How does it get so out of control?

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12/26/12 8:25 P

Nice....yeah, won't be doing that. I guess it'll be just not filling them. Thanks again

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12/26/12 8:13 P

Unless you take them out, they stay there. Liposuction is the only way I can think of offhand.

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12/26/12 7:22 P

Thanks for the awesome information.

It definitely makes sense how I am at the weight I am now with burning fewer calories started at 23 years old. Couple that with having two kids between 28 and 32, which I gained the right amount of weight, but didn't do it healthfully at all. It makes sense that I am taking on weight fast and easy.

I'm not sure if the Cymbalta I am on has any effect on weight gain...I did start it about three years ago, which is when I started gaining the 30 pounds back.

I'll look into the thyroid problem just to rule it out. I guess I'll just have to stick with my plan of eating better, exercising regularly, and just dealing with the weight.

Oh, I did have a question, if you don't mind. What happens to those empty fat cells? Do they ever go away over time? Or are they stuck in your body until you die?

Thanks!

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12/26/12 3:39 P

metabolism-wise you start burning fewer calories in your mid twenties [so a decade ago for you]. it's not a lot [your bmr goes down by about ten cals a day every year], but it adds up. so if you were balanced at 23, if you ate the exact same calories the next year when you were 24[with no increase in exercise], you'd eat 3650 cals more than you needed for a gain of just over a pound a year. in this same scenario you turn 25 and eat the same calories that you did at 23, you'd have an excess of 7300 cals, or just over two pounds in a year. so at the end of 25, you'd weigh 3lbs more than you did at 23. keeping everything the same the next year you would gain 3lbs for a total gain since 23 of 6lbs. the next year you would add 4 to the 6 for a total of ten and the year after would be five and eleven respectively. so that's how it creeps up on you.

the second thing is that if you've already gained and lost weight you have extra empty fat cells just waiting to be filled. because everyone starts out with some fat cells. when you start to gain weight the first time some of the excess calories get used up making new fat cells for the rest of the fat to go into. but when you lose fat, you just empty out the fat cells, they just sit around waiting like space bags to be refilled. so when you gain the second time around you just refill the fat cells. i don't know the actual ratio, but if let's pretend it takes ten percent of the excess to make enough fat cells for the excess. so the first time you gained ten pounds, a pound of that got burned creating the fat cells to store the rest of it so you're really only storing 9 of it. but when you lost the weight and regained, you don't get that extra pound burned off, you just store all ten pounds.

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12/26/12 3:38 P

I'm not sure if it is age or what it is. After I had my last child at age 28 I packed on 30 lbs fast then had to diet for a few months to lose it. Then when I hit 38 I really started putting on weight and gained nearly 100 lbs after I quit smoking. Went to doctor because I could not lose it regardless of what I did. Found out I had underactvie thyroid. It has taken several years to lose 64 lbs and I still have another 30 or so to go but it is so slow.

So you might want to go to your doctor to rule out thyroid problems. Also do you take medications with prednisone in it.


Anyway I hope you can find all the help you need. I have found Spark People to be a great help with getting my calories tracked and motivation to keep exercising. I hope it works out for you too.

Happy New Year.

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12/26/12 3:19 P

I was always really thin growing up. Now that I hit my almost mid 30s (34), I'm packing on the pounds with no effort at all. I obviously can't eat anything I want anymore and not suffer the weight gain. So, how in the world did it get so out of control? Just two years ago, I lost 30 pounds and I've gained all of it back. CRAZY!

I love food. I do eat a ton of it, so its not like the gain comes from not eating. I just have no control now. I used to not even feel like eating so much, and now, I eat my husband under the table.

Anyway, I hate that I have to limit myself and eat a calorie counting diet, but if not, I'll just keep gaining. Anyway else find the same to be the case around the 30s mark? Does it have anything to do with age? Appetite and metabolism wise?

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