Donate to Remove ads

Got a credit card? use our Credit Card & Finance Calculators

Thanks to johnstevens77,Bhoddhisatva,scotia,Anonymous,Cornytiv34, for Donating to support the site

Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

Fitness tips, Relaxation, Mind and Body
OLTB
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 1343
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 9:55 am
Has thanked: 1339 times
Been thanked: 607 times

Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197355

Postby OLTB » January 29th, 2019, 4:03 pm

Afternoon all

I'm a little worried about my waistline and have recently been told by the quack that I have hypothyroidism - I had a full blood test the other week and this popped up. I am on statins for high cholesterol (it's a liver function familial condition, rather than a full English every day) so the blood test was an annual MOT to see how I was doing for cholesterol levels. I started on 50mg of the thyroid treatment but been told I now have to increase this by 25 mg as levels are still too low.

The GP said that a side effect of a thyroid issue can be weight gain and I have noticed this. However, I do like a generous portion of food so I think this might be more to do with my expanding waistline. I'm not a huge fan of cakes or biscuits, but give me pastry/pie/pasty any day of the week and I'm a happy bunny!

Any tips for a man approaching 50 to reduce his waistline? I do nibble (especially at leftovers) so if anyone knows of any ways I can mentally tell myself not to nibble, or tell myself it's ok to throw that cake away if it's going out of date, I would be very appreciative. I HATE FEELING HUNGRY AND WILL EAT IF TUMMY GRUMBLES!!!

I realise that a heavy waist is not a healthy thing and I have a lovely 8 year old boy that I need to look after. That should be enough of a reason I know...

Thanks all, :D

Cheers, OLTB.

EssDeeAitch
Lemon Slice
Posts: 655
Joined: August 31st, 2018, 9:08 pm
Has thanked: 268 times
Been thanked: 251 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197366

Postby EssDeeAitch » January 29th, 2019, 4:38 pm

Exercise: running worked for me until my knee got too painful (at age 50) and for the last 15 years I cycle instead. It is not just a great way to keep weight down, it is also much kinder on the joints. However, it wont work if you only do one or two hours a week, you need to do six hours minimum. As a hungry horse myself I can vouch for it.

Failing that, just eat a lot less.

jackdaww
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 2081
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 11:53 am
Has thanked: 3203 times
Been thanked: 417 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197387

Postby jackdaww » January 29th, 2019, 6:18 pm

you are fortunate to get a diagnosis, so you can take meaningful action.

its a very serious business , so many illness's can arise , and hips and knees can be in big trouble.

its about diet and exercise.

for the latter i think walking is best - not just pottering but BRISK - half an hours 3 times a week - minimum .

your pastry / pie / pasty type diet gives you zero chance of improvement.

but you can eat any amount of meat fish fruit and veg , including potatoes and avacado.

for myself , i am 6ft and 10 stone - well underweight and i cant gain - and no diagnosis.

ReformedCharacter
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 3120
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 11:12 am
Has thanked: 3591 times
Been thanked: 1509 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197393

Postby ReformedCharacter » January 29th, 2019, 6:53 pm

OLTB wrote:
Any tips for a man approaching 50 to reduce his waistline? I do nibble (especially at leftovers) so if anyone knows of any ways I can mentally tell myself not to nibble, or tell myself it's ok to throw that cake away if it's going out of date, I would be very appreciative. I HATE FEELING HUNGRY AND WILL EAT IF TUMMY GRUMBLES!!!

OLTB.


I hate to sound unhelpful but the last sentence in caps is your problem. You can tinker around the edges by eating less calorific food when you feel hungry although to be honest I don't think you'll find that very helpful in the long term.

The reason that your stomach rumbles is that it has become accustomed to having food placed in it at regular intervals. I think Dr. Michael Mosley is due to talk about the benefits of the 18:6 diet in his next series and I think it makes a lot of sense for other aspects of health apart from weight loss.

