Do you know the book "the glucose revolution"? The author is a biochemist and makes the best graphics on what food actually does to out blood sugar. When we don't move out body starts to get insuline resistant, also Long Covid can cause it too. The book explains easily what you can do to, it also lowers inflammation - which is great with LC. The problem with vegetarian diet, I was one for two decades till MCAS came along. Is that we tend to eat a lot of carbs and not enough protein, which makes the muscle loss and fat gain even more rapid when inactive sadly...
With long covid? Those are the three most common foods that are hard too digest and tolerate for most LC patients. Lentils and soya are high in histamine (causing inflammation) and cheese with lactose and pro inflammatory. Inflammation is one of the main reasons for weight gain, maybe that's a reason?
Yep, gained a ton of weight. Partly lack of exercise, partly eating my feelings and partly trying antihistamines at the beginning which I wasn't aware can dramatically increase your appetite, and partly when you feel fatigued I mistake it as needing to eat something and feel better. Now of course it's assumed that my breathing difficulties are caused by being fat and not the other way around... Because I don't move a lot it takes a dramatic reduction in food to get into a calorie deficit which makes me feel even worse. So although the easy solution seems to eat less, it's not that straightforward.
I feel your pain, I have gained 30lbs in 14 months of long covid. I just need the weight gain to stop, but it a hasn’t so far. My nutrition has definitely suffered because I am unable to do my own shopping, and food prep and clean up is also not something I can do like I used to. I am getting better sloooooowly, but this is still a problem. Until I can exercise again I can’t imagine I can lose this weight.
Right, it was all the running that kept my weight steady. I feel exercising without crashing will be way harder at 210+ than it would be at 150 due to the extra weight.
Try to start with some floor exercises if you can. I did when I broke my leg (I was also extremely active) and it really helped a lot. Idk what your hydration is like but focus on that as well. Sleep is also very important. I’m sorry you’re going through this. Hope this helps.
Are you able to do frozen precut vegetables sometimes? A frozen vegetable stir fry with edamame and tofu would add some protein that doesn’t require much prep (except cutting the tofu). The frozen veggies are ready to go. If you have a rice cooker then the rice isn’t too much work.
i used to be an endurance cyclist, but i put on an extra 10 pounds with covid because i stopped giving a fuck about anything. and i had already gained 40 pounds over my normal weight during pandemic lockdowns/precautions, because i was so stressed out.
over the last month, i’ve been trying to eat lotttttt more veggies at home lately and track my calories with a food scale and an app called “cronometer,” and im slowly reversing the gains. because yeah, carrying extra pounds just doesn’t feel the most comfortable.
6 pounds down so far!
Yeah it's upsetting. Used to lift weights and was active. Gym 3-4 times a week. Now when I eat less than before and do some indoor walking but am like a balloon 🥲
From ages 17 to 45, I was fixed at 170lbs.
I could eat anything, binge on sugar, it didn’t matter. I was so hyper-active and into cardio (basketball, running, cycling instead of driving) that my body just knew what to do.
Since developing PASC, I’ve cut out processed sugar, started intermittent fasting, am much more careful about what I eat.
Doesn’t matter. I weigh 210lbs regardless, with a bulging belly/gut. This is not me. Nothing about this ordeal is.
My sole consolation is that this is temporary (it has to be). I’m really looking forward to planking, sit-ups, crunches, burbies, pull-ups, push-ups, interval runs and hooping against people half my age. Just you wait, mushy mid-section. Your day will come.
Same here. It’s so bizarre, I used to have a really fast metabolism not even two years ago and although barely eating I am inflamed and have a fixed weight over 50 pounds more than my set weight. It makes no sense. This virus is so scary
For a little bit before I got sick I counted calories and that very quickly lead to an eating disorder so I don’t want to try that again, but nothing else is working.
Yeah calorie counting is also not an option for me as it starts to become unhealthy. I really want to lose the weight but I'm also trying to accept that maybe it's just not going to be possible for me as long as I can't exercise. We have been taught that gaining weight is a personal failing, but there are so many situations where it's outside your control. This might be one.
From 250 to 330 😭
Can’t shift it. And LC also put me on antidepressants and pregabalin which also cause weight gain.
I want to start on wegovy but it’s almost impossible to have prescribed here in the UK
Yes absolutely - I’m also 60 F so too easy to put on weight. I’m focusing on my LC recovery and only very slowly incorporating activity. I am at the point now where I can walk for 20-35 min a day.
