Act Acting » Method Acting » What the hell is going on here? (Weight non-loss)

What the hell is going on here? (Weight non-loss)

Question:

Missed this on the first read but saw it in a follow-up. supplements consists of a multivitamin,

OK. Good insurance. cod liver oil capsule, flaxseed capsule

OK. I assume these are for the Omega-3s. milk of thistle capsule

Do you have liver disease? and green-blue algae capsule

Why? Matthew

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – In the past, I always used the WW method, with the points because it let me have whatever I wanted in moderation. From being a healthy weight most of my life, I’ve yo-yod between that weight and overweight 3 or 4 times, each time going up to a bit more, for a bit longer, eventually up to ~ 100 lb overweight, where I’ve been for 2-3 years at least. Now, I’ve finally discovered "proper" eating, and instead of the WW method, I actually eat properly, I don’t count points but my typical day’s eating consists of 1) supplements & either fresh fruit salad porridge & squirt of honey bran flakes equivalent 2) 3-4 pieces of fresh fruit throughout day 3) I sandwich on wholemeal, a lean meat salad sandwich or houmous and pitta breads 4) evening meal consisting of a large plate of salad (leaves, tomato, cucumber mainly) with dressing (viniagrette style, but come on, one spoonful of dressing aint a problem) plus baked chicken or fish on most nights. supplements consists of a multivitamin, cod liver oil capsule, flaxseed capsule, milk of thistle capsule and green-blue algae capsule

Ditch the algae. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – for dessert I usually don’t have, but sometimes a yoghurt or low fat mousse. odd snacks might include a small handful of cashew nuts occasionally (not every day), or a slice of cooked ham. Even based on the old WW method, there is no way this is anywhere near my daily allowance of points, yet my weight loss, measured every TWO weeks (so as not to be obsessive) has gone – Lost 6 pounds in first 2 weeks – Lost 7 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 2 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 1/4 pound in next 2 weeks

Not sure I understand, but looking at your numbers, your rate of loss has been excellent.  Most experts recommend losing around 1 lb per week – based on your weight change so far, you’ve been averaging around 2 lbs per week. As others have noted, comparing any two weights can be deceiving.  Your body weight changes throughout the day, and from day to day, often by 2-5 lbs, due to hydration levels, bowel movements, etc.  For consistency, you should weigh yourself on an accurate digital scale, first thing in the morning, sans clothing, after emptying your bladder. It sounds like you may simply be too impatient…you didn’t gain the weight overnight, and you won’t lose it overnight either.  Slow and steady is best. I am absolutely not eating anything differently, if anything I’m eating better now because there’s more fresh fish (just plain fillets oven baked) than when I started. Activity in day varies, most days will include a walk through city centre and walking/standing around most of day across the hospital, and this week have started doing treadmill at long last, but am only currently on 30 min workout for 150 cals walking speed right now

When you feel up to it, you may want to increase the intensity and duration of your exercise.  "Brisk" walking for 30-60 minutes will do wonders for your heart, and burn more calories in the process.  Just don’t get sucked into the trap of "rewarding" yourself with food after exercising. Regardless, I do not understand what is causing this shutdown in weight loss, despite eating more healthily than I ever did in my whole life, and am certain I am not eating anywhere near the "36 points worth" on the old WW diet (where I always used to do well).

You weight loss has not "shutdown".  It does appear to be slowing down a bit, but that’s to be expected.  As long as it’s moving in the right direction, don’t worry about it. And, FWIW, your body is not immune to the laws of thermodynamics (calories in vs. calories out).  If your weight loss stalls for more than 3 or 4 weeks, it means that you need to reduce your food intake, or increase your exericse, or both.  As long as you maintain a modest daily calorie deficit, you will lose weight (though maybe not as fast as you’d like). — GG http://www.WeightWare.com Your Weight and Health Diary One thing I’ve noticed is that in the first few weeks, my trips to the loo were more frequent, and I got large, firm output, the last few weeks it’s been less regular and often diarrhea like output,and more small, messy output. So, I am beginning to worry that 1) there’s something actually wrong with me