But you won't be able to do that if you cannot resist the calling of your rumbling stomach. If you stick to the 18:6 diet you will find, eventually, that your stomach will only rumble when it is expecting food during the 6 hour period. If you want to find out what happens if you don't give in to your stomach rumbling, try fasting for 24 hours and see how you cope.

I know I'm a weirdo but I've eaten only once daily for about the last 15 years and find that after about 23 hours my stomach starts to rumble a bit because it expects to be fed.

RC

vrdiver
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 2574
Joined: November 5th, 2016, 2:22 am
Has thanked: 552 times
Been thanked: 1212 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197400

Postby vrdiver » January 29th, 2019, 7:11 pm

If you can manage it, keep a food diary (what, when and why - i.e. regular meal, bored, hungry, socialising etc). Log a week (or two) of normal diet, then look at what you've eaten and why. From there you may see opportunities to reduce, or avoid, certain bad food habits.

I avoid having biscuits in the house: if they are there then I will eat them, by the packet. Leftovers are a nightmare, so set yourself a rule - don't eat them!

When cooking, it's really easy to round things up, but try rounding down instead. Not only will it reduce the quantity of leftovers, but will help to reduce your portion size as well. Others have mentioned swapping bad foods (processed, trans-fatty acid stuff like pies and pastries!) for healthier alternatives. If you can't face a cliff-edge conversion, try starting with one day a week, then make it two, etc. maybe adding a day-per-week once a month, so that by August you'll be up to 7-days-a-week (or stop at 6, or 5, whatever is a reasonable target to achieve what you want that is sustainable).

Get a dog / commit to a weekly sport (badminton seems a popular mid-week evening activity). Get off the bus one stop earlier / park the car further away from your office / form a 10-minute lunch-walk club with fellow workers, anything to get the metabolic rate moving up a gear. Ultimately, getting the calories down is going to be the deciding factor, but keeping the body healthy is also important.

VRD

OLTB
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 1343
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 9:55 am
Has thanked: 1339 times
Been thanked: 607 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197431

Postby OLTB » January 29th, 2019, 9:06 pm

jackdaww wrote:

for myself , i am 6ft and 10 stone - well underweight and i cant gain - and no diagnosis.


Well, we are the same height! I'm 13 st 12lbs and would like to get to the 12 st figure...

ReformedCharacter wrote:. I think Dr. Michael Mosley is due to talk about the benefits of the 18:6 diet in his next series and I think it makes a lot of sense for other aspects of health apart from weight loss.



Hmm.. 18:6 diet - not heard of that so I shall look it up - thanks.

Snorvey wrote:I'm 51 and did 24 hour fasts once a week until July last year. From there I trained myself into not eating after dinnertime (my big failing...choc... wine etc) then to eating just 3 meals a day. No sugar and little alcohol

I too have a dodgy knee and enjoy cycling. The weather is often to easy an excuse not to go though. I had a turbo trainer but it wasn't the same. So I indoor row 4 or 5 times a week and do an occasional weights session. (for reps, not sheer weight).

I was 15 stone a year ago and now tip the scales at 11 stone 8.

When you're fitter, you just want to get out there... hence all the walking recently.


Terrific - thanks Snorvey - if you can do it then there's no reason why I can't - that's a great effort in a year.

It looks like its down to me changing my mindset and being strict on myself. I can cope with being hungry, it'll just be uncomfortable for a bit as RC says. I'll just drink water and see if that takes away the hunger pangs.

At the end of the day, I know there is no excuse and it's because I've eaten more than I've burned and it'll be up to me to change it.

Temptation is such a difficult thing not to give in to...now, where's that carrot stick.

Cheers, OLTB.

ReformedCharacter
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 3120
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 11:12 am
Has thanked: 3591 times
Been thanked: 1509 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197443

Postby ReformedCharacter » January 29th, 2019, 10:04 pm

OLTB wrote:
ReformedCharacter wrote:. I think Dr. Michael Mosley is due to talk about the benefits of the 18:6 diet in his next series and I think it makes a lot of sense for other aspects of health apart from weight loss.