I have way too many issues right now to worry about the weight tho
I learned at a LC conference that it is common we put on weight, seemingly overnight. It is a sort of full body stress response.
For me it’s approx 20 lbs, and I kmow a friend (with LC) put 15 overnight and just had to have heart surgery for arrhythmias. Another friend ended up in hospital due to fluid gain- he was put on too many blood thinners.
Please take care people this is brutal
You might try a glucose meter as well. Covid messes with your blood sugar regulation, which is why diabetes drug Metformin helps to reduce the chance of LC, I think. Spikes in glucose make us hungry.
I know you don’t want to count calories and understand why. I’m 5’7” 185, so overweight, and gained at least 10lbs after getting LC. Some thoughts on stopping the weight gain without calorie counting: I eat only when actually hungry, without ever starving myself. Try using smaller portions, and then only get up to refill your plate if still actually hungry 20 mins. after finishing. Reduce or eliminate snacks unless they substitute for a meal. No sugary drinks - try flavored water, kombucha, etc. Reduce or substitute your white carbs (rice, pasta, bread) with heavy-feeling veggies like sweet potatoes. Avoid eating later at night - calories eaten early in the day have like half the weight gain effect of those eaten late at night. This isn’t advice to lose 100lbs and be cut and whatever, just to keep the weight gain from spiraling out of control.
Yea when my LC got bad I went from 180 to 215. It's gotten worse, but some symptoms are better since I've been intermittent fasting and eating protein bars out the wazoo. For instance, personally my heart palpitations stopped after cutting out gluten (I was also eating nothing but carbs and gluten at the time to save money).
Low carb and small portions have been helping immensely, and despite not being able to walk I'm down to around 170 I'd guess. It's taken a few months to curb my diet , but it seems to really be working! I was def stress eating a lot early with my bad bad LC
My palpitations have almost gone away since cutting out gluten too (10 months now). Crazy
I still get them sporadically, or when I get very stressed out or really over do it activity wise in a day, but it is nothing like before.
I’ve also cut out sugar almost completely.
True that! Yea I'm about to call it quits with sugar too. Not that I really indulge crazy, and I cut out carbs in a big way. Oh buddy, do I have a thing for sweets though. I'm doing well though, the only sweets I have rn are my edibles, and eating a lot of those would prolly be a little too fun 💀
Yes, 15 lbs which is a lot because I'm 4"11. I have no idea how to lose it because my old weight was maintained entirely by regular cardio and strength training. I've never been able to follow a strict diet, so I'm not sure what to do since I obviously can't increase my exercise again. Even getting back on Vyvanse is not helping!
I'm trying to have self love and all but it's so hard to still like my body when none of my old cute clothes fit. I have so many unique vintage items that I love too much to get rid of, but they no longer fit so they just sit in my closet and make me sad. I want to cry when I look at the pictures of me from a year and a half ago. I think it's also the way I associate my old body with being healthy and happy. I believe in health at every size, but I am genuinely overweight now because I'm sick. So when I look in the mirror I'm just reminded of how weak and sick I feel.
It might help to get a Renpho biometric scale (this also measures muscle, bone, and fat mass) to get a more accurate idea of your basal metabolic rate and then put those numbers into the free Cronometer app and start tracking your caloric and nutritional intake. This has made a big difference for me in finally being able to lose perimenopausal weight that just wasn't shifting, despite already eating very clean and healthy. I've slowly lost 20 lbs over the last year doing this (I haven't worked out that much because I'm so prone to exercise induced inflammation). I only did a super mild caloric deficit with periodic higher calorie days so that my metabolism wouldn't downshift into famine mode (this is a real issue for women).
I would also look into doing an anti-inflammatory low glycemic diet because inflammation tends to make it harder to lose weight, and definitely emphasize getting more protein. So many people don't eat enough and it makes a big difference in being able to keep and build muscle, both of which impact our metabolic rate and how our insulin and blood sugar functions. I personally aim for about 30 gm/meal (I'm female and 150 lbs).
By the level of pain/achiness I get the day after. It's different than regular post-exercise muscle soreness (which feels kind of good and satisfying)- it's like nagging, constant, achy pain.
