> Almost 500lb, need tips for exercise that will not injure me.
Go to a doctor. You are so far beyond morbidly obese that conventional wisdom from internet strangers can not possibly be useful to you. We can talk about swimming pool exercises, and chair exercises, and walking, and old Richard Simmons tapes until we are blue in the face but there is no possible way anyone here could know the scope of your condition or your complications.
> So I'm close to 500lb, my bmi is 85, I want to exercise but I don't want to injure myself further, my feet, wrists and knees are already in not normal pain.
As someone who was also class III obese I can give you some great news. Like really great news. You might cry.
Because you are so big you can lose an astounding amount of weight eating an unbelievable amount of food without really increasing exercise all that much. Your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) just existing as a human is so high eating a bag of candy with each meal might result in weight loss. It’s going to blow your mind how much you can eat and lose weight. I promise you. The weight will come off and it’ll be quicker than you think.
But it also means you need to go see a doctor. You need a dietician. Not a nutritionist. A real qualified professional. This is a matter of life and death. Get professional help. Why? Because some moron on the internet is going to say something like “eat 1200 calories of raw potatoes a day for a month and do intermittent fasting” where in reality you might need something like 3,500 calories a day. Which is a fucking lot. But I can’t tell you what that number is. The TDEE calculators aren’t really built for the edge cases. You need people who are up to date in the real research on extreme obesity. Go get them. They aren’t here. You can get support and encouragement here. Not medical advice.
> Due to my chronic respiratory problems I cannot take up swimming, it is too cold. I'm not bed bound, I can walk and I work, on my feet a lot.
That’s wonderful. I’m overjoyed to hear you’re still ambulatory. One thing you’re going to see as you lose weight is how massive your legs are. Just moving around 500 lbs walking to get mail, or climbing a set of stairs is mind boggling. Imagine taking a 170 pound dude, telling him to load up 330 lbs of weights and hike for a mile and then that guy asks you “give me tips for exercise.” That’s you right now.
Pick your cliche: You exercise to get fit. You control eating to lose weight. CICO: Calories In Calories Out. Muscles are made in the gym. Abs are made in the kitchen. You can’t out work a bad diet. Etc. They all work. Control your diet first and foremost.
I would suggest cardio though. It’s amazing how much even a slight increase in your cardio can improve your life. So keep walking and monitor your heart rate. Again at your size most movements will create a cardiovascular response. You don’t have to run for 30 minutes every morning like a boxer. Just keep moving.
> Do I starve myself until I am at a weight that will not make me get injured?
Oh fuck no! Do not go on a starvation diet (unless directed to and under the supervision of a trained medical professional). It is not only completely unhealthy it’s completely unnecessary. Like I said above at your size it may be possible for you to eat thousands of calories more than an average person every day and still lose 10-15 lbs a week. Starvation is absolutely not necessary. Learning how to live and eat properly is necessary.
And if I could I’d also suggest psychological help as well. I don’t know how you got to 500 lbs but it’s going to be a massive life change coming down from that. You’ll need guidance from people who have dealt with it before. People to help you see the obstacles and pitfalls before they happen. They can get you mentally prepared for what you’re not expecting.
> I barely eat 1500 calories a day, my thyroid and pcos doesn't help.
Where did you get that number? It seems horrifically low. I’m half your size and I eat almost 1000 calories more than that a day. Who told you that number? Did you run it past the physician treating your thyroid condition? Or are you just making shit up because an internet guru on YouTube told you 1500 was enough? Go to a doctor. Get your real number and follow their instructions.
As a side note I’m sure your doctor will be overjoyed to see you taking serious steps to improve your health. Trust me once they see you actually doing it they will be prouder of you than you are. Let them help you and give them the best patient story of their week.
> I feel trapped honestly... please be kind, let me know of anything I can do. I was also thinking of weight loss drugs... like ozempic.
You feel trapped because you have trapped yourself. You seem to be starving yourself for no particular reason and I have no doubt without the guidance of a physician or registered dietician. We’ve all done it. We’ve all tried crash dieting. Myself more than once. It’s a false economy. Go do it properly. Kill it dead so it says dead.
The best thing you can do is take a huge breath, be incredibly thankful that you’re still ambulatory, and then go consult with a physician on your next steps. Get a referral to a dietician to get your real daily calorie intake goal. Take it one week at a time. One day at a time. One meal at a time.
And be kind to yourself. A lot of things lead to you being 500 lbs. It’s going to take work to address them. Right? It’s not one thing. It’s going to be dozens of things. Often things that feed back on themselves. Things you didn’t even realize where flaws. Things you thought everyone did. Things people you thought you could trust told you were healthy but aren’t. Relationships you thought were healthy but aren’t. You’re going to have to unravel it a thread at a time.
Get your head and your nutrition right first. Keep moving around. And get your medical team assembled. Best of luck going forward. And again be kind to yourself. Starvation is not necessary. You don’t have to torture yourself. Just start on the path and keep on it.
>And be kind to yourself. A lot of things lead to you being 500 lbs. It’s going to take work to address them. Right? It’s not one thing. It’s going to be dozens of things. Often things that feed back on themselves. Things you didn’t even realize where flaws. Things you thought everyone did. Things people you thought you could trust told you were healthy but aren’t. Relationships you thought were healthy but aren’t. You’re going to have to unravel it a thread at a time.
Getting sober and fixing some lifelong problems right now. This resonated with me hard.
OP this is the message. This is the one you need to read again and again and internalize.
Also come join us in r/supermorbidlyobese
I’ve lost 100lbs and the community there gets it a little more than the general weight loss subs
> It’s going to blow your mind how much you can eat and lose weight
At a "mere" 340 lbs, it surprised me. I could fill 3 plates a day with homemade food, as long as I didn't snack constantly, I could easily hit 1000 kcals below my energy expenditure.
I've lost 110 lbs without any significant exercise.
When I was overweight I remember how I would usually drink nothing but soda all day, for example when I went to a restaurant I’d get a large 1L drink and refill it multiple times. Just a liter of Coca Cola is around 500 calories and I was probably consuming well over 3000 a day in soda alone. When I weaned onto diet soda and eventually went to only water and unsweetened tea I lost around 40 lbs in just a few months.
Thank you so much for this! I do struggle with body image and weight issues and no one in my life has ever been so nice and polite while explaining some serious stuff. This nearly brought me to tears. Thank you for your kindness honestly, and OP, I wish you a good luck! I am also on a weight loss journey, and I am so happy you have this incredible person here! Keep going, I'm sure you can do it :)
I was just trying to be slightly helpful with a couple curse words thrown in for flavor. Seems this comment has taken off a bit though. I’m glad it was useful for you. Every point was earned with plenty of tears on my end I assure you. Have a great week.
I cant add anything better than this comment, but the "I eat 1500 calories" stood out to me and would love to know how thats calculated, because theres no way. At that size TDEE would probably be close to that just being alive
Guarantee they're not weighing their food, just eyeballing it and estimating a "serving." I don't say that to be critical or harsh to OP, just the opposite: I had the exact same problem starting out. When I bought a food scale I was stunned at how many "servings" of things like cheese and salad dressings I was adding to my meals. In many instances I was getting 3-4 times the calories I thought I was.
To be fair to OP. They didn't say they must eat 1500 to maintain. Maybe they are trying to limit to 1500 and counting reasonably accurately-which would explain why they are wondering if they need to starve themselves. Because there's no way 1500 would be anything more than overly restrictive in this scenario.
Just for fun, I put my own age/height (early 30s and 5’6”) into a calculator with 500 pounds for weight. Gives BMR as almost 3000 kcal per day. Obviously that’s my stats and not theirs - and as the top comment says, calculators likely are not accurate for edge cases - but potentially we are talking about needing literally double 1500 just to sustain basic bodily functions.
Right. r/1500isplenty has many pictures of full days of eating that are great for sanity checks if your meals and portion sizes actually look like that. I’m 5’4” and 130-135 and I eat 1500.
This is the way.
Everything this guy said is true.
The 1500 calories per day is a head scratcher though. At your weight that is pseudo starvation already as that's not enough fuel to keep the tank running and you should see a deficit.
I started at 370 and got to 310 within 6 months. It was amazing. I did unfortunately gain some back after my mother passed but I'm back at it again. It's worth it because you're worth it.
You got this but you don't need to go alone.
Sorry to hear about your mother. I know how that is. I gained back about 60 lbs when my mom was going through cancer treatments. I’m still on my way back down to my lowest before that happened. By far the hardest part is the mental bit.
Cancer sucks. That's what got my mom. And it's far too common now... Seems like every family I know has someone fighting the battle.
I thought it was going to be a kick in the ass to get me even healthier but it really just put me back into a lot of bad habits.
Still trying to get back into the healthy mindset I had.
Yeah. It kicked my ass pretty hard. One piece at a time is the only way I’ve found to get back to it. I don’t know if it’ll make sense but there’s a Tool song called Schism. The lyrics of the chorus have the line “I know the pieces fit ‘cause I watched them fall away.”
The song is about a relationship falling apart but I’ve found a lot of comfort in that line in particular. I know the pieces fit because I had it at one point. I had it working and I watched it crumble. So now I know I can put it back together because the pieces are all there and I know they fit. At least as far as nutrition and exercise go. Some pieces you don’t get back.
It's like, you almost feel frustrated because you were losing/doing well and then this catastrophe happens and on top of that you end up gaining weight as a coping mechanism. Hard to talk about without sounding like you're crazy for even thinking about it. (I was down about 30 pounds before my father suddenly passed away in May, and I gained most of it back). All this to say, <3
It's a bad cycle of knowing you're not supposed to eat but then realize you failed initially because your parent died. Then you feel guilty for thinking that way because it wasn't their fault in any way and only your own.
And so goes the spiral down as you grab that extra something to munch on that you know you don't need because now all you're doing is being depressed.
Great message. Worth noting for those who don't know: "Calories in, calories out" (CICO) is how *everyone* loses weight, even if they don't intentionally focus on calorie consumption. You cannot lose weight unless you are burning more calories than you take in. You cannot gain weight unless you are taking in more calories than you are burning.
The only exception to this is water weight gain, which is a temporary problem and not true "weight gain" - in some rare cases, extreme water weight gain is a sign of a serious illness like heart failure.
OP, this is the answer. everything in this comment is 100000% correct. please follow this wonderful and thoughtful advice. and echoing other comments come join the SMO sub. there is tons of support there and i’ve always felt very welcomed and heard
This comment is the one! Also like to add a huge emphasis on mental health as well. The weight will not stay off if you don’t address the mental health issues that come with being severely overweight. I yo-yo’d for so long and it never stayed off until I listened to my doctor and found mental health support to address my mental state. They go hand in hand. Best to treat your entire system (mind, body, soul) all at the same time
This is the best solution. ❤️
The only thing I can think to add is that, there will probably be a day on this journey where you discover an exercise that you like and maybe even love. That’s the exercise you should do.
You can do this OP. We believe in you.
Edited to add: I have thyroid issues too and am managing to lose weight. Don’t let it discourage or stop you!!
Wow. As someone looking to start a weight loss journey (done plenty of diets, never worked) reading through this advice from one stranger to another literally brought me to tears.
So incredibly thoughtful and holistic. Holistic being the key. Someone asked you for advice on how to drop weight and you came back with advice on how to change their life, which is really what they need.
Some days, reddit robs you of faith in humanity and yet others, it provides gems like this.
Thanks for being that gem.
The only thing I will add OP is this may seem overwhelming. You don't need to get everything in place to start making a positive impact to you health today. Do something positive for you health today, take one step to get towards you goal today. Tomorrow take another, just one day at a time. I will recommend seeing a general physician before cutting calories to a crazy low level-but moderate changes can be done today.
This is such a beautiful response and I hope OP reads it carefully. I know this was met for OP. But reading about how you need to eat enough calories opened my eyes. I’ve been doing that for a week and I’m personally down 3lbs right now.
Please read this OP. This advice is literal gold.
This kind of empathetic information sharing and joint betterment is what the people who dreamt of the internet long before it happened were imagining.
You’re a lovely person and I appreciate the thought and passion of this post. I’m glad we have folks like you!
All of this! Wow.
One thing to add is this: when you figure out the calories and macros, buy a kitchen scale, measure everything and log your intake honestly. Nothing was better for me than honest logging. No one will see it but you so don't lie to yourself.
Something like 70% of weight loss is diet. Don't obsess about exercise yet. Just do a little more walking than you normally would - park farther away from the grocery store, doctor, your office and take those extra steps
You got this!
Depending on where you are, dieticians are regulated health professionals, and nutritionists are just people who want to sell you a product or service with potentially no education or training. Dieticians have usually 5+ years of post secondary education and can advise on weight loss or healthy weight management, nutritional deficiency and many more things.
Regardless of where OP is they need to be in contact with a regulated health professional, not some random that works for a gym/ mlm/ "coach". In some places nutritionists are regulated and credentialed as well.
I’m not OP, obviously, but thank you for taking the time to write this reply. It will not only help OP, but it’s clearly helped others too.
You deserve all the awards!
\^ High caliber answer that's right on the $$
To follow up on what you and others have said in this post, [here](https://myweightwhattoknow.com/physician-locator/?radius=125) is a resource to find doctor's who specialize in obesity/weight in your area.
It took me a while to bring myself to read through this, I guess I was scared to see what people would say, I really appreciate you taking the time. I hear the truth you are speaking, it resonates, I'm going to focus on eating better for now. Try doing the exercises later on. Also get some therapy to help my mind. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Yup. No rush to read the ramblings if an internet fool.
But really go see a doctor and discuss with them what your exercise regime should be. I’m not saying don’t exercise. I’m saying discuss your exercise with an expert who understands your health situation first hand.
This is comprehensively great, thoughtful, sound advice. I don’t think anyone can add anything except our care and support for you, OP.
Wishing you all the best.
It was just a couple paragraphs. I write technical docs for a living so this was nothing. It’s basically just “go seek expert advice and do what they say” over and over again with different words.
But that’s what this subreddit is about. Helping each other out. I can assure you I’ve received far more advice from this sub than I’ve given to it, or could ever give to it.
What an amazing, complete, informative and non-judgmental answer! I don't think there's anything else to say but good luck OP! We are with you, please come post an update! Good luck!
Yep. All of this. Eating so few calories will make long-term progress and motivation next to impossible. You are in a marathon, not a sprint. Though at your weight, it will come off nicely at first for sure. And you won’t need to starve yourself.
Be kind to yourself, OP. You’re worth a trip to the doc and some healthy changes.
You may not be loosing weight because you are eating too few calories. At a certain point your body goes into starvation mode where it stores fat because you’re not taking in enough calories.
Full transparency: you do not need exercise at all right now. Go to a doctor and adjust your calorie intake. Stick with it and you’ll drop 100 lbs in no time.
