Losing Energy

[LeniuXenobia]

I am not losing any determination, but I am however losing my energy to work out. I want to, I really do, but it just seems like as each day goes by, my energy fails to appear.

Any idea on how to boost my energy?

I currently take Hydroxycut Max! For Women
Drink 1 glass of cranberry juice a day
Drink 1 Glass of milk
And around 7 glasses of water

I also take suppliments, a daily vitamin, Fish Oil, B 12, and Zinc.

Anything would be helpful for my energy.

[LeniuXenobia]

Thanks again barb and yes my waffles were made with whole grain flour. ^.^ They were good! Well I only had one and I think it was too much! Now I feel kind of bloated. I did however make several more and put them in the freezer, cut up into 1/4 triangles. Going to see how my stomach handles half a waffle tomorrow morning.

I gained a lb over night, but the good news is, it was muscle! I walked on the treadmill yesturday and ouch my hips, thighs, and calves! So today I'm just going to get my chores done that I've been putting off.

I really appreciate everyones help and input! Thanks so much!

Tiffany

[Barb135]

You're welcome.  My point was: there are so many different foods available, that if you absolutely can't eat one, there's bound to be another way to fix it or something that you CAN eat to replace it with.  

I'm glad you are trying different things - you might open up a whole new world of eating for yourself.  I know I did.  


Red peppers??  I didn't used to like ANY type of peppers, but now I love them - just that they don't always like me so I have to be sure my stomach is in tip top shape before eating them or I end up with severe reflux.  No way can I eat cooked peppers though, they have to be raw!!  See how strange our tastes can be, but again, there's almost always some way to eat something or replace a food with in order to get the nutrients we need.  

Just keep experimenting.  You're doing great.  Get yourself on a regular schedule - like you would be if you had a job to go to every day and DON'T skip breakfast, no matter how small to start with - just make sure it's got plenty of protein to get you started for the day.

Try to get your larger meals earlier in the day.  I know I have trouble sleeping if I go to bed after eating a huge supper, plus laying down after eating a large meal causes my reflux to kick up, which is to be avoided at all costs!!  

Make sure those belgian waffles are made with whole grain flour!!  lol

Have a great day!!  

[LeniuXenobia]

Wow! Thank you for that post! While I was working, they had me working anywhere from 2-15 hours of Overtime a week on top of my 40. I'd wake up at 5a.m, shower, no breakfast. Sometimes I didn't even get lunch until around 1p.m so I was in about the same set up you were. I would go a very long time without food.

I do try foods, I recently aquired a taste for mushrooms. I remember as a child I absolutely refused to eat them. Period. No trying. Now I absolutely love them! I am actually going to try and eat some red peppers on Friday or maybe tomorrow mixed in with something. I refused to eat beans as well as a child but absolutely love them now.

One thing I definately cannot stand is tofu though! >.> I have tried it several times this year and it just. I dunno I have a hard time swallowing it no matter how much I chew it!

Strange once in awhile I will eat sweet potatoes and actually like the taste, but then there are times that I can't even stand to smell them. So your not the only one with that problem.

Oh! And I plan to get up early tomorrow and make home made belgian waffles ^.^. (The batter will contain eggs). I'm hoping that I may get eggs edible by the French Toast and Waffles :p. I plan to have some strawberries with my waffle. Oh man it sounds good. >.>

Thanks again Barb! :) I really look forward to your posts!

[Barb135]

Well, my hubby doesn't eat eggs either unless I make french toast or something so that's NOT that big a deal!!  Like I said earlier - just because a certain food is generally considered as "breakfast" food or "dinner" food - doesn't mean you have to stick with that concept or eat it at a certain time of day.  

I happen to love eggs and even though they are considered "breakfast" food, I can eat them any time of the day.  Likewise, steak is generally considered as something we would normally eat for "dinner" - but I'll eat it with eggs for breakfast, cold on a sandwich for lunch etc.  

Ok - let me tell you something about myself and maybe you will get a better idea of where I'm trying to take you.  

