increases leptin and insulin resistance. Butter is really good for, esp from grass fed cows. It contains CLA which helps the metabolism, as well as vit A and D. Things to avoid are processed vegetable oils (rapeseed, sunflower etc) and trans fats (hydrogenated) in processed foods. I'd ditch the cereal - if you are sensivite to bread, you could well be sensitive to most grains. Try not to eat anything that comes in a tin, box or packet.

[Anab4 in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Thanks I'm going to give this a go let u know how I get on

[waveylines]

I agree -optimizing your thyroid meds , vitamins and minerals are Key. then ditching the sugar -this includes fruits -this is because sugar is really bad for hypothyroidism -so if you have fruit keep it within the meal to avoid sugar spikes......but keep it carefully rationed! I find a high protein, vegetables and fish with no calorie counting helps. Exercise is absolutely key and vital too boost up your metabolism -I know exercise is important for everyone but I find with hypothyroidism it has taken on a far more vital role. Doesn't have to be a killer regime -aerobic walking. Nordic walking with plenty of hills does me well. When I put both combinations together I lost nearly 4 stone. However have been through a bad patch with duff medicine for nearly a year -so have put a lot of weight back on -now back on the regime and my weight is dropping again......

I have had to say goodbye to those days when I never had to watch my weight it just stayed the same for years and years......ah well......

[faith63]

Are you sitting around eating huge quantities? If not..don't listen to those who say to cut out this and cut out that. If you could lose or maintain before, then this is due to a slowed metabolism. No amount of dieting and exercise is going to work if your thyroid meds aren't optimal. I know. I gained 30 lbs while lying in bed, ill, with no appetite...it is fluid and myxedema. I never had a weight issue in 46 years, until i developed Hashimotos. It is a odd, lumpy, thick skin, jiggly accumulation of stuff in the skin or just under. Do you have any labs?

[faith63]

Read Shaws link..it says it all.

[Anab4]

Interesting read but can this diet not increase the risk of coronary heart disease later in life.

[Pepekins]

Well I think we have been conned regarding low fat this and low fat that. Often the low fat products are loaded with sugar. Butter is good (in moderation). We all need fats, they satisfy us for longer. Takeaways are loaded with fat (I have just had one) !!! it was delicious, but once a month is OK (just). Granola is lovely but full of sugar, and fruit only in moderation. Move about plenty, check your portion size and keep off takeaways. Reduce your carbs a little and drastically reduce your sugar intake (often root veg cooked are high sugar too). It is very difficult, I know. I have no thyroid so have to keep an eye on my metabolism. Get rid of low fat, the slimmest people I know have regular fat food just a smaller amount of it. Food is a necessary friend, not an enemy, so get some joy out of eating well and the odd piece of dark choccy is perfectly fine. Best Wishes, Caz

[harleychick]

leaving out fat is a mistake. u have to cut out your carbs and eat more protein. eat only the good carbs. exercise is also the key to weight loss. if u need a list of foods i can help u with that.

[trishmarco]

What exercise are you doing? Are you drinking any alcohol?