My thyroid is now at 3.3 but the doctor wants to get it below 2. It is still hard for me to lose the 12lbs I gained even with the synthroid. Is there a diet I can follow that would help? I have 1 month before my wedding and it seems hopeless.
I was told that when I will be following a low iodine diet to prepare for RAI, that I will lose weight. I don't know if this is true or not. My husband followed the Sugar-Busters diet, and lost 80lbs in 6 months(he also worked out like a fiend) He wasn't hypo though, but it is a very healthy diet to try. Giving up simple carbs is very hard to do, at leats for me! Good luck with your wedding, and congrats on having a Dr. whose in the know!!
Getting the thyroid dose optimal for your needs is critical, but it alone will not likely make you lose the weight.
Now that my thyroid level is normal for me, here is how I am able to lose weight, evevn though I am very limited as far as exercise goes:
First of all, changing your eating habits as I did usually results in quick water weight loss. So, the weight loss may be higher at first, then go slower as your mucles use fat stores.
Use light weights to build up muscle. Muscle is what uses fat. Cardio burns blood sugar, not fat.
This is not a no carb diet. It isn't even a diet. it is my new way of eating, from past experience how I lose weight, and lots of reading. My goal is to keep my blood sugar fom spiking and dropping, which makes me crave simple carbs and sugar.
Don't cut out all carbs, but cut out all refined white flour products, all preprepared foods, refined or sweetened cereals, refined sugar, and bananas, potatoes, & peas.
Eat about 2 ounces of some kind of protein with each meal and one ounce as a snack around 2:30-3:00 PM, and before bed. Avoid soy, which is too high in estrogen.
Eat lots of fresh green leafy vegetables, (not spinach or iceberg lettuce), twice a day. Cook all cabbage family foods. Eat other fresh and steamed vegatables, of all colors, Eat whole fruit, but only occasionally. No fruit juice. I eat fresh or drained canned apricots, fresh oranges, frozen berries, and use Splenda, occasionally.
Use cold-pressed olive oil or avocados for the needed fatty acids. (and use real butter, only) Do not use low-fat salad dressings. they have added sugar.
You can use Ceasar salad dressing. It is not high in carbs. use sparingly.
Eat all you want, but do not stuff yourself. Drink plenty of water.
I am eating all day long, more food than I have ever eaten, and I have no sugar or carb cravings, and my weight and inches are steadily slipping off. I went from 221 to 206, in six weeks, about 2.5 pounds a week.
Most hypos are puffy. Doing away with sugar helps get rid of puffiness, as yeast feeds on sugar, and yeast puffs up.
It is working for me, and before thyroid med, nothing worked.
I roast raw sunflower or pumpkin seeds for something crunchy. I eat them one at a time, and enjoy the crunch. I love pop corn, and the nuts are a great substitute.
Please tell us who you do!
[This message has been edited by Tree Frog (edited 03-02-2003).]
Tree Frog, that is the Sugar Busters diet to a "T". It's not a no carb diet, but a no sugar and white flour diet which is bad. I know a lot of Drs. recommend it for diabetics. There is a book out there that will show you what is ok, and what are simple carbs. If you have a hard time deciding. Healthy eating and exercising are the best and only way to lose weight.
losing weight with hypo 
