LCHF and Weight Loss has stopped?

[Timewise]

Ok you LCHF experts....I have been on LCHF since 5/1/16 and I have had nothing but good things happen to me health wise since I started.   I did not find it extremely difficult to adapt to the LCHF eating and eating to my meter.   My A1c has been at 6.0, 5.8, 6.2 for the three doctor appointments since I started following LCHF.  My blood pressure that was a bit high was at 100/75 yesterday and my Cholesterol and all other health indicators are great.  But I lost my first 50lbs by mid January and since then I have lost -0-!!??

Now, I have tried using fat bombs, I have  tried 24hr fasting, but what I cannot understand....all things being equal why the heck did my weight loss stop?

Any ideas, should I cut back on fat?   Increase my activity level or start exercise?

Or all of the above.....

[skb]

I have been following the LCHF WoE since Aug 2010. I adopted the way of eating, with the singular aim of dropping my BG levels. At that time I didn't know the hundreds of other health benefits that would ensue. My weight also dropped about 40 lbs overall but weight loss was incidental it was not my aim. At some point the weight stopped dropping but that didn't really bother me. Now my weight stays within a range of 10 lbs keeping me at a BMI between 24 – 26, and I'm fine with it. Keeps me looking trim & fit.

Weight loss as we have discussed many times (not here) can be good (visceral fat loss) or bad (muscle). With sugars out of control, the weight loss people experience is the latter type & with LCHF one initially tends to regain some of the weight lost, before starting to lose weight in a good way. Another thing for you to keep in mind is, that insulin is the primary fat storage regulator in the body, so it has a major role to play in weight gain and loss.

Looking at your A1c numbers, I get the feeling that though you are in good control food wise, your insulin response still needs external help, which is why you still need to inject some 25 units daily. If I remember correctly your exogenous insulin dosage has dropped from around 150 units to the current 25. IMO that explains the weight stagnation adequately. With LCHF & achieving NK, you started dropping weight. With your low carb consumption & dropping weight, you required lesser & lesser insulin, till you have reached a plateau of BG / insulin & consequently weight.

Do you need to lose more weight ? Not knowing more (about you) I would tend to say, you have reached a point that your body likes. If you increase your insulin to get your BG (& A1c) lower, you might start to put on weight. And if you reduce your insulin further, your BG (&A1c) might tend to go up. I used the word might in both scenarios as this is just a hypothesis. In many cases we have seen the weight loss resume after a stagnation of 3-6 months. So who knows, you may be one of those. Just hang on, and keep doing what you are doing, either ways you'll know in the next 2 or 3 months.  Good Luck.       

[Timewise]

SKB...thanks for the good feedback....

As you say I have dropped my Lantus from 126u to 25u since I began in May 2015.  I now weigh 270-275 lbs.  Varies no more than 5lbs.   I am 6' 2" and will be 66 in May.   I have not checked my BMI since the weight loss, but before I was defined as morbidly Obese. Blood Pressure was a bit high and I have been and continue to take blood pressure medication.   LCFH has corrected my BP, and Cholesterol....my doctor is happy where I am at, although further weight loss would be beneficial for many reasons.   My waist has dropped from 52" to 46", that I really like, although I have had to buy new pants and belts...

But, my long-term goal is to try and lose another 40-50 lbs.  and I do not know how to make that happen....I guess increasing my activity and waiting to see what happens...

Thanks again for the comments....

Carl

[skb]

Carl,

JFYI, BMI is weight / height² in kg / mtr². If you want to use British units then it's lbs / ht² (inches) x 703.

[Rhiannon]

Timewise - I think your experience of weight loss followed by hitting a plateau may not be unusual.  Another diabetic (on a completely non-diabetes related forum) happened to mention that she had an initial weight loss of about 30 lbs after her diagnosis and going on Metformin (and what sounds like a LCHF way of eating), but that the weight loss seemed to have tapered off.  I too have experienced this. 

