The results of the latest Heart Scan Blog poll are in.
I went wheat-free and I . . .
Gained weight 6 (3%)
Lost no weight 41 (21%)
Lost less than 10 lbs 28 (14%)
Lost more than 10 lbs 34 (17%)
Lost more than 20 lbs 22 (11%)
Lost more than 30 lbs 28 (14%)
I'm still losing weight! 30 (15%)
(189 respondents)
This means that, by eliminating wheat:
24% had no success
31% had moderate success (less than 10 lbs or more than 10 lbs)
25% had extravagant results with 20 lbs or more lost
It would be interesting to know where along the weight-loss spectrum the last category, "I'm still losing weight," group falls. (Anyone with a good story please speak up!)
I believe we can conclude from this casual exercise that, as a simple strategy, wheat elimination is surprisingly effective.
Why would 3% gain weight? Well, without knowing the details, there are several possible explanations:
1) Weight gain developed through other foods. For instance, I've had people eliminate wheat only to replace it with fattening gluten-free alternatives. Remember: wheat-free is not gluten-free. Others load up on the wrong foods , e.g., Craisins and other dried fruit; overdo dairy; or snack on wheat-free but unhealthy foods like ice cream and chips.
2) Too much alcohol
3) Hypothyroidism--A lot more common than you'd think. In fact, this has been the case with a majority of people who have done everything right, yet either failed to lose weight or gained weight.
Those are the biggies.
I'd like to hear your personal stories of wheat elimination--the ups and downs, your success or failure, how you felt during the process, how easy or difficult, your eventual results. Just post them as a response to this blog post.