Doubtful. 2) my metabolism is f*****, through disease or not enough eating?? (surely you lose if you starve though)

Doubtful. 3) those supplements are somehow hurting me

Doubtful, except for the algae – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – 4) I have some kind of weird allergy to something 5) I’m eating some kind of super calorific tomatoes in my salad or something 6) my missus is pouring lard down my neck when I sleep please let me know if you’ve experienced this, or have any ideas. It’s driving me mental. I’ve done WW before and usually drop much more than this, plateauing at maybe 40 pounds over ideal (240), as opposed to 290, and it should be falling off now with my current diet and healthier lifestyle!

Response:

In the past, I always used the WW method, with the points because it let me have whatever I wanted in moderation. From being a healthy weight most of my life, I’ve yo-yod between that weight and overweight 3 or 4 times, each time going up to a bit more, for a bit longer, eventually up to ~ 100 lb overweight, where I’ve been for 2-3 years at least.

You don’t say how old you are, so saying you didn’t have a weight problem most your life is hard to judge without knowing what "most your life" means.   But what it does tell me is you probably don’t have a genetic disorder causing a slow metabolism or some other rare metabolic disorder. Nor do you say whether you are male or female, that can also play a role (and a name like Lee can be either). That said, there are a few things to consider. 1.  Your recent weight loss results.  It is quite common for someone new or returning to a diet to lose larger quantities of weight in the first few weeks then taper off to a more settled weight.   This mainly happens due to water loss from your change in diet (foods).  (note: this is why fad diets claim to lose 10lbs in 2 weeks.) But once the body stabilizes, the rate of loss slows.   Healthy weight loss ranges from 1 to 2 lbs per week after your intial *honeymoon* period. The other factor with the recent slowdown to the 1/4lb could be water fluctuations due to sodium(salt) or carb intake in very recent days prior to your weighin.  I know if I eat chinese takeout, I’ll weight 5lbs more the next day and it can take up to 3 days to go away.  There are also other factors; hormonal, change/increase in exercise, increase/change in weather/heat.   Or, another thing I’ve noticed with my personal weight loss, I’ll drop weight, then stabilize at the lower weight for a couple weeks without losing anything, then suddenly lose another 5 lbs in a week.   Since there are so many factors that could contribute to the slowdown – you shouldn’t panic after just 1 weighin.  Keep plugging away at it till your next weight in. 2.  Exercise:  That "standing and walking around the hospital" does not really count towards exercise.  While yes, you are active, your body is also used to that activity and it has learned to compensate for that activity.  Yes, you probably would gain if you became a couch potato or switched to a desk job, but just because you stand and walk alot during the day doesn’t mean it will help you lose weight more.  You have to increase exercise above and beyond your normal activity. One thing to do is buy a cheap pedometer.  Track your "typical" day at work and see how you do.  Then challenge yourself to do more. Reports have shown that successful dieters exercise on average, 1hr per day of exercise activity above and beyond their normal routines.  Get out, get moving.  Get on that treadmill and spend an hour.  Work your body out. 3.  And if you are really serious about losing weight and finding out why you are struggling now…  Spend 2 weeks weighing and measuring and tracking every ounce you put in your mouth. (including water, snacks, gum, food, etc).  If you swallow it, track it.   Why – in order to actually see what and how much you are eating.  You give food examples, but not amounts.  3 to 4 pieces of grapes is a big difference compared to 3 to 4 bananas.  Its quite possible you are misjudging your portion sizes and consuming higher calories than you were even 4 weeks ago.  Many people do not understand portion sizes.  And many WW members that I’ve met do not understand what a portion is.   As an example – a coworker is dieting.  She eats 2 apples a day, but these apples are HUGE.  (larger than a softball) whereas the typical portion size of an apple is actually about the size of a tennis ball.  So, when she eats 2 appls a day, its actually about 4 portions.  If tracking calories, she needs to double the amount of what she "thinks" she’s eating. Another example – salad dressing.  When I go to a restaurant, I get my dressing served on the side in a small dish.  I usually do not use all the dressing in the dish.  On the other hand, my husband always orders 2 dressings, and will use both, and sometimes my leftovers.  So, where my dish might have contained one serving/portion, that means I actually consumed less than a portion, where as my husband consumed at least 2 portions.  If a portion is 100 cals that means I consumed less than 100 and he consumed more than 200.  In the case of a dressing like bluecheese – that’s more like 300 cals per serving.  I’m less than 300, he’s more than 600.  (and for someone like me, 600 is 1/2 my calorie intake for the entire day!, it can make a big difference in weight loss). I hope this post has given you some other things to think about.   Your problem is common.  Its usually caused by denial of some sort.  Education on nutrition, portions, serving sizes, calorie counting can help.  Learning how your body reacts to foods, hormones and other life situations/stressors can help cope with the slowdowns.   Bottom line – the key to weight loss is: Eat less, exercise more, repeat forever