Before diagnosis, I had already made some changes to what I ate and in 2014, lost 12 lbs.  Considering I had only increased my weight every single year for the past 20 years prior, that was quite an accomplishment.

Then I got my diabetes diagnosis, went on Metformin and learned about LCHF - and during 2015 I lost another 20 lbs.  I was and am very happy with that loss.  Then in December, a few "lapses", a piece of candy here, a serving of mashed potatoes there, and I put on 2 lbs.

In January, I tried to get back on track and I lost the 2 lbs but no more.  In February, I had some stressful situations and once again, some falling off the wagon (had some noodles, would snack on a protein bar, etc).  Weight would go up and down a couple pounds.

So this month, I refocused my energies once again to LCHF.  I am doing great eating-wise, but the weight is no longer just falling off.  I have lost one pound this month.  I am in my early 50's, walk about 3 times a week, and my main goal is just to be able to keep moving and feeling halfway decent for as long as I can.  I'd love to lose 50 more pounds, and if that's one pound per month or 4 more years until I reach that goal, I'm cool with that. 

I was feeling frustrated and that's never good.  Then as I lay in bed the other day, I realized something.  My feet were not bothering me.  Yes, I felt a little numbness in the toes of my left foot, but practically nothing in my right foot.  Amazing.  I've had foot neuropathy for at least 2 years, and at times it was so bad I couldn't sleep at night.  It was always there when I would lie down.  And it took me awhile to recognize the absence of that pain/discomfort.  So if I have to walk around the rest of my life at my current weight, but my BG numbers are in a good healthy range and my feet don't bother me, and I can read my favorite books, I'll be cool with that

Hang in there.  And know that I am jealous of your BP numbers!

[ami]

Weight loss can have it's own mindset. Please continue on your chosen path. I'm sure the scales will tip in your favour again.

You could try a fat fast to jump start weight loss. It has worked for me in the past.
1000 calories per day, out of which 90 % should come from fats. to be done for 5 days at a stretch. Try it.

[Timewise]

AMI...thanks for the suggestion...

I avoid limiting caloric intake because in my lifetime, I have always been able to lose some weight by cutting calories and increasing exercise.  But after I lose the weight if I do less exercise or go back to a 'normal' caloric intake, my weight just comes back on.   

That is why the LCHF life has suited me so well, as I was able to substitute lack of carbs with increases in protein and fats.  Doing that shut down my historical problems with food cravings and not feeling full.   So right now I am hoping to find a balance of Low Carbs, Proteins, and High Fats that keep me full yet continue dropping weight and of course keeping my BS in control 24/7!

Thanks again,

Maybe I am just not yet desperate enough about my weight to drop more.....?

[mbc1963]

I'm a bit late to this thread, but my experience mimics yours almost exactly.

I'm a 5'6" woman.  After my diagnosis and going LCHF, I dropped about 45 pounds quickly and without feeling hungry at all.  I hit my high school weight of around 180 - 185, which is not slim by any means, but was my "stable adult weight" for quite a while when I was young and reasonably active.  I've been hovering at this weight for a a year now, not losing much but not gaining no matter how many fat calories I eat per day.

It seems to me that my body likes to be this size.  I'm fine with it.  (People tell me how thin I am now - if they only knew I was technically still 40 pounds overweight!)  I've gone from obese to overweight.  Woo hoo!  I can climb BIG hills and not get winded.  I'm strong and my blood pressure and blood panel numbers are all "very pretty" according to my doctor.  I consider this a VICTORY!

[Shalynne]

Weight-loss plateaus sometimes happen because fat is replaced with muscle. 

Personally, I've always gone more with how clothes fit, and how I feel in general, than with poundage alone.

Then again, real plateaus do happen.  Time may be all that's required.

For me, exercise also works wonders (not true for everybody).  My favorite forms of exercise have nada to do with gym memberships or Olympic-style training.  Walking faster and farther, more bending/lifting/carrying while I do household chores, parking the car at the far end of the lot ... little stuff like that adds up.