My Vitamin D has been low for a long time. I had gastric bypass 12 years ago, and that’s when it tanked. Quick synopsis – I lost 30 pounds before surgery and 40 pounds after. Then around the low 230s, I stopped losing. Just nothing no matter what I did. Went back to doctors, dieticians, had tests run. Everything was fine. Except my Vit D and the fact that I couldn’t lose weight below 232. It was maddening. No one believed me. The result was that I gave up on my weight loss. I was working SO hard at diet and exercise, and to have someone cut you open and weight loss become HARDER . . . felt like a cruel joke.
I will admit I was angry at my body. I gained back 50 of the 70 pounds I lost. Over the 12 years, I’d try to lose again, and I’d always lose some, but there was always a fear in the back of my head that if/when I hit the 230s, the same thing would happen.
Two years ago, I changed my life. I have been giving an ALL-OUT effort and I have the pictures to prove it. I began working with a personal trainer at a wellness center. I’ve now done things I’ve never done in my LIFE, and I do things in the gym most people there don’t. I ran a MudRun in November. I push/pull a 203-pound sled for 20 laps. I use Jacob’s Ladder – I never see anyone on it. I am loving how I look and how I feel, but I still have another 50-60 pounds to go.
It’s taken me almost two years to lose 50 pounds. It’s taken me 4 months to lose 10. I am now back where I was 12 years ago. I weighed 233.4 this morning. And I am back where I was 12 years ago. Struggling to lose, unable to get below 232. Again. And my workout routine is VASTLY different from 12 years ago. So, this is not a coincidence.
My metabolism (or something) is refusing to let me get below 232, no matter what I do with my calories. Well – I’m not saying no matter what I do, because I’m not going to eat 600 calories a day. That’s the absolutely WORST thing I could do, because there’s nowhere else to go once your weight slows. On avereage, I probably eat 1700-1800 calories a day. The last few weeks, I even sharply lowered my carbohydrates. Nothing.
Now, my Vitamin D has been low all this time (it’s at 17) – the entire last two years of this effort. So, while did lose weight, it’s been slooooow. And now it’s come to a complete halt. Twelve years ago, I asked my doctor whether Vitamin D can cause difficulty with weight loss. I was told no. But I read online otherwise.
To make things even more complicated, I also don’t have a gallbladder. So. I don’t absorb nutrients because of the gastric bypass, and I don’t absorb fats well because of not having a gallbladder. AND I’m low in Vitamin D and Vitamin A (not sure what that level is – the doctor just told me to take Beta Carotene).
So . . . here are my questions.
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Has anyone else had difficulty losing weight and then saw success after Vitamin D supplementation?
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What is the proper supplementation/dosage for Vitamin D, Magnesium and K2 MK7? My doctor has me on 50,000 ius 1x week for 12 weeks. I have 6 to go. I’m unclear on whether there are specific dosages and I’d like to get a clear explanation before buying anything.