Weight Help

beck4582 · Jan 27, 2008

So let me start at the beginning...

In high school I was a size 3. I rarely ate and was depressed. My senior year I met a guy who was 25 and started dating him. I became happier and ate more. I went to college and started on an anti depressant - Paxil, which I took until 2003. Over the next two years I gained over 100 lbs. In 2004 I stopped eating all carbs except 100% whole wheat and started going to Curves 4-5 times a week. I lost 60 lbs and kept it off until last year. Last year I started taking Lexapro and I met my husband. Since then I've gained back 50lbs. The last couple of months I've started eating better. For breakfast I have a granola bar, for lunch I have a sandwich (on wheat), and for dinner I have small portions of whatever I cook, then an apple and peanut butter for dessert. To drink I have one Diet Coke during the day, and have milk or water the rest of the time. I'm still slowly gaining. I don't get it. Could it be a change in hormones? Does anyone have any secrets to share? We're thinking of getting me lipo sometime soon - I'm still doing research on that. No one else in my family is overweight, so I know it's not genetic. I'm getting very frustrated and tired of worrying about my weight. I want to be able to shop at normal places and wear the cute clothes!

catloverin_ks · Jan 27, 2008

Oh my gosh!!! That sounds JUST like me!!! Seriously, I started taking Lexapro in 2004 after my dad passed away and since then it has just slowly packed on!!!

Of course, I do not work out like I used to either

That is one main thing I am going to start here pretty darn quick!!!

When I was smaller though. it took walking at least once a day(if not 2) I joined the gym and that is how I really stayed in shape!!

novemberflowers · Jan 27, 2008

How frustrating. If you haven't visited a doctor, maybe you should....maybe a thyroid problem? Your eating sounds pretty healthy and balanced. Count your calories to see how many you are eating. 1200-1500 (eat closer to 1500 when you exercise) are generally what you need to eat to lose (though depending on how much you weigh now, your needs might be different)......if you eat much less than 1200, your body will go into starvation mode and you probably will not lose.

I hope you figure it out!

eta: also, strength train....that is the best way to increase your resting metabolism.

laureen227 · Jan 27, 2008

that's a common side effect, according to healthline: Other less serious side effects are more likely to occur, such as:

feeling nervous, restless, or unable to sit still;

headache, trouble concentrating;

drowsiness, dizziness;

sleep problems (insomnia);

nausea, diarrhea, heartburn;

weight changes;

decreased sex drive, impotence, or difficulty having an orgasm; or

dry mouth, ringing in your ears.

carolpetunia · Jan 27, 2008

Yes, get a doctor to rule out any kind of abnormalities that might be causing your weight gain. Also consider the effect of stress -- if you're under a lot of tension, not sleeping enough, etc., your body tends to cling to every calorie it can grab. Especially around the middle.

But please, don't do lipo -- it's really not for weight loss. It's mostly meant for "body sculpting," for people at a normal weight who want an unnaturally flat belly or think their thighs are too big. It's a fairly risky procedure, too... and although you may not gain much weight back in the area where fat was removed, you can still gain it everywhere else.

I don't know your age, your state of health, or how much overweight you are -- but if the doctor finds no physical explanation, I would think exercise would be the next line of pursuit.

On Friday, I'm having lap-band surgery, which is the safest and least invasive of the weight-loss surgeries -- but it doesn't sound like you're overweight enough to consider that. Do you know your BMI? If not, you can check it here:

http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/

(By the way, I'm with you on the apples and peanut butter! Just love 'em!)

laureen227 · Jan 27, 2008

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

On Friday, I'm having lap-band surgery, which is the safest and least invasive of the weight-loss surgeries -- but it doesn't sound like you're overweight enough to consider that.

good luck on your upcoming surgery! i had RNY in december of 05. i belong to a couple of OSSG [obesity surgery support group] bulletin boards thru yahoo. one you can't post on until a year after your surgery - the other you can. here are the links, if you're interested:
OSSG protein pervs
OSSG grads
many of us are also cat lovers!
my 'before' shot: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...7/fall2005.jpg
my current 'after' shot: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...ing2007jpg.jpg
[both of these are school pix]

clairebear · Jan 27, 2008

Are you still going to the gym as much as you use to? If you aren't getting enough excersise, that could be why you are gaining weight.

pat · Jan 27, 2008

I agree with others who have suggested a very thorough workup to rule out any medical causes.

