chrishinbc

Hello everyone,

I am a bit perplexed. I am a 37 year old, who is 5'11 and now 211 pounds. Over the last 6 months I've gone from 247 pounds to 211 pounds. About three weeks ago, with approximately a 2000 calorie a day diet and a minimum of an hour of brisk activity most day, I stopped losing weight and my weight remained about the same. About 10 days ago I reduced my daily calories to approximately 1800 calories on average a day, and continued with the same amount of exercise. In the course of a week I lost another six pounds. However, my waist size seems to be actually increasing, as my belt is getting tighter. I do suffer from IBS and I feel quite bloated right now. Could the IBS be causing the increased waist size or have I put myself into starvation mode and I'm burning muscle into fat? I also suffer from hyperglycemia, which has been bad lately. This is where my body is producing too much insulin. Could that be contributing to my increased waist size? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Chris

vsabino

I do think that it's the water retention that makes your waist larger. Just wait 1 week and take measurements again. Do you eat enough soluble fibers? You may want to use a fiber supplement also.
Are you on any meds for the hyperglycemia? It's very detrimental to keep the blood glucose high for a long time, so if the diet by itself doesn't work to decrease it, I would just start taking meds.
The weight loss is really impressive!! 6 lb in 1 week is amazing, keep it up!!
Good luck!!

mecompco

Muscle doesn't "burn into fat", and 1800 cals is WAY above starvation

I eat +/- 1500 cals a day and lose on average 3lbs a week. In the distant past, I've eaten 1000 cals a day for months and lost way faster. I've also (not that I would ever recommend it) eaten 0 cals a day for a month on a couple of occasions and lost weight increadibly fast.

I would suspect that one or more of your medical conditions is causing the water retention/bloat.

Keep up the good fight and good luck with your medical issues!

Michael

chrishinbc

Thanks Vsabino for the reply and encouragement. I think that you are correct that it is water retention that is increasing my waist size. I am actually on a medications for anxiety/depression. I know that at least one of these meds has water retention as a side effect. It also makes me very thirsty, so I drink lots of water. I eat lots of soluble fibre and use a fibre supplement daily as well. I actually meant to write that I suffer from hypoglycemia(low blood sugar), so my body is producing too much insulin, which I believe can turn to fat. One of the meds that I'm on is making the hypoglycemia a lot worse. I want to look into going onto a hypoglycemic diet, which I've been told is eating small snacks every couple of hours, instead of three square meals a day. As I said, on top of all that I also suffer from IBS. Thanks again for taking time to reply to my post.

chrishinbc

M

Hi Michael,

Thanks so much for your encouragement/advice. As I said in my previous reply to this thread I'm sure that my medical conditions and one or more meds is causing the water retention/bloat. Thanks for the reassurance that I've not gone into starvation mode as well.

Chris

Rcht

A couple of things you can do to help IBS/depression:

IBS-blood sugar crashes-depression... different symptoms same cause. Your intestines are not working properly.

Organic apple cider vinegar- I know sour. Bragg's is a great brand found at any health food store. Take some ice, about a table spoon of vinegar then add cranberry juice (not the blends) the real deal and a table spoon of orange juice concentrate. I won't get into all the details about its goodness, google it. Does wonders for the body! Start off one glass a day then add it before each meal 1/2 or so before.

Second, yogurt. Again, health food store. A couple of table spoons a day. Make a fruit smoothie for a snack or just suffer the bland taste and gulp a few tabs down followed with some fruit juice or what have you.

Black Strap molasses. Again...adds calcium, and a whole host of other minerals you are probably lacking...like the rest of us. Look it up. A table spoon mixed with some hot water and a dash of lemon. Or a tablespoon then washed down with water. It can make you go ... so might want to consider taking it when you get home from work so you have the night to deal with it.
Again, check it out...excellent source of goodies for the body.

If you are bloated...drink more water as bloat is a sign that you are not getting enough water. So your body stores it rather than uses it. Which means that your bowels are not going to digest food hence more bloat.
You should be drinking 2 percent of your body weight at least. When you become hydrated, the bloat with not be present.

Make sure with the IBS to add fiber based foods slowly. Again, look it up. If you find that you have flares, consider clear fruit and veggie broths until the issue calms itself. The gradually bring veggies back, then starches, then protein.

Reduce processed foods. Anything in a box with labels and marketing, basically all the middle isles in the grocery store. This in turn will also help you avoid... MSG. It has a whole host of names and is pretty much in every processed food on the shelves. Not only has the use of the extract increased in the kinds of products that use it, the quantity has increased in those products. As there is not FDA regulation.

It can cause irritation to mucus linings-i.e. bowels, head aches, increase need to eat (thinking Chinese food one hour after eating it- heavy in MSG), suppression of insulin production etc.... again research it.

Avoid lite or diet products as they have a really high does of MSG to compensate for the lack of flavor because the fat has been removed. This can be found in yogurts, diet drinks. Take the time to look up what all the various names of MSG are. It is rather overwhelming but should motivate you to consider an apple is just an apple and good for you while -apple sauce- when you look at the label will have some like "natural flavors" (MSG) at the end... not so good for you.

You might want to consider 6 meals a day- no more then 3 hours apart. This will balance your blood sugar and not over load your system at one go.

Try different blending of food groups. Protein with pineapple and papaya- as they help with digestion of meats. Adding rice and beans-they make a protein. Eating just starches together and not mixing meat. Having just veggies etc. You will find that there are going to be combos that work better then others for you. Again- research food combination for IBS- for blood sugar issues etc.

Just a thought...Depression can be a mental health issue - induced by blood sugar swings, withdrawal from smoking, toxins nit being removed from the body (constipation/dehydration), malnutrition/lack of total nutritional support. So once you start to balance the blood sugar and deal with the IBS it could be you need to look at your medication dose. You might be feeling better!

The last point I want to offer is this. While it is great to notice and record the amount of calories one is consuming. You want to consume food that is going to give you the biggest bang for your buck. Low calories, inexpensive and HIGH nutrition value. Whole foods-, organic if you can afford it- better yet grow your own if you can-.

Just a side note medications can interfere with intestinal health. It can add to the imbalance of your IBS symptoms.

Make sure to talk with your mental health provider and your doctor to make sure that any changes to your diet are not in conflict with medication you are on.

Most doctors only get about 3 credits -half a semester- worth of education before getting the MD title on nutrition.

You might want to talk with a nutritionist to make sure you are getting all the minerals, vitamins, fiber...etc needed daily for your IBS.- Lots of web pages out there too to self educate.



I am not a medical provider just full of opinions. Make sure you research your condition.


good luck!