Water Retention Vs. Gas...

[kaki-clam]

I have been going to a personal trainer for the last 6 months. Yesterday I had him take my measurements. My measurements has sucessfuly decreased in every area except my waist. The trainer told me that if it was water retention it would also show in my neck, but my waist was up 2 inches from when i started and my neck was down 1. My weight is exactally the same, and my body fat percentage has gone down 6%. I am not going to the trainer to lose weight, i cannot follow his diet plan, i won't eat fat free foods (they are not food...just chemicals) and due to my celiac diet, i cannot carb load like he wants....anyway, i am feeling better and toning up which was my goal..but long story short...if my abdomen is distended due to severe constipation and gas would that show in my neck as well? should i be checking my waist every so often and mark the measurement? I was 42 inches when i started, 44 inches when he measured me and 47 inches when i measured myself this am......

[GlutenGladi8or]

i cannot follow his diet plan, i won't eat fat free foods (they are not food...just chemicals) and due to my celiac diet, i cannot carb load like he wants...

If this personal trainer is suggesting that you eat like this, then you need a NEW personal trainer. But, it sounds like you have already nipped that in the butt.

Give me an example of what your typical day of food looks like, and I'll make some very brief suggestions.

I already have an idea where the issues may be coming from.

The Gluten Gladiator

[kaki-clam]

If this personal trainer is suggesting that you eat like this, then you need a NEW personal trainer. But, it sounds like you have already nipped that in the butt.

Give me an example of what your typical day of food looks like, and I'll make some very brief suggestions.

I already have an idea where the issues may be coming from.

The Gluten Gladiator

OK, typical food day.....breakfast, eithers hard boiled eggs and bacon, or salad. it depends on what is in the fridge. I usually can't eat to early in the AM, so i make my breakfast and bring it to work with me to eat after 8am. When i first went gluten free, I craved a lot of salad, so i got use to eatting that for breakfast. When we have spaghetti for dinner, i do have the left overs for breakfast. Gluten free of course. Lunch is always left overs from the previous nights dinner, and if no left overs then salad....which would mean eggs and bacon for breakfast. Dinners are usually very healthy. I get cooking light magazine and adapt their recipies. We eat chicken, pork, and beef, always have a veggie, and most always a starch. Some recent dinner examples include, kung po chicken with coconut cliantro rice, taco salad, spaghetti with meatballs and salad, sausage and kale soup with white beans, turkey cutlets with grilled plums and arugula.... i really LOVE to cook. Now, typing this out doesn't sound to bad...but the stuff not yet mentioned would be snacks...I try to avoid them, 99 out of 100 days i have enough food in my lunch so i am not hungry for snacks, but i eat them anyway. I EAT CANDY LIKE IT'S MY JOB!! i cannot stop eatting candy, I have stopped once before, but then i binge, i almost go into panic attacks if i don't have it. I can often go a week or more without it, but once i get that glint in my eye...i must have it. I have been to the doctor and he seems to think i should just stop eatting it. I feel like an alcoholic must when they try to stop..Chantix helped me quit smoking...too bad they don't have chantex for candy! all this being said, my typical candy intake for the day is one bar..and probably one candy bar 3 out of 7 days a week....the reason i mention this is because i just got off a HUGE AND ESPECIALLY bad candy binge of about 4 times that amount. The bloating and gas are a constant reguardless of the candy intake. Also, I do eat a bit of cheese, when i have salads or what not, i put cheese in them....and i recently found a way to make gluten free cheese sticks which are one of my favorites from my pre gluten free days....and i have been eating those alot lately, but again, gas and bloating still consistant reguadless....

[GlutenGladi8or]

As a quick glance, drop the bacon at breakfast (unwanted fats and nitrates). Opt for the leanest protein that you can.

As for the candy (and yes, we all inherently have a sweet tooth) try to get the darkest chocolate that you can. You current candy and bar selections are probably sweetened with High Fructose Corn Syrup. ANOTHER thing to run from like the plague!

Finally... are you drinking 80+ ounces of water a day. Not soda, not coffee, not tea but the good old H2O.

[Bubba's Mom]

You could also have a yeast over growth in your intestines? It would make you crave sweets..and cause bloating. Try a good probiotic and do your best to aviod sugar and yeast containing products.

[Jestgar]

Are you doing lots of ab exercises? Exercising a muscle will build it, wherever it is........

[viviendoparajesus]

I have had a similar problem. I went gluten free after I got diagnosed and learned that was the root of my problems. I dropped weight like crazy especially since I was taking it easy on all grains since I was not sure what I could handle. My stomach had been huge and I had looked pregnant and could not fit in my clothes. My stomach decreased when I went gluten-free but not as much as the rest of me. it sounds like digestive issues to me not water retention especially since the trainer said that would show elsewhere. i have thought about measuring myself to have an actual number to compare to versus i feel or think my abdomen is changing sizes. i am disappointed that it has been such a struggle so i have not done it. if you find something that helps you get back down. please share with us because i can relate and i better other people can too

[viviendoparajesus]

