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Two days until REG. Any last minute advice?
Rising Star
Rising Star
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Help unlock my DMs plz!!! 🥰
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Who else is a big fan? 25g protein!!!
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Two days until REG. Any last minute advice?
Rising Star
Rising Star
Help unlock my DMs plz!!! 🥰
Who else is a big fan? 25g protein!!!
Conversation Starter
Hormone-altering medications may be playing a part: My sister had trouble losing weight while on a low dose anti-depressant. I’ve heard/seen the same from others. In addition, I’ve gained weight on hormonal & non-hormonal (IUD) birth control.
Rising Star
The more I think about your original request, the more concerned I am. You don’t seem to be an expert on this topic; did your friend *specifically ask* you for advice on how she can lose this weight? Or are you inserting yourself into this topic in her life and providing unsolicited advice?
If the former, it strikes me as something she should be discussing with a professional - ideally a nutritionist - rather than a friend who doesn’t have a strong background in this topic and is soliciting advice from a career-based social app.
If the latter, please don’t give your friend unsolicited weight advice. Let’s normalize being supportive and kind to our friends in 2021; as so many people have referenced here, there’s a lot that plays into body composition - nutrition, behavior, hormones (both from medications and natural body hormones), activity level, and more. Again, if she’s unhappy and truly wants to change, she’s best off soliciting guidance from a professional so it’s tailored to her needs. And if you’re providing unsolicited commentary, don’t.
Rising Star
Congratulations on your hard work and all the veggies!
Pro
Sounds like BS. Genetics can prevent you from being Mr or Mrs Olympia, they can’t prevent you from losing weight. To lose weight you have to be in a caloric deficit over time an extended period of time. It’s impossible not to if you follow this simple rule.
Clearly you have never had a hormonal issue then. Definitely had calorie deficit, worked out 5-6 times per week also for an hour each time - HiiT workout. 1200 calories per day in, 1800 out - had RMR measured. Went to endocronologist- hypothyroidism which is actually pretty common, and also insulin resistance. Easy to preach and make fun about calorie deficit and yes you need that, however there are many other factors like thyroid, hormones etc. that come into play. Suggest your friend read the Obesity Code - great insights about all the factors that can be impacting weight.
Pro
Rarely, a clear pattern of inherited obesity within a family is caused by a specific variant of a single gene (monogenic obesity). Most obesity, however, probably results from complex interactions among multiple genes and environmental factors that remain poorly understood (multifactorial obesity).
https://www.cdc.gov/genomics/resources/diseases/obesity/index.htm
I doubt it’s genetics. Genetics can make some people slightly more predisposed to be heavier or have a slightly harder time losing weight, but it is only in rare cases that it can make you unable to.
Could it be that she has a health condition? Hypothyroidism is a common one that makes it extremely difficult to lose weight.
Also possible is that maybe she has unhealthy habits behind the scenes that you just don’t see. I had a friend in college who always ate salads in front of me, but when I lived with her for a year, I realized she would secretly binge eat in her room late at night when no one else was around.
I can pretty much guarantee your friend has been eating absolute junk. I ballooned to 210 lbs .. I just dropped 10lbs in a month .. a lot of it is water weight of course but I have severely cut calories .. I sincerely track my macros .. Anything I eat has been measured on a scale. I eat lean meats .. carbs come from cruciferous veg .. it’s a hard shift .. but it works.. I lift 2-3 times a week and 2 hiit cardio sessions a week, maybe one light cardio session a week.
It’s simple chemistry .. calories in need to be less than calories out for your friend to burn fat. You eat at a deficit to reduce calories in and add workouts to increase calories out.
My target is 150. Hopefully I hit it. I plan to donate 100% of my clothes and shoes if I reach my goal (not like I can fit in them anyway. If I hit my goal) .. I used to be 172 at one point .. in 2018 or so .. basically let myself go .. paying the price now.
Well .. that’s fair .. and when I said junk .. I didn’t mean junk food per se .. I guess I meant it as a relative term .. it’s junk if you’re not burnin it off .. but you’re right.. can gain weight eating healthy too.
Pro
You never know what someone does in private. Even if she’s eating healthy food, it doesn’t mean that she’ll lose weight if she’s eating too much of it. She’s also probably eating more than either of you thinks. Try WW or Noom.
Another perspective: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Set_point_theory_(body_weight)
I agree that it is unlikely genetics and more caloric and fat intake vs. amount of exercise to burn the calories. Three small, healthy meals a day with 2 healthy snacks. Veggies are always a good choice for a snack with nutritional benefits and low in calories. Once exercise is increased with consistency, only then would you want to increase your calorie count and healthy fats.
There’s a few options here:
- What you or she might THINK is healthy food that she eats is not actually healthy for HER body. Yes, this is a thing.
- She’s not actually eating perfectly healthy like you might think. Activity doesn’t matter as much as food, nutrition, calories/portions.
- She’s not that heavy and you or herself just personally thinks she is? Like maybe her # on the scale seems high to you, or she’s curvy but not “heavy”?
All my reports from gene analysis services say I have a ton of alleles predisposing me to obesity. My mom is pretty overweight. I am the only person in my HS class (25 years later) to be in good shape. Genes play a role and in rare cases a huge one. It is more about diet, physics, and behavior.
It’s more likely, that your fiend’s habits/lifestyle allow for the expression of genes that slow her metabolism. The problem with this approach, however, is that it can get so complicated, that it’ll hinder even the most motivated person from overcoming it.
I would suggest just focusing on one good habit a week, and control testing it and closely tracking her diet. Sometimes we do what we believe or are told is healthy, and it’s just not suited for us.
Workout three times a day and eat twice - run in the AM before work, skip breakfast, run again before lunch, eat dinner within 6 hrs of lunch, workout again after dinner. You have to burn at least 200 calories in each workout. Use the OrangeTheory burn heart rate monitor and the OrangeTheory app to track calorie burn.
Your friend will drop the weight!
You have to burn at least 200 calories each workout? Lol what?
The simple rule is calories out > calories in when losing weight. You can achieve this by diet, exercise, or a combination of both. You don't need multiple 200 calorie workouts through the day.
The thing is she’s quite healthy and active physically , which is why her weight loss surprises me. She is usually the most energetic one on treks and hikes we go to, she is able to carry things around without puffing and panting like me, etc. But she’s heavy (not like muscle heavy though), so I’m wondering what’s going on
It is 100% what she is eating, which is what you don’t see. The reality is that you can exercise a ton, but if you are undoing it in the kitchen, there will be no weight loss.