Lose weight, anorexic history?

anygal

Hey all,
I used to be anorexic (lowest BMI 16.1) and just finished up recovery. I overshot my ideal weight by about 5-10 pounds and would really like to lose those...but I tried decreasing my calories to 1,500 (about 100 calories OVER the recommended deficit for me) and still ended up with suppressed metabolism and weight gain (despite working out strength/cardio alternating days for 45 minutes a day, eating my workout calories, high protein/veg and low carb, etc).

Also, I've noticed that when I try just decreasing my calories a little bit each day, I have mood swings that end in binges (like today. My goal was to decrease breakfast by just 100 calories. I ended up hungry...tried tea, light snacks, distraction, sticking it out...and ended up in an AWFUL mood swing with a 400-calorie binge bringing me up to 700 calories for breakfast alone!)

Anyone have tips on ways to lose weight on a low metabolism or decrease little by little?

Thanks!!

EllaNovella

Well done on your recovery!

Drinking green tea before every meal speeds up your metabolism and decreases your appetite. I know it tastes bad but I started doing this, been doing it for a week and it really works. Drinking ice cold water will lower your body's temperature and in effect your metabolism will speed up to warm up your body.

Also, don't eat that much at once, rather have 3 meals of about 300 calories each and 50 to 100 calorie snacks in between. Remember, a fire burns better if you throw on a lot of little sticks over time then it does if you throw a tree stump on it (the fire dies)

~Ella Novella~

SueInAz

I agree on smaller meals spread throughout the day. It should help with the hungries and the resulting binges. I eat about 200 calories for my first meal, have a 100ish calorie snack a few hours later, about 300 calories for lunch, another snack or two before dinner, etc.

I don't know about green tea, and I've heard the extra calorie burn from cold water is pretty negligible but if it works for you, great!

RuthieCass

How long have you been at your current weight? If it's not very long, it might be better for your body and mind to just try maintaining for a while, even your weight is a bit higher than you like. You could try doing some weight training during this time to build back strength you may have lost during your anorexic period. Everything that I've read suggests that there's not necessarily much permanent metabolic damage from anorexia (maybe be max 15% reduction), so you can expect to have a nearly full recovery eventually. But I think it's a good idea to try to maintain your recovery weight for a year or so before trying to diet again,