Hmm.. 18:6 diet - not heard of that so I shall look it up - thanks.



https://inews.co.uk/news/health/michael ... -loss-book

RC

jackdaww
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 2081
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 11:53 am
Has thanked: 3203 times
Been thanked: 417 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197494

Postby jackdaww » January 30th, 2019, 8:26 am

worth noting also that fruit and veg are a major source of SOLUBLE fibre, which is supposedly beneficial to cholesterol reduction and hence cardio-vascular bits.

:)

OLTB
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 1343
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 9:55 am
Has thanked: 1339 times
Been thanked: 607 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197512

Postby OLTB » January 30th, 2019, 9:30 am

Snorvey wrote: I don't know where you live, but my tip is if its windy, walk in the woods. if its calm walk everywhere else. get out at lunchtime and walk. as soon as you get home row or cycle or whatever (even walk round the town). Just do not sit down or have your dinner.


Thanks Snorvey - I live in the South West near Bath so there's plenty of places to travel to and see. I have started walking every day during my lunch break for about three months now and that's good.

As others have said, I think it's down to the volume and type of food being the critical factor and I need to retrain my belly and brain to eat less, just accept it and I'll get used to it. I read somewhere that food should be about fuel/sustenance and not eating to excess, which is sensible.

Cheers, OLTB.

OLTB
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 1343
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 9:55 am
Has thanked: 1339 times
Been thanked: 607 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197519

Postby OLTB » January 30th, 2019, 9:49 am

[quote="Snorvey"]

I too have a dodgy knee quote]

I wonder if it's an age thing as you approach 50? At the moment, when I walk upstairs the noises my knees make sounds as though I'm eating a bag of crisps.

Cheers, OLTB.

didds
Lemon Half
Posts: 5244
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 12:04 pm
Has thanked: 3244 times
Been thanked: 1018 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197535

Postby didds » January 30th, 2019, 10:27 am

Hi OLTB... I recognise some of your opening post so here's what Ive fdone in the past year - of course feel free to reject it!

A year ago I was in my mid 50s with rampant diabetes II and ovbese - 17.5 stones or so, 5'7". I used to be pretty energetic (triathloon, rugby, running) but a total hip replacement in 2012 had scuppered running, and cycling more than about 25 ,il;es had become sore. I used to swim lomg distance but then my eft shoulder got buggered. I was also drinking 40+ units a week ./.. which i still maintain isn;t some sort of quasi-alocoholism as my GP clearly considered it to be. When I broke the figures down for her she was a bit shocked that this is little over 2 pints a day of 4.5%-5.5% ale. No bottles of wine per evening or spirits EVER at home etc (and hardly when out either!").

Anyway - something had to give. "Diets" hadnt worked for me previously although vast quantities of exercoide had ( eg14-16 hours a week when triathlon training).

However I somehow picked up on the 8 Week Blood Sugar Diet (Dr Michael Mosely). 8 weeks of 800 calories a day, basically no carns. (Certainly no obvious carbs - bread, spuds, pasta, rice - and beer/booze!). The book comes with a 4 week meal plan which you can repeat for 8 weeks, which takes the persistyent calorie counting and guesswork out of stuff. Though some still make up their ow meals and count calories - i just coldn;t be that6 anal (having tried incessant calorie counting before!).

I lost 3.5 stones between those 8 weeks and another couple of months following the principles (afterwards probably on circa 1600 cals a day).

Im now on 5:2 diet ... five days a week "normal" (there is a guide to how many calories to not exceed called TDEE - DYOR etc), and two days a week of 600 calories. these do not have to be "back to back" though some do.

