Thread: Nothing Seems to Work. I think I permanently messed up my body with diet pills...

I strongly suggest seeing a doctor or nutritionist to find out what amount of calories your body need to lose weight (and still be healthy) that number is different for EVERYONE and depends on a number of factors. I know a lot of people feel like they are watching what they eat... but unless you are counting every calorie you put into your body and keeping track of it... you really sometimes can overdo it without even realizing it.

I've seen women struggle with weightloss, eating piddly amounts of food and then when counting their calories accurately realized they were going way above target. The ONLY way to lose weight is to give your body less calories than it needs so that it will burn from your fat stores to get the remainder. But there is a limit to how much you can deprive it before you go into starvation mode and start working against your goal.

That is why seeing a doctor or nutritionist is crucial to find out your magic number... then getting a notepad and pen and writting down EVERYTHING you consume, that teaspoon of powder creamer? Yep write that down. That lil half a cup of juice? Yep write that down, that hand ful of almonds? Oh definitely write that down.

I think its way too easy to underestimate how many calories you are giving your body when you don't write them down. There are plenty of websites that help you count your calories and can tell you how many is in things.

Say I am on a 1400 calorie a day diet...

If I had a full glass of juice (double the actual servicing size) I could waste 300 of those calories right there... 2 pancakes, depending on the size I could consume around 350 calories right there... half a cup of syrup?? 350 calories... so in just a lil breakfast of a tall glass of juice and 2 pancakes and syrup I could potentially have consumed over 900 calories right there.. couple sausage on top and I've already surpassed my target... after lunch I will have consumed all the calories my body actually needs and everything else I'm eating on top of that will be excess cals... that will be stored as fat.

Table spoon of olive oil? 120 calories, ketchup , mayo, sugar, sodas... all these little hidden places you can rack up your bodies daily calorie needs in condiments... a half a cup of granola? almost 300 calories... A lot of times people think if something is healthy they can eat more of it... maybe give themselves a full cup of granola cereal... add that with milk and they are having almost a 600 calorie breakfast..

All I am trying to say is ... I've seen too often that people are watching what they eat, but not counting their calories... not understanding that whole concept of burning more than your earning... and have a hard time losing weight. So 'watching what you eat' wont cut it unless you JOURNAL what you eat and count your calories... and leave no room for guessing... get that target number that you should be at daily if you want to lose weight healthy and stick to it...

I can't really answer better than HD. But drink water, and nothing but. Juice, soda, and tea are packed with sugar and calories. I know several people that were watching what they ate but not paying attention to what they drink and those caloires can really add up. Also alcohol is usually very fattening. Beer is packed with calories and wine and coolers are packed with sugar.

Also try a detox. (after speaking with your doctor of course). I did a slimquick colon detox, pooped a whole lot, but cleaning my colon lost me five pounds in a week. It's a good way to jump start a diet and get rid of the toxins in your body. If you don't feel comfortable with taking more pills, drink 2 cups of black coffee everyday (no sugar or cream) which is a natural detox. Detox usually takes about 2 weeks.

And only 2 calories per 8 oz glass of black coffee.

High fructose corn syrup (which is in a lot of things like ketchup, sauces, and even bread) is harder to work off than real sugar, keep this in mind if you eat a lot of these things. Eliminate it completly from your diet and you will be amazed how much easier it is to burn off that fat. And no more fast food. Mcdonalds fries have more sugar than a snickers bar.

I agree with the Ladies. Count your Calories. Its very important. I was told by my doctor to NEVER drink my Calories. Water Water Water!! I will admit, sometimes I just get tired of water and want a sweet tea. So I allow myself a glass but only a 1 glass.

I thought I was watching what I was eating by making better choices when I went out to eat and not eating as much. I was wrong. Come to find out, my favorite meal from my favorite place was costing me 2100 calories in 1 meal. cut that in half and I'm still eating more than have of my daily intake. Needless to say I haven't gone back there.

Also be carefull. Being Veg can also have its draw backs. What are you eating for protien. Protien is a very big part of weight loss.

