Not losing weight but not gaining

[Cienfuegos]

In March I went to a GP and got some tests done to see if I'm as healthy as I thought I was even though I am morbidly obese. Turns out I am as healthy as I thought (no prediabetes no high blood pressure etc). The only thing was that I have WAY elevated liver enzymes. Like 3-4 times as much. So my doctor said I'm super healthy just need to drop 100lbs (ish).

When I weighed in on March I was 377. Now I'm 356. Which after a few months 20lbs of weight loss is good. Except for one thing: I haven't lost weight in 2 months. I haven't gained any either so I've noticed a couple of factors.

I'm eating the perfect amount of good vs bad food to maintain my weight (obviously).

I'm also doing the perfect amount of exercise to maintain (which isn't much at all...well not any more than just normal daily activities).

So since I'm not losing weight and I'm not gaining weight I'm going to start tracking my food. In a general way (with as close to perfect as I can get.)

The reason I'm writing this is because I was wondering some other ideas that you guys have to see what's going on? Of course I'm going to exercise a little more but other that and tracking my food...any ideas?

[starsapart]

Food tracking would have been my first recommendation.  When I was having trouble losing, that's what solved it.

 

Now, if you start tracking, eat at a deficit, and STILL don't lose..... then at that point it's time to explore other things.

[honeybadger]

Up until the past few weeks of this 6 week challenge I have been in the same place. Not losing but not gaining. What made a big difference for me in terms of seeing weight loss was really tracking my food. I'm talking weighing, measuring, portioning and logging everything I possibly could (even if I had to estimate calories). I honestly think that making sure that my daily average of calories is in the weight loss ballpark has helped me start to see progress. I don't factor in calories burned into my daily allotment. I am not exercising to the point where I need to supplement my diet on workout days. Hope this helps. Good luck.

[bim]

Congratulations on your success so far! It sounds to me like you're on the right track. Keep in mind that as your weight goes down, so do your caloric needs. So what helped you achieve a healthy gradual loss 20 pounds ago might be perfect to maintain your weight now.

[Cienfuegos]

Oh!! One big thing that I left out on accident!!

I'm 28 years old and my testosterone was 195!!!!!! Lower than a 90 year old man (or something).

[jrosto]

Like Bim mentioned, congratulations on your success so far.  Also, great job on making the decision to lose weight and help support your long term health.

 

Don't worry much about your testosterone levels at the moment.  Recheck them when you have been at a healthy weight for awhile and you should see a very large improvement.

 

With 100 pounds to lose, your exercise should probably consist of walking for now.  Routine walking will do wonders for your endurance and stamina, and should be easy on your body.

 

I used the Primal Blueprint to lose my weight, and continue following the PB to maintain my health.  Basically I cut out all grains and processed sugars.  Think Paleo + aged cheeses and dark chocolate..  Steve wrote a nice post on 'A Beginners Guide to Healthy Eating" and another on "The Beginner's Guide to the Paleo Diet".  These are good reads and might be helpful to you.

[HedgeMage]

Oh!! One big thing that I left out on accident!!

I'm 28 years old and my testosterone was 195!!!!!! Lower than a 90 year old man (or something).

 

This is a sign that you should see a good endocrinologist.  Hormone imbalances can completely screw up your metabolism regardless of what you eat and how much you exercise.

 

When my endocrinologist met me, I was eating very healthy food but only 700kcal/day and barely maintaining my weight despite lifting weights 2x/week, doing 1-2 4-hour search-and-rescue drills per week, swimming and biking regularly, and chasing my kid around (I swear, parenting is a sport!).  I was walking around with a morbidly obese amount of body fat and "athletic" amount of muscle mass.  My regular doctor had told me I was lying about being active and eating little, and I'd finally gotten mad enough to find a specialist.

 

We spent a couple of months getting my hormones back in line, and I'm now at a normal body temperature for the first time in my life (I've spent much of my life hypothermic, and the rest just above that), eating 1400 kcal/day on average (yes, TWICE what I was before) and finally able to lose fat.

 

People can chant that "it's just calories in vs. calories out" all they want...but they don't ACTUALLY know how many calories you are burning.  They're assuming it based on activity level.  However, if you have a hormonal disorder your metabolism may be running so slow it hardly burns anything.  It's worth finding out...all it takes is a blood test and someone smart enough to read it.

 

--Susan

 

 

P.S. -- I'll note that "someone smart enough to read it" is actually the hard part in this scenario.  My endocrinologist lectures at the local medical school because only a few doctors know how to identify this kind of metabolism-limiting stuff.  We don't know if it's common or not because most doctors can't diagnose it.  Don't trust your regular doctor; find a specialist.

[jrosto]

That is good advice Susan.

The reason I mentioned to not worry south about the T levels when so overweight is due to the fact that low T is associated with obesity in men, even younger men.

http://www.nebido.com/obesity-is-strongly-linked-to-low-testosterone-levels-in-men

This fact has been used to generate a lot of profit for Low T clinics that seem to be popping up everywhere.

A specialist would, of course, be a good idea to pursue.

[Machete]

If you're planning on tracking your food, whether you want to count the calories or not, you should focus on that for the next month or so. Worrying about anything else reduces your chances of succeeding at the first step.

 

[Waldo]

Low T is a side effect of obesity and a lack of muscle stimulus.

Lose the weight and start lifting, and chances are quite good that your T will skyrocket.