I was never a breakfast eater either, but I get up at 3:30 am because I have to be at work by 6:00 am with almost an hour commute.  That means that after dinner which I was trying to eat around 5:00 (I go to bed at 7:30 pm in order to get up at 3:30 am), I wasn't eating anything again until 11:30 am when my lunch time rolled around.  Well, you can take a wild guess at what kind of shape I was in after going 17 hrs without food!!!!!!!  

The only thing that saved me for years was the fact that I smoked & drank TONS of coffee, so that dulled my appetite so I didn't "feel" hungry, but sometimes it sure did a number on my blood sugar levels!

Then came the day that my doctor got very concerned about changes in my voice and sent me to an ENT, who told me that I had a problem with my vocal cords from smoking, acid reflux, etc and that it was NOT cancer, but WOULD be soon; however, IF I quit smoking he could fix it!!  Oh my, what SHOULD I do???  Duuhhh!!!  Anyway, the day the ENT told me that, I quit smoking and 2 months later I was having the first surgery on my vocal cords; 2 months after that I had another surgery.  About that same time I was dx'd with pernicious anemia and started on B12 shots.  

Ok - so I can hear you thinking "so what does this have to with ME?".  Well, prior to being sent to the ENT, I had noticed that I'd gained some weight (see, I told ya I'd get there), but didn't think too much of it cuz I'd never had a problem losing it before, why should I now - right??  Wrong!!  During the time of my 2 surgeries (one in Oct '07, the other in Dec07), the voice therapy I had to go through, etc (about 3 months altogether) I gained right at 30 pounds.  

At first everyone kept telling me the weight gain was because I'd quit smoking, but I knew it had really started BEFORE I quit.  Anyway, I kept getting more and more fatigued and gained more and more weight and I finally asked my pcp to let me get my thyroid tested.  Yep - we have a problem!!  

So - where am I going with all this??  Well, during all of this, I resisted eating breakfast and sometimes even lunch- a lot of foods didn't "taste good", some had "horrible texture", some made me "sick to my stomach" - I had tons of excuses for not eating a lot of stuff and skipping meals because I couldn't think of things that I wanted or liked.  

The bottom line is that I had to learn to adapt my tastes, thoughts, etc.  I learned to eat more things that are good for me in spite of the fact that I didn't necessarily "like" them for whatever reason: taste, texture, etc.  Over the past 2 years, you'd be surprised at the foods I've "acquired" a taste for or learned to eat in spite of the texture - and yes, some of them used to literally "turn my stomach" - like beans (kidney, black, etc) - now I love most of them.  

Today, there's hardly anything that I won't at least try.  There are still a few things that I can't quite handle yet, but keep searching for ways to fix them that might make them more palatable for me (sweet potatoes is one - ideas anyone?).  

Ok - you got the idea.  You have to eat right in order to make progress on your journey and to be healthy; and if you don't like a food - keep trying VERY small portions until maybe you can eat them OR search for alternatives to get the nutrients your body needs.  With all the foods out there - there should be plenty of things that will work.  

Good luck.

[LeniuXenobia]

I have tried the egg substitute yes, and it has the same problem for me. :( I think my stomache dislikes breakfast all together. I did however eat a bowl of cereal this morning and found I had more energy (Not as much as when I first started my journey), but it still took me awhile to get motivated to get out to the gym.

The only thing I hate about oranges is peeling them. (Yes I know it sounds lazy, but I absolutely make a mess!) The fruits I generally try to eat are bananas, strawberries, Kiwi's, Peaches and Apples. Sometimes Pineapple, but not nearly as much as the others.

Thanks again! I'll research and see what I can find!

Tiffany

I actually am probably neglecting the dairy part of the food pyramid, I don't typically eat cheese and only have 1 glass of milk a day.

[Barb135]

Have you tried making scrambled eggs with "egg substitute"?  Or making french toast with egg substitute and whole grain bread?  

Try whole orange rather than juice - it's better for you because you also get the fiber.  

Fish would primarily give you protein and Omega 3 fatty acids.  You can take a supplement for the Omega 3's and protein comes from a variety of other meats, beans, lentils, etc.  

