New to CPAP, and I'm fat.

SisterBenedict wrote:... I'd love to hear from anyone else who is or was fat/heavy/overweight/obese/big/however you want to name it. Tell me, does CPAP help in this? Do you have any tips? ...

Lord, yes! If you get better sleep you will feel more energetic and be better able to loose weight. Sleeping poorly makes it almost impossible to loose weight.

However, a caution. You might find that loosing weight will not reduce your need for xPAP therapy. I started to have problems with sleep apnea as a teen and I was decidedly underweight at the time.

So, just consider this a tool to allow you to sleep well and feel refreshed. Once you have your get up and go, you will find that you will .. well .. get up and go!

SisterBenedict wrote:Only lost 21 lbs. from when I started working out like this, back in 2009. Something must be wrong.

I would go to an endocrinologist and have a full work up done. They can check your thyroid, A1C, and for things like PCOS and insulin resistance that cause your body to process sugar in a way that contributes to excessive weight gain. If you do indeed have PCOS (like i do) or something to that effect eating vegan (especially if you eat a lot of carbs) can actually be making you gain weight. best of luck!

forgot to say there is a link between PCOS and apnea (as per my endocrinologist) so i'd definitely look into that. take care

SisterBenedict wrote:I've been vegan for eleven months. Unfortunately, both Oreos and Fritos are also vegan.

Its not your fault you can't stop

That is the one single word that the food industry hates: "addiction." They much prefer words like "crave-ability" and "allure."

Their advice to these people is don't try to eat just a couple Oreo cookies, because you are not going to be able to stop. Sugar uses the same neurological pathways as narcotic [products rely on] to hit the pleasure center of the brain that send out the signals: "eat more, eat more."
http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/01/health/sa ... ?hpt=hp_t3

Luckily for us, almost everything but fresh foods have nutrition labels.
Pay attention to the carbohydrate line, even more so than the fats.
Excess of either is too easy, but you want to try to get enough protein.
It is essential, but in grain, seed, or nut form, usually is accompanied by carbohydrates--more than enough, I fear.
If you can avoid other sources of carbs, it might help.
Remember, one cracker leads to a cookie, leads to another, and some pie, (you get the picture)
Carbs create cravings (related to high blood sugar)--best not to get started.
If you feel light-headed when eating something sweet--YIKES! stop!

chunkyfrog wrote:If you feel light-headed when eating something sweet--YIKES! stop!

I wish I felt light headed when I eat something sweet!

What if they were eating hippy brownies?

I want to thank you all for your comments, concern and kindness. You've really made me feel welcome.

Hi, SisterBenedict! Welcome aboard!

If you are anything like the rest of us who struggle with weight issues, you may find that as your sleep improves on the machine, you will metabolize sugars and fats better - so some of this weight might just melt off as you use your machine.

Hope for the best for you.

I'm vegan about half of the year in accordance with my faith tradition - I've found that if I choose vegetables that are more of the complex carbohydrate variety, then I don't lose the ground I gain when I'm am on the stricter low carbohydrate diet. After trying for a few years - this has been my best result plan - that and being compliant with my cpap, working to keep the AHI down, and exercise.

Best wishes to you!