Best way to lose weight??

[jenjen]

Ugghhh.. I just saw some pictures of myself taken last week and I have definately put a good few kilos on. My fault for not noticing, I should weigh myself everyday but I havent for like a month oops

I just don't know where its come from??? I dont eat that badly, I don't drink a lot of alcohol, I exercise... so why!?!?!? Maybe my metabolism has suddenly slowed down, I don't know.

I know losing weight is supposed to be a no brainer... exercise more, eat less... but I do this... so why do I keep gaining weight?!?!?!

p.s. not fluid overloaded, this is pure and utter fat

[tommc]

Jen
Your on PD if i mind correctly PD fluid is glucose based and has hundreds of calories in each bag you use and you will take on some of them . I put on 5 kilos when i started PD because i didnt know this. What i did was cut out other sources of suger in my diet like tea no suger only diet juice or water and only the occasional sweet. I switched to grapes crackers, suger free gum / mints and ice lollies just watch your fluid load with those so far ive lost 15 kilos by doing this a walking an hour a day when i can and using the stairs more at work when im up to it. The stronger the fluid bag you use the more calories you get as well. Best of luck

Tom

[jenjen]

thanks tomm!

I was told that there are 500 calories in the 1.36%, 1.5 litre bag which I use 4x a day.

this sucks... its a lot of extra calories, I wish they would give us all that extraneal fluid where you don't absorb any of it!

I'll try cutting down on sugar and see where that gets me

[Elaine]

Hiya Jen p/d fluid does have lots of calories in it and many peopel do put weight on whilst on p/d and also change shape too due to p/d especially rounded tummy due to fluid .

At paeds they are told to weigh daily and keep records etc as can see at a glance etc changes and indicate if problem for Drs to liase with you or change regieme etc. p/d suits some people and not others etc. Sometimes it can be a catch 22 where have to use heavier bags which contain more glucose to try and remove excess fluid then more calories too so increases weight also.

Hope you are keeping well anyhow take care Elaine xx

ps The extraneal is supsoe to help drain excess fluid off etc although 'somehow' there always 1!! lol Rach use to absorb the extraneal fluid as well!!!!!!!

[JMan]

Excercise & diet are the major roles.. I wasn't aware of the sugar content of PD fluid, but it goes to figure.. Out a suger cube in water & you have a demonstration of one of the main principles of dialysis.
If you exercise, try & do something you enjoy.. Even fidgeting will burn off a few calories:D

IMHO be aware of 'sugar free' may contain artificial sweeteners. Now love em or hate em I personally wouldn't touch em with a bargepole.

[Rachel in NY]

Best - and Only.. way to loose weight, is diet and excersize. Yes, you're getting sugar from the fluid. So that's that. But cut out your other sugars. Use artificial sweetners. I know that people tell you its awful and all of that. Well guess what, i'm on it since i was 8 bcuz of diabetes and i'm fine. what's better, fat, or speculated artiricial sweetener problems?

Speak to you dietetion to arrange a kidney friendly yet low fat diet. And the excersize thing as well...

good luick

[MANCHESTER STEVE]

Think ive seen the photo's Jen and i dont think you look out of shape at all
Ive definately put on weight in all the wrong places not even a big jumper can hide it

[rosa t]

Hi Jen

oh god it's only just occured to me - yes it's glucose! oh christ.

As if my weight isn't bad enough!

I've teied and tried to loose weight for years and just when I started with some medical help mt kidneys started to fail.


Do you feel less hungry on CAPD/APD since you are getting a sugar fill from the fluid?

I'm going to ask for a tummy tuck when they do my pd line (only joking!)hahahahahahaha

it's a vicious circle oooooooh styill going to keep trying.

alright dont answer i know I'm trying!


sugar in it's purest form!

love

rosa xx

[jenjen]

Hi everyone... thanks for the replies etc

Steve-- I definately look out of shape compared to before all this dialysis nonesense started...

