Why is it impossible to lose weight?

Question

I eat 1500 calories a day, a lot of which is fruit and vegetables and it's quite low carb. I don't touch junk food, sweets (apart from fruit) or alcohol except for special occasions. I even tried 800 calories a day for a couple months. I get at the very least an hour of aerobics in each day and I go everywhere on foot.

A year of this and I'm still 20 lbs overweight, haven't lost a thing. I went to three doctors. I came out negative for hypothyroidism, so they pretty much just told me to keep doing what I'm doing, even though it's not working. What can I do? I feel horrible, uncomfortable and so incredibly ugly.

Answer 1

Drink at least 4 liters of water a day, make sure that your getting about 8 hours of sleep a night. Go in for a massage every other month or so to relax your muscles cause every single day exercising isn't good for them, you want to have at least a day off a week. That should help you, if it doesn't join a gym and talk to a trainer, they may be able to help you cause you can give them more detail then you did us, like how strenuous your exercise is. Keep in mind you maybe building muscle as fast as your losing fat.

Answer 2

I completely understand I'm actually doing the same thing you are eating lots of friuts and veggies. I do like eating Whole Wheat bread at times to. But, I'm trying really hard and i'm struggling with losing weight to I'm 17 and when I was 15 or so I was about 174 I am now down to 154 with the help of Weight Watchers. But, I have a ways to go yet my goal is about 135 -130 and it's coming off super slowly for me 2. I exercise every single day i'm ready to give up but I'm not so the best thing I can say is don't give up no matter what it's hard and I know that the slower it comes off the less likely I am to gain all of that back ! There are times when I still do feel ugly but it's getting better becuz I feel better. If you wanna talk more email me or message me !

Answer 3

Did your doctors test you for hyperinsulinemia (high insulin)?

You say you are eating a lot of fruit and vegetables, but you have a low carb diet. Fruit and vegetables are carbohydrates. If you are eating low glycemic carbohydrates, berries, leafy green veges, then I am at a loss. However, if you are eating cereals, potatoes, carrots, corn, you are eating the higher glycemic veges, and that might be part of the problem.

Do you eat protein at all? The trick to losing is to slow down your body's processing of the food you eat into blood glucose. Protein helps that. About the only way to do lose weight is to find a different diet that can teach you what foods are high glycemic (higher in natural sugar) and what ones are lower.

I started with the Zone diet, then went on to the Protein Power diet. Now, due to other problems, I am on a yeast (candida) cleanse diet. I have lost 5 pounds in 6 months on diet alone (with some cheating.)
Check out www.hufa.org for more info on hyperinsulinemia and diets.

Answer 4

I know exactly what you're saying. Been there, done that. My chiropractor told me to be careful of my fruit intake. Some fruits are very high in sugar which means excess calories. You're better off, if you have a juicer, to juice you're fruits and veggies. You can even do them in a combo drink. That way, the body is getting everything it needs, but will digest quicker and the natural sugars will be used quickly.

The low carb diets are fading in popularity because they work for awhile, but stop working or if you go back to regular eating for a time, you gain weight quicker. Be certain to include Anti-oxidizing foods in your diet to clean out any impurities. (garynull.com) Eat plenty of berries...strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, and boysenberries and juice them together as well. The best antioxidents a body could want.

It certainly sounds like you're in a yo-yo syndrome. 800-1,500 is quite a jump. Try staying a 1,000 per day and don't be afraid to add multigrain bread without refined sugars in it. That carb is what jump-starts your metabolism. When you try to fool it, it backs off and the body thinks you're trying to starve it. Two slices of whole grain bread a day will not be a detriment, it will help. (go to Beach Body.com...they're fantastic with guarnteed results.) Even if you just read what they have on line, it will help you tremendously. Good Luck.

Answer 5

What you need to do is shock your system for a week.
20 lbs is not a lot to be overweight so your body is coping with this..

First week: Change your workouts...do only 10 minutes of aerobics a day to warm up. Then go into weight training (I'm not talking about anything crazy) just work out all of your body parts. Split upper /lower...do upper 2x a week and lower 3x.

