DB1
Cathlete
Hi everyone!
I am mostly a lurker here, but wanted your opinion on something. Who believes our bodies have a "set-point" that cannot be changed no matter what? I really am starting to feel this way.
I will give you a brief history of my "set-point" woes. First of all, my mother has been battling morbid obesity her entire life. She typically hovers in the low to mid 200#. Now she is up to the low to mid 300#. So I have the genetic thing already working against me.
As a child and teenager, I have always been thin. Ate and ate and ate, and not good things either. I weighed about 115# throughout highschool, I am 5'-8" tall. Yes, I was thin, but believe it or not, not too thin. I look best about 125#, but haven't been there in over 17 years. Now before everyone tells me that 125# is way to thin, when I weigh 130#-135#, my body-fat is at 28%!! So you can see why 125# puts me at about normal body-fat, around 25%.
Ok, so I have gained and lost and gained and lost for the past 15 years. I am an avid exerciser, for about 15 years. I run, lift weights, kick-box, do lots of Cathe's etc. My diet has been cleaned up significantly over the past 7 years or so. In 1999, I was up to 150# (my current weight again now), which is so high for me. I am fat at this weight. I decided to cut all of my portions in half (in 99'). I gave up sugar, yep, all of it. No longer do I eat chocolate, frozen yogurt, gave up the once in awhile diet coke, no cereal with sugar, no fruit juices, no sugar. I don't miss it either!! I lost 15# and felt great!!! I eat mostly vegetables, natural oatmeal for breakfast with fruit, salads or vegetable based foods for lunch, with some chicken or fish (I adore sushi) and I eat raw vegetables with flavored salsas and mustards when I get home from work or school. I log everything I eat, which averages to 1400-1600 cals. a day. Someone suggested that I don't eat enough, so I went to about 1800 cals. a day and gained weight right away, so I really need to stick to the low end.
I work out 5 days a week, and cross-train as much as possible. I have been doing Power hour 2 or 3X a week mixed with some Firms, Circuit Max, Imax, running, etc. I have increased my weights significantly with Power Hour over the past few months. To no avail though. I recently had my thyroid tested, but there is nothing wrong with me. It isn't muscle that I have gained either. It is pure fat. I am up from a size 8 to a size 12!!
So what do you all think? Do we have set-points that the body will fight and fight to get to? I feel so discouraged now. I thought I had it all figured out with the small portion thing ( I still do that religously)...I guess I should learn to love the plus-size me, but it is hard, especially when you know you can be thin.
Just wanted your thoughts!! I apologize for the length of this thing!!
I am mostly a lurker here, but wanted your opinion on something. Who believes our bodies have a "set-point" that cannot be changed no matter what? I really am starting to feel this way.
I will give you a brief history of my "set-point" woes. First of all, my mother has been battling morbid obesity her entire life. She typically hovers in the low to mid 200#. Now she is up to the low to mid 300#. So I have the genetic thing already working against me.
As a child and teenager, I have always been thin. Ate and ate and ate, and not good things either. I weighed about 115# throughout highschool, I am 5'-8" tall. Yes, I was thin, but believe it or not, not too thin. I look best about 125#, but haven't been there in over 17 years. Now before everyone tells me that 125# is way to thin, when I weigh 130#-135#, my body-fat is at 28%!! So you can see why 125# puts me at about normal body-fat, around 25%.
Ok, so I have gained and lost and gained and lost for the past 15 years. I am an avid exerciser, for about 15 years. I run, lift weights, kick-box, do lots of Cathe's etc. My diet has been cleaned up significantly over the past 7 years or so. In 1999, I was up to 150# (my current weight again now), which is so high for me. I am fat at this weight. I decided to cut all of my portions in half (in 99'). I gave up sugar, yep, all of it. No longer do I eat chocolate, frozen yogurt, gave up the once in awhile diet coke, no cereal with sugar, no fruit juices, no sugar. I don't miss it either!! I lost 15# and felt great!!! I eat mostly vegetables, natural oatmeal for breakfast with fruit, salads or vegetable based foods for lunch, with some chicken or fish (I adore sushi) and I eat raw vegetables with flavored salsas and mustards when I get home from work or school. I log everything I eat, which averages to 1400-1600 cals. a day. Someone suggested that I don't eat enough, so I went to about 1800 cals. a day and gained weight right away, so I really need to stick to the low end.
I work out 5 days a week, and cross-train as much as possible. I have been doing Power hour 2 or 3X a week mixed with some Firms, Circuit Max, Imax, running, etc. I have increased my weights significantly with Power Hour over the past few months. To no avail though. I recently had my thyroid tested, but there is nothing wrong with me. It isn't muscle that I have gained either. It is pure fat. I am up from a size 8 to a size 12!!
So what do you all think? Do we have set-points that the body will fight and fight to get to? I feel so discouraged now. I thought I had it all figured out with the small portion thing ( I still do that religously)...I guess I should learn to love the plus-size me, but it is hard, especially when you know you can be thin.
Just wanted your thoughts!! I apologize for the length of this thing!!
