OK I need some encouragement. I was so excited last week over a .5 loss and then I've gone up....I really am eating well and on plan. I just got the KD DVD and already did 2 recipes and I'm loggin in my journal and exercising at least 3x cardio and walking daily but feel like there's no improvement. I know I am just whining (and I also have a cold) but I just think my body is sabotaging me. Any really slow losers out there that can encourage me? PS- I made the Pork Stew (yummy & husband approved) and for my B-day I made the Berry Pudding from the DVD. Mine didn't look like hers at all but tasted great. Anyone else make the berry pudding yet?
Posts: 6 | Location: Graham, WA | Registered: October 27, 2006
Thank you guys again so much for your words of wisdom. Inside myself I do know I am on the right track. I feel encouraged that others know the struggle of the slow race. I'm going to take all these words of wisdom and digest them. Thanks for being there for a newbie!
Posts: 6 | Location: Graham, WA | Registered: October 27, 2006
I'm a slow loser too, I've been in Weight Watchers since May and haven't hit 10 pounds lost yet. But part of that is definitely that I haven't been following the plan as closely as I can.
I second Denise's recommendation to see a nutritionist. That really helped get me started on my weight loss -- I lost my first 30 pounds following a simple exchange plan recommended by a nutritionist.
----------- Jen
Posts: 2868 | Location: Ohio | Registered: March 11, 2004
Originally posted by KimberleyM: My doc is giving me until June to "make a significant dent" in my weight loss and see if the numbers change before he sticks me on medicine.
That's just where I was a few years ago. My doctor had been warning me for several years that she was going to have to put me on cholesterol-lowering meds if I didn't make a change on my own. My mother had been on them and had side effects. That, and the fact that they can cause liver damage, made me adamant about NOT going on these drugs.
My doctor said she knew I knew what to do, but I just wasn't doing it--and she was absolutely right. The warnings got more stern in early 2003 and that, along with turning 50 in late 2002, finally motivated me to make a change. I found KD's Food Network board (the precursor to this one) and her first cookbook that spring and officially began my lifestyle change on July 1, 2003.
Within 2-3 months, at my next blood test, my total cholesterol was down *69* points! My good cholesterol was up, bad was down, and my triglycerides were down too, though it took much longer to see a major drop there. The last time I had blood tests (earlier this year), my triglycerides were a quarter of what they used to be and my cholesterol was still looking great.
And I am the POSTER CHILD for slow weight loss, so I wanted you to know it IS possible...be patient. I ditto Pretty Pansies' suggestion that you have your thyroid checked (I am also hypothyroid). Finally, be sure you are eating ENOUGH calories--if you undercut your calories TOO much, you can send your body into starvation mode and it will want to hold onto the fat instead of releasing it.
Personal Healthy Habits Challenge - 10/1 to 12/31/08: 1. Exercise: Get back to consistently working out 3-5 X week. 2. Food: Get back to consistently preparing healthy lunches for the week with increased veg servings. 3. Behavior: Reduce intake of sweets.
Posts: 7319 | Location: Rehoboth Beach, DE | Registered: March 12, 2004
Originally posted by KimberleyM: I needed to get my Triglicerides down and HDL up. well even after 3 months of strict dieting (not really losing) and exercising my numbers actually looked a little worse. My doc is giving me until June to "make a significant dent" in my weight loss and see if the numbers change before he sticks me on medicine.
PS... I would recommend an appt with a registered dietician. I've have had cholesterol numbers up over 300.
I took 3 months of food logs into an RD. (After losing about 33 lbs.) I thought that my eating was so good... she would want to frame the pages of my food journal and hang them in her office. But she found LOTS of mistakes that I was missing. It was a VERY worth while appt.
I would really recommend it... if you are haveing trouble losing AND if you are being threatened with meds. Once you get put on the meds... it is REALLY hard to convince your MD to get off of them.
I also have had GREAT success following the DASH Plan. It is a diet for hypertension (DASH = Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), but I have found it EXCELLENT for weight control and weight loss and has been VERY good for my cholesterol.
It is pretty much the diet recommended by the Food Pyramid… Here is a link to a PDF file brochure.
Page 8 of the brochure has a list of food groups and serving sizes. Page 10 has a list of servings for a 1600 calorie a day diet. And I lose weight when I eat this way…
Whole Grains - 6 servings Vegs - 3 or 4 Fruits - 4 Nonfat or lowfat dairy - 2 or 3 Meats, poultry, fish - 1 or 2 Oils - 2 Nuts, seeds, beans - 3 servings a week (I eat ½ c. beans nearly every day… recommended by my dietician for cholesterol) Sweets - 0
The Dash Diet Book recommends a half serving of “sweets” a day for this calorie range (it doesn’t say this on the web page) - and their serving of a “sweet” is REALLY tiny… like 1 TBS of maple syrup. I always go over, but I eat so much better now than in the past, I don’t stress over it.