Response:

thanks, I’m beginning to wonder if that’s the case. although under WW I would get 36 points (which is about 2500 calories if zero fat, more like 2000 calories with low fat intake, ballpark)

Although I’m not familiar with the WW points sytem, 2,500 cals sounds like a lot for losing weight. You may have lost on this amount in the past but as your weight drops you burn less calories both at rest and during physical activity. my cereal/breakfast would be 5 points, no more than 6, the fruit would be 4-5, the sandwiches no more than 8-10, and the salad 0, fish/chicken about 6-8 with a large portion, maybe 1-2 for dressing, that is 31, so a yoghurt or mousse or a few nuts might take it up to 36, but I would have still thought that it would come off quicker to start with, it always has done before, but maybe you’re right, perhaps I just need to be more strict counting for a few weeks, and also cut out some of the fruit.

For the points system to work, they have to be based on very specific portion sizes. ‘The fruit’ is a very open area, what sort of fruit you are eating and what size can make all the difference. According to FitDay, a large apple has twice as many cals as a small one. 4 large apples a day = 500 cals. For commercial products, always read the labels. Yoghurt and mousse are not all made equal, those made with whole milk and sugar have over twice as many cals as the ‘diet’ ones made from skimmed milk & artificial sweeteners. Salad dressings are even worse, traditional dressings are oil based, many over 50% fat. I’ve seen pre-packed Caesar salads with over 600 cals per portion without chicken or anything other than iceberg, parmesan shavings, some croutons & dressing. It all adds up. A few nuts have a lot of calories, like 160 per oz. You don’t mention what you drink, whilst coffee is virtually calorie-free, sugar & cream are not. What about sodas, fruit juices or sports drinks?

Response:

In the past, I always used the WW method, with the points because it let me have whatever I wanted in moderation. From being a healthy weight most of my life, I’ve yo-yod between that weight and overweight 3 or 4 times, each time going up to a bit more, for a bit longer, eventually up to ~ 100 lb overweight, where I’ve been for 2-3 years at least.

It sounds like "letting you have what you want in moderation" doesn’t really work for you, since you keep wanting things in quantities that eventually make you fat.  Perhaps a better goal would be to train yourself to eat like a slender person.  Start now, and practice repeatedly until the day you die.  Eventually your body will catch up. 1) supplements & either fresh fruit salad porridge & squirt of honey bran flakes equivalent

Where’s the protein?  Are you insulin resistant? 2) 3-4 pieces of fresh fruit throughout day

You ought to be logging this in Fitday.  One of the things I’ve learned is that I need to balance protein and carbs in my snacks because fruit alone will spike my blood sugar and turn on fat-storing mechanisms more than fat-burning mechanisms. 3) I sandwich on wholemeal, a lean meat salad sandwich or houmous and pitta breads

Can you just ditch the bread entirely?  How about a salad with the lean meat on top? 4) evening meal consisting of a large plate of salad (leaves, tomato, cucumber mainly) with dressing (viniagrette style, but come on, one spoonful of dressing aint a problem) plus baked chicken or fish on most nights.

