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Old 07-24-2011, 08:37 AM   #1  
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Default May be time to go to the doctor...

Well my weight struggles continue.

I've been keeping track of my weight daily, to see if there are any patterns developing. There aren't. It's all over the place -- up and down and up and down.

I haven't been overly stressed. This is an easy, boring time at work. Not afraid of losing my job or anything. No stress at home.

My eating has been good. I maintained at 1,850 to 1,900 calories for more than a year, but I cut back to 1,770 MAX a few weeks ago. I've been watching my carb and sodium intake and cutting back as much as possible.

Thinking maybe I was working out too much for what I was eating, I cut back on that too. Three days a week cardio and weights, two days a week of yoga. I've done this for three weeks now.

On Sunday, July 3, I weighed 140 pounds on the morning after we got back from vacation. Today, Sunday, July 24, I weigh 149. By all reasonable calculations, that means I stopped working out and over-ate 32,400 calories to gain this weight.

Let me tell ya folks, it didn't happen. I still burn an average of 1,800 calories a week, eating around 1,770 a day.

So I think maybe it's time for the doctor. May finally have my TOM soon, so I may wait 'til it's over. Maybe not. It's possible this is all hormone related, which is probably also why my cycles are 10 kinds of wacky right now.

I don't have an issue with weighing 150 pounds...just that I've gained 11 pounds for NO REASON!
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Old 07-24-2011, 08:45 AM   #2  
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I think you have been thoroughly tracking everything else so there has to be another underlying physical cause.Will the doctor be able to diagnose anything hormonal? I guess blood tests would be done for that?

And if it's not too personal are you anywhere within menopause range? Or maybe this might be a sudden early onset of perimenopause? One of my dogwalking acquaintances went through this all of a sudden at the age of 38 and it was quite nerve-wracking for her. Totally unexpected and unwanted but there it was.

I'm sure I just cheered you up a whole lot with that . Sorry!

Dagmar
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Old 07-24-2011, 09:02 AM   #3  
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No need to apologize, Dagmar...it's something my doctor and I have already talked about. I just turned 30 in February, but I also quit taking the pill after 10 or 11 years of constant use. I went off the pill with the intention of getting pregnant, but after keeping an eye on all that, I'm not ovulating either.

He said it would take "a few months" for things to get back to normal, and now nearly eight months later, they haven't. Premature menopause was something he mentioned.

I think they can do blood tests to check for hormone imbalances.

I'm actually considering, though, going to a general practitioner here in town instead of my OB. I'll be able to get in locally a lot quicker than if I wait a month or so for the OB, and all he wants to do is put me on medication to make me ovulate or start a period.
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Old 07-24-2011, 09:08 AM   #4  
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MindiV, you might see if you can also get a consultation with a registered dietitian. I agree that it's good to see your doctor (and a generalist rather than OB/GYN), but it's pretty clear that the vast majority of doctors know very little about nutrition.

Jay
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Old 07-24-2011, 09:11 AM   #5  
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I'll search for one, Jay. I think it wouldn't hurt for me to do that, either! Goodness knows I have food logs for years to look at...
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Old 07-24-2011, 09:55 AM   #6  
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Seriously, it might only be water retention. It is killer hot every where and our bodies have to deal with it also.

I make sure to drink lots of water, but I also add a packet of electrolyte mix and a crystal light to one pitcher of water (and a sprinkle of NuSalt) and make sure to drink that each day also. I've had summers where I begin to feel faint from the heat.

Since you know you can't have gained that much fat in a week, it's not possible, it has to be fluid retention of some sort (my guess at least.)

Instead of working out harder, let your body rest a week, take exercise easy, get lots of fluid, eat well...and see if it releases what it's holding. Plus I bet the doctor would just give you a diuretic first anyway.
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Old 07-24-2011, 10:04 AM   #7  
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Hey Mindi--
This may be a complete shot in the dark, but, I have a suggestion. I don't know what your fat totals look like, but I know for me, when I started losing weight and started counting calories, I basically started doing volumetrics, so I could get more calorie bang for my buck. I lost weight beautifully, and my diet was very veggie heavy, fruits, whole grains, and chicken a million different ways..but, what I didn't realize is I sort of had forgotten about the good fats in my diet. I think I "forgot" because I really wasn't feeling any negative affects. My hair and skin was great (probably from all the water), I was still having regular bowel function. But I noticed after I hit maintenance that I was slowly creeping up the scale again. So, I did like you did--religiously monitored my calorie intake, even cut it back 100-150 calories, and knocked off a day of hard exercise. Still, the only change was gaining. I wish I could remember the source, but I randomly came across an article that talked about how there is a gene in some women (mostly of middle eastern origin, which I am) that their bodies need those good fats for weight management. Something in me just clicked. I felt like I should try it. So, I incorporated krill oil tablets at first, and then I made sure I was getting 1 TBSP of flax oil in my diet as well. Now, I've incorporated coconut oil. I don't think the trick was not counting the calories I'd added in fat, because I did--and it was hard at first because I knew I'd be sacrificing a few hundred calories in food--but, honestly--it worked. I'm a huge fan of the coconut oil, and I think it made the difference. Now, I make sure I get my flax oil in my morning yogurt, and my coconut oil in the evening (I cook my quinoa in it, and its divine with a little turmeric ). Anyway, sorry that was long and drawn out, but my point is, my weight gain was from an underlying "need" my body was having, I just had to pin point it. And for me, it happened to be the good fats.

