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She's working out 4-5 times a week, eating really healthy and the number on the scale just simply will not go down. I've spent a ton of time with her - we were together all day sunday. She eats 2 meals a day of around 500-700 calories. We eat nothing but natural stuff - meat, veggies, quality fats (peanut butter, avocado), a little bit of rice and potatoes - no bread, no processed stuff. We do have a cheat meal on Saturday but 95% of our other meals are pretty clean. She eats 2 meals a day - we've measured all the meals, it's always around 500-700 calories each (typically something like 4 oz chicken, little avocado, little rice).
This week she has been really great dieting and going to gym - she weighted 200 lbs on monday and today she's 203 (she's 5'10 and has a decent amount of muscle). WTF can I do to help her? Honestly I can eat 30-40% more than her and lose weight. She eats a lot less than me and stays the same or gains weight (I'm 5'10 212 male)
She has sworn to me that she's not cheating or binge eating when I'm watching. She desperately wants to lose weight and even asked me for a tummy tuck. I go to gym with her and she works out very hard
1)Is it possible she just has a horrific metabolism genetically?
2)Could she have ruined her metabolism by dieting? She's prolly like 30% BF and wants to be down to 20%. She was closer to 35% before
3)Could there be something wrong with her hormones/thyroid? What tests do I need to do to figure this out?
4)Should I have her go see a weight loss coach? Her doctor is seemingly not helping her.
edit: I should mention she's gotten results doing Keto but it causes her horrible stomach issues/pooping issues. She's tried twice and it screwed her up both times.
She's not consuming enough calories. If she weighs 200 pounds, she needs to consume around 2100 calories a day to maintain that weight. She's probably screwing with her metabolism by eating so little.
Have her add a snack every day. If she can eat dairy, have her add some normal (not fat-free) yogurt with berries if she likes them, and a tablespoon or two of granola in it for a fun crunch and healthy grains.
She should eat breakfast every morning, a snack some time mid-day, and dinner before 6PM, and only water after that until breakfast the next morning.
She doesn't need to go to 20% body fat. Women who are not athletes should be between 21-30% body fat.
She's not consuming enough calories. If she weighs 200 pounds, she needs to consume around 2100 calories a day to maintain that weight. She's probably screwing with her metabolism by eating so little.
Especially if she's working out as much as the OP says she is. A daily intake of 1000-1400 calories is starvation and not fueling her body and her workouts. She might need to ask her doctor for a referral to a nutritionist/dietician.
Yeah her calorie count seems low for all the activity she is doing.
Checking hormones/ thyroid could be a good next step.
I'd also look at other "measuring sticks" besides the scale such as how clothes are fitting or circumference measurements to look for progress.
She is eating more calories than she is burning. Have her start a food journal. If she writes down every single thing she eats in the correct amounts the mystery will be solved.
Does she take any medications? How old is she?
Unfortunately I'm well acquainted with weight problems childhood-current. It's a chronic condition. I took significant steps a bit under two years ago to resolve in my early 50s but needs to be managed rest of my life. Probably one of the biggest problems in the Western world, bad pun intended and ironic in a time of plenty. Good to get ahead of this in one's 20s, wish I'd known better in mine. I brute-force lost weight in college, my 20s, 30s, and finally a couple years ago. Who needs that grief, info is out there though obscured by those trying to make a buck.
1) Yes there could be underlying medical propensity to hold onto excess weight. I'm genetically Irish and suspect the survivors from my bloodline were those who could forage and store food during plenty. During hard months it melted off. Can't prove it but if the shoe fits...
2) I'm not aware that metabolism can be ruined like that, but it can be fooled over the short term to store fat, give it up, find set points, etc. A funny thing, our bodies. Survivability adaptations of course. We're all the end product of millions of years of primate evolution, starting when mammals flourished after the asteroid impact c. 63M years ago wiped out most reptiles (who ruled for c. 100M years prior!)
3) Yes, there could be! Take her to a nutritional doctor (ND). Not a PCP, rather someone who understands weight problems. Ask me how I know. I vetted my ND carefully indeed.
4) See 3)
You've found your own answer. Awesome. Best of luck!
Unfortunately I'm well acquainted with weight problems childhood-current. It's a chronic condition. I took significant steps a bit under two years ago to resolve in my early 50s but needs to be managed rest of my life. Probably one of the biggest problems in the Western world, bad pun intended and ironic in a time of plenty. Good to get ahead of this in one's 20s, wish I'd known better in mine. I brute-force lost weight in college, my 20s, 30s, and finally a couple years ago. Who needs that grief, info is out there though obscured by those trying to make a buck.
1) Yes there could be underlying medical propensity to hold onto excess weight. I'm genetically Irish and suspect the survivors from my bloodline were those who could forage and store food during plenty. During hard months it melted off. Can't prove it but if the shoe fits...
2) I'm not aware that metabolism can be ruined like that, but it can be fooled over the short term to store fat, give it up, find set points, etc. A funny thing, our bodies. Survivability adaptations of course. We're all the end product of millions of years of primate evolution, starting when mammals flourished after the asteroid impact c. 63M years ago wiped out most reptiles (who ruled for c. 100M years prior!)
3) Yes, there could be! Take her to a nutritional doctor (ND). Not a PCP, rather someone who understands weight problems. Ask me how I know. I vetted my ND carefully indeed.
4) See 3)
You've found your own answer. Awesome. Best of luck!
Actually, you can "damage" your metabolism with dieting and restrictions, along with rapid weight loss and gains. Your body always seeks to be in equilibrium (homeostasis)and metabolism is one of the things that come into play for homeostasis in regards to attempts at weight loss. A severe restriction of caloric intake and the body adjusts for that by storing rather than burning. it's called "metabolic adaptation".
Speaking personally, I had weight loss surgery. I weigh 138 pounds at 5'5" and am 45 years old (female). My resting metabolic rate is about 1420 calories per day. If I were to eat that daily, I gain. I've found my "zone" to be 850-1000 calories per day for weight maintenance give or take for movement each day. This is pretty common in the post-WLS community and studies are being funded to see what's what basically. But my opinion is my metabolism spent years compensating for attempts at loss and the final extreme measure kicked me all out of whack and it never quite recovered.
The NIH has been studying metabolism for years. They even funded one researcher that looked at the TV show "The Biggest Loser". You can read a published 10 year on retrospective they did and what the results are and could mean. They also speak about other published findings in other populations. It's really quite interesting in terms of persistent metabolic adaptions.
Also, how many calories does she spend during a workout? How long does she workout?
Walking at a pace of 2 mph on the treadmill is far different than someone who spends an hour speed walking at 3 mph.
I don’t know if these Apple watches are accurate or not, but during an hour workout, my husband can spend 400 calories and I’m lucky if I spend 250. I don’t get my heart rate as high as he does.
If she cannot do this on her own, a dietician or nutritionist could help guide her.
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