So, I don't know about anyone else, but I've put on a lot of weight since diagnosis. And actually, when I look back then I was definitely slowing down before diagnosis and weight was slowly increasing, but nowhere near as fast as it has done since treatment began.
My weight gain hasn't been caused by steroids as is often the case with cancer, but instead it is a combination of bone mets reducing mobility, thyroxine making me hyperactive, and PCOS doing it's thing. So right now, I am just a sliver over 21 stone and 5'10". Two and a half weeks ago I was closer to 22 stone, which is where I decided enough was enough and something needed to change. That was also when I discovered that my womb cancer was oestrogen receptor positive, which meant that the excess fat was producing oestrogen and making the womb cancer worse and harder to suppress. That, was the main drive for the weight loss because there was no way I was going to let my cancer get worse if I could help it.
I also figured that there are probably other people out there in similar situations, where their 'new normal' has meant that they have put on a few pounds they don't want. And, as this website is all about support, then why didn't we band together and help each other lose weight?! An online and free weight watchers/Slimmers world/whoever else, where we share tips and tricks, products that we find that are healthy alternatives, and help track weightloss and cheer each other on.
So if you feel like trying to lose some weight with others, then please do jump on in. All shapes and sizes welcome!
Lass
xx
Hi Lass and all the other weight minders ❤️
I am totally thrilled to have found you all X I thought I was the only one. I always have had a weight issue and was 24.5 at my heaviest but went down to a positive 16.4 ❤️ Sadly my daughter had a lot of mental health issues and I reverted to type and comfort eat for 2 years. But after gaining about 5 stone I went back to group and really struggle d to loose even 1 1/2 stone in a year !! At which point I was diagnosed with kidney cancer mets to chest and now abdo and peritoneum. I have surgery lost my spleen suffered cardiac arrest and damage to my eyes and am still struggling with mobility. I'm currently on immunology (opdivo) and am sick of the question did you see dramatic weight loss??? NO that would of been nice
So I think a lot about getting weight off again to help my joints my muscles and my self esteem
I have inherited an under active thyroid from the medication and although I know I eat much much less than before I know I'm very inactive and am currently 20.6 stone
Not sure even where to start anymore. I was following slimming world but low fat seems to be replaced by high sugar and I'm told no sugar ....... I guess just some motivation would be a great start X X X
Karen
Hiya! I actually thought when I was diagnosed with cancer that - well - every cloud - thought I'd lose loads of weight but as it went on, I put on 20 pounds!! Ugh! Anyway since December 8th (last chemo), I have lost 9 pounds! However eating healthier and resuming exercise, I feel so much better already. Taking it slowly as don't want to over do things but so far so good! I am now 11 stone 13 pounds and target weight is 11 stone so a bit to go but I'm on it!!! Xxx
This, being my second round of cancer, has prompted me to change my eating habits, but consistency is my struggle. I'm trying to eat more fruits and veggies, proteins through nuts and lean meats, and fats through avocados and such. It's been 3 months since my total thyroid removal (19 yrs earlier had radical hysterectomy at 34 yrs old), and my biggest battle is not using sugars and carbs to give me quick energy. I'm so sluggish by early afternoon that I succumb to cravings at least 3 times a week.
I'm hoping it will get better as doctor is still adjusting med levels. I go back Friday for blood work, scan, and consult, so much plan is to start including exercise as part of my daily schedule, since I'll know more about what my future holds. Depression and fatigue have crept in and I need to stomp them out and do everything I can to keep cancer from returning again somewhere else in my body.
I like the idea of eating more often, and maybe that would help to sustain my energy level throughout the day. I'm going to investigate that more. Glad to be part of the discussion.
Hi all. Just joined your support group.
Since giving up work to support my husband with his cancer diagnosis I piled on a stone in just a month or so, and was already in the "obese" range of the charts. OH can't function without 3 meals a day at least and is definitely a pie and 2 veg man plus pudding and custard sometimes cream and ice cream as well. Annoyingly he never gained weight. So after leaving a physically active job and now rather inactive I needed to bring my weight down......again!
having followed the Rosemary Conolly diet ethos of low fat and carbs okay for the past years I am now a member of slimming world. So far have managed, at a staggering 1/2 lb loss per week to lose just over 1 stone. I don't plan to get to my ideal BMI but hopefully the bottom end of "overweight".
Onwards and downwards everyone!
