Frustrated Celiac Not Losing Weight! page 2

[t-bird]

I've had blood tests for thyroid function and hashimoto's, but they always come back within "normal" range. I've taken online questionaires to determine a possible low functioning thyroid and they come back that I likely have a problem. I'm not sure how accurate the blood tests are that I've had. All of my vitamin levels come back normal as well. As far as my doctors are concerned, I'm in perfect health. I would just like to lose ten or fifteen pounds. I'm very strong, I can lift a ton of weight, I just can't seem to slim down.

[t-bird]

Thanks for the advice. I'm really not set on weighing 123 again, I was too skinny, but I'd be happier to be under 140. Actually, what I really want is a slimmer waist line. Just trying to figure out how to get it. I'll try adding a bit more fat. I use coconut milk in recipes and cook with coconut oil, I thought I was getting enough. I'm hoping that getting back in to crossfit will speed things up as well.

[Meatgrrrl]

Ok, for a start, what test have you had, can you tell me?

If it's just a TSH test (Thyroid stimulating hormone) then it's a notoriously unreliable test and basically a 'vague indicator' that something might be wrong. You can appear 'within range' whilst still being very ill. It differs wildly from person to person.
The general healthy population have a TSH of approx 1.
If yours is over this, then it's likely your thyroid is struggling.

The range used in the TSH test is usually 0.4 > 4.1
At my sickest (319lb, rapid tachycardia, hair falling out, water retention, breathlessness, inability to do anything, depression etc) my TSH was still in range at 3.9
Still within range.

The test for Hashimotos is also an issue. This tests the thyroid antibodies in your system. The way they got the 'range' for this test was to take 10 'healthy' people from the population and see what their antibody count was. Of course, some of those 10 people had thyroid antibodies, which means they weren't 'healthy' at all.
Therefore the test (depending which you have) is flawed before the get go.
Bottom line, if you have thyroid antibodies, you have auto immune issues.

To get an accurate pic of your thyroid, you would require a full thyroid panel, liver func tests, cholesterol, Free T4, Free T3 etc to understand how you are converting your T4 to T3 within your body. Without that, it's difficult to know.
Have you got your blood tests at all? If you have, feel free to PM me them and I'll take a look for you.

Other things that can mimic thyroid issues are adrenal issues, candida/yeast overgrowth and of course, gluten intolerance.
It's important to look at all these things before you jump on the thyroid bandwagon. Newish thinking on thyroid is that the thyroid exhibits failure or stress when gut problems are at their final stage... ie - your gut protection is gone, and finally your thyroid goes because it's the last kind of linked line of defence.

Also, most good thyroid docs believe you should only treat thyroid AFTER or WITH adrenals. One without the other is pointless.

Sooo, I hope that helps.

If you want to check out adrenal issues, Dr Lam is pretty good...
Comprehensive Adrenal Fatigue Article - DrLam® - Body. Mind. Nutrition®

[Owly]

Not that it makes it any nicer to be struggling, but you're not alone in gaining after a celiac diagnosis. I learned the hard way that gluten-free diets can still result in fat gain.

Body mass index and the risk of obesi... [Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2012] - PubMed - NCBI

As has already been said, your protein looks sort of low. Upping that will probably help with satiety, as will having a little more fat. Also, have you tracked how many calories you're eating? I'd definitely be hungry on that level of intake from what I'm seeing you list (but I'm pretty active), but my idea of a few nuts might be really different from yours. I'm not a big believer in ongoing macro/calorie counting, but you might find tracking for a week on FitDay or something similar will help you possibly identify where you're having issues.

[t-bird]

Ok, for a start, what test have you had, can you tell me?

If it's just a TSH test (Thyroid stimulating hormone) then it's a notoriously unreliable test and basically a 'vague indicator' that something might be wrong. You can appear 'within range' whilst still being very ill. It differs wildly from person to person.
The general healthy population have a TSH of approx 1.
If yours is over this, then it's likely your thyroid is struggling.

The range used in the TSH test is usually 0.4 > 4.1
At my sickest (319lb, rapid tachycardia, hair falling out, water retention, breathlessness, inability to do anything, depression etc) my TSH was still in range at 3.9
Still within range.

The test for Hashimotos is also an issue. This tests the thyroid antibodies in your system. The way they got the 'range' for this test was to take 10 'healthy' people from the population and see what their antibody count was. Of course, some of those 10 people had thyroid antibodies, which means they weren't 'healthy' at all.
Therefore the test (depending which you have) is flawed before the get go.
Bottom line, if you have thyroid antibodies, you have auto immune issues.

To get an accurate pic of your thyroid, you would require a full thyroid panel, liver func tests, cholesterol, Free T4, Free T3 etc to understand how you are converting your T4 to T3 within your body. Without that, it's difficult to know.
Have you got your blood tests at all? If you have, feel free to PM me them and I'll take a look for you.

Other things that can mimic thyroid issues are adrenal issues, candida/yeast overgrowth and of course, gluten intolerance.
It's important to look at all these things before you jump on the thyroid bandwagon. Newish thinking on thyroid is that the thyroid exhibits failure or stress when gut problems are at their final stage... ie - your gut protection is gone, and finally your thyroid goes because it's the last kind of linked line of defence.

Also, most good thyroid docs believe you should only treat thyroid AFTER or WITH adrenals. One without the other is pointless.

Sooo, I hope that helps.

If you want to check out adrenal issues, Dr Lam is pretty good...
Comprehensive Adrenal Fatigue Article - DrLam® - Body. Mind. Nutrition®

Thank you so much for the information. I will certainly look into this.

