not losing weight!!

Hey Megan - don't get stressed hun, that doesn't help your BG !!

I have lost weight since being diagnosed 2 years ago, but have lost the weight in the last year since getting better at controlling my BG and becoming less stressed ! I follow low carb rules, so have omitted potatoes, bread, rice, cereals, pasta, sugar - from my diet. I eat alot of fish, meat, eggs, cheese, green veges, salads, nuts now, I haven't increased exercise because I don't have time. It takes a while for your body to adjust and for the weight to fall off, which it will do if you are keeping excellent control. Have you had your IBS checked out - is it a possible gluten intolerance ? Also have you checked if your intolerant to any food groups ? When women reach their 40's sometimes intolerances can flare up, something to do with the onset of menopause and hormones. Keep a food diary for a week as well as a BG diary, perhaps taking a good look at the food types and quantities you are eating might give you a better indication of where you can change or adjust.

To be honest I never set out to lose weight with following low carb, I was more aware of stablising BG and keeping a more balanced level as it was getting me down swinging high and low all the time, however due to the dietary change my weight is stable and I feel more energised and confident with managing my diabetes. What i'm trying to say here is that is you're having great control then this is more important than losing weight or at least it was to me, so it's down to personal choice but i'd rather live a few more years longer without complications than to suffer from major dietary changes that make me stressed and worried about my weight

I lost loads after going gluten free due to coeliac disease. I was only overweight because I couldnt absorb minerals and was constantly hungery. have you tried going gluten free? might help IBS too...

My suggestion is to have your Vitamin D levels checked. Prior to diagnosis, I had been trying to lose weight for months without success. Part of my T2 diagnosis was really low Vitamin D. As soon as I started on supplementation, not only did my fatigue disappear, the weight started shifting.

I'd also agree re giving up wheat/gluten for a while to see if it helps you. It cured my IBS for sure.

megan said:

so I have tried on and off to lose weight much to my annoyance it never works. its only if I'm sick or super stressed that I have lost weight. so I get fed up and stop trying so hard. salad with no carb or very little seems to make my sugars go up despite me taking some insulin, no insulin simply would be a disaster.
I started at slimming world and felt awful but I was just about to start creon too.
now I'm at home doing this myself and just having my healthy eating with reduced carbs and lots of salad and steamed veg low fat low cal low sugar etc etc, despite fibro and ME I have managed to start more exercise and am managing to keep that up for now.
So why no weight loss!!????? so frustrating and upsetting. This is always what ends up happening. utterly fed up of it. not giving up though as that is not an option.
determind but disappointed...any thoughts

ah a thought I have is that maybe it will take a while for my MY body to adjust to the changes and when it does the weight will start melting away!!!! clutching at straws!
with the IBS problems I remember years ago having 4 different types of laxative from the dr and after 4 glasses of fibogel and several day later I was thinking it was a little extreme even for me, where oh where had the fibogel gone!!......my body just seems to do what it wants to do in its own good time....and the blood sugars are fluctuate city-tastic...........no matter what I do

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Hey Megan, are you counting your calories? The only way to lose weight is to eat at a daily caloric deficit. There are various calculators on the internet that will calculate your basal metabolic rate (BMR)(the amount of calories you will burn per day doing nothing). From there you can find how many calories a day you need to maintain, gain or lose weight depending on your activity level(your total daily energy expenditure(TDEE)).

Use a site or app like calorieking or myfitness pal to track all your meals and add up your calories and deduct for any exercise. Typically eating at a 500cal deficit will cause you to lose weight at about 1-1.5 lbs a week but you could lose more depending on how overweight you are.

The fitness sub on reddit has a decent guide on getting started
http://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/wiki/getting_started#wiki_fixing_your_diet

You're not alone Megan, I cant lose weight either, its not just about calories, I have ultra low carbed, fat fest' exercised all to no avail. I 'm the same if I'm worried the weight falls off. I'm not a big eater. I'm a mystery. I've been told I don't drink enough water, I don't eat enough, I overeat, I eat the wrong things, I don't exercise at the right time. B******S. I'm not hugely overweight - 2 stone would do it. But I can share your frustration.

Omar is quite right, look at the calories you are consuming then then reduce them slowly, if you burn more calories than you consume the weight will eventually fall off. I'm type 1 also and I got some helpful advice from a dietitian on ways in which to cut back on the calories and lose weight. Good luck!!!

I've cut calories etc I'm probably not eating enough. And if your not eating enough you would think that you would lose weight, nope. None of it seems to work.
I must admit though that I've never had to lose weight in my life, the menopause seems to have screwed up my body.

