Losing weight for IVF

[Cheekybetty]

Hi All,

I've never posted on this site so here goes.

My husband and I have been together for 6 years. Over these 6 years I have put on 4.5 stone.

My husband is 6ft 4 and weighs 12 stone.

We've been trying to concieve for 2 years and we went to the Fertility Clinic on Monday and were told that it is unlikely we'll concieve naturally.

To be eligible for IVF you have to have a BMI of below 30. My current BMI is 38 at 16 stone and 5ft4.

I've been very emotional as I've been battling with my weight since a teenager. I'm 31 years old.

But, I've started cooking from cook books and sticking to the recipe and portions in the dish so I don't overeat. I've also been putting the recipes into MyFitnessPal so I know exactly what calorie intake I'm having.

I never realised how important it is to weigh your food. I'm vegan and thought I had a healthy diet. By weighing food I soon realised my portion sizes were way too big.

I'm joining Slimming World tonight and going to have a lool round the local gym. We've also started swimming.

My main worry is keeping motivated. I am a yoyo dieter and this time I need to change for good.

Does anyone have any advice for keeping motivated?

[Zest Healthy BMI]

Hi Cheekybetty,

Sometimes 'keeping motivated' can be spurred on by a concrete goal, and you have a definite goal - which is to get below BMI of 30 so you can be elligible for the IVF treatment. It sounds like that goal has already motivated you, because you've already made some very positive steps. You're joining Slimming World tonight - hope you have a great first meeting there. I'm sure there will be lots of supportive people at the meeting. You're also going to have a look at the gym. If you join the gym, then you'll have lots of opportunities to do some regular exercise and use the machines there. It can be fun to try new things as well - if there are some things you've not tried before.

I think it's great that you've started to cook from recipes and that you've been keeping to reasonable portion sizes. That's very positive and hopefully you've discovered some new recipes that you really like and enjoy.

I find that setting goals on a weekly basis can be helpful. Also, weighing on a weekly basis seems to be helpful. I don't always lose weight, but generally I am on a 'losing trend' overall, so that is helping to keep me motivated, and knowing that there are supportive people on this forum also helps.

Hope it goes well for you at the Slimming world club. The NHS weight loss pages are also really useful with good tips and suggestions.

Hope you have a great week.

Lowcal

[Catherine_kent]

Hi, I can't offer you much weight loss advice as just starting out myself again... But couldn't read this and not reply ....

I have about 3 stone to loose after having a Baby 6 weeks ago. It took me and my husband 2 years of "trying" for a baby and had to go down the IVF route. I didn't have to loose weight but tried to for my health as was a little overweight.

Keep your want for a baby as motivation to loose weight. Loosing weight is hard, so is IVF both mentally and physically for both .... but trust me when I say when you see that 2 week old heartbeat at your 1st scan it'll all be worth it!!!!

Buy a baby toy and put it next to the fridge or takeaway menus just as a reminder of why your doing this. I bought I rattle from the Disney store and left it in the takeaway menu draw then it went on top of all the injections when going through IVF .... and was the 1st thing I gave my baby when he was born.

If you want a weight loss buddy from someone who can also support you through you IVF I'm here!!!

Catherine xxx

[Cheekybetty in reply to Catherine_kent]

Thanks ladies. This really helps. My husband and I have had a tough week and we don't feel like ourselves. We've been getting upset with each other but then talk it through but I've been so emotional. I think waiting for 2 years to get pregnant and then potentially having another year before I'm eligible and then the fact that we might not be successful through IVF and we only have one shot, it's all just a bit overwhelming.

We're trying to stay positive but it's hard.

My oldest friend gave birth last night which I'm so pleased about but that's also hard.

Slimming world was great, I think it's the support I need to achieve my goals.

The gym seems good and we're going for a trial on Saturday. You have to join for at least 15 months so we're just trying to figure out what exercise we can do as a couple and whether we will use a gym.

I'm going swimming again on Sunday and have a lot to read

up on for slimming world. The one thing about slimming world is I can't get over how much rice and pasta you can eat!

I'm aiming for a 3llb loss but I'm hoping for more for my first week.

Catherine, I'd love it if you could be my buddy.

Thanks again ladies.

Xx

[Diana]

IVF can cause havoc, loose weight and try things like accupunture, much cheaper and may work, a safer bet.

Good luck with your weight loss journey.

[gingernut49]

I found the absolute best way of losing weight is the 5:2 Diet. Brilliant results for hundreds of thousands of people and it's so easy to do youtu.be/W9Aj6hRYg4A(Not working as expected?) with no expensive slimming club memberships or special diet foods. I saved a fortune whilst I was losing weight!

Good luck.

[Cheekybetty]

Hi,

Diana, would the acupuncture be for my husband or myself. My husbamd has a low sperm count. Or does acupuncture help with weight loss as well?

Gingernut49, I'm not sure that the 5:2 diet is for me at the moment, but

If slimming world doesn't work I might try that.

Catherine, I forgot to say, I think buying a baby toy is such a great idea and we're going to do it. Such a nice thing to give to your baby

Thanks all again. I'm feeling more positive now. You've all really helped.

Xx