being sick and not gaining anything??

pekopekoyama

i am recovering from this weird bout i had where i lost 20lbs in a month. i wouldnt classify it as AN but i have major body issues and somehow i ended up being 90-93lbs. (i havent gained anything yet but am trying)
i'm currently stuck with flu symptoms and i'm on my period which is strange because doesnt that mean i'm not underweight?? i dont dwell on that though because it spurrs me on and maybe thats not the best thing.
but yesterday instead of eating what i could manage i ended up eating tons of veggie pasta and ravioli, a toblerone, loads of biscuits and a raisin bake thingy as well as passionfruit yogurt. that was a lot and probably amounted to 3000 calories.
i hopped on the scale today hoping to see progress but.. nothing!!
is the food still in my belly or what because im so confused??

geekyjock76

You didn't mention how many calories you were eating prior to this one day of 3000.

Just to give you an idea, recovering anorexics are often given minimum intakes between 2500 to 4000 calories to recover weight and repair internal physiological damage. Chances are you're going to have to chronically consume that amount - if not more - to effectively increase body weight.

If you don't have any mental issues with calorie values, get yourself a digital scale and weigh all your food to ensure you're meeting your calorie goals. Also, you may want to begin strength training to maximize recovery of lost lean mass and strength. If you are very weak, you can begin with body weight exercises and light weights that are still challenging. If not, then use of moderate to heavy weights can be used (weight whereby you can complete up to 12 reps maximum).

I'll end this with the usual disclaimer: You should always talk to a doctor before doing anything on your own.

matt6050

Just to give you an idea, recovering anorexics are often given minimum intakes between 2500 to 4000 calories to recover weight and repair internal physiological damage. Chances are you're going to have to chronically consume that amount - if not more - to effectively increase body weight.
Also, you may want to begin strength training to maximize recovery of lost lean mass and strength. If you are very weak, you can begin with body weight exercises and light weights that are still challenging. If not, then use of moderate to heavy weights can be used (weight whereby you can complete up to 12 reps maximum).

I would echo all of this. One day of an excess of calories may make a tiny difference, if any at all. To see sustained weight gain, there has to be an excess of calories every day. To help make those calories effective for lean weight gain, a strength training program may be effective.

@geekyjock: point of interest: I posted a thread asking about if rick climbing could be comparable to a strength training program. any thoughts?

Best of luck pekopekoyama!

Ulwaz

It really depends if you ate little in the week, since if you did that may be why you didnt gain weight, its weird how the body works, sometimes it doesnt always go what you expect it too, weight flucuates all the time, if you need to gain some weight i would try and seek some medical help since they will have the best advice for you, or just eat healthy/calorie dense foods (milk, rice, bread, potatoes, pasta, yoghurt, eggs, olive oil, nuts, peanut butter, dried fruit, bananas, avocados, fish, chicken, red meat, cheese)

thatpixichick

Being ill is weird. I've had a horrible flu this week and have been off my food completely the past 2 or 3 days, weighed today concerned I will have dropped loads of weight, and actually gained a couple of pounds! Just don't worry while you're ill, concentrate on eating good foods and getting better :flowerforyou: