Your thyroid, Your Weight, and Your Metabolism

Are you struggling with your weight? Have you had your thyroid checked? It's estimated that about 60 million Americans struggle with thyroid problems, both men and women. Most don't know it. I'm constantly seeing clients who are having the hardest time maintaining or losing weight and no one ever thought to look at their thyroid. They just were told, "eat less, exercise more." Ugh!

Women actually struggle with their thyroids more than men. And actually, a really common sign of a thyroid problem is difficulty losing weight, despite doing all the 'right things' in terms of diet and exercise.

So if you're new here… you might be thinking… what is your thyroid anyways and what does it do?

Your thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland located in your neck. It secretes hormones that regulate the functions of almost every cell in the body. It controls the body's sensitivity to other hormones, such as estrogen and cortisol. It also regulates how quickly we burn calories and maintains our metabolism, which explains why weight management is so tough to get a handle on when the thyroid is out of whack.

So why do so many people walk around totally unaware that they have a thyroid issue?

Well, because they're extremely underdiagnosed. Conventional doctors are often really skeptical and even hostile to women who ask for thyroid testing and medication. There are a couple of reasons that this happens. First, many conventional doctors are well-intentioned but underinformed about the thyroid (just like they are about nutrition), precisely what is considered the normal range for thyroid hormones. Additionally, many of them aren't willing to run all of the labs that help to properly diagnose a thyroid condition. Second, women are put down in doctor's offices. They're told, "you're just getting older" or "your metabolism is slowing down. You need to do more."

Once I find a doctor I like, what causes thyroid problems?

One of the most common causes of thyroid dysfunction is Hashimoto's thyroiditis, an autoimmune condition. This is where your immune system attacks your thyroid gland, causing inflammation and an overproduction of thyroid hormones. This is followed by underproduction of the thyroid hormones. Over time, people will have flare-ups increased immune attacks where symptoms get worse.

Next, overworked adrenals can cause low thyroid. When you're running around chronically stressed, your cortisol and adrenaline go into overdrive, taking necessary energy away from your thyroid, causing it to slow more and more over time the more stressed you are.

Additionally, a selenium deficiency can also lead to low thyroid function. Selenium is the most important mineral for your thyroid health and you may not be getting enough from your food.

Finally, exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals really wreaks havoc on the thyroid.

The connection with thyroid and weight gain…

In the older you get, you may have noticed that it's not as easy for you to maintain your weight and what worked in the past no longer has the same impact. One of the main reasons is that your metabolism begins to slow with age. This can be worsened by changes in estrogen and increased cortisol, causing your thyroid not to function as well.

No restrictive carb diets.. that will just make things worse. The good news is that you can improve your thyroid health and lose weight with diet and lifestyle changes. You can work with me 1:1 or take my online course for real results to learn more.

If you've tried all the low carb, keto, time restrictive diets and haven't seen improvement, I have the solution for you. Let's make magic happen! X