Schizophrenia.com

On weight gain

DX'd - Other
#1

I think a LOT of people can identify with this one…losing weight is hard. Hard especially in the face of meds which, for the overwhelming percentage of sufferers, is made impossible thanks to the metabolic effects on the body. My weight has ballooned recently, and it can all be tied to meds. It’s kind of like an endless cycle, you take meds that are sedating, you do less, and then you hang around the house all day and eat because you’re unrelentingly hungry. A lot of the time I wonder what can be done to mitigate this. I’ve seen a commercial recently about OIC (opiod-induced constipation). Why can’t they engineer a medication that doesn’t whack the metabolism?

Feel free to chime in with your thoughts.

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#2

I have pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I am never going to weigh 140 lbs again like I did when I graduated from college (I am now 204lb) However, I am encouraged that my brother does well on Zyprexa and has really good bloodwork. He follows a pretty extreme diet though: Absolutely no sugary foods, no gluten, no dairy…etc…etc… It seems to work for him plus it seems to help his allergies which he used to have a lot of.

My bloodwork is a bit off still (~300 triglycerides, low HDL) … I may ask my doc about trying Zyprexa assuming my insurance will cover it instead of Risperdal I don’t think I can duplicate my brother’s diet but I have started emulating it more by eating plenty of fruits and vegetables and cutting out a lot of junk food.

I am even working on a prototype voice food diary app which seems to help me make sure I eat fruits and veggies and stay near my calorie goal https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rfo.speakcc I lost 14 lbs using it but since Xmas my weight creeped up 9lbs probably because of stress.

(BTW myfitnesspal and LoseIt are pretty good apps too. They really helped me manage my sodium and potassium levels which helped a lot with my blood pressure.)

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#3

Dunno. I’m fighting this same demon again. Maybe we need to form a group on MyFitnessPal and challenge/motivate each other? Thoughts?

Pixel.

5 Likes
#4

I believe crazyboards.org has a dedicated weight loss forum… may sz.com should have one too…

#5

I’ve gained some more weight - it’s difficult to lose lately.

It’s frustrating to say the least. :frowning:

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#6

I do think it is a really, really good idea to graph your weight on a regular basis so that you can spot trends and make changes… Plus it’s kind of fun to do with apps.

Here’s my latest:

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#7

I’m much more active because of my job at the bulk fuel dealership. I was coming home half dead and in agony at first. Now I can be on my feet all day without getting tired, and even a day of shovelling after a snow storm doesn’t kill me. I no longer get tired from climbing stairs/ladders or slinging heavy hose. So I’m in better shape, I’m just not losing weight. Frustrating. I guess I should take a win where I can find one, right?

Pixel.

4 Likes
#8

I’m guessing a large part of that is muscle weighs more than fat. You’re likely actually staving off weight gain.

I just logged into MFP. Depressing. I had to “up” what I weigh by a fair amount. What kind of challenge did you have in mind?

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#9

I know how you feel for sure.

I walk every day and have actually gained some weight - my diet is not terrible either.

Getting really tired of it.

#10

Myfitnesspal is nice but a pain in the butt to use long term (I used it for 2 1/2 years)…
I like my app and some other simple ones that launch and exit quickly. MFP forums are great though.


https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=opunktschmidt.fastcaloriecounterpro

SubAssistant has real simple weight tracker too:

#11

As far as exercise goes… I think walking and light weight training are the best for sz. Dumbbells, squats, pushups and all the old exercises they taught us in gym class are probably ok for most of us and don’t necessarily require a gym membership (which I used to buy and never use)

#12

What I NEED to do is get my fat ass off the soda AND start walking. :wink: :grinning:

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#13

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#14

i tried asking ok google and this is what it came up with

#15

I want to lose weight, i’m extremely heavy and over the course of 6 years I have gained a 100 pounds on different anti-psychotic meds. I am going to try exercise dvds instead of walking outside since being outside causes my anxiety to skyrocket. I just have one dvd so far and it’s pilates and my dvd player doesn’t work so I have to get a new one first.

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#16

Honestly don’t know. Step challenge. Something? Anyone know of a site that works for people with non-Fitbit step counters? That way anyone with a smartphone and a free app can join. The Fitbit communities only work for Fitbit owners.

Pixel.

#17

omg lol I saw the same OI

#18

sorry I didn’t finish and bumped reply by accident. anyway I saw the same OIC commercial and I agree! According to my sons doctor he is on the best sz med that doesn’t make you gain weight. We disagreed because he already gained 25lbs in 2 months! I feel sorry for him and that’s one of the reasons he wants to go off meds.

1 Like
#19

I’ve been looking at www.fitocracy.com. Free. Might be a good site for us to challenge each other. Looks like those who want to preserve anonymity can do so. Downside is that those with fitness trackers have to manually enter info.

Pixel.

#20

South Beach Diet made HUGE difference, HUGE. Is easy and uses just normal stuff, brown stuff diet basically.

Lift weights twice a week. Find rec center with weight machines or pay for a few personal trainer sessions so you learn correct form with free weights. Will find the weight machines HUGE benefit for newby if you just lift 1 set twice a week, kind of heavy doing about 15 reps. Concentrate on lower and abs to start as big muscles burn more calories, then develop the upper body as you shrink. Can add more sets, but really no need until female hits 180-200. One set will drastically increase loss for female if you lift a bit heavy, male needs more sets faster.

Cardio, start walking, eventually good to put some ellyptical trainer time at end of weights to really push your calorie burn. Can add cleaning whole house or do yard work, sports, bike, nature-based…Can really still do a lot of moderate exercise with low injury risk even older when we start to refuse to start jogging as it busts some people to bits, weight returns plus more problems just functioning after injury.

Yoga is HUGER help to avoid injury and will retrain your brain to silence as you stand there thinking nothing and holding weird pose for 15 seconds.

Just lost big amount of weight, then suffered my first nervous break and put on zyprexa. Gosh! I put on 35 lbs in 6 weeks on that crap and begged DR for new meds was so ravenous. Risperdal consta just packed on more without relief from voices…Used some mood stabilizer, forgot name, but 14 days without bathroom was TERRIBLE case of constipation. Serqouel has been least problematic but still put on big amount of weight as needed sleep pills and Dr at time refused…