How to properly fix a damaged metabolism?

youngcalorieburner
youngcalorieburner Posts: 45
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
So after research, ive concluded that ive damaged my metabolism, I'm certain, but I wont explain as it would make the question too long. I heard that when you lose weight, the metabolism decreases at a faster rate than your weight does, like if you lose down to 150lbs than youd have the metabolism of a 145lbs person or even lower and thus eating maintenance would result in weight gain. So I heard the only way to repair this is to do a reverse diet like if your diet consisted of 1400 cals than you eat 1500 cals for a week and increase it over time until you can eat maintenance with minimal gain. But ive also heard that you need to increase macos such as carbs and fats so im wondering which is the better way, the easier way, the more effective or the more optimal way. Im wondering this because the macros method is to increase I think 10g of carbs a week and to have at least 20% of your diet consisting of fat and that sounds complicated also I don't know which I should follow, the calories method or macros method. Lastly, if by reverse dieting you can maintain weight by slowly eating more and increasing metabolism, overtime is it actually possible to even eat above maintenance and stay the same, making you metabolism fatser than it should be? Sorry if this question is too long, thanks for reading.

Replies

  • davert123
    davert123 Posts: 1,568 Member
    Is it damaged or is your body now more efficient ? Just a question :-)
  • stt43
    stt43 Posts: 487
    It should be fixed fairly quickly and easily if you reverse diet.
    If you take in more calories then you will be consuming more macros anyway. You only need to worry about increasing a specific one a specific amount if you aren't consuming enough of it.
    You may put on a little weight when you reverse diet. It isn't possible to increase your metabolism by eating over maintenance, unless you are using those extra calories for something.
  • fatfudgery
    fatfudgery Posts: 449 Member
    Your metabolism isn't "damaged." Figure out your TDEE by trial-and-error and then eat less calories than that to lose weight. It's that simple.
  • youngcalorieburner
    youngcalorieburner Posts: 45
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,415 Member
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Don't weigh yourself in the middle of the day. Do it one time, in the morning before eating or drinking anything..
  • stt43
    stt43 Posts: 487
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Wait, what?
    You're saying that at midday you weight 5lb more than you do in the morning, but by the next morning that 5lbs has gone again?
  • youngcalorieburner
    youngcalorieburner Posts: 45
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Wait, what?
    You're saying that at midday you weight 5lb more than you do in the morning, but by the next morning that 5lbs has gone again?
    Only sometimes, for example I gained 7 lbs yesterday and lost almost nothing this morning, also my morning weight has been increasing over the course of the month and im even trying to eat better and im eating a bit less because when I first stopped the diet at the beginning of December, I was kind of binging maybe 300 cals over maintenance every couple days.
  • stt43
    stt43 Posts: 487
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Wait, what?
    You're saying that at midday you weight 5lb more than you do in the morning, but by the next morning that 5lbs has gone again?
    Only sometimes, for example I gained 7 lbs yesterday and lost almost nothing this morning, also my morning weight has been increasing over the course of the month and im even trying to eat better and im eating a bit less because when I first stopped the diet at the beginning of December, I was kind of binging maybe 300 cals over maintenance every couple days.

    How many calories are you consuming? Are you at a healthy weight?
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Don't weigh yourself in the middle of the day. Do it one time, in the morning before eating or drinking anything..

    This.

    If I weigh myself after breakfast I've "gained" a pound. Not because my metabolism is damaged but because I just ingested a pound of coffee and breakfast food.

    Weight fluctuates. I only count my weight once per month because between water retention and hormones I might weigh anywhere from 123 to 128 lbs.

    If you're gradually gaining over a prolonged period you're just eating a bit over maintenance.
  • youngcalorieburner
    youngcalorieburner Posts: 45
    Also if im eating around 2000 cals a day and gaining on that, should I just go back to my diet calories of 1400cals and bump it up 100 cals per week if I do the reverse diet?
  • youngcalorieburner
    youngcalorieburner Posts: 45
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Wait, what?
    You're saying that at midday you weight 5lb more than you do in the morning, but by the next morning that 5lbs has gone again?
    Im actually at a pretty healthy weight right now, maybe even considered slim, I wouldn't mind gaining another 5lbs as long as it means I can get my metabolism back on track.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Also if im eating around 2000 cals a day and gaining on that, should I just go back to my diet calories of 1400cals and bump it up 100 cals per week if I do the reverse diet?