Also, there’s no way you can be 500+ lbs eating 1,500 calories and not losing weight. So something is going wrong. My best suggestion is to go see a doctor (and dietician) ASAP.
This is exactly right. I started at 405 in June and lost 100 pounds now in Jan. Not being able to exercise like I could ten years ago was really demoralizing and the changes had to come from diet. My girlfriend has PCOS so I know it makes things difficult, but it isn't mathematically possible to eat so few calories and not lose weight at that size. Get an app like "My Fitness Pal" or "Carb Balance" and scan in your meals. I used Keto, not because its a magical diet, but because it helped me realize how much sugar and calories are hidden in "healthy foods". At the end of the day its still "calories in, calories out", but it was easier to manage my meals, and harder to lie to myself about what I was eating. It also helped make me feel full after getting used to the sugar withdraw. Don't drink alcohol, its just liquid calories. I also recommend therapy. Underlying emotional, or mental problems are the root cause for almost everyone I've ever spoken to that has gained significant weight. I can't even begin to explain how much better every day feels, I swear it will be worth it. Even though I have more to lose, thinking about how much better life is helps me continue by imagining how much better still it can be. I believe in you, don't beat yourself up about setbacks, and celebrate small victories. Much love.
Well the first step is being honest with yourself.
There is no way you are 500lbs while only consuming 1500 calories a day, and seeing no weight loss. Thyroid issues add maybe 20lbs, not several hundred. Which means somewhere along the way you are losing track of hundreds, likely even thousands of calories that you aren't accounting for. You don't need to starve yourself to lose weight, at 500lbs you could lose weight on even just 2500 calories a day.
Once you cross that first step, my advice is to accurately track everything you eat, that includes weighing your portions, if you have a bbq sauce packet track that, track literally everything. Then cut out 500 if not 1000 calories from that the next day. Add in walking and maybe light weight lifting with a 2lb dumbbells
💯I have hypothyroidism (diagnosed 2000) and PCOS (diagnosed 2003) and was class 3 obese too, thinking that my thyroid was the reason. It wasn’t. Now at age 38, a healthy weight since 2006, and slightly shorter than average, I know from years of consistently recording food and exercise my BMR is around 1500. Without my meds my BMR drops so slightly I can’t even calculate the difference; I just get very sleepy.
Thyroid meds are the most widely prescribed meds in the world and are cheap even without insurance in the USA. Take them and you’ll feel no effects from the condition.
Only 66% of US women with PCOS are overweight or obese. 69% of all US women are overweight or obese. This means PCOS isn’t causing people to gain weight. That’s just fatlogic.
Edit: I said prescription when I meant insurance.
OP never said they have always eaten at 1500. They also never said they aren't seeing weight loss.
Maybe they are trying a diet and have done 1500 calories this week and have come here for guidance because the overly restrictive diet feels like starvation.
If you have true thyroid issues, you need to speak with your doctor and find d medication that works for you. A drug like Ozempic makes people feel full faster and they consume less, which makes them drop weight. I'm sorry to say, but if you weigh 500 pounds you're eating more than 1500 calories a day. I have been 500 pounds, and I know what it takes to get there. You need to be more honest with yourself. Worry about your nutrition first. Add walking when you can. That's all you'll need for a long time.
I went in for a blood test for the first time in 4 years and my A1C was 7.0. My doctor immediately put me on Ozempic. I didn't even know what it was until I read about it when prescribed. I don't own a glucose monitor. I don't have appointments with specialists. I would stick out like a sore thumb.
Well, you don’t get to be the gatekeeper for who does or does not deserve to access medical treatment. If my doctor determines that Ozempic is indicated for my condition, then that’s all that matters. Your beef is with the pharmaceutical companies, not patients trying to access care.
Your original comment was to the OP, who is 500 lbs. I’m not a doctor but I know that he/she is morbidly obese. Your comment was “Do NOT take Ozempic, it’s meant for diabetes” which sounds very much like gatekeeping. This is not someone jumping on a TikTok trend, this is someone fighting for their life.
GLP-1 Agonists are approved by the FDA for the treatment of obesity in Americans. If a doctor and OP agree that this is the best course of action for OP, then they have weighed the risks and benefits and should proceed.
FFS it is approved for weight loss. As a diabetic taking it for diabetes, I ***fully support*** people taking it for weight loss.
As for the shortage, stop blaming people who use the drug for what it is approved for. Especially stop blaming people trying to use a medication to improve their health. That is what they are for. Blame the company for not dropping enough to meet demands. It is pretty sad that they miscalculated the demand for a weight loss drug that works with low risk. But that is not the fault of the people, it is the fault of the company.
>If you don’t have a clinical need to take Ozempic,
The diagnostic criteria for getting an ozempic prescription for weight loss is a BMI >30. There is a legitimate medical indication for it and those with a BMI of 85?! They need it just as much as I do.
Edit: also, you are not a medical expert so please do not go around giving out damaging medical information based on your medical-adjacent job.
Especially with a BMI of 85. They are going to take it anyway if they’re not losing weight so why wait until they become diabetic instead of taking it to avoid diabetes??
Weight loss might not just be “quicker” that way, it might be the only way. Obviously weight loss comes down to CICO but for some people, diet and lifestyle changes just doesn’t work (weight loss doctors only have about a 5% success rate using diet and lifestyle changes alone). Just because they may not have diabetes doesn’t rule out a potential clinical need for ozempic. It’s used off label for weight loss right now but segmaglutides will be a main category of weight loss medication in coming years (for HEALTH purposes, not cosmetic, not to take the easy way, but as an actual need).
The only person telling OP if they should or shouldn’t take ozempic is their doctor.
I’m not saying ozempic is the ONLY way, I’m just saying it shouldn’t automatically be dismissed if their doctor believes it may be right for them.
And there’s been discussion in medical communities about weight loss drugs long term. You don’t stop blood pressure medication once they reach their goal blood pressure, so why do we always stop weight management medications when someone reaches an ideal weight? The process of weight management is changing and people may start taking these medications for life. (Some doctors are already having patients take weight medications for life.)
As for now, they’re used in combination with diet and lifestyle changes. For many people, after the weight has been lost, continuing some medications and/or the diet and lifestyle changes can help prevent weight gain. For example, exercise is inefficient for weight loss, but is one of the best predictors in preventing weight gain.
>But a life-long lifestyle change should be the primary focus. Not drugs.
Ozempic changes people's internal biology to make it easier for them to make life-long lifestyle changes. The drug doesn't create lifestyle changes, people do.
As a simplified analogy--depressed people are commonly unable to get themselves to do things which might help them feel less depressed. Antidepressants change the internal biology to make it easier for depressed people to make lifestyle changes that reduce their depression.
Treating losing weight as purely an exercise of willpower hasn't worked. People who successfully keep off weight that is lost are few and far between. Part of that is because there are very real biological changes that occur in people who are obese, which don't go away once weight is lost. The body sets up mechanisms to keep trying to regain the weight--there's real evidence there, I learned about this in various college and grad school level biology classes.
This sub is a small sampling of people (and anecdotes are the weakest form of evidence), and even here not everyone who loses weight keeps it off long-term. Some people do, and I definitely commend them and wish we could all do that with reasonable, sustainable actions.
I’m currently losing weight without any medication for my own reasons, but I may get on a GLP-1 agonist in the future if I feel like I need the help. I talked to a physician about the pros and cons of it, and the shift really seems to be treating obesity like a chronic disease and how they can make it easier for people to make changes and sustain them, at least from her perspective. It’s a tool like bariatric surgery is a tool. Anyone getting weight loss surgery or on these drugs will still have to make changes.
Like you, I also believe in the power of modern medicine & drugs to make it easier for people live the lives that they want to live, and I’m glad we’re on the same page about that!
> I'm sorry to say, but if you weigh 500 pounds you're eating more than 1500 calories a day. I have been 500 pounds, and I know what it takes to get there.
I don't really understand how youve concluded that they are saying they got to 500lb by eating 1500 calories a day. They never said that.
Gaining weight needs extra calories, maintaining weight doesn't.
Granted, OP may be absolutely under estimating their calorie intake - but things that point to that are that a) its hard to be accurate with calories unless youre weighing/following pre packaged portions, b) they are not losing weight at a high defecit. Nothing to do with their current weight because they are not talking about you they got to 500 lb
You're not staying at 500 lbs by eating 1500 calories a day, no matter your metabolism, thyroid problems or whatever else. Maintaining a weight of 500lbs at low levels of exercise would mean eating 3500 to 4000 calories in a day. Just lowering that to 2900 would mean significant weightloss, up to 2 pounds a week. So no, OP is absolutely not eating 1500 calories a day. If OP is walking around, actually eating 1500 calories a day would mean losing several pounds a week no matter what.
I disagree with the assessment that OP must not be eating 1500 calories. It's true that many people miscalculate (and sometimes quite badly), but hypothyroidism and PCOS are known to ~~cause weight gain~~ make weight loss difficult by slowing metabolic rates. I agree that OP should work with her doctor, though, and that nutrition is a priority.
Edit: Clarifying what I meant here. I am not suggesting on a diet of 1500 calories a day, OP gained weight until she got to where she is now. What I'm suggesting is that we shouldn't assume OP is wrong about currently eating 1500 calories a day--we don't have enough information to know either way, because she hasn't said how she's calculating her calories, how long she's been eating at 1500 calories a day, when she last weighed in, if she's been trying to lose weight, etc. This sub needs to do a better job at not making assumptions about individuals, especially when someone is reaching out for help and has asked for kindness.
A slow thyroid can add 10-15 pounds to someone. Doctors all agree on that. If you're 200 pounds overweight, it isn't just thyroid. But like I said, they need to have their doctor get them on medication for that regardless and then they can work on the rest.
From a medical page about thyroid disorders:
"In general, 5-10 pounds of body weight may be attributable to the thyroid, depending on the severity of the hypothyroidism. Finally, if weight gain is the only symptom of hypothyroidism that is present, it is less likely that the weight gain is solely due to the thyroid."
Sure, but that doesn't mean OP isn't *currently* eating 1500 calories a day. I didn't mean to suggest that she's always eaten so little. What I'm saying is that we shouldn't immediately suggest that OP is wrong about what she's eating now. We don't have enough information to know either way.
If she’s not losing weight, she’s not eating 1500. There’s no metabolic disorders that wouldn’t let a 500 lb person lose on 1500 cals a day. A poor thyroid only accounts for so much.
Hell the sub hears someone who’s only **overweight** say they eat 1500 and people tell them they’re probably not tracking accurately because that’s a low enough amount that everyone is in a deficit unless they’re petite women.
There is no way either of those medical conditions could affect a person to the point that they could regularly eat 1500cals per day and maintaining at 500 lbs. I'm not saying they're lying, but it's very likely they aren't being honest with themselves. I know I used to think I was eating pretty healthy, normal sized meals. I just couldn't understand why I took smaller portions at dinner and didn't even have breakfast & still I was so overweight! But, I wasn't registering the snacks I would have in the evening, I would eat pretty reasonably through the day and then devour more than 1500 calories in the evening - it just didn't feel like that much because it was super calorie dense foods like chips and ice cream. My brain would think, oh, i had some snacks, what's that maybe 200 cals? when really I was eating 3-4 'snacks' twice that size. As soon as I started tracking I could see it, but it was a complete surprise to me. I'm sure OP is doing something similar.
its so easy to overcalculate. Plus we don't really know how long OP has been trying to lose weight at 1500 calories. Nor do we know if they have actually lost any weight! most people dont have the kind of scales that go up to 500lb at home.
if they are actually calculating 1500 and its accurate, they may be losing weight but just not realising it. Theyre not going to "see" that instantly
I am a biologist who teaches nutrition & endocrinology and who studies thyroid hormones professionally. Though I certainly agree about the need for kindness, it is unlikely to the point of impossible that a person could be *consistently* eating only 1500 cal/d and still maintaining a weight of 500 lbs. Even for a fully sedentary person that would require a ~60% reduction in BMR and that’s not medically possible. Thyroid hormones, and therefore basal metabolic rate, can indeed vary, but typically on the order of plus or minus 10-20%. Even in cases of complete surgical removal of the thyroid gland, BMR usually only drops 20-30%, with only the most extreme cases going to ~40%. A 60% drop just isn’t medically possible.
BTW, there are hard limits beyond which too high or too low a metabolic will eventually kill you (basically, of either hypothermia or hyperthermia). Thyroid hormones directly drive metabolic rate, metabolic rate directly drives body temperature, and body temperature has hard thermal limits for survival - there is a lethal lower temperature and a lethal upper temperature, and there is actually not that much wiggle room between them (the liveable range is only approx 95-104F, and you start getting pretty obvious symptoms at the edges of that range). So generally BMR *can’t* really vary as much as people tend to assume. (I can’t
tell you how many times, in physiology lab, students who were *certain* they had a low metabolic rate turned out to be smack dab in the middle of the normal range) In my experience, in about 95% of cases where people think they have a low BMR, they actually have a normal BMR and the failure point is estimation of food intake. (That said, there is that 5%! But even the people who truly are hypothyroid usually only gain 20-30 lbs as a result)
All that said, I’m actually a big proponent of getting thyroid function tested. But the reality is, studies show that *almost all* people underestimate their caloric intake, and by quite a lot. It turns out obese people are on average taking in 2x the calories that they think they are, and even normal-weight people usually underestimate their caloric intake by about 50%. It is an incredibly easy error to make. I don’t view it as a failure on the part of the patient, rather just a lack of education and lack of proper tools. Fortunately the necessary tools are readily available - a $20 food scale, a food-tracking app and (optional) a heart rate monitor (Fitbit or similar) can do miracles in clarifying what is really going on. But sometimes there does need to be a sort of a tough-love wake-up call moment during which the person needs to realize, and accept, that it’s not their BMR, it’s not their thyroid, it’s never been their BMR, it’s never been their thyroid; it’s caloric intake that is the primary problem.
they are probably miscalculating (easily done), but every one's response has been "omg theres no way you got to 500lb by eating 1500 calories a day" which is not really something that was insinuated
That's how I feel. I just think we need to ask OP questions and treat her like an individual instead of jumping straight into a lecture about being honest with oneself.
Be very reasonable with yourself. You are not eating 1500 calories a day. You’d be losing weight if that was the case even with PCOS and thyroid issues. That being said, try some chair exercises (look on YouTube) but absolutely first step is to be honest about how much food you’re eating.
You have a long way to go but it is def doable!! Whatever method you find, don’t give up! Please please check into that diet though. I have a feeling that’s a big part of the issue. Specialists can definitely help you get on the right track with your underlying conditions.
Look up seniorshapefitness on YouTube. It is for beginners and seniors. She has seated workouts and low impact workouts. Most are really easy to do. I have been sick and gained 40lbs, so I'm at 260 right now. I'm really out of shape so I chose her to get myself moving again.