I find the fast days (FDs) fine to go all day without eating anything until about 1730/1800. I also have Friday as a FD to stop me from having a beer o0r two on friday night leaving me nice and clear or whatever for ParkRun on saturday morning... because now Ive lost all this weight my GP said it was OK to start running again (which I did via couch to 5K FWTW).

I haven't weighed myself since New Year (87 kilos then) as I don;t have easy access to scales but people havce said I lok slimmer than I was then so fingers crossed.

The upside is I feel more in control.

Of course - the above may not be for you. Good luck with whatever you choose to progress with. If the above is of interest there are excellent Facebook support groups available for advice and support etc.

didds

OLTB
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 1343
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 9:55 am
Has thanked: 1339 times
Been thanked: 607 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197543

Postby OLTB » January 30th, 2019, 10:57 am

didds wrote:Hi OLTB... I recognise some of your opening post so here's what Ive fdone in the past year - of course feel free to reject it!

didds


Thanks so much didds - appreciate the time you took for such a comprehensive reply.

Cheers, OLTB.

vrdiver
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 2574
Joined: November 5th, 2016, 2:22 am
Has thanked: 552 times
Been thanked: 1212 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197582

Postby vrdiver » January 30th, 2019, 12:59 pm

Just one more thought; I find it much easier to give in to temptation when I'm the only one who knows what my temptation is.

E.g. doing dry January without telling anybody is a lot harder than if you've declared to friends that that's your challenge.

Similarly, a friend of mine declared (on facebook) that he was going on a diet and aiming to lose weight. He published his weekly weigh-ins and got lots of support and encouragement along the way, even when the weight-loss reversed for a few weeks...

HTH
VRD

JuanDB
2 Lemon pips
Posts: 243
Joined: August 15th, 2018, 9:31 pm
Has thanked: 114 times
Been thanked: 135 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197688

Postby JuanDB » January 30th, 2019, 7:41 pm

Hi OLTB,

I believe Hypothyroidism is often linked to an iodine deficiency. Having been through a similar process I used a holistic practitioner who helped with an underlying auto immune issue which was, in conjunction with iodine deficiency, the root cause of the issue. A targeted does of iodine reversed the issues over a couple of months in a way that conventional medicine did not.

I hope that helps.

Juan.

scotia
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 3561
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 8:43 pm
Has thanked: 2371 times
Been thanked: 1943 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197712

Postby scotia » January 30th, 2019, 8:38 pm

OLTB wrote:Afternoon all
I HATE FEELING HUNGRY AND WILL EAT IF TUMMY GRUMBLES!!!

My son's Labrador always felt hungry - and the Vet suggested we should feed him a carrot, and not a biscuit.
So here's a thought - how about munching on a carrot when you get the hungry urge? Let me know how you get on with this plan, and if it works, I may try it myself :)

OLTB
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 1343
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 9:55 am
Has thanked: 1339 times
Been thanked: 607 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#197721

Postby OLTB » January 30th, 2019, 9:00 pm

scotia wrote:
OLTB wrote:Afternoon all
I HATE FEELING HUNGRY AND WILL EAT IF TUMMY GRUMBLES!!!

My son's Labrador always felt hungry - and the Vet suggested we should feed him a carrot, and not a biscuit.
So here's a thought - how about munching on a carrot when you get the hungry urge? Let me know how you get on with this plan, and if it works, I may try it myself :)


Cheers scotia - I tried the carrot trick and this is what happened https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhOeG-uTJxw

:D

Cheers, OLTB.

UncleEbenezer
The full Lemon
Posts: 10691
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 8:17 pm
Has thanked: 1459 times
Been thanked: 2965 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#198155

Postby UncleEbenezer » February 1st, 2019, 12:52 pm

Just to put a counter-view to "eat less".

Last time I was in extreme poverty - 2002/2003 - I was down to one meal a day. Value-line pasta and pulses, with at best (as an indulgence) flavoursome but more expensive ingredients like onion, tomato, mushrooms.