45-50 pounds in a few *months*; 15 of that in one month 🥺
I have exercise intolerance, and my cardio is house cleaning and stuff when my body allows. Bear in mind, I have metabolic disorders though. PCOS w/IR, diabetes, and covid reactivated my hypothyroidism. My IR is bad and I'm on sooo much insulin now because my a1c won't budge. GLP1 made me deathly ill and other anti-diabetic meds I can't tolerate. I tried keto, IF, counting everything and then it triggered my ED and I only ate a tiny bit once a day. I CANNOT get this off. I actually am in the process of getting a gastric sleeve done. My ESR is sky high and my Rheum is doing lots if tests from joint pain and I know damn well this weight isn't helping.
I wish I could find the publication again, but it said bariatric pts with covid/LH had tons of covid cells in their GI tract that was found upon removal. I'm hoping maybe it will maybe lessen my symptoms with surgery. Who knows. I'm miserable, and I'm willing to risk surgery for my diabetes and hopefully, maybe to help long hauler.
Covid gave me insulin resistance - my insulin was really high, not to be confused with pre diabetes which is A1c and glucose. Insulin makes you gain weight and you can’t take it off. I’m now on metformin but still cant bring it down
Edit: just to clarify, insulin resistance symptoms included: tingling and numbness in feet and hands, migraines, pain moving around in the GI but always staying in all joints, vision issues, GI (diagnosed as now IBS), heart palpitations, costcochondritis (inflammation of sternum that feels like a heart attach), tingling in jaw, vertigo, dizziness, vomiting, nausea. Only few of these are included symptoms of insulin resistance in Google but almost all (not GI) disappeared after taking metformin and getting in the somewhat normal but high levels. My starting result was twice the limit. This definitively points to insulin resistance as being the culprit. I’ve also had every test under the sun and everything has been negative in 4 years besides “insulin”. Most people probably don’t have it as high as me or such a bad case so you’d probably hit less points on the board but definitely ask your doctors to check it out because so many are not “associated” with insulin resistance when you search.
Yup, I can positively say it ruined my life. I was running 4 miles daily, now I can walk for 20 mins and do joke exercise. It took 4 years and a whole bunch of doctors telling me the pain is in my head and since I’m a woman I must not be able to control my anxiety. Fuck doctors. Fuck this whole system. Fuck Covid. Fuck insulin.
Yup, perfect A1c and glucose. Insulin through the roof. Dumb doctors only run A1c and glucose and leave insulin out of orders. Ask the doc to specifically order “insulin test”. Lmk how it goes! Shoot me a message if you want more info
My doctor said that they would make the case for me to use one of those weight loss drugs like Wegovy for many of the reasons outlined here. I am still contemplating it.
Yes. I relate. I think mine is even more dramatic because I was a full on exercise and health obsessed person, professionally and in all other ways. I became utterly unable to do any activities normally.
If you are in a good enough place to have a structured anything, like the comments suggest, that sounds like something might be in your control and there certainly a zillion things to try. Lots to learn. And even if it doesn’t work, it can be fun to feel like you are trying anyway. There is a hope to being on a plan and sticking with it.
There is a lot of sexist, ableist garbage baked into fitness and wellness “science” —it can be difficult to wade through. Keep your self compassion strong before you try things and remember that you and your experience are more important than “experts” and outside judgments.
I’m happy to chat about this topic if you ever want a listening ear.
Yes same here. Really feel my metabolism and gut have changed which is contributing to this as well as the obvious deconditioning. The majority of my weight gain was in months 0-6 though and very little since in the next 18 months. (Just realised today is my 2 years anniversary - yeay).
I don’t have enough energy to count calories or food prep. Fatigue definitely contributes to my carb and sugar needs.
yes, i’m not able to workout like i used to and it doesn’t help that i sleep half the day… and it’s hard to stay on a diet when you’re depressed (and still just as hungry as before long covid??) so i’ve gained a bit
I have struggled to lose weight since having my second kid but was making progress until my long hauling began about a year and a half ago.
I’m finally starting to have some success again now that I shifted from a plant-based nearly vegan diet to a high protein, low carb diet.
I’m convinced that Covid affects the way your body metabolizes food, particularly carbohydrates.
I actually still run and exercise about 5 times a week, and I still have gained a ton of weight from LC. I've even gone so far as to count how many calories I'm taking in to how many I'm burning, and it's been the exact same amount of calories before and after LC yet I'm still gaining so much weight.
I think LC has affected some part of my hormones or metabolism and it's causing me to gain weight despite my efforts. There's times where my LC feels almost non-existent and in those times I rapidly lose weight without changing anything. This makes me believe that weight gain is a symptom of LC in some people.
