Monthly accountability message

I would prefer a glass of cool water to a 55 calorie beer, so at least that works in my favor!  I have scarce few beers any longer because of the high carb load they have.  However, both wine and hard liquor have very few initial carbs and I have been enjoying a bit of those.  Carbs aren't problematic with them, it's just the empty calories at this point. 

I am allergic to my favorite vegetable - carrots, and I am also allergic to favorite low-carb snack - nuts.  It was upon discovering these things that I started to balloon up in weight.  I had a very good diet going on, which unfortunately was trying to kill me.  So I switched to other foods and got carried away with the carbs and BOOM I turned into a big, fat, load.  So now the challenge is to find a high-protein, low-carb, high-fiber food that does not include soy (also allergic), carrots, or nuts of any kind.  Good luck with that, right?  I miss Snickers bars too.

If anyone is wondering, I'm going to suspend the no beer thing during this summer's river jams.

- Zurf

It does sound like a thyroid issue.  The metabolism is out of whack.  I hope you reach your goal.  Keep trying.  Never, never, never give up my friend.

Zurf... going hungry could be what's doing it.  Perhaps you're not eating enough???  if your body is hungry, it will go into "starvation mode" in which it will hold onto fat, and not burn it well.  I doubt you're really "starving" but your body doesn't know that.  A good breakfast would be something like... 2 eggs (minus one of the yolks) with a slice of cheese (from the deli, not over processed American) on a wheat pita or something of the sort, a serving of fruit (10 grapes as an example), a glass of milk (8 oz is a small glass), and if you're starving with that add in perhaps a serving of cottage cheese.  then you need a healthy snack, then lunch, another snack, then dinner.  You should be eating all day long, but HEALTHY eating!   

I tend to stay away from low-fat products because what they lack in fat they make up for in sodium to add flavor (I'd prefer the fat to the salt personally in a diet).  You get ONE to TWO cups of coffee (or anything else with caffeine) per day... after that for each cup you drink you need to add another 8 oz of water to fight the effects... and remember for water take your weight in pounds, divide in half, and that's how many ounces of water you should be drinking.  That's 123 ounces... or 15 8oz glasses per day (most large glasses hold close to 16 oz BTW).  Is it possible that you're NOT drinking enough water?  It's a LOT, and the caffeine and water are my biggest downfalls personally.  Half the time when we're hungry, it's our bodies tricking us because really we're just thirsty.  You CAN count your non-caffeine drinks towards the water consumption also.  Not the liquor though! 

Add lemon and spice to help speed up the metabolism.

OH... and a really healthy food that has the qualities of vegetables, fiber, and protein... is ... LENTILS.  Can you eat them??? Peanuts are lentils, so I'm not sure if you'd be allergic to them or not... or if it's more so the tree nuts???  If you can't eat them, then take a look at the other beans out there as they are really good for you, if you can stomach them without adding too much fat to make a decent flavor.  I love black beans over rice.

It sure wouldn't hurt to visit the doctor and have them run some bloodwork to see if there is a thyroid issue.  Most people with thyroid issues tend to also have major HAIR issues btw.  My sister in law's hair was falling out like CRAZY ... now that the thyroid is under control with meds/diet... her hair grows sooo fast she needs the grey colored every 2-3 weeks (most people go 6-8 weeks).  I would check into that.  It sure would feel good to lose weight AND gain hair!    GOOD LUCK SIR!

Thats got too be frustrating,my sister had a thyroid problem and was having the same problems you are. I have always heard you are allowed a glass of red wine on most diets.

Dang, dang, and dang some more!  Well, I'm glad you've got a diet to stick to, and you're doing it!  The only other thing I can think of is to change the exercise routine, but you're already on your way there.  Stick with it, and don't get discouraged!  I am happy to hear you'll have a few drinks with us all in July, although I hear I'm much funnier if you're sober and I'm the one that's been drinking.    ha!

Zurf how many meals does your diet consist of? Most people that have a strenuous exercise routine eat up to 8 small meals a day in order to feel satisfied and to keep the metabolism going. Maybe you should just eat more healthy snacks throughout the day and that should keep you energized for more arobic fat burning. Keep it going and don't give up and you'll see your goals in no time. Good luck.

What is your body fat percentage? How do you feel other than hungry? Are you tired all the time or have more energy? What is your daily caloric intake?

Interesting to know the answers to those questions.

Some thoughts:

Maybe you are in an exercise rut. What do you do? Jogging? Biking? High impact or low? Try swimming. Best cardio you can do and burns the heck out of fat. If you are just jogging do something else if you can. If you exercise the same every day your body gets used to it. Change it up and use other muscles. This will help overall fitness and may jump your metabolism as you must now re-build muscles that are not used to working.

If you are feeling healthy or your health has improved then don't worry about the weight so much. some people carry more weight. You might have also turned a lot of fat into muscle as mentioned before. Muscle weighs much more than fat. How do you look, compared to before, in the mirror? More solid?

Every one that tries to lose weight will go through this. If it is not an issue with your endocrine system then avoid the scale for awhile and just keep on task. Evey time you eat right and exercise you are doing good so don't get discouraged. If it is an endocrine issue then staying the course will still help you along with treatment.

Sounds like your plan is solid. Maybe you need to change it up a bit but dont let a few pounds get you down if your health is showing positive improvements.

Last thought: Cheat a bit every now and then.

Good luck.

Very interesting thread, and lots of good advice!

One thing helped me lose about 40 pounds in 6 months back in '05, along with swimming 2500 yards and running 3.3 miles on alternating days:

Long time ago a famous person was asked how he stayed so thin. I believe it was Satchel Paige the great Negro League pitcher. He told the person he had grown up poor and always hungry. As he made his money he could eat anything he wanted but he ALWAYS stopped when he was no longer hungry.

I did this myself. I ate whatever I wanted but never got full. I stopped eating as soon as I was not hungry.