Weight - What Is Normal?

[rain]

About 6 months prior to diagnosis I gained 4 - 6 pounds which have never come off, even after taking gluten out of my diet (a year now)

I had been the same weight for 20+ years. I'm petite so 4- 6 pounds is a size change and my belly protrudes and sags so by appearance and feel this is extra weight that I don't need. But maybe the weight gain is another food allergy?

My real question is -- why don't I feel like I'm at a healthy weight? I do not overeat. my normal calorie intake is about 1500 - 1700. Is this too much? Do I need to diet? Or is this a food allergy? How would I know?

Thanks.

[ravenwoodglass]

It is not uncommon for folks to gain a few pounds as they age. Your weight gain is not excessive but I am petite myself so I know that the little bit of a gain can result in a size change. Have you tried excercising to improve your muscle tone the gut area? Are you feeling bloated and uncomfortable? You could try deleting dairy if you are having gut symptoms. That can cause some bloating for some of us. You could also try dropping some high carb foods and adding some more fruits and veggies to cut a few calories out but it doesn't sound like your calorie intake is excessive. Perhaps a visit with a nutritionist might help tweek your diet a bit.

[Racer-J]

About 6 months prior to diagnosis I gained 4 - 6 pounds which have never come off, even after taking gluten out of my diet (a year now)

I had been the same weight for 20+ years. I'm petite so 4- 6 pounds is a size change and my belly protrudes and sags so by appearance and feel this is extra weight that I don't need. But maybe the weight gain is another food allergy?

My real question is -- why don't I feel like I'm at a healthy weight? I do not overeat. my normal calorie intake is about 1500 - 1700. Is this too much? Do I need to diet? Or is this a food allergy? How would I know?

Thanks.

The amount of calories someone needs to eat in a day is based on their height, weight, activity level, and if they are trying to lose/maintain/gain weight. The exact answer for everyone is going to be different day in and day out. You can use the following site as a guide though but ignore the BMI (Body Mass Index) calculator. It is archaic and I do not understand why the medical community insists on still using it. It doesn't take a person's frame size, fat to muscle ratio, etc. into account so it labels bodybuilders as morbidly obese and runners as underweight. It is just a horrible, horrible guideline to use. You want to use the BMR (Base Metabolic Rate) and RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) calculator. Even this has room for error though because it is not going to take your actual body type's metabolism into account. It is just going to give an overall guideline.

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Now to the other issue at hand which is the 5-6 lbs wight gain. Bodyweight is going to fluctuate hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. That's just how it is and there is absolutely nothing that can be done to change it. A person may weigh 129 lbs one day, and then 135 lbs the next and they are still a completely healthy person. The amount of fluid you drink, what you eat, what you do, etc. are all going to make your weight constantly fluctuate.

Some added weight, fat, the loss of skin elasticity, etc. simply can not and never will be reversed except through the use of cosmetic surgery and even then, they are very, very likely to return. They are just a result of aging and there is nothing anyone can do to stop them. There are even people in their teens and early twenties that will never have a "six pack set of abs" because they just don't have the genetic makeup for it when it comes to skin elasticity. Again, though, that's just the way it is and it's a perfect example of how dangerous and sad it is that we as a society focus so much on body images. It's gotten to the point to where even starving models have to be photoshopped because they aren't thin, lean, or toned enough.

Please understand that I am not lumping anyone into this grouping. I am simply speaking in the most broad and general sense possible about the mindset that our current society as a whole is stuck in.

Now having said all that, there is a saying that goes "the last 5 lbs is always the hardest to lose". That's true for an athlete trying to meet a certain weight class requirement for any given sport or for the casual individual trying to meet a personal goal. A lot of that probably has to do with the fact that maybe that last 5 lbs shouldn't come off regardless of the reason a person wants it to do so. The body is going to do what the body wants to do even if you don't want it to. Now that's not an open excuse for anyone to use to avoid eating right or exercising lol. I just mean you only have so much control of what your body does and doesn't do. It's genetics have a vast monopoly when it comes to control.

I want to stress that gaining or losing 5 lbs is not anything major in and of itself. The healthy guidelines for weight gain or loss per week is 2-3 lbs based on if you are actually trying to lose or gain weight. Gaining 5-6 lbs over the course of a 6 months and maintaining that weight is perfectly normal even if it may not be wanted or visually attractive to an individual.

No one can tell you if you should try to lose weight, if that 5-6 lbs is truly to much of a gain, etc. except for you. Everyone can give you advice and guidelines and even support but, in the end it's up to you and how you see yourself. I will say that to many people, even hardcore bodybuilders, obsess over their weight. Again, I'm not saying that's what you are doing. I am just speaking in a very broad and general sense. People just become fixated on weight and it can get to the point to where it drastically skews their self perception when they look in the mirror. To emphasize that there are bodybuilders in the 240 lbs+ range that are huge and cut (low body fat and vascular) that think they look like they weigh 160 lbs. Weight, how you see yourself in the mirror, and how others see you is an incredibly complex subject.