Unless you track absolutely everything you eat and set yourself a longterm goal say 15lbs in 4 months you're going to have a hard time losing weight. Don't look at your weight progress everyday; gauge it over a few weeks at look at the overall trend downward.

I've cut weight multiple times before as it is a part of my bodybuilding lifestyle, you need to keep in mind that its a long term goal, eating small stacks can add up quite quickly, cutting too many carbs in too short of a time can cause your body to hold on to weight, your weight will fluctuate during the day/overnight due to sodium/water intake and other factors. Just stick with it you will make progress.

EDIT:

dawnmc said:

I've cut calories etc I'm probably not eating enough. And if your not eating enough you would think that you would lose weight, nope. None of it seems to work.
I must admit though that I've never had to lose weight in my life, the menopause seems to have screwed up my body.

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Cutting too many calories to a point can force your body into adaptive thermogenesis which can cause a slow down in weight loss but eventually you will lose weight. It's something I've experienced before and something you just have to persevere through.

You could try intermittent fasting which I've dabbled in for the past month, where you limit your eating window to less than 10 hours a day(8-4 if you can handle it) in which you consume all of your daily calories and fast for the rest of the day.
The basic idea is that give your body more consecutive hours to stay in a fat burning/catabolic mode but still feel full for the day. People who have done IF are always raving about it, so it might be something you would like and could look into.

Thanks anyway, I've tried everything, I'm 58 which doesn't help (its harder to lose as you get older). I've low carbed since diagnosis - 2 yrs now. Never lost any weight at the beginning. I've used my kettle bells etc. I look at it this way. I have no choice as to what I eat (few carbs) or exercise. I'm diabetic and this is the way it has to be. If weight loss is a bonus so be it. But as a previously skinny b***h, its frustrating, I only got fat after 50. I can empathise with all those who cant lose weight.

Your calories, count them.

Also don't forget, the slower you lose weight the easier it is to keep off, sometimes I was only losing 1lb a month but it's still weight loss just the same.

megan said:

so I have tried on and off to lose weight much to my annoyance it never works. its only if I'm sick or super stressed that I have lost weight. so I get fed up and stop trying so hard. salad with no carb or very little seems to make my sugars go up despite me taking some insulin, no insulin simply would be a disaster.
I started at slimming world and felt awful but I was just about to start creon too.
now I'm at home doing this myself and just having my healthy eating with reduced carbs and lots of salad and steamed veg low fat low cal low sugar etc etc, despite fibro and ME I have managed to start more exercise and am managing to keep that up for now.
So why no weight loss!!????? so frustrating and upsetting. This is always what ends up happening. utterly fed up of it. not giving up though as that is not an option.
determind but disappointed...any thoughts

ah a thought I have is that maybe it will take a while for my MY body to adjust to the changes and when it does the weight will start melting away!!!! clutching at straws!
with the IBS problems I remember years ago having 4 different types of laxative from the dr and after 4 glasses of fibogel and several day later I was thinking it was a little extreme even for me, where oh where had the fibogel gone!!......my body just seems to do what it wants to do in its own good time....and the blood sugars are fluctuate city-tastic...........no matter what I do

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Hi, i had this same issue whenfirst diagnosed felt weight was piling on me was 9st 7lbs when diagnosed i lost bit of weight due to symptoms, normal weight is around 10st 7lbs but it very quicky went from the 9.5 st to 11.5 n mo matter what i did wouldnt shift it, ive joined slimming world which i find helps my weight and plan my meals a little better for carbs as im struggling with balance if carbs insulin. My nurse told me if i exercise with sugar level way above 8 im not gettin the effect as ur spiking so been starting exercise with it at 8 and doin shorter classes in gym so i dont have to stop and drink sugary drink half way thru and have found this is helping the weight shift! Hope this has helped!

dawnmc said:

You're not alone Megan, I cant lose weight either, its not just about calories, I have ultra low carbed, fat fest' exercised all to no avail. I 'm the same if I'm worried the weight falls off. I'm not a big eater. I'm a mystery. I've been told I don't drink enough water, I don't eat enough, I overeat, I eat the wrong things, I don't exercise at the right time. B******S. I'm not hugely overweight - 2 stone would do it. But I can share your frustration.

