Underweight, eating disorder with stomach fat?

aaaron00

Hi,
I am a 5'6 117 female who has currently lost over 50 pounds in the past year and a half. For a solid 6 months when I first began my weight loss I was eating 1200 calories a day on top of doing P90x and running several days a week. I ended up getting down to 107 pounds at my lowest weight and developed a severe eating disorder. Luckily I have gained 10 pounds in the past few months. Currently, I am maintaining with approx. 1800 calories a day while doing a p90x2/3 hybrid 6 days a week. However, no matter how much my weight fluctuates or how intense my workouts are, I still have a huge protruding pouch on my lower stomach. This is extremely frustrating because my upper body looks too skinny and my stomach is always bloated. I have eaten an extremely strict vegetarian diet that consists mainly of oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, tofu, boca burgers, beans, protein shakes, and massive amounts of vegetables. Do I need to eat more, reassess my diet and lifting heavy weights in order to lose this stomach fat? I'm not sure if I should increase or decrease my cardio that I do with the p90x programs.

Iwishyouwell

Along with eating disorders often comes body dysmorphia. Is it possible that your view of this "huge protruding stomach", even while underweight, wouldn't look so to others?

Perhaps you should post a picture, or ask an honest, level headed person in your life, how it looks to them before you go about trying to lose something that potentially might not even be an issue. I've seen women who thought the natural outward protrusion in the lower abdominal area, that is completely normal for some and has nothing to do with excess fat, was something they needed to lose.

aaaron00

http://s43.photobucket.com/user/AliFresca/media/wow.png.html?sort=6&o=0
My bad, I meant to post this. I can see clearly that my stomach looks bloated and disproportionate with the rest of my body. My hands, arms, and chest area are thin so I do not want to lose more weight (I looked like a skeleton 10 pounds lighter). I am just not sure about what exact factors are causing this.... excess fruit intake, excess cardio, lack of heavy lifting, eating too little, etc.

kcmcd

Honey, I think that just might be ... you know ... internal organs.

For what it's worth - do a quick check for diastasis recti. Otherwise I don't know what to tell you. You look very slim to me, even in your belly. It doesn't look like fat.

snazzyjazzy21

I agree with the poster above. To me, it doesn't look like fat. Most people have a 'pooch' because of where their internal organs rest, and because when you eat, your stomach gets full. Chances are you're not actually 'bloating', your stomach just has food in it. It happens to everyone. I'd recommend seeing someone and talking through your issues, I think both your diet and your view of yourself need an overhaul.

aaaron00

Thanks for the replies everyone! I am currently working with a therapist about my body image and have gotten a lot more loose with my eating as I have gained some weight back... Maybe if I start incorporating more regular foods in my diet with less volume I will reduce the appearance of bloating. Being a vegetarian, I have a tendency to binge on both fruit and vegetables. This has just been frustrating for me because I have always felt I have an abnormal stomach at any weight, so I kept trying to lose more pounds in order to flatten my belly. At my lowest weight, I realized I was extremely unhealthy. Since I have gained 10 pounds the weight all goes to my legs in muscle but I do not see any difference in my stomach.

michellelipton16

LOL I go through this all the time! So here's the deal: First, when you have an eating disorder and you starve yourself, your body will collect "fat" around your organs to protect them. i go to anorexia and bulimia annonymous and it happens to all of us. Second, it's not fat. You probably have so little fat that you're kind of like the ethieopan children you see on TV. It potrudes. Third, you might have overbuilt just your lower abs which means you have a 2 pack situation going on. Plus, almost all the food you mentioned is bloating and you're going to bloat easy. I LOVE veggies, but I don't eat them until late at night because my stomach goes from flat to looking pregnant very easy. Stop working out your abs for the most part. Do core stuff like planks but no leg lifts, bicycles, or anything with weights. Make sure you're eating a reasonable amount of calories. Also, remember you are dysmorphic so it might look like fat to you but it literally is just your stomach sticking out. Mines gotten back under control but I have been eating a lot for almost 6 months. Good luck and don't sweat it!

Iwishyouwell

http://s43.photobucket.com/user/AliFresca/media/wow.png.html?sort=6&o=0
My bad, I meant to post this. I can see clearly that my stomach looks bloated and disproportionate with the rest of my body. My hands, arms, and chest area are thin so I do not want to lose more weight (I looked like a skeleton 10 pounds lighter). I am just not sure about what exact factors are causing this.... excess fruit intake, excess cardio, lack of heavy lifting, eating too little, etc.

You do not have a "huge protruding stomach". As I suspected, this is an issue in your mind.