My favourite no syn breakfast....or supper.......weetabix with grated pear on top, a sprinkle of cinnamon and sweetener.............with .........almond milk! Yes I know it sounds disgusting but I just love it. Refreshing, and filling.
Almond Breeze milk unsweetened....13 cals / 100ml. Blitzed up with fresh/ frozen fruit. Very filling and low carb! Also has calcium and vit B added as a bonus.
I used to walk around like everything was fine, but deep down, inside my shoe, my sock was sliding off.
Now I walk around and everything is fine.....one day I am going to by new socks with strong elastic......but in the meantime I am learning to stop and and pull my sock up!
Hello all
I just want to wish you all well with the weight loss.
I’ve followed the Slimming world plan for nearly 18mths. I got to target in 7mths and the weight has stayed off. It means I’ll huy a bag of apples When my partner is an inpatient rather than eat the hospital junk. The plan encourages you to have
-a little fibre each day: aids digestion, which is key to getting fats out of the body and general wellbeing, if you’re binged up you might not fancy a meal but you’ll always fancy a comfort snack
-some calcium every day: apart from bones, it’s essential for heart health (pretty important) and calcium aids weight loss. Ive read that it boosts metabolism but I also read about something that happens in cells.
-more fruit and veg. I aim for at least 10 different veg/salad/fruit types per day I love potato but eat slightly less potato but more veggies, st least a third of my plate is veggies. Yesterday I had 13 and done if tgem multiple times.
-low fat options are good but fat free are better!. Eg I eat light n free (they’re vegetarian yoghurts) but you could eat muller lite if you don’t mind gelatine
-I graze on snacks all day. Yesterday I ate four large oranges, a banana, an apple and two pears.
-I have some treats every day so I’m never deprived and can stick to the other changes I’ve made. Yesterday I had two portions of options choc powder, honey on my porridge. And mars bar (38g). In Slimming World we call them syns (relates to synergy). Some daily treats means I don’t waver and stick to it. Often my daily treats included a glass of wine. But I measure it= 100ml a glass. It slows my drinking which is good.
I’ve replaced my semi skinned cows milk on my porridge with unsweetened almond milk. It has the quarter of the fat and on porridge it tastes fine.
I never use cooking oil now, only spray oil this change instantly removes hidden calories from your day.
I never use jar ssauces. They are so high in fat, I make my own in batches. On hospital days I use them from the freezer
My final tip. Fat free choc pud!
Mix a single serve portion of options choc powder (or similar low cal choc powder version) with a tub of quark ( its a cheese but similar to Greek yoghurt). I like salted caramel or honeycomb flavoured options the best. (It’s two syns for the options if you’re following SW, the quark is a free food). Yeah it’s not going to taste like the high fat option but it is very low fat/cal and very chocolatey. Aldi sell quark for 65p. Asda75p. Sainsbury’s 90p. Enjoy!
Good luck to you all. I found SW worked for me. It was the first plan which I managed to follow completely. Other will find other routes like weight watchers . For me, just trying to cut some calories never worked, I tried that for thirty years, but each person is different. Find what works and be successful! Good luck to you all.
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I think BrionyO and I are carers and our dieting needs will be very different from those who are undergoing various treatments. I suspect most of you are like my OH with taste issues, sore mouths and in our case....teeth problems. Sometimes he wants to eat but just don't know what. Something tasty, something....something....when OH gets like this we resort to pork pies, fish and chips, battenberg cake, biscuits, in fact anything other than fruit and veg. Hence my weight gain.
Dieting sucks! I know how difficult it is. Whatever changes you make will be good.
The biggest change I made was to eat more slowly, chew well and put my knife and fork down between each mouthful.
When I used to get in from work I would make a cup of tea and grab anything to stuff in my mouth as I was so hungry. I ate it so fast that I didn't even taste it and then had to have another and maybe another and maybe some toast....with jam. I could be totally out of control. Sometimes I even stopped at the shop before I got home for crisps or chocolate!
The suggestion to eat little and often sounds like a good idea. Probably why I had to binge at 5.00 as I hadn't eaten since my lunch break at 12.15!
I used to walk around like everything was fine, but deep down, inside my shoe, my sock was sliding off.
Now I walk around and everything is fine.....one day I am going to by new socks with strong elastic......but in the meantime I am learning to stop and and pull my sock up!