Fwiw, I've now been dealing with issues of easy to gain weight, high cholesterol, and more recently pre-diabetes (aka glucose intolerance) for a number of years. For ME, probably (my belief based on what I've been through) the on and off weight watchers which is how I yo yo'd my weight up and down..could have been any other diet, so I don't blame weight watchers, their plans just aren't effective for me, is the issue. I damaged my body with the gaining/losing/gaining/losing. I so wish I'd lost it once and kept it off (and indeed I did that once, but letting it come back on just once began a viscious cycle).

What works for me is moderated carbs - a high quality protein diet (organic, all natural, locally raised when possible) with fresh, local grown, organic if possible produce, raw milk, raw milk cheeses and the best organic butter, extra virgin olive oil that I can find. I am experimenting with coconut flour and coconut oil as well.

I highly recommend this book: Good Calories/Bad Calories by Gary Taubes for an superb history of how we ended up being sold a falsehood - that eating fat makes us fat. It is meticulously researched..dry reading, but superb.

I also recommend Nina Planck's website (as well as her book on Real Food):
www.ninaplanck.com

and for an overall excellent site with many groups for many varieties of lower carb ways of eating:
http://forum.lowcarber.org

I wish you all the best in finding what works best for you. Again, just my experience, I have my proof for what works for me in dramatically improved cholesterol levels (both total, LDL, Triglycerides and increased HDL), and by monitoring my blood sugars to see what I can and can not tolerate.

novemberflowers · Jan 27, 2008

Also, with the weight gain/med link, usually the gain is just 5-10 lbs (though I have seen people gain much more and maybe you're just one of those people whose body reacts worse than others)....so maybe talk to the dr. about a different anti-anxiety/antidepressant. I think some people do not gain with Wellbutrin. At any rate, I agree working with a dr. would be much more useful than lip at this point.

duchess15 · Jan 27, 2008

Originally Posted by Pat & Alix

I agree with others who have suggested a very thorough workup to rule out any medical causes.

Fwiw, I've now been dealing with issues of easy to gain weight, high cholesterol, and more recently pre-diabetes (aka glucose intolerance) for a number of years. For ME, probably (my belief based on what I've been through) the on and off weight watchers which is how I yo yo'd my weight up and down..could have been any other diet, so I don't blame weight watchers, their plans just aren't effective for me, is the issue. I damaged my body with the gaining/losing/gaining/losing. I so wish I'd lost it once and kept it off (and indeed I did that once, but letting it come back on just once began a viscious cycle).

What works for me is moderated carbs - a high quality protein diet (organic, all natural, locally raised when possible) with fresh, local grown, organic if possible produce, raw milk, raw milk cheeses and the best organic butter, extra virgin olive oil that I can find. I am experimenting with coconut flour and coconut oil as well.

I highly recommend this book: Good Calories/Bad Calories by Gary Taubes for an superb history of how we ended up being sold a falsehood - that eating fat makes us fat. It is meticulously researched..dry reading, but superb.

I also recommend Nina Planck's website (as well as her book on Real Food):
www.ninaplanck.com

and for an overall excellent site with many groups for many varieties of lower carb ways of eating:
http://forum.lowcarber.org

I wish you all the best in finding what works best for you. Again, just my experience, I have my proof for what works for me in dramatically improved cholesterol levels (both total, LDL, Triglycerides and increased HDL), and by monitoring my blood sugars to see what I can and can not tolerate.

Thanks for the suggestions on the books!

I've been wanting to learn more about what to eat and stay away from.

I would get a work up like everyone else has suggested. Just because you eat healthy does not mean you will lose weight. Maintaining a routine excercise workout is the other key role in losing weight.

misty8723 · Jan 28, 2008

I would bet most anything it's the Lexapro. Anti-depressants are notorious for causing weight gain. I gained a bunch when I was on Effexor a couple years ago, and I can't get rid of it. I've been on Wellbutrin for awhile, and even though they claim one of the side effects is weight loss, I haven't seen it.

