Hello all! I'm usually a lurker, but I'm really getting blue, so thought I'd actually post.

Some background:

I started at 244lbs a few years ago, and took a Lifestyle challange course at a local hospital (for people with hypothyroid, diabetes, heart conditions, etc). I lost 30 pounds in the 20 weeks of the course. Life became very hectic, so I took some time off and maintained the loss. Last November I started up the weight-loss regime again and have lost another 52. I eat between 1200-1400 cals a day, and up until 2 months ago was doing cardio for 35-40 minutes 5 times a week and strength/toning 2 time a week.

Well, I hit around 163/164 and have been hovering around there ever since. I have increase the strength/toning excercises to 4-5 days a week (different areas at a time) and the cardio to 6-7 days a week. I do feel rather healthy these days.

BUT, I have gone back up to 169 briefly (without any real reason for it - there are days, of course, I'm not so good on the diet, but not enough to gain 5 pounds, and it wasn't MToTM) and back down to 162 (a few days ago, although this morning I was 164 ). I realize water weight and building muscle may have to do with some of the fluxuation. I do feel a more muscled me under there.

But I'm still not really making any headway. I'm 5'2" so I really don't want to stop at 162-165-169 :::rolls eyes:::. I'm also carrying a lot of excess skin and fat (there is still fat in the skin I know, but I can pull my stomach and thigh/butt skin up like they are hose) and have made an appointment with a plastic surgeon.

On top of that the evil and hateful new Weight Watchers Scale I bought has my Body fat percentage going up???? the more I do the strength/toning. So this morning I trashed it and rely solely on my non-electronic scale.

Sorry to ramble so long. I just needed to sob. Any thoughts on what to do?

Thanks so much for any help you can provide - it is greatly appreciated.

Affectionately,
LL

LL - I'm not gonna give you advice, just wanted to tell you what a heck of a way you have come and congrats! I know becuz I'm down from 216 to 165....I'm 15 pounds away from goal and stuck also....workout, and all.
Don't give up - you have come too far......HUGS

My body fat scales are crackers too!

You have come such a long way! Congratulations! Everyone hits a plateau at some time. I've been plateaued at this weight now for 6 months and it's doing my head in!

Perhaps try some different exercise, eg if you swim, try running instead or a different class. Try mixing up the calories, so you average out at 1300 a day over the course of a week, so one day 1200, one day 1400 etc. Eventually it will shift, you just have to let your body know that you're not giving up!

As I've said somewhere else... Bodies are really DIM! They need a good shove in the right direction now and again! Tell yours who's boss!

I would venture to say that starting at 244 and being as short as you are, that some of the excess skin is accounting for your weight. Talk to your plastic surgeon about it at your appointment. You never know...you could actually be 5-10 pounds lighter easily if you have the extra skin removed.
I would rely so much on the body fat scale. They can be tempermental, and are not all that accurate. Keep doing what you are doing, and try to kick up the intensity of your workouts a bit.
Let me know how your appointment goes.

Body Fat scales drive me right over the edge.....I have 2, one measures body fat and water, one just body fat....currently I had to hide them under my bed.

Congrats on the huge amount of work you've done....and ask your doc. how much your excess skin weighs, they might give you an approximation.

Maybe try a new cardio activity to mix things up? or hiking? Good luck!

Thanks for your input and support - I reallllly need it right now.

But I should definately try to vary my exercises. I'm waiting for one of the bellydance dvd's to arrive.

My plastic surgeons appt. isn't until the 22nd - he's the best around here and I guess always very very booked. But next week I see my Primary care Dr., and will talk to her as well.

I'm hoping she'll give me a referral to him for the consult, as I also want to discuss breast reduction (82 pounds gone and I'm STILL a DD, much to the dismay of my back) and for removal of the skin on the inside of my thighs - I can't go out without hose or pants on, because the loose skin slaps and causes a raised burning rashy areas that sometimes bleeds - LOVELY really. I'd try to pay for the whole surgery anyways if I can, but since I believe those two areas ARE medically necessary, I'm going to give it the college try about insurance covering those two parts (my insurance, I hear, is not completely adverse to the idea).

Also, does anyonel know how you go about getting the measure of body fat through the water-means? Is this something a Dr. can refer you to?

And I'm rambling again

Thanks again for your help and support!

Affectionately,
LL

If the breasts are really bothering your back, and the extra skin on your thighs is causing that much trouble, you may be able to get help with your insurance. I really hope so.

Llama:

If insurance will not pay for your thighs (back they will probably if there is proof of chronic problems, I'm in the same office with the plastic surgeons and we are coffee buddies with the staff, I let them use my color printer for patient pictures to send to the insurance carrier).

back to the thighs, you may wish to explore the option of donating your skin to a burn center, I've heard rumor that this may reduce your out of pocket cost.

I work with a woman who like you has lost a tremendous amount of weight and she showed me her thighs (in the ladies room, not the office!), she had the same chafing issue.....she was wondering if anyone on Ebay would buy her skin and pay for her surgery....(just joking of course).

good luck!

Hmm, the only thought I really have aside from thinking it's awesome that you've done so well, is maybe you aren't eating enough calories. I just started journaling my intake again and found out that I was eating waaaay too little and when I upped it a little bit, I immediately lost a pound. As for the variation in the weight, I do the same thing within 5 lbs. I don't know if it's water or what, but it is irritating. It's really hard to say what you might need to do to kick it back into gear because everyone will react differently to different methods. I do agree that the excess skin could be adding to your weight. I've heard of people losing up to 30 lbs by having it removed, but of course it depends on the amount of loose skin you are actually carrying around. Good luck!

