Greetings,
Yes, I have Hashi's. My experience has been positive but recovery has been slooooooow. I'm 51 years old. I take 100 mg of Synthroid daily plus 5 mg of cytomel 2X a day. I think I was diagnosed about 14 years ago. It took forever to get my dose right. I bounced all over the place on my labs. I was so erratic I would hyper symptoms one day and hypo the next. I had days when I had hyper and hypo symptoms at the same time. I was so exhausted a just little more than crabby. What makes my experience a positive one is that I have a wonderful Dr.. Since I started taking cytomel my labs have been very steady and I feel like a normal person again.
In regard to weightloss. I quit smoking in November 2006. The day I quit smoking I weighed 148 (I'm 5' in height). I now weigh 105. The weight came off very slow. I walked a minimum of 6 miles a day every single day. I also did aerobics and strength training. I used a formula for thyroid patients to determine my daily calories. Here's a copy of the formula I used:
To calculate how many calories you need:- Dvide your current weight in pounds by 2.2, in order to convert your weight to kilograms.
- Multiply you weight in kilograms by 30. (30 is the number of calories you need per pound of body weight.)
So, if you are 160 pounds, you divide 160 by 2.2, which equals 73 kilograms.
Multiply 73 kilograms by 30, which equals 2190, which would be how many calories you theoretically need to maintain your current weight of 160.
Subtract 200 calories for your thyroid condition, an estimate to reflect the reduction in your metabolism and calorie requirements.
1990 calories is now the estimated calorie requirements for you as a thyroid patient to maintain a weight of 160 pounds.
To lose weight, you need to cut your calorie requirements by 5 calories per kilogram, so that means you multiply your current weight in kilograms by 25 instead of 30.
So, in our example above, if you are 160 pounds, you divide 160 by 2.2, which equals 73 kilograms.
Multiply 73 kilograms by 25, which equals 1825, which would be how many calories you theoretically need to lose about a pound every ten days, at 3500 calories per pound).
Again, subtract 200 calories to account for your thyroid condition.
1625 calories is now the estimated calorie requirements for you as a thyroid patient to lose weight at a safe rate.
Also, most of the effective weight loss programs for thyroid patients also focus on breaking up those calories into multiple "mini-meals" per day.
Some experts believe that people with hypothyroidism should eat 40% protein/25% fat/35% low glycemic carbohydrates in smaller, 250-300 meals.
So, let's look at one more set of calculations.
Current Weight, in Pounds _____
Divide above by 2.2 _____
Multiply result by 25 _____
Subtract 200 for "Thyroid Factor" -200
Calories Per Day for Weight Loss _____
Divide by 300 = # of 300-calorie "mini-meals" Per Day _____
At 300 calories per meal, a 175 pound hypothyroid person could expect to lose weight eating approximately six balanced mini-meals of around 300 calories each, spaced out evenly throughout the day...along with appropriate exercise, of course!
I also eat very low fat. I limit my use of rice and/or pasta to once a week. I rarely eat bread but use lettuce as a substitue. I eat a lot of fiber. I love Fiber One cereal and the new Al Bran Crackers. I rarely eat red meat. I prefer chicken breast, 99% fat free ground turkey breast, salmon, cod, and tuna. I also eat one cup of grapes 4 times a day.
I do know I feel so much better today than I did a year ago. I'm much happier too. I think walking everyday helps with mental health too.
Anyone else with Hashimotos?
