Does anyone know about "unexplained weight gain"

[Fullybuilt]

Im really stuck and have a ? about my fiancee. She is 23 years old and has gained about 60lbs in the past year. Last year she found out her thyroid was low and was prescribed syntheroid. She still kept slowly gaining weight. Then she lost her health insurance and used T3 at 25mcg daily. This worked for a while and then she kept gaining weight. She has tried everything. I've even put her on contest diets and that will only let her weight remain the same. She is about 5'5" and weighs 185lbs but its really odd b/c she looks about 150lbs if that. She has a good amount of muscle but holds a lot of water especially in the leg region something is wrong. Even when she upped her t3 dose to 50mcg still nothing. So she has gone back on syntheroid at 100mcg daily and it has had no change. I have a feeling something else went wrong. Something hormonal, b/c being on 100mcg syntheroid and doing 2hrs of cardio per day with a perfect diet she still will continue to gain weight. She went to a local dr and they were not much help. They recommened an endo, but nobody seems to know much. I was thinking she should be tested for
estradiol
progesterone
Cortisol
total test or free test(not sure which is more important for females)
Does that sound right? The local dr tested her for a cbc,glucose,metabolism,liver,etc.... and everything was normal. Is there something else that can cause this crazy weight gain. Do you recommened anything else besides what I listed above? Any help is appreciated. Thank you.

 

[bellicose]

i've got a client who is the same way....i've got the guy doing an hour of weights and hour of cardio a day with a great diet and 100mcg t-3 with 500mg of test and his weight still won't budge. He's actually gained weight since he started working with me, granted its muscle but still he's not very happy
It frustrates the shit out of me.....

Good luck with your wife, i hope you find the answer

 

[joshbarnett]

from my past clients i have found its DIET DIET DIET!!! they might tell you one thing but they eat another and you will never know for sure. but i have other clients that tell me i saw so and so out eating dairy queen friday night then they have the nerve to complain about not losing weight. its their choice. i have found the "low thyroid" excuse to be BS cuz if they are on thyroid meds then they should be at a normal level. they have to train consistently and eat the proper foods(everyday, not whenever they feel like it)

 

[STORM SHADOW]

Using process of elimination... it sounds like all the medical was done short of gastric bypass. Just a possibility... none of us know you and your fiance'. I just know from experience that when people are left alone hidden behaviors take over. Gastric Bypass really is to control people's behavior.

Let me just use a personal example of tough love. My wife before we met was not in bad shape, not great shape but very pretty. We marry yada yada yada and she gains weight. I'm very observant being a personal trainer at one time and kept an eye on her and asked alot of questions over a period of time in a way that she didn't suspect me of investigating her eating disorder.

I have alot of trashy food for my personal weight gain around the house and started keeping an eye on it. doh! every now and then I would find bits here and there missing. Combine that with what she was eating in front of me she gained weight. She really was trying to throw me off by having the Atkins book out all the time and was trying to stay within it's limits (in front of me). In my questioning of her overtime I realized that when we met and was trying to win me and eventually marry me she was practically starving herself.

So I pieced it together detective style. She had a job that didn't pay shit and still had to pay her rent and all her bills, money left over for food wasn't much. Couldn't really eat out much and couldn't eat rich that's for sure. Plus she was in love with me and was going to do anything to get me and keep me so... she dieted heavy.

After we were married she started to put on the weight...baaad. She would sit on the couch and cry over it and couldn't understand why the Atkins diet wasn't working. I sent her in for her medical tests. Her tests came back normal... yes normal. hmmmmm I put her on T4 and she still didn't change much. So I started watching the food closely. Yep, she was spiking her insulin.

Finally she gave in (I believe it was the fear of losing me or that I would start seeing other women), she asked for more help from me. I sent her to a weight clinic that prescribes Phendimetrizine. Then I modified her diet to avoid any insulin spike for 6 hours after waking and 4 hours before sleeping.

She stuck to what I wanted and she lost over 30 lbs in less than 3 mo's. I believe that when medical is ruled out it's behavioral. When I go to McD's (I can get away with it), I see these massive women in there ordering food or working there and you can bet all the money in the world that they tell their friends that they hardly eat a thing and still put on weight.

Make sure she isn't ever drinking milk (make sure she takes her vits/mins). If it really is behavioral, get rid of all trash food and major insulin spikers. When she eats.... protein/fat in the first 6 hours of waking... moderate carbs high protein after that.... protein/fat 4 hours before sleeping. That would mean moderate carbs and protein at lunch only. Never ever have fat/carbs in the same meal and keep them four hours apart.

Believe it or not... fat disorders are a recent phenomena in the Western World esp America. The majority of all is behavioral. I've seen over weight women look me right in the face and tell me they hardly eat at all, never eat trash and still gain weight and when they think nobody is looking I see them with a Pepsi and snacking. It seems that people in America don't see snacking as a meal and don't include it in the total intake of the day. People see a meal as sitting at a table to purposely eat a breakfast, lunch or dinner... not true these days. Snacks are usually the criminal here and people don't realize that this little thing they threw in their mouth and washed it down spiked the insulin and stored the food.

THE STORM

Hope this helps.

 

[Shockmeister]

I would go with the estrogen/ progesterone tests.. My wife switched on to a different contraceptive pill a couple of years back and "ballooned" up with water retention. Once she returned to the original one, she was fine.

 

[STORM SHADOW]

I would go with the estrogen/ progesterone tests.. My wife switched on to a different contraceptive pill a couple of years back and "ballooned" up with water retention. Once she returned to the original one, she was fine.

He said she gained 60 lbs... I doubt that's water.

THE STORM

 

[Sesshomaru]

You should have a doc check her adrenal glands. She might be experiencing adrenal failure, in which case shes going to need a lot more than just armour, t3, etc. She might actually need supplemental hormones to get her back to normal.