Re-reading your post I realized I missed talking about your 2 year period, lack of one, issue. Weight can have a HUGE effect on your period. The hormones that stop and start your period are stored in fat, meaning weight can impact those hormones. For me I had the exact opposite issue. When I was overweight one month my period started and.... forgot how to shut itself off. I had a HEAVY period for about 6 months, I was severely anemic, enough to be considered for blood transfusion and radical hysterectomy to stop the bleeding... luckily I decided to try to change my lifestyle and as I lost weight my period stabalized... I did end up on iron but they didn't need to transfuse and luckily did not have to have the hysterectomy -- I was 28ish at the time and it would have put me through so many changes my body isn't ready for!!

So basically what I am saying is... yes, weight can affect your period. The hormone that triggers your period to start is obviously not doing its job... getting healthy will help get you at least in a better position for it to improve... of course you should still see your doctor to have them diagnose why you might be missing your period.

A lot of people thinking eating organic, eating all healthy food is enough to lose weight... no. There are as many calories in healthy food as unhealthy food (its better for you and more nutrient filled of course... but you still have to watch and count those portions.

I remember my nutrionist telling me about this gal with an awesome diet who just couldn't seem to lose weight... the nutirionist was stumped when looking at her food journal as to why she was not losing. Turns out the lady ate like a jar of nuts every day, just grazing on them... so she didn't count them.. she was consuming an additonal oh... say over 1200 extra calories a day that she didn't count, that she didn't realize mattered.

If you can afford it, seeing a nutritionist is a real good start... they can look at your food journal (keep one for at least one week before your appt -- counting every last teaspoon of mustard , everything -- and they can help identify how many calories you are consuming, where you can cut corners and still be healthy and help to put you on a plan that suits the foods you like to eat, the nutrition your body needs and the calorie count that will bring you success.

I lost so much weight using that very method. No pills, no fairy dust... just monitoring calories and gradually increasing my exercise as my body could tolerate.

I'm, a guy, so the chemistry is a little different, but somthing that worked for me was the isagenix cleans. I did the 9 day cleans and then did maintenance after that. I lost about 13 pounds in 11 days, and have managed to keep most of it off. I have tried diet pills like apidexin, but have had back reactions to it. I seem to be sensitve to most drugs, but the isagenix cleans works for me, and I was a skeptic.

you can figure out your BMR (basal metabolic rate) and the amount of calories you currently burn at your level of activity without consulting a doctor or nutritionist. just use an iphone app or online calculator. doctors, as you mentioned, won't be very helpful other than "eat right and exercise." that advice has gotten our country where it is today. and most people i know who go to nutritionists get a plan and don't execute because it's too complicated.

the math is this: you need to burn 3500 calories to lose 1 pound of fat. you will not do that by exercising alone, which only burns about 350 cal/hour (that's 10hours in the gym, assuming you don't put that 350 calories right back in your body). you must, as others have said, create a calorie deficit between what you eat and what you burn.

For example, if your calculations say you currently burn 2000 calories, if you drop your intake down to 1000 calories you are creating a deficit of 1000 calories. your body will go to your fat storage to get the remaining 1000 calories that it needs to function. you will reach the 3500 threshold in 3.5 days, theoretically.

But the trick is that it's not just about calories, and here's where a lot of people go wrong. Especially if you're vegetarian or doing a cleanse or whatever, if you're not losing weight it's because you're depriving your body of some kind of nutrient(s). Your body then experiences cravings because it's not being fed what it wants. Cleanses and detox might be good in the short term, but if you want to lose a lot of weight you need to find a sustainable way to get maximum nutrition in the minimum number of a calories. Meal replacements can help in this arena, but they have to be the right ones for weight loss and not muscle building. It is totally possible to get complete nutrition in 1000 calories without all sorts of wacky and/or dangerous supplements.

Don't lose hope, I have seen many people in your situation who have yo-yo'd all their life. I know a 72-year old health coach who finally lost her 35 pounds last year after 40 years of having been on every diet. You can do it, and you can totally do it before September of next year.