    I'd probably pick something between the two. Hunting for maintenance is tricky. I went up to 1950 calories at first and gained a pound over the course of a month. So I dialed back to 1800 and my weight has been stable since then. It just takes some trial and error. Try something awhile, and then reevaluate. TDEE calculators are working on estimates. Your real maintenance may be higher or lower than they predict, but that doesn't mean your metabolism is broken.
  • bacitracin
    bacitracin Posts: 921 Member
    Talk to a Registered Dietitian?
  • neandermagnon
    neandermagnon Posts: 7,436 Member
    Even though its been a month since I abandoned all dieting life styles and ate at maintenance im still gaining weight. Like by around noon I gain 5lbs which slowly tapers off and I lose it by the next morning, sometimes a little, sometimes all of it.

    Don't weigh yourself in the middle of the day. Do it one time, in the morning before eating or drinking anything..

    This.

    If I weigh myself after breakfast I've "gained" a pound. Not because my metabolism is damaged but because I just ingested a pound of coffee and breakfast food.

    Weight fluctuates. I only count my weight once per month because between water retention and hormones I might weigh anywhere from 123 to 128 lbs.

    If you're gradually gaining over a prolonged period you're just eating a bit over maintenance.

    ^^^^ this

    and also you can't damage your metabolism. Your metabolism = all the chemical reactions in your body. You can't damage an ongoing process of chemical reactions (or if you somehow managed to you'd be dead). Maybe your metabolism is slower than it should be if you have a history of crash dieting or yo-yo dieting, but that's in the main due to loss of lean body mass and you can get that back again by lifting heavy weights and eating right. Even if there's some adaptive thermogenesis going on (i.e. metabolism slowing as a result of long periods of calorie restriction that's not accounted for by loss of lean body mass) then that's also reversible by eating a healthy balanced diet and doing exercise. So yes, long term too low calorie diets and insufficient protein can cause your metabolism to slow, but it's not broken, and you can make it fast again by regaining lean body mass, being active and eating a sufficient quantity of food.
  • Synchronicity
    Synchronicity Posts: 82 Member
    Based on everything I've read and learned, your metabolism **might** decrease with extreme weight loss and dieting by... maybe 10%, and that decrease is usually explained by the fact that you naturally move less when you are eating at a calorie deficit and that you have less body mass and therefore consume less energy.

    The good news is: All you need to do to fix your 'damaged metabolism' is eat a sensible diet, exercise, and be patient.

    Good luck!
  • Synchronicity
    Synchronicity Posts: 82 Member
    P.S. Weight fluctuations throughout the day are normal. And... scales aren't always accurate.
  • PinkNinjaLaura
    PinkNinjaLaura Posts: 3,202 Member
    If I weigh myself after breakfast I've "gained" a pound. Not because my metabolism is damaged but because I just ingested a pound of coffee and breakfast food.

    This.

    I weigh myself at home, in the morning, after going to the bathroom but before eating or drinking anything. It's the most consistent I can be, and even that has variables (how much sodium I've had, etc.).
  • doaa_abdelatif
    doaa_abdelatif Posts: 4
    i have a very serious weight struggling battle too
    I lost about 7 kgs 2 months ago but now gained 2 kgs
    Although i exercise & eating below 1200 calories daily only
    Natural stuff as chicken, fruits, ...etc
    i'm really fruatrated of my body as i still have 7 kgs to go
    and lose them by every possible mean
    would you guys help me please ?
    tell me what should i do .
    thanks
  • kastlewithrow
    kastlewithrow Posts: 2 Member
    Do some research on the thyroid. That's all I have to offer.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,415 Member
    Do some research on the thyroid. That's all I have to offer.

    Nice first post.