I don't eat lamb and veal either - again that would primarily be protein, which you can get from a variety of other sources.  

You don't need powdered sugar - that's one of those things best avoided anyway.  

There are a variety of other vegetables besides asparagus and red peppers.  

Yogurt is one of your dairy products - you can drink milk, eat a variety of cheeses, etc to make up your dairy allotment.  

You can try nut butters - protein; beans, carrots, celery etc.  for the veggies.  

I think you should be able to do a search for alternatives to any of the foods you have listed above.  Or check out web sites like spark people or live strong to come up with foods that will make sure you get all of the food groups.  

[LeniuXenobia]

Once I get my health insurance going again, I will ask the doctor about my medication.

Thats another thing that I have a problem with. Even though I know that fish is really healthy for me, I can't stand to eat it. I've been told I have a very sensetive stomache and it absolutely hurts me. I can't eat alot of foods that would be good to me due to either a texture problem or that they make me very ill after eating them. Here are some things that I can't eat due to this problem. (Maybe you gals/guys can let me know if there's another suppliment I should be taking.)

Eggs
Orange Juice
Any kind of Fish
Yogurt
Lamb
Veal
Leaks
Chicken (thighs, wings)
Powered Sugar
Aspargus
Red Peppers

And thats all I can think of right now. I don't keep too much in the house that I don't eat lol.

Thanks for all your help!!

Tiffany

[Barb135]

My own experience tells me that thyroid levels can often be in the "normal" range according to the lab report, but the lab range is not necessarily "normal" for your body.  Your meds might need to be "tweaked" just a bit.  

Also remember that even though food is expensive in general, things such as protein bars and other "diet" or convenience foods are often much more expensive that regular, healthy food that needs to be cooked.  

It's a good idea when cooking dinner to make extra for your lunch the next day.  Also try oatmeal or other grains for breakfast.  That's one meal you should never skimp on, though most of us do.  AND - nothing says you have to eat "breakfast" foods like eggs, etc for breakfast.  I've often cooked extra fish fillets or something and heated the leftovers in the microwave for my breakfast the next morning.  Additionally, I often eat eggs for meals other than breakfast.  

[LeniuXenobia]

I have my blood work checked every 8 weeks due to Hypothyriodism and I currently take 75mcg of Lexithyroxin, the last time I had blood work done was in Jan and everything was normal. They said that my thyriod was in range for me to start losing weight.

I have tried to take the Melitonin, unfortunately it doesn't work for me :(, it's like my body fights sleep for some reason. I would go to the doctor if I could, but I am currently jobless and have no insurance.

I would love to be able to cook more, but without a job my groceries are kind of limited :(. Would honestly love to eat eggs, but they make me very ill, most breakfast foods do. Ever since I was little if I ate more then cereal for breakfast I'd get very ill. I'm not sure what it is, but eggs and orange juice are definatly banned from my body.

Even without a job I am still a very busy person. (Don't ask me how that is I have no idea where my time goes either!) What I am going to do tomorrow is try to get up earlier and my mother got me a waffle maker for my birthday I wanted to try it out again (My first attempt was ummm a mess). I have also made a little extra dinner tonight and plan to eat it for lunch tomorrow, I'm hoping that it helps.

I try to get at least everything into my diet although I am ashamed to admit I don't get a whole lot of veggies. My boyfriend doesn't like veggies at all and so when I cook them they often go to waste >.> so I stopped getting them. However I will start keeping salad around the house for my own benefit.

PMoon, yes I do suffer from depression bouts, I was diagnosed as manic depressive when I was 20 years old. I don't take medication for it, because I feel worse on it. The best thing for me is to keep my mind constantly busy, and unfortunately this makes me an extremely busy person. I have to being doing 5 things at once and my bf hates it hehe, but it keeps me happy and occupied.

I will try to work in more veggies and count my calories more closely. Currently I'm only getting about 1,000 maybe 1200. Usually I just guess at how much I have consumed. So I'm probably getting a lot less then my estimate!

Thanks gals, keep ideas and suggestions coming!!

