Crazy Eating Cycle- Help Please!

Runnersam11

Hey guys! I'm brand new to this amazing site, and have been looking at the forum posts for something similar to my issue, and was hoping to get feedback from all of you pros on this site (there seems to be a ton of you out there, which i'm super excited about!!!).
So... I am a 21 year old, 5'10 girl who is currently 133 pounds. I have been trying to get down to my prime weight for running which during my peak is at 123 pounds.
After some craziness in the family (2 deaths within 6 months) I gained the 10 pounds. Since exactly a month ago, I have DESPERATELY been trying to lose this weight to no avail. I was fairly uneducated about exact calorie counting and the science and impact that it would have on my body, so I stupidly thought the less I ate, the less I would weigh. I was clocking in each day for the past week at 650 calories, and my body was NOT having it. To my complete frustration, I would lose a half a pound and then gain the weight back every other day, so after a full week of eating 650 calories, I have nothing to show for it since I am STILL at 133 pounds.
It looks like I should be eating more calories based on the numerous other posts I see on this board, but how much? How much should I be eating to break out of this hideous cycle?! Thank you guys- your feedback means the world to me as I struggle along this weight loss path!!!

jzsor12

MFP recommends for women no less than 1200 calories. Sorry about your losses

healthygreek

You would be underweight at 123. Even 133 has a bmi of 19 which is just in a healthy range. I'm 5'1" and 120 is low enough for me-granted I'm not a 21 year old. Please don't run on 650 calories a day-you will cause serious damage to yourself!
My condolences on your losses.

samcat2000

I agree with this post on one thing - 650 cal/day is way way way too low. I personally think 1,200 cal/day is too low. I also think BMI is a pretty useless measure especially for competitive athletes. What kind of runner are you and what level? Are you in college? If yes, does the college have a sports medicine clinic you can go to? I highly recommend that you seek advice on what and how much you need to be eating asap. Depending on how much you're running and how intense your runs are, you very well may need to be eating well above 2000 cal/day maybe more! I'm 5'10" and 140 lbs. I would love to go down a couple notches on body fat % but probably not into the elite athlete range. I'm also 40 yrs old and have learned that gradual increases/decreases pay off down the road...wish I knew that at your age. Find out what's safe/healthy for you (plugging your numbers into MFP might not be the most reliable...I would talk to a dietitian that understands runners)!