Continued Weight Loss Concern

D

deegentile73

Member
Hi Cathe,

I am in desperate need of your opionions and advice. I am a 32 yr. old female, 5'3 1/4'' and weigh approximately 112 lbs. I use your cardio tapes regularly 6 days/week, and I also weight train for about 1/2 hr-45 minutes 4-5 days/week. In addition to this, I also brisk walk for approximately 30 minutes 3 days/week and, on Sunday, I just brisk walk for around 55 minutes (I do not do any additional aerobic exercise on Sundays).

I used to weigh about 128 lbs. in and around the winter of 05 (but pretty solid). I then dropped down to around 119 lbs. during the Summer of 05 (much leaner look-and loved it), and now have dropped to 110 lbs. currently (2/06). I am really concerned with how much weight I am losing and am afraid I will continue to lose, which is not what I want. In fact, I would like to either stay at this weight, or preferably go back up to 119 lbs. I was quite comfortable with that weight. Now I feel like I am beginning to look and feel too thin. My arms look extremely veiny, although I am still quite solid. But, the comments from family and friends about how they think I look too thin has made me very worried. I did visit my doctor who says that I am not at an unhealthy weight for my height, and that it all depends on what I'm comfortable with.

In any case, here is a list of how my diet typically is (same format on a daily basis):

Breakfast
1 packet of Maple & Brown sugar oatmeal w/ 2 cups of skim milk, sprinkled with 2 Tbsp. of Wheat Germ
1 toasted whole wheat bagel with 2 egg whites cooked with pam cooking spray
1/2 glass orange juice

Linner (Lunch/Dinner Combination)
6-8 ounces Salmon, broiled with seasoning (no added fat)
1.5 cups brown rice
1 1/2 cups steamed squash, zuchinni and brocolli (with no added fat)
2 slices whole wheat bread

Snack
3 reduced-fat oreos
5 black olives (sometimes)


Could you suggest what I would need to do in order to not lose anymore weight and perhaps guide me as to how to get back to 119 lbs? And, once I reach that goal, how do I maintain it without either gaining or losing any more weight? I've been reading many of the responses throughout the forums and agree that I do have to experiment, however, I'm not quite sure where to start. I thought about continuing to eat the same as I have, but completely cutting out the extra 3 days/week of 30 minute brisk walking (but continue to just walk and do nothing else on Sundays) and to also continue with your hour long morning cardio sessions & weight training 6 days/week.

Also, would you suggest that I not do both Imax & Imax 2 in the same week? I have been doing this for a little over a month now and was wondering if that could be one of the reasons as to why my weight keeps dropping. BTW, I have gotten a great response since I began doing this.

Any suggestions that you could offer would be greatly appreciated. I am desperate for advice and some direction. You truly are an inspiration! I look forward to hearing from you! Thanks Cathe!

:eek:
 
I am not Cathe, but I am a doctor. It could be that you are just not eating enough to maintain your weight in the face of your demanding exercise schedule, BUT without knowing much else about you, I truly think you should go see a physician, preferably a specialist in internal medicine just to make sure that something else more serious is not going on in the background.

Take Care,
 
I hope you get more responses. I am also in the same predicament. Except I no longer have periods, which has prompted my doctor to advise me to add more calories and lessen the intensity of my workouts.

It is hard to do this when we all have worked so hard to get into shape and to be "healthy".
 
It's comfoting to know that there are others in the same predicament, however difficult it may be. I, like you also have period issues. While I still do get periods, I do not get one every month. At least 1 every 3 months. I went off the pill like 5 years ago though and ever since then, my periods have been irregular. My Ob-Gyn conducted hormone tests to see if that was the problem, but everything came back normal. They're still irregular, nonetheless.

I really hope to receive more responses too. Thanks for writing!
:)
 
I also am not a doctor but love Nutrition. With this disclaimer, here are my suggestions:


You definitely need to eat more meals. You should space them out every 3 hours or so. Try to get in 5 small meals per day. I would suggest you have 4-6 ounces of proteins for each of your major meals. I would also suggest you have a complex carbohydrate for each of these meals as well. For snacks, I would recommend a piece of fruit and a protein; peanut butter or nuts, for example.