Unknown

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aaaron00

Hi everyone, thank you for the concern and helpful advice. I am currently working with a local therapist to talk through my body image issues and have tremendously improved over the last couple months. I used to not be able to go to social events because I was so insecure about my body but now I am only concerned with my stomach. At 117 pounds, I am right at the lowest limit of the healthy range on the BMI chart. Ever since I was a teenager I was always 140 pounds plus and have never been this thin before. Right now my legs are very muscular but my arms, chest, and upper body still look skeletal. Would people recommend that I gain more weight at this point? I want to gain muscle but am realizing that P90X does not put on the muscle mass that I want. For the past 3 months I have been eating 1800 calories of top of P90x programs and have gained 10 pounds because I was at such a low weight before. I am just confused about how to flatten my stomach while not losing anymore weight. Would heavy lifting and eating in a surplus help with this? I have heard so many mixed opinions about how much I should be eating and how much cardio I should be doing. Thank you all!

LaneB89

100% recommend you ease up on all of the aerobic/cardio stuff and lift heavy weights while eating slightly above maintenance and getting at least 100g protein a day. If you're maintaining at 1800, eat 2000-2100 and lift heavy 3x a week. And for what it's worth, your stomach looked totally normal to me.

kcmcd

I'm so glad for the progress you've made, aaaron00. And that you can recognize when you need a little outside assistance. Not many people have that much self awareness.

AliceDark

Hi everyone, thank you for the concern and helpful advice. I am currently working with a local therapist to talk through my body image issues and have tremendously improved over the last couple months. I used to not be able to go to social events because I was so insecure about my body but now I am only concerned with my stomach. At 117 pounds, I am right at the lowest limit of the healthy range on the BMI chart. Ever since I was a teenager I was always 140 pounds plus and have never been this thin before. Right now my legs are very muscular but my arms, chest, and upper body still look skeletal. Would people recommend that I gain more weight at this point? I want to gain muscle but am realizing that P90X does not put on the muscle mass that I want. For the past 3 months I have been eating 1800 calories of top of P90x programs and have gained 10 pounds because I was at such a low weight before. I am just confused about how to flatten my stomach while not losing anymore weight. Would heavy lifting and eating in a surplus help with this? I have heard so many mixed opinions about how much I should be eating and how much cardio I should be doing. Thank you all!

Generally, "eat more and lift heavy things" would be the right advice. However, given your ED history, you should be checked out by a doctor before you start any kind of lifting program. People in recovery have increased risks of some serious health complications, including heart attacks, so it may or may not be safe for you to lift right now.

aaaron00

Hi guys, just thought I would update you on my progress. So far I have gained about 3-4 pounds and have been eating in great amounts everyday. I have stopped counting calories and am now listening to my body more. I have also mixed up my diet and have been eating with less focus on structure and detailing macros and instead having healthy portions whenever my body is hungry. My upper body has filled out a bit and now my stomach does not stand out as much. I am not where I want to be yet but I am happy to say that with everyone's help and advice I have made good progress

Here is my current photo!: http://s43.photobucket.com/user/AliFresca/media/82b91e33-9d4c-4b69-91e1-482b88c0adea.jpg.html?state=copy

navyrigger46

Congrats on your progress, personally I don't see what you see, but I would cut the cardio back to one day a week, add more protein to your diet and become acquainted with a bar-bell 3-4 days a week.

Rigger

contingencyplan

Your fixation with high intensity workout programs is not constructive behavior for someone in recovery from an ED. You need to scale that back and become emotionally comfortable with the idea of resting, and with eating food that isn't "clean." Fitness can wait. The psychological aspect must be addressed first.

ladybird89

We all have different natural proportions. Personally, I lose all my weight in my legs and stomach and no matter how thin I get, my arms will probably always be proportionally bigger. It's very unfortunate. Be thankful for your thin limbs.

Also, you might want to consider eating more protein in your diet and less fruit? Binging on fruit is still binging. And just because it grows from the earth, doesn't mean it isn't filled with sugar and carbs. Fruit has wonderful health benefits, don't get me wrong, but it shouldn't be the foundation of your diet. At least not in my opinion.

grentea

To be honest, I don't see a huge stomach, or anything in the realm of a huge stomach. Your body does need some fat to function properly and it may possible that you store anything extra in your stomach. I think you look great. But I think your issue is more with your self image. I would suggest that you continue to work with your therapist. I would also suggest, since you are fairly young, don't compare yourself with your friends or with celebrities. Be happy you have a nice and healthy body!! Good luck!!