The Mayo Clinic pyramid recommends 75 calories of sweets a day… and that works for me… I save up some “sweet” cals and eat two desserts a week. I also eat two tsp of sugar in my oatmeal every day and that is about it.
* * * * * I keep a log of the food groups on the fridge door and if I eat half a serving of dairy I put an / and I put a X for a whole serving.
I usually end up with a log that looks like: Grains - XXXXX / Vegs - XXXX Fruits - XXXX Nonfat or lowfat dairy - XX / Meats, poultry, fish - X Oils - XX Nuts, seeds / Beans - X Sweets - 0
This kind of log works really well for me.
The DASH plan doesn’t really have a way to easily fit in things like egg rolls (Is it a veg? A grain? and how many servings of UN-healthy oils should I check off?
We usually eat this kind of thing once or twice a month now… and I just use common sense portion sizes.
But I REALLY like the DASH plan, because 1. I’m NEVER hungry and 2. I don’t gain weight on it and those two things make it easy for me to stick to.
Denise
Posts: 8693 | Location: Silicon Valley, CA | Registered: March 17, 2004
Slow losing is the BEST way to lose weight. Slow and steady wins the race!! Rapid weight loss equals rapid failure.
Stay focused, keep your eye on the prize. Visualize the body you want, the health you want, the life you want. Put all of your energy into where you're going. And you'll get there!
Originally posted by Brie: [QUOTE]Originally posted by GoingSkiing: /QUOTE]Also, exercise didn't/doesn't make THAT much difference to me. I get a much better bang for my buck watching my food. QUOTE]
The same is true for me. I can exercise until the cows come home but unless my food is "clean", I gain weight.
I exercise more for the feeling of wellbeing, stress reduction, the sense of complishment that comes from lifting and knowing that it's good for my heart and bones.
I'm sure I get some metabolic benefit from working out but it certainly isn't very dramatic.
Me three. I must have clean food to lose (now maintain.)
Originally posted by KimberleyM: I do have to say that I lost 25 pounds since March but... mostly between March and June
I couldn't help but think of this quote from the Step Diet Book.
Dr. James O. Hill (one of the founders of The National Weight Control registry and an author of "The Step Diet") has done many very good weight loss studies. He has found that people burn out on dieting* right around 12 weeks. He suggests dieting for 12 weeks and then taking a maintenance break of at least 4 weeks - and possibly longer. (*Yeah, I know… It’s not a diet… It’s a lifestyle… but who wants to live in losing mode as a permanent lifestyle?)
From the Step Diet Book (p. 78)
“When we reviewed dozens of weight-loss research studies, we found that most of the weight loss occurs in the first twelve weeks, which is why you will just get frustrated if you continue to try to lose weight after twelve weeks… Work hard for twelve weeks. Then stop dieting and learn to keep off the weight you lost. Then you can do another twelve week weight loss period when you are ready. It may take a little longer to lose a lot of weight, but what you lose will stay off.”
I usually lost 10 or even 5 lbs a year... because I could only stay in losing mode about 10-12 weeks in a row and then I got sick of it and would get burned out and sloppy.
At anyrate... I bumped up this obnoxiously long thread with EVERY thing I've every read or thought about plateaus....
Feel free to use what is helpful and ignore the rest.
Denise
Posts: 8693 | Location: Silicon Valley, CA | Registered: March 17, 2004
sounds like you are on track with your food. maybe mix it up with the exercise. if you are going the same routine every week, try some new things just to surprise your body a bit, get that metabolism kicked up a baby-notch. i tend to be very routinized (which is also a good thing because it means i am exercising regularly) i use the elliptical. i read somewhere that going backwards on the elliptical will "up" the calroie burn by some percentage (I forget the exact number, sorry). so now, just to be different, i spend the last 5-10 minutes of my usual ellipitical workout going backwards. i will try the berry pudding! Isabel
Goals: 1. Stop thinking like a chronic dieter and start living to inspire. 2. HALT (hungry, anxious, lonely, tired) I will stop and tune in with myself should I experience these things, and respond with something healthy. 3. One word 2008: courage 4. Eat slow and mindfully.
I have never labeled myself as a "slow loser" but looking back on the last 6 months I guess I am. I went up and down between 214 & 215 for weeks and now it wavers between 211 and 213. I find that it creeps up if I drink too many diet cokes instead of water.
"Live your life so that you are not afraid to sell the family parrot to the town gossip."
