Jan 25 starters Thread 6. Set points, baggy trousers and all the ups and downs

[Thelittlestranger]

Didn't want to lose you all, so have started a new thread.

Roll up, roll up!

Morning all. Sorry to hear you’re feeling down @Howinthehelldidthishappen it’s a big old process isn’t it. Weight loss is a physical thing but the emotional side can’t be underestimated either.

I’ve just realised something that might be a NSV… last year I began snoring really badly. I was waking my partner up with it and when I had a cold at the end of the year I was even waking myself up! I realised a couple of weeks ago my DP hadn’t mentioned my snoring in a while and he told me I stopped a while ago, he just didn’t want to tell me and jinx it I think!

Morning all,

@Polkadotdash sorry to hear your weight loss is slow. I don’t know for sure but I have read that some people simply don’t respond until they get right up to the highest doses. What are you currently on?

Re jab bruising I don’t get that but since moving up to 5 mg I get a red itchy patch at the jab site. The first 5 mg I took even resulted in a red patch on the jab site from the week before too! Very weird. I currently have 4 red patches at various stages of fading on my tummy. Suffice to say bikinis are out of the question this summer 😆, and I’ll won’t be injecting into anywhere visible like arms and legs.

@MananaMananaPenelope @Polkadotdash @Jins @LillethCrane
Thanks all. I'm actually sitting at work very teary now, really appreciate the support. I know I'm probably being too hard on myself, but I really didn't think this would be such an emotional journey.

@CurlsandCurves Yes, that sounds like what I have on my legs, minus the itching. If I do jab later I think I'll be trying in my tummy, to try and avoid irritating my legs further.

@MananaMananaPenelope yeah, totally fed up with it. I was using Lloyds pharmacy online, then switched to IQ doctor. The message is always ‘give it time to work’ and ‘you haven’t hit your therapeutic dose yet’. Which would land better with me if I could find that very slow losses are common. But that doesn’t seem to be the case. Most people have lost at least 10lbs by now. I seem to lose a pound, gain two. I have friends also on MJ and they have transformed. I don’t look any different at all. Maybe slightly less puffy in my ankles. That’s it. It’s very disheartening. I’ve even wondered if I’ve ended up with some placebo rather than the actual drug!

@LillethCrane I'm a side sleeper and when heaviest, my cheeks were pressing down on my nose, had to use those plastic devices you stuff into your nose to keep airways open. But I don't need them any more.

’Official’ weigh in day for me (I’m a daily weigher but today is my jab day) and I’ve lost just under 2lbs this week! Plus I am on my period and went out for a very rare meal out with friends last night for curry - I had starter, then fish curry and naan for main but didn’t eat much of my main at all. I was so full and genuinely could have finished after the starter. But I expected to hop on the scales and be much heavier this morning due to all of that. Really pleased since the scales had been stuck again for a couple of weeks.

My friends noticed my weight loss as soon as I got to the pub too. I’ve not seen them since just before I started and I’ve lost almost 20lbs since then.

Starting week 9.

SW: 12st 2
CW: 10st 10.8
GW: 9st 7

Howinthehelldidthishappen
I understand how you feel. I keep getting thoughts of "I still look shit with all the loose skin and ageing face so what's the point". But then I look at the photos of when I started and I definitely look better - I just hate photos of myself in general. So im trying to just focus on the fact that being overweight is bad for my health and at least when I get to goal il be healthy - even if I still don't feel I look great.

When I look back and think about when I was in my teens and 20's and at my thinnest and most objectively attractive I remember I often hated the way I looked then too. Even though I look at old photos now and think I was gorgeous! So I've always been self critical no matter what age/size.

I'm trying to just embrace getting older and being thankful im healthy and have no major issues rather than worrying about cellulite and loose skin.

Also dd is home from uni and hasn't mentioned the almost 2 stone I've lost since last time she saw me so that was a bit gutting! But then I remembered my dm telling me my dsis had lost a similar amount and I didn't notice at all when I saw her last week. Other people are not nearly so interested/invested in us as we are in ourselves!

Polkadotdash
Sorry if already been asked but have you done your tdee and are sticking to it? Are you exercising? I would say a 4lb loss in 3 months there is something not quite right somewhere and you need to speak to your supplier. Maybe you need to be on the higher doses to get decent suppression?

Daily weigher here and I’m not weighing today in case I’ve gained 🤣. Weigh in and jab tomorrow.

@Polkadotdash how frustrating 😡. I don’t think MJ works for everyone and certainly not in the same way between individuals but that isn’t much weight loss in 3 months. I didn’t lose much in the early weeks but I was eating much the same, just less. As I’ve gradually cut carbs down I’ve been losing better. I’m currently reading the blood sugar diet and I wonder if the Fast 800 would help in kick starting things for you? One thing MJ helps with is will power.

W8 D1 and another 1.6lbs down! I had hoped it would be more but I accept it's a great number and after two weeks of over 3lbs, it was going to slow down a bit. I bought two Joules Breton tops in a 14 (I'm usually a snug 16) and they are delightfully loose and comfy. I can see my boobs are shrinking along with everything else, so I'm doing lots of weights (plenty of dumbbell flys to minimise sagging).

SW: 15st 10lbs
CW: 14st 0.9lbs
GW: 9st 10lbs

Weight starting with a 13, I'm coming for you!

@JoanCollinsDiva yeah, my TDEE is 1500 basic. I aim for 1100 a day, some days it’s 1300, some days closer to 1500. By the end of the week I’m on will power only until the next jab. That’s hard and I’m having a kitkat by Friday. I don’t work out. I don’t have any time or energy. I do an office job but I have a 3 hour commute with lots of walking involved. I was hoping that if I could shift a stone or two I might get a bit more energy to try to tackle a bit of exercise. But that seems a long way off.

@Jins i did think about doing the fast 800 for a week to see if that changed anything but when I looked at the vegetarian options they looked like there is a lot of meal prep required. I would have to wait until I have a week off. I’m also worried about how tired it will make me and if it will make my anaemia worse. One thing that I have realised being on MJ is that I use food to prop up my energy levels to get me through the day. I frequently fall asleep during the day or I’m in a a very close state to being asleep so over the past few years I’ve used sugary snacks to push through. I have sleep apnea and the cpap machine has helped a bit but I could still happily sleep for 12-14 hours a day given the chance.

Sadly, I’m with you @Polkadotdash . Weighed this morning and I had put on 2.5lbs - since last week and since yesterday. I know that can’t be right but it means I’ve lost 4lbs in 9 weeks and I feel very miserable about it.

Polkadotdash
How tall are you and what do you weigh if you don't mind me asking? Do you track/weigh your food etc (tedious I know). It's just sometimes people consume much more than they think. I remember once counting a bowl of fruit n fibre as 200 cals but when I actually weighed it I was having a double portion for example.

Im 5"8" so quite tall and 11st 12 and my cutting tdee is 1200 per day. I have really strong suppression and most days only manage about 800 per day - I'm still only averaging about 2lbs a week.

I also exercise for an hour every day. So what I'm saying is that you may need much less calories than you think to lose weight. I wouldn't lose on 1500 a day I don't think.

It's shit I know!

Ah. My sleep apnea keeps me awake!

I’m kicking myself but I’ve literally this week given the Rose Elliot Vegetarian Low-Carb diet to a charity shop. I’d have been happy to send it to you otherwise @Polkadotdash. It’s an old book but I found it useful when feeding my low carbing SIL. Reducing carbs when you’re veggie is as hard as when you’re on a low fibre diet but in different ways.

Yes I have found as well that despite being a lifelong calorie counter, I often underestimate the calories by a lot. Like look at this plate of sushi, certainly not a massive portion, right? You would not be considered greedy and stuffing your face if you ate one of those for lunch - most people would probably consider it a modest low calorie meal.

612 kcal. You won't have much left if you want to stick to 1200.

@Polkadotdash the other thing you’ve said that resonated is that you’ve used sugary snacks to push through in the past which can lead to or be a symptom of insulin resistance. In which case it’s definitely worth chatting with your provider. You may do better on a higher dose. I do and I have insulin resistance

Sorry to hear you're having a tough time @Polkadotdash . Is your anaemia being treated? Have you had other things checked, like b12, thyroid and vitamin D?
I have pernicious anaemia (b12 deficiency) and before I was treated I totally used to rely on sugar to keep me awake, so that totally resonates with me.
could you consider intermittent fasting (rather than fast800)? It's the thing that absolutely works best for me. I don't eat until lunchtime, then have pretty normal meals for lunch and dinner. I try and have high-ish protein and low-ish carbs but don't calorie count. The constant switching between fasting and eating seems to help your metabolism keep burning fat instead of going into starvation mode and holding on to it.

I’ve finally lost another pound after two weeks of no losses which means that I have lost a stone in total and can finally see the 11 on the scales!

SW:12.13
CW:11.13
GW:10.7

@Howinthehelldidthishappen yes me! I’ve lost a similar amount to you with about the same still to go and I feel flabby and massive still. I think I posted earlier about actually feeling I look worse in some of my clothes!
we’ll get there, we have to take the massive wins, lower BMI, looser clothes etc. I know I need to do more exercise to tone up. I remember last time I lost a lot of weight I was similar, maybe it’s a thing when you’re part way through. Try to do little things for you, and it’s ok to do have these days, we’re all here for you!

@Polkadotdash sorry, that’s super frustrating😳, definitely worth speaking to your GP I think.
I agree with others, intermittent fasting has really helped me. Have a look at the f800 easy book, lots of recipes that are quick to prep and may help you? Good luck

@2025istheyeari I complained earlier as well that before I was just a solid chunk, but now there's wobbly bits all over.
But they will go.

Yes, it's the wobbly bits isn't it? It was solid before!

Im about halfway or more now so I'm hoping they will disappear a bit as I go down. The kitchen roll analogy you mentioned previously is a true one I think. Less weight loss is more noticeable as you get slimmer.

I think I'm past the days of shorts skirts and crop tops so I'm not planning on flaunting my saggy bits anyway - Only poor old dh has to see those!

I’ve always been wobbly, lumpy and cellulitey. I think after some research I have lipedema as the way my fat looks is exactly like what I’ve seen online from other people who have been diagnosed. I have friends who are bigger and for example, they have fat on their stomach so it’s big but it’s smooth and more solid, compared to me which is more lumpy nodules of fat.

I always think about the kitchen roll analogy now since someone first mentioned it! I have about another 20lbs to lose so hopefully that will make a significant difference to the lumpiness and wobbliness 😃

Small NSV - went to the gym today. They’ve got the wall mirrors, and while doing my back squats, I noticed that a) I can see a hint of a waist emerging, and b) my thighs are starting to show some definition ☺️ Don’t get me wrong, they are still thunder thighs, and they always will be, but I’m happy to see some muscle emerging again.
Which I’m likely to lose during recovery from
surgery 😫 hey-ho

@0ncemorewithfee1ing thank god I’ve found you!!! Someone to share my frustration with. My friends who are losing like the clappers all think I’m secretly binge eating and ruining my efforts, but I swear I’m not!