Slave to the Scale... and so-so results.

[TriGirlD]

So, I finished the first round of Whole30 and had some amazing non-scale victories!  But, my weight loss was not that exciting. Maybe 4 lbs if I'm being generous. Unfortunately, I lost my starting measurements (the app deleted them) so I can't tell how many inches went down. I took 4 days off for a vacation I had planned, and then jumped back in.   I'm on Day 14 of my second Whole 30.  I keep seeing these success stories of folks who look like different people after their 30 days! 10, 20 lbs down! And it makes me wonder what I'm doing wrong.  I have followed this program obsessively to the letter, checked in with moderators to tweak my meals and PWO snacks, and still, the change in my body is less than drastic.  

 

I think I'm so focused on this because my doctor wants me to get to less than 30 BMI before we do IVF this spring.  So it doesn't matter how many inches come off my body - my actual weight has to go down. I'm about 6lbs shy of that number and was hoping I would hit it with this program. 

 

Unfortunately, I can't tell if this has helped my PCOS yet (one of my main motivations for doing this) because I have to be on regulated hormones until the end of November.  I'm hoping when I come off those to see improvements in my cycle. 

 

Here are my non-scale victories: 

- Just bought pants a size smaller. My old pants aren't hanging off me, but I seem to be able to button up smaller things. 

- I no longer need coffee!! I don't feel "Tigers Blood" or super high energy, but I also haven't yawned in over a month or felt like i needed caffeine, which is a huge improvement!

- The biggest most important change is the death of the Sugar Dragon! Last week I sat in a meeting with home baked pies and even served up slices to people, and didn't obsess about having any. It almost seemed easy to just say no! Before, I would have thought about those pies all night and into the next morning. 

- I feel like my body may be trying to sleep better, though my dogs and husband seem to always wake me up between 4 and 6am. I can't figure out how to stop this. I definitely fall asleep faster. 

-All day long I am full and satiated. I no longer have to think about packing snacks or a rumbling stomach every 2 hours. I can go 4-5 hours without being hungry.  

-Now, when I get hungry, it isn't the faint, dizzy, weak, urgent hunger from blood sugar dropping that I used to routinely get. It's a dull, non urgent feeling. Wow, very cool! 

 

So... I guess I am questioning this all today because last night my husband and I went out on a date, and he is really sick of having to change everything we do because of how I'm eating.  Everyone else ordered drinks and the mac and cheese appetizer. He drank by himself and we ordered the veggies.  No sauce on our meat, no dessert, no sharing of beers.  I almost caved. I almost said, "what is the point, I'm not losing weight anyway!"  But I didn't... and I'm determined to get through Thanskgiving week next week still on-plan.  Because I owe it to myself to have a second Whole30 experience completely and see what can happen. 

 

There are a lot of great things happening here. I have to try to not focus on the scale so much.  

Any encouragement you all have would be so appreciated! 

[ArtFossil]

You had a success, TriGirlD! Feel proud and congratulate yourself!

I'm only on Day 14 but I will toss out three things:

1. 4 pounds or 3 pounds or 1 pound is a significant weight loss! Your body is going reshape itself and it's going to do so on its timetable, not yours.

2. My Pilates instructor is in her 70's and is the fittest person I've ever seen. She reminds me that losing weight slowly is good, regardless of what popular culture and hucksters want us to believe. She would be thrilled for me if I lost 4 pounds! (I am obese.)

3. You could gently remind yourself, and your husband, that you are an adult and that what you choose to eat or not does not harm him in any way and really is none of his concern. Isn't it "your" meat and "your" veggies, not "our" meat?

[Brewer5]

The encouragement that I can offer is that you have an amazing list of NSV's.

 

Also, that those NSV's do disappear if you go back to your old ways.  It doesn't happen instantly, with the first sip of alcohol or the first mac & cheese -- but make no mistake -- it does happen.

 

You are at a fork in the road, where you have to ultimately decide what is MOST important to you.  We can't live under the rules of a Whole 30 forever -- we DO have to ride our own bikes -- and that is a huge undertaking.  It requires making decisions at each meal that are going to support our goals.  It requires owning our mistakes, learning from them, and deciding not to make them again.  Not because of anyone's rules but our own.

 

I encourage you to keep going down the very good path you are on.  I can tell you from experience that getting distracted by things that seem shiny and fun in the moment, will do you no good.  Keep your eye on the prize.

 

Your husband may be uncomfortable at first because everything is changing.  All of the things you used to do for fun seem not to be available anymore.  Find new things you enjoy doing together that don't revolve around food and drink choices.  If your relationship is solid and strong, he should support you in ~whatever you need to do~ to be the healthiest, happiest you.  

 

Go for walks together.  Play cards & games.  Go shopping.  I mean, really, there are a hundred other ways to connect that don't involve making yourself sick.

 

Most of all -- be proud of how far you've come!  You are MORE than a number on the scale.  

 

Smile.  Relax.  Take a deep breath.  And soldier on.  

[Loulabelle]

A question for you as I don't know the answer (not meant to antagonise I really am curious about this). What is more important to successful IVF a healthy eating, sleeping well, well nourished, energised, non-sugar craving, losing weight and recomposing her body at a steady and sustainable rate women or one who has starved her body into achieving a weight goal that discounts all other factors in her life?

[TriGirlD]

Loulabelle, I'm sure you're right.  However, all the studies show that women who are within a certain BMI have drastically higher success rates. The moment you get to 30 BMI, the rates plummet (according to my specialist).  Now, I think this is a chicken-or-the-egg problem. Women who have higher BMI's are much more likely to be that way because they have PCOS - which makes it very difficult to lose weight on the conventional american diet. And it also inhibits ovulation.  Now sometimes, symptoms get better for PCOS women when they lose weight, but what is the root cause?   And why do success rates drop at 30 BMI - is it because those women have ovulation issues or because they are heavier? 

 

Either way, I want to give myself the best possible chance.  I am sticking with this because I truly believe it is the right path - the healthiest path, and that even if the weight doesn't just drop from my body, it's probably still giving me huge improvements! And hopefully over time, it will change the number on the scale, even if that happens slowly. 

 

And, I just read your story Loulabelle - totally completely inspiring.  

[Tom Denham]

I lost two pounds the first month I did a Whole30. I was excited because I had stopped losing any weight for the year prior even though I was eating "healthy" and exercising vigorously in a CrossFit gym. I kept eating Whole30-style and kept losing 2 pounds every month for 15 months in a row until I was down 30 pounds overall and had body fat of about 10 percent. Then, without any changes in eating or exercise, I stopped losing weight and have stayed near 184 for 5 years now. 

 

I would have been thrilled to have ever lost 4 pounds in a month, but 2 pounds every month for more than a year works too. 

[thegoldengrahamgirl]

TriGirlD - your list of NSVs are all things that sound like they will improve fertility.  I hope your specialist will green light IVF in the new year, even if you're not at the magical BMI of 30 (I have lots of beef with BMI!).

 

Tom, thanks for the inspiration!  I was feeling like I'd be lucky to lose "only" one pound during my entire Whole30 (despite ongoing intense workouts) - but, hey, I'm NOT starving all the time and I'm getting to eat all of those luscious fats I was depriving myself of for so long.  Eating such great foods and maintaining (or losing very slowly) is a win.  I need to remind myself of this.

 

Cheers,

 

-Lauren (GGG)

[Carrots&Blueberries]

TriGirlD, I had easy conception (and have wonderful children!) but I would give a lot to have been on this path pre-pregnancy and through their early years. There's so much good stuff that comes from eating this way, for women and for our babies, that extends far beyond conception/IVF success.

 

The whole BMI question: there's the chicken-and-egg that you mention and the larger one  - that often folks who are over 30 BMI have other issues that will interfere with health and fertility -  and even wonderful doctors tend to get caught up in numbers rather than what they represent (or what we assume they represent). Health is what you're after, and both your SV* and your NSVs show that this is working for you!!!

 

*4 pounds is great

[Kimberly22]

So, I finished the first round of Whole30 and had some amazing non-scale victories!  But, my weight loss was not that exciting. Maybe 4 lbs if I'm being generous. Unfortunately, I lost my starting measurements (the app deleted them) so I can't tell how many inches went down. I took 4 days off for a vacation I had planned, and then jumped back in.   I'm on Day 14 of my second Whole 30.  I keep seeing these success stories of folks who look like different people after their 30 days! 10, 20 lbs down! And it makes me wonder what I'm doing wrong.  I have followed this program obsessively to the letter, checked in with moderators to tweak my meals and PWO snacks, and still, the change in my body is less than drastic.  

 

I think I'm so focused on this because my doctor wants me to get to less than 30 BMI before we do IVF this spring.  So it doesn't matter how many inches come off my body - my actual weight has to go down. I'm about 6lbs shy of that number and was hoping I would hit it with this program. 

 

Unfortunately, I can't tell if this has helped my PCOS yet (one of my main motivations for doing this) because I have to be on regulated hormones until the end of November.  I'm hoping when I come off those to see improvements in my cycle. 

 

Here are my non-scale victories: 

- Just bought pants a size smaller. My old pants aren't hanging off me, but I seem to be able to button up smaller things. 

- I no longer need coffee!! I don't feel "Tigers Blood" or super high energy, but I also haven't yawned in over a month or felt like i needed caffeine, which is a huge improvement!

- The biggest most important change is the death of the Sugar Dragon! Last week I sat in a meeting with home baked pies and even served up slices to people, and didn't obsess about having any. It almost seemed easy to just say no! Before, I would have thought about those pies all night and into the next morning. 

- I feel like my body may be trying to sleep better, though my dogs and husband seem to always wake me up between 4 and 6am. I can't figure out how to stop this. I definitely fall asleep faster. 

-All day long I am full and satiated. I no longer have to think about packing snacks or a rumbling stomach every 2 hours. I can go 4-5 hours without being hungry.  

-Now, when I get hungry, it isn't the faint, dizzy, weak, urgent hunger from blood sugar dropping that I used to routinely get. It's a dull, non urgent feeling. Wow, very cool! 

 

So... I guess I am questioning this all today because last night my husband and I went out on a date, and he is really sick of having to change everything we do because of how I'm eating.  Everyone else ordered drinks and the mac and cheese appetizer. He drank by himself and we ordered the veggies.  No sauce on our meat, no dessert, no sharing of beers.  I almost caved. I almost said, "what is the point, I'm not losing weight anyway!"  But I didn't... and I'm determined to get through Thanskgiving week next week still on-plan.  Because I owe it to myself to have a second Whole30 experience completely and see what can happen. 

 

There are a lot of great things happening here. I have to try to not focus on the scale so much.  

Any encouragement you all have would be so appreciated! 

You did fantastic!  You know what I do when I "only" lose a pound or two...I picture a pound of butter and say to myself...I lost that from my body.  Great job on everything!