Tell Me Why?

[orhs66]

I HAVE BEEN GLUTEN FREE ONE YEAR, ALSO CUT OUT DAIRY AND SUGAR. WHY HAVE I NOT LOST ANY WEIGHT?? IT SEEMS TO MAKE NO SENSE, ESPECIALLY SINCE I ALSO EXERCISE ALOT ALSO. I HAD A 36 INCH WAIST BEFORE DIAGNOSIS, AND IT HAS NOT MOVED. I AM 5-7 AND 167 LBS, THE ONLY FAT IS AROUND MY ABDOMEN.

ANYONE ELSE EXPERIENCE THIS????

KEN

[Guest j_mommy]

Alot of the gluten-free "specialty" foods are very high in calories....ie the pastas,breads, boxed stuff, treats ect. Do you eat alot of that stuff?????

[ravenwoodglass]

Do you know how many calories you are consuming every day? Do you eat a lot of fruits and veggies? Specialty gluten-free stuff is very high in calories, some even more than regular food. For example a gluten free hamburger bun I eat has over 400 calories just in the bun. Add in the meat, some fries or chips and a soda and I have almost my total calorie and carb allowance for a whole day. I used to just pour cereal in a bowl but one day I measured it as I put it in and found I was serving myself not one serving but 3 in each bowl. I eat my cereal out of a cup now. I was falsely diagnosed with diabetes a little over a year ago and went through h--- trying to keep my BS in line with diet. It was a real eye opener when I closely looked at what I was consuming every day. Whether celiac or not the key to losing weight is more activity and less calories. If you haven't already add up the calorie content of the foods you are eating every day by weight and measure it you may be surprised at how many you are consuming. Aim for 1500 calories a day and make them count.

[CarlaB]

It most likely has to do with the foods you are eating. I know someone who avoids sugar, but eats chips and diet sodas all day ... it might help more if you could tell us more about what you are eating and what kind of exercise you are doing.

Maybe talking to a personal trainer would help. Often they are also trained in proper diet to achieve the body you want.

Are you lifting weights? If so, are you eating protein within 30 minutes after exercising? You need to replenish what you lost. If you are not lifting weights, you might want to incorporate that into your exercise routine.

Are you eating several meals per day, or are you eating one or two big meals?

You are avoiding sugar, but are you still eating a lot of simple carbs?

[ravenwoodglass]

Carlas suggestion of a trainer is a good one, another route if you have any joint pain or muscle issues that your doctor is aware of is to see if you can get a referral to a physical therapist. They can be great at helping to target muscle groups and if you have any muscle pain or weakness, (don't know if you do or not) they can show you excercises that can help a lot. They are usually covered by insurance but you might want to check with your insurance to be sure if you go that route.

[kbtoyssni]

Weight training is very important to weight loss. Muscles burns a lot of energy even when you're sitting around doing nothing so add a few pounds a muscle and you'll be burning many more calories a day without changing your workout routine. Can't remember the exact number - is it 50 cals/day for a pound of muscle? It's something like that.

[Nuala]

Is your thyroid ok? I have not lost the 30+ pounds I gained a few years back when the thyroid went totally out of whack. I have tried everything from low calorie, extra exercise, moderate calorie (1600 cals), vitamins, fasting, ...you name it I have done it. I might drop a bit, but never more than 10 pounds from the starting point, then it all comes back. I don't gain any weight since I am careful with my diet.

I have been gluten-free for a month now, and haven't lost a pound. I have really cut back on the overall carbs as a result. I eat only veg based carbs and a piece of bread and some rice or potato with dinner. I cut out a lock of snacky cars, like my beloved pretzel sticks.

Who knows why my body is not responding to diet anymore. I cant cut back on the calories any further without putting my body in a starvation-response mode. I could exercise more, but am fairly active.

What is funny is that my drs don't seem concerned - they say I look alright. I guess so many people are overweight these days. I find it strange that my BMI is defintely in the overweight category, but all the nurses, medical techs etc, say in response to my frustration "you look great!". Well, I don't fit into my wardrobe anymore, and can't go to a department store anymore and still fit in the fashionable clothes. I am 5'6" and 165-175 pounds. I was 135. I used to be able to just cut back and the weight would come off (never easily), but it would.

It may be the thyroid medication I am taking needs to be adjusted, as many people do see results one this happenes. But, it seems to me there is something else going on here, and I can't figure it out.

[UR Groovy]

... I HAD A 36 INCH WAIST BEFORE DIAGNOSIS, AND IT HAS NOT MOVED. I AM 5-7 AND 167 LBS, THE ONLY FAT IS AROUND MY ABDOMEN.

ANYONE ELSE EXPERIENCE THIS????

KEN

So, check this out. It's really interesting stuff about where food goes & stuff if you click on some of the links to the videos.

Edit: Link's not working - oh well - sorry. EDIT AGAIN: Okay, now it's working. I just don't understand this URL stuff.

Open Original Shared Link</a>

k

EDIT: I did get the book "You On A Diet" last year. For the ever-expanding waistline only, the bad guys seem to be Hydrogenated Fats, Trans-fats, High Fructose Corn Syrup, in additon to all those gluten substitutes.

[UR Groovy]

Redundant post.

[hathor]

I won't repeat what has been said. I would just add two things I found useful in losing weight. One, keep a diet/exercise journal. I think it made me eat less and exercise more. Two, try to add lots of food with lesser calorie density and more fiber. They will fill you up more. Compare how you would feel, say, following eating a candy bar versus eating the number of apples necessary to have that same number of calories. Or, to take a more extreme example, whole potatoes versus a bag of potato chips or fries.

Are you eating a lot of processed carbs? I know you aren't getting wheat flour, but what of other kinds?

Finally (wait, didn't I say I had two things ... now I'm up to four ), are you eating a lot of fat, high fructose corn syrup, or artificial sweeteners? These things can hurt weight loss.