Posts: 4057 | Location: NE Atlanta (Chamblee, Doraville, Norcross, Duluth) | Registered: March 15, 2004
Thank you all for responding. I do have to say that I lost 25 pounds since March but... mostly between March and June by doing the Rice Diet. It actually made me love fruits and veggies again but it's very low sodium. It was too restrictive for me to live on for long periods. Since July I started walking a lot. I needed to get my Triglicerides down and HDL up. well even after 3 months of strict dieting (not really losing) and exercising my numbers actually looked a little worse. My doc is giving me until June to "make a significant dent" in my weight loss and see if the numbers change before he sticks me on medicine. So I get frustrated when I know what is good for me and I am going that direction yet things aren't going down. I do know that I am going in the right direction though and I'm going to keep going for myself and my beautiful family. Thanks for listening again!!!
Posts: 6 | Location: Graham, WA | Registered: October 27, 2006
[QUOTE]Originally posted by GoingSkiing: /QUOTE]Also, exercise didn't/doesn't make THAT much difference to me. I get a much better bang for my buck watching my food. QUOTE]
The same is true for me. I can exercise until the cows come home but unless my food is "clean", I gain weight.
I exercise more for the feeling of wellbeing, stress reduction, the sense of complishment that comes from lifting and knowing that it's good for my heart and bones.
I'm sure I get some metabolic benefit from working out but it certainly isn't very dramatic.
Out of our beliefs are born deeds; out of our deeds we form habits; out of our habits grows our character; and on our character we build our destiny.
Originally posted by KimberleyM: I'm loggin in my journal and exercising at least 3x cardio and walking daily but feel like there's no improvement.
Another thing to consider is that some people do better with weight bearing exercises with a little cardio thrown in. Everyone's metabolism works differently, and you may need a little bit more in the way of muscle involvement to get your metabolism running better.
Being hypothyroid, I can't help but ask if you've had your thyroid levels checked?
My BEST losing year... I lost about 20 lbs in 10.5 months. (Actually I lost 25 but gained about 5 when we sold our house in June and had to lose that twice... so I ended up with a net loss of 20 lbs).
I started plugging in my weight daily on July 2, 2004... and had other previous weights written down. But anyway... here is a graph of my best losing year and is isn't exactly a straight line down. But I DID get to my goal.
PS... this is a graph of my first year on the board.
PSS... I'm relatively short. 5'2"
Denise
Posts: 8693 | Location: Silicon Valley, CA | Registered: March 17, 2004
I have a fortune from a fortune cookie taped to my desk:
The laws sometimes sleep, but never die.
I take this to mean that I can sometimes over eat for 2, 3, 5 days... and it doesn't show on the scale... but EVENTUALLY it WILL show up. The laws of thermodynamics may appear to sleep, and it may appear that I can eat more calories than I burn, but those laws don't die... and I WILL gain weight... in 3 days, 5 days, 7 days...
We don't eat and IMMEDIATELY gain weight. We eat and it takes a day or two for the food to be digested… then it takes a couple/few days for the extra cals to be converted to fat storage.
The same thing happens with weight loss. It is possible to be PERFECT and have a totally OP week… and it may not show up on the scale THIS week. The laws are sleeping… but if you stay OP… you WILL see a loss… it may take 10-12 days… so just hang in there. There is some process that your body has to go thru to convert fat into energy… and it doesn’t always happen on our time table.
The laws of thermodynamics go that if you take in fewer calories than you burn, you WILL lose weight. Those laws may appear to sleep… but they are not dead. They are alive and well.
I averaged about 1 lb a week when I was in losing mode... but I didn't lose 1 lb consistently EVERY week. I usually lost 1.something lbs every 10-12 days.... and during those 10-12 days went up and down a little.
Just hang in there... if you are on plan and eating better you ARE getting healthier and eventually the scale will cooperate.
Denise
Posts: 8693 | Location: Silicon Valley, CA | Registered: March 17, 2004
Kimberley, Welcome aboard my fellow Washingtonian!!!! I am an extremely slow loser, but have perservered and lost 83 pounds. My motto has been slow and steady wins the race. If you are doing what needs to be done it will come off...don't give up!
Our bodies are a funny machine that have a mind of their own. It may seem like your brain isn't connected sometimes because you know how well you have done and yet the scale does not give you what you want. Look back at your journal to remind yourself of your accomplishments over the week. Also, you may start feeling it with clothes before you see the big numbers on that darn scale!
Good for you on exercising (with 2 kids that must be a challenge) and trying new recipes. I have found that trying new things keeps it interesting when I get annoyed at the scale! I haven't made either recipe so thanks for the review
Good luck and keep us updated!
Kat
Goal: Exercise at least 3 times per week.
Remember the positives.
Get the munchies under control!
Posts: 1068 | Location: Mount Vernon, WA | Registered: July 03, 2005