Yes, a spoonful of dressing can be a problem when it’s the 100 calories that are keeping you in maintenance versus fat loss.  Add it to the 4th piece of fruit, the handful of cashews, the huge bowl of bran flakes… what you’ve got is a guy who has no idea how many calories he’s eating. FWIW, I use a spray bottle to spritz my salad with toasted sesame oil. I notice you didn’t mention beverages.  Do you take cream in your coffee?  How often?  Drink juice?  Soda? Gatoraide? supplements consists of a multivitamin, cod liver oil capsule, flaxseed capsule, milk of thistle capsule and green-blue algae capsule for dessert I usually don’t have, but sometimes a yoghurt or low fat mousse. odd snacks might include a small handful of cashew nuts occasionally (not every day), or a slice of cooked ham. Even based on the old WW method, there is no way this is anywhere near my daily allowance of points,

Points is just a crutch for people who can manage to count calories. Use www.Fitday.com and log every morsal (yes, weigh and measure every morsal) for a week and then look at your calorie load, your macronutrient load and your fiber load.  Tinker with your diet until you get the macronutrients more balanced (33% of each wouldn’t kill you) and make sure every morsal of carbs comes with some major fiber or phytonutrients. yet my weight loss, measured every TWO weeks (so as not to be obsessive) has gone – Lost 6 pounds in first 2 weeks – Lost 7 pounds in next 2 weeks

You lost 13 pounds the first month and you’re complaining about only losing 2.25 the second month? – Lost 2 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 1/4 pound in next 2 weeks

What are you doing for exercise?  How sustainable does this new diet seem to you?  Your goal ought not to be to lose fat at this point, your goal ought to be to learn how to act like a slender person.  Get some life-style changes under your belt.  It’s hard work so feel free to take it in stages and give yourself mini-goals. I am absolutely not eating anything differently, if anything I’m eating better now because there’s more fresh fish (just plain fillets oven baked) than when I started. Activity in day varies, most days will include a walk through city centre and walking/standing around most of day across the hospital, and this week have started doing treadmill at long last, but am only currently on 30 min workout for 150 cals walking speed right now Regardless, I do not understand what is causing this shutdown in weight loss, despite eating more healthily than I ever did in my whole life, and am certain I am not eating anywhere near the "36 points worth" on the old WW diet (where I always used to do well).

You didn’t have a shutdown in weight loss.  You just started losing at a sustainable level.  My guess is that you had no idea how many calories are maintenance and are used to eating well in excess of maintenance. Now you’re eating just below maintenance and you’ve got a slow fat loss going on. I recommend you do some weight training so you can partition the weight loss more towards fat loss rather than lean body mass. please let me know if you’ve experienced this, or have any ideas. It’s driving me mental. I’ve done WW before and usually drop much more than this, plateauing at maybe 40 pounds over ideal (240), as opposed to 290, and it should be falling off now with my current diet and healthier lifestyle!

You’ve got to change your goal.  You don’t need to lose fat, you need to lose bad habits.  Are you losing the bad habits?  Voila, you’re meeting your new goals. The fat will go away on its own if you just get better at acting like a slender person. Delenn 244/162/162

Response:

Well, the body regulates it’s calorie intake.  So, over time, anyone is likely to fail in an effort to restrict calories.   (I assume here, that one accepts that weightloss is a result of reduced calories.) It may help to use something like Fitday to monitor your eating.  http://www.FitDay.com I have no connection to Fitday, except as a download customer.  It may have been the best $20 I ever spent. Also, weightloss needs to be viewed over a long term period, such a one or two months.  Week to week changes can be misleading. IMHO healthy eating has nothing to do with weightloss.  I view healthy eating as separate unrelated goal. Cubit 311/175/165