I still absolutely think you should go to your doctor to make sure it isn't hormonal, or something else. But, in the mean time, maybe pick up some coconut oil and flax (I like Nutiva brand for coconut oil--they sell it at whole foods), and maybe just try another little experiment.

Good luck! I hope you get your answers
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Old 07-24-2011, 10:18 AM   #8  
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Coconut oil is controversial...not a good fat. It is very calorie dense. Oilive or canola are better choices.
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Old 07-24-2011, 10:35 AM   #9  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by QuilterInVA View Post
Coconut oil is controversial...not a good fat. It is very calorie dense. Oilive or canola are better choices.
I don't want to be flip, but this is simply untrue. I should have been more specific--the brand I buy is specifically because it is cold-pressed, extra virgin, organic coconut oil. YES, it is a saturated fat but it is also about 50 percent lauric acid, a rare medium-chain fatty acid found in mother’s milk that supports healthy metabolism and is now being studied for its anti-fungal, anti-viral, and anti-bacterial health-protecting properties. Overall, coconut oil contains 92% saturated fats, and only 1% Omega-6, the fat Americans get way too much of.

Saturated fat has gotten a bad rap since the 1960s and this is simply because it was in products that were hydrogenated— artificially adding a hydrogen molecule to oils in order to make them shelf-stable — that’s the problem, not the coconut oil itself. Coconut oil also has a higher smoke point than Olive oil. When you cook with olive oil at certain high heats you're changing the chemical compound. I guess if that doesn't bother you that you're putting it into your body in an altered state, than that's fine. I hate to get on my soap box about coconut oil, but it's not that it hasn't been "proven" to be healthy and a part of a good diet, its that its not "mainstream". Mindi--I urge you to do your own research on the Non-hydrogenated coconut oil brands out there, and make up your own mind about it. I could go on and on about the benefits of coconut oil, but I'll stop there. I just hate to see this myth perpetuated, when really, it's completely untrue that it is bad for you.
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Old 07-24-2011, 11:13 AM   #10  
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Hmmm...you may be onto something with the fat. Looking back in my logs, I average around 30 g fat a day, which is half of what's "recommended" for the calories I eat. I'll go to the doctor, as I planned, but also will look at incorporating good fats into my diet as well. And I'm searching for a dietitian, as well...may be a while before I find one way out here in the boonies though!
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Old 07-24-2011, 12:24 PM   #11  
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Have you been worked up for PCOS?
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Old 07-24-2011, 12:29 PM   #12  
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Good luck Mindi! I figure, it doesn't hurt to exhaust all the options you can think of, and also the opinions and ideas of the chickies here. It sounds like you've kept a detailed food and weight log during your journey, so hopefully you'll have lots of good information to give your doctor/nutritionist.

I know you said you lived in the boonies--if you have a university near (ish) to you, you might actually be able to find a dietician there. I know most universities with collegiate athletes, have a dietician on staff, and they may be able to see you and help you.
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Old 07-24-2011, 12:51 PM   #13  
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I'm a fan of coconut oil. Even on my modified Medifast I am getting some regularly.

Jay
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Old 07-24-2011, 01:23 PM   #14  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by midwife View Post
Have you been worked up for PCOS?

Not yet. I don't fit a lot of the symptoms other than the weight gain and irregular cycles, but it's something I've been researching.

In the short term, due to a lack of availability of some things around here (meaning until I can go to a "real" store), I'm gonna rely on avocado and possibly flaxseed or flax oil. I think I know where I can get some of that.

I've been keeping track of weight for a while and compared it to fat intake in my food log, and the lowest weight days followed days where I had good fat intake.

Food for thought.
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Old 07-24-2011, 02:42 PM   #15  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MindiV View Post
Not yet. I don't fit a lot of the symptoms other than the weight gain and irregular cycles, but it's something I've been researching.

In the short term, due to a lack of availability of some things around here (meaning until I can go to a "real" store), I'm gonna rely on avocado and possibly flaxseed or flax oil. I think I know where I can get some of that.

I've been keeping track of weight for a while and compared it to fat intake in my food log, and the lowest weight days followed days where I had good fat intake.

Food for thought.
Exactly. But now I'm getting too close to offering official advice. Good luck!
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