The FastDay Forum

Hi all, I have some questions for any members on here that have thyroid problems.
I am a new member to the forum but have been following 5/2 for past 6 weeks and so far have lots very little weight - 4 lbs.

I am currently taking a daily 75mg of levothyroxine for a slightly under-active thyroid.
I currently weigh 13st6lbs, am 5ft7, 40yrs old and take 30mins excercise every day.

I am beginning to become very disheartened with this regime as the first week I lost 2 lbs, the second and third week 1 lb each week and the last 3 weeks nothing at all.
On my fast day I have been sticking to 500 calories per day and on my feast days I am averaging around 1800 - 2000 but I am not religiously calorie-counting.
Any other advice would be helpful, thanks.

[carorees]

Hi Cakegroupy and welcome!

Yes, thyroid problems make weight loss extremely difficult so I think you should be rather pleased with your progress! The lack of weightloss in the last 3 weeks might just be coincidence. There is a thread about thyroid problems here which is worth reading.

You could check your estimated total daily calorie requirements (TDEE) to ensure you are not going over on feed days (there are links to online TDEE calculators in the FAQ - link in my signature) but I would guess you are not going over.

The other thing that seems to help is to create more of a variation in daily calorie intake so increase cals at weekends say but decrease during the week (not counting the fast days) to create the same average intake on feed days. So 2200 at weekends and 1600 in the week for example.

Thanks for the link, Caroline, will check that out now. Yep have done the tdee calculators and everything seems fine with my results from them.
Good idea about increasing to maximum calories allowed on weekends, that will NOT be a problem for me at all!
I have set myself a goal of 10 weeks to see how much I can lose in that time- fingers crossed it will be at least half a stone although when I started out I was hoping to be on track to lose 1 stone but that does not look at all realistic for me at the moment.

You could check your estimated total daily calorie requirements (TDEE) to ensure you are not going over on feed days (there are links to online TDEE calculators in the FAQ - link in my signature) but I would guess you are not going over.

Are the standard TDEE guesstimators valid for underactive thyroid ? I read a paper where the mean RMR of such people was 1200 with some in the 1,000 area.

I also have an under active thyroid for which I take levothyroxine. I'm wondering if folks with the same issue are finding it difficult to lose weight on this WOL? Has it been slower for you? Or, has it gone well and you find the weight dropping off at a normal/good clip?

Hi fellow hypo-thyroid fasters!

I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's hypothyroidism about 9 yrs. ago @ age 45, but I believe that I most likely have had symptoms of it for 25 yrs. prior to that - after the birth of my first son. All the while believing I was a diet failure, because my weight had been yo-yoing up and down about 30 lbs. over those prior decades, as I experienced symptoms of having both hyper & hypo thyroid dysfunction. The periodic hormonal imbalance was enough to feel Bipolar, with both manic & depressive episodes every few months.

Up until the end of this summer, I had been prescribed as much as 150 mg. of levothyroxine (synthroid). It was lowered to 100 mg. after I had been experiencing symptoms and test results of being hyper thyroid from over medicating.

Since starting IF 5:2 Feb. 1st, I have found that my weight loss is averaging about 1 lb. weekly. Whenever it stalls completely with no loss, I have found that doing a week of 4:3 usually gets the scale moving down again in the right direction.

My plan is to stick with the IF WOE after I reach my goal weight for maintenance, and for all the other possible long-term additional health benefits.

Best wishes to you all on your continued progress!

Ann

Carorees This question about thyroid problems affecting speed of weight loss comes up over and over again. Would it be possible to ask forum members if they are hypothyroid and compare their weight loss on the tracker with the whole group.That way we could get some objective evidence one way or the other. I'm not really into stats and am not sure how much work it would be but you do seem to love your stats

That seems like an interesting idea Lil.
I am taking 75 micro gm daily.
So far I am averaging 1lb a week, but have had a couple of weeks with no losses.

I take 125mcg a day, but I've only done one week of 5:2 so far, so not much data for you! (I lost 3lb though!)

Hi. I take 125mcg a day, and have done for the last 12yrs. I have always taken after my breakfast, was not aware that you should take them on an empty stomach. On the chemists label it just ses " take one daily" . And I never read the instructions inside. Maybe I should. I will see if this makes a difference to my weight loss in the future. Cheers for that very helpful information

Carorees This question about thyroid problems affecting speed of weight loss comes up over and over again. Would it be possible to ask forum members if they are hypothyroid and compare their weight loss on the tracker with the whole group.That way we could get some objective evidence one way or the other. I'm not really into stats and am not sure how much work it would be but you do seem to love your stats

What an excellent idea!

[carorees]

This could be a lot to ask Moogie to do! If not possible, we can include it in our forthcoming survey questionnaire, which I hope to work on this week if I can find the time!

Hi everyone,
I have been doing the 5:2 diet for two weeks now and have just done my fourth fast.
I am on 150 mcg of levothyroxin, i was on 100mcg but it was increased about 6 months ago.
It runs in our family (just the females) and I have been on it since I was 21 (I'm now 59)
I have never been able to eat like normal people because because my metabolic rate is so slow, so I've always had to watch what I eat or I would just balloon! So really I have been dieting for most of my life and just accepted my lot!
By eating very little I have been able to keep my weight down, but for some reason that isn't working anymore and my weight is escalating big time.
I was excited starting this one because its a different WOL and I thought it might kick start weight loss again.
I lost 4 pounds the first week but this week none at all, of course it may have been just water but I am still pleased nonetheless. It's to soon to tell wether it will work long term for me, but I have never been so excited about a diet before! It's because it's so radically different and of course having such a support network there is new hope for everyone that have tried everything else.
Good luck to all you fellow hypothyroiders let's hope it works for us too!
Toni x

[Tracieknits]

I'm technically hyperthyroid (Graves Disease) and I take Methamizole to make my thyroid slow down. The first week of January, my levels were normal. I lost 9 pounds over about 6 weeks, and stopped losing weight.

My thyroid levels about two weeks ago were taken and found to be low - my medication has been reduced and I'm hoping the levels normalize. So I'm thinking the lower thyroid levels were the reason I stopped losing weight, despite not doing anything differently. In the meantime, I'm just chugging along with the fasting and I really hope I see a difference in the scale on Thursday.

New to the forum and eating plan.

I also have hypothyroidism. I was diagnosed in Jan 2012. I'm sure I've had it for years, but since most Dr's only go by TSH, hard to get a diagnoses.

I take 50 mcg of Synthroid nightly before bed (on empty stomach). I find it really helps me to sleep and I don't have to worry about having my morning coffee when I get up. I was taking 75 mcg of Synthroid, but it was recently lowered due to getting my D3 and B12 levels up.

I've been on the 5:2 eating plan for a week now. I didn't weigh yesterday, thought I would wait and weigh next week and see how its going. I do find that since doing the 2 fasting days, that I don't seem to want to eat as much on non-fasting days.

I will be happy to post and let everyone know how the weight loss goes next week at weigh in. I do find it's very hard for me to lose weight. I'm hoping this plan works for me, since I really need to get this poundage off my body.