Hi all,

I began the low carb diet about a month ago. I did one years ago and lost about 40 lbs rapidly and perfectly I must say. Everything went well.

But this time, I have lost 20 lbs so far in about one month, but my waist and hips are the same size. Very frustrating. The only difference I see is in my face, my boobs are smaller, and my watches and rings are too big. But nothing has happened below the boob line.

I do a very brisk walk at least 5 times a week for 3 miles each time, lift weights for 20 minutes 5 days a week, and attend an exercise class for 45 minutes 2x/week.

I am hypothyroid but it has been monitored & controlled for years.

My diet is perfect. I am seriously low carb and low calorie. Max 700 calories/day. Max 20 grams carbs/day.

Will keep at it and post my successes - hopefully.

Tough to work so hard with no loss in inches where it matters.

I have very similar experiences in those areas. I just lost 60 pounds that I had piled on while ill. I went from a 42" bra band to a very tight 40" band. I just don't lose in the middle. My thighs are very skinny, on the other hand (and I wish they'd be chunkier!). Patience is your best friend.

I see other people are having the same issue. The body will look so much worse with the same thick middle but smaller everything else.

Ah, I see you found it already. Welcome!

P. S. My opinion? 700 calories isn't enough energy for a person of your size and exercise level. Try upping your calories with fat and see how it goes.

As to body shape--some things will not change. At any weight, I am a pear-shaped person. Smaller body perched on top of bigger body. Always the same proportions. I got the chunky thighs. Wanna trade??

Make the best of what you got.

Amen to that!

Hi Gonzotap, and welcome.

How about giving us an example of a typical day's food intake? I definitely agree that 700 calories is nowhere near enough. A healthy low carb eating plan is NOT low calorie. In fact, we have had folk lose weight here while eating quite high cal diets. Me, I lost most of my weight while eating around 1500 to 1800 cals.

If you are not losing inches, that generally means you are not getting sufficient protein, hence my "what are you eating?" question. And I figure you could really be eating more on 700 cals. And DEFINITELY more fat. Remember, that a healthy low carb eating plan is one that is high fat. Sounds to me that it might be a good idea to reread some of those Atkins books.

Actually, it's what my doc has recommended for me. I see him again tomorrow and see if he thinks I should make a change. I started at 1200. Not hungry at all & get plenty fats.

I have not always been pear-shaped. I had a nice figure just 6 yrs ago. Was hoping to lose weight & revert back to the person I was. Happened every other time I lost weight. I know post-menopausal might be different. Will see.

Yes, I actually look worse at my current weight than at 220 because I'm not as proportional. When I originally lost on low carb, it took me SO long to go down any inches at all in the bust and waist. It can be very discouraging, so I recommend measuring other areas like the arms and thighs so you can "see" progress.

I am the same. I have lost 20 pounds in two months but my middle doesn't seem to go down. I am a definite apple shape with skinny legs which makes me ok "round" for lack of a better term. BUT I know that eventually it will all work itself out. I lost 68 pounds 3 years ago and into a size 4/6 but my middle was still thick. Your body is genetically programmed to be a certain shape and short of plastic surgery it is what it is. You have done a great job.

Please eat more than 700 calories a day, you are starving yourself. Consider 1500-1600 calories.

The body will lose weight the way it wishes to. When I lost the first 35 pounds or so, I barely lost inches and clothes sizes. But over the next 20 I dropped about 4 sizes.

Your body is probably fighting you hard because:

1) Over exercising
2) Too few calories
3) Hypothyroid

Yes, too much exercise can actually slow down your metabolism (refer to Phinney/Volek's books). Combine that with hypo-T and you're not doing yourself any favors.

The combo of low calories (and 700 is really low) and high exercise will increase cortisol production because of stress on the body. High cortisol is correlated with fat packed around the middle.

Dr. Fung has talked about this quite a bit. You might find some of his stuff helpful.

Did your doc recommend BOTH low-calorie and low-carb? If so, he's missing the mark on best practice for weight management.


A 20lb. loss in one month is a great deal. However, your body cannot sustain that rapid weight loss for very long in a healthy way.

Patience is the best prescription for you. And eat more!

I don't want to contradict you, but it's not possible to get "plenty" of fat on a 700 calorie diet.

Your doctor did you no favors, recommending low calorie. It's not surprising that she did, though, as the nutrition knowledge of most doctors is nigh on to non-existent.

Fat takes a lot more energy to metabolize than carbs, so it lasts longer in your system, and helps to regulate appetite.

Recommend that you read either or both of Dr Atkins' books, or Gary Taubes' Why We Get Fat.

Are you on synthetic thyroid hormone replacement, or natural? It's endemic for people on synthetic replacement to have difficulty losing, no matter what they eat or how they exercise.

Also, if all that's being monitored is your TSH, that doesn't necessarily mean that your thyroid is doing fine. You could have adequate levels of T3, but a significant portion could be resistant to changing to T4.

Also, eating too little is a big stressor, in and of itself. Stress leads to the release of cortisol, which protects the fat in your middle.

LOTS of reasons why the weight loss is not being distributed evenly.

Raise the fat and calories, see about your health, and know that you CAN'T lose another 25 lbs from your face, bust and hands--it'll have to go from the middle, at some point.

Thx for the feedback. Some of this stuff is already in my arsenal, especially the T3/T4 and cortisone levels. I've had adrenal problems in the past, so I get my cortisone levels checked regularly. No problems. In fact I get everything checked regularly. I do a lot of reading & research so I didn't come to the forum as a complete novice about my health. I have been seriously ill in the past and I research stuff to death due to an event that happened a few years ago.

I've read many of the low carb books. As I mentioned earlier, I did the low carb diet successfully many many years ago.

Went to doctor's visit this morning. My major problem was I was measuring myself in the wrong places from what he measured. I did lose 2.5" off my waist and 1.5" off the hips. And had I worn something other than baggy pants, I would have known.

Doc doesn't feel my exercise is out of sync at all. The walking is normal. The exercise class is for seniors & not much going on.

Calories back up to 1000 though.

Feel comfortable with the doc. I know women who have been very successful with him. Will see how things work out. No rush.