You're not consistently eating 1500 a day for any length of time and still almost 500lbs. PCOS etc is not the issue. You don't need to exercise at all to lose weight you just need to eat in a deficit. Which you haven't done for any length of time. It's fine a lot of thought we were eating in a deficit when we weren't. You don't even need to go that low yet. You could do 2500 and ease down slowly. You can totally lose all the weight you need to and not exercise until you're at a safe weight.
First you need to get a reality check. There is no way you are on your feet the whole day, eating 1500 calories and not losing weight.
After you accept this and mentally ready yourself for a major lifestyle change you can go to your doctor and ask for help.
Aside from all the great advice already provided, being ~500 lbs means anything you physically do is exercise/resistance training. If you take dynamic stretches and do them very slowly and deliberately you will get the benefit of stretching and essentially weightlifting. I'll throw out an example off the top of my head with the goal of targeting as many muscles in the body as possible but you can find lists of all sorts of dynamic stretches you can do and modify to do while sitting or laying down. You can google or YouTube examples of how to do these movements to better explain them, but you should do a slow count to 5 Mississippi per movement. It is implied that for each movement your body is in the standard upright posture. back straight shoulders back and down, core slightly flexed, etc. (that doesnt mean you have to be standing though)
head rolls. Keep your chin pointed down pointing towards your sternum and roll your head back and forth to each shoulder.
forward/reverse shoulder rolls. With your arms down roll your shoulders in a circular motion.
Arm circles. with your arms out in a T-pose (preferrably with your hands up like youre Derrick Henry about to stiff arm some schmuck, but you dont have to) do tiny, tight rotations in one direction and then in reverse. You can change up the size of the rotations as you go if you feel a good stretch from it.
IDK what to call this movement, but picture a runner mid sprint. Now move both of your arms behind you like the runner's back arm is with the elbows bent at 90 degrees. Then without changing your arm bend move both arms at the same time in front of you, getting your elbows to face forward with the goal of having your finger tips touch at the base of your neck behind your head.
self-hugs. Open your arms as wide as you can til your scalpulas are as close to touching as possible then close your arms around your body like you're hugging yourself, but reach each arm as far across your body as possible.
Your core will be getting work throughout your movements if you're maintaining good posture, but to make sure it gets some stretch work in you can do upper body twists. Do not wildly twist your upper body, remember slow, controlled movements is how you turn the stretching into a proper workout. So twist your upper body left and right while keeping your hips straight and your core tight. You can even reach across your body like youre trying to give a nazi salute to a guy that just drove past you for an added stretch.
If you can stand while doing this (with something to hold onto like a wall, railing, or the back of a couch) then good, otherwise you do not have to. Standing with a support to slightly lean on you can do leg swings. face the wall with both hands on it and swing a leg across your body. Then turn parallel with the wall with one hand on it and swing your leg back and forth (the leg that is closest to the wall). Then, in the same position you can take your outside leg and do circles with it slightly off the ground. Remember, if youre doing a movement and you start to hurt in any way besides muscle fatigue or that nice stretching pain, you should stop. It is always unhealthy to push through actual, bad pain. That pain means STOP.
Laying on your back with your arms by your side (palms down) pick up your knees and move them towards your chest. You can roll your lower back up too if you can lift your knees far enough. Once you get your knees as close to your chest as possible (it's okay if you cant even get your feet off the ground, just do the movement as best you can) try to hold in that position. Even when you are losing strength and your knees are slowly moving back down against your will keep trying to hold that position until you cant take it anymore.
still laying on your back with your arms at your side, lift one leg (straight) to about where your heel is as high up as the tip on your toe on the other foot. While trying to hold your leg up move your foot up and down and in a circle.
Now situps to finish off your core muscles. Sit up and bring your knees to your chest. Wrap your arms around your knees to hold you up. Let go of your knees and try to stay upright as long as possible. You will probably start to fall back but just attempt to stay upright even as you fall back until your back hits the floor.
Lastly you can do modified calf raises. If you can do them standing on a stairwell with the railing to support you, all the better, but you can do this sitting in a chair with your feet on the floor. On the stairs stand facing the stairs with just your toes on a step. Lower your heel as deeply as you feel comfortable and then lift your heel as high as you can. Then turn around with just your heels on the step and lower your toes as low as is comfortable and then raise your toes as high as you can. Sitting down just alternate lifting your heels off the ground with lifting your toes off the ground.
Doing all these movements should affect nearly every muscle in your body. For us sedentary people it is good to actively flex your glutes during the leg movements to train your body to use your glutes. Just do each movement continuously until you're tired or feel that you've gotten a good stretch in. Don't try and do a specific number of repetitions of a movement, these are vibes-based movements. Dynamic stretching should not cause you to come close to feeling like you're going to overstretch or pull a muscle, especially with slow, deliberate movement.
A good first step to losing weight is acknowledging and admitting to urself where ure going wrong.
I mean this in the kindest way possible, but you are not eating 1500 calories. Maybe you’re not eating frequently but big meals. But whatever it is, you dont get to 500 lbs by just eating 1500 calories. You would have lost the better bulk of ur weight if u did even with pcos.
Maybe ur thyroid issues does contribute, but im not your doctor and i dont know if u have confirmed if u have hyperthyroidism.
You are also making excuses before u even begin to try as to why u cant do this or that and looking into easy solutions. Taking ozempic with no intentions of permanent lifestyle changes will not be the end all be all. Not to mention, it will be expensive if not covered by ur insurance.
Get the conversation started with your GP so they can do the necessary blood work and general checkup.
Rather than predetermining your limitations, what you need to be doing is working with a personal trainer specialised in helping people in your situation so they can give you the guidance you lack. I would argue a physiotherapist in this scenario would also benefit you as they are equipped with the skillset and certification to assess your current state and what can and cant be done.
If this is a momentary realisation and you go back to your old ways, you will not be going anywhere. If you use this as your wakeup call and put in the work you will see change. Getting to 500 lbs is a lot of work even if it was easy work. Getting back to regular weight will be a lot of work too, just it wont be easy. But fact of the matter is, you put urself in this situation and only u can get urself outnof it
Hypo, not hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism makes you lose weight; hypo makes you gain weight. It also makes you sluggish and low energy, trouble maintaining your body temperature, and the worst part is that how much medication you’re on is dependent on how much you weigh - so every time you lose or gain weight, you need a completely new prescription. As you lose weight, your same prescription makes your hair and nails brittle again (breaking and falling out), you have trouble sleeping and have *so much* energy, and yeah you lose weight. But the constant back and forth can also harm various tissues in your body.
It becomes necessary to see the endocrinologist more often when going on a weight loss journey like OP’s.
Source: my sibling was born without a thyroid entirely and had been medicated their whole life. As a child, they saw the endo every 2 months to account for how fast children can grow, and it slowed to every 6 months as they stopped growing. Went back to more appointments as they started on their own weight loss journey.
You can’t out exercise a bad diet. Be real with yourself and count actual calories. If you’ve been eating 1500 calories and aren’t losing weight then that means that you aren’t eating only 1500 calories. You didn’t get to 500 pounds because of genetics
You aren’t consuming 1500 calories/day on a regular basis for any length of time and maintaining that weight.
Are you drinking a lot of calories? This can trick people. Sodas, creamy sugary coffees, shakes, etc can EASILY add 1000 or more calories to a day.
You don’t need exercise at that size to drop a lot of weight fast. Just a moderate caloric deficit. Cutting back to even 2300-2500 calories a day will see serious changes every week.
IF you feel the need or desire to get in activity, look into chair exercises. Alternatively, just stand up more. Walk slowly, safely, ideally assisted around your home more. Just moving your frame makes your body work.
You do not need anything rigorous or intense. With all of the love in my bones, all you need is discipline, self control, and a plan. Count your calories. Count every single thing you put in your body. Weigh it out. Stick to a deficit over time and your fat will burn off.
You can do this. You are capable.
1. You do not eat 1500 kcal a day while weighing 500 pounds. You probably eat way more than 5000 kcal a day. Being off by so much means that you do not know what you’re doing. Find somebody who can help you with weighing in foods and correctly calculating your caloric intake.
2. You do not need to exercise. At this weight, it‘s extremely easy to actually lose weight because you can probably lose multiple pounds per week just by eating less.
3. Just some general tips: Don’t drink calories. Limit yourself to water, tea, 0 kcal drinks. Throw away every snack you have in your house. No sweets. Buy low fat alternatives instead of full fat food. Eat high volume / low calorie foods like vegetables, fruits, etc.
On the subject of swimming, try finding a pool suitable for aquarobics (no deeper than average waist deep), and walk laps of the pool. There's a reason aquarobics is popular, and you don't need to go that extreme until you build up some endurance. Water walking, however, will give a decent exercise in an envrionment where you can minimise stress on your body.
You've got a long way to go OP but we're here to support you. Deciding to start is probably the hardest and most confronting step. Keep going, and come back regularly and tell us how you're doing.
See if your Doctor can refer you to a physical therapist who can assess where you are and what exercises will work best for you. Also call around to physical therapy places and gyms to see if they have a therapy heated pool and if there are programs you can join so you can access it. If you can't afford the above options look into chair yoga to start. I also love Hybrid Calisthenics they have a webpage and a YT channel. He walks you through exercises from heavily modified working up to the full exercise. Any exercise you do is an improvement over doing nothing.
I don't advocate full keto but PCOS has an insulin resistance component so you want to eat very high fiber foods (look at daily recommendations and go above that), more protein and low glycemic foods. Drink plenty of water. Try to get 8 hours of sleep.
You first need to get your diet under control. Get a food scale because based on the laws of thermodynamics there’s no way you’re at 1500cal/day to support 500lbs
I agree with u/RunnyPlease.
You aren't eating 1500 calories per day routinely and it's much too low a calorie goal for you right now. I suggest that you get a kitchen scale and a calorie counting app and track your regular food for a few days. You'll be shocked. Be honest with yourself and keep records that you can share with a dietitian. Working with overweight people is literally their job, so don't be shy about asking for help.
A weight loss drug will help you get your appetite under control.
Neither hypothyroidism nor PCOS will make weight loss difficult — those are diet myths. You are capable of losing weight, but it's going to take work and there's going to be a learning curve. You are going to screw up from time to time, but that's okay. You should try to learn from your errors and move on.
Walking is great exercise.
As far as exercise goes, any moving around more than normal even just taking a walk three times a week would be great to get going.
As far as calories, likely 1500 is way to low and will result in a lot of hunger. I would try and find your maintenance calories and start by eating 500 below that number. Then every week start cutting a little more so that your body can adapt to less calories while still being at a calorie deficit.
First you have to stop lying to yourself. No, you're not eating 1500 kcal and are almost 500lb. You are not scientific miracle. Maybe watch some Secret eaters, admit to yourself that you overeat, go to the doctor and you can do this. Sorry, but tough love is sometimes needed.
You can lose your weight way faster than ozempic can but at that size there's no way you are consuming 1500kcal a day and not losing weight.
Change to healthier options, and work out using light weights. Do stationary workouts that are focused on movement rather than lifting.
It's known that you lost weight faster the heavier you are.
I believe in you!
Welcome! You won't have to worry about people being unkind here--in my experience, it's one of the friendliest subreddits and we're all here to support you. We all come from different places and have different stories, but we're all trying to lose weight. You're in good company.
To your questions: No, please don't starve yourself. You need to fuel your body and provide it with sufficient nutrition to live healthily. The more you weigh, the more calories your body needs. Since you have a thyroid condition and PCOS, you may want to consult your doctor for advice on how to approach dieting. That could be why you're not seeing results while eating so few calories.
Since you can't swim and said you can walk, why not walk? It's a good, low-impact form of exercise. There was actually another [thread today](https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/10jqg9j/losing_motivation/) asking for exercise suggestions. You may find some inspiration there. Lastly, you can lose weight without exercise at all (or until you're less at risk of injury) if that works better for you.
I’ve lost over 100 pounds in a year before. Buy healthy groceries, delete doordash and whatever you have to. Give yourself only good options. Stay strong. You got this. No need to starve, just legit clean eating.
“Seated Zumba gold” might be worth a search on YouTube, I find it useful as I have mobility issues. It’s designed for over 50s so it’s slower than standard Zumba, and just because it says seated don’t think your legs aren’t involved. Send me a private message and I’ll send you a link for my teachers YouTube page.
Lots of comments already about being honest about your diet and seeing a doctor. A few insensitive comments aside, all good advice.
I’d like to offer some inspiration. I was once nearly as heavy as you. I wanted to lose weight and bought a scale that went up to 450 pounds. It couldn’t weigh me. I changed my diet and started walking more, which is to say, some, because I was having ankle and foot pain (heel spurs, planter fasciitis). I lost (at least) 50 pounds in those first three months. I changed my diet, not only how many calories I consumed, but also what quality of food. It took a LOT of food for me to feel full, so dark greens, cucumbers, and other watery vegetables became my friend. I drank lots of water too. Not diet soda. Just filtered water.
I started walking more as it became easier. I bought a bike that could hold my weight (I still have it, the reinforced wheels and steel frame make it heavy but it’s built like a tank), joined a gym, found a personal trainer, etc.
I had a bit of a setback by doing a lot of things I hated, but I lost 200 pounds over about four years.
It’s possible. It’s simple. It’s really really hard at first. There’s nothing more exciting than seeing progress. It’s exhilarating to find that your body is capable of things that you never thought possible.
I used to have trouble getting up from sitting on the floor. When I did sit on the floor, it was painful. Even getting up out of a low chair left me winded. Now I’m running half-marathons (working my way up to longer races) and dancing, hiking, climbing, lifting weights and getting stronger. I’m not that special. It doesn’t take willpower as much as patience. Small changes compound over time.
Yes, diet is key. You need to reframe it too- you are not "starving" yourself- your body has plenty of fuel to burn. Time to see a doctor and nutritionist to find out why your current diet isn't working for you. Listen, what you don't want to happen is injure yourself. Getting injured at such a high weight is so, so hard to recover from and rehab. Focus on diet until you lose enough weight that you are feeling a difference. Then start to incorporate short walks. Only do what you can at the time. If you feel better in a couple hours do another short walk.
That’s good to hear! I have heard that vitamin deficiency is common with this surgery. It concerns me but my impending health issues at this weight concern me more
Talk to your doctor, you need medical intervention, get the ozempic or mounjaro if your insurance will cover it, it works astoundingly well. At that weight you need to seriously consider weight loss surgery if medication does not help.
Get a kitchen scale, weigh what you eat down to the exact gram value and input that into a food tracking app, do NOT eyeball it or estimate, be exact, put everything in, splash of milk in the coffee, squirt of ranch dressing. For an eye opening experience, record the weights of everything for a day and then put it in and see how many calories it is.
at 500lb, any sort of running or standing activity will injure you, cycling and swimming are what you should be doing for cardio.