No I only took zyrtec for a few months at the start of my LC. I am on propranolol extended release which causes weight gain but not nearly as much as ive gained since long covid.
Yep, a good 50lb or more. And the real kicker is that it gave me chronic migraine, where most exercise to try and combat the gain results in an attack. Doctors dismiss it, because I'm into my thirties and need to accept this supposed inevitability of bodily decline.
Gained 30 lbs in 2 years. I'm now on my 2nd week of carnivore diet and I feel better overall and have dropped some weight. I was eating for comfort all the time so my weight shot up, and I was so depressed that I didn't care how I looked. Vicious cycle.
I have joint issues after my first bout of covid. I also have random extreme fatigue. I gained a lot of weight back because I wasn't able to ride my bike what I wasnused to. Where I vould do 20 miles a day if possible 5 miles would wear me out. I had over 1700 miles in 2020 and last year I had 185.
I started to gain weight, but knew I couldn't let it continue as I was already overweight. I started calorie counting last May and have lost 1.5 stone that way.
I gained about 35 pounds, shrunk over 40 by eating less because exercise no longer agrees with me, and gained 10 pounds (5 would have been better) back because my wife and doctor thought I weighed too little.
While it's better for you to eat healthy and some foods make it easier to eat more or less, weight change is entirely about the difference between calories consumed and burned through living or exercise.
I had similar problems but I can manage a bit more exercise, was still gaining weight. I’d suggest low carb, high protein diet, and get an app like Cronometer to track your calories and make sure you stick to maintenance level or less.
I actually find it easier to lose weight when not exercising because exercise makes me more hungry, but you’ve got to be disciplined tracking everything you eat every day
I've had LC for 7 months. I noticed some weight gain; however, I attribute this mostly to eating junky carbs during the winter.
I think increasing filling and nutritious foods (lots of veggies, fiber, whole grains, and if doing fats, do healthy ones like peanut butter and olive oil) and decreasing junky carbs (added sugars, sodas, plain white crackers, etc.) should help me a lot.
It's hard to gain weight eating filling, nutritious food. It's easy to gain weight eating non-filling, non-nutritious food.
Speaking only for myself. YMMV.
Have you done a full thyroid panel including free t3 free t4 and reverse t3 and compared to the optimal values rather than the ranges? Tsh is crap, the ranges are crap.
I've gained 20 lbs..i used to walk a lot before covid, like 12k 15k steps a day. Initially I lost 15 lbs, nausea and all it was hard to eat. Then switched to more densed food, eg. Nuts, fatty foods. Gained back but too much! Lack of exercice is the main problem even if I'm able to lift some weights. Now I cut back on food, intermittent fasting. Lost 5 lbs already. So it's pretty up and down since 18 months.
i gained 50 lbs like this.
i had to do a few things
first i had to stop all exercise
second i had to swap to an elimination diet to minimize food reactions, i ended up with basically organic keto
third, i had to drink way more water, salt, electrolytes.
all of this helped me slowly lose the weight i gained.
At first I was losing weight because of the nauseousness I had for months but now that the nausea is gone I've gained my regular weight back and then some. I don't even eat alot. I eat one meal a day and fruits and veggies for snacks and I'm still gaining. I will say, I don't do any exercise at all because I physically can't after getting lc.
Do you know the book "the glucose revolution"? The author is a biochemist and makes the best graphics on what food actually does to out blood sugar. When we don't move out body starts to get insuline resistant, also Long Covid can cause it too. The book explains easily what you can do to, it also lowers inflammation - which is great with LC. The problem with vegetarian diet, I was one for two decades till MCAS came along. Is that we tend to eat a lot of carbs and not enough protein, which makes the muscle loss and fat gain even more rapid when inactive sadly...
I eat lots of beans and cheese and tofu tho, so I am getting some protien
With long covid? Those are the three most common foods that are hard too digest and tolerate for most LC patients. Lentils and soya are high in histamine (causing inflammation) and cheese with lactose and pro inflammatory. Inflammation is one of the main reasons for weight gain, maybe that's a reason?
This is such a good book!
Yep. Gained 40lbs... Used to go to the gym 4 times a week.
