A
female
age
36-40,
anonymous
writes:I am unsure why I am continuing to gain weight and hoping somebody can maybe tell me something obvious that I am missing.3 years ago I lost 3 stone over the space of 12 months through calorie counting and the occasional exercise. I managed to key it off until stupidly 6 months into the first Covid 'lockdown'. Since then I have gained 10-12lbs due to eating poorly again.About 4 months ago I managed to shake myself mentally and have been eating well since, the problem is that I am continuing to gain weight, granted not at such a rate but certainly I am not losing anything and it's driving me insane ...not to mention it's so depressing that my wardrobe is tight on me these days!I am eating cereal in the morning (skimmed milk), salad for lunch and a health-ish tea (meat/veg/potato)...things like roast dinners, home made soup, stews etc. I eat at around 5 and then stay off food after this. I do drink maybe 2 cups of tea/day (decaf, sweetener, skimmed milk).I am an office manager and time is very limited and so exercise is minimal (I take the dog for a 2 hour walk, 2 days a week and this is about it) but still, should I still be gaining weight when i'm behaving food-wise?Just to note, I am mid thirties, 5'2 and healthy. Does anybody have any tips for where I am going wrong or what this could be/why it worked last time but not this time around? Reply to this Question
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reader, anonymous, writes (16 March 2022): Constipation can be a factor, because it means you have more calories inside you than you ought to have - stress cannot - hormones are sometimes the cause - but don't expect your doctor to understand or help with that, they are clueless about it.
A
female
reader, anonymous, writes (15 March 2022): You mention not eating much and yet weighing more. What also has to be considered is what is coming out, not just what is going in.
If you are constipated you will easily weigh more some days than others. Poo is extremely heavy. Maybe do a bowel cleanse with fibre for two months. Even if we think we are regular, often we're more constipated than we think. I am a qualified nutritional therapist and this, for health, is often the first step.
I wouldn't bother asking doctors about weight loss, I've heard some utter dangerous rubbish about nutrition because they are not trained in it. It's like asking an accountant to fix your car.
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A
female
reader, anonymous, writes (13 March 2022): See your doctor, but know this ... it is ALWAYS the calories that get you. Is is hard to find the right balance. It is hard to accept that we take more calories than we need. Be objective find hard data about how much calories your life style requires but first be brutally honest about your life style. Many people think hhat they are mire active than they really are. Bodies also adapt to activities so you need to either change them or push them to a more difficult level.A rule of thumb is to avoid processed food (cereals are processed foods!), minimize intake of dugars (even natural ones from fruit, sugars are sugars and fructose is bad for liver). Minimize animal products especially not orhanic processed ones.Avoid "empty carbs" like starches. When you do eat them, do not combine them with animal proteins.Do not drink calories!And please ask your doctor to test yoj for insulin resistance (they check yiur levels of blood glucose and insulin on an empty stomach before you drink glucose and then twice more after to see how your body handles it).If buy any chance you are, you need to eat low Glycémie index food and exercise far more than you do.Good luck!
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A
female
reader, Honeypie  +, writes (12 March 2022):
 Stress could be a factor. And Covid has surely made most people feel more stressed out in the day to day.
Hormonal issues another. Thyroids are another. Seasonal weight gain is also common (winter).
I would go see your doctor, rule out the medical side first.
You might need to overhaul your diet and exercise routine. You can work out at home. But I'd start with your doctor. there is no instant fix here.
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reader, anonymous, writes (12 March 2022): There are lots of things to consider. Exercise is over rated when it comes to losing weight. Ask the famous naturopathic doctor Michael Moseley. It is all about diet. But it can also be to do with hormones etc. Is that part of your problem?I set out to lose weight about five years ago. By eating less, no more, I lose three stone in two years. Then for some reason even though I was doing the exact same thing, eating no differently, it stopped. I sometimes put on a pound or two when I have eaten nothing all day or barely nothing. Which is ridiculous.Home cooked fresh food is obviously better, cut out sugar, salt, starch, junk food as much as you can. But it is also about quantities. And because a lot of low calorie foods do not fill you up they say eat mostly protein - avoid carbs.Ask Dr Now, the expert on losing weight etc.You are eating a lot more than me! I never have a breakfast. I can't. If I do I put on weight. I have no lunch at all or a very tiny one. Then a proper evening meal. If we go out to eat it will maybe be a starter and a main course, and then bang I have put on weight. Irrespective of it being the only food I have eaten for 24 hours or more.Your metabolism has a lot to do with how well your body adjusts to these things. Maybe you have an underactive thyroid?I now do exercise every day, at least half an hour.But I know this will not help with this, it is for fitness not for weight. Most of the time I am sitting around so it's important.If you really want to lose weight you have to try even harder or find out if you have some underlying problem like underactive thyroid or hormones that contribute to it.
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