I would like to know why I gained weight and what's the best way to
get it off?  I recently gained 15 lbs, and I am trying so hard to lose
it, I am at my witts end.  The only differences from before I gained
the fifteen pounds to now are:    1.  I take Sam-E
              2.  I eat protein bars
              3.  I exercise later in the day than before
               4.  I used to snack on junior mints when I was thin,
now I snack on protein bars
              5.  I take growth hormone pills and cortislim and gaba 

What would be the most likely reason I gained weight, and what is the
fastest way to get it off?  I also take alot of medication, but I
always have and was thin before I gained this weight.  I gained the
weight when I broke up with my boyfriend, but I don't know if that's
related or not.  The medications I take are prozac, wellbutrin,
ativan, tegretol, neurontin, and half of the usual dosage of remeron.

---

Request for Question Clarification by missy-ga on 06 May 2004 06:06 PDT

What kind of protein bars are you eating, how many per day, and what
does the rest of your diet look like?  I suspect the answer lies with
your current diet, though - namely, in the protein bars.

Breaking up with your boyfriend isn't what caused your weight gain,
but it might have caused you to change your eating habits (stress
eating), which would account for some of it.

--Missy

---

Clarification of Question by kyleleelee-ga on 06 May 2004 09:47 PDT

Missy

thanks for your prompt attention to my question.  Yes I was thinking
it was the protein bars, but found it hard to believe because they are
supposed to be healthy!  I eat balance gold and zone perfect,
sometimes 1 or 2 a day, when I'm having a bad day I eat as much as 5. 
The rest of my diet I try to do the atkins thing, I try to eat complex
carbohydrates and protein.  My therapist thinks I'm going to the
fridge because of my lack of boyfriend too, but I was thin before I
started dating him and was alone??

Kyleleelee,

You write:

"I eat balance gold and zone perfect, sometimes 1 or 2 a day, ***when
I'm having a bad day I eat as much as 5***."  (Emphasis mine.)

I'm going to be very blunt with you, and I hope you don't think it's
rude, but for the love of your waistline, throw those protein bars
OUT!

If you're an athlete and you work out a couple hours a day, a protein
bar is a terrific way to keep your energy up.  They're also a great
substitute for breakfast every once in a while if you're late for work
and need to jam out the door in a hurry.  Otherwise, no.  Don't. 
They're broadening your beam!

Here's why:

Balance Gold and Zone Perfect bars contain between 200 and 210 calories per bar:

Balance Nutrition Information
http://www.balance.com/nutrition/pdf/t4_bb_nutrition_info_chart.pdf

Zone Perfect Nutrition Information
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/vitanet/zonpernutbar.html

If you're having a bad day and you have five of these, you're looking
at 1000 -  1050 calories just from these "healthy" snacks.  This isn't
even taking into account the other (presumably healthier) foods you
eat each day.  Yipes!

Now consider that the US Food and Drug Administration recommends that
the average adult eat just 2000 calories (and no more than 65 grams of
fat) per day to maintain his or her current weight:

Why 2000 Calories?
http://www.caloriecontrol.org/fatfit.html

Daily Values Encourage Healthy Diet
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/special/foodlabel/dvs.html

Consider also that to lose a single pound, you need to burn 3500
additional calories in a week:

Calories
http://www.lowfatlifestyle.com/calories.htm

If you eat more calories than you burn off - not hard to do if you're
snacking on protein bars! - you gain weight.

So what do you need to do to get rid of that weight?  Cut your calorie
intake down, and increase your activity level.  Keep your calorie
intake to no more than 1500 calories and no less than 1400 calories,
increase your activity, and be certain to eat a healthy, well balanced
diet, such as that outlined in UC Berkeley's "14 Keys to a Healthy
Diet":

1 - Limit your total fat intake. Fat should supply less than 30% of
your total daily calories.

2 - Limit your intake of saturated fat.

3 - Keep your cholesterol intake below 300 milligrams per day. 

4 - Eat foods rich in complex carbohydrates. Carbohydrates should
contribute at least 55% of your total daily calories.

5 - Avoid too much sugar. 

6 - Make sure to include green, orange, and yellow fruits and
vegetables?such as broccoli, carrots, cantaloupe, and citrus fruits.
Eat five or more servings a day.

7 - Maintain a moderate protein intake. Protein should make up about
12% of your total daily calories. Choose low-fat sources.

8 - Eat a variety of foods.

9 - Limit your sodium intake to no more than 2,400 milligrams per day. 

10 - Maintain an adequate calcium intake.

11 - Try to get your vitamins and minerals from foods, not from
supplements (with the exceptions listed below).

12 - Consider taking supplements of the antioxidant vitamins E (200 to
800 IU daily) and C (250 to 500 milligrams daily).

13 - Maintain a desirable weight. Balance energy (calorie) intake with
energy output.

14 - If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation. 

Excerpted from 14 Keys to a Healthy Diet
http://www.berkeleywellness.com/html/fw/fwNut01HealthyDiet.html

Knock off on the protein bars, and you've already got half your battle
won - just don't expect that that's all you need to do to drop the
extra fluff!  Of course, you'll want to look into good nutrition to
keep the weight off, too, and the Mayo Clinic has some great resources
to help you both lose the weight and keep it off, including a portion
control chart and a calorie calculator (and they're free!):

The Mayo Clinic - Food and Nutrition Center
http://www.mayoclinic.com/findinformation/conditioncenters/centers.cfm?objectid=000851DA-6222-1B37-8D7E80C8D77A0000

Hang in there, Kyleleelee!  You can do it!

Wishing you much luck,

--Missy

Search terms: [ "nutrition information" "Zone Perfect" ], [ "nutrition
information" "Balance Gold" ], [ healthy diet ], [ 2000 calories ], [
burn calories pound ]

Missy gave my question prompt attention, and was courteous and seemed
to have done her homework.

It's not just what you eat, but How Much?

The chances are that you are eating more than you did, possibly
without knowing and possibly to compensate for breaking up with your
boyfriend.

Yes, it's probably 'the bad days' that are the problem.

Start by controlling the amounts that you eat.

And I would suggest that, when you get hungry, have some fruit.

Diet seems to be your problem.  However after starving yourself and
increasing excercise if you are still over weight and if you are
having any other symptoms like feeling cold, lack of energy, and
muscle ache then you need to make certain that your thyroid is
functioning properly.  It takes only one simple blood test, TSH
(thyroid stimulating hormone level) to screen for thyroid problem. 
Hypothyroid (or under functioning thyroid) can make you gain weight.