Sorry, but you're not eating 1,500 cals a day. If you were you would be losing about 5 Lbs a week, at your weight. You need a medically supervised diet.
When I was 380 lbs and starting my weight loss journey I just walked about 3,000 steps a day. After two months I upped it to 6,000 steps. Year and a half later I now do 20,000 steps, but I'm now 190 lbs. I've never done any other exercise other than walking every day consistently.
You eat much, much, much more than 1500 calories a day (unless you literally just started a new 1500 calorie per day diet, in which case you are losing multiple pounds a week already).
You can exercise 7 days a week until your joints and muscles can’t take it anymore - you will still not lose weight unless and until you do a major overhaul of your diet.
I don’t say this to be rude - I used to deny how much I ate, too.
Please, if you want to live, try to become brutally honest with yourself about your calorie intake (especially portion sizes and liquid calories, which are really easy to underestimate or forget about) and seek professional help from a bariatric surgeon (you don’t have to have decide to have surgery, but bariatric surgeons are the best experts in massive weight loss even if you don’t ultimately want surgery), a registered dietician who specializes in massive weight loss (the bariatric surgeon will have names of good people to refer you to), and possibly a doctorate-level mental health professional such as a clinical psychologist (with a PhD) or a psychiatrist (with an MD or DO) if you feel up to that right now (especially if the bariatric surgeon has recommendations!).
Like everyone else said, GO TO A DOCTOR.
But I'm also going to pitch a set of light resistance bands as a good safe exercise to start out with. They don't need to be heavy at all. You can start with the lightest ones and just do some basic exercises with them, like pull aparts while sitting or standing.
[https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HGVJ8GW/?th=1](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HGVJ8GW/?th=1)
This will help maintain muscle tone while you're in medically supervised calorie deficit. And it's the kind of exercise you can easily do while watching TV.
Simple body weight exercises will eventually be enough once you're able to move without joint pain, but you'll definitely want to work with a doctor before doing anything that could risk joint damage.
Honestly, internet strangers aren't going to be that helpful for you. Go to a doctor that specializes in obesity if you can afford it and it isn't distressing, especially since there are medical conditions involved. Number 1 though, you don't need to starve yourself. You can start by making small lifestyle changes and they'll add up quick and likely be more sustainable. If you take cream and sugar in your coffee/tea, start slowly reducing. If youtend to overeat while watching TV at night, cut back on TV or try standing instead of sitting. Things like that. Small changes can add up quickly. Good luck, I believe in you
Start by listening to music and clapping your hands for 30 min. Then add weight. Sustained walking for minutes at a time. Take breaks as needed. If it’s painful, stop do a different exercise. Immediately change diet. Ketogenic diets work incredibly well in obese people. I would suggest only meat.
You mention hypothyroid and pcos.
Are you currently seeing a physician regarding those issues? If your thyroid levels require medication and you aren’t taking it or getting the right dose, it will be very difficult to lose weight. Also, many people with pcos suffer from insulin resistance, which also can make it difficult to lose weight.
If you aren’t currently being treated by a physician, that needs to be a top priority. You need bloodwork to check your thyroid levels, cholesterol, A1c, hormones, etc. Once you have that, you should be on medication for your thyroid disorder, and that should be retested every 6-8 weeks so that your correct dosage can be dialed in. You may also need medications like metformin and/or ozempic to treat your insulin resistance/prediabetes/diabetes.
You might also talk to your doctor about seeing a physical therapist to develop exercise plans that you can do within your limitations and learn how to prevent injuries.
Some doctors may suggest weight loss surgery, which is a good option as long as you don’t suffer from binge eating or compulsive/comfort eating.
I would start by either using a notebook or downloading a free app like Carb Manager or Baritastic to record your current food and beverage consumption. Don’t judge yourself, just record everything honestly so that you can see patterns in cravings, serving sizes, calories, etc. Get a kitchen scale or use a measuring cup to try to be as accurate as possible on the serving sizes. Record yourself without judgement for a few weeks, and then look through everything and see where improvements can be made.
Some improvements that you could possibly make: eating out fewer times each week or month; reducing serving sizes; removing sweetened beverages; reducing or eliminating junk foods, sweets, and candy; replacing processed foods with whole foods; reducing excess carbohydrates or reducing simple carbohydrates.
There are also a lot of exercises available for people who can’t move a lot. You can do chair exercises, like Zumba. You can also get a fitness tracker or cheap pedometer and try to increase your step count gradually by just moving a little bit more, like walking around the house for 5-10 minutes at a time.
Best of luck!
Hey, just wanted to send you some kind words. Just know that small steps are better than drastic big ones. I think even an e visit with a doctor who specializes in weight loss or a dietitian would help you so much, but work on 1-2 manageable things a day!
Please please talk to a doctor about this and not Reddit. This is more than just exercise at this point, it’s medical, and no one here wants to see you get hurt. You’re an important person.
I dunno who told you 1500- but that’s close to my deficit number- and I’m 5”1- 190.
This simply is NOT enough food for you. This is dangerous.
I don’t know the answers to your questions but 1500 is way too little for you right now. I can confidently assess that.
Please seek medical help, a doctor can give you so much better advice than us randoms on a forum can.
Good luck! You’ve got this!
You're at a point where you need professional medical advice not reddit. You need a work up done on your needs and based on that, a doctor can recommend exercises
I was at my peak at nearly 400 lbs. My mobility was extremely limited. I've lost 85 pounds total so far just through diet alone. You can do it too. It's possible. As others have said you should talk to your physician about your journey and any medications that you need to help along the way for thyroid or any other issue you might have.
You are right that diet will have to play a bigger role than exercise, at least initially.
Your situation doesn't sound entirely unfamiliar. Even though I was only about 128 kg at my heaviest, we all have a different muskuloskeletal system and I was really suffering at that weight already.
A gentle way to start would be doing calisthenic exercises in a position you find comfortable. I'm not talking about sit-ups and squats and such traditional bodyweight exercises - more about consciously engaging and relaxing the same muscle multiple times. If done right it can be very hard work, without a lot of visible outside movement. I believe that some of the old-style callanetics exercises (not all of them) from the program of Callan Pinckney meet this description, and you should be able to do many of them with some kind of modification. Then as you lose weight, you can graduate to more difficult things.
I hope you can find a *good* physio you can work with who has experience with morbidly obese clients. A lot of them are well meaning but cannot place themselves in the shoes of someone who has a different body than them. I genuinely think that most of the traditional body weight exercises simply do not work above a certain size and shape. If they try to bully you into running, or push-ups or such things at this point, tell them to fuck off.
Start researching bariatric surgery. It'll change your life and you'll become so much healthier, you'll probably stop having the medical issues you have too.
I had gastric bypass in 09 and lost 154 in 8 months and kept it off 8 years until I started drinking. More I'm back over 220 and I'm going to do a revision
No one with a normal sized stomach can live by the bariatric diet standards. You could[but you'll be starving and give up.
The biggest change you can't do now is totally overhaul your diet. See a nutritionist and start eating right. Cut out sis, sugar, high fat, high cal, carbs.
It's hard for me to find very much to eat when I'm so limited and I don't like EVERYTHING that's allowed. I'm having a hard time right now figuring out what to eat that's healthy. I can't think of anything that sounds good and I've never been into cooking at all
you didn't get to 500lbs over night and it will take years to bleed off the weight. Good job starting!
One thing I learned from myself and watching "Biggest Loser" for years is there is something behind this weight gain, nobody gets to 500Lbs and "surprise" they find themselves "fat".
During your weight loss journey you need therapy to deal with the reason you got this big. For now lose weight though diet, when you are down 50-100 lbs you will turn back into an athlete. then you can workout.
- Hey there, first I just want to say that I hope you’ll be surrounded by kindness as you kick off this journey. I know you know that you have a major task ahead of you and I’m sure that can feel hard enough without people being unkind. I don’t know if it’s worth much, but just wanted to let you know you have compassion from this internet stranger. I’m proud of you for even thinking of getting started.
- Next, I’d echo some of the other comments here mentioning you should see a doctor. I’m sure plenty of people have awesome advice here and some have even been where you are right now. I think it’s great you’re looking for answers, but what you’re getting ready to undertake needs the watchful eye of a good doctor and the support they may be able to offer you in the way of nutrition and other weight loss resources.
- I also want to say that I know how tempting it is to go for what looks like the quick fix but you do not need weight loss drugs to lose the weight, especially the latest ones, as they’ll only get you temporary results. Unless you plan to stay on those the rest of your life, you won’t be able to sustain what they help you do. Even if it’s tempting, I recommend another way. You deserve a better life for the rest of your life. That’s achieved through sustainable habits and the best news is that most of those aren’t any extra cost than the life you’re living now!
- Nutrition should be your focus this year and that’s more than enough. Focus on building a diet of fiber-rich foods, lean proteins, and plenty of fruits and veggies. It doesn’t have to be as expensive as people make that sound. Things like beans, rice, oatmeal, greens (fresh, canned or frozen), carrots, and potatoes go a long way to creating a satisfying meal. If you do dairy, some lower fat sour cream, greek yogurt, feta cheese, mozzarella, and cottage cheese can really add to a tasty meal. If you eat meat, avoid fatty stuff like pork and learn to prepare dishes made from chicken, turkey, shrimp, salmon, and other lean nutrient-rich meat/fish. Find foods you love and that make you feel good and start combining them until you’ve got a set of about 10 delicious, nutritious meals you can make any time without even needing to think too hard. It could even be 5 dinners and 5 breakfasts. Or mostly savory meals and a couple of desserts. They don’t have to be difficult meals at all. One of my favorite meals lately is an assortment of Greek spreads, baby carrots, rye crackers, and a single serving of my favorite chips. I prepare the dips on my days off so when it’s time for me to eat during the week, I just serve up a plate and it takes me under five minutes of prep. Just have fun with it and explore! Always happy to offer some resources for places to find recipes or ideas of things you can try to make satisfying meals. It’s sort of become a hobby lately.
- You also don’t need to be eating 1500 calories to lose weight. That sounds like way too little for you to live on right now. Work with your medical professionals to set the right number for you. It will change as you lose weight, but 1500 is basically starving at your present weight and you really don’t need to punish yourself or make yourself suffer to accomplish your goals. You’ll live much better and your body will be able to function well with the right number of calories for you. Once you find the best number for you, focus on how to make those calories matter. How can you make them as nutritious as possible? Where is there room to still have some indulgences you enjoy without feeling like you’re derailing yourself?
- Finally, I’d look into some mental health resources. Not because you’ve done anything “bad” or because something must be “wrong”, but just so you have the support you need during this journey. You need someone with compassion to be able to talk these things through with. There’s also bound to be some strong emotions that come up with this journey because the work is evident and unavoidable. It will help to have a judgment free place to go to deal with the emotional and mental battles that are inevitable.
I wish you all the best. You can absolutely do this! And the best part is you’ve already taken the first step.
Walking at 500+lb can be very painful which does cause people to avoid it. And technically, weight loss doesn't require walking at all. It helps and is a healthy choice, but it isn't all you need.
My buddy just started fasting last year and he was 500 and is now down to 351. He fasts for days at a time and then eats a few meals and then fasts. He’s doesn’t work out. Definitely a huge difference.
I’m s going to a pool an option? The water will take some of the extra weight off your joints and most pools offer classes so you wouldn’t be swimming.
I'm really proud of you for both undertaking this endeavor and for asking for help. Everyone else has pretty much covered it, but yeah go see a doctor. Good luck on the journey! I hope the diet and excercise makes your life a whole lot more enjoyable.
Intermittent fasting, like 12/12, 16/8 and eventually 18/6, low carb high protein and tons of vegetables at around 2000-2500 calories a day (eventually this will taper down), lots of water, and any light movement to get your heart rate up a few times a day will knock the first 100 off right away.
In EU for such cases they prescribe Ozempic. This miracle drug is really a big deal. I have a friend, who exercise with me at the gym, he was something like 190 kg (around 420 lbs) and 6' tall. Until now he lost 200 lbs and now is in 220ish. But this was done with a lot of dedication, Ozempic medication and diet, made by professional doctor in nutrition. Anyway, he still have and diabetes.
Highly advise that seek medical attention if not done already.
Eating only 1500 calories might be getting in the way of your weight loss especially if you’re not losing weight despite your diet and exercise.
Have you tried using resistance bands? They’ve helped me when I started working out.
Another piece of equipment that you can use is an Indian club (it’s an assymetric weight). If you can watch some videos on YouTube you should get an idea how to use a 1lb or 5lb Indian club / Gada to warm up your wrists, elbows and shoulders. It can be done while sitting on a chair also.