I was also walking long distances: several miles each way to Tesco to buy those pasta-and-beans/lentils without the option after a cable on the bike broke and I couldn't afford to replace it.

And the waistline? Remained ample - just where it has been for the past 20+ years. Middle-age spread indeed.

ReformedCharacter
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 3120
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 11:12 am
Has thanked: 3591 times
Been thanked: 1509 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#198172

Postby ReformedCharacter » February 1st, 2019, 1:49 pm

UncleEbenezer wrote:Just to put a counter-view to "eat less".

Last time I was in extreme poverty - 2002/2003 - I was down to one meal a day. Value-line pasta and pulses, with at best (as an indulgence) flavoursome but more expensive ingredients like onion, tomato, mushrooms.

I was also walking long distances: several miles each way to Tesco to buy those pasta-and-beans/lentils without the option after a cable on the bike broke and I couldn't afford to replace it.

And the waistline? Remained ample - just where it has been for the past 20+ years. Middle-age spread indeed.

Almost certainly you needed to eat even less if your goal was to lose weight (which it may not have been). Our bodies are (more or less) inclined to maintain weight because most of the time in our evolutionary history the availability of food was less certain than it is now - for many of us - and fat reserves act as insurance against times of shortage. I've never read or seen any evidence that in humans or other animals that the consumption of less food than our bodies need leads to anything but loss of weight and eventually death; it would seem to be miraculous if it was otherwise.

RC

UncleEbenezer
The full Lemon
Posts: 10691
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 8:17 pm
Has thanked: 1459 times
Been thanked: 2965 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#198216

Postby UncleEbenezer » February 1st, 2019, 5:03 pm

ReformedCharacter wrote:
UncleEbenezer wrote:Just to put a counter-view to "eat less".

Last time I was in extreme poverty - 2002/2003 - I was down to one meal a day. Value-line pasta and pulses, with at best (as an indulgence) flavoursome but more expensive ingredients like onion, tomato, mushrooms.

I was also walking long distances: several miles each way to Tesco to buy those pasta-and-beans/lentils without the option after a cable on the bike broke and I couldn't afford to replace it.

And the waistline? Remained ample - just where it has been for the past 20+ years. Middle-age spread indeed.

Almost certainly you needed to eat even less if your goal was to lose weight (which it may not have been).

RC

My goal wasn't to starve my body, though I learned to cope better with hunger than I had done before.

I also learned that it's possible to survive on a budget of less than £2/week at today's prices.

As for the waistline, it didn't shrink in that time, but neither has it grown since then as I've become more affluent and vastly increased the food (and drink) budget. While I still know I could survive on £2/week, £2/day nowadays would seem thoroughly austere, even excluding eating out.

ReformedCharacter
Lemon Quarter
Posts: 3120
Joined: November 4th, 2016, 11:12 am
Has thanked: 3591 times
Been thanked: 1509 times

Re: Middle-aged spread and hypothyroidism

#198249

Postby ReformedCharacter » February 1st, 2019, 6:45 pm

UncleEbenezer wrote:My goal wasn't to starve my body, though I learned to cope better with hunger than I had done before.

I also learned that it's possible to survive on a budget of less than £2/week at today's prices.

As for the waistline, it didn't shrink in that time, but neither has it grown since then as I've become more affluent and vastly increased the food (and drink) budget. While I still know I could survive on £2/week, £2/day nowadays would seem thoroughly austere, even excluding eating out.


I too have lived on a very limited budget but by the sounds of it not as austere as yours. £2 a week does sound hard going and probably the worst of it is the limited choice. I wonder if you enjoy pasta these days :). I lived for a couple of years on little more than maize, beans, tomatoes and spinach. Healthy enough but I'd have given a lot for a decent loaf of bread and a pound of cheddar! Fortunately (because a lot of people live on it) the amino acids in maize and beans balance each other to provide a good balance for human protein requirements.

RC


Return to “Health & Wellbeing”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 6 guests