[PMoon]

I'm certainly no expert, but a protein bar is not a meal. I don't think 7 lbs is excessive, it would be if you were 20 lbs away from goal weight. But especially if you are just starting out, I think the body sheds a lot of salt/water weight initially.

On your site it mentioned you suffer from depression. That could be the lack of energy. I've had problems in the past too and it's hard to do much of anything when you are depressed.

It doesn't look to me you are working out too much, but I hope you are taking at least 1-2 days off a week and resting.

If I had to guess, I'd say you weren't eating enough though, I'm sure we're all guilty of this being on a diet. I'm trying to eat from the food pyramid and I'm trying to plan my meals accordingly every day - protein from lean meat, grains, fruit, veggies.

Help -where are the other members??? What do you guys think?

[Barb135]

I'm wondering if you are eating enough calories.  If you don't eat enough, you won't have the energy to work out and it could also affect your sleep.  

Second - you said you are taking a daily vitamin, fish oil, B12 and zinc.  Have you had blood work to done to actually check your B12 levels?  You could have pernicious anemia in which your body does not absorb the B12 you take in orally.  I have that and it requires B12 shots.  I take them every 2 weeks, but it would depend on your levels and your doctor's recommendation.  

My next thought is whether or not you have a blood tests to check for thyroid function since fatigue is one of the main symptoms of having hypOthyroidism.  I also have that; however, I found losing weight impossible until my levels got balanced out.  

You could try taking melatonin before going to bed and see if that helps - check with your doctor first.  You could also ask your doctor for something short term to help you fall asleep and stay asleep, so you can get into a regular pattern of going to sleep within a few minutes of going to bed; then getting up at a regular time in the morning.  If you don't have to go work every day, maybe you could try getting up around 6:00-7:00, eating a GOOD breakfast and lunch and a lighter dinner.  

Also try getting plenty of protein for breakfast and lunch because protein gives you energy.  Chicken has a lot of protein - maybe you should try having the chicken for lunch rather than dinner.  

These are just a few suggestions - hope they help.  Don't give up.  

[LeniuXenobia]

I very much enjoy working out! It's just that I lack the energy to do some.

I work out daily, I've been told I'm an exercise-aholic. My work-out varies daily. I generally do anywhere from 20mins- and hour and a half depending on how I'm feeling and how much time I have before dinner needs to be put on the table. Machines I use are; Ellipitcal, Precor, Treadmill, my body solid home gym, recumbent bicycle, regular bicycle, Stair Stepper, Ski Machine, prefect crunch, and I do floor exercises, like yoga and pilates.

I do tend to get excessive sleep, at least I think it's excessive.... It takes me forever to fall asleep every night. Usually between 1-4 hours after I lay down. I TRY and I emphisize try to go to bed at around 10:30 each night. I usually don't wake up till 10:30 - 11:30a.m the next day.

I usually work out around 1, so I can get some breakfast (Or lunch to normal people) in me. I usually have a slimfast and protien bar, or a serving size bowl of Special K cereal.

After the gym I usualy come home and depending on what I had for breakfast will eat a protien bar, handful of nuts, or some fruit.

For dinner I like to vary, but everything I eat is homemade and prepared by me. We usually have some form of meat. (Chicken is my fav!) A fruit, usually apples and kiwi. And then a rice/veggitable.

I have tried everything to get my sleep on track, but it doesn't work very well due to the lack of being able to fall asleep at night. Even when I get up VERY early like 5:30a.m when my boyfriend goes to work and stay up all day till 10:30p.m and lay down. It still takes me 1-4 hours to fall asleep and I still wake up late the next day!

I am generally an energitic person, I could work out all day long if I wanted to and have the time.

However I am losing weight rather quickly and I'm wondering if my body is losing energy as it's trying to adjust. (For reference I lost 7lbs in under a week).

Could this be why?

[PMoon]

Leniu-are you tired and that's why you don't want to work out, or do you just not enjoy working out?

What is your workout routine and how often?

And do you enjoy your workout, or is it a chore?

Also, might try to change the time of day you work out. I think a lot of people prefer the morning. Later in the day, it's harder to get going.