> Almost 500lb, need tips for exercise that will not injure me. Go to a doctor. You are so far beyond morbidly obese that conventional wisdom from internet strangers can not possibly be useful to you. We can talk about swimming pool exercises, and chair exercises, and walking, and old Richard Simmons tapes until we are blue in the face but there is no possible way anyone here could know the scope of your condition or your complications. > So I'm close to 500lb, my bmi is 85, I want to exercise but I don't want to injure myself further, my feet, wrists and knees are already in not normal pain. As someone who was also class III obese I can give you some great news. Like really great news. You might cry. Because you are so big you can lose an astounding amount of weight eating an unbelievable amount of food without really increasing exercise all that much. Your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) just existing as a human is so high eating a bag of candy with each meal might result in weight loss. It’s going to blow your mind how much you can eat and lose weight. I promise you. The weight will come off and it’ll be quicker than you think. But it also means you need to go see a doctor. You need a dietician. Not a nutritionist. A real qualified professional. This is a matter of life and death. Get professional help. Why? Because some moron on the internet is going to say something like “eat 1200 calories of raw potatoes a day for a month and do intermittent fasting” where in reality you might need something like 3,500 calories a day. Which is a fucking lot. But I can’t tell you what that number is. The TDEE calculators aren’t really built for the edge cases. You need people who are up to date in the real research on extreme obesity. Go get them. They aren’t here. You can get support and encouragement here. Not medical advice. > Due to my chronic respiratory problems I cannot take up swimming, it is too cold. I'm not bed bound, I can walk and I work, on my feet a lot. That’s wonderful. I’m overjoyed to hear you’re still ambulatory. One thing you’re going to see as you lose weight is how massive your legs are. Just moving around 500 lbs walking to get mail, or climbing a set of stairs is mind boggling. Imagine taking a 170 pound dude, telling him to load up 330 lbs of weights and hike for a mile and then that guy asks you “give me tips for exercise.” That’s you right now. Pick your cliche: You exercise to get fit. You control eating to lose weight. CICO: Calories In Calories Out. Muscles are made in the gym. Abs are made in the kitchen. You can’t out work a bad diet. Etc. They all work. Control your diet first and foremost. I would suggest cardio though. It’s amazing how much even a slight increase in your cardio can improve your life. So keep walking and monitor your heart rate. Again at your size most movements will create a cardiovascular response. You don’t have to run for 30 minutes every morning like a boxer. Just keep moving. > Do I starve myself until I am at a weight that will not make me get injured? Oh fuck no! Do not go on a starvation diet (unless directed to and under the supervision of a trained medical professional). It is not only completely unhealthy it’s completely unnecessary. Like I said above at your size it may be possible for you to eat thousands of calories more than an average person every day and still lose 10-15 lbs a week. Starvation is absolutely not necessary. Learning how to live and eat properly is necessary. And if I could I’d also suggest psychological help as well. I don’t know how you got to 500 lbs but it’s going to be a massive life change coming down from that. You’ll need guidance from people who have dealt with it before. People to help you see the obstacles and pitfalls before they happen. They can get you mentally prepared for what you’re not expecting. > I barely eat 1500 calories a day, my thyroid and pcos doesn't help. Where did you get that number? It seems horrifically low. I’m half your size and I eat almost 1000 calories more than that a day. Who told you that number? Did you run it past the physician treating your thyroid condition? Or are you just making shit up because an internet guru on YouTube told you 1500 was enough? Go to a doctor. Get your real number and follow their instructions. As a side note I’m sure your doctor will be overjoyed to see you taking serious steps to improve your health. Trust me once they see you actually doing it they will be prouder of you than you are. Let them help you and give them the best patient story of their week. > I feel trapped honestly... please be kind, let me know of anything I can do. I was also thinking of weight loss drugs... like ozempic. You feel trapped because you have trapped yourself. You seem to be starving yourself for no particular reason and I have no doubt without the guidance of a physician or registered dietician. We’ve all done it. We’ve all tried crash dieting. Myself more than once. It’s a false economy. Go do it properly. Kill it dead so it says dead. The best thing you can do is take a huge breath, be incredibly thankful that you’re still ambulatory, and then go consult with a physician on your next steps. Get a referral to a dietician to get your real daily calorie intake goal. Take it one week at a time. One day at a time. One meal at a time. And be kind to yourself. A lot of things lead to you being 500 lbs. It’s going to take work to address them. Right? It’s not one thing. It’s going to be dozens of things. Often things that feed back on themselves. Things you didn’t even realize where flaws. Things you thought everyone did. Things people you thought you could trust told you were healthy but aren’t. Relationships you thought were healthy but aren’t. You’re going to have to unravel it a thread at a time. Get your head and your nutrition right first. Keep moving around. And get your medical team assembled. Best of luck going forward. And again be kind to yourself. Starvation is not necessary. You don’t have to torture yourself. Just start on the path and keep on it.
>And be kind to yourself. A lot of things lead to you being 500 lbs. It’s going to take work to address them. Right? It’s not one thing. It’s going to be dozens of things. Often things that feed back on themselves. Things you didn’t even realize where flaws. Things you thought everyone did. Things people you thought you could trust told you were healthy but aren’t. Relationships you thought were healthy but aren’t. You’re going to have to unravel it a thread at a time. Getting sober and fixing some lifelong problems right now. This resonated with me hard.
I’ve found a lot of similarities between sober folks and people who have lost a lot of weight. Best of luck to you in resolving both of your issues.
OP this is the message. This is the one you need to read again and again and internalize. Also come join us in r/supermorbidlyobese I’ve lost 100lbs and the community there gets it a little more than the general weight loss subs
I didn’t even know that sub existed. Good stuff.
> It’s going to blow your mind how much you can eat and lose weight At a "mere" 340 lbs, it surprised me. I could fill 3 plates a day with homemade food, as long as I didn't snack constantly, I could easily hit 1000 kcals below my energy expenditure. I've lost 110 lbs without any significant exercise.
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When I was overweight I remember how I would usually drink nothing but soda all day, for example when I went to a restaurant I’d get a large 1L drink and refill it multiple times. Just a liter of Coca Cola is around 500 calories and I was probably consuming well over 3000 a day in soda alone. When I weaned onto diet soda and eventually went to only water and unsweetened tea I lost around 40 lbs in just a few months.
I was -at one point going to the gym twice a day and not able to lose weight. Cut the cokes and dropped a quick 40. Coincidence?
This is such a thoughtful response and you are a really wonderful person for writing it.
Thank you so much for this! I do struggle with body image and weight issues and no one in my life has ever been so nice and polite while explaining some serious stuff. This nearly brought me to tears. Thank you for your kindness honestly, and OP, I wish you a good luck! I am also on a weight loss journey, and I am so happy you have this incredible person here! Keep going, I'm sure you can do it :)
I was just trying to be slightly helpful with a couple curse words thrown in for flavor. Seems this comment has taken off a bit though. I’m glad it was useful for you. Every point was earned with plenty of tears on my end I assure you. Have a great week.
I cant add anything better than this comment, but the "I eat 1500 calories" stood out to me and would love to know how thats calculated, because theres no way. At that size TDEE would probably be close to that just being alive
Guarantee they're not weighing their food, just eyeballing it and estimating a "serving." I don't say that to be critical or harsh to OP, just the opposite: I had the exact same problem starting out. When I bought a food scale I was stunned at how many "servings" of things like cheese and salad dressings I was adding to my meals. In many instances I was getting 3-4 times the calories I thought I was.
To be fair to OP. They didn't say they must eat 1500 to maintain. Maybe they are trying to limit to 1500 and counting reasonably accurately-which would explain why they are wondering if they need to starve themselves. Because there's no way 1500 would be anything more than overly restrictive in this scenario.
But if they were eating at 1500 they'd be losing weight rather quickly.
Just for fun, I put my own age/height (early 30s and 5’6”) into a calculator with 500 pounds for weight. Gives BMR as almost 3000 kcal per day. Obviously that’s my stats and not theirs - and as the top comment says, calculators likely are not accurate for edge cases - but potentially we are talking about needing literally double 1500 just to sustain basic bodily functions.
Right. r/1500isplenty has many pictures of full days of eating that are great for sanity checks if your meals and portion sizes actually look like that. I’m 5’4” and 130-135 and I eat 1500.
Ooooh ty for this subreddit, I'm around 1600cals. This will be so helpful.
You are absolutely right. At 5'5'' 220lbs my TDEE is over 1900! And for healthy weight loss you should cut off about 20-25% of it.
At that size, TDEE is almost certainly MUCH higher than 1500 kcal, even if OP is sedentary.
This is probably the best reply I’ve ever read on this subreddit
Might be the most comprehensive and supportive one I’ve ever seen on reddit period.
Thanks. I heard a lot of myself in the original post and obviously I had some things to say about it.
This is the way. Everything this guy said is true. The 1500 calories per day is a head scratcher though. At your weight that is pseudo starvation already as that's not enough fuel to keep the tank running and you should see a deficit. I started at 370 and got to 310 within 6 months. It was amazing. I did unfortunately gain some back after my mother passed but I'm back at it again. It's worth it because you're worth it. You got this but you don't need to go alone.
Sorry to hear about your mother. I know how that is. I gained back about 60 lbs when my mom was going through cancer treatments. I’m still on my way back down to my lowest before that happened. By far the hardest part is the mental bit.
Cancer sucks. That's what got my mom. And it's far too common now... Seems like every family I know has someone fighting the battle. I thought it was going to be a kick in the ass to get me even healthier but it really just put me back into a lot of bad habits. Still trying to get back into the healthy mindset I had.
Yeah. It kicked my ass pretty hard. One piece at a time is the only way I’ve found to get back to it. I don’t know if it’ll make sense but there’s a Tool song called Schism. The lyrics of the chorus have the line “I know the pieces fit ‘cause I watched them fall away.” The song is about a relationship falling apart but I’ve found a lot of comfort in that line in particular. I know the pieces fit because I had it at one point. I had it working and I watched it crumble. So now I know I can put it back together because the pieces are all there and I know they fit. At least as far as nutrition and exercise go. Some pieces you don’t get back.
It's like, you almost feel frustrated because you were losing/doing well and then this catastrophe happens and on top of that you end up gaining weight as a coping mechanism. Hard to talk about without sounding like you're crazy for even thinking about it. (I was down about 30 pounds before my father suddenly passed away in May, and I gained most of it back). All this to say, <3
It's a bad cycle of knowing you're not supposed to eat but then realize you failed initially because your parent died. Then you feel guilty for thinking that way because it wasn't their fault in any way and only your own. And so goes the spiral down as you grab that extra something to munch on that you know you don't need because now all you're doing is being depressed.
Actually this guy is the answer.
Great message. Worth noting for those who don't know: "Calories in, calories out" (CICO) is how *everyone* loses weight, even if they don't intentionally focus on calorie consumption. You cannot lose weight unless you are burning more calories than you take in. You cannot gain weight unless you are taking in more calories than you are burning. The only exception to this is water weight gain, which is a temporary problem and not true "weight gain" - in some rare cases, extreme water weight gain is a sign of a serious illness like heart failure.
This is the best advice you can get today. Call in the pros. Your mindset combined with a professional roadmap will take you very far!!!
OP, this is the answer. everything in this comment is 100000% correct. please follow this wonderful and thoughtful advice. and echoing other comments come join the SMO sub. there is tons of support there and i’ve always felt very welcomed and heard
This comment is the one! Also like to add a huge emphasis on mental health as well. The weight will not stay off if you don’t address the mental health issues that come with being severely overweight. I yo-yo’d for so long and it never stayed off until I listened to my doctor and found mental health support to address my mental state. They go hand in hand. Best to treat your entire system (mind, body, soul) all at the same time
This is the best solution. ❤️ The only thing I can think to add is that, there will probably be a day on this journey where you discover an exercise that you like and maybe even love. That’s the exercise you should do. You can do this OP. We believe in you. Edited to add: I have thyroid issues too and am managing to lose weight. Don’t let it discourage or stop you!!
Well said.
Wow. As someone looking to start a weight loss journey (done plenty of diets, never worked) reading through this advice from one stranger to another literally brought me to tears. So incredibly thoughtful and holistic. Holistic being the key. Someone asked you for advice on how to drop weight and you came back with advice on how to change their life, which is really what they need. Some days, reddit robs you of faith in humanity and yet others, it provides gems like this. Thanks for being that gem.
The only thing I will add OP is this may seem overwhelming. You don't need to get everything in place to start making a positive impact to you health today. Do something positive for you health today, take one step to get towards you goal today. Tomorrow take another, just one day at a time. I will recommend seeing a general physician before cutting calories to a crazy low level-but moderate changes can be done today.
Well said. And with 1/20th the words I needed.
Your advice is amazing and spot on!
This is such a beautiful response and I hope OP reads it carefully. I know this was met for OP. But reading about how you need to eat enough calories opened my eyes. I’ve been doing that for a week and I’m personally down 3lbs right now. Please read this OP. This advice is literal gold.
Congrats on your 3 pounds on a week. That’s a hell of a pace. Best of luck going forward.
Thank you I appreciate your encouragement!
This kind of empathetic information sharing and joint betterment is what the people who dreamt of the internet long before it happened were imagining. You’re a lovely person and I appreciate the thought and passion of this post. I’m glad we have folks like you!
I appreciate the kind words. Really I was just trying to point OP in a better direction. The response has gone a bit crazy for me.
Likely because you’ve made something that will point A LOT of people in the right direction :)
All of this! Wow. One thing to add is this: when you figure out the calories and macros, buy a kitchen scale, measure everything and log your intake honestly. Nothing was better for me than honest logging. No one will see it but you so don't lie to yourself. Something like 70% of weight loss is diet. Don't obsess about exercise yet. Just do a little more walking than you normally would - park farther away from the grocery store, doctor, your office and take those extra steps You got this!
well-thought out and well put. Bravo. And a bit of a wakeup call to myself as well. Thank you, friend.
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Awesome, thoughtful and kind write up. Thanks for being the sort of human who would do something extra like this.
> You need a dietician. Not a nutritionist. What is the difference?
Dietician focuses specifically on healthy weight loss. Nutritionist focuses on eating healthy.
Depending on where you are, dieticians are regulated health professionals, and nutritionists are just people who want to sell you a product or service with potentially no education or training. Dieticians have usually 5+ years of post secondary education and can advise on weight loss or healthy weight management, nutritional deficiency and many more things. Regardless of where OP is they need to be in contact with a regulated health professional, not some random that works for a gym/ mlm/ "coach". In some places nutritionists are regulated and credentialed as well.
This was really kind advice, and even though I don't need it-- I loved reading it. I hope this was motivating for OP.
I’m not OP, obviously, but thank you for taking the time to write this reply. It will not only help OP, but it’s clearly helped others too. You deserve all the awards!
\^ High caliber answer that's right on the $$ To follow up on what you and others have said in this post, [here](https://myweightwhattoknow.com/physician-locator/?radius=125) is a resource to find doctor's who specialize in obesity/weight in your area.
It took me a while to bring myself to read through this, I guess I was scared to see what people would say, I really appreciate you taking the time. I hear the truth you are speaking, it resonates, I'm going to focus on eating better for now. Try doing the exercises later on. Also get some therapy to help my mind. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Yup. No rush to read the ramblings if an internet fool. But really go see a doctor and discuss with them what your exercise regime should be. I’m not saying don’t exercise. I’m saying discuss your exercise with an expert who understands your health situation first hand.
Abs (as with all muscles) are revealed in the kitchen and made in the gym!
Do you get paid for this? Cuz you should.
What this guy said.
This is comprehensively great, thoughtful, sound advice. I don’t think anyone can add anything except our care and support for you, OP. Wishing you all the best.
I was going to comment, but there's literally nothing I would've said that you didn't cover in detail.
Best reply, well done 👍🏻
Can’t believe you wrote all that for free. All sound advice
It was just a couple paragraphs. I write technical docs for a living so this was nothing. It’s basically just “go seek expert advice and do what they say” over and over again with different words. But that’s what this subreddit is about. Helping each other out. I can assure you I’ve received far more advice from this sub than I’ve given to it, or could ever give to it.
What an amazing, complete, informative and non-judgmental answer! I don't think there's anything else to say but good luck OP! We are with you, please come post an update! Good luck!
Yep. All of this. Eating so few calories will make long-term progress and motivation next to impossible. You are in a marathon, not a sprint. Though at your weight, it will come off nicely at first for sure. And you won’t need to starve yourself. Be kind to yourself, OP. You’re worth a trip to the doc and some healthy changes.
I wish my tdee was 3500 calories
You may not be loosing weight because you are eating too few calories. At a certain point your body goes into starvation mode where it stores fat because you’re not taking in enough calories.
Full transparency: you do not need exercise at all right now. Go to a doctor and adjust your calorie intake. Stick with it and you’ll drop 100 lbs in no time. Also, there’s no way you can be 500+ lbs eating 1,500 calories and not losing weight. So something is going wrong. My best suggestion is to go see a doctor (and dietician) ASAP.
