It doesn’t really matter what does or does not cause it. To lose weight you need to take in less than you burn. That’s science. I am 51 going on 52 and if I decide I want to lose a pound a week I need to eat 3500 (give or take) calories less a week no matter how jacked up my hormones are. For some that might be 3700 for others 3400 or whatever. What needs to be figured out is how much you maintain at and then how much you need to subtract from that to lose. Half the things suggested in this thread like cutting carbs, eliminating alcohol, not drinking sugary drinks, WLS etc. all do the same thing- they cut calories from your diet. At the end of the day it’s all just math.
I thought one had to be more overweight for that? Likes 100+? Agree 100% age has a lot to do with it.. Though I noticed with my mom she dropped tons of weight post menopause.. not sure if that played a role though as she really started walking more once she retired. I have also heard that post menopause the body adjusts again.. I cant wait until then. i am 46 and want my weight gone now!!Yep your age has a lot to do with it. This 45 year old is fixing to have a gastric sleeve to combat this problem. I am about 55-60 lbs overweight.
Can you please give a bit of details on what our DR. did to heck hormones.. I have had my Ts checked all good. I am 46 and taking the mini pill. My gyno just shrugged when I asked to have my hormones check. He said being on the pill masks any test result anyways.. I am curious if dropping the mini pill will either increase or decrease my weignt?? my pill has Desogestrel is a progestin, or a synthetic progestogen, I also do not eat that much and for what I eat and work out, should be tons thinner.It is not as simple as creating a calorie deficit. For me if my hormones are unbalanced I could eat a 1000 calories a day and still gain weight. Once my hormones are sorted it works but if unbalanced it just doesn't. My Dr backed this up saying it is pretty much impossible to lose weight if your oestrogen is too low. I do WW which has worked for me for many years but when my hormones went wrong WW had me putting on weight it took over a year to get to the bottom of it.
If your hormones are so stable that eating less always works for you you are lucky. Many women's bodies don't do that and need to sort out the hormones first before doing lower calories otherwise they will just get disheartened when it doesn't work.
I'd be wary of any doctor willing to do major surgery for that small amount of weight to lose.Yep your age has a lot to do with it. This 45 year old is fixing to have a gastric sleeve to combat this problem. I am about 55-60 lbs overweight.
Can you please give a bit of details on what our DR. did to heck hormones.. I have had my Ts checked all good. I am 46 and taking the mini pill. My gyno just shrugged when I asked to have my hormones check. He said being on the pill masks any test result anyways.. I am curious if dropping the mini pill will either increase or decrease my weignt?? my pill has Desogestrel is a progestin, or a synthetic progestogen, I also do not eat that much and for what I eat and work out, should be tons thinner.
I do believe that hormonal shifts can make it harder to lose weight and, in fact, mentally I used that as excuse for not losing weight when in reality I was eating calories at a "maintenance" amount (which really isn't very much for me) rather than in a deficit. I mean it's really tough when you're cutting back, feeling awfully hungry, and the weight still doesn't come off. I had to find that new "low" for me, which is about 1450 calories, to lose.
I can assure you that I am post menopause--my estrogen is very low to non-existent and I don't take hormones. I can lose weight (not like I used to) and I have microscopic estrogen.
There's got to be more to the story then simple lack of estrogen or no one past menopause would ever lose weight. That said, I do think there is something to the hormonal changes that impact weight loss. You combine that with the loss of 1-3% of your muscle mass every year since your 30s (and you hardly notice it happening) and your metabolism isn't the engine it used to be!
When I was stumped about losing, I read a lot of diet studies out there and, science-wise, they haven't come across too many people who absolutely cannot lose weight on calorie restriction. Granted, it's unpleasant and many people can't live that way, but it still can work for most people. I think people should really try it before writing it off. I'm not insinuating anyone here has not tried it because it's obvious you are working with your doctors on it; however, I know that there was a time in my life that I let a lot of the diet/media blitz talk me out of not watching my food: you know the "STOP DIETING IT'S YOUR THYROID'S FAULT!!!!" or "Carbs make you fat, you'll never lose weight if you eat XXXX." I bought into some of the hype and used it as excuse because I was too miserable to face the fact that my eating habits of a 20-30 year old woman could never continue. I still struggle with it.
