How much longer ?

sophayz
sophayz Posts: 592 Member
in Food and Nutrition
so i been stupid in the past and restricted my food to a bare minimum for 2 years straight . by restricting i mean eating way under 1200 ( usually in the 300 ish if not in the negative due to exercise)

i know its sad ,stupid and what not. the truth is that i am trying to get better and recover from that stupid behavior by reintroducing food in my life .... i been doing for about 2 months of eating over 1000 cals a day (i know its not much but i am increasing that amount slowly) and trying to up that as much as i can to 1300 - 1500 . but in the past months i been gaining weight , about 7 lbs. i know its normal since my body is holding on to whatever i feed it in case i decide to starve myself again... but how long does it take for it to stop doing that and actually just process it normally ...

if anyone went through that , how long did it take you, did you lose back the weight you gained ? i am doing strength training at the same time and eating more healthy stuff to try and limit the damage but i really need some advice

please don't be rude i am aware of the stupidity of my action in the past and am suffering enough as it is

Replies

  • norcal_yogi
    norcal_yogi Posts: 675 Member
    what is your weight like now -- are you underweight or normal weight?

    i am sorry you are going through the stress of trying to get your metabolism healthy again. regarding your restricting, did you binge every few days at all or at least have days where you'd eat a 'normal' amount of food (i know 'normal' is relative)? i'm just asking because if so, and if you did so on a regular basis, then it's possible your metabolism isn't quite as underactive as you may think. just a possibility to consider.

    its not a popular belief here on MFP, but i'm not a true believer in 'starvation mode' as its definition seems to be on this site. i believe it's highly unlikely to 'fall into starvation mode' easily AND with a decent amount of body fat to lose -- anywhere from 19-20% ---> on for a woman. again, this is based on my own experience and what i've studied.

    its great that you are raising your calories in general. how about you consider not counting 'exercise calories' for a while. just set a calorie target and try your best to meet it every day. exercise calories are so questionable regarding how much we are actually burning, etc. maybe consider just eating at 1200 for a good few weeks. then 1300, and so on...?
  • juliehartinger
    juliehartinger Posts: 3 Member
    We all regret something we've done in our lives right?
    I bet your body is having a hard time digesting carbs and sugars. In order to eat more calories (good, full, nutritious calories), I would opt for vegetables, vegetables, vegetables. Also, make sure you are drinking a lot of water (I stick with 100 ounces or more a day). That way, your body will be faster at metabolizing the food that you are now eating and will help off set the fact that your metabolism is now very slow.

    Your body will bounce back sooner rather than later. We are resilient creatures and as long as we are giving our bodys good nutrients, it will function at full capacity.

    I heard that we cannot process more than 10g of sugars at one time... which means that most fruit should not be eaten all at once... I know this is counterintuitive to nutritional needs, but if you're going to eat an apple, eat half of it, wait an hour and eat the other half. This will ease your body back into digesting and metabolizing sugars.
  • norcal_yogi
    norcal_yogi Posts: 675 Member
    We all regret something we've done in our lives right?
    I bet your body is having a hard time digesting carbs and sugars. In order to eat more calories (good, full, nutritious calories), I would opt for vegetables, vegetables, vegetables. Also, make sure you are drinking a lot of water (I stick with 100 ounces or more a day). That way, your body will be faster at metabolizing the food that you are now eating and will help off set the fact that your metabolism is now very slow.

    Your body will bounce back sooner rather than later. We are resilient creatures and as long as we are giving our bodys good nutrients, it will function at full capacity.

    I heard that we cannot process more than 10g of sugars at one time... which means that most fruit should not be eaten all at once... I know this is counterintuitive to nutritional needs, but if you're going to eat an apple, eat half of it, wait an hour and eat the other half. This will ease your body back into digesting and metabolizing sugars.

    love this advice regarding sugar! ^ yes, its a good idea in general to keep a good watch on all sugar intake, imo. including fruits.
  • sophayz
    sophayz Posts: 592 Member
    what is your weight like now -- are you underweight or normal weight?

    i am sorry you are going through the stress of trying to get your metabolism healthy again. regarding your restricting, did you binge every few days at all or at least have days where you'd eat a 'normal' amount of food (i know 'normal' is relative)? i'm just asking because if so, and if you did so on a regular basis, then it's possible your metabolism isn't quite as underactive as you may think. just a possibility to consider.

    its not a popular belief here on MFP, but i'm not a true believer in 'starvation mode' as its definition seems to be on this site. i believe it's highly unlikely to 'fall into starvation mode' easily AND with a decent amount of body fat to lose -- anywhere from 19-20% ---> on for a woman. again, this is based on my own experience and what i've studied.

    its great that you are raising your calories in general. how about you consider not counting 'exercise calories' for a while. just set a calorie target and try your best to meet it every day. exercise calories are so questionable regarding how much we are actually burning, etc. maybe consider just eating at 1200 for a good few weeks. then 1300, and so on...?

    i am now at 118 ... i was at 111 lbs when i decided to stop starving and enjoy food and life :) i am 5 foot 6

    i will try the eating fruits in two settings rather then one thanks for the tip ... i already am no consuming refined sugar and no carbs at all ( i am still scared of them) my diet is mostly veggies some fruits and lean protein ( egg whites chicken and fish .. sometimes i will eat beef and fatter meats though )
  • norcal_yogi
    norcal_yogi Posts: 675 Member
    ok. i am 5'7" and about 130# so this gives me perspective. at my very lowest many years ago (via starving and overexercising) i was at 114. i lost my period at that point.

    anyway, the gaining weight part is likely to continue for a little while longer until your body stabilizes....possibly at just a few more pounds. depending on your frame, you're getting to a healthier weight for your height. my goal weight is about 125 or so....don't know if i'll ever get there again as i'm older and do have more muscle --- through years of yoga practice and eating more.

    i am definately not one to preach that you should be eating too much more than 1200/1300 - 1500 cals if you want to maintain at a lower BMI. i get it. there are a lot of people who would easily judge this but i am not one...especially since we look to have similar goals and possibly a similar aesthetic look.

    good luck to you! :-)

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