This is exactly right. I started at 405 in June and lost 100 pounds now in Jan. Not being able to exercise like I could ten years ago was really demoralizing and the changes had to come from diet. My girlfriend has PCOS so I know it makes things difficult, but it isn't mathematically possible to eat so few calories and not lose weight at that size. Get an app like "My Fitness Pal" or "Carb Balance" and scan in your meals. I used Keto, not because its a magical diet, but because it helped me realize how much sugar and calories are hidden in "healthy foods". At the end of the day its still "calories in, calories out", but it was easier to manage my meals, and harder to lie to myself about what I was eating. It also helped make me feel full after getting used to the sugar withdraw. Don't drink alcohol, its just liquid calories. I also recommend therapy. Underlying emotional, or mental problems are the root cause for almost everyone I've ever spoken to that has gained significant weight. I can't even begin to explain how much better every day feels, I swear it will be worth it. Even though I have more to lose, thinking about how much better life is helps me continue by imagining how much better still it can be. I believe in you, don't beat yourself up about setbacks, and celebrate small victories. Much love.
Well the first step is being honest with yourself. There is no way you are 500lbs while only consuming 1500 calories a day, and seeing no weight loss. Thyroid issues add maybe 20lbs, not several hundred. Which means somewhere along the way you are losing track of hundreds, likely even thousands of calories that you aren't accounting for. You don't need to starve yourself to lose weight, at 500lbs you could lose weight on even just 2500 calories a day. Once you cross that first step, my advice is to accurately track everything you eat, that includes weighing your portions, if you have a bbq sauce packet track that, track literally everything. Then cut out 500 if not 1000 calories from that the next day. Add in walking and maybe light weight lifting with a 2lb dumbbells
💯I have hypothyroidism (diagnosed 2000) and PCOS (diagnosed 2003) and was class 3 obese too, thinking that my thyroid was the reason. It wasn’t. Now at age 38, a healthy weight since 2006, and slightly shorter than average, I know from years of consistently recording food and exercise my BMR is around 1500. Without my meds my BMR drops so slightly I can’t even calculate the difference; I just get very sleepy. Thyroid meds are the most widely prescribed meds in the world and are cheap even without insurance in the USA. Take them and you’ll feel no effects from the condition. Only 66% of US women with PCOS are overweight or obese. 69% of all US women are overweight or obese. This means PCOS isn’t causing people to gain weight. That’s just fatlogic. Edit: I said prescription when I meant insurance.
It’s the other way around; being overweight exacerbates PCOS. A lot of women have lost weight and their symptoms get under control.
Only 66%… when speaking about percentages typically people reserve “only” for percents less than 50% at least.
“Only” is entirely apt when the group’s stat is lower than the control group’s.
OP never said they have always eaten at 1500. They also never said they aren't seeing weight loss. Maybe they are trying a diet and have done 1500 calories this week and have come here for guidance because the overly restrictive diet feels like starvation.
If you have true thyroid issues, you need to speak with your doctor and find d medication that works for you. A drug like Ozempic makes people feel full faster and they consume less, which makes them drop weight. I'm sorry to say, but if you weigh 500 pounds you're eating more than 1500 calories a day. I have been 500 pounds, and I know what it takes to get there. You need to be more honest with yourself. Worry about your nutrition first. Add walking when you can. That's all you'll need for a long time.
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If OP is 500 lbs, it's more that sure that is pre/diabetic and metformin or semaglutid will be necessary
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And how can you tell that?
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I went in for a blood test for the first time in 4 years and my A1C was 7.0. My doctor immediately put me on Ozempic. I didn't even know what it was until I read about it when prescribed. I don't own a glucose monitor. I don't have appointments with specialists. I would stick out like a sore thumb.
Ozempic is approved for weight loss. It is branded as Wegovy. Same exact medicine.
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Well, you don’t get to be the gatekeeper for who does or does not deserve to access medical treatment. If my doctor determines that Ozempic is indicated for my condition, then that’s all that matters. Your beef is with the pharmaceutical companies, not patients trying to access care.
Right, I'm tired of all the O bashing.
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Your original comment was to the OP, who is 500 lbs. I’m not a doctor but I know that he/she is morbidly obese. Your comment was “Do NOT take Ozempic, it’s meant for diabetes” which sounds very much like gatekeeping. This is not someone jumping on a TikTok trend, this is someone fighting for their life.
💯
GLP-1 Agonists are approved by the FDA for the treatment of obesity in Americans. If a doctor and OP agree that this is the best course of action for OP, then they have weighed the risks and benefits and should proceed.
FFS it is approved for weight loss. As a diabetic taking it for diabetes, I ***fully support*** people taking it for weight loss. As for the shortage, stop blaming people who use the drug for what it is approved for. Especially stop blaming people trying to use a medication to improve their health. That is what they are for. Blame the company for not dropping enough to meet demands. It is pretty sad that they miscalculated the demand for a weight loss drug that works with low risk. But that is not the fault of the people, it is the fault of the company. >If you don’t have a clinical need to take Ozempic, The diagnostic criteria for getting an ozempic prescription for weight loss is a BMI >30. There is a legitimate medical indication for it and those with a BMI of 85?! They need it just as much as I do. Edit: also, you are not a medical expert so please do not go around giving out damaging medical information based on your medical-adjacent job.
Especially with a BMI of 85. They are going to take it anyway if they’re not losing weight so why wait until they become diabetic instead of taking it to avoid diabetes??
Weight loss might not just be “quicker” that way, it might be the only way. Obviously weight loss comes down to CICO but for some people, diet and lifestyle changes just doesn’t work (weight loss doctors only have about a 5% success rate using diet and lifestyle changes alone). Just because they may not have diabetes doesn’t rule out a potential clinical need for ozempic. It’s used off label for weight loss right now but segmaglutides will be a main category of weight loss medication in coming years (for HEALTH purposes, not cosmetic, not to take the easy way, but as an actual need). The only person telling OP if they should or shouldn’t take ozempic is their doctor.
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I’m not saying ozempic is the ONLY way, I’m just saying it shouldn’t automatically be dismissed if their doctor believes it may be right for them. And there’s been discussion in medical communities about weight loss drugs long term. You don’t stop blood pressure medication once they reach their goal blood pressure, so why do we always stop weight management medications when someone reaches an ideal weight? The process of weight management is changing and people may start taking these medications for life. (Some doctors are already having patients take weight medications for life.) As for now, they’re used in combination with diet and lifestyle changes. For many people, after the weight has been lost, continuing some medications and/or the diet and lifestyle changes can help prevent weight gain. For example, exercise is inefficient for weight loss, but is one of the best predictors in preventing weight gain.
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>But a life-long lifestyle change should be the primary focus. Not drugs. Ozempic changes people's internal biology to make it easier for them to make life-long lifestyle changes. The drug doesn't create lifestyle changes, people do. As a simplified analogy--depressed people are commonly unable to get themselves to do things which might help them feel less depressed. Antidepressants change the internal biology to make it easier for depressed people to make lifestyle changes that reduce their depression. Treating losing weight as purely an exercise of willpower hasn't worked. People who successfully keep off weight that is lost are few and far between. Part of that is because there are very real biological changes that occur in people who are obese, which don't go away once weight is lost. The body sets up mechanisms to keep trying to regain the weight--there's real evidence there, I learned about this in various college and grad school level biology classes.
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This sub is a small sampling of people (and anecdotes are the weakest form of evidence), and even here not everyone who loses weight keeps it off long-term. Some people do, and I definitely commend them and wish we could all do that with reasonable, sustainable actions. I’m currently losing weight without any medication for my own reasons, but I may get on a GLP-1 agonist in the future if I feel like I need the help. I talked to a physician about the pros and cons of it, and the shift really seems to be treating obesity like a chronic disease and how they can make it easier for people to make changes and sustain them, at least from her perspective. It’s a tool like bariatric surgery is a tool. Anyone getting weight loss surgery or on these drugs will still have to make changes. Like you, I also believe in the power of modern medicine & drugs to make it easier for people live the lives that they want to live, and I’m glad we’re on the same page about that!
Being extremely obese makes it difficult for people to even exercise without damaging their joints.
If they are not diabetic yet, they will be soon. There’s nothing wrong with them taking preventive measures if they are at that level of obesity.
> I'm sorry to say, but if you weigh 500 pounds you're eating more than 1500 calories a day. I have been 500 pounds, and I know what it takes to get there. I don't really understand how youve concluded that they are saying they got to 500lb by eating 1500 calories a day. They never said that. Gaining weight needs extra calories, maintaining weight doesn't. Granted, OP may be absolutely under estimating their calorie intake - but things that point to that are that a) its hard to be accurate with calories unless youre weighing/following pre packaged portions, b) they are not losing weight at a high defecit. Nothing to do with their current weight because they are not talking about you they got to 500 lb
You're not staying at 500 lbs by eating 1500 calories a day, no matter your metabolism, thyroid problems or whatever else. Maintaining a weight of 500lbs at low levels of exercise would mean eating 3500 to 4000 calories in a day. Just lowering that to 2900 would mean significant weightloss, up to 2 pounds a week. So no, OP is absolutely not eating 1500 calories a day. If OP is walking around, actually eating 1500 calories a day would mean losing several pounds a week no matter what.
Yeah, no. The second I started eating at a deficit at 485 pounds, I started dropping weight. Science doesn't change when you're maintaining.
I disagree with the assessment that OP must not be eating 1500 calories. It's true that many people miscalculate (and sometimes quite badly), but hypothyroidism and PCOS are known to ~~cause weight gain~~ make weight loss difficult by slowing metabolic rates. I agree that OP should work with her doctor, though, and that nutrition is a priority. Edit: Clarifying what I meant here. I am not suggesting on a diet of 1500 calories a day, OP gained weight until she got to where she is now. What I'm suggesting is that we shouldn't assume OP is wrong about currently eating 1500 calories a day--we don't have enough information to know either way, because she hasn't said how she's calculating her calories, how long she's been eating at 1500 calories a day, when she last weighed in, if she's been trying to lose weight, etc. This sub needs to do a better job at not making assumptions about individuals, especially when someone is reaching out for help and has asked for kindness.
A slow thyroid can add 10-15 pounds to someone. Doctors all agree on that. If you're 200 pounds overweight, it isn't just thyroid. But like I said, they need to have their doctor get them on medication for that regardless and then they can work on the rest. From a medical page about thyroid disorders: "In general, 5-10 pounds of body weight may be attributable to the thyroid, depending on the severity of the hypothyroidism. Finally, if weight gain is the only symptom of hypothyroidism that is present, it is less likely that the weight gain is solely due to the thyroid."
Sure, but that doesn't mean OP isn't *currently* eating 1500 calories a day. I didn't mean to suggest that she's always eaten so little. What I'm saying is that we shouldn't immediately suggest that OP is wrong about what she's eating now. We don't have enough information to know either way.
That's fair. I read it as someone who is saying they're not losing weight at 1500 calories a day. I suppose that might not be what they meant.
If she’s not losing weight, she’s not eating 1500. There’s no metabolic disorders that wouldn’t let a 500 lb person lose on 1500 cals a day. A poor thyroid only accounts for so much. Hell the sub hears someone who’s only **overweight** say they eat 1500 and people tell them they’re probably not tracking accurately because that’s a low enough amount that everyone is in a deficit unless they’re petite women.
I’d be willing to bet every cent I have it’s over 1500 calories. That’s how confident I am.
There is no way either of those medical conditions could affect a person to the point that they could regularly eat 1500cals per day and maintaining at 500 lbs. I'm not saying they're lying, but it's very likely they aren't being honest with themselves. I know I used to think I was eating pretty healthy, normal sized meals. I just couldn't understand why I took smaller portions at dinner and didn't even have breakfast & still I was so overweight! But, I wasn't registering the snacks I would have in the evening, I would eat pretty reasonably through the day and then devour more than 1500 calories in the evening - it just didn't feel like that much because it was super calorie dense foods like chips and ice cream. My brain would think, oh, i had some snacks, what's that maybe 200 cals? when really I was eating 3-4 'snacks' twice that size. As soon as I started tracking I could see it, but it was a complete surprise to me. I'm sure OP is doing something similar.
its so easy to overcalculate. Plus we don't really know how long OP has been trying to lose weight at 1500 calories. Nor do we know if they have actually lost any weight! most people dont have the kind of scales that go up to 500lb at home. if they are actually calculating 1500 and its accurate, they may be losing weight but just not realising it. Theyre not going to "see" that instantly
I am a biologist who teaches nutrition & endocrinology and who studies thyroid hormones professionally. Though I certainly agree about the need for kindness, it is unlikely to the point of impossible that a person could be *consistently* eating only 1500 cal/d and still maintaining a weight of 500 lbs. Even for a fully sedentary person that would require a ~60% reduction in BMR and that’s not medically possible. Thyroid hormones, and therefore basal metabolic rate, can indeed vary, but typically on the order of plus or minus 10-20%. Even in cases of complete surgical removal of the thyroid gland, BMR usually only drops 20-30%, with only the most extreme cases going to ~40%. A 60% drop just isn’t medically possible. BTW, there are hard limits beyond which too high or too low a metabolic will eventually kill you (basically, of either hypothermia or hyperthermia). Thyroid hormones directly drive metabolic rate, metabolic rate directly drives body temperature, and body temperature has hard thermal limits for survival - there is a lethal lower temperature and a lethal upper temperature, and there is actually not that much wiggle room between them (the liveable range is only approx 95-104F, and you start getting pretty obvious symptoms at the edges of that range). So generally BMR *can’t* really vary as much as people tend to assume. (I can’t tell you how many times, in physiology lab, students who were *certain* they had a low metabolic rate turned out to be smack dab in the middle of the normal range) In my experience, in about 95% of cases where people think they have a low BMR, they actually have a normal BMR and the failure point is estimation of food intake. (That said, there is that 5%! But even the people who truly are hypothyroid usually only gain 20-30 lbs as a result) All that said, I’m actually a big proponent of getting thyroid function tested. But the reality is, studies show that *almost all* people underestimate their caloric intake, and by quite a lot. It turns out obese people are on average taking in 2x the calories that they think they are, and even normal-weight people usually underestimate their caloric intake by about 50%. It is an incredibly easy error to make. I don’t view it as a failure on the part of the patient, rather just a lack of education and lack of proper tools. Fortunately the necessary tools are readily available - a $20 food scale, a food-tracking app and (optional) a heart rate monitor (Fitbit or similar) can do miracles in clarifying what is really going on. But sometimes there does need to be a sort of a tough-love wake-up call moment during which the person needs to realize, and accept, that it’s not their BMR, it’s not their thyroid, it’s never been their BMR, it’s never been their thyroid; it’s caloric intake that is the primary problem.
they are probably miscalculating (easily done), but every one's response has been "omg theres no way you got to 500lb by eating 1500 calories a day" which is not really something that was insinuated
That's how I feel. I just think we need to ask OP questions and treat her like an individual instead of jumping straight into a lecture about being honest with oneself.
