[britlosinit]

Ok. So I started taking Phentermine because my doctor wrote me a prescription for it, because I am obese and have at least 100 pounds to lose. Now, he told me to diet and exercise as well, and I am. I really like the phentermine. It gives me energy (but not too much), and has taken away my appetite COMPLETELY!! Way more then I thought it would!! Ever since I started taking it, I cannot get myself to eat more then 500 to 600 calories a day. Maybe 700 if I really push. I lost 4 pounds in the first 4 days I took the pill, and that is AMAZING!!! But, I recently started working out as well (30 minutes of high intensity cardio a day) and I am wondering if I am eating enough calories. I weighed myself this morning and I was the same weight as I was on Monday (when I had lost the 4 pounds) so it seems that my weight loss has decreased or even STOPPED!! I thought the opposite would happen when I started working out!!
I don't know how much you guys know about phentermine, but if you could give me some advice, I would really appreciate it! (sorry this is so long)

[pigpen065]

Hello brit!! Welcome to the forum! We are so glad to have you join us!!

You have some very good questions that I will try my best to help you with.

First of all, no, 600 calories is NOT enough. Ideally 1200 to 1500 calories a day will give your the best results. I know that the phen makes it hard to eat, but you really do have to. What happens when you don't is the body begins to think that you are starving it. When it thinks that, it starts storing whatever you eat into fat. So when you don't get enough calories, you are actually do more harm than good even though you would think that it would be the opposite. If you are having trouble with meeting 1200 to 1500 calories, try splitting it up into lots of little snacks and mini meals. Protein bars, veggies and fruit all make great snacks. Fruit is an awesome one to incorporate because a lot of people experience a very dry mouth while on phen and the fruit really helps combat that.

Another thing that is very important is drinking 80 to 100 oz of water per day. I know it seems like a lot, but believe me, when I don't drink enough water, I can tell because my weight loss will slow down. It not only helps keep your body flushed out, but also is very important to keeping your organs working properly. So, please make sure you keep drinking the water! And, yes, there are times I felt like I had drank enough to float a boat! lol!

Your exercise plan sounds really good. If you use the zig zag approach to your exercise, you will run less risk of reaching a plateau. When you zig zag, that means that you frequently change not only what exercise you are doing, but also for how long, and what time of day. This can also be done with your calorie intake...for example, today you have 1900 calories, tomarrow you have 1200 calories, and the next day you have 1800 calories, and so on. This approach has been very effective for me and several others.

You thought you had a long post...ha! lol!! I am a blabberer! I can go on and on forever!! lol!! But, seriously, these things will make your experience with phentermine even better. I like to say that phentermine is just one tool in the toolbox...some of the others are diet, exercise, and determination. Changing your bad habits into good healthy habits now while you are on the phen will make keeping the weight off when you reach your goal much easier.

Good luck!! And we are so glad to have you join our weight loss journey!!

[britlosinit]

thank you for your reply. but I do have one thing to say. While my friend was going through her divorce and had been very sad, and it took away her appitite. she ate around 300 to 700 calories a day and has lost almost 40 pounds. she is not as sad anymore now but has "shrunk her stomach" as she puts it and still only eats about 1000 calories at the VERY most and has kept the weight off. She even text me today that she fits in her skinny jeans now. So, how can I be eating too little? and I always thought you shouldn't eat when you are not hungry. I eat 7 small meals a day (always protien, veggies and fruit, whole grains, tuna, no red meat, no soda) So I am eating healthy.Also, I do the zig zag with excersice. And, my doctor actually put me on a VLCD. Which is a very low calorie diet high in protien where you only eat about 800 calories a day. I tried that one day and threw up, so I adjusted it to what my body can take.
So, yeah, I am a little confused.
thank you very much for your input =)

[pigpen065]

I am making my statement based on research done on this. The one thing you have to remember is that everyone is different, and the only way we know what will work for us is by changing what we are doing until it works for us. My own personal experience is not absolute and neither is anyone else's. The only thing we can go by is what is the most frequently beneficial, and adjust it from there.

I'm glad that your friend had such good luck with her weight loss, I personally do not lose at all when I eat that few of calories.

Also, if you wait until you are "hungry" to eat, chances are smaller portions will not satisfy that hunger and you are more likely to overeat. That is why they suggest you eat less but more frequently. This also keeps your metabolism working at its best. Your metabolism is kind of like a campfire...if you put too much wood on too fast, you will smother the fire, but if you add smaller pieces frequently, it keeps the fire burning hotter. Our metabolism basically works the same way.

I'm sorry that you feel confused, that sure wasn't my intention. Your best bet is to follow the plan that works best for you....we can only make suggestions here, not directions.

Good luck to you!! Weight loss is a very difficult journey, but we are here for any help and support we can give you!!

[susanpesek]

Hi, Brit! You can lose by not eating, but your body begins to think it is starving and holds onto fat like there's no tomorrow. It saves as much fat as it can. Once you are in that calorie-restricted mode, and go back to normal eating, even 1200 calories will make you gain.

That is the circle we run in all our lives unless we break the cycle. Eat RIGHT. One diet is the ONLY one you should ever have to go on. You must do it the right way or next year, you'll be back with the same problems.

I speak from experience, too. Over my life, I once figured I had gained and lost over 700 pounds. YES! 30 up, 20 down, 40 up, 13 down, on and on, over and over and over. Just a minute while I pull my hair out!

There are so many good diets, but this is what worked for me:

[nikkimacawgirl]

for the first few weeks of taking phen i could not eat, but im hypoglycemic so i had to force myself to eat. i was only doing 500-600. now granted i did loose fast the first month. but i started slowing down after that first month as well. and like the ladies said earlier, you need to boost up your metabolism so your body doesnt start starving itself. i read an article that said the average person taking phen and eating 1,000 calories lost more then the average people who didnt take phen. so the docs said at least 1,000. if you feel comfortable and not dizzy or anything at 500 calories, do what feels right to you, but you will slow down. but when you are on your second month you will be able to eat again. im completely stuck now, i lost 28lbs. i have tried zig zagging my calories, after reading the article im going to try to stay at 1,000 calories now, even though sometimes thats super hard to do. just really be careful. im wondering if since i havent been hitting 1,000 calories if thats why i havent lost anything in 2 weeks, im getting worried. talk with your doc as well and see what he says to do.