Weight Loss Help

I 2nd Alli pills with the Weight Watchers. But WW should be working really well... but if it isn't just try mixing it up 1 day a week with a different food program... like a vegetable soup only day. And make sure you are drinking plenty of water, and if you don't like water try tea. You can get decaffeneited black tea. Or green tea or oolong. They are really good for you.

Also, watch the fake sugar. Sweet n Low and Equal were getting bad press this morning because some study said mice don't lose weight when they take in alot of those sweetners. It didn't say anything about Splenda.

Good luck.

Hi H.! Don't forget--muscle weighs more than fat. So if you are weight training and gaining muscle tone, then stepping on a scale isn't going to necesarily make you feel better--although it should. I am not saying not to lift weights, but just keep this in mind every time you step on the scale. DOn't get discouraged. My friend says she weighs 9 pounds more than she did a year ago, but her clothes still fit the same (also a Weight Watcher girl--size 4) and they said it is probably due to her building muscle. She works out 5 days a week--faithfully. Hope this helps and hang in there!

First, do you track all of your calories (every bite) and if so, are you eating all of your points? If not, you're probably not eating enough and your body is in "starvation" mode and won't let go of the weight because of it. A lot of people who are desperate to lose weight automatically think less calories means they will lose weight faster. If you're WW recommended calories per day is 1600, you should be eating very close to 1600 calories per day. And if you are exercising as much as you say, you should probably eat most, if not all, of your activity points too. If you're doing weight training, remember you are replacing fat with muscle which weighs more, but you might be able to tell that your clothes are fitting looser if that's what's happening.

On the other hand, if you don't track all of your calories, you could be going over your recommended points which is sabotaging your workout efforts.

I've always heard if you hit a plateau, the best way to get out of it is change your food routine. Mix it up. Instead of eating at the low side of your points range, eat on the high side of your range, or vice versa. Or even alternate. Two days on the low side, two days on the high side.

Maybe give those things a try and see if you don't see a loss next week.

Good luck!

My baby's father was a personal trainer... He trained me after I had our son. The trick is to do your weight training first. Then do your cardio for about 45-60 mins. While weight training, only work out specific areas of the body once a week. When you work out your muscles tear, hence the pain the next few days. In order to heal into longer lean muscle, they need 7 days to repair themselves.

Ex:
Monday:
Arms & Shoulders 30 mins
Cardio 45 mins

Wednesday:
Abs & Butt 30 mins
Cardio 45 mins

Friday:
Legs 30 mins
Cardio 45 mins

You are doing the right things, just back wards... Cardio burns all your fat and energy, there is nothing left for your muscles to feed themselfs off of when you are done.

Try it and let me know what you think :)

L.*

Be patient with yourself and be sure to measure your inches every month; don't just use the scale as a measure of how you're doing. Remember, muscle weighs more than fat but it also takes up less room and burns more calories at rest than fat. So if you lose 10 pounds of fat in a month and gain 8 pounds of muscle, the net loss on the scale looks like only 2 pounds. That is not something a diet pill ad would tout as great results! However, it would equate to a smaller dress size.

ALso, it is physically impossible to lose more than 2-3 pounds of FAT (not weight) per week. Anything more than that is muscle loss and water weight. That's why many people who lose lots of weight quickly gain it all back plus some. They have slowed their metabolism and changed the ratio of fat to muscle in a negative way. So be patient and remember, slow and steady wins the race! Persistance = results. IMO, WW is the best program around for losing permanent weight because it is all about behavior modification.

Good luck!

____@____.com

I have heard many success stories w/ Weight Watchers so keep up the good work! My only tips would be cutting out the little extras in your daily diet...NO soft drinks (not even diet), no creamy dressings like ranch, Caesar, mayo, alfredo, etc. I use mustard on a lot of things because it's not nearly as fattening as mayo (check your WW book for points). Choose things like 100% whole wheat bread and skim milk. Making such simple changes really helped me drop pounds without hardly trying.

Hi H.,

Have you heard of Limu? It is a raw superfood from the Tongan Islands in the South Pacific and it is all organic. I have lost 20 lbs. I have been drinking it since July 2007 and started noticing the weight loss about the second month, it is very gradual and you really do not change a thing. It helps to speed up your metabolism, breakdown stored fat, and use the food as you eat so it can not store as fat. Plus it helps to stop the craving to munch all day. Plus you sleep better at night and feel rested in the morning and over all feel better. It also helps with female problems, like cramps, it reduces the inflammation in your body so the PMS no longer is a problem. Go to my website
www.discoverlimu.com/limuupforlife
You can email me or call me from the site and I can give you more information.