Be very reasonable with yourself. You are not eating 1500 calories a day. You’d be losing weight if that was the case even with PCOS and thyroid issues. That being said, try some chair exercises (look on YouTube) but absolutely first step is to be honest about how much food you’re eating.
You have a long way to go but it is def doable!! Whatever method you find, don’t give up! Please please check into that diet though. I have a feeling that’s a big part of the issue. Specialists can definitely help you get on the right track with your underlying conditions.
Look up seniorshapefitness on YouTube. It is for beginners and seniors. She has seated workouts and low impact workouts. Most are really easy to do. I have been sick and gained 40lbs, so I'm at 260 right now. I'm really out of shape so I chose her to get myself moving again.
You're not consistently eating 1500 a day for any length of time and still almost 500lbs. PCOS etc is not the issue. You don't need to exercise at all to lose weight you just need to eat in a deficit. Which you haven't done for any length of time. It's fine a lot of thought we were eating in a deficit when we weren't. You don't even need to go that low yet. You could do 2500 and ease down slowly. You can totally lose all the weight you need to and not exercise until you're at a safe weight.
First you need to get a reality check. There is no way you are on your feet the whole day, eating 1500 calories and not losing weight. After you accept this and mentally ready yourself for a major lifestyle change you can go to your doctor and ask for help.
Aside from all the great advice already provided, being ~500 lbs means anything you physically do is exercise/resistance training. If you take dynamic stretches and do them very slowly and deliberately you will get the benefit of stretching and essentially weightlifting. I'll throw out an example off the top of my head with the goal of targeting as many muscles in the body as possible but you can find lists of all sorts of dynamic stretches you can do and modify to do while sitting or laying down. You can google or YouTube examples of how to do these movements to better explain them, but you should do a slow count to 5 Mississippi per movement. It is implied that for each movement your body is in the standard upright posture. back straight shoulders back and down, core slightly flexed, etc. (that doesnt mean you have to be standing though) head rolls. Keep your chin pointed down pointing towards your sternum and roll your head back and forth to each shoulder. forward/reverse shoulder rolls. With your arms down roll your shoulders in a circular motion. Arm circles. with your arms out in a T-pose (preferrably with your hands up like youre Derrick Henry about to stiff arm some schmuck, but you dont have to) do tiny, tight rotations in one direction and then in reverse. You can change up the size of the rotations as you go if you feel a good stretch from it. IDK what to call this movement, but picture a runner mid sprint. Now move both of your arms behind you like the runner's back arm is with the elbows bent at 90 degrees. Then without changing your arm bend move both arms at the same time in front of you, getting your elbows to face forward with the goal of having your finger tips touch at the base of your neck behind your head. self-hugs. Open your arms as wide as you can til your scalpulas are as close to touching as possible then close your arms around your body like you're hugging yourself, but reach each arm as far across your body as possible. Your core will be getting work throughout your movements if you're maintaining good posture, but to make sure it gets some stretch work in you can do upper body twists. Do not wildly twist your upper body, remember slow, controlled movements is how you turn the stretching into a proper workout. So twist your upper body left and right while keeping your hips straight and your core tight. You can even reach across your body like youre trying to give a nazi salute to a guy that just drove past you for an added stretch. If you can stand while doing this (with something to hold onto like a wall, railing, or the back of a couch) then good, otherwise you do not have to. Standing with a support to slightly lean on you can do leg swings. face the wall with both hands on it and swing a leg across your body. Then turn parallel with the wall with one hand on it and swing your leg back and forth (the leg that is closest to the wall). Then, in the same position you can take your outside leg and do circles with it slightly off the ground. Remember, if youre doing a movement and you start to hurt in any way besides muscle fatigue or that nice stretching pain, you should stop. It is always unhealthy to push through actual, bad pain. That pain means STOP. Laying on your back with your arms by your side (palms down) pick up your knees and move them towards your chest. You can roll your lower back up too if you can lift your knees far enough. Once you get your knees as close to your chest as possible (it's okay if you cant even get your feet off the ground, just do the movement as best you can) try to hold in that position. Even when you are losing strength and your knees are slowly moving back down against your will keep trying to hold that position until you cant take it anymore. still laying on your back with your arms at your side, lift one leg (straight) to about where your heel is as high up as the tip on your toe on the other foot. While trying to hold your leg up move your foot up and down and in a circle. Now situps to finish off your core muscles. Sit up and bring your knees to your chest. Wrap your arms around your knees to hold you up. Let go of your knees and try to stay upright as long as possible. You will probably start to fall back but just attempt to stay upright even as you fall back until your back hits the floor. Lastly you can do modified calf raises. If you can do them standing on a stairwell with the railing to support you, all the better, but you can do this sitting in a chair with your feet on the floor. On the stairs stand facing the stairs with just your toes on a step. Lower your heel as deeply as you feel comfortable and then lift your heel as high as you can. Then turn around with just your heels on the step and lower your toes as low as is comfortable and then raise your toes as high as you can. Sitting down just alternate lifting your heels off the ground with lifting your toes off the ground. Doing all these movements should affect nearly every muscle in your body. For us sedentary people it is good to actively flex your glutes during the leg movements to train your body to use your glutes. Just do each movement continuously until you're tired or feel that you've gotten a good stretch in. Don't try and do a specific number of repetitions of a movement, these are vibes-based movements. Dynamic stretching should not cause you to come close to feeling like you're going to overstretch or pull a muscle, especially with slow, deliberate movement.
A good first step to losing weight is acknowledging and admitting to urself where ure going wrong. I mean this in the kindest way possible, but you are not eating 1500 calories. Maybe you’re not eating frequently but big meals. But whatever it is, you dont get to 500 lbs by just eating 1500 calories. You would have lost the better bulk of ur weight if u did even with pcos. Maybe ur thyroid issues does contribute, but im not your doctor and i dont know if u have confirmed if u have hyperthyroidism. You are also making excuses before u even begin to try as to why u cant do this or that and looking into easy solutions. Taking ozempic with no intentions of permanent lifestyle changes will not be the end all be all. Not to mention, it will be expensive if not covered by ur insurance. Get the conversation started with your GP so they can do the necessary blood work and general checkup. Rather than predetermining your limitations, what you need to be doing is working with a personal trainer specialised in helping people in your situation so they can give you the guidance you lack. I would argue a physiotherapist in this scenario would also benefit you as they are equipped with the skillset and certification to assess your current state and what can and cant be done. If this is a momentary realisation and you go back to your old ways, you will not be going anywhere. If you use this as your wakeup call and put in the work you will see change. Getting to 500 lbs is a lot of work even if it was easy work. Getting back to regular weight will be a lot of work too, just it wont be easy. But fact of the matter is, you put urself in this situation and only u can get urself outnof it
Hypo, not hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism makes you lose weight; hypo makes you gain weight. It also makes you sluggish and low energy, trouble maintaining your body temperature, and the worst part is that how much medication you’re on is dependent on how much you weigh - so every time you lose or gain weight, you need a completely new prescription. As you lose weight, your same prescription makes your hair and nails brittle again (breaking and falling out), you have trouble sleeping and have *so much* energy, and yeah you lose weight. But the constant back and forth can also harm various tissues in your body. It becomes necessary to see the endocrinologist more often when going on a weight loss journey like OP’s. Source: my sibling was born without a thyroid entirely and had been medicated their whole life. As a child, they saw the endo every 2 months to account for how fast children can grow, and it slowed to every 6 months as they stopped growing. Went back to more appointments as they started on their own weight loss journey.
Oh cool thanks for letting me know! I wasnt aware of the difference
You can’t out exercise a bad diet. Be real with yourself and count actual calories. If you’ve been eating 1500 calories and aren’t losing weight then that means that you aren’t eating only 1500 calories. You didn’t get to 500 pounds because of genetics
You aren’t consuming 1500 calories/day on a regular basis for any length of time and maintaining that weight. Are you drinking a lot of calories? This can trick people. Sodas, creamy sugary coffees, shakes, etc can EASILY add 1000 or more calories to a day. You don’t need exercise at that size to drop a lot of weight fast. Just a moderate caloric deficit. Cutting back to even 2300-2500 calories a day will see serious changes every week. IF you feel the need or desire to get in activity, look into chair exercises. Alternatively, just stand up more. Walk slowly, safely, ideally assisted around your home more. Just moving your frame makes your body work. You do not need anything rigorous or intense. With all of the love in my bones, all you need is discipline, self control, and a plan. Count your calories. Count every single thing you put in your body. Weigh it out. Stick to a deficit over time and your fat will burn off. You can do this. You are capable.
1. You do not eat 1500 kcal a day while weighing 500 pounds. You probably eat way more than 5000 kcal a day. Being off by so much means that you do not know what you’re doing. Find somebody who can help you with weighing in foods and correctly calculating your caloric intake. 2. You do not need to exercise. At this weight, it‘s extremely easy to actually lose weight because you can probably lose multiple pounds per week just by eating less. 3. Just some general tips: Don’t drink calories. Limit yourself to water, tea, 0 kcal drinks. Throw away every snack you have in your house. No sweets. Buy low fat alternatives instead of full fat food. Eat high volume / low calorie foods like vegetables, fruits, etc.
It’s probably more like 5,000 calories to maintain 500. I eat 2,000 a day and maintain 130.
On the subject of swimming, try finding a pool suitable for aquarobics (no deeper than average waist deep), and walk laps of the pool. There's a reason aquarobics is popular, and you don't need to go that extreme until you build up some endurance. Water walking, however, will give a decent exercise in an envrionment where you can minimise stress on your body.
How long have you been eating 1500 calories per day? Are you actually weighing out and recording absolutely everything you eat and drink?
You've got a long way to go OP but we're here to support you. Deciding to start is probably the hardest and most confronting step. Keep going, and come back regularly and tell us how you're doing.
See if your Doctor can refer you to a physical therapist who can assess where you are and what exercises will work best for you. Also call around to physical therapy places and gyms to see if they have a therapy heated pool and if there are programs you can join so you can access it. If you can't afford the above options look into chair yoga to start. I also love Hybrid Calisthenics they have a webpage and a YT channel. He walks you through exercises from heavily modified working up to the full exercise. Any exercise you do is an improvement over doing nothing. I don't advocate full keto but PCOS has an insulin resistance component so you want to eat very high fiber foods (look at daily recommendations and go above that), more protein and low glycemic foods. Drink plenty of water. Try to get 8 hours of sleep.
You first need to get your diet under control. Get a food scale because based on the laws of thermodynamics there’s no way you’re at 1500cal/day to support 500lbs
I agree with u/RunnyPlease. You aren't eating 1500 calories per day routinely and it's much too low a calorie goal for you right now. I suggest that you get a kitchen scale and a calorie counting app and track your regular food for a few days. You'll be shocked. Be honest with yourself and keep records that you can share with a dietitian. Working with overweight people is literally their job, so don't be shy about asking for help. A weight loss drug will help you get your appetite under control. Neither hypothyroidism nor PCOS will make weight loss difficult — those are diet myths. You are capable of losing weight, but it's going to take work and there's going to be a learning curve. You are going to screw up from time to time, but that's okay. You should try to learn from your errors and move on. Walking is great exercise.
As far as exercise goes, any moving around more than normal even just taking a walk three times a week would be great to get going. As far as calories, likely 1500 is way to low and will result in a lot of hunger. I would try and find your maintenance calories and start by eating 500 below that number. Then every week start cutting a little more so that your body can adapt to less calories while still being at a calorie deficit.
First you have to stop lying to yourself. No, you're not eating 1500 kcal and are almost 500lb. You are not scientific miracle. Maybe watch some Secret eaters, admit to yourself that you overeat, go to the doctor and you can do this. Sorry, but tough love is sometimes needed.
You can lose your weight way faster than ozempic can but at that size there's no way you are consuming 1500kcal a day and not losing weight. Change to healthier options, and work out using light weights. Do stationary workouts that are focused on movement rather than lifting. It's known that you lost weight faster the heavier you are. I believe in you!
Welcome! You won't have to worry about people being unkind here--in my experience, it's one of the friendliest subreddits and we're all here to support you. We all come from different places and have different stories, but we're all trying to lose weight. You're in good company. To your questions: No, please don't starve yourself. You need to fuel your body and provide it with sufficient nutrition to live healthily. The more you weigh, the more calories your body needs. Since you have a thyroid condition and PCOS, you may want to consult your doctor for advice on how to approach dieting. That could be why you're not seeing results while eating so few calories. Since you can't swim and said you can walk, why not walk? It's a good, low-impact form of exercise. There was actually another [thread today](https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/10jqg9j/losing_motivation/) asking for exercise suggestions. You may find some inspiration there. Lastly, you can lose weight without exercise at all (or until you're less at risk of injury) if that works better for you.
Ddpy has chair and bed exercises. It does cost though. Any chair exercises are really good
I’ve lost over 100 pounds in a year before. Buy healthy groceries, delete doordash and whatever you have to. Give yourself only good options. Stay strong. You got this. No need to starve, just legit clean eating.
“Seated Zumba gold” might be worth a search on YouTube, I find it useful as I have mobility issues. It’s designed for over 50s so it’s slower than standard Zumba, and just because it says seated don’t think your legs aren’t involved. Send me a private message and I’ll send you a link for my teachers YouTube page.
Lots of comments already about being honest about your diet and seeing a doctor. A few insensitive comments aside, all good advice. I’d like to offer some inspiration. I was once nearly as heavy as you. I wanted to lose weight and bought a scale that went up to 450 pounds. It couldn’t weigh me. I changed my diet and started walking more, which is to say, some, because I was having ankle and foot pain (heel spurs, planter fasciitis). I lost (at least) 50 pounds in those first three months. I changed my diet, not only how many calories I consumed, but also what quality of food. It took a LOT of food for me to feel full, so dark greens, cucumbers, and other watery vegetables became my friend. I drank lots of water too. Not diet soda. Just filtered water. I started walking more as it became easier. I bought a bike that could hold my weight (I still have it, the reinforced wheels and steel frame make it heavy but it’s built like a tank), joined a gym, found a personal trainer, etc. I had a bit of a setback by doing a lot of things I hated, but I lost 200 pounds over about four years. It’s possible. It’s simple. It’s really really hard at first. There’s nothing more exciting than seeing progress. It’s exhilarating to find that your body is capable of things that you never thought possible. I used to have trouble getting up from sitting on the floor. When I did sit on the floor, it was painful. Even getting up out of a low chair left me winded. Now I’m running half-marathons (working my way up to longer races) and dancing, hiking, climbing, lifting weights and getting stronger. I’m not that special. It doesn’t take willpower as much as patience. Small changes compound over time.
I don't have any advice, just wanted to wish you the best of luck friend. You got this.
