Dude. I’m 35 years old and I have yet to figure out this food thing. And I’m more confused than ever.
I’m no slacker. I work out. Yes, I have a desk job, but I usually run on my lunch hour on those days. But I can’t lose weight. And why is my stomach being a biatch?
Being on vacation for two weeks and eating nearly every meal out was very, very difficult, and certainly did not help my body in any way. We did okay the first week. Even though we stayed in a hotel, we had a fridge, a microwave and a rental car. We went to the store and bought Greek yogurt, raw almonds, cheese sticks, oranges, bananas and apples (BTW, Florida apples that say they’re from Washington: lies).
The hotel also had a continental breakfast, so I was able to make a waffle for Karsen, and steal take a bunch of couple of oranges (the bananas were always gone by the time I got to the breakfast room, but there were plenty of apples, of course).
Anyway, we had some very filling and healthy breakfasts on our first week of vacation in northern Florida. This was good because if we ate lunch, it was out, and every dinner but one was eaten out…and it usually consisted of something fried.
The second week of vacation was in Orlando and was more difficult because every.single.meal was eaten out. We had a fridge, but no microwave. And we did not have a car anymore. And we were staying across the street from Downtown Disney. Every day, except one, we took a shuttle to one of the Disney parks and stayed there till 8 p.m. or so. So you know how that goes. By the end of our vacation, we were restauranted out big time.
That was just a super long and detailed way of telling you I gained a little weight on vacation–not much–but I was closer to 160 than I wanted to be, and I knew if I didn’t closely monitor my eating, I would stay there. So that’s one reason I’m counting calories again. Plus, sometimes I don’t eat enough–and I know that messes with your metabolism if you continue to do that. So there’s another reason, too. And then the whole stomach thing.
I’ve actually been doing pretty good. I’ve even been tracking all of the jelly beans I’ve been sneaking from the Easter Bunny’s stash. Having to write down each sugary bean I eat, keeps me from consuming the entire bag. Here’s a look at my MyFitnessPal food diary from Wednesday:
I did pretty good on Wednesday. No jelly beans! (Please ignore the marshmallow I ate. I am simply trying to finish off the open bag in the pantry. That is all.) There are a few calories left over, as you can see. I usually leave at least 100 calories if I can since sometimes I forget to log one or two little things. Like I forgot to put the teaspoon of butter I had on my toast on here, for example.
We are still trying to eat mostly whole foods in our house, but we aren’t militant about it. My husband made carrot cake last weekend and I didn’t kick him out or anything. And there’s that bag of marshmallows…anyway. I will weigh myself tomorrow and see if being extra diligent has helped.
Where I start to get confused about my diet is when I eat mainly whole foods, but then still feel like crap. And by crap, I mean bloating and tummy troubles. I’ve been trying to eat gluten free because maybe that’s the problem. But then I read corn can be a problem, too, and I did get all bloated Wednesday night after dinner’s corn tortillas. I’ve cut out Pirate’s Booty (much to my son’s delight–he claims I eat them all–whatever) because they’re corn (and processed, so I shouldn’t be buying them anyway, but we gotta have some treats around here!) and noticed bloating after eating a serving of it. And we don’t eat a ton of soy.
A friend gave me a book about food sensitivies, and the author wants you to eliminate 7 foods for 21 days so you can slowly add them back and see which ones are causing problems. The 7 foods are soy, corn, dairy, eggs, gluten, peanuts (!!!!), and sugar/artificial sweeteners. So basically, you can eat rice, meat, some nuts and greens. I can’t do this to my family. Also, it’s more than a 21-day commitment because you have to add each one back in for a certain amount of time. I mean, it’ll be Christmas before I figure out why my tummy gets bubbly almost every night.
Am I just old? Is that the problem?
For now, I’m going to track what I’m eating and see if I can figure out why I have such a hard time losing weight and why my tummy takes a turn for the worst in the evenings.
19 comments
Kerrie, get your thyroid checked. I am hypothyroid (underactive) which slows metabolism. It’s a common thing amongst women of child bearing age. I was diagnosed after my son was born. Worth a shot.
Thanks, Lisa. I’ve had it checked numerous times over the years–even recently–since I have a larger neck and doctors always want to check it. I do have a parathyroid condition, but it doesn’t affect metabolism. :/
I’m sorry you’re having so much trouble. We did the elimination diet with my daughter. It was not easy. Since she’s only 6, we only had to do it for a week. I guess the older you get the more you have to detox 🙁 The nutritionist said you could also pick one thing and eliminate it. Then try the next thing, and keep going until you find what is bothering you. I bet if you stopped eating corn products for a couple weeks (maybe 3) you could see if that’s what’s bothering you. If you don’t feel any better, try eliminating another food group.
I am no expert, but I think it is natural to feel sick when you start eliminating certain foods. Maybe it will take a few weeks for the bloated/sick feeling to go away.
Good luck!
I can’t imagine having to do this with a child. I suspect it is some food sensitivity or maybe even allergy. Back in college, I had an allergy test. Wheat was one of the things I was allergic to, but I don’t remember if it was significant or not. I’ve also had trouble with eggs in the past, but they’re such a big part of my diet, I hate to give them up. I guess if I really want to feel better, I need to start eliminating stuff. Ugh.