Actually, to me it sounds as though you're doing fab.

Slowly but surely...that's the way to take the weight off. Check out this snippet from Michael Fumento's excellent book Fat of the Land titled "Get Thin Slowly" and pat yourself on the back!

You didn't GAIN all that weight overnight, so you won't LOSE it overnight. But just read that little snippet I linked to above and take heart! Losing weight slowly IMO gives your body a chance to adjust to the change. You know that "Set point" theory we've been hearing about for years? I'm not sure if it's 100% true or not but if it IS, giving your bod a chance to adjust is a GOOD THING. (it doesn't mean that once your body adjusts you should go back to your old habits, but by then your lifestyle should be firmly ingrained, if it's not already.)

Also...losing weight isn't a totally downward progression. You're going to have plateaus. We ALL do. You'll have eating lapses (just don't let them become RElapses!). You're going to retain water or whatever and there are going to be weeks where you get on the scale (I'm assuming you only weigh once a week...yes?) and even though you've eaten great and worked out religiously, you will be HORRIFIED by a GAIN. Happens to ALL of us.

A title of a book I've read about dieting is titled "Weight Loss Through Persistence". That's what it really comes down to - persistence; or "to go on resolutely or stubbornly in spite of opposition, importunity, or warning".

On those body-fat measuring scales - I have one too (a Tanita) and I've found the bodyfat measuring to be horribly inaccurate. So much so, that I just push the 'weight only' button when I use it - the trainers at my gym are all very well versed in caliper measurement, and if I asked, one would be happy to take a measurement for me. Of course, the 'gold standard' is supposed to be the 'dunk tank' or water measurement - some hospitals have them and I've also been to sports & fitness expos that had vendors who were equipped to do a water BF test right there (but it'll cost ya). There's also a BF tester called the Bod Pod which is supposedly the same as the water test...that would be something for Mel or Meg (in LWL and Maintainers) to answer to though - I've never used it.

OH and one more thing - we have a VERY informational thread on Loose Skin and Weight Loss in Maintainers with lots of good links - check it out

And let me stress right here, in case it wasn't CRYSTAL CLEAR:

You're doing Grrrreeeat!!!! Now pat yourself on the back, darn it!!!

If only that were true...but it's not. Just a rumor that pops up a lot!

This page on Transweb pretty much sums things up. Something else that isn't mentioned on that linked page, though, is that to be useable, the skin must be free of scars, etc. Most of us formerly obese are 'blessed' with stretch marks, which would render the skin useless for that purpose, anyway.

Thank you all again for your kind words. It does help me keep on keeping on.

Heh - I don't think I'm eating too little, unless all the exercise requires that I actually eat more than before. One can always hope, though

I am very curious to find out my true body fat %, and will talk to my Dr about what options are available. Will keep you posted if I find out anything useful from her regarding my excess skin and body fat. I may still have a high %, but I can now feel and in some cases even see muscles and definition, so I am pretty sure it hasn't increased.

The most depressing thing I guess is I know I fit into smaller clothing - started out as a 26/28 PLUS and now in the large-extralarge-12-14-16 MISSES (!) range, and I feel a whole lot healthier, but when I look in the mirror at my body it's...well....YUCKY with all the sagging skin/fat. Especially when I can feel the well-muscled me in there. I can't wear sleeveless clothes, anything above the knee (dripping leg skin/fat is sooo attractive), or even go outside with out hose.

It's better than being obese, but I didn't expect to have to live like this after putting so much effort into changing my lifestyle.

I do have hope that at least the breast reduction will be covered, as my Physical Therapist (for my back) said she isn't a plastic surgeon and couldn't say with 100% accuracy, but if she had to make a guess she would say it would help significantly. I've also seen cardiologists on and off for years, for shortness of breath - usually when I was hunched or leaning over. They could never identify anything. Come to learn now that can often happen to people with disproportionately large breasts. :::shrugs:::

And thanks for all the advice and helpful links!!!

Affectionately,
LL

Hello again!

Have to thank you all once more - I varied my workout, took a day off to rest and dropped another pound to 161. Maybe everything's starting to move downward again :::crosses fingers:::

Also my ob/gyn diagnosed me with - and I'm probably going to spell things wrong - recurrent intertrigo.

So when I went to see my dr. today she was very sympathetic and gave me a referral for the Plastic surgeon, as well as one for a great nutritionist who can also do my body fat % (yeah, I know the calipers are only as good as the person using them, but luckily my Dr. believes this lady to be more than compitent).

Also, do you think it's more important to focus on the cardio or strength/toning? I really can't exercise more than 1 hour a day with my current schedule, and so was doing 15-30 mins strength toning and 35-40 cardio.

Thanks again!

Affectionately,
LL

while you are waiting for your surgery....FYI, I've seen those shaper undergarments that keep everything tucked in, they can come longer or shorter panty lengths....and they do have a thin top with shaper arm sleeves (looks like pantyhose for your arms).

The lighter weight versions are more comfortable in hot weather (have a cotton inset)

You'll do better exercising if you alternate days with the cardio work and strength work, rather than doing both in one day. After you lift weights, your muscles need a couple days of rest and rebuilding, and after you run (bike, whatever), it's fine to skip the cardio work the next day. So if you work out four days a week, do Strength/Cardio/Strength/Cardio, if five, do 3 cardio and 2 strength, while alternating days, etc.