Change your diet this week, go up to 2200 calories. Have all carbs for breakfast and lunch, for dinner go all protein... a grilled chicken breast or two..

Week two:

Lower the weight training to body parts only 1x upper / 2x lower. Reintegrate your aerobics this week.

Drop your calories to 1700.

week three:

weight training 1x upper 1x lower ...
drop calories to 1400..

If after week three you see no results, then find another medical opinion.

Good Luck!

Answer 6

Maybe you should try to change your workout a little bit. Your body becomes very efficient after a while and doing the same routine will stop working. Try working on building muscle which burns more fat, by doing some light weights with your walking or at the gym. It will burn more calories than not using weights. Maybe you should see a personal trainer or a nutritionist. You can talk to them tell them what your menu is like and they can work with you to reach your goals. I wish you lots of luck!

Answer 7

Here is what you need to do, if you are serious about losing weight and keeping it off. Eat 6 small meals a day about every 4 hours. Here what that will do for you, your metabolism will increase (i.e. Loose weight) and you will have more engry. If you go on a diet and eat less, your metabolism will slow down and store to fat. That is why diets dont work. Only the size of your fist, carbs (examples:baked potato, pasta, oatmeal, beans, corn, melon, apples, fat free yogurt, whole wheat breads)in one and protien (examples:chicken breast, swordfish, shrimp, turkey breast) in the other. You can also eat vegetables and salads with any meal, they dont have none or little fat). 30min cardo exercise every day. Any of these(examples: walking, jogging, swimming,running, biking, ect), Monday cardo, tues upper body (arms: curls, tricep extensions,pull ups, front press)(abdominals: leg pull crunch, leg raises), (chest: bench press, butterfly, pullover)(shoulders: front press, arm pullover, cross county skier machine)(back:seated row, lat pull downs, back extension)(YOU DONT HAVE TO DO IN ONE DAY, mix it up) wed cardo, thurs lower body (legs: leg pull,leg press, squats, lounges) fri cardo, sat upper. Sunday eat anything you want and dont exercising, you do this on sunday so your body doesnt go into starvation mode. YOU NEED TO TAKE SUNDAY OFF. If you stilck with this you will have a great body. also drink aleast 8oz of water daily! Stay away from Mcdonals, Wendys, ect because there is nothing good for you on the menu's even the salads are bad (beaon bits, cheeze, dressing, ect) Good Luck :)

Answer 8

Fruit is full of sugar. You have to cut out the fruit and certain vegetables like tomatoes have sugar. You are not low carb if you are eating fruit. Exercise every day, even if it's just a walk. Go on a high protein, low carbohydrate diet. Eat fish, eggs, chicken, occasional lean beef or pork, low fat cottage cheese. Stay away from regular cheese, no bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, peas, beans (except green beans). No fruit and no fruit juice (it's sugar water, my dr says). Cut down on carrots and tomatoes (included ketchup). Use mustard instead of mayonnaise in recipes. Eat lots of salads, green vegetables. Salads only have one tablespoon of dressing for the whole salad. No ice cream, or other desserts. 8 glasses of water a day. No caffeine

Answer 9

I feel you sister, your pain, that is. I too have been struggling since I let myself go during the last trimester of pregnancy. ANYWAY. I had to work my **** off and good thing is that is worked and still does. I bought Slim N 6 and dropped 6lbs. but my body changed drastically. I went from an 18 to a 12. I could not believe it! Then when I got bored with that I went to Tai Bo, plus I joined the gym and there, I take any class that interests me. Girlfriend, in short you have to exercise most of the days of the week and work yourself up to six or seven days. Sorry...

Answer 10

Are you exercising as well? You need to burn those calories. Just walking for 30 minutes a day will do wonders. Walking, swimming, and biking was how I lost 20 pounds in college as well as watching what I ate. I still walk and occasionally swim to keep it off.
Also don't try to consume too few calories otherwise your body will go into starvation mode and slow your metabolism in an effort to conserve energy.