The Arithmetic of Weight Loss

Laura, how many of those people who have yo-yo'd have used meal replacement shakes or been on some of those diet plans like Nutrisystem or similar?

Actually, a lot of medical science discusses the hormonal component to obesity as well. Hormones absolutely can trigger fat storage independent of caloric intake. Consider lipohypertrophy which diabetics get when they inject inuslin into the same spot frequently. Insulin triggers significant fat storage which results in a large fatty deposit. Also, see lipedema, which is a disorder that women typically get where, even with severe caloric restriction and bariatric surgery, they typically cannot lose weight around their mid-section because it's a genetic fat disorder. Much of human biochemistry contradicts what you are saying. Many studies also contradict that exercise is a significant contributor directly to weight loss, actually.

As for discipline, if discipline was the problem with weight loss then no one would need bariatric surgery. I lost over 300 pounds before getting mine. It's not always a question of discipline. If it was, then the majority of people who diet without surgery wouldn't see weight regain.

Donna, Yesterday on another thread I referred to a study done by Stanford University that was finished in 2015 indicating that 62% of participants in Medically Manged weight loss programs, like myself, have not regained weight after 5 years of finishing their program. This medically manged program is defined as one that offers psychological, medical, and yes, physical aspects of losing weight with consistent and careful documentation of all. I too rode the roller coaster of weight loss, and I've tried so many different "systems" that I can't even keep track. I have made a conscious decision to NOT participate in the surgery option because I needed to learn how to develop healthy eating patterns and healthy exercise plans as well. If your doctor is telling you that exercise doesn't play a role in weight loss, then I urge you to change doctors tomorrow, because s/he is quite simply a quack. While exercise alone won't solve the problem, a targeted exercise program, developed by a professional and not a local yokel, along with changed eating patterns can and will lead to substantial, permanent weight loss. I am happy for your success, but please don't tell me I can't and won't be successful just because you weren't in the past.

Hello btm61:

It seems that you're having problems with your own arithmetic of weight loss. Depending on which post of yours I read, the amount of your weight loss and the time frame in which you lost the weight changes. Is this the new math?

I'm offering you an invitation to return to this forum when you have reached your goal weight (whatever that may be) and have maintained that weight loss for at least 5 years.

From your life experience, I think the only thing you can expound upon right now is how to gain weight. I don't see that you have had much experience losing a substantial percentage of your total body weight and keeping it off.

Your current weight loss, whatever it may be, is commendable. But the higher your starting weight, the easier it is to lose large amounts of weight initially. Try testing your hypotheses when your weight has reached the 200-lb range and when you're trying to reach a goal weight of 180 lbs, for instance.

As for your degree in Psychology. It doesn't mean much unless it is conferred by a veritable learning institution and you have had years of experience applying your acquired knowledge to many individuals with emotional issues.

Once again, please come back and post about your successful weight loss and your maintenance of that weight loss for several years. I will be watching for that post. I wish you well on your ongoing weight loss journey!

---Joyce

Amen.

^^^^this exactly

well... in the past I would lose weight, with diet and exercise and then slowly regain in over the years. I often kept most of it off for 5-6 years. But eventually the weight would come back and then some. I used to be a very active, very disciplined person. With a few degrees, and additional courses, studying this and that, as I worked full time at the same time. But my whole family is obese, and at the end, the genetics won and I was back where I started. Until when i got older and I was not able to lose a significant amount of weight even when I really worked on it. Plus the weight and heavy exercises took its toll on my joints and spine, not even mentioning a few car accidents.

if you read studies, the WLS actually changes hormonal balances, and it can affect the metabolism in a long run.

The people you mention that they not only gained back the weight they lost but also gained more than that, IMO never realized that losing weight after WLS and maintain is a hard work. Some of us that are on this site, that are dedicated and are hard workers - we have what it takes not only to lose weight, but also to maintain it long term. Effortlessly? no. Even for normal -skinny people I know, keeping normal weight takes effort.

Having WLS puts me on similar level with my normal-skinny friends, I still have to work to maintain, but the tool I have is doing its job.

I don't recall that I said anything about you specifically or your success, actually. I was discussing the broader biochemical science.

Medically managed weight loss programs do tend to be successful. I've also studied them; almost always it's the support system and psychological assistance that result in success.

As for exercise not playing a role in weight loss, it does, but not in a direct caloric function to vast degrees as people imagine. It helps build muscle strength and increase BMR. It helps because people who tend to have health-oriented activities behaviorally focus on other healthier lifestyle habits - such as better diet. It's really diet that does 90-95% of the work.

It's also drastically different if you have a high body fat % or low, and also drastically different depending on how insulin resistant you are. Most people who exercise without dietary change don't lose weight, and the majority of people who lose weight cut carbs down somewhat. Even cutting them to like 150g/day can result in weight loss because it helps lower insulin resistance to vast degrees.

Nutritional science has been going through somewhat of a change within the past few years, though, and many more doctors on the cutting edge of things are looking at the impact of hormones in obesity rather than just caloric intake.

You should patent that information. The diet industry is worth billions and you've discovered the cure!!!!

Ker-ching!!!!

I entered this web site because I was asked to share some information, based on what I've learned and done, and I have done that, but as with the political climate in this country I cannot possibly be correct because you all are. Surgery isn't the end all that you all seem to think it is. Some of you have had great success since your surgery, congratulations, but I could point you to many, many people who have gained significant amounts of weight after their surgery. "It's easy to lose a lot early on." Really? Just how easy do you think it is to go from consuming 4000 calories per day to 1400? How easy do you think it is to go from a completely sedentary lifestyle to going to the gym 6 days per week? "You're going to yo-yo and never keep it off!" Of course I will because you did. I have been in my program for 18 months, is that "early on"?

I understand the information I offered in my post rocks your world because no one has ever shared this info with you. I also understand that programs like weigh****chers and Nutrisystem, and any of the hundreds of other "programs" out there are designed to fill their pockets at your expense. The simple fundamental of weight loss is to expend more calories than you consume. The rest is all smoke, mirrors, and profiteering. If that doesn't ring true with what your doctor told you then you need a new doctor. Part of the problem is that no one wants to lose weight 1-2 pounds at a time, they want to lose 50 in a month. Don't believe me? Jus****ch and carefully listen to all of the Nutrisystem and Weigh****chers ads that will begin to appear in the coming weeks. Buy their meals, buy their supplements, buy their program. I do use one protein bar per day to supplement my diet, but not as a meal replacement, other wise I eat what I want to eat, IN MODERATION. If I'm going to a restaurant I check their online menus and then check their nutritional information. While I am looking at their calorie count that doesn't begin to tell the whole story because I'm also looking for their sodium levels. Sodium holds water in your body and excessive amounts can lead to hypertension and other cardiac related issues. On a 2000 calorie per day diet the USDA recommends 2300 mgs of sodium. There are very few restaurants out there whose meals contain less than 1200 mgs of sodium and I've seen some restaurants offering meals with as many as 4000 mgs in a single meal. In recent years you've been told that chicken breasts are great because of their low fat, but what I'm betting many of you don't know is that they are also loaded with sodium that will overload your system. Drink skim milk because it has zero fat, but the sodium levels in skim milk are substantially higher than in 1% or 2% milk.

Losing weight is hard and it is the mental aspect of it that makes it hard. Of course there will be some variance due to the health of the individual, but that doesn't make my "arithmetic" any less factual. I'm sorry if you are offended upset, or threatened by my post, I was merely attempting to encourage those and offer some medically proven advice to help those who may be struggling right now.