I will let you in on a little secret though. Almost no one is happy with the way their stomach/waist looks. Even people you see that you would "kill for" to get a similar stomach/waist are not entirely happy with theirs and body fat is usually not the cause. While body fat can be a part of the cause, it's usually the result of a lack of skin elasticity in that are combined with the fact that even to this day, people still do crunches, sit-ups, and other abdominal exercises to tighten, tone, and slim down that area. The problem is, the abdominal area and the areas surrounding it like your obliques are still muscles. Any exercise in that are is going to eventually lead to stimulation and growth. That's not an excuse to skip that area though as you very much need to keep those muscles in shape and in use as they are essentially what hold you up. You just need to keep it light, simple, and only do it once a week unless you are are trying to build large muscles in that area. Age only complicates this issue and again, there is nothing anyone can really do about it. We each just have to accept that it may always be like this and again, that is not an excuse to simply give up. It's just an explanation as to why you may not reach a certain goal. It's no reason to quit trying. The entire point of setting goals and trying to achieve them is to defy the odds.

[smc]

Wow my weight has been strange ever since diagnosis 2 years ago. I used to be 105 pounds and 5'2" - a little underweight maybe. After diagnosis i have been struggling to stay at 111-112 pounds. I can maintain my weight for 4-5 months then all of a sudden I might gain a few pounds and it won't come off. Then after a few months it goes again. I am wondering if it is an age issue now and just eating one desert will result in weight gain. I am 45. Maybe it takes a long time to loose it at my age.? I know how you feel being petite. Twice i have tried the south beach diet which is eliminating carbs . It worked great to get rid of those extra few pounds. If you feel uncomfortable with the weight gain maybe you could try that for a couple of weeks and see what happens.

[Racer-J]

Wow my weight has been strange ever since diagnosis 2 years ago. I used to be 105 pounds and 5'2" - a little underweight maybe. After diagnosis i have been struggling to stay at 111-112 pounds. I can maintain my weight for 4-5 months then all of a sudden I might gain a few pounds and it won't come off. Then after a few months it goes again. I am wondering if it is an age issue now and just eating one desert will result in weight gain. I am 45. Maybe it takes a long time to loose it at my age.? I know how you feel being petite. Twice i have tried the south beach diet which is eliminating carbs . It worked great to get rid of those extra few pounds. If you feel uncomfortable with the weight gain maybe you could try that for a couple of weeks and see what happens.

The older you get, the harder it is to lose. That's because as we age our metabolisms start to slow down and continue to do so. That's why calorie requirements decline as we get older. At the same time though, certain vitamin/mineral requirements go up because, we become even more inefficient at absorbing them. Your weight gain and loss sounds normal from what I have read over the years. It is a minimal fluctuation that eventually goes away. Eating one desert could lead to weight gain just like eating an apple or drinking a glass of water could. Anything that goes in can contribute to weight loss or weight gain.

Low carb and no carb diets are something I have never been real fond of. The only time I have ever gone low carb was on a cutting cycle for weightlifting and it resulted in being hungry, moody, etc. because you also reduce you calories and drastically cut back on your fat intake. That has apparently changed over the years though as some people are able to do a cutting cycle on a high fat, low carb diet. When I say high fat though I mean from nuts, seeds, fish, etc. not fired foods, butter, cream ,dairy, etc.

[TSA]

About 6 months prior to diagnosis I gained 4 - 6 pounds which have never come off, even after taking gluten out of my diet (a year now)

I had been the same weight for 20+ years. I'm petite so 4- 6 pounds is a size change and my belly protrudes and sags so by appearance and feel this is extra weight that I don't need. But maybe the weight gain is another food allergy?

My real question is -- why don't I feel like I'm at a healthy weight? I do not overeat. my normal calorie intake is about 1500 - 1700. Is this too much? Do I need to diet? Or is this a food allergy? How would I know?

Thanks.

Before I was diagnosis I weighed about 127 at 5'6" then I went to 100 and now being gluten-free since Nov. 2010, I'm up to 145! I've been freaking out! It seems to be in my belly area too. I'm confused about the weight gain too. Sorry I don't have an answer for you just wanted you to know that you're not alone! There were times where I thought about adding gluten back into my diet to lose some of the weight. Those thoughts leave as quickly as they come because I don't want to be sick anymore. How about your joints? Mine have been sore, especially in the mornings! What is normal anymore??

Good Luck!

[shadowicewolf]

Well, you are getting older and with age comes weight

I lost about 20lbs before my dx (which was somewhat a clue for my doctor) and i've lost another 4 since starting this diet.

I've heard it can go both ways.

[TSA]

Well, you are getting older and with age comes weight

I lost about 20lbs before my dx (which was somewhat a clue for my doctor) and i've lost another 4 since starting this diet.

I've heard it can go both ways.

Whats your secret!!! Are you just gluten-free or other food alergies? How are your joints? It seems like its always something!!!

[sb2178]

Well, it probably happened when your body was searching for more nutrients. I'd shift your diet profile slightly-- increasing vegetables/beans/legumes/fish/nuts and eliminating refined (white) grains and sugar for a few weeks. Try adding a little more exercise-- 30 minute walk/day or something similar. Add a multivitamin if you don't already take one. See what happens.

It may also be well within the range of normal. I lost a fair amount of weight pre-diagnosis, and gained a good bit of it back (fortunately) but it does feel weird. However, losing it would not be helpful as the most recent 5 lbs brought my body fat up to a level where it's consistently over 16%, finally. Oh, and my pants fit again.