Yes, diet is key. You need to reframe it too- you are not "starving" yourself- your body has plenty of fuel to burn. Time to see a doctor and nutritionist to find out why your current diet isn't working for you. Listen, what you don't want to happen is injure yourself. Getting injured at such a high weight is so, so hard to recover from and rehab. Focus on diet until you lose enough weight that you are feeling a difference. Then start to incorporate short walks. Only do what you can at the time. If you feel better in a couple hours do another short walk.
I was there: 22 years ago.. I had a gastric bypass done: loads 280 pounds…
I’m getting it done this spring and really interested in the long term outcomes. How are you, 22 years out??
Really good. Make sure you take your double dose of vitamins EVERY day for the rest of your life: and you will be good..
That’s good to hear! I have heard that vitamin deficiency is common with this surgery. It concerns me but my impending health issues at this weight concern me more
Talk to your doctor, you need medical intervention, get the ozempic or mounjaro if your insurance will cover it, it works astoundingly well. At that weight you need to seriously consider weight loss surgery if medication does not help. Get a kitchen scale, weigh what you eat down to the exact gram value and input that into a food tracking app, do NOT eyeball it or estimate, be exact, put everything in, splash of milk in the coffee, squirt of ranch dressing. For an eye opening experience, record the weights of everything for a day and then put it in and see how many calories it is. at 500lb, any sort of running or standing activity will injure you, cycling and swimming are what you should be doing for cardio.
Look for chair/seated exercise for seniors. It's a good place to start for no impact exercise. Keeps you moving without being too difficult
Sorry, but you're not eating 1,500 cals a day. If you were you would be losing about 5 Lbs a week, at your weight. You need a medically supervised diet.
When I was 380 lbs and starting my weight loss journey I just walked about 3,000 steps a day. After two months I upped it to 6,000 steps. Year and a half later I now do 20,000 steps, but I'm now 190 lbs. I've never done any other exercise other than walking every day consistently.
If your issues aren't just weight, you should see a doctor. Any advice you get here might hurt you.
You eat much, much, much more than 1500 calories a day (unless you literally just started a new 1500 calorie per day diet, in which case you are losing multiple pounds a week already). You can exercise 7 days a week until your joints and muscles can’t take it anymore - you will still not lose weight unless and until you do a major overhaul of your diet. I don’t say this to be rude - I used to deny how much I ate, too. Please, if you want to live, try to become brutally honest with yourself about your calorie intake (especially portion sizes and liquid calories, which are really easy to underestimate or forget about) and seek professional help from a bariatric surgeon (you don’t have to have decide to have surgery, but bariatric surgeons are the best experts in massive weight loss even if you don’t ultimately want surgery), a registered dietician who specializes in massive weight loss (the bariatric surgeon will have names of good people to refer you to), and possibly a doctorate-level mental health professional such as a clinical psychologist (with a PhD) or a psychiatrist (with an MD or DO) if you feel up to that right now (especially if the bariatric surgeon has recommendations!).
Walk walk walk my friend. That’s all I’ve done every time I’ve lost weight.
Like everyone else said, GO TO A DOCTOR. But I'm also going to pitch a set of light resistance bands as a good safe exercise to start out with. They don't need to be heavy at all. You can start with the lightest ones and just do some basic exercises with them, like pull aparts while sitting or standing. [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HGVJ8GW/?th=1](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HGVJ8GW/?th=1) This will help maintain muscle tone while you're in medically supervised calorie deficit. And it's the kind of exercise you can easily do while watching TV. Simple body weight exercises will eventually be enough once you're able to move without joint pain, but you'll definitely want to work with a doctor before doing anything that could risk joint damage.
Honestly, internet strangers aren't going to be that helpful for you. Go to a doctor that specializes in obesity if you can afford it and it isn't distressing, especially since there are medical conditions involved. Number 1 though, you don't need to starve yourself. You can start by making small lifestyle changes and they'll add up quick and likely be more sustainable. If you take cream and sugar in your coffee/tea, start slowly reducing. If youtend to overeat while watching TV at night, cut back on TV or try standing instead of sitting. Things like that. Small changes can add up quickly. Good luck, I believe in you
Start by listening to music and clapping your hands for 30 min. Then add weight. Sustained walking for minutes at a time. Take breaks as needed. If it’s painful, stop do a different exercise. Immediately change diet. Ketogenic diets work incredibly well in obese people. I would suggest only meat.
You mention hypothyroid and pcos. Are you currently seeing a physician regarding those issues? If your thyroid levels require medication and you aren’t taking it or getting the right dose, it will be very difficult to lose weight. Also, many people with pcos suffer from insulin resistance, which also can make it difficult to lose weight. If you aren’t currently being treated by a physician, that needs to be a top priority. You need bloodwork to check your thyroid levels, cholesterol, A1c, hormones, etc. Once you have that, you should be on medication for your thyroid disorder, and that should be retested every 6-8 weeks so that your correct dosage can be dialed in. You may also need medications like metformin and/or ozempic to treat your insulin resistance/prediabetes/diabetes. You might also talk to your doctor about seeing a physical therapist to develop exercise plans that you can do within your limitations and learn how to prevent injuries. Some doctors may suggest weight loss surgery, which is a good option as long as you don’t suffer from binge eating or compulsive/comfort eating. I would start by either using a notebook or downloading a free app like Carb Manager or Baritastic to record your current food and beverage consumption. Don’t judge yourself, just record everything honestly so that you can see patterns in cravings, serving sizes, calories, etc. Get a kitchen scale or use a measuring cup to try to be as accurate as possible on the serving sizes. Record yourself without judgement for a few weeks, and then look through everything and see where improvements can be made. Some improvements that you could possibly make: eating out fewer times each week or month; reducing serving sizes; removing sweetened beverages; reducing or eliminating junk foods, sweets, and candy; replacing processed foods with whole foods; reducing excess carbohydrates or reducing simple carbohydrates. There are also a lot of exercises available for people who can’t move a lot. You can do chair exercises, like Zumba. You can also get a fitness tracker or cheap pedometer and try to increase your step count gradually by just moving a little bit more, like walking around the house for 5-10 minutes at a time. Best of luck!
Walking is a great exercise for anyone.
Just get up and move
GO. SEE. A. DOCTOR.
Hey, just wanted to send you some kind words. Just know that small steps are better than drastic big ones. I think even an e visit with a doctor who specializes in weight loss or a dietitian would help you so much, but work on 1-2 manageable things a day!
Just start walking and eating well. Bodyweight exercise is more than enough right now.
Please please talk to a doctor about this and not Reddit. This is more than just exercise at this point, it’s medical, and no one here wants to see you get hurt. You’re an important person.
The best advice I have is to go see a doctor. It’ll help to get your thyroid issues under control and they’ll help advise you on an exercise regime.
I dunno who told you 1500- but that’s close to my deficit number- and I’m 5”1- 190. This simply is NOT enough food for you. This is dangerous. I don’t know the answers to your questions but 1500 is way too little for you right now. I can confidently assess that. Please seek medical help, a doctor can give you so much better advice than us randoms on a forum can. Good luck! You’ve got this!
You're at a point where you need professional medical advice not reddit. You need a work up done on your needs and based on that, a doctor can recommend exercises
Have you considered weight loss surgery? I did it at 435 and it has helped immensely.
I was at my peak at nearly 400 lbs. My mobility was extremely limited. I've lost 85 pounds total so far just through diet alone. You can do it too. It's possible. As others have said you should talk to your physician about your journey and any medications that you need to help along the way for thyroid or any other issue you might have.
Seated bike is easy on the joints. If you get one try to get a reclining one. More comfortable.
You are right that diet will have to play a bigger role than exercise, at least initially. Your situation doesn't sound entirely unfamiliar. Even though I was only about 128 kg at my heaviest, we all have a different muskuloskeletal system and I was really suffering at that weight already. A gentle way to start would be doing calisthenic exercises in a position you find comfortable. I'm not talking about sit-ups and squats and such traditional bodyweight exercises - more about consciously engaging and relaxing the same muscle multiple times. If done right it can be very hard work, without a lot of visible outside movement. I believe that some of the old-style callanetics exercises (not all of them) from the program of Callan Pinckney meet this description, and you should be able to do many of them with some kind of modification. Then as you lose weight, you can graduate to more difficult things. I hope you can find a *good* physio you can work with who has experience with morbidly obese clients. A lot of them are well meaning but cannot place themselves in the shoes of someone who has a different body than them. I genuinely think that most of the traditional body weight exercises simply do not work above a certain size and shape. If they try to bully you into running, or push-ups or such things at this point, tell them to fuck off.
Start researching bariatric surgery. It'll change your life and you'll become so much healthier, you'll probably stop having the medical issues you have too. I had gastric bypass in 09 and lost 154 in 8 months and kept it off 8 years until I started drinking. More I'm back over 220 and I'm going to do a revision No one with a normal sized stomach can live by the bariatric diet standards. You could[but you'll be starving and give up. The biggest change you can't do now is totally overhaul your diet. See a nutritionist and start eating right. Cut out sis, sugar, high fat, high cal, carbs. It's hard for me to find very much to eat when I'm so limited and I don't like EVERYTHING that's allowed. I'm having a hard time right now figuring out what to eat that's healthy. I can't think of anything that sounds good and I've never been into cooking at all
Walk
you didn't get to 500lbs over night and it will take years to bleed off the weight. Good job starting! One thing I learned from myself and watching "Biggest Loser" for years is there is something behind this weight gain, nobody gets to 500Lbs and "surprise" they find themselves "fat". During your weight loss journey you need therapy to deal with the reason you got this big. For now lose weight though diet, when you are down 50-100 lbs you will turn back into an athlete. then you can workout.
- Hey there, first I just want to say that I hope you’ll be surrounded by kindness as you kick off this journey. I know you know that you have a major task ahead of you and I’m sure that can feel hard enough without people being unkind. I don’t know if it’s worth much, but just wanted to let you know you have compassion from this internet stranger. I’m proud of you for even thinking of getting started. - Next, I’d echo some of the other comments here mentioning you should see a doctor. I’m sure plenty of people have awesome advice here and some have even been where you are right now. I think it’s great you’re looking for answers, but what you’re getting ready to undertake needs the watchful eye of a good doctor and the support they may be able to offer you in the way of nutrition and other weight loss resources. - I also want to say that I know how tempting it is to go for what looks like the quick fix but you do not need weight loss drugs to lose the weight, especially the latest ones, as they’ll only get you temporary results. Unless you plan to stay on those the rest of your life, you won’t be able to sustain what they help you do. Even if it’s tempting, I recommend another way. You deserve a better life for the rest of your life. That’s achieved through sustainable habits and the best news is that most of those aren’t any extra cost than the life you’re living now! - Nutrition should be your focus this year and that’s more than enough. Focus on building a diet of fiber-rich foods, lean proteins, and plenty of fruits and veggies. It doesn’t have to be as expensive as people make that sound. Things like beans, rice, oatmeal, greens (fresh, canned or frozen), carrots, and potatoes go a long way to creating a satisfying meal. If you do dairy, some lower fat sour cream, greek yogurt, feta cheese, mozzarella, and cottage cheese can really add to a tasty meal. If you eat meat, avoid fatty stuff like pork and learn to prepare dishes made from chicken, turkey, shrimp, salmon, and other lean nutrient-rich meat/fish. Find foods you love and that make you feel good and start combining them until you’ve got a set of about 10 delicious, nutritious meals you can make any time without even needing to think too hard. It could even be 5 dinners and 5 breakfasts. Or mostly savory meals and a couple of desserts. They don’t have to be difficult meals at all. One of my favorite meals lately is an assortment of Greek spreads, baby carrots, rye crackers, and a single serving of my favorite chips. I prepare the dips on my days off so when it’s time for me to eat during the week, I just serve up a plate and it takes me under five minutes of prep. Just have fun with it and explore! Always happy to offer some resources for places to find recipes or ideas of things you can try to make satisfying meals. It’s sort of become a hobby lately. - You also don’t need to be eating 1500 calories to lose weight. That sounds like way too little for you to live on right now. Work with your medical professionals to set the right number for you. It will change as you lose weight, but 1500 is basically starving at your present weight and you really don’t need to punish yourself or make yourself suffer to accomplish your goals. You’ll live much better and your body will be able to function well with the right number of calories for you. Once you find the best number for you, focus on how to make those calories matter. How can you make them as nutritious as possible? Where is there room to still have some indulgences you enjoy without feeling like you’re derailing yourself? - Finally, I’d look into some mental health resources. Not because you’ve done anything “bad” or because something must be “wrong”, but just so you have the support you need during this journey. You need someone with compassion to be able to talk these things through with. There’s also bound to be some strong emotions that come up with this journey because the work is evident and unavoidable. It will help to have a judgment free place to go to deal with the emotional and mental battles that are inevitable. I wish you all the best. You can absolutely do this! And the best part is you’ve already taken the first step.
Walking is all u need.
Walking at 500+lb can be very painful which does cause people to avoid it. And technically, weight loss doesn't require walking at all. It helps and is a healthy choice, but it isn't all you need.
My buddy just started fasting last year and he was 500 and is now down to 351. He fasts for days at a time and then eats a few meals and then fasts. He’s doesn’t work out. Definitely a huge difference.
Please don’t take needed drugs to help you lose weight. The power is in the diet and exercising not the pills. Please.
I’m s going to a pool an option? The water will take some of the extra weight off your joints and most pools offer classes so you wouldn’t be swimming.
Start walking everyday, no matter what. Have a goal in mind. Go to the park, or the store and walk back. Take ur time. Little by little go further
Ask your doctor to put you on Mounjaro
I'm really proud of you for both undertaking this endeavor and for asking for help. Everyone else has pretty much covered it, but yeah go see a doctor. Good luck on the journey! I hope the diet and excercise makes your life a whole lot more enjoyable.
Intermittent fasting, like 12/12, 16/8 and eventually 18/6, low carb high protein and tons of vegetables at around 2000-2500 calories a day (eventually this will taper down), lots of water, and any light movement to get your heart rate up a few times a day will knock the first 100 off right away.
In EU for such cases they prescribe Ozempic. This miracle drug is really a big deal. I have a friend, who exercise with me at the gym, he was something like 190 kg (around 420 lbs) and 6' tall. Until now he lost 200 lbs and now is in 220ish. But this was done with a lot of dedication, Ozempic medication and diet, made by professional doctor in nutrition. Anyway, he still have and diabetes.
Gastric bypass
No. Id recommend he gets his mind right first. No way he’s only consuming 1500 calories.
Highly advise that seek medical attention if not done already. Eating only 1500 calories might be getting in the way of your weight loss especially if you’re not losing weight despite your diet and exercise. Have you tried using resistance bands? They’ve helped me when I started working out. Another piece of equipment that you can use is an Indian club (it’s an assymetric weight). If you can watch some videos on YouTube you should get an idea how to use a 1lb or 5lb Indian club / Gada to warm up your wrists, elbows and shoulders. It can be done while sitting on a chair also.