I would say that potentially you have a food sensitivity. Instead of eliminating them all, you can try one per week or so and see how you feel. It can just take longer this way if you are doing one food eliminated for like 2 weeks.. It does take a bit for your body to adjust to elimination. Also, check out the blog here: http://www.metaboliceffect.com. These guys are great and there should be some posts about food issues. I use their workout plan but ovbi not their food plan right now.
You will get it. It takes time and patience.
Thanks, Karla!
I feel the EXACT same way and I eat pretty much only whole foods and mostly gluten free…the bloating towards the end of the day is sometimes hard to deal with ;). I think it may be my body is in shock from eating so many veggies and it is just trying to get use to it?? Who knows! I have found with dieting that I see weight loss in my stomach when I completely cut out added sugar and alcohol, but since both of those things are so delicious I just find a happy medium and enjoy life as much as I can.
I definitely notice it in my tummy when I’ve cut out sugar and alcohol, too! The puffy effect happens almost immediately after!
Honestly, I fight the same battles and have *no* desire to eliminate anything or jump on clean, gluten-free, or whatever type of eating trip.
So, I’ll just chalk it up to being old. Then I can still drink wine. 🙂
Maybe consider seeing an allergist? My SIL found she was allergic to barley and all kinds of specific things just from the skin tests.
A couple of thoughts:
1. Consider doing an elimination diet. You take tons of stuff out of your diet and then slowly add things back and see if you react. I did it a few years ago at this time of year (and blogged about it!) http://www.nourishingmeals.com/p/elimination-diet.html?m=1 (sorry for the messy link, I am on my phone!)
2. Have you been tested for other endocrine issues? I did a saliva test and it discovered I had adrenal issues. When I treated those I felt worlds better and finally lost the weight I was working so hard at losing.
Good luck Kerrie! I know it’s so frustrating, getting older kind of sucks in some ways, huh? We aren’t spring chickens anymore.
Ps if you want more info about either of these suggestions feel free to email me.
Thanks!
I made the whole cake….and we ate the whole cake, so whole foods…yeah!
Hey, who let you on here?
Yea…I am worried about Hawaii next month! At least the hubs has a kitchen in his condo! It’s nice to see you back on MFP!
I recently cut out almond milk because I was feeling super bloated too. And, I’ve gone back to being more strict on my calorie counting as well. I finally feel I’m budging in the right direction, but I had to cut my calorie budget back by about 150 calories a day to see the impact. I just friended you on MyFitnessPal – I’ll cheer you on!
Good luck with the eliminations – I think tyring one thing at a time for a week is a good way to do it so that it doesn’t make you hate life.
Good luck on the Journey to figuring it out. Here’s what I can tell you, 1st of all, you are NOT old. 2nd of all it’s not an age thing. My mom has issues with her stomach too and it affects her weight (she is not overweight though, and neither are you). I also do too though, I have found through MANY trial and error experiments certain things that just don’t agree with me. Logging food for a while, and noting when you feel like crap after can be a good way to figure things out.
Hey Kerrie!
Waving at you from North Idaho!! I am following the author who is advocating the eliminating seven foods diet. I have been doing it for a week now. My mom has been doing it for almost three weeks. I didn’t do it sooner because I have an eight-year-old, and I felt exactly the same way you did – I can’t do this to my child! However, it has not been NEARLY as difficult as I thought it would be. I really struggled with what to do with his lunches. How do you pack a lunch without any of those seven foods? But really, it isn’t that hard, and I’ve had great feedback from him. I always thought he was a “picky” eater and would never do this, but since I am very careful now that the only foods that go in his lunch are really high-quality, they taste really good. Cost is an issue, but I am not having to pack as much because the nutrition is condensed, so he’s not hungry as often as he was before, and I figure it all comes out in the end when I’m not having to pay medical bills because his immune system is amazing due to the nutrition he is receiving. My son was 11# 6oz at birth, and I was resigning myself to the fact that he is just “bigger” and will struggle with his weight his entire life, even though he was getting plenty of exercise and I was feeding him well, but once I read this author’s book, I found out that the substitutions I was making, like the yogurt (even greek yogurt) and soy, were messing with his thyroid and thwarting my attempts to get his weight down. (That is a simplification. You really should read the entire book.) Let me tell you, just one week on this new lifestyle change and his skin is glowing, he’s bouncing around with energy, and he has already started to slim down. AND there have been no complaints. It takes a little time at first (I know, I know, I’m a single mother with a full-time job, who has time?!) but once you start getting it, it almost becomes easier because meals are so simplified (but still very tasty). Anyhow, sorry for writing a book, but this just hit home with me because I felt the exact same way – no way could I do that – but it truly is not as hard as it seems on the outset. I also had troubles losing the stomach weight and have had IBS-type symptoms for the past 15 years. I’m already feeling better and have not had one attack this week. Just something to think about! Good luck!
I had the same issue and found out my weight gain was part of a sensitivity to gluten and dairy and once I eliminated those I dropped my last 8 lbs and don’t deal with much bloating or tummy issues unless I have too much sodium or MSG(which I also stat away from). It’s different for everybody but a food sensitivity or intolerance can contribute to weight gain since your body can’t process the food adequately therefore causing it to go into starvation mode. I’ve put my post on my experience down below. Hope you can figure out what the culprit is for you!