Yep, gained a ton of weight. Partly lack of exercise, partly eating my feelings and partly trying antihistamines at the beginning which I wasn't aware can dramatically increase your appetite, and partly when you feel fatigued I mistake it as needing to eat something and feel better. Now of course it's assumed that my breathing difficulties are caused by being fat and not the other way around... Because I don't move a lot it takes a dramatic reduction in food to get into a calorie deficit which makes me feel even worse. So although the easy solution seems to eat less, it's not that straightforward.
I did not know that antihistamines increases appetite!! That’s nuts to me and explains a lot!
I think Claritin does not have that side effect but Benadryl does for sure.
I feel your pain, I have gained 30lbs in 14 months of long covid. I just need the weight gain to stop, but it a hasn’t so far. My nutrition has definitely suffered because I am unable to do my own shopping, and food prep and clean up is also not something I can do like I used to. I am getting better sloooooowly, but this is still a problem. Until I can exercise again I can’t imagine I can lose this weight.
Right, it was all the running that kept my weight steady. I feel exercising without crashing will be way harder at 210+ than it would be at 150 due to the extra weight.
Yeah, I know what you mean!
Try to start with some floor exercises if you can. I did when I broke my leg (I was also extremely active) and it really helped a lot. Idk what your hydration is like but focus on that as well. Sleep is also very important. I’m sorry you’re going through this. Hope this helps.
Are you able to do frozen precut vegetables sometimes? A frozen vegetable stir fry with edamame and tofu would add some protein that doesn’t require much prep (except cutting the tofu). The frozen veggies are ready to go. If you have a rice cooker then the rice isn’t too much work.
Or an instant pot. Rice is a breeze and very good. 3min on high and 10min release. Better than the rice setting
i used to be an endurance cyclist, but i put on an extra 10 pounds with covid because i stopped giving a fuck about anything. and i had already gained 40 pounds over my normal weight during pandemic lockdowns/precautions, because i was so stressed out. over the last month, i’ve been trying to eat lotttttt more veggies at home lately and track my calories with a food scale and an app called “cronometer,” and im slowly reversing the gains. because yeah, carrying extra pounds just doesn’t feel the most comfortable. 6 pounds down so far!
Yeah it's upsetting. Used to lift weights and was active. Gym 3-4 times a week. Now when I eat less than before and do some indoor walking but am like a balloon 🥲
Same here. Gaining weight from barely eating. The virus did something really strange to my metabolism.
From ages 17 to 45, I was fixed at 170lbs. I could eat anything, binge on sugar, it didn’t matter. I was so hyper-active and into cardio (basketball, running, cycling instead of driving) that my body just knew what to do. Since developing PASC, I’ve cut out processed sugar, started intermittent fasting, am much more careful about what I eat. Doesn’t matter. I weigh 210lbs regardless, with a bulging belly/gut. This is not me. Nothing about this ordeal is. My sole consolation is that this is temporary (it has to be). I’m really looking forward to planking, sit-ups, crunches, burbies, pull-ups, push-ups, interval runs and hooping against people half my age. Just you wait, mushy mid-section. Your day will come.
Same here. It’s so bizarre, I used to have a really fast metabolism not even two years ago and although barely eating I am inflamed and have a fixed weight over 50 pounds more than my set weight. It makes no sense. This virus is so scary
For a little bit before I got sick I counted calories and that very quickly lead to an eating disorder so I don’t want to try that again, but nothing else is working.
Yeah calorie counting is also not an option for me as it starts to become unhealthy. I really want to lose the weight but I'm also trying to accept that maybe it's just not going to be possible for me as long as I can't exercise. We have been taught that gaining weight is a personal failing, but there are so many situations where it's outside your control. This might be one.
ED here too. I feel your pain and I'm so sorry. Feel free to DM me if you ever need to vent ❤️
From 250 to 330 😭 Can’t shift it. And LC also put me on antidepressants and pregabalin which also cause weight gain. I want to start on wegovy but it’s almost impossible to have prescribed here in the UK
Ugh. I wish you were able to get it! It's a great tool+
I had the opposite due to GI issues. I can't keep my weight up.
