Sunday, August 29, 2021

You can't outrun a bad diet, but you do need to outrun a slow metabolism. 45F, SW 306, CW 304 (3 months)

Hi everyone. I've resisted posting here so many, many times. After all, what can one person's story add to the millions of other tales of woe and success? Well, it turns out that my most recent experience is very new to me, despite decades of knowledge and effort. Maybe it can help someone else.

Backstory: At my highest, just following the birth of my first child 7 years ago, I was around 350lbs. Prior to that (about 20 years ago), my HW was 334. Between that time and now, I have gained and lost so many times - the same as so many of us. The more serious efforts involved a whole lot of protein shakes and bars and blood tests and weekly meetings. They worked, kind of, but that's not living. Over time, those 900-1200 calorie/day diets sapped my caloric setpoint to where I can eat very little and still not lose weight. Throughout most of these attempts, I didn't do much ion the way of exercise. After all, in my 20s and 30s, it wasn't necessary. I could eat very little and lose 6-10 lbs a week. Besides, I have an ongoing hip issue that creates a lot of pain. It's an excellent excuse.

Fast forward to this year. We moved into a beautiful new house surrounded with walking and biking trails and hundreds of beautiful, fit people. I told myself that I would work hard to "deserve" living here (my words, only slightly sarcastic). The neighborhood has its own swimming pools, gyms, and I've set up my own gym equipment. Unfortunately, my hip issue has gotten so bad that using these opportunities feels like climbing a mountain just to get ready. So I figured that I would just try to lose 20 lbs the old way, by focusing on food and I'd feel great in a couple of months and become superwoman.

I hired a nutritionist and a life coach to help me with habit formation and getting away from my mental blocks on the topic. I was ready to do this! Aaaaannnnnd. Nothing. I decided to move to a meal service so I could more accurately track my intake and focus on calories and macros.

I've lost 2 lbs in 3 months. I mean, it's something, but I still can't get my socks on in the morning. I'm eating 1400 calories/day, my coaches want me eating 1800 (I just can't. I'm too full at 1400 as it is), my doctor wants me doing bariatric surgery (pointless, since I'm not overeating), my insurance won't approve Wegovy until I've done another 3 months of supervised diet shakes, and my TDEE is either 2500 or 1655, depending on the calculator (clearly it's the latter value).

This gives me two choices - go back on the rapid weight loss path and feel utterly miserable and gain everything back again later or stay the course, keep learning proper behavior patterns, and try to increase my metabolic rate - even though it'll take a lot longer. I'm tired, depressed, and on the verge of tears frequently. But I have to keep trying, and now I need to face the real, physical pain and fatigue and start becoming a lot more active.

I would love to hear stories of people who overcame their body's reluctance to lose weight and how you did it. What got you in the habit? What got you past the pain?

submitted by /u/faelanae
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