OK, typical food day.....breakfast, eithers hard boiled eggs and bacon, or salad. it depends on what is in the fridge. I usually can't eat to early in the AM, so i make my breakfast and bring it to work with me to eat after 8am. When i first went gluten free, I craved a lot of salad, so i got use to eatting that for breakfast. When we have spaghetti for dinner, i do have the left overs for breakfast. Gluten free of course. Lunch is always left overs from the previous nights dinner, and if no left overs then salad....which would mean eggs and bacon for breakfast. Dinners are usually very healthy. I get cooking light magazine and adapt their recipies. We eat chicken, pork, and beef, always have a veggie, and most always a starch. Some recent dinner examples include, kung po chicken with coconut cliantro rice, taco salad, spaghetti with meatballs and salad, sausage and kale soup with white beans, turkey cutlets with grilled plums and arugula.... i really LOVE to cook. Now, typing this out doesn't sound to bad...but the stuff not yet mentioned would be snacks...I try to avoid them, 99 out of 100 days i have enough food in my lunch so i am not hungry for snacks, but i eat them anyway. I EAT CANDY LIKE IT'S MY JOB!! i cannot stop eatting candy, I have stopped once before, but then i binge, i almost go into panic attacks if i don't have it. I can often go a week or more without it, but once i get that glint in my eye...i must have it. I have been to the doctor and he seems to think i should just stop eatting it. I feel like an alcoholic must when they try to stop..Chantix helped me quit smoking...too bad they don't have chantex for candy! all this being said, my typical candy intake for the day is one bar..and probably one candy bar 3 out of 7 days a week....the reason i mention this is because i just got off a HUGE AND ESPECIALLY bad candy binge of about 4 times that amount. The bloating and gas are a constant reguardless of the candy intake. Also, I do eat a bit of cheese, when i have salads or what not, i put cheese in them....and i recently found a way to make gluten free cheese sticks which are one of my favorites from my pre gluten free days....and i have been eating those alot lately, but again, gas and bloating still consistant reguadless....

celiacs does not have to cause digestive symptoms. undiagnosed gluten intolerance wreaked havoc on my body. i have blood sugar and thyroid problems that seem to be tied to it. i also think that is why diabetes amongst other problems runs in my family is since the real problem had gone undiagnosed for generations.

i am surprised they found she tested positive for celiac's when many of us it took years to get the right test and often we have to argue to get it. you and your sister could go back to the doctor. you have a right to copies of the test results. you also have the right to ask questions and get answers. what made them test in the first place? what does a good biopsy mean?

while the book's approach is a turn off for me, the gluten effect connects a variety of symptoms to gluten intolerance, sensitivity, and celiac's.

i would not be convinced or worried because usually people in one's ethnic or racial group usually do not have celiac's diseases suck in that they do not discriminate they can strike anyone. people can be asymptomatic celiac's sucks because it can silently cause a lot of damage. or it can be symptoms that most people would never connect to the disease.

biopsies have false positives so i would not be convinced there is not damage from the gluten. nor would being symptom free make me think it is safe for me or ur sis to eat gluten.

one does not have to get sick after having gluten some people do which helps them make the connection and know foods to avoid because of cross contamination. however, i do not usually get symptoms that are easily tied to what i ate - and i know i am not alone in this.

if she has diabetes i would think getting rid of gluten would help since do not carbs spike blood sugar. i think her body is screaming at her to stop having gluten. i fear that if she keeps having gluten she will be like my family and get something worse. i think she should strongly consider going gluten-free.

i do not know about celiac antibodies but with thyroid hormones any amount is not good and indicates the body attacks itself.

i highly recommend dr kharrazian's book see below.

[Nor-TX]

To me, it sounds like you might also have IBS. If I ate the kinds of foods you ate, I would be ill because of the IBS. Anything with grease, raw vegetables, raw fruit, eggs, tomato products, fried items, spicy items are out of the question. Your foods sound yummy but they do cross the IBS list of no no foods. Also it sounds like you eat a lot of candy and chocolate. When I get into those cycles, it is really bad for me. I get gas, my stomach swells and even my fingers and legs swell. I love candy but just can't do it. I'm more of a Skittles kind of gal than chocolate.

Also the total caloric values might seem high for one day's worth of foods.

If you want to try an experiment, try eliminating the greasy, spicey, tomatoey, dairy and candy. I know, I know... this sounds terrible. Trust me, I understand. For a few days have some boring foods and see if your body doesn't react nicely.

My day's food list is very very boring. I don't swear that I eat 100% like this - more like 95%. Afterall, when approaching 62, I should be allowed to stray a bit.

For breakfast I have 2 slices of the Udi bread I purchase at Jason's Deli. It is wonderful - much better than the commercially available Udi bread at Whole Foods. Two slices are substantial. I have 1 TBSP. Smart Balance dairy free margarine (sometimes mixed with a touch of cinnamon sugar) and flavored tea.

Lunch might be a can of beef broth mixed with some frozen vegetables and a 1/4 cup gluten-free potato flakes to thicken it up.

Dinner might be 2 slices of talapia dredged in gluten-free cornmeal and cooked in a sprayed frying pan along with a bit of rice or 1/2 baked potato. Or maybe a grilled chicken breast with some rice and cooked mixed vegetables. Or how about some chicken breast cubed, sauteed in a sprayed pan with 1 tomato, dash of hotsauce and 1 TBSP Smart Balance dairy free margarine along with a handful of shrimp and served over gluten-free spiral pasta.

During the day I drink several small bottles of water instead of pop. The small bottles are easier for me as a goal rather than the larger bottles.

Most days of this kind of diet come in at 1,000 - 1,200 calories. When I do this, the tummy reduces, the swelling and gas reduce and I can sleep without having prop up on 4 pillows because my stomach hurts.

I know this sounds boring, and I'm not saying you can't have treats once in a while, but try the experiment and if it doesn't work, then go back to eating your regular diet. At least you will know for sure.