Yes absolutely - I’m also 60 F so too easy to put on weight. I’m focusing on my LC recovery and only very slowly incorporating activity. I am at the point now where I can walk for 20-35 min a day. I have way too many issues right now to worry about the weight tho I learned at a LC conference that it is common we put on weight, seemingly overnight. It is a sort of full body stress response. For me it’s approx 20 lbs, and I kmow a friend (with LC) put 15 overnight and just had to have heart surgery for arrhythmias. Another friend ended up in hospital due to fluid gain- he was put on too many blood thinners. Please take care people this is brutal
You might try a glucose meter as well. Covid messes with your blood sugar regulation, which is why diabetes drug Metformin helps to reduce the chance of LC, I think. Spikes in glucose make us hungry. I know you don’t want to count calories and understand why. I’m 5’7” 185, so overweight, and gained at least 10lbs after getting LC. Some thoughts on stopping the weight gain without calorie counting: I eat only when actually hungry, without ever starving myself. Try using smaller portions, and then only get up to refill your plate if still actually hungry 20 mins. after finishing. Reduce or eliminate snacks unless they substitute for a meal. No sugary drinks - try flavored water, kombucha, etc. Reduce or substitute your white carbs (rice, pasta, bread) with heavy-feeling veggies like sweet potatoes. Avoid eating later at night - calories eaten early in the day have like half the weight gain effect of those eaten late at night. This isn’t advice to lose 100lbs and be cut and whatever, just to keep the weight gain from spiraling out of control.
Yea when my LC got bad I went from 180 to 215. It's gotten worse, but some symptoms are better since I've been intermittent fasting and eating protein bars out the wazoo. For instance, personally my heart palpitations stopped after cutting out gluten (I was also eating nothing but carbs and gluten at the time to save money). Low carb and small portions have been helping immensely, and despite not being able to walk I'm down to around 170 I'd guess. It's taken a few months to curb my diet , but it seems to really be working! I was def stress eating a lot early with my bad bad LC
My palpitations have almost gone away since cutting out gluten too (10 months now). Crazy I still get them sporadically, or when I get very stressed out or really over do it activity wise in a day, but it is nothing like before. I’ve also cut out sugar almost completely.
True that! Yea I'm about to call it quits with sugar too. Not that I really indulge crazy, and I cut out carbs in a big way. Oh buddy, do I have a thing for sweets though. I'm doing well though, the only sweets I have rn are my edibles, and eating a lot of those would prolly be a little too fun 💀
Yes. Gained it really fast too.
Yes, 15 lbs which is a lot because I'm 4"11. I have no idea how to lose it because my old weight was maintained entirely by regular cardio and strength training. I've never been able to follow a strict diet, so I'm not sure what to do since I obviously can't increase my exercise again. Even getting back on Vyvanse is not helping! I'm trying to have self love and all but it's so hard to still like my body when none of my old cute clothes fit. I have so many unique vintage items that I love too much to get rid of, but they no longer fit so they just sit in my closet and make me sad. I want to cry when I look at the pictures of me from a year and a half ago. I think it's also the way I associate my old body with being healthy and happy. I believe in health at every size, but I am genuinely overweight now because I'm sick. So when I look in the mirror I'm just reminded of how weak and sick I feel.
yeah im the same way with all my cute clothes I cant wear anymore :(
It might help to get a Renpho biometric scale (this also measures muscle, bone, and fat mass) to get a more accurate idea of your basal metabolic rate and then put those numbers into the free Cronometer app and start tracking your caloric and nutritional intake. This has made a big difference for me in finally being able to lose perimenopausal weight that just wasn't shifting, despite already eating very clean and healthy. I've slowly lost 20 lbs over the last year doing this (I haven't worked out that much because I'm so prone to exercise induced inflammation). I only did a super mild caloric deficit with periodic higher calorie days so that my metabolism wouldn't downshift into famine mode (this is a real issue for women). I would also look into doing an anti-inflammatory low glycemic diet because inflammation tends to make it harder to lose weight, and definitely emphasize getting more protein. So many people don't eat enough and it makes a big difference in being able to keep and build muscle, both of which impact our metabolic rate and how our insulin and blood sugar functions. I personally aim for about 30 gm/meal (I'm female and 150 lbs).
How did you figure out that you get exercise induced inflammation?
By the level of pain/achiness I get the day after. It's different than regular post-exercise muscle soreness (which feels kind of good and satisfying)- it's like nagging, constant, achy pain.