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – In the past, I always used the WW method, with the points because it let me have whatever I wanted in moderation. From being a healthy weight most of my life, I’ve yo-yod between that weight and overweight 3 or 4 times, each time going up to a bit more, for a bit longer, eventually up to ~ 100 lb overweight, where I’ve been for 2-3 years at least. Now, I’ve finally discovered "proper" eating, and instead of the WW method, I actually eat properly, I don’t count points but my typical day’s eating consists of 1) supplements & either fresh fruit salad porridge & squirt of honey bran flakes equivalent 2) 3-4 pieces of fresh fruit throughout day 3) I sandwich on wholemeal, a lean meat salad sandwich or houmous and pitta breads 4) evening meal consisting of a large plate of salad (leaves, tomato, cucumber mainly) with dressing (viniagrette style, but come on, one spoonful of dressing aint a problem) plus baked chicken or fish on most nights. supplements consists of a multivitamin, cod liver oil capsule, flaxseed capsule, milk of thistle capsule and green-blue algae capsule for dessert I usually don’t have, but sometimes a yoghurt or low fat mousse. odd snacks might include a small handful of cashew nuts occasionally (not every day), or a slice of cooked ham. Even based on the old WW method, there is no way this is anywhere near my daily allowance of points, yet my weight loss, measured every TWO weeks (so as not to be obsessive) has gone – Lost 6 pounds in first 2 weeks – Lost 7 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 2 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 1/4 pound in next 2 weeks I am absolutely not eating anything differently, if anything I’m eating better now because there’s more fresh fish (just plain fillets oven baked) than when I started. Activity in day varies, most days will include a walk through city centre and walking/standing around most of day across the hospital, and this week have started doing treadmill at long last, but am only currently on 30 min workout for 150 cals walking speed right now Regardless, I do not understand what is causing this shutdown in weight loss, despite eating more healthily than I ever did in my whole life, and am certain I am not eating anywhere near the "36 points worth" on the old WW diet (where I always used to do well). One thing I’ve noticed is that in the first few weeks, my trips to the loo were more frequent, and I got large, firm output, the last few weeks it’s been less regular and often diarrhea like output,and more small, messy output. So, I am beginning to worry that 1) there’s something actually wrong with me 2) my metabolism is f*****, through disease or not enough eating?? (surely you lose if you starve though) 3) those supplements are somehow hurting me 4) I have some kind of weird allergy to something 5) I’m eating some kind of super calorific tomatoes in my salad or something 6) my missus is pouring lard down my neck when I sleep please let me know if you’ve experienced this, or have any ideas. It’s driving me mental. I’ve done WW before and usually drop much more than this, plateauing at maybe 40 pounds over ideal (240), as opposed to 290, and it should be falling off now with my current diet and healthier lifestyle!

Response:

I understand how you feel ! It is not easy to see the weight not drop quickly after eating so small but I just can’t eat fruit very often as it is high in sugar. Strawberries are the with less natural sugar and grapefruit is very good too. I eat a few strawberries on my cereal and a half grapefruit but no other fruit. I eat meat ot meat sustitute for every meal plus green salad. You are doing quite well with your loss and please don’t give up. You are doing healthy eating!!! glo

thanks for the support. i do feel a lot better, and as someone who laughed at salad for 33 years am now loving eating it every single day, as well as fish etc.

Response:

please let me know if you’ve experienced this, or have any ideas. It’s driving me mental. I’ve done WW before and usually drop much more Use fitday or some other tool to figure out the actual number of calories you are eating for everything you eat in day. Everything. It might prove surprising.

thanks, I’m beginning to wonder if that’s the case. although under WW I would get 36 points (which is about 2500 calories if zero fat, more like 2000 calories with low fat intake, ballpark) my cereal/breakfast would be 5 points, no more than 6, the fruit would be 4-5, the sandwiches no more than 8-10, and the salad 0, fish/chicken about 6-8 with a large portion, maybe 1-2 for dressing, that is 31, so a yoghurt or mousse or a few nuts might take it up to 36, but I would have still thought that it would come off quicker to start with, it always has done before, but maybe you’re right, perhaps I just need to be more strict counting for a few weeks, and also cut out some of the fruit.