Good luck!

ping · Jan 28, 2008

Originally Posted by Beck4582

So let me start at the beginning...

In high school I was a size 3. I rarely ate and was depressed. My senior year I met a guy who was 25 and started dating him. I became happier and ate more. I went to college and started on an anti depressant - Paxil, which I took until 2003. Over the next two years I gained over 100 lbs. In 2004 I stopped eating all carbs except 100% whole wheat and started going to Curves 4-5 times a week. I lost 60 lbs and kept it off until last year. Last year I started taking Lexapro and I met my husband. Since then I've gained back 50lbs. The last couple of months I've started eating better. For breakfast I have a granola bar, for lunch I have a sandwich (on wheat), and for dinner I have small portions of whatever I cook, then an apple and peanut butter for dessert. To drink I have one Diet Coke during the day, and have milk or water the rest of the time. I'm still slowly gaining. I don't get it. Could it be a change in hormones? Does anyone have any secrets to share? We're thinking of getting me lipo sometime soon - I'm still doing research on that. No one else in my family is overweight, so I know it's not genetic. I'm getting very frustrated and tired of worrying about my weight. I want to be able to shop at normal places and wear the cute clothes!

I have never taken Lexapro so I have no advice there. I have taken Prozac off and on for several years with no weight gain issues.

On what you are eating. Count your calories because just looking in it does not look like a lot of food there.

Granola bar= probably 140-190 cals there.
Sandwich (depends on whats on it)= 300
Supper= 500
diet coke=0
milk=300
total cals with food and drink=1240 (est.)

Bare min. of calories I woman needs is 1200 just to survive and do nothing. And you are probably barely hitting that. Now if you go to the doctor and rule out any medical conditions, medicine issues etc. you need to up the calorie intake and up the exercise. Popular believe is if you cut down real low you will lose weight. And the reality is the opposite can happen. Your body goes into survival mode and stores everything you put into it. I know this happens to some people because this was my issue and the root of my gains.

So if everything else is ruled out you need to figure out what your calorie intake needs to be just to maintain your weight. There are many calculators out there that can help. I would look it up for you but I don't know your stats (height, current weight and age). Once you get that number you subtract 500. When you do that then you now have the calorie intake you need to lose before adding in exercise. Your daily exercise calories burned should not exceed 500. So your total calorie deficit should not be over 1000 between exercise and cut calories combined. You might see yourself maintain your current weight but stick with it. It takes time for your mode to come out of this mode.

What I wrote above is what I did to lose weight. Now I eat upwards of 1500 calories a day opposed to 600-800 calories before (and I did not lose but gained being that low) and I have lost 30 lbs.

lunasmom · Jan 28, 2008

One thing that isn't really a suggestion, but merely a comment: when you starve yuor body of its much needed carbs, then you go back to eating carbs, the weight does come back very easily....especially when you're not burning them off by exercising. The key is to make sure you're not eating more than 250 g of total carbs (for a 2000 calorie diet).

Normally I tell people to cut out the fast food...when you look at the nutrition info on that stuff it's your Daily Nutritional Value all in one meal...but sounds like you're very conscious of what you eat.

I would hit the gym first and see if walking/biking/elliptical helps. If not, I would suggest consulting with your doctor. Sounds like you're Rx is playing a big role it this weight gain. See if he can switch you to something else.

carolpetunia · Jan 29, 2008

Originally Posted by laureen227

good luck on your upcoming surgery! ...

Thank you, Laureen! And my gosh, you look so beautiful! Thanks for sharing those photos.

And thank you, too, for those links... I'll come visit one of these days.

laureen227 · Jan 29, 2008

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

Thank you, Laureen! And my gosh, you look so beautiful! Thanks for sharing those photos.

why, thank you! i look forward to seeing yours!

Weight Help

beck4582

TCS Member

Thread starter

catloverin_ks

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novemberflowers

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laureen227

Darksome Duo!

carolpetunia

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laureen227

Darksome Duo!

clairebear

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pat

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novemberflowers

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duchess15

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misty8723

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ping

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lunasmom

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carolpetunia

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laureen227

Darksome Duo!

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