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Thread: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

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    Featured Member Odette's Avatar
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    Default opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    Sorry in advance for long-ness

    Ok, I've been reading a lot of great threads in this section and know that there are a few of you that really know your stuff, and I just want a couple opinions on what you think might be going on with my sitch because I'm unsure how to proceed. Ok, so I've always been a big girl, slightly overweight, slightly fat, a bit chubby, whatever you want to call it. I have never been able to push my bmi into the "healthy" range, which just really grinds my gears . Like, I'm not asking to be a size 2 here, a 6 would be great and perfectly acceptable at my height.

    I previously just put it all down to getting crap genetics from my father as all of the women on that side of my family are large as well, at a size 10/12 I'm the smallest on that side of my family other than my sister, who has my mom's genes and is a cute and tiny chick. And its not like I ballooned all of a sudden either, if anything it's gotten better the further away from puberty and teenhood I've gotten. Lately I've been wondering if there could be some kind of underlying health condition though. The last four months I have been feeling uber depressed and tired allllll the time. Again, I wrote it off as being because of school. I also gained 10lbs in the same time period. I thought it was because of school and being stressed out constantly and not being able to sleep or feed myself as well as I would have liked, which may have been partially true, but I'm a pretty healthy eater. I rarely eat more than 1500 calories a day. I don't go to the gym, but am active, I bike everywhere, usually about 40 minutes a day and walk a lot, play on my pole, etc.

    Last summer when I started dancing I completely changed the way I eat, I almost entirely cut out sugar, started really limiting my carbs and started eating a lot more lean chicken, fish, and eggs, increased veggies and fruits, etc, stopped eating late at night, etc. I also started cycling 4x a week for an hour. It took TWO months before I saw any changes AT ALL, which was extremely frustrating in itself and then over the entire summer I lost only 15 pounds. Over 5 months. Sorry, but wtf? You would think that that many changes would show a lot better results? And does it not make sense that someone that eats what I do and does that level of activity should have a weight in the normal range? Forgive me please for whining, but I'm tired of being "fat" while doing all these things that are supposed to lead to weight loss and just are not working. I'm tired of ballooning if I slip up for a short period of time. I just have an inkling and before I go bust my ass again all summer trying to get down to an "acceptable" weight and am dissappointed again, I thought it might be a good idea to get bloodwork and get things checked out. Feel free to tell me that I'm just doomed to fatdom forever, that would suck but like I said, I accepted it before, and can again. I would soooo love for that not to be the case though.

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    God/dess 4everresolutions's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    My weight history is very much like yours. I was 'bigger' than other girls my whole life - more so as a child, when I got older I slimmed out a little - but it's a struggle for me to weigh even what most women consider 'normal'. I really understand how you feel.

    It could be a thyroid problem. Make an appointment with your family doctor, and in the meantime make a food/exercise journal. When you go to see your doctor, explain that you've been trying to get down to a healthy weight in the last year, but you're finding it impossibly difficult. Most doctors, at this point, assume the patient isn't REALLY trying or REALLY looking at what they eat/how they're exersizing, so that's where your food journal will come in to play. Ask him to order tests on everything, and see how they come back.

    Are you a naturally 'muscular' person? I've read that your weight is in the upper 100's (mine too), but most women can't dance in the GTA with those numbers, so without seeing you I'm assuming you to be small despite your weight sounding like a high number (like me! yay!). Perhaps for you to be a size 6 you'd only have to be 160 lbs. It sounds crazy, but on a taller woman who is very strong it's not that far fetched. This means that you may only have 20-25 lbs of fat to lose before you hit your goal weight.

    I know, with me at least, I used to think "OMG, I need to lose 50 lbs to be 120, that's never going to happen, I'll never be skinny so what's the point in trying to lose 50 pounds. It's too much weight, there must be something wrong with me, etc". I've found out however that to look the way I envisioned myself at 120 I actually only had to be 145. Knowing you have 20 lbs to lose to get to your goal weight helps out a lot, compared to thinking you have to lose 50 or whatever. I think we usually view small women as weighing less than they actually do.

    I'm getting off topic.

    It could be though that you are making some small mistakes that are contributing to your weight in a big way.Just a few general questions: How often do you eat? Do you measure your meats with a scale before you cook them? Do you measure all your portions exactly or do you eye-ball it? Do you eat a lot of 'diet' or low-cal foods?

    XOXO



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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    I don't know much about thyroid problems, but are you taking any medications? I put on 30lbs twice while I was taking two different medications and my (former) doctor never told me about that side effect.

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    Featured Member Odette's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    thanks for your quick responses ladies!

    1) Yes, I am pretty muscular, I'm pretty toned everywhere except my tummy, and that's been fairly consistent through my teen years as well, which is also making me wonder if that might be a contributing factor to why that tummy fat is so difficult to lose, because it's "always" been there and is not a recent development due to changes in diet/activity levels. Even though I have gained some weight back, my midsection is still less of a problem than it was a year ago, I guess due to dancing and having more muscle mass. My physique is very "German" if that makes sense. taller, larger build, strong. I can lift shit that a lot of my male friends cant haha. I do love that. I....guess? I'm smaller than a lot of women my weight? I don't really know. I remember in high school a friend that was a little bit bigger than me was bitching about weighing 150, and I was like whaaaat how are we the same size and she's 25 pounds less than me? I am unfortunately at 177 now (sadfaaaaace ) and I wear a 10, sometimes a 12 to accomodate my boobies I have a HELL of a hard time getting under 170, so I was pretty happy when I was for a bit in december/january.