Response:

please let me know if you’ve experienced this, or have any ideas. It’s driving me mental. I’ve done WW before and usually drop much more

Use fitday or some other tool to figure out the actual number of calories you are eating for everything you eat in day. Everything. It might prove surprising.

Response:

Now, I’ve finally discovered "proper" eating,

Perhaps not. I would try eating less fruit. You also need to be patient. As time progresses you will not be able to lose weight as quickly as when you started. Matthew

Response:

I understand how you feel ! It is not easy to see the weight not drop quickly after eating so small but I just can’t eat fruit very often as it is high in sugar. Strawberries are the with less natural sugar and grapefruit is very good too. I eat a few strawberries on my cereal and a half grapefruit but no other fruit. I eat meat ot meat sustitute for every meal plus green salad. You are doing quite well with your loss and please don’t give up. You are doing healthy eating!!! glo

Response:

In the past, I always used the WW method, with the points because it let me have whatever I wanted in moderation. From being a healthy weight most of my life, I’ve yo-yod between that weight and overweight 3 or 4 times, each time going up to a bit more, for a bit longer, eventually up to ~ 100 lb overweight, where I’ve been for 2-3 years at least. Now, I’ve finally discovered "proper" eating, and instead of the WW method, I actually eat properly, I don’t count points but my typical day’s eating consists of 1) supplements & either fresh fruit salad porridge & squirt of honey bran flakes equivalent 2) 3-4 pieces of fresh fruit throughout day 3) I sandwich on wholemeal, a lean meat salad sandwich or houmous and pitta breads 4) evening meal consisting of a large plate of salad (leaves, tomato, cucumber mainly) with dressing (viniagrette style, but come on, one spoonful of dressing aint a problem) plus baked chicken or fish on most nights. supplements consists of a multivitamin, cod liver oil capsule, flaxseed capsule, milk of thistle capsule and green-blue algae capsule for dessert I usually don’t have, but sometimes a yoghurt or low fat mousse. odd snacks might include a small handful of cashew nuts occasionally (not every day), or a slice of cooked ham. Even based on the old WW method, there is no way this is anywhere near my daily allowance of points, yet my weight loss, measured every TWO weeks (so as not to be obsessive) has gone – Lost 6 pounds in first 2 weeks – Lost 7 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 2 pounds in next 2 weeks – Lost 1/4 pound in next 2 weeks I am absolutely not eating anything differently, if anything I’m eating better now because there’s more fresh fish (just plain fillets oven baked) than when I started. Activity in day varies, most days will include a walk through city centre and walking/standing around most of day across the hospital, and this week have started doing treadmill at long last, but am only currently on 30 min workout for 150 cals walking speed right now Regardless, I do not understand what is causing this shutdown in weight loss, despite eating more healthily than I ever did in my whole life, and am certain I am not eating anywhere near the "36 points worth" on the old WW diet (where I always used to do well). One thing I’ve noticed is that in the first few weeks, my trips to the loo were more frequent, and I got large, firm output, the last few weeks it’s been less regular and often diarrhea like output,and more small, messy output. So, I am beginning to worry that 1) there’s something actually wrong with me 2) my metabolism is f*****, through disease or not enough eating?? (surely you lose if you starve though) 3) those supplements are somehow hurting me 4) I have some kind of weird allergy to something 5) I’m eating some kind of super calorific tomatoes in my salad or something 6) my missus is pouring lard down my neck when I sleep please let me know if you’ve experienced this, or have any ideas. It’s driving me mental. I’ve done WW before and usually drop much more than this, plateauing at maybe 40 pounds over ideal (240), as opposed to 290, and it should be falling off now with my current diet and healthier lifestyle!

Response:

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