Resetting your metabolism after destroying it

ashveena

I've never posted on MFP before but wanted to post to ask if anyone else has experienced this.

I recently got married (about 4 months ago). The month before my wedding was brutal and I barely ate, resulting in a 6 or so pound weight loss before my wedding. After my wedding, my husband and I moved in together (my first time living with a guy) and though I tried to cook healthy for us I found myself gaining a lot of weight.

In reality I would say we ate healthy 50-60% of the time, we indulged in a lot of drinks and dessert on weekends. I was unemployed the first 3 months and fairly unmotivated to do anything but in the last month my husband and I have started going to the gym 3 times a week and I started a full time job.

Between my lowest weight at my wedding and now I've gained about 14 pounds. I'm 5'1, so even gaining 2-3 pounds really shows. I see fat sitting uncomfortably on my body and my clothes don't fit, which is the worst feeling. I've discussed the issue a lot with my sister, who is a physician. She pointed out to me that because I barely ate before my wedding, my metabolism probably slowed down a lot. Since I eat normally and sometimes too much in the last few months, my metabolism is probably still slow and my body is in starvation mode and clinging on to anything eat.

I've done a lot of reading about metabolism reset. I'm trying to eat around 1500-2000 calories a day now (at the higher end of the range when I work out) and eat as clean as possible. My weight gain seems to have plateaued but I have no idea how I am going to lose the weight now. I don't want to starve my body again and put it through this vicious cycle.

Just wondering if anyone else has experienced issues like this? How did you get yourself in a healthy lifestyle with slow weightloss?

jgnatca

I have eaten like a diabetic for years, and my metabolism ticks along pretty good now. It means eating regular small meals with snacks, and never skipping breakfast. But my snacks may be 100-150 calories each; not very much.

I suspect if you stick with this plan you will start losing weight. If you are still gaining a few weeks from now, try cutting 100 calories a day from your diet.

scrittrice

No disrespect to your sister, but you didn't destroy your metabolism by eating below maintenance for a month, and it doesn't need to be "reset." Take a look at the sexypants discussion on the Getting Started board.

Mr_Knight

ashveena wrote: »

I've discussed the issue a lot with my sister, who is a physician. She pointed out to me that because I barely ate before my wedding, my metabolism probably slowed down a lot.

It takes a lot more than that to make your metabolism slow down "a lot".

...I'm trying to eat around 1500-2000 calories a day now...

I don't know what "trying to" means. Open your diary, the problem is almost certainly in there....

Need2Exerc1se

You can eat at a deficit and still increase your metabolism. Just keep the deficit small and include resistance training in your exercise routine. It will work itself out.

Sued0nim

Nothing wrong with your metabolism, starvation mode, in the way you're talking simply doesn't exist

You just need to eat at a defecit

It's very common for newlyweds to put on weight

jgnatca

It's very common for newleyweds to put on weight - rabbitjb

Fat and happy, right? I know my hubby earned a contented spare tire.

CodeMonkey78

Starvation mode is a myth. Just make sure to eat at a Caloric deficit and you will lose weight over time.

astrose00

What do you mean you don't know how you're going to lose the weight? You make sure you calories out exceed your calories in; eat at a caloric deficit. That deficit can be as small as you are comfortable with. Weight loss doesn't have to be traumatic or turn your world upside down. Just eat below your maintenance level and you will lose weight... at 5'2", 2000 calories sounds like a lot to me for weight loss. My goal weight is 140 and my maintenance calories will be about 1800-1900 before exercise. I'm 5'8".

MeanderingMammal

ashveena wrote: »

I recently got married (about 4 months ago). The month before my wedding was brutal and I barely ate, resulting in a 6 or so pound weight loss before my wedding. After my wedding, my husband and I moved in together (my first time living with a guy) and though I tried to cook healthy for us I found myself gaining a lot of weight.

Big lifestyle changes by the sound of things. Lots of very stressful things all at once; wedding, unemployment, house moves etc. It doesn't sound like there's anything wrong, you've just ended up easting more than you're burning off over time. That said four months isn't a long time, so you've got a decent opportunity to break some of the habits that you may have been developing.

Weight loss itself is fairly straightforward, just eat fewer calories than you expend. As long as you've set up MFP with your metrics, and follow the calorie goal that it's giving you. Given that you say you eat in a range I suspect you haven't done that already.

I understand the feeling about clothes fit being something that you're uncomfortable about, I had the same prompt to start losing weight, although I had to lose about 40lbs some 20 months ago.

fwiw, starvation mode or destroying your metabolism is a widely held misconception. And even many physicians still quote it. Not their fault.

Mind you, at 5ft1 1500-2000 cals does sound a bit high. I'm losing slowly on 2200 and I'm a good bit taller than you, and probably bulkier.

Just set up MFP, get your husband to do the same so that you're working on this together, do a reasonable mix of CV and resistance training and you'll be fine, but it'll take a bit of time to settle.

tigersword

scrittrice wrote: »

No disrespect to your sister, but you didn't destroy your metabolism by eating below maintenance for a month, and it doesn't need to be "reset." Take a look at the sexypants discussion on the Getting Started board.

This.

