Hypothyroidism and Weight Loss
Hypothyroidism and how to combat fat Symptoms of hypothyroidism Fatigue, Coldness, Joint pain, Thin nails, Paleness, Weight gain/water retention, Constipation, Migraines, Hair loss, Shortness of breath and many more...
If you suffer from any/all of the above symptoms you may be one of the many who suffer from hypothyroidism.
The only way to discover if you do have a thyroid problem is by having blood tests.
It is relatively easy and shouldn't take longer than 3 days for the results.
What blood tests? Doctors will send away your blood to test your Thyroid-Stimulating hormone (TSH) levels in your pituitary gland.
High levels of TSH indicate that your gland is not producing high enough levels of the thyroid hormones Thyroxine (T4) and Triiodothyronine (T3).
Urine tests, body temperature tests and a variety of other tests may be needed to ascertain whether or not the person has a thyroid problem.
If your someone in your family has been diagnosed with an under active thyroid, the chances of your having it increases, as it runs in the family.
Treatment People with underactive thyroids are treated with L-T4 (L: Levorotatory) and/or L-T3, in various combinations.
There are L-T4-only tablets, L-T3-only and a number of L-T3/L-T4 combinations, where both synthetic L-T3 and L-T4 are taken simultaneously.
Treatment is taken daily and sometimes a few times per day.
The standard treatment in most countries, however, is Levothyroxine (L-T4) only.
There are many recent studies, however, that show that this may not be the correct treatment in all cases.
They give evidence that combination treatment of L-T3 and T4 achieves vast improvements in most symptoms.
Having a thyroid problem is nothing to be embarrassed about Having a thyroid problem is not very unique.
More than 3% of the world's population is hypothyroid.
You may carry a bit more weight than other people, you may be sluggish/tired and/or feel cold all the time.
But it's about time the rest of the world understood what people with under active thyroids go through every day.
It's about time people stop seeing an overweight person and jokingly say, "oh, I bet he blames his thyroid!" Hypothyroidism isn't selective, even celebrities suffer from thyroid issues.
One of the world's most famous TV talk show hosts, Oprah Winfrey suffered from a thyroid condition for a while.
Lucky for he, Oprah's condition has stabilized.
You never know, with a bit of healthy living, your condition may clear up too! Losing weight has never been easy.
If anyone ever tells you that they 'easily lose weight' they are either lying or they suffer from hyperthyroidism or something else.
They may never have been overweight before and therefore they don't understand.
Once you gain enough weight to be termed overweight or obese, your fat cells are not easily deflated.
In fact, fat cells have a memory, and it takes over 7 years for them to forget their inflated pasts.
Luckily, added to taking the correct combinations and doses of medication, there are ways of combating thyroid related weight issues.
How to lose weight and keep it off, even with underactive thyroid The first thing to realise with weight loss is that everyone is different.
What works for one person may not work for another.
It all has to do with the chemistry in our individual bodies.
If one thing doesn't work for you, try something else.
Find something that works for you, and then stick to it.
Make it a life-style change rather than a diet.
Some rules of thumb for steady but healthy weight loss are: 1.
Go to your doctor and have your regular blood tests done.
Ensure that your levels are right and if not, get your medication sorted out.
You must most definitely go on with the below, even if your medication isn't optimised.
Being healthy never harmed anyone! 2.
Weight loss of 1kg per week is absolutely the healthiest.
It may not sound like a lot, but if weight is lost at the optimal pace, then it is not just put back on again.
Radical weight loss gained from popping diet pills, is not sustainable and will just go straight back on after the pills are finished.
3.
Eat sensibly.
Don't over eat but just as importantly, don't under eat.
Under eating is almost as bad as over eating.
Your body goes into conservation mode and therefore everything you eat will go straight into storage, i.
e.
creation of fat cells.
Obviously fat storage would not go on forever, and eventually the weight would drop off, but who would want to starve themselves for weeks without food? Besides, it is unhealthier to starve your body from nutrients and vitamins than to be slightly overweight.
