To think there’s no point being hungry if the weight isn’t coming off?

[Flaribeau]

The doctor has told me to lose weight because I’m at risk of diabetes. I’m absolutely starving but virtually no weight is coming off! I haven’t had a single biscuit or packet of crisps, no takeaways or alcohol at all, I’ve cut right down on carbs, I’ve started walking for an hour a day, and I’ve still only lost 2lb in an entire month.

AIBU to think being hungry is absolutely pointless if I’m not losing weight? Everyone says you lose loads in the first few weeks but I haven’t. I was expecting to have lost half a stone by now. I’m suffering for no reason because the weight isn’t coming off 😭

I eat any fruit, veg, fish or meat. I only eat grains which are gluten free. Unfortunately that excludes lots of options like quinoa, because the grain itself is gluten free but it’s often processed in a factory that also processes wheat, so it’s labelled as “may contain wheat”. Dried lentils and beans etc are often similarly problematic, as are oats. I can’t get brown pasta, there is only white pasta available if you need gluten free.

I like toast and sandwiches because I’m too lazy to cook and it’s quick and easy. The only thing quicker and easier than a sandwich is skipping a meal, which I often do through pure laziness. Also I think it’s comforting because I grew up eating toast (often the only food we had). Being gluten free makes it difficult to find safe food, so I buy a loaf of gluten free bread and I know I can grab a safe sandwich without thinking about it. I struggle with shopping due to being autistic, but I always have a loaf available in the freezer, so I make a sandwich. Due to my autism I don’t like variety. You know what’s always the same? Bread. Hence I live on bread, I don’t know what else to eat.

Have a look at the diabetes uk website, there is loads of info on there as well as recipes. Try their online tutorials to learn more about type 2 and how it works. I was diagnosed in feb and learn that white bread, pasta and rice are not the greatest, i don't eat them now, i do have wholemeal versions and brown rice but have cut right back on carbs generally, I eat nothing with added sugar, i do eat more veg, limit fruit to around 3 portions a day spaced out throughout the day no fruit juices and avoid very processed stuff. I have lost 2 stone and brought my blood results down from 94 to 50 in the first 3 months. Still a way to go as they need to be 48 or less but i don't feel hungry, eat well, cook from scratch most days, i use cauliflower rice with my curries and chilli, eat oily fish at least once a week eat plenty of eggs and focus my meals around protein with salad or veg instead of carbs like potato. Check your portion sizes, its surprising just how small some portions actually are. Pack of cards sized meat anyone! The advice is to fill half your plate with salad or veg and no more than a third with meat or fish. Fill up on the healthy stuff, a homemade veg soup is good for you and will fill you up as a lunch or starter before a meal and wont have too many calories if its just veg.

Looking at the label on your gluten free bread - does it give the carbohydrate in grammes per slice?

Ahhh! This may be it! Mayonnaise. If you have mayonnaise on your sandwiches. Check the calories on that. Mind blowing!

The only thing quicker and easier than a sandwich is skipping a meal, which I often do through pure laziness

The best thing I found for making a quick, healthy lunch, is to get a soup maker. You just chuck in your ingredients, very roughly chopped, and press the button. 30 minutes later you've got enough soup to do 4 lunches. It's a great way to use up vegetables, and you can add tins of tomatoes, frozen veg, tinned beans, ham etc.

My favourite is spicy black bean soup, which I have with yogurt, chopped avocado, greek yogurt and coriander. It's lovely, and really filling.

Are you on the pill? This sounds like one of my friends. She was doing everything to lose weight and it just was not shifting and the doctor couldn't understand it at all when he seen her fitness and diet diary. She decided to come off the pill to see if it made a difference and she lost 4lbs in four days and has continued to lose weight.

I feel for you, I've got celiac disease too and gluten free options often have loads of extra calories and are super high processed.

I've got a similar amount to lose and I've been tracking everything in my fitness pal. My target is 1800 calories a day (I'm 5'10)

I either skip breakfast or have a protein shake.
For lunch I'll have a big salad with ham and egg or something like an egg and bacon sandwich.
For dinner I'd do a jar of curry or sweet n sour with 2 chicken breasts and split that between DH and I, and I'll have that with 80g rice (pre cooked weight) or a full packet of rice if I want to cook a quick meal.
Snacks are a couple of bits of fruit, couple of rice cakes (sometimes I'll have a small packet of the chocolate coated rice cakes)and maybe a protein yoghurt.

could It be your coeliacs disease that is making your waist large? I am coeliac too and all my body except my stomach area look very slim but I have a large, round belly. Someone recently congratulated me on my pregnancy by saying ‘bumps coming along well’ I am not pregnant 😳
I have recently started trying to tackle it.
i haven’t lost any weight yet but at 5”5 and 11 stone 7 I am looking to lose a stone as a starting point and see how I feel.
diet wise I stick to a few variations:
breakfast is either:
strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and a sliced banana with a couple of spoonfuls of plain soya yogurt. A small sprinkle of gluten free granola and some mixed seeds on top or
gluten free porridge oats made with whole milk, a scoop of vanilla protein powder and sliced banana or
a shake made with frozen berries, protein powder, soya yogurt, milk and banana or
2 poached egg on one slice of toast

lunches are always salad based at the moment
i grill a chicken breast marinated in spices and have with leaves, cucumber, tomato, carrot, a small drizzle of Mayo. I sometimes swap out the chicken for a tin on salmon but you could add any protein. I also have an apple or pear at lunch
Or a gluten free sandwich made using warburtons gluten free super soft white square rolls (136 calories per roll but the only gluten free bread I have found that is comparable to regular and worthy of a sandwich)

evening meal is whatever the family is having but I have reduced my portion size and full my plate with more veg. Tonight is pasta meatballs, I will have a smaller portion of pasta with 4 meatballs, lots of broccoli and peas on the side and still have enough calories left on MFP to factor in a small blob of mozzarella
tomorrow is chicken fajitas so I make mine up without the wraps but have it with salad and a side of roasted sweet potato

i am definitely eating much healthier than I was a week or so ago when I was eating a lot of junk and my daily food is coming in at 1475 calories or below. I am also doing couch to 5k. I feel healthier and don’t feel hungry. I also make sure I drink a lot of water,

the only thing that has given me pause for thought is the poster above who mentioned the pill, I’m sure my stomach swelling could be traced back to when I had to switch contraceptives and that is something I will consider if after a couple of months I don’t see much change

Would a personal trainer be an option for you? There ones in my gym are amazing, not just about the exercise, but really knowledgeable about nutrition, hormones, and lifestyle etc. It may help to have some really practical advice and a structured diet plan/routine to follow.
Best of luck.

Are you drinking extra calories OP, and not taking these into account? High sugar or energy drinks or alcohol?

could It be your coeliacs disease that is making your waist large?
I have wondered about this. As a child I was stick thin with a huge bloated stomach. My parents never did anything about it. I was in my 20s before I was diagnosed, I’ve been gluten free for over a decade but my stomach is still huge.

Have you spoken to the doctor about trying Saxenda OP? Or you can pay for it through Boots if you can afford it (£150 a month roughly). I've lost 2 stone in 3 months.

It's having some supply issues at the moment so may be difficult getting it initially but it really works, it reduces your appetite and I even found that my other cravings (especially alcohol) were massively curbed.

This is a random thought and I don't mean to scare you so I apologise... but have they properly examined your abdomen? Can't help thinking of someone I know who started looking like they were pregnant (and definitely weren't) which after investigations turned out to be an ovarian cyst the size of a large baby. It's entirely possible you're just apple shaped but may be worth asking questions if you haven't already.

None of this is helpful re the prediabetes though. sorry.

Setting a goal weight is not as straightforward as it sounds, but if you are using BMI, I think it is usual to aim for the middle or lower end of the range, rather than the top end, unless you have a large frame.

It's hard to lose weight when you don't have much to lose.

Apologies if I missed it, but wre you tracking your calories? I think this is essential, even more a bit. Especially when you don't have a lot to lose. You might think what you are eating is fine, but still be just the wrong side of what you should be eating.

Also, have you heard about the way of eating to reduce blood sugar spikes? It's basically eating your food in a specific order. I found this such a useful way of eating less carbs, and reducing carb cravings. I, like you, am about a stone over what I want to be and have been halfheartedly trying to something about it for years, but this (the blood sugar hack + counting calories) is the only thing that seems to have really shifted anything.

When I first started walking every day I actually gained weight from muscle and inflammation.

Allow yourself to rest if you need it, account for the hunger from exercise too.

Keep this up, lower foods that cause insulin spikes and come back in a year. Your whole shape will change and weight loss will become easier as the muscle burns calories at rest.

Big one tho, watch your insulin, if you eat things like bread make sure you slow the insulin with fat and protein. Especially eat a proper amount of fat and protein for the exercise.

I started in feb 2022 and walk for a min of 2 hours a day, keep insulin down. Big one, don’t binge after exercising, it slows it right down.

I felt hopeless like you, keep going.

You need to count every single calorie, it's surprising how many you can be eating, but there is also a school of thought that eating too few can prevent weight loss. Using an app is the easiest way, My Fitness Pal is one of the popular ones. I'm not gonna lie and say it's easy to begin with, but you soon get into the swing of it and it becomes routine after a while.

Oh and eating carbohydrates whilst trying to diet is going to make you feel starving from the constant insulin spikes. Especially with the low fat BS the nhs pushes.

Have a look at adopting a low glycemic diet and see your hunger disappear.

Too much in + Not enough activity.

Its as simple as that really, count your callories both in and expended and see how they compare - an hours walking a day is pretty negligable tbh.

It’s more complex than calories in, calories out. Insulin and thyroid play a huuuuge role.

They don’t call it the fat storage hormone for nothing

Its still fundementaly down to more work done and less fuel in, theres no escaping that fact.

It sounds like you may be consuming quite a lot of sugar (not refined sugar but food that immediately turns to glucose when you eat it). Suggest looking at low GI foods - complex carbs plus protein to ensure you feel full. You could also try more strengthening exercises, as higher muscle mass = higher basal metabolic rate. I also think you need to reframe your thinking. You have lost weight but not as much or as quickly as you wanted to. You know that without your efforts that your weight may increase and your health would not improve. All the best.