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I gained weight without changing my eating pattern with hypothyroidism. All my labs were in range too. Just not my normal! The weight increase was notably when TSH was in the mid 3's.
So low thyroid was one cause of weight gain. The other cause was insulin resistance (my insulin was very high 24/7).
Ways to improve insulin sensitivity include no processed sugar, low carb, intermittent fasting, exercise to name a few things.
Tried Metabolic Research Ctr (ketosis diet) and lost 40 lbs in 4 mos. It was like a miracle for me- melted off all fat and I was down to 128 and VERY happy- but every time I tried to go into maintenace I would gain 10 lbs right away! This left me very cranky, although happy with my weight, but never feeling like I could relax at all. Suddenly I was pg w/ #4 and after delivery I tried to lose but GAINED more weight while breastfeeding for 13 mos.
I thought I was in ketosis but my diabetic moniter said otherwise lol. Not to say you have to be in ketosis to feel better with a low carb diet though. There is more information on the article from Diet Doctor - Lose Weight by Achieving Optimal Ketosis. Here is an excerpt...
"Blood ketones are best measured on a fasted stomach in the morning (before breakfast, that is). Here are a few pointers on how to interpret the result:
Below 0.5 mmol/L is not considered “ketosis”.
If you are not showing ketosis, you might be hungry because you are not burning your fat and might be losing muscle mass or structural fat(which you need to keep).
If you are in ketosis, but are still hungry, I recommend upping your protein levels slightly, either by raising the amount of meat you are eating by 1/2 to 1 ounce per meal, or adding a protein shake.
Suspect you will still need to control your portion size while on low carb. Be persistent, and patient. For some people losing weight is tremendously hard.
Further, would recommend you get your thyroid checked. Low thyroid can also contribute to very hard weight loss. For thyroid you should have the following tests as a starting point. FT3 and FT4. These results should be at least middle of the range (or a bit higher), TSH. This should be ideally in the range of 1 -2.
And eating too many carbs even for a single day can kick you out of ketosis and thus you will not lose weight like you would think. It takes several days or more to get back into ketosis after even one day of too many carbs. So eating too many carbs once a week could keep you almost totally out of ketosis.
Gimel is right. It is worth getting tested for low thyroid.
Posted By CCF Neuro[P] MD, RPS on April 02, 1999 at 16:07:59:
In Reply to: Ketosis & Brain Function posted by Paul on March 15, 1999 at 10:45:02:
: About 2 years ago I went on a low-carb "Atkins" type diet for about 2 weeks. During this time I lost considerable weight but felt a very definite "feeling" while I was in ketosis.
A low carb diet causes the body to go into Ketosis whereby the body uses its fat as a source of energy. Also when you are in ketosis your body feels less hungry. This all sounds good except that this can also lead to kidney issues (even failure), osteoporosis, and kidney stones.
Stay balanced and control your calories and you'll lose weight and avoid the side effects.
Good luck.
I traded one set of g/i symptoms for another (worse). My aim in going g/f was not weight loss, and I lost no weight while g/f. I have always found that some element of calorie counting is imperative for me...it's always worked.
Rather than turning more to science, which apparently can be bought and sold, I think we have to get back to basics. Eat real food...
First if your body is not getting enough foods it can easily go into starvation mode and decide to hold or even gain weight. 1200 calories seems very low, especially given how much you exercise. So maybe you should keep your food around 1300 at minimum? It's hard to know the "sweet" spot that will keep your body healthy while loosing weight, but if you don't find it you will have a really hard time loosing weight.
You could try MCT Oil and acetyl l-carnitine. MCT oil is a medium chain triglyceride oil that has been used to promote ketosis in epileptics. Ketosis is fat burning. (Don't ask me why epileptics need ketosis, I have no idea). Both of these would be safe for children.
hCG was discovered by simeons when he was treating "fat boys" in India. He was using it on them because of their sexual organs and found that their weight came off and what ever the gonad problem was was fixed too.
I am 42 years old, 5' 5, and 205 lbs. I wear size 12/14. 3 years ago I quit my office job after 16 years. I was about 185-190 lbs at that time. I then lost about 10-15 lbs in 1 1/2 months by eating better and drinking more water and using the treadmill (run/walk) 5 (+/-) time a week for about an hour or so (4-5 miles). Just because. I came back to my office job 1 year ago (where a lot of women who like to eat work as well). I was 175 lbs when I came back. Now I weigh 205...
There have been some other recent posts regarding the Atkins type diet, you might find them interesting reading. It's my understanding that this type of diet does not count calories or anything other than carbs. The general basis for losing weight is "calories in/calories out" - meaning that if you take in more calories than you expend, you will not lose weight.
I eat something when I wake up (its little) and then I eat late after work. I find I am not eating as much as I thought I should be seeing as I am 19 weeks pregnate .. is there something wrong with me ? Am I not giving my baby enough nutrition ? Worried I am harming baby by not eating as much or more then I usually do...
Posted By CCF neuro MD MM on March 13, 1999 at 16:52:36:
In Reply to: Ketosis & Brain Function posted by Paul on March 12, 1999 at 12:58:49:
About 2 years ago I went on a low-carb "Atkins" type diet for about 2 weeks. During this time I lost considerable weight but felt a very definite "feeling" while I was in ketosis.
As far as exercise, get some weights and do some weight training, or do some push-ups. Cardio is not necessary for losing weight. In fact, I believe that running too much can be bad for you. That's a whole other topic of conversation. Stick to high-intensity workouts for shorter periods & you'll be healthier. Also, remember that it's not what you do at the gym that makes you look/feel great, it's what you do at home in the kitchen that counts.
: : : : About 2 years ago I went on a low-carb "Atkins" type diet for about 2 weeks. During this time I lost considerable weight but felt a very definite "feeling" while I was in ketosis. While many adjectives could be used to describe this "feeling," the best description I can come up with is that I felt like I was "stoned" or "drugged." Anyway, I did not like the feeling so I went off the diet and everything returned to "normal.
Posted By Paul on March 12, 1999 at 12:58:49:
About 2 years ago I went on a low-carb "Atkins" type diet for about 2 weeks. During this time I lost considerable weight but felt a very definite "feeling" while I was in ketosis. While many adjectives could be used to describe this "feeling," the best description I can come up with is that I felt like I was "stoned" or "drugged.
this might sound weird but I have been doing this for almost 5 weeks..while I have lost over 20 lbs and dropped from a tight 38 in pants to a 36 which is amazing.
my cravings died once I was in ketosis( which is when your body switches metabolic pathways from glucose(carbs) to fat(lidopose tissue and lipids).
without carbs your body can not produce a insulin spike and body functions remains constant all day everyday.
well my cravings for opiates died with it.
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