4.
Eat wholesome, healthy foods.
You should try to eat 6 smaller meals per day rather than the conventional 3 meals.
This will ensure that your blood sugar never crashes, making you crave sugars and succumbing to a binge eating session.
5.
Drink! Drink at least 2 to 3 litres of water each and every day.
You can have other things to drink as well, but try to limit it, and don't substitute anything for the water.
Some people like to add a bit of freshly squeezed lemon to their water, that is actually very healthy and can be extremely thirst quenching on a hot day.
6.
Try to get a healthy balanced life-style.
Exercise should be something you enjoy rather than shy away from.
This doesn't mean you have to become the world's next iron man.
Just do a one hour fast paced walk every day.
You can do this with a friend or family member, as it is always easier to get motivated when someone is there to push you along.
Swing your arms and legs enthusiastically as you walk and make sure your heart beats so fast that you can with some difficulty keep up the conversation, for the duration of your walk.
7.
Resistance training is great for toning down.
If you are unhappy with your arms, legs, bum or even your tummy, you can do resistance training that will help in all those specific areas.
8.
Last but not least, make sure you keep a positive attitude.
How often have you stood in front of the mirror, telling yourself that you are fat/ugly/worthless? What would you do if someone walked up to you and told you that you looked fat or that you had a big bum? Surely you would get very upset.
You might even want to lash out at the person.
Well, why should you allow yourself to think or say things like that about yourself? The power of thought is strong.
If you think that you are fat, you will probably carry on medicating yourself with food or exclude exercise from your daily life-style, because you start to tell yourself you aren't worth even trying, and you will stay right where you are.
9.
Try the above 7 steps for 2 months.
You don't have to cut out any food group (except sweets and junk food, if those have become a major food group in your life).
Be true to yourself.
Don't lie to yourself and pretend you are being healthier if you aren't.
Only you know but in the same vein only you can help you! 10.
If the above has not helped you at all after 2 months of really trying, then go to a dietician and find out if there might be some other medical problem that is causing you to retain your weight.
11.
Good luck!
If you suffer from any/all of the above symptoms you may be one of the many who suffer from hypothyroidism.
The only way to discover if you do have a thyroid problem is by having blood tests.
It is relatively easy and shouldn't take longer than 3 days for the results.
What blood tests? Doctors will send away your blood to test your Thyroid-Stimulating hormone (TSH) levels in your pituitary gland.
High levels of TSH indicate that your gland is not producing high enough levels of the thyroid hormones Thyroxine (T4) and Triiodothyronine (T3).
Urine tests, body temperature tests and a variety of other tests may be needed to ascertain whether or not the person has a thyroid problem.
If your someone in your family has been diagnosed with an under active thyroid, the chances of your having it increases, as it runs in the family.
Treatment People with underactive thyroids are treated with L-T4 (L: Levorotatory) and/or L-T3, in various combinations.
There are L-T4-only tablets, L-T3-only and a number of L-T3/L-T4 combinations, where both synthetic L-T3 and L-T4 are taken simultaneously.
Treatment is taken daily and sometimes a few times per day.
The standard treatment in most countries, however, is Levothyroxine (L-T4) only.
There are many recent studies, however, that show that this may not be the correct treatment in all cases.
They give evidence that combination treatment of L-T3 and T4 achieves vast improvements in most symptoms.
Having a thyroid problem is nothing to be embarrassed about Having a thyroid problem is not very unique.
More than 3% of the world's population is hypothyroid.
You may carry a bit more weight than other people, you may be sluggish/tired and/or feel cold all the time.
But it's about time the rest of the world understood what people with under active thyroids go through every day.
It's about time people stop seeing an overweight person and jokingly say, "oh, I bet he blames his thyroid!" Hypothyroidism isn't selective, even celebrities suffer from thyroid issues.
One of the world's most famous TV talk show hosts, Oprah Winfrey suffered from a thyroid condition for a while.