Last year I got up to my highest weight ever (162 lbs) and I was just shocked because I had always been a naturally thin person although I started gaining in my 40s. I had never gone that high--maybe 153 or something. So in April/May I went back to MyFitnessPal, reassessed by intake for my age of 55, almost wanted to crawl in a hole and die when I saw 1440. Tried 1600 which was a pretty significant deficit from my usual intake of over 2500 per day and nothing happened. I took it to the MFPs amount, measured everything, and I finally started to lose (and lose well). By the time September came I was down to about 148. I wanted to go lower but I realized I really liked how my clothes fit at that weight and it was "good enough". So I did maintenance for 2 months which is back up to 1600 calories and that worked even through 2.5 weeks on non-weight bearing due to my ankle condition. Then I went to Disney. I didn't diet, but I wouldn't say I gorged either. Hell, I didn't even get a Mickey Bar. But I had a dessert of some sort every day (Dole Whip, cupcake, etc) but of course I ate every meal out. When I got back, I was up 2 lbs. Also, it was November and holiday season was starting. I came home to my neighbor's loaf of Cranberry Bread. Then the next week she sent over Pumpkin Bars. I'm really weak on that stuff. I can't throw out really good home baked stuff. I ate it all and then it just went out of control. The point of this long story is that I'm at 153 now. Seems like it comes on much faster than it comes off, but I'm eating WAY more than any amount I could comfortably deficit myself. So, a few days ago, I was back on MFP and going back to 1440 because I know that's what it takes.
I know everyone is different, but in my personal life, I haven't met anyone who hasn't been able to lose by food intake reduction. I've met several who say they cannot but, hey, I'm around them and I just can see what they are doing.
For instance I have two women at work. Both started out about 18 months ago at probably 300 lbs. Both pushing 60 years old. One of them had some sort of gastric sleeve surgery and her weight loss started out really good and was impressive. The other started going to a gym with a trainer and got on a nutrition plan of eating less, reducing carbs, etc. Her weight loss was not as noticeable for a long time, but now it really is and she's lost 125 lbs and it's amazing. The gastric sleeve person lost initially about 80 lbs, but she is back to eating now. I sit in meetings with her and see her popping candy a lot and she goes down to the cafeteria and gets junky meals (she used to not able to eat that but for some reason now she can). Does the stomach stretch again? I don't know. So, she's put back on about 40 lbs. She said to me that "no matter what she does" she can't lose weight. I don't say anything but it's obvious to me and I don't think she knows she eats high calorie food.
Well, I've rambled this morning.
Cut out alcohol, junk food and exercising 4-5 times a week at the gym.
Scale has only budged 1.5 pounds.
I was on a 1000 calories a day and gaining weight. As soon as my Dr replaced the Oestrogen I could lose weight by doing what I did back in my 30s and 40s. For me it was an obvious hormone causation as it changed as soon as I replaced the oestrogen.
Most women I know past 50 that lose weight are on HRT and here it is one of the main reasons women use HRT
I was too miserable to face the fact that my eating habits of a 20-30 year old woman could never continue
I was on a 1000 calories a day and gaining weight. As soon as my Dr replaced the Oestrogen I could lose weight by doing what I did back in my 30s and 40s. For me it was an obvious hormone causation as it changed as soon as I replaced the oestrogen.
Most women I know past 50 that lose weight are on HRT and here it is one of the main reasons women use HRT
The scale moved 1 more pound! It's crazy how motivated I feel by this!
(I guess it does take some patience in addition to dedication...)
Thank you!!!Congrats! that's great
I went on HRT went I was 39. I never felt HRT helped me lose weight, but it helped me maintain. I went off it once in my mid 40’s for almost a year and the weight started to creep on and I just wasn’t feeling great overall, so I went back on it.I've never done the HRT so I don't know. My best friend has been on HRT for about 2 years now and wasn't able to lose any weight. She is totally off it now and she has logged her food into MFP for 2.5 weeks now. She has no weight loss yet either and is very discouraged, but her doctor told her to try it for a month. She is also a very precise/disciplined person (except when she's eating everything in sight!!! ;-)) but I know she's doing a good job now at tracking. I'm waiting to see how this works out for her.