Kim P

Do not get frustrated. Your body is adjusting to adding more muscle which will eventually burn more fat. Make sure you are taking in enough fluid before, during and after your workout. The best is water, but you can also do flavored water as well. Diet pills are only temporary. You are on the right track to eat healthy and exercise. Keep up the good work and it will pay off. You can always find a workout partner or get a trainer to give you some fresh ideas to spice up your workout. Good luck!

I have been doing Isagenix for over a year. I lost weight VERY fast and so have all of my friends and family who have done it. I never thought, in my lifetime, that I would sell anything, but I am a total believer in the products. Check out the website www.kristinestell.isagenix.com and email me (____@____.com)with any questions you may have. I am even willing to show you my pictures.
When I say FAST, I mean fast. (26 pounds in less than a couple months) I was in the same boat as you are.

I wish you the best of luck.

Sincerely,
K. E

I understand what you are saying. Reliv International has a new wt loss product called SLIMPLICITY. It works without chemicals, al natural. Take a look at www.slimplicity.com
and call Lori Kornely, distr, 214/235-1840 I have been in the same boat. I tried everything, exercise, starving, etc. Slimplicity is working for me. I love it

Y.Fischer

Weight Watchers is great and if you follow it to a tee, you should have no problem losing weight. I would also consider using the new diet pill Alli. This will help you lose 50% more weight than diet & excersise alone.

As for the side effects, they are worse when you STRAY from your diet and eat foods that contain fat. The bad side effects (runny smelly stool and gas) are quite tolerable if you keep your fat intake to a minimum.

Also, consider that many of the WW foods may be low in fat, and may not offer enough vitimans for your body to function properly. Consider taking a miltivitiman.

Good luck in your weightloss. And remember than nothing worth having comes easy.

I, too, would ask your doctor about your thyroid. It was VERY hard for me to lose any weight. At my last check-up, my doctor ran some tests on my thyroid. They showed that my thyroid is not functioning -- which explained a lot more symptoms than just the inability to lose weight. Ask your doctor for the tests. I had told two other doctors about the same symptoms before a third doctor put it together and ordered the tests. Good luck!

HI H.-
Have you had your thyroid, adrenals and hormone levels checked?

There is a pharmacy in Plano called Texas Star Pharmacy that will help you with saliva testing to get an accurate picture of what is going on . they then can work with your doctor to help you get things back on track. most of the time it is just adding extra B vitamins and some other minerals to your diet. i have had several friends do this very successfully. send me an email and i can give you their names and numbers and you can talk to them in person

N. Smith
____@____.com

hi I understand your frustration I am trying without much luck myself to loose weight finally I went to the doctor about it. He said it could be one of three things 1. thyroid problems. 2. Hypoglycemic or 3 metabloism disorder I am still waiting for the test results to come in so maybe you should ask your doctor to see if something else is the problem. Hang in there!!!

I have also had battles with my weight. One year I lost 90 pounds. I kept a tally of my total calories. It caused me to make better decisions like do I really need an extra 100 calories for the cheese on my burger?etc. Also you will automatically figure out you must balance your ice cream intake with your carrots. You'll want to have lots of healthy but make room for your sweet. I know I can work out like a mad dog but if I don't watch my bites, nibbles and tastes, they add up. Just look at major weight loss systems like Weight Watchers--they only allow like two extra points to eat if you work out. That should tell you how much weight is really affected by excercise. Just think, even if you excercised really hard for an hour, you might only burn 500 calories. (That's one nice bowl of ice cream) Watch what the serving size actually is. For example most people eat 2X the serving of cereal. I mean who really eats 3/4 of cereal with 1/2 cup SKIM milk? If you want to be slim, you have to eat the way a slim person eats, FOREVER! Ahhhh! Losing weight can be easy but keeping it off is very hard. Habits must change!