Lucky for he, Oprah's condition has stabilized.
You never know, with a bit of healthy living, your condition may clear up too! Losing weight has never been easy.
If anyone ever tells you that they 'easily lose weight' they are either lying or they suffer from hyperthyroidism or something else.
They may never have been overweight before and therefore they don't understand.
Once you gain enough weight to be termed overweight or obese, your fat cells are not easily deflated.
In fact, fat cells have a memory, and it takes over 7 years for them to forget their inflated pasts.
Luckily, added to taking the correct combinations and doses of medication, there are ways of combating thyroid related weight issues.
How to lose weight and keep it off, even with underactive thyroid The first thing to realise with weight loss is that everyone is different.
What works for one person may not work for another.
It all has to do with the chemistry in our individual bodies.
If one thing doesn't work for you, try something else.
Find something that works for you, and then stick to it.
Make it a life-style change rather than a diet.
Some rules of thumb for steady but healthy weight loss are: 1.
Go to your doctor and have your regular blood tests done.
Ensure that your levels are right and if not, get your medication sorted out.
You must most definitely go on with the below, even if your medication isn't optimised.
Being healthy never harmed anyone! 2.
Weight loss of 1kg per week is absolutely the healthiest.
It may not sound like a lot, but if weight is lost at the optimal pace, then it is not just put back on again.
Radical weight loss gained from popping diet pills, is not sustainable and will just go straight back on after the pills are finished.
3.
Eat sensibly.
Don't over eat but just as importantly, don't under eat.
Under eating is almost as bad as over eating.
Your body goes into conservation mode and therefore everything you eat will go straight into storage, i.
e.
creation of fat cells.
Obviously fat storage would not go on forever, and eventually the weight would drop off, but who would want to starve themselves for weeks without food? Besides, it is unhealthier to starve your body from nutrients and vitamins than to be slightly overweight.
4.
Eat wholesome, healthy foods.
You should try to eat 6 smaller meals per day rather than the conventional 3 meals.
This will ensure that your blood sugar never crashes, making you crave sugars and succumbing to a binge eating session.
5.
Drink! Drink at least 2 to 3 litres of water each and every day.
You can have other things to drink as well, but try to limit it, and don't substitute anything for the water.
Some people like to add a bit of freshly squeezed lemon to their water, that is actually very healthy and can be extremely thirst quenching on a hot day.
6.
Try to get a healthy balanced life-style.
Exercise should be something you enjoy rather than shy away from.
This doesn't mean you have to become the world's next iron man.
Just do a one hour fast paced walk every day.
You can do this with a friend or family member, as it is always easier to get motivated when someone is there to push you along.
Swing your arms and legs enthusiastically as you walk and make sure your heart beats so fast that you can with some difficulty keep up the conversation, for the duration of your walk.
7.
Resistance training is great for toning down.
If you are unhappy with your arms, legs, bum or even your tummy, you can do resistance training that will help in all those specific areas.
8.
Last but not least, make sure you keep a positive attitude.
How often have you stood in front of the mirror, telling yourself that you are fat/ugly/worthless? What would you do if someone walked up to you and told you that you looked fat or that you had a big bum? Surely you would get very upset.
You might even want to lash out at the person.
Well, why should you allow yourself to think or say things like that about yourself? The power of thought is strong.
If you think that you are fat, you will probably carry on medicating yourself with food or exclude exercise from your daily life-style, because you start to tell yourself you aren't worth even trying, and you will stay right where you are.
9.
Try the above 7 steps for 2 months.
You don't have to cut out any food group (except sweets and junk food, if those have become a major food group in your life).
Be true to yourself.
Don't lie to yourself and pretend you are being healthier if you aren't.
Only you know but in the same vein only you can help you! 10.
If the above has not helped you at all after 2 months of really trying, then go to a dietician and find out if there might be some other medical problem that is causing you to retain your weight.
11.
Good luck!
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