Liftng4Lis

Your metabolism is fine. If you're gaining, your not eating at a deficit. Can you open your diary?

NotGnarly

The thing that worked for me is lifting heavy weights. I lost a good portion of weight eating less than 1000 cals and my body was so soft, couldn't feel muscle at all. Of course gained about 10 pounds back and after lots of prayer started lifting weights to build the muscle back that I had lost from VLCD. Building muscle will help you speed up your metabolism or at least that's whats working for me. I'm fitting into clothes that I couldn't fit into at my lowest weight, just by lifting heavy. I can now feel muscle when I touch my thighs, arm, butt, etc.

TimothyFish

Given your size, 1500-2000 is about what you need to maintain your weight, so it sounds like you've figured it out, you just need to reduce calories to lose weight. You shouldn't eat less than 1200, so on non-exercise days let that be your goal. On exercise days, you might aim for 1500. That should be enough to keep you from starving yourself, but allow you to lose weight.

SLLRunner

tigersword wrote: »

scrittrice wrote: »

No disrespect to your sister, but you didn't destroy your metabolism by eating below maintenance for a month, and it doesn't need to be "reset." Take a look at the sexypants discussion on the Getting Started board.

This.

Double this, and echo others who said the same type of thing.

DawnieB1977

Sounds like you did what I did when I moved in with my now husband (back in 2004, before we were married).....just ate too much! I'd been living in a house share for 2 years, and at university 5 years before that, so just eating how I wanted to eat, which wasn't a lot to be honest. So I probably had slowed down my metabolism over 7 years. I don't think a month would do it.

Anyway, we moved in together and started cooking proper meals. We didn't eat rubbish, just too big portions of whatever we made. After 7 years of not eating a lot, I put on weight pretty fast.

When I started getting serious in the gym again, and cutting portion sizes, I started to lose it, although I never got back to the size I'd been when I met my husband in 2003 until last year lol, age 35 and after 2 kids!

My experience is that strength training helps a lot, as does exercise in general, being active, and eating healthily and at a deficit, but not too large a deficit. I'm 5'6 and aim for 1550 calories although I should probably eat a little more as I'm so active, so for your height maybe 1500 would be fine.

heybales

So whatever level you are eating now is maintenance then, no gaining or losing weight?

Find a real 250-500 calories to NOT eat each and every day that you normally would.

Now, if you are also planning on adding exercise to the equation compared to currently, then just find 250 to leave out, and average about 250 calorie burn daily in burn.

No need to even log foods or exercise, just figure out the calorie amount of what to leave out, and what to burn extra, and make it add up to 500 in total.

meltedsno

you said it yourself: your activity level decreased and your food intake increased... this metabolism/starvation mode theory is a bunch of crap. Simply increase your activity level and/or decrease your food intake. I vote for becoming more active. Really, do some serious soul searching and take a good hard look at your daily activities and your food choices and don't just glaze over everything... be honest with yourself.

It took me over 50 years to face the facts and quit making excuses for my weight issues. When I finally hit "rock bottom" I knew the only way for me was up.... lost around 140 lbs over the course of the last few years WITHOUT pills, drugs, surgery... it wasn't an easy trip, but I finally made it here...

and for what it's worth... I still struggle every day with keeping a happy balance. I made a few food choices over the last 3 days that normally would have sent me right into a downward spiral....the "former" me would have turned those 3 days into 3 more and then a week which would turn into a month, then a year etc. Instead, I managed to continue with my 5 mile/10K step/jog each of those days. I "feel" bloated but know I can rectify that with getting right back into my regular routine. Right after I send this off, I'll be on the treadmill and then will hop on my new rebounder mini tramp for a bit more, then top it off with a protein shake...

Francl27

If your metabolism was even slowed down from undereating for a couple months, which is doubtful, eating enough to gain 14 pounds in 4 months for sure 'fixed' it.

ashveena

Thank you all for the advice and encouragement!

LAWoman72

gotobedhungry wrote: »

I was anorexic for 2-3 years as a young teenager and about 2-3 years in my early 20s, and I still have a pretty decent metabolism. So you're probably ok, it just might not come off right away, but will be fast once it starts.

I "dieted" my way down to 95 lbs. as a late teen (full adult height). After that, I alternately starved myself and binged until the age of 35 and was always quite thin,** though I never got back down to 95 again. I was weak and fainting, lost hair and my memory was gone half the time. For all those years!

Today, I am 47, started eating at a far more "normal" calorie deficit without bingeing (generally...I did have a couple of days over Christmas there), and I am losing quite normally.

That's not a few months or a year of primarily "starvation" (so to speak...obviously not literal starvation) days and EXTREMELY disordered eating, complete with physical and mental side-effects. It's 20 years of it (plus four years prior to that of less restrictive dieting). So close to a quarter century of very strange "metabolism-breaking" style dieting. Yet my body got right back on that horse. I wouldn't worry yet about fixing anything, so to speak. Eat at a sensible deficit and barring medical conditions (hell, even with them - I'm hypothyroid), you should be fine.

** After the age of 35 I began a host of "eat all you want of only food category X"-style diets, and gained and gained. Not because of a faulty metabolism, but because I was eating many, many more calories than I needed.