Rosa-- No, I don't feel any less hungry.. in fact my appetite has increased A LOT since I started dialysis and EPO and I've been eating a lot more, although its not been 'bad' stuff so to speak, trying to eat veggies etc instead.

I think I need to cut down on sugar... 80 calories per bag I'm told on the regime I'm on, thats 320 extra a day, like having a Mars bar and a half every day, but its totally empty calories as it doesnt fill you up. Its more if you're on stronger bags and more if you have greater volumes of fluid.

Dialysis sucks!
Bring on the artificial kidneys!!

[Mike]

Hi Jen

I put on weight when on PD but a lot of that was from when I was very inactive ue to the 2 hernias. I put on a few kilos then but did lose most of it before the transplant. Since the transplant I have put on about 3 kilos and it is very difficult to lose them due to increased appetite from steroids and simply feeling better. I hardly had an appetite while on dialysis and it came back with a vengeance!

Mike

[MandyV]

Jenjen - I fully sympathise as I have recently put on a huge amount of weight when I went up from using a 3 x 1.36 x 1.5l / day to 15l (10l x 1.36 + 5l x 2.27 overnight) and my suggestions are as follows :
1) Speak to the renal dietician as they can help you lose weight by really reviewing your diet
2) Apparently every manual bag is like a choccie biscuit (I guess your 80 cal is around the same amount)
3) Exercise is the key - prior to the last eight months I was the really quite fit and had lost weight since starting PD.
4) Try using a smaller plate if portion size is a problem.
You may be eating more as you are feeling better because PD is doing what it should, so if that is the case best thing is to exercise and watch the usual (portion size / fat / sugar) ... good luck !!!

[rosa t]

Hi jen

oh flippin hell!

I've chosen pd cos it's more family friendly etc!

I didnt realsie EPO increases your appetite! I'm on EPO every 2 weeks!

No wonder no thinks us kidney patients are ill! It;'s all the food induced tablets we pop! hahahahaha

Dialysis sucks - yep Jen about right there - sucks the glucose out of the bags straight onto the tummy, hips, thighs and everywhere else!!!!



mind you if you've been watching channel 5 documentary's Big Love I feel really small!

now to the real world - can someone cut me in half please?

lots
of love

rosa xx

[jenjen]

Hi Rosa

EPO doesnt increase your appetite per se, but its making me feel a lot better and less tired, so I've been wanting to eat a lot more so its but also

Anyway, I made it through lunchtime and breakfast without any sugary snacks and I feel bloody awful... I hope its just withdrawal symptoms and not anything more sinister

Despite the weight gain and all the other problems I am actually glad I chose PD, and wouldnt change unless it stops working. Here's hoping

[freddyy]

I would say it is pretty normal to gain weight when you start exercising. Even though you are burning through fat reserves, you will build up muscles which has a higher density (weighs more).

How it will affect your weight in the long term depends mostly on how much calories you put in vs. how much you burn. It is probably not a good idea to cut down on calories too quickly though. Too sudden changes often tend to backfire in my experience. Try getting a feel of how many calories you take in, and how many you need, and adjust from there.

Also remember that weight can fluctuate a bit up and down while doing heavy exercise, depending on how well you are able to re-hydrate. Lots of weight can be in water which is easily gained and lost. So don't look too carefully at individual weightings, but try to keep track of the average trend over time.

If you have access to a renal dietist (as we do here in Sweden), maybe they can help you to make measurements of body composition. They hook up some electrodes and pass a weak current through your body, and you will find out how much % of your body is water, muscles and body fat. Then you can go back after a while and measure again, to see if your exercise has paid off even though your scale shows no change.

Good luck on your journey

[wagolynn]

thanks tomm!

I was told that there are 500 calories in the 1.36%, 1.5 litre bag which I use 4x a day.

this sucks... its a lot of extra calories, I wish they would give us all that extraneal fluid where you don't absorb any of it!

I'll try cutting down on sugar and see where that gets me

If you tell your PD nurse and/or your dietician you are concerned about weight gain, they should consider using a different (none-glucose) dialysate, glucose based ones are the first choice, I think they are cheaper.