Hiya - welcome to the group!!! it really goes against what we've been taught about dieting doesn't it lol!!! Everyone has these doubts when they first start - if you look at my past posts you will see that I did as well. But honestly trust in the process!!!!!! The girls here are totally awesome, and really knowledgeable, if you have any worries etc they can help!!
I have been following the process for about 4-5 mths now and have lost 9 pounds, but have lost ALOT of inches and I've never felt happier!!!!

I was just about to make a post asking the same question. I've been eating at TDEE for the past week after spending YEARS eating under 1300 calories. I'm 5'9", so that was definitely not okay. However, now I just feel bloated and gross, and I feel like I am just going to continue gaining weight if I eat this way. I guess the only way to find out if it really works for us is to give it a shot! It's definitely scary, but I know I don't want to have to starve myself just to maintain my weight any longer.

I have spent a long time reading the threads here and am very slowly upping my calories to TDee. I just need reassurance that this really works. I'm not going to regret upping my calories, am I? I had no idea this would be so hard mentally... It can be physically too. Eating that many healthy calories can be hard. Is this really worth it?

Welcome!!

Absolutely it works, but you have to do your research first so you go into it knowing fully what to expect. If you have been on a low calorie diet for some time, your metabolism may be suppressed, and this can take some time to correct.

I would recommend taking it slow, and upping your calories by 100 a day or so, and stay at that level until your weight stabilizes before pushing it up by another 100 calories. Hopefully, