Anyone else had the experience of eating less and/or exercising more but not losing weight?

[girlnearedinburgh]

I have never lost weight through exercise, no matter how much I do, despite having strictly controlled my diet for years now, since I was 14 or thereabouts (I definitely don't eat more to outweigh the effects of the exercise).

While I used to be able to lose weight through dieting I always had to go to pretty extreme measures (when I started trying to diet around age 11 or so I tried several of the "big name" diets at the time (Rosemary Conley etc) but ended up putting weight on rather than losing it simply because I was overweight on a calorie intake below the diets I tried). I was, however, able to lose weight.

I have been on anti-depressants for around 10 years now though (although not for depression) and since being on them, the only way I seem to be able to lose weight is by eating below the 100 calories a day line, something which I find nearly impossible to do for more than a few days at a time. I have had my thyroid tested god knows how many times and various other things done too but no doctor can find anything wrong with me. I've even had my metabolism tested but the figure came out far above what I was actually eating (I am a former anorexic so I know a thing or two about counting calories - I am not doing it wrong).

While trying to work out what the hell is wrong with me and what I can do about it I came across a few articles suggesting I may not be the only one having this problem. I just wondered if anyone else has had the experience but is 100% sure that they are calorie counting correctly?

[girlnearedinburgh]

Proteinwise I eat quite a lot of dairy and I eat oily fish 3-4 times a week. Meat once a week maybe. Don't think I'm deficient in anything.

I am not on a diet in that I am not trying to lose weight but I gain weight very easily so I have to count calories. I don't find it stressful, I've been doing it most of my life now. It's just normal for me. I don't really think about it that often, but I know that I have to start thinking about it more and figure the problem out if I'm not going to be destroyed by a pregnancy. I'm not staring myself. I'm never hungry.

I might look into the 5:2 thing. I think being massively overweight as the result of a pregnancy or two is more of a risk than anorexia again. But I don't have high hopes that I''ll be able to stick to it as fasting is miserable. I can do 200 calories a day but start to crack up on any less (not that I eat less than that very often). Thanks for the books suggestions sleepwhenidle - I'll have a look at those too.

I'm just defensive about being called delusional PrimalLass! Diet resistance weight problems are just a really frustrating problem to have as everyone seems to assume that you are just not capable of adding things up properly or of figuring out how your own body works and because they made mistakes that stopped them from losing weight then some people think that you must be too. I know everyone is well meaning though and I appreciate people trying to help. I've more or less given up on the NHS though. They just think I'm lying and secretly going home to binge on pizza and ice cream every night!

[PrimalLass]

5:2 isn't fasting altogether. It is taking your calories to 25% of your TDEE.

I find it hard too. But I was delusional about how my wine intake was making me fat.

[Sleepwhenidie]

How do you count your calories girl? MFP? When you aren't dieting, on a typical day, how would that come out in terms of total calories and also macronutrients (what % and g of protein, fat, carbs - it does a little pie chart and table for you?). Also what exercise do you do?

[girlnearedinburgh]

Oscarwilde - I don't lose weight through exercising either unfortunately although I never have done, even before the anti-depressants (which I take for a sleeping disorder which is resistant to everything else I've ever tried - I think someone asked). There seems to be research that shows that exercise isn't effective for everyone which I was glad to discover as at least I don't feel like I'm going mad! I've been going to the doctor about this issue for the last 20 years or so (many different doctors) but they just tell me that nothing's wrong with me and that diet and exercise will fix it (they clearly think I'm lying about what I eat or that I'm unable to add up properly). All incredibly frustrating!

[Sleepwhenidie]

Girl, what would you eat and drink through a normal non-diet day? I hear you saying that exercise doesn't make you lose weight, but do you do any?

[oscarwilde]

That's fine OP - your question asked if anyone else didn't lose weight through diet or exercise. I was in that position and then lost a ton at bootcamp and continued to lose it afterwards. The theory seemed to be to kickstart your metabolism again.

[PrimalLass]

Maybe you will have to try giving dairy up then. What about getting tested for food intolerances?

[fideline]

"How low was your VLCD fideline? I'm trying to figure out why the laws of nature seem to cease to apply with some medication."

800, then 600, cal per day. Madness! (and as I say it didn't work)

[Cocolepew]

You cant possibly be only having 100 calories a day. Is that what you mean or have I read it wrong. ?

[girlnearedinburgh]

I don't do much exercise at the moment because I have been working 90 hour weeks setting up my own business, although it's now calming down! I have been through periods of intense exercise though - and it never makes any difference. A few years back I gave it another shot and did 4 hours of zumba a week plus 2-3 hours of walking. I kept my calorie intake the same but nothing changed weight wise. At school I was very active - 4 hours basketball a week, 1 hour badminton, 2 hours of P.E. and 40 minutes a day walking to school and back. I was overweight though. Probably ate about 1200 calories a day, as I do now. In both cases I didn't put on any extra weight when I gave it all up. But as I said, there is research that shows that exercise just isn't effective for everyone so I don't feel like some sort of freak of nature because I don't lose weight with exercise. I just feel like a freak of nature when I don't lose weight eating 200kcals a day!

Thanks oscarwilde - I appreciate hearing about your experience! I just wish I could find other people who have ruled out everything else and still can't lose weight. I feel a bit lonely having this weird problem that noone else seems to!

fideline - I lived on 200kcals a day for 6 years and wasn't thin - it's insane. You might be the closest I've come to someone else in the same boat! Although as I've said before, I was thin when I was anorexic, eating 500kcal a day (healthy looking thin). More than twice what I can't get thin on now I'm on these bloody pills! Head fuck!

[Sleepwhenidie]

and what do you eat in a day girl? Talk me through from breakfast to bedtime..including drinks...on a non diet day.

[girlnearedinburgh]

sleepwhenidle -I don't really understand the calorie counting question? I just read the back of packets and then add the amount in my head to what I've already eaten. I round up if something's almost 100 kcals but never round down. I also try to eat in blocks of hundreds as it makes counting easier. If I've just eaten something that is 170kcal for example, I'll have a laughing cow light cheese slice or something to take it up to 190kcal and then call it 200kcal.

I eat 1200 kcal a day now but I ate 200kcals a day for 6 years. You can't eat too much of anything on 200kcals a day and obviously most groups were excluded entirely since I had so few calories to play with so I don't think I have a food intolerance.

[misscph1973]

If you have trouble sleeping - which I guess you do as you say you take antidepressans for a sleep disorder - this could very well be the culprit. Lack of sleep can cause havock with weight loss. My DH has big sleeping trouble, so we have read a lot about sleep. Basically lack of sleep causes an imbalance in hormones. Is this somethin gyou have looked into?

[Sleepwhenidie]

I'm not so interested in the calories girl, you've said that isn't working for you so if I can (and its relevant, I can't say without knowing in detail what you eat), to suggest an alternative strategy

[girlnearedinburgh]

misscph - yes, I've been told that sleeping and metabolism are linked very strongly and given my sleep disorder is very severe I suppose it makes sense that my metabolism is extremely wonky too! I sleep well with the pills though, so I'm not usually sleep deprived. I've had all my hormones checked and nothing came up as being abnormal although I've read that different countries have different ideas of what's "normal". So who knows?!

sleepwhenidle and anyone else who asked (might as well include the calories) - typical daily diet: mullerrice (205kcal), 1 pink grapefruit (100kcals approx), half packet covent garden minestrone soup (150 kcal), apple (60kcal), 2 scrambled eggs (I call this 200 kcal because calorie counters all seem to give quite different values; don't add anything to the eggs), half bag of spinach with 1 slice cheddar cheese from a packet (80kcal for cheese, 40kcal for spinach). tin of mackeral from tescos (240 kcal), mini-milk ice lolly (40kcal).

[Cocolepew]

Oh phew! I had read it wrong

[Sleepwhenidie]

No coco you read it right, the food above is a non diet day if I understand correctly. On a diet it would be less than 100 calories.

[Sleepwhenidie]

What about drinks girl? Coffee, tea, water, anything?

[girlnearedinburgh]

I just drink water really. And my two bottles of wine a week or thereabouts! And yes, that is a non-diet day but diet days are pretty rare.

[Sleepwhenidie]

Sorry girl, I feel like I'm interrogating you! You say you've been dieting since age 11, went through a period of anorexia, have a sleeping issue you take AD's for...could you give me a kind of timeline, from age 11 of the different periods of how you ate, what your weight did, when you started the AD's, up to the age you are now?

[Sleepwhenidie]

Also - may as well get all the questions in now , are you taking any supplements and how is your health otherwise, particularly skin, hair, nails, digestion, energy level, mood....? Do you feel hungry (if so, any particular time of day?) when eating 1200 cals as you describe above? Ever have a binge or periods when you just eat whatever you feel like and not think about calories (genuine question, I'm not suggesting you must do, not that I'd blame you if you did!). If so, what and how would you eat then?

[NearTheWindymill]

OP I don't have the answers but I'm about 5'6" and just under 12st at the moment. I'm 54 and struggle terribly to keep my weight under 12st. I am also a recovered anorexic (20s). In addition I have thyroid disease and take thyroxine (have done for more than 20 years). 20 years ago I was 9st 7lb and kept that weight easily. It crept up to 10st7lb in my 40s and 11st 7lb+ in my 50s. I walk far less now than I used to but that's a work/time issue and one I need to deal with. I do about 5000 steps a day and should do about 10,000. I have also been on HRT for about four years and think that adds a stone. I don't think the thyroid has anything to do with it.

Today I have had: brown bread, salad, cottage cheese and a wicked Kipling Fondant cake (tiny) for lunch; spag bol (not a huge portion) and salad for dinner, a skinny caramel latte (small this morning), two cups of instant coffee.

I eat that most of the time and really struggle to lose weight. I'd also say that generally a drink a bit more than two bottle of wine a week - probably three. I have given up alcohol for Lent so nearly two weeks - I have lost 4lb without trying.

I don't think it's the alcohol per se but I do remember reading somewhere that alcohol has an impact on how the body metabolises food and slows it down because all the body's efforts are going into cleansing the liver. It really does seem to be making a difference and I have been sleeping better too.

You haven't said how old you are OP but I do think a lot is linked to regular exercise (in my 20s I think I covered 5/6 miles a day on foot - now it's more like 2 miles). Can't speak for anti-depressants.

[CoteDAzur]

" I lived on 200kcals a day for 6 years and wasn't thin"

So what's are you saying here - that your body can somehow function without energy? I mean, if you are not eating the calories and if your body is not burning its fat stores either, that must be what you are saying.

[MrRected]

Are you drinking 3l of water a day OP?

[girlnearedinburgh]

sleepwhenidle - I don't mind the questions although a potted life history would be a bit complicated! I did write one for doctors at one point though so I'll try to dig it out.

No, I don't take supplements, I think my diet is quite healthy at the moment although I maybe could do with some top ups here and there. Health otherwise is pretty good. I have terrible skin but my hair and nails are healthy, I don't have any digestive problems and I have plenty of energy. I'm usually in a good mood (although that may be in part due to the anti-depressants even though I don't take them to alter my mood! I never feel hungry, even when I diet. That's one of the strangest things. I can go for 2 days eating only 100 calories and I still don't feel hungry by the end of it. It's just psychologically difficult not having food to look forward to to break up the day. I don't ever binge. I developed a pretty phenomenal self-discipline during my anorexic phase and have just always managed to resist, but then never feeling hungry helps with that!

CoteDAzur - yes, that is what I'm saying although I don't understand it. I wouldn't have thought it was possible if it hadn't happened to me. Although there have been some studies done on fasting, which have shown that a fairly active life style is perfectly possible on very low calorie diets which made me feel like I wasn't going mad!

NeartheWindyMill - I feel your pain! I am envious that cutting out alcohol works for you though (although in some ways I am very glad I don't have to cut it out). I'm 32 by the way. I think exercise works for some but not for others - this article seems to confirm my own experience: www.newscientist.com/article/dn6735-some-people-are-immune-to-exercise.html

Essentially it says that the whole "exercise is always good for you" is a bit of a myth and that peoples responses vary significantly. Some people see no benefits from exercise whatsoever. For me, I don't actually think I fall into the category of no benefits whatsoever. I do feel some health benefits but I don't experience any weight loss from it, no matter how much I do. I've always had that though, that's not linked to the antidepressants whereas I used to be able to lose weight by cutting calories and now I can't. As I've said before I've tried cutting out alcohol in the past and it hasn't made any difference. I don't eat more or drink calorific drinks to compensate.