    OP is male, under eating, on the low end of weight. 20 YO. He probably doesn't have thyroid issues based on his posts. But, you know, anything is possible.:flowerforyou:
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,415 Member
    i have a very serious weight struggling battle too
    I lost about 7 kgs 2 months ago but now gained 2 kgs
    Although i exercise & eating below 1200 calories daily only
    Natural stuff as chicken, fruits, ...etc
    i'm really fruatrated of my body as i still have 7 kgs to go
    and lose them by every possible mean
    would you guys help me please ?
    tell me what should i do .
    thanks

    Start your own thread for advice. You are in the "Maintaining Weight" subforum. You probably want to post this elsewhere so you 1. aren't highjacking & 2. you'll get actual advice.
  • doaa_abdelatif
    doaa_abdelatif Posts: 4
    i'm a girl not a man :D
    then i didn't fully understand your advice :S
    would you explain more what should i do again?
    sorry if i may bother you but you seem like a well knowledged guy
    thanks
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    youngcalorieburner,

    From what you describe, this does not sound like damaged metabolism to me. It sounds more like your body is having natural weight fluctuations. If you weigh yourself at different times of the day, there can be big differences. Pick a day an time to weight yourself and go off of that weight.

    How do you believe you damaged your metabolism?
  • youngcalorieburner
    youngcalorieburner Posts: 45
    Alright so although ive been eating 2000 cals everyday and i have been gaining on that, as of dec 28th i went back to 1500 cals and lost almost 10lbs on sunday morning so i guess ive been gaining water and not fat. So im just going to bump it up 100 cals every weekend until i get back to maintenance. Hopefully this works and my metabolism gets back to normal.
  • Springfield1970
    Springfield1970 Posts: 1,945 Member
    This helped me to not go insane. I weighed everyday and kept an average weekly weight chart. I plotted my net cals under that so I could visually see what was happening. I did high amounts of exercise for three weeks on a deficit 10% under and only when I stopped for my fourth week did the water come off and reveal the weight loss. It was a shock for me as I'd been taking that scale far too seriously and short termly and just presumed my metabolism was depressed. In fact it turns out to be very healthy!

    It's all about the calories, take care of them and the magic will happen. It will just be very erratic on the way. The gradual downward line on your chart will show you this in black and white.

    You can then work out what your true maintenance is. Keep your exercise consistent and find out your burn with a HRM where you have put your stats in.
  • salvyhead
    salvyhead Posts: 66 Member
    Your metabolism isn't "damaged." Figure out your TDEE by trial-and-error and then eat less calories than that to lose weight. It's that simple.

    What he said.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Alright so although ive been eating 2000 cals everyday and i have been gaining on that, as of dec 28th i went back to 1500 cals and lost almost 10lbs on sunday morning so i guess ive been gaining water and not fat. So im just going to bump it up 100 cals every weekend until i get back to maintenance. Hopefully this works and my metabolism gets back to normal.
    Good plan, except I'm sure your metabolism has been normal all along. It's all about finding the right maintenance calories for you, and I just don't think those calories are the same for everyone.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    as of dec 28th i went back to 1500 cals and lost almost 10lbs on sunday morning

    And you think your metabolism is damaged?
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    as of dec 28th i went back to 1500 cals and lost almost 10lbs on sunday morning

    And you think your metabolism is damaged?
    Read his posting history. He's done a lot of different stuff....I was wondering how old he really was.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    This helped me to not go insane. I weighed everyday and kept an average weekly weight chart. I plotted my net cals under that so I could visually see what was happening. I did high amounts of exercise for three weeks on a deficit 10% under and only when I stopped for my fourth week did the water come off and reveal the weight loss. It was a shock for me as I'd been taking that scale far too seriously and short termly and just presumed my metabolism was depressed. In fact it turns out to be very healthy!

    It's all about the calories, take care of them and the magic will happen. It will just be very erratic on the way. The gradual downward line on your chart will show you this in black and white.

    You can then work out what your true maintenance is. Keep your exercise consistent and find out your burn with a HRM where you have put your stats in.
    SMART

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