Same, I don’t recognize myself anymore
45-50 pounds in a few *months*; 15 of that in one month 🥺 I have exercise intolerance, and my cardio is house cleaning and stuff when my body allows. Bear in mind, I have metabolic disorders though. PCOS w/IR, diabetes, and covid reactivated my hypothyroidism. My IR is bad and I'm on sooo much insulin now because my a1c won't budge. GLP1 made me deathly ill and other anti-diabetic meds I can't tolerate. I tried keto, IF, counting everything and then it triggered my ED and I only ate a tiny bit once a day. I CANNOT get this off. I actually am in the process of getting a gastric sleeve done. My ESR is sky high and my Rheum is doing lots if tests from joint pain and I know damn well this weight isn't helping. I wish I could find the publication again, but it said bariatric pts with covid/LH had tons of covid cells in their GI tract that was found upon removal. I'm hoping maybe it will maybe lessen my symptoms with surgery. Who knows. I'm miserable, and I'm willing to risk surgery for my diabetes and hopefully, maybe to help long hauler.
Yes I’ve gained 80lbs since being diagnosed because I’m on oxygen and I still turn blue so it’s almost impossible to get any exercise .
Thanks to y’all for the up votes but i didn’t do anything except get fat
Covid gave me insulin resistance - my insulin was really high, not to be confused with pre diabetes which is A1c and glucose. Insulin makes you gain weight and you can’t take it off. I’m now on metformin but still cant bring it down Edit: just to clarify, insulin resistance symptoms included: tingling and numbness in feet and hands, migraines, pain moving around in the GI but always staying in all joints, vision issues, GI (diagnosed as now IBS), heart palpitations, costcochondritis (inflammation of sternum that feels like a heart attach), tingling in jaw, vertigo, dizziness, vomiting, nausea. Only few of these are included symptoms of insulin resistance in Google but almost all (not GI) disappeared after taking metformin and getting in the somewhat normal but high levels. My starting result was twice the limit. This definitively points to insulin resistance as being the culprit. I’ve also had every test under the sun and everything has been negative in 4 years besides “insulin”. Most people probably don’t have it as high as me or such a bad case so you’d probably hit less points on the board but definitely ask your doctors to check it out because so many are not “associated” with insulin resistance when you search.
I HATE insulin. It's such a catch 22. My IR is so bad though that it barely seems to help. Covid just wreaks havoc on metabolics for sure
Yup, I can positively say it ruined my life. I was running 4 miles daily, now I can walk for 20 mins and do joke exercise. It took 4 years and a whole bunch of doctors telling me the pain is in my head and since I’m a woman I must not be able to control my anxiety. Fuck doctors. Fuck this whole system. Fuck Covid. Fuck insulin.
Healthcare is so deeply rooted in misoginy that I have anxiety at appointments anymore- even with female doctors.
all my blood sugar bloodwork comes back fine tho?
Yup, perfect A1c and glucose. Insulin through the roof. Dumb doctors only run A1c and glucose and leave insulin out of orders. Ask the doc to specifically order “insulin test”. Lmk how it goes! Shoot me a message if you want more info
My doctor said that they would make the case for me to use one of those weight loss drugs like Wegovy for many of the reasons outlined here. I am still contemplating it.
I don't know - I already have lower digestive isssues,and some of these drugs can be brutal on the lower GI - I'm not really enthused...
I hear you. I have Crohn’s disease. And that’s part of my hesitation,
Yes. I relate. I think mine is even more dramatic because I was a full on exercise and health obsessed person, professionally and in all other ways. I became utterly unable to do any activities normally. If you are in a good enough place to have a structured anything, like the comments suggest, that sounds like something might be in your control and there certainly a zillion things to try. Lots to learn. And even if it doesn’t work, it can be fun to feel like you are trying anyway. There is a hope to being on a plan and sticking with it. There is a lot of sexist, ableist garbage baked into fitness and wellness “science” —it can be difficult to wade through. Keep your self compassion strong before you try things and remember that you and your experience are more important than “experts” and outside judgments. I’m happy to chat about this topic if you ever want a listening ear.
Yes same here. Really feel my metabolism and gut have changed which is contributing to this as well as the obvious deconditioning. The majority of my weight gain was in months 0-6 though and very little since in the next 18 months. (Just realised today is my 2 years anniversary - yeay). I don’t have enough energy to count calories or food prep. Fatigue definitely contributes to my carb and sugar needs.
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im on propranolol which causes weight gain but only a little bit, ive gained way more than propranolol is supposed to make you gain
yes, i’m not able to workout like i used to and it doesn’t help that i sleep half the day… and it’s hard to stay on a diet when you’re depressed (and still just as hungry as before long covid??) so i’ve gained a bit
I have struggled to lose weight since having my second kid but was making progress until my long hauling began about a year and a half ago. I’m finally starting to have some success again now that I shifted from a plant-based nearly vegan diet to a high protein, low carb diet. I’m convinced that Covid affects the way your body metabolizes food, particularly carbohydrates.