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Thyroid problems? Common thing with thyroid under function is inability to loose weight. Hypothyroidism is very common in women and the risk increases with age.

megan said:

so I have tried on and off to lose weight much to my annoyance it never works. its only if I'm sick or super stressed that I have lost weight. so I get fed up and stop trying so hard. salad with no carb or very little seems to make my sugars go up despite me taking some insulin, no insulin simply would be a disaster.
I started at slimming world and felt awful but I was just about to start creon too.
now I'm at home doing this myself and just having my healthy eating with reduced carbs and lots of salad and steamed veg low fat low cal low sugar etc etc, despite fibro and ME I have managed to start more exercise and am managing to keep that up for now.
So why no weight loss!!????? so frustrating and upsetting. This is always what ends up happening. utterly fed up of it. not giving up though as that is not an option.
determind but disappointed...any thoughts

ah a thought I have is that maybe it will take a while for my MY body to adjust to the changes and when it does the weight will start melting away!!!! clutching at straws!
with the IBS problems I remember years ago having 4 different types of laxative from the dr and after 4 glasses of fibogel and several day later I was thinking it was a little extreme even for me, where oh where had the fibogel gone!!......my body just seems to do what it wants to do in its own good time....and the blood sugars are fluctuate city-tastic...........no matter what I do

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You suffer from ME, fibromyalgia and diabetes? And need to reduce weight? Do you know your thyroid values? Thing is, both ME and fibro can actually be undiagnosed hypothyroidism and if so, you will never loose weight. It has to do with metabolism and hypothyroidism is terrible in that way. Several thyroid/fibromyalgia/ME sufferers I know feel much better on a grain free diet and even better if on LCHF. Just a suggestion.

Had my thyroid checked because I wasn't losing weight. Doc says its ok. I didn't ask what the numbers were, I am aware that we have the numbers higher than other countries and therefore some people can go undiagnosed.

dawnmc said:

Had my thyroid checked because I wasn't losing weight. Doc says its ok. I didn't ask what the numbers were, I am aware that we have the numbers higher than other countries and therefore some people can go undiagnosed.

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I am type 2 and on metformin but here goes. I know you low carb but I would cut out grains and add in fat. I do not mean drink a pint of cream but a typical day for me is:
Breakfast - 1 97% meat sausage and a poached egg.
Lunch - full fat Greek yoghurt, handful of blueberries or cheese and pepparami (they are low carb)
Snacks: handful of nuts or chunk of cheese
Dinner: gorgeous Thai cod soup, chicken in tarragon and brandy sauce with loads of veggies,
Have recipes if you are interested.
I lost a stone and 2lbs did nothing for 3 weeks then started losing. 1lb last week and 2lbs this week. Hang on in there. Keep going back and harassing doc! Take care!

Hi Scandichic, thanks for your response, I'm one of those folk that go overboard researching. I have literally tried everything - no kidding.
I've gone on a Dana Carpender fat fast, to no avail. I've done 5:2 as well.
I eat pretty much as you do, I also have loads of recipe books on paleo as well as low carb. So its not for want of a lack of imagination.
After 2 weeks of a stinking cold when I couldn't exercise I'm now back walking 3 miles a day and 20 minutes of kettle bell. So I'm just going to have to slog it out. I'm going hard at it for 6 months to see if I can lose a stone. Will go WOOPHEE when I do.

dawnmc said:

Hi Scandichic, thanks for your response, I'm one of those folk that go overboard researching. I have literally tried everything - no kidding.
I've gone on a Dana Carpender fat fast, to no avail. I've done 5:2 as well.
I eat pretty much as you do, I also have loads of recipe books on paleo as well as low carb. So its not for want of a lack of imagination.
After 2 weeks of a stinking cold when I couldn't exercise I'm now back walking 3 miles a day and 20 minutes of kettle bell. So I'm just going to have to slog it out. I'm going hard at it for 6 months to see if I can lose a stone. Will go WOOPHEE when I do.

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I often find that a cold throws me out. Wanna trade recipes?
Found this fab recipe
Ingredients:

400g cod
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
1 courgette
1 tbsp garlic butter
250 g cherry tomatoes
2 tins coconut milk
21/2 tbsp red Thai paste
Splash of chilli sauce
200g Philadelphia
parsley
Salt and pepper

Method:
Chop up the peppers and courgette and fry in the butter.
Add the coconut milk, the chilli sauce and seasoning.
Let it simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the Philadelphia, the tomatoes and the cod.
Simmer for 10 minutes.

That sounds fab will have to try it. How about fajita seasoning
4 tsp chili powder
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne
Mix it all together and store in a jar.
I use it on chicken, fish, and of course in a fajita chicken and pepper dish, with avocado and sour cream. Lush.