AnaE - I think I've realised that calories aren't everything, which is totally different to what I think most of us were told growing up. Seems we need to watch calories, fat, and sugar in everything equally. So right now, I'm balancing out and eating through everything in the house that I had bought thinking it was healthy because the calories said so, with lots of fruit and veg to make it better for me. Once I'm through all of that, then for the next shop I'm going to be much more careful with everything I fancy. Unfortunately, M+S is a little out of my price range, but those products sound lovely and I'm sure others will def appreciate the tip! And I TOTALLY agree that weightloss will only be successful when you really want to do it! It's like quitting anything, people can tell you that you need to - but you'll only manage it when you want to. Because of the womb cancer and oestrogen issue - I'm more motivated than ever before to lose the weight. Because now, it really and properly matters!
Hey cramtele - My problem is a lack of self control. lol. If I have crisps in the house, then as soon as I remember I have them, I cannot settle until I've eaten ALL of them. lol. Same goes for anything snacky. So for now, I'm going cold turkey until I can better control myself and have a healthier relationship with food. So when I can see junk food as a treat rather than a necessity.
Welcome welcome Kazza! I'm glad you found us too! You've certainly been through the wringer too haven't you! I think if you've tried the classes and they haven't worked, you could try what I've done? To start with, use the health tracker on your phone to plug in what you eat, when you eat it. After a week or two, you might see a pattern in what it is you're eating. For me, I found that what I was eating was actually high in fat but low in calories. So I'm switching that up and it seems to be working! And yes, the sneaky fat and sneaky sugar in products is mental and very misleading! You want to join our tracker on the first page?
Hey MC61 - I thought the EXACT same thing! I've always been bigger, and thought great, at least I'll lose some weight! NOPE! Put on at least 3 dress sizes! That's fabulous that you've lost some weight and are feeling better, and also that you're able to get back to your exercise! That's awesome news! Do you want added to our tracker on the first page too?
Hey Artequine - You sound like you've done things the opposite way around to me. I totally understand how you're feeling at the moment, and you're right in thinking it's probably because of your thyroxine. Unfortunately, because it takes 6 - 8 weeks for your thyroxine levels to adjust to a new dose, it can take a while before the right level is found. The 'good' news is, that the depression and fatigue can also be symptoms of being under medicated, so hopefully when the meds are sorted, those should vanish too! If you want to track your weight, then let me know and I'll add you to the front page!
Nice to have you here GM! Your OH sounds like my Dad, a traditionalist through and through when it comes to his tea. Though not so similar with the never gaining weight, as my Dad looks like he's 9 months pregnant! Very well done on losing a stone though!! That's awesome news! For myself, I'm not a fan of almond milk as I find even the unsweetened version too sweet for me. BUT! My 'milk' of choice is oat milk - a brand called Oatly. They also do a creme fraiche and a cream that are both MUCH lower in calories than their dairy couterparts.
Nice to have you here too Bryony! Very many congrats to you too for your weight loss, AND in keeping it off once it's gone! I'll be honest, I tried that spray oil and hated it. lol. Really wasn't a fan of the taste it gave, but my parents swear by it! Your choc pud reminds me! Have you tried making it with chia seeds to give you more of a tapioca texture? You put the chia seeds in water or milk - any liquid really - then chuck them in the fridge overnight. They puff up and go like tapioca, and you can eat it for breakfast or dessert - and Ilike your idea of using hot choc powder in it to flavour it up a bit. Might need to give that a try.
Hey Chris - There's no answer to that I'm afraid. Everyone is different, and everyone's body reacts differently to the treatments. There are too many variables to say yes or no. You want to be mindful of your weight while going through treatment and try to make sure it stays steady -so not increasing or decreasing. However, that can be really difficult depending on what medications and treatments you receive. Some radiotherapy/chemo will make people lose weight, while some steroids might make them put it on. As long as you stay healthy through treatment, you can deal with any extra weight once you've kicked cancer's b*m! But that's just my opinion on the matter. lol. Your docs should explain all the side effects of the treatment you will be having, and will be best placed to advise you on how to manage your diet through treatment. Best of luck with it, and everyone on site is here to help you through!
Lass
xx
I have no medical training, everything I post is an opinion or educated guess. It is not medical advice.
Heya!
And of course!
Do you know what weight you want to get down to?
Lass
xx
I have no medical training, everything I post is an opinion or educated guess. It is not medical advice.
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