Check for all of the above on your list, including estrogen, progesterone, but have her adrenals evaluated.

 

[getonmybusa]

these "contest" diets what were her calories and what were the macronutrient ratios ?

 

[RazorCuts]

No matter what diet she is on it still will come down to overall calories. Some switch to a healthy diet eating every 2-3 hrs yet still do not lose because the diet is still to high in calories. She is better off keeping a log for a week and add up her weekly total unless she is eating the same thing everyday. Then cut back daily by 250 at a time. Does she weight train?
Can not hurt to do the testing recommended above also.

 

[Fullybuilt]

these "contest" diets what were her calories and what were the macronutrient ratios ?

ITs just this all happened over the past year or year and 1/2. Before that she was like 120lbs perfect shape,etc.... She seriously will eat a total of maybe 100gram so protien and 20grams of fat and 20carbs and do 2hrs of cardio plus lifting and still not drop a lb. Its not her diet im 100% sure, its something else.

 

[lynx]

ITs just this all happened over the past year or year and 1/2. Before that she was like 120lbs perfect shape,etc.... She seriously will eat a total of maybe 100gram so protien and 20grams of fat and 20carbs and do 2hrs of cardio plus lifting and still not drop a lb. Its not her diet im 100% sure, its something else.

That's only about 660 calories. Plus lifting and 2 hours of cardio. She's going to gain weight after coming off that. 60 lbs, I don't know. How long was she on this diet?

 

[Ashop]

Im really stuck and have a ? about my fiancee. She is 23 years old and has gained about 60lbs in the past year. Last year she found out her thyroid was low and was prescribed syntheroid. She still kept slowly gaining weight. Then she lost her health insurance and used T3 at 25mcg daily. This worked for a while and then she kept gaining weight. She has tried everything. I've even put her on contest diets and that will only let her weight remain the same. She is about 5'5" and weighs 185lbs but its really odd b/c she looks about 150lbs if that. She has a good amount of muscle but holds a lot of water especially in the leg region something is wrong. Even when she upped her t3 dose to 50mcg still nothing. So she has gone back on syntheroid at 100mcg daily and it has had no change. I have a feeling something else went wrong. Something hormonal, b/c being on 100mcg syntheroid and doing 2hrs of cardio per day with a perfect diet she still will continue to gain weight. She went to a local dr and they were not much help. They recommened an endo, but nobody seems to know much. I was thinking she should be tested for
estradiol
progesterone
Cortisol
total test or free test(not sure which is more important for females)
Does that sound right? The local dr tested her for a cbc,glucose,metabolism,liver,etc.... and everything was normal. Is there something else that can cause this crazy weight gain. Do you recommened anything else besides what I listed above? Any help is appreciated. Thank you.

She should see an endo and have full panel of bloods drawn.

 

[STORM SHADOW]

That's only about 660 calories. Plus lifting and 2 hours of cardio. She's going to gain weight after coming off that. 60 lbs, I don't know. How long was she on this diet?

Got me too. Even with medical problems, cals in cals out is the bases of losing or gaining weight. The BMR decides it all... if one is giving less cals then the body can sustain living on... it canabolizes itself and weight loss occurs regardless if it's fat or muscle. Sounds like closet eater to me and 660 cals just doesn't add up... she would drop like a rock... not healthy either, throw in 2 hours of cardio? and lifting? We're not getting a full accurate story... no offense.

THE STORM

 

[dragonfire101]

You should have a doc check her adrenal glands. She might be experiencing adrenal failure, in which case shes going to need a lot more than just armour, t3, etc. She might actually need supplemental hormones to get her back to normal.

I have that now (adrenal fatiue) failure would be considered addisons disease and gained 50 pounds over the past 6 months while eating clean.

 

[Fullybuilt]

The 700cal diet was only for a few days to see if she would lose wieght. Nothing happened. Basically she can eat between 700-3000cals and nothng changes. Just a slow increase in weight. Now she went off her thyroid meds for about 1week and gained 4lbs while only eating about 700cals. She has been back on for like 3weeks now and still hasnt dropped those 4lbs gained. She gained another 1 or 2 on top of that. If its not estrogen or progesterone i have a feeling its gotta be the adreanal fatigue. Were gonna get her cortisol levels checked. If it was adrenal fatigue, cortisol would be extra high right?

 

[STORM SHADOW]

Guys, this has nothing to do with calories. It's not fat she's gaining it's water. The question I think is why is she retaining so much water?

60 lbs of water? hmmmm

THE STORM

 

[Fullybuilt]

Its def not all water. Kinda 50/50

 

[STORM SHADOW]

Its def not all water. Kinda 50/50

30lbs of water?

THE STORM

 

[dragonfire101]

why is she retaining so much water

I have retained alot of water with my current conditions, but also have become insulin sensitive. Im at the point were my hands are swollen and tingly when I wake up in the morning.

Did she have any tramatic illnessess or autoimmune problems in the past, high/long lperiods of stress, a parasites, use alot of stimulants etc. that might warrent adrenal fatigue.

She could have her cortisol check by a endrocrinolgist or primary care physcian if she ask. DEA needs to be check also as well as a few otehr things.

**broken link removed**

http://www.adrenalfatigue.org/index.php

 

[Fullybuilt]

She used to be anorexic in highschool. From around 16-18. Then got into fitness and stayed a lean 120lbs from around 18-21 or so and then the last year/year and 1/2 she just started gaining weight like crazy. I def think it could be the adrenal thing. So if it is, cortisol would be very high right? We are gonna get her estradiol,test,progesterone and cotrisol tested on directlabs.com Is dhea that important? Would cortisol be the first to check?