I would also recommend you include some Omega 3 essential fatty acids such as flax seed oil.

Hope this helps.
Lorrayne
 
Hi ladies,

My mother is a major nutrition freak and my sister always had irregular periods and the one thing that help her stay regular was taking liver pills. You can find them in any nutrition store. It made a huge difference for my sister. Hope it may be a help for some of you.
:)
 
Forgive my lack of knowledge....but what are liver pills? My daughter also suffers from infrequent periods. Are they a supplement? Thanks!!
 
My field is nutrition. While it is impossible to give specific advice on your situation without seeing and assessing you....the general rule of thumb for WEIGHT LOSS is 10 calories per pound. From looking at your food list for one day it looks to me like you are hovering around 1200kcal/day. For someone that is actively working out with Cathe - I think it would be fair to say that you are not getting enough calories for your body.

Your only eating two meals a day....Most of the nutritional information for active people wanting to tone and lose body fat is to eat more frequent smaller meals....4-6x/day.

The main goal is to add weight....not just increase body fat. There are plenty of great books out there on this very subject. I'm not familiar enough with the Cathe Website to know if she has any nutritional suggestions/meal plans, but one of my favorite books (non-professional) is FIRM FOR LIFE, by the Benson sisters (the originators of The Firm workouts. It's out of print, but can be obtained at the library or one of the many book sites online.

Does Cathe have any books out on weightlifting and nutrition? That would be great if she does.
 
CUT BACK ON THE CARDIO - you're doing too much cardio. If you're doing 6 days of intense cardio plus everything else you said, you're overtraining. Cut back on the intense cardio sessions. I would eliminate 2 days to start - you can retain the brisk walking. See how that works for a few weeks. You definitely need to tweak your workouts. A friend of mine went through this - she was simply burning too many calories (she lost so much weight her shoes started to be too loose!) She, too, was doing too much. She cut back and her weight stabilized (she is still a little too thin, but improving). Do make certain you are eating enough, as well, as the other posters indicated. But you're definitely overdoing it.
 
Hi,
I'm about your height and weight, but I eat quite a bit more than you and a lot more frequently. I would imagine you may continue to loose weight at any rate. You may consider a few visits to a dietician to help you along. When I needed to gain a few pounds I found it extremely helpful:)

Robin
 
>I hope you get more responses. I am also in the same
>predicament. Except I no longer have periods, which has
>prompted my doctor to advise me to add more calories and
>lessen the intensity of my workouts.
>
>It is hard to do this when we all have worked so hard to get
>into shape and to be "healthy".

Is it just me or does anyone else think this sounds like an eating disorder? I'm sorry, I don't mean to be unkind, but if you can't stop losing weight or if you are no longer having periods it's an indication that there may be a problem, don't you think?
 
I'm sorry, I don't mean to be unkind, but if
>you can't stop losing weight or if you are no longer having
>periods it's an indication that there may be a problem, don't
>you think?
>



I know you don't mean to be unkind, but it could still hurt just the same, don't you think?

As I mentioned in my post, I have spoken to a doctor, had tests run, etc. I do not have an eating disorder.

My intent was to show some support for the original poster by posting my experience and what was recommended by my doctor.
 
Hi Deegentile! Wow, you have obviously given a lot of thought to the situation at hand.


From an exercise stand point, it seems to me that you could probably cut back a bit. Since it appears you are walking numerous times per week, I would like to see you cut out Sundays walk and make that one entire rest day where you truly rest. I also think you should cut out the second Imax workout per week. As for weight training, evaluate your workouts and be sure that you are not overtraining one muscle group. Each major muscle group only needs to be worked hard one to two times per week.

As for your food intake, you seem to make healthy food selections, however not enough food intake to support your active lifestyle. I think you should incorporate 4 to 6 small meals throughout the day or have three normal meals and 3 light and healthy snacks about 2 hours after your meals. But overall, without actually knowing you personally it is hard to say what and where these changes in your diet need to be made. I suggest contacting a registered dietician to help you establish a sound nutritional plan to support your needs.

Now, with all of that said and done, I think you should also review your concerns with your primary doctor to make sure that you do not have any other underlying reason that could be attributing to your weight loss. Not saying you do but why not check it out for peace of mind.

Good luck and keep us posted!
 
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