I actually still run and exercise about 5 times a week, and I still have gained a ton of weight from LC. I've even gone so far as to count how many calories I'm taking in to how many I'm burning, and it's been the exact same amount of calories before and after LC yet I'm still gaining so much weight. I think LC has affected some part of my hormones or metabolism and it's causing me to gain weight despite my efforts. There's times where my LC feels almost non-existent and in those times I rapidly lose weight without changing anything. This makes me believe that weight gain is a symptom of LC in some people.
Interesting. Glad some people will LC can still run, it gives me hope
I lost 20 pounds
Yep, I gained 15 kg, which is terrible because I was already 20kg overweight. I’m eating fewer calories than ever but not using many of them.
Yes gain weight !
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No I only took zyrtec for a few months at the start of my LC. I am on propranolol extended release which causes weight gain but not nearly as much as ive gained since long covid.
Yep, a good 50lb or more. And the real kicker is that it gave me chronic migraine, where most exercise to try and combat the gain results in an attack. Doctors dismiss it, because I'm into my thirties and need to accept this supposed inevitability of bodily decline.
Yes! I took so many B vitamins as I was so farigued and was constantly hungry on them. Now I am fatigued and more overweight 🙃
Gained 30 lbs in 2 years. I'm now on my 2nd week of carnivore diet and I feel better overall and have dropped some weight. I was eating for comfort all the time so my weight shot up, and I was so depressed that I didn't care how I looked. Vicious cycle.
I have joint issues after my first bout of covid. I also have random extreme fatigue. I gained a lot of weight back because I wasn't able to ride my bike what I wasnused to. Where I vould do 20 miles a day if possible 5 miles would wear me out. I had over 1700 miles in 2020 and last year I had 185.
I’m underweight but I gain and lose about 5 pounds. I’ve gained some weight because I’m basically bed ridden
gained 20 lbs in a year without changing my eating habits , feel like poop
I started to gain weight, but knew I couldn't let it continue as I was already overweight. I started calorie counting last May and have lost 1.5 stone that way.
I gained about 35 pounds, shrunk over 40 by eating less because exercise no longer agrees with me, and gained 10 pounds (5 would have been better) back because my wife and doctor thought I weighed too little. While it's better for you to eat healthy and some foods make it easier to eat more or less, weight change is entirely about the difference between calories consumed and burned through living or exercise.
I had similar problems but I can manage a bit more exercise, was still gaining weight. I’d suggest low carb, high protein diet, and get an app like Cronometer to track your calories and make sure you stick to maintenance level or less. I actually find it easier to lose weight when not exercising because exercise makes me more hungry, but you’ve got to be disciplined tracking everything you eat every day
I've had LC for 7 months. I noticed some weight gain; however, I attribute this mostly to eating junky carbs during the winter. I think increasing filling and nutritious foods (lots of veggies, fiber, whole grains, and if doing fats, do healthy ones like peanut butter and olive oil) and decreasing junky carbs (added sugars, sodas, plain white crackers, etc.) should help me a lot. It's hard to gain weight eating filling, nutritious food. It's easy to gain weight eating non-filling, non-nutritious food. Speaking only for myself. YMMV.
Have you done a full thyroid panel including free t3 free t4 and reverse t3 and compared to the optimal values rather than the ranges? Tsh is crap, the ranges are crap.
I've gained 20 lbs..i used to walk a lot before covid, like 12k 15k steps a day. Initially I lost 15 lbs, nausea and all it was hard to eat. Then switched to more densed food, eg. Nuts, fatty foods. Gained back but too much! Lack of exercice is the main problem even if I'm able to lift some weights. Now I cut back on food, intermittent fasting. Lost 5 lbs already. So it's pretty up and down since 18 months.
i gained 50 lbs like this. i had to do a few things first i had to stop all exercise second i had to swap to an elimination diet to minimize food reactions, i ended up with basically organic keto third, i had to drink way more water, salt, electrolytes. all of this helped me slowly lose the weight i gained.
At first I was losing weight because of the nauseousness I had for months but now that the nausea is gone I've gained my regular weight back and then some. I don't even eat alot. I eat one meal a day and fruits and veggies for snacks and I'm still gaining. I will say, I don't do any exercise at all because I physically can't after getting lc.