Just can't get it right/No Weight Loss 1.5 years on diet page

[cdwrites]

Hi Everyone, A friend suggested I come on here to gain some knowledge about where to go from here. I am a 42 year old woman, mother of 2, petite 5'1'', and trying whatever I can to lose the baby weight from baby #2, who is already 3 years old. I've never really had a weight problem, some ups and downs as a teen and in college. Then, lost the freshman 15 lbs. weight right after college and never gained it back, maintained my weight on a higher carb, low fat diet for 12 years when I got pregnant with baby #1. I struggled to lose the weight after that but managed to do so slowly and painfully on Weight Watchers, but following a more Weston A. Price diet (which is pretty tough to do on WW).
I have about 8-10 lbs to lose and I've been trying for 3.5 years to do this the healthier, not high carb way. It's not a lot of weight but it shows up more on me since I very petite. I finally went low carb, high fat in August of 2009 following Eat Fat Lose Fat and then, Optimal Diet (Dr. K from Poland). Instead of losing, I gained more weight, 7 lbs. Horrified, I stopped doing those ratios and lowered my carb and protein more. I lost the 7 lbs I gained (very slowly, weight does not ever fall off me) but I'm stuck where I started and now it's 1 year later. In Jan. 2010, I went really low carb, 10-20g carbs, and higher fat, kept my protein moderate. I dropped grains completely and thought surely this would do it to lose the weight. I'd lose a little but then, fluctuate back and forth with a couple of lb, despite being in ketosis measured with the ketostix being dark purple. I went on Protein Dr. Eades diet (3 shakes a day plus one meal) and lost 2 lbs. in 3 weeks. and then, nothing more.
I've tried a lot and I can't seem to get it right. I'm thinking I need to calorie restrict more and to eat less fat, although I am so used to butter and coconut oil now, I am sad to see it go away completely. This way of eating, high fat/low carb, has brought me energy and I get sick much less often and when I do it's over much quicker. I think this is the way to go for health and I just can't go back to higher carb. I want to continue low carb/high fat. We get all our food from a farm and it's all grass-fed meats and raw dairy. I eat eggs (2-3 per day), meat, pork, lamb, chicken with the skin on and usually thighs, salmon sashimi style, green veggies (usually broccoli or green beans cooked in coconut oil and add butter), coconut and peanut butter for treats in small quantities but no problem giving it up if needed and have given it up, dark chocolate (also a treat, small squares of 85% or more). I also eat a beef jerky and beef sticks, and some cheese (but try to avoid it), and heavy cream in my decaf coffee (limit it to 1 T per day). I don't eat any grains, so no rice, pasta, bread, etc. I make a drink with2 raw pastured eggs, 1 T of coconut oil, .5 T. of butter and water, cinnamon and vanilla, and throw it in a blender. This is breakfast.
What can I do to make the weight come off? Any tips? I seem to do better if I have a plan to follow.
I forgot to mention I exercise, A LOT! About 5 days per week most weeks, sometimes four days. I run and I have been running for 14 years. I do dumbell work at home, bands, yoga, pilates, and dance cardio. I push myself with HIIT. I don't do very heavy weights, no access to a gym.

Thanks for any advice. I really don't know where to turn. I know I need to change something to lose. Interesting thing is I don't gain eating butter and CO and fattier meats every day, but I don't lose either. Sorry this is so long.

Claudia

[NutMeg]

Well, a few things I see. Your weight gain is associated with childbirth, have you had your thyroid tested?

You may be too low carb. I cannot lose weight in ketosis. I am sure I am not the only one. I need to stay in the 'weight loss sweet spot' of 50-100 grams of carb a day.

You may be a victim of chronic cardio, pushing yourself too hard.
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-t...-overtraining/

[kimdowse]

+1

Meghan, well said!

Claudia, I totally agree with the thyroid possibility, since your weight gain was around your pregnancies.

[NutMeg]

+1

Meghan, well said!

Claudia, I totally agree with the thyroid possibility, since your weight gain was around your pregnancies.

I struggled much with my weight loss, including not being able to lose on Atkins, South Beach, and a variety of other low carb plans. TPB saved my life, but I still can't go too low carb, it is all a result of my thyroid issues. My thyroid went berserk as a result of my pregnancies.

[Minxxa]

I second Meghan... there very well could be an endocrine issue going on .. something hormonal which was kicked off by your pregnancies.

this might NOT be the case, but I know when my thyroid was going bad I was living on 1000-1200 calories a day and walking 1 hour 5 days a week and either not losing or GAINING weight. Argh.

I'm still not quite back together, but I'm on my way and eating primal is a huge reason. After getting medicated, eating primal has really helped my hormones to try to rebalance themselves, though that takes a while to do.

Also... maybe if you could post a typical day of food and macros (carbs/protein/fat), as well as your typical workout. This will help people maybe see stuff and give you suggestions of things to try. Though, keep in mind, these suggestions (no matter how SURE some people are that it's the issue with you) may or may not be the problem. But, it will give you some things to try and see how your body reacts.

I also suggest getting a thyroid screen (complete... including free T3, Free T4 and Reverse T3), and maybe a hormonal panel of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Then make sure you get the lab results and research them yourself. My ex-doc told me I was "fine" for 5 years as my thyroid results kept getting worse and worse... because she was completely ridiculously wrong about what the lab values meant.

I know how frustrating it can be.... and hopefully you can find something in this forum to help you out!

[Dragonfly]

Agree with the above. If you can do the PB Fitness program (free download on the Fitness forum), you can build more lean body mass and boost your metabolism. Body weight workouts are fantastic, IMO.

[TigerLily]

For me, the key is/has been dairy and nuts. I didn't lose any either (or verrry slowly) until I cut those...then things started happening fast (despite my hypothyroidism). But you said you aren't eating a lot of those. What about alcohol? That's the final part of the unholy "I'm not losing weight" trinity.

Barring that, have you tried CLA or GLA? I have been on CLA for (?) ~6 weeks now with surprisingly good success. It works. From what I've read, CLA targets more belly fat whereas GLA is more all over. (I don't know where you carry your weight; if I have any extra at all on me, it's gonna be all belly.) Anyway, check out the reviews on iherb.com. I found out about it from Dr. Ann Louise Gittleman, who has a PhD in nutrition. A lot of women who follow her protocols have also had good success. Note that it takes a while to kick in. Some say 4 weeks, but I noticed a difference sooner.

http://www.iherb.com/CLA-Conjugated-Linolenic-Acid

[zoebird]

i definitely agree with the others.

you might also look at your sleep and sunlight/vitamin d.

[TigerLily]

Oh, another piece to the puzzle: Water intake. Very important to losing weight. It's no coincidence that when I really increased my water intake (after getting a thrashing from the Rolfer I'm seeing), I started losing. I can't lose any weight without a lot of water. Maybe you're the same.

Also, if you suspect you've got some sort of hormonal/endocrine thing going on, you've got to get that straightened out, as the others have said. I work with someone who started taking desiccated adrenal for adrenal fatigue and lost 20# practically overnight, even though he did not change his diet like he was told to and will eat two brownies and then go run to the employee health office to have his blood sugar checked. ::: eye roll :::

[zoebird]

that reminds me, i need to contact the rolfer.