    I have done a lot of research in the last year and I know that my lean body mass is around 125-130, so a good weight for me would probably be 155-160. I just don't know why I can't get there though! To answer the rest of your questions though: I usually eat 2 bigger meals and 2 snacks or 1 small meal a day: a brunch around 12 when I wake up, sometimes a snack in the afternoon, dinner around 7/8 and then sometimes another snack around 11. I only eat that late because my bedtime is usually 3am. I do not measure my meats with a scale, no, and yes, I eye-ball. The only medication I'm on is the pill. It did make me feel super bloaty and gross when I started it earlier this month so I don't know, perhaps part of that weight gain is water retention. But it isn't making me want to eat more or have strange cravings like another pill I was on, in fact it makes me nauseous a LOT so I've actually probably been eating less since starting it.

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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    I can sympathize. I have such a hard time losing weight. Maintenance of it is hard too. I have a lot of muscle, but still want to lose some. Ur history sounds like mine as well. If u can, go to a doctor and get a full thyroid panel done. They should do it if u ask. I have hypothryoidism and it sounds like u could as well.
    "You can close your eyes to reality but not to memories -Stainslaw J. Lec

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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    I've basically have the same problem. My whole family is hugely obese (me being the tiniest at 5''3 140-50 lbs). German descent and muscular prone. I weighed myself over a month ago at 150, and wont hit 135 again till probably the end of the summer, as it usually takes me a while to get rid of the winter weight.

    To be 135, I eat around 1600 calories a day, in 8 different "meals" (total: 10 chx thighs skinless, 2 eggs, 1 apple, clove garlic, 3c veggies, 2 containers unsweetened 0fat greek yogurt, 2c unswtnd almond milk in my tea's, vitamins).

    I run 3-4 miles 3-4x week, plus 3x week crossfit bootcamp (1/2 hr x2 and one 2hr session), plus 2x week jujutsu (2 hrs session), plus 2x week kickboxing (2 hr sessions)

    As you can see its alot! But thats what I have to do......damn fat genes and birthcontrol!

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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    ^^^ Yep. I am half german too. I wonder if it's a german thing?
    "You can close your eyes to reality but not to memories -Stainslaw J. Lec

    Confuscius say: "Man who pull bra stap get bust in face"


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    Senior Member Sparxxx's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    I know with my genetics I could definitely last a long hard winter, and hold my own chopping firewood and stuff.

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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    Slow thyroid runs in my family and I also was told to get mine checked. My current symptoms sound like yours. I gained a ton of weight, lost a significant amount of hair, I'm slightly depressed, and tired ALL the time. I will be watching TV in the afternoon (after a good nights sleep of about 8 hrs regularly) and I fall asleep. A few hours later I'll fall asleep again! Are you cold often? It can make you feel cold too.

    Go get it checked, it's a simpleblood test and it can change your life if it is a thyroid problem!

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    Senior Member Sparxxx's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    BTW my whole family has thyroid problems, too. Even my mom, who other than me is the "fittest." When she was in her late twenties (racing bicycles), she got tested and they said she was within normal range. The problem is the "range" is pretty big and even though she was at the "bottom," they still refused to give her medication. In her late thirties (still racing but gaining weight, eating low fat.. bad idea for body type), one doctor finally gave in and prescribed her Synthroid. She took that for a while but no longer takes it since she started eating "clean" and bodybuiding and now is in the best shape of her life (and looks great too!). She told me my best bet was to keep hardcore exercising and eating right and I should be alright.

    Ive noticed when eating alot of simple carbs I get a boost of energy and feel supercharged (then extremely tired hours later), but since cutting out simple sugars/carbs/flours etc. I don't get a boost but I don't crash either.

    and if you really feel its your thyroid you SHOULD get it checked!!!

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    Featured Member Odette's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    I made an appointment for next week and have been keeping a journal since monday so hopefully they will give me those tests! The tired all the time is really getting to me! I thought I was always tired because of being in school but since I've been finished for a few weeks and getting more sleep I've seen no difference...I'm tired even with 8 or 9 hours of sleep

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    God/dess 4everresolutions's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    ^ Oh, yeah, that's not good. Good luck at your appointment! Let us know what's up. XOXO!



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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    Yes! I like fitday, it's free and has a regular journal section too

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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    I would definitely see your doctor. You should get better results than that even if u are a bigger person IMO.

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    Veteran Member Camateur's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    just take your temperature at 2:00 pm your time, if it's a lot lower than 98.6, like 97.1 etc. You are probably hypothyroid. Keep in mind that having your thyroid adjusted to normal usually leads to only a weight loss of 8-10 lbs and makes you very hungry in the beginning (you can actually gain weight from eating more)

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    Featured Member Odette's Avatar
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    Default Re: opinions please? thyroid or genetics

    ^ I know that my temperature is always been slightly below normal, usually 36 C (I have no idea what that is in farenheight) since it was only off by one degree I never thought it was a big deal, I had no idea that a lower temperature was also a symptom? And even those extra 10 pounds would make a huge difference to me, because combined with the diet that I followed last year that would allow me to probably get down to 155 which is "normal" bmi, and probably a good weight for me which is all I want!!

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