Hi H.,
Congrats on wanting to expand your family. Two to three years age difference is great! ON your weight loss..I have no magic solution to offer, just encouragement. I'm in the same boat with not seeing the scale move as much as I feel it should. Since Jan 9th, i've been working out 3-4 times a week and watching what I eat. If you are doing any kind of weight training, that could be the issue (but it's a good thing). Muscle weighs more than fat. So you may ve swapping fat for muscle and that's good, b/c muscle burns more calories. If you can honestly say you are following your WW plan and doing your cardio for 30 minutes you will be fine. Hang in there....D.

H.
I am working on losing my baby weight myself but what i notice is that you will first gain before you start to lose when starting an exercise regiment. My trainer say you are building lean muscle mass in the process. What i find helpful is not the scale but the tape measure. It gives you a positive picture about your body not just in pounds but in inches as well. I also do 30 mins of cardio but increase the intensity incline on a treadmil by about .05 every week. My weight sessions are most successful when i do more reps with the right pace. You may also sign up for Oprah and Bob's Bestlife Challenge 2008 at Oprah.com. You get weekly insights about the latest exercise tip and receips. Finally, good luck and best wishes. You've taken the first step but maintaining the momentum is what will make the difference.

F.

First off, when you joined LA Fitness, did you get them to measure your body fat percentage? It's possible that you're building muscle right now, which will make it appear as though you're not losing weight, but you may in fact be losing fat. In my experience, this is actually quite normal to be a little slow at the beginning and then you'll lose weight rapidly, because the muscle that you've gained will metabolize your fat faster than exercise alone; you just have to keep going at it and wait for that to kick in. So, if they did measure your body fat when you first joined you can get them to remeasure it to find out if you've been putting on some muscle. Also, you may want to calculate your target heart rate and make sure that the cardio you're doing is at that heart rate or even slightly higher (assuming you don't have any health issues).

Great job at the diet and exercise!!!

I have struggled with my weight since I had my first child 11 years ago. I 've done everything and have lost and gained through out the years. I have started counting calories and reading all labels. I don't think weight watchers and those type of programs work because you are still eating a high calorie count. Try cutting back to around 1500 calories, i'm doing 1350 and i've steadily been loosing atleast a pound a week and I have not started excersiging yet. I just joined L A Fitness as well, so i'll be starting a cardio regimen and up my calories to 1500...best of luck!

Keep up the good work and give it a little more time. Maybe decrease your calorie intake by 100-200 and step up your cardio to an hour. Drop the weight training until you start losing again since you may be adding heavier muscle and frustrating yourself. Two things that helped me were to stop drinking sodas and not eat after 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. Hope this helps. I know it can be extremely hard to lose weight.
Take care of yourself, C.

Hi H.. I am in the exact same boat as you. I gained about 80 lbs with my daughter 4 1/2 years ago. My husband finally said it was ok with him for us to have another child BUT the catch is that I have to loose the weight that I gained with the first. He wants me to be healthy and not get any bigger which I can totally understand. So, I started The South Beach Diet 3 weeks ago and I've lost over 14 lbs. There's no calorie counting (c'mon who has time for that?). I'm not exercising, just eating right. It wasnt easy at first to not eat sugar or carbs because my body physically wanted it, but after the initial withdraws, I am doing fine. I've only cheated twice! Plus I have a very good incentive! Also, a few months ago, I hired a personal trainer and he worked me to the bone 4 days a week with no result, so I quit. I think loosing weight with exercise is more of a long term thing. I've also tried the diet pills, but let me tell ya, its just not practical. You cant take those pills forever! In order for us to keep it off, we need to make major eating habit changes. Plus, did you know that those pills Alli, cause embarrassing diareah. The directions actually give you the warning and tell you to wear protective undergarments! EWWW! I had a friend who actually had to go home from work because she leaked and didnt even know it til she smelled it!! Good luck and please let me know what you decide!

P.S. - With the SB Diet, you are NEVER hungry. I just dont see how anyone can survive on a shake for breakfast AND lunch! I dont know about you girl, but I need real food!!

A.

Question:
Are you noticing a change in your muscles?
Muscles taking over for fat will not lose weight but
change your size and look. Maybe you have not lost
any weight, yet may be a size smaller because muscle
is more lean than fat.
Have you measured the problem areas?

I have been doing a biblical study that has been SO impactful and I have lost more than I expected in a short time. Go to www.settingcaptivesfree.com and the study is called The Lord's Table. They will assign you a mentor that encourages you each day through email. This was changed more in my life than dieting. I highly recommend this. It does not restrict what food you eat, just how you eat. I have been super impressed with the depth in the bible study that goes with this. You will not be able to follow this without the bible study. IF you do not want to do it online, there is a workbook you can buy. Email me ANY questions....I love this study and what it has done for me, my body, and my spiritual life.

____@____.com

Remember that with the working out and weight training you are adding muscle mass which weighs more than fat. Hang in there - you can do it!!!!

L.

Hi H.,

Not trying to sell you a gimmick, but I sell Herbalife and lost 20 lbs within the first 2 to 2 and 1/2 months. It actually came off without exercise. Just like any diet plan, you have to stick to it. Depending on your weight and your BMI, you mix a shake for breakfast and lunch and eat a light dinner along with taking the supplements that come with the kit. We have a reasonable Shapeworks kit for $85.80 and that comes with everything you need to achieve your weight loss goals. I have been able to keep the weight off and haven't put back on a pound within months now. We have great products too for health and nutrition as well for chidren and adults. Please feel free to send me a message if you might be interested in sampling any of our products and I can provide those for you free for you to try. You can also check out our products at www.herbalife.com

Hi H.,
I have had 3 C-Sections and let me tell you they are not glamorous to the body!

I struggled with my weight and finally at age 38 said enough is enough. I dropped from a size 12 to a size 3 in a little over 90 days and have maintained this weight loss going on my 9th year!

I did it with my AdvoCare Nutritional product line, eating right and drinking water. That's all it took for me. I know that sounds to simple, but it was and still is today. We are not a diet, we are nutrition. You have to do your part, eat regular meals and drink 90 oz. of water daily.

Call me if you want my help at ###-###-#### or go to my website www.advocare.com/9812406.

Thank you,
T.

Hi, H.. I have the same name as you! I have also been going to the gym several times a week since the beginning of the year with no weight loss. Argh. However, first remember that muscle weighs more than fat. Are your clothes fitting any different? Or can you not tell any difference?

Second, exercising should help to improve your blood pressure even if you're not currently losing weight. Getting in shape is never a bad thing and will always improve your overall health (unless, of course, you strain yourself and pull a muscle or something).

Also, as someone who has worked with homebirthing VBAC moms in the Metroplex I can tell you that many doctors who say they support VBAC find some convenient reason to change their tune once you get to around 36 weeks. I would find out what this doctor's actual VBAC rates are and what the rates are at the hospital where he/she delivers.

Good luck.
H.

Keep up the good work!!! You are probably building some muscle from working out so the scale isn't showing weight loss--keep going to WW meetings and the gymthis is for you to feel good and have a happy healthy pregnancy so make it into your time to be good to yourself-you'll get there!

H. -

I set myself to lose over 50 lbs a few years back and took on the cardio and weight training... my trainer who was Mrs Oklahoma Fitness three times and a mom of three would not let me get fixated on what the scale said... if your shape is shifting and your clothes are getting looser, don't worry about it. Once you build a solid muscle base and do the cardio your body will have more ability to burn off fat. I gradually lost 50 lbs, kept it off for 5 years plus now and have way more energy. My bottom line was to be strong, healthy and full of energy, not the speed at which the pounds came off. Keep going and know that if you make changes and lose weight gradually it allows your skin to firm up, you are more likely to keep it off and you don't have to overdo it and spend hours at the gym and obscessing about every calorie. I'm really proud of you and this is what mom's do best...sticking at the hard, invisible, boring stuff that doesn't ever stay done (dishes, laundry, diapers, discipline) with the long term goal of building something strong... you are choosing to be strong for your first... how great is that!

I dont know how many calories you are taking in or how and or if your are skipping meals etc? You want to spike your metabolism you can do this by really mixing up your routine. Dont forget muscle weighs more than fat so if your doing weight traing it will appear to come of slower. You also probaly have lost inches but not weight. Try mixing up cardio do some rowing in short fast intervals but only for about 20 mins. Then instead of lifting do some deep stretching. Stretching helps tone the muscles. Eat your calories in smaller meals through out the day and never after 7. It sounds like you know that muscle helps burn fat and your right but for faster results loose the weight with cardio and proper diet and then work the weights in after a few weeks. (light weights) When you hit a plateau you know its time to mix up your routine and your diet. By diet I mean eat foods that your body is not used to burning ( healthy of course) this also helps spike the metabolism. Dont give up you can do it!!