[Meatgrrrl]

Thank you so much for the information. I will certainly look into this.

No prob.

Let me know if I can bore you further.

[zoebird]

I think your diet looks fine -- as it's how I eat (sans the nuts and wine. i eat a few nuts every week, maybe -- and don't drink wine, but your other amounts look normal to how I eat as well.

My husband did a modified GAPS with the help of our naturopath. It has done wonders for his health.

[A-Celiac]

I can relate! I was diagnosed with CD 1 month ago (endoscopy – Dec. 2012) after suffering for 10-15 years with symptoms. I am a group exercise instructor, training for triathlons and end up working out 2-3 hours a day. I am still a 5’5″ female at 147 lbs. and cannot, no matter what I try, lose weight. I am so frustrated!!! I am hoping that now with my diagnosis and going GF, that I will finally be able to get my weight where it should be. I am an extremely healthy eater (green superfood powders, flax, chia, quinoa, lots of organic veggies, lean organic meats, etc.) but nothing has worked in the past. I need support! Since going off gluten, however, my weight has actually gone up (5lbs) and my symptoms (gas, bloating and C&D) have seemed to get even worse. Did anyone else get “worse” before they got better? I am so frustrated!

[abc123]

I can relate! I was diagnosed with CD 1 month ago (endoscopy – Dec. 2012) after suffering for 10-15 years with symptoms. I am a group exercise instructor, training for triathlons and end up working out 2-3 hours a day. I am still a 5’5″ female at 147 lbs. and cannot, no matter what I try, lose weight. I am so frustrated!!! I am hoping that now with my diagnosis and going GF, that I will finally be able to get my weight where it should be. I am an extremely healthy eater (green superfood powders, flax, chia, quinoa, lots of organic veggies, lean organic meats, etc.) but nothing has worked in the past. I need support! Since going off gluten, however, my weight has actually gone up (5lbs) and my symptoms (gas, bloating and C&D) have seemed to get even worse. Did anyone else get “worse” before they got better? I am so frustrated!

I'm celiac, carb sensitive, gluten intolerant, mega sugar sensitive, ibs, & everything in between! gas, bloating, fatigue, candida are all symptoms that i have suffered.. You name the symptom, I feel your pain in this thread..

However, I'm good now.. Looking @ your food list I'm wondering about your selection of "healthy" foods.. Flax of course will bloat & gas you.. Quinoa (contradictory) is a grain.. Some say its a seed, but why do you need to eat it? Its very simliar to a grain, (regardless if its technically a seed, its that rice & grain substitute some "healthy" gurus subscribe to) it will bloat you, similar to the way grains & wheat did.. "lots" of organic veggies? why do you need lots? & "Powders"?

I've noticed similarities in conventionally-deemed "healthy" foods that tie to my IBS & Celiac.. Pretty much everything you mentioned above (except the organic meats) I avoid in curing my Celiac.. I would stay away from "powders", drop anything close to a grain, tone down the amount of veggies you eat, & pump the brakes on the flax.. You're crushing your digestive tract with an arsenal of fiber, a true contributer to IBS & some celiac suffers.. All that fiber could be stripping your digestive tract of all the "good" bacteria that contributes to balance in your digestive system..

You need a calm digestive system.. I would stick with the meats, eggs, avocado, full fat yogurts, & "some" veggies & a maybe a piece of fruit.. But the meat & fats are the cure for me.. I've found foods that digest over long periods of time keep my body calm & more relaxed.. Clears my skin, lightens my blood pressure, calms my heart rate & keeps my body absorbing & retaining nutrients (something celiacs have difficulty accomplishing).. I also sleep better which is the fundamental sense I'm doing something right..

& also "IF"-ing would certaintly be something I would try.. I can't think of anything more primal & natural than enduring periods of time with no food.. Upping the fats & dropping the massive amounts of fiber could assist in rebuilding your guts & switching off that sugar metabolism, while switching on that fat metoblism.. I can fast for days @ a time & feel fantastic.. My body has become more efficient it seems..

Anyway, that's just my experience, could maybe assist in tweaking your strategy

[Mazzy0]

I can relate! I was diagnosed with CD 1 month ago (endoscopy – Dec. 2012) after suffering for 10-15 years with symptoms. I am a group exercise instructor, training for triathlons and end up working out 2-3 hours a day. I am still a 5’5″ female at 147 lbs. and cannot, no matter what I try, lose weight. I am so frustrated!!! I am hoping that now with my diagnosis and going GF, that I will finally be able to get my weight where it should be. I am an extremely healthy eater (green superfood powders, flax, chia, quinoa, lots of organic veggies, lean organic meats, etc.) but nothing has worked in the past. I need support! Since going off gluten, however, my weight has actually gone up (5lbs) and my symptoms (gas, bloating and C&D) have seemed to get even worse. Did anyone else get “worse” before they got better? I am so frustrated!

It took me over a month to have my one main symptom (horrible daily painful diarrhea) start to subside, and I didn't notice any weight loss right away. Eventually I did lose about 3-5 pounds, nothing to write home about. I'm also considerably overweight, so for me, 3-5 pounds might as well be 0. My point is that going gluten free may not seem like an instant overnight success...but, there is something going on behind that scenes that does add up over time.

I also found out recently that corn products are not well tolerated for me for other reasons. I second the idea of ditching the quinoa, or anything that is a seed/grain.

2-3 hours a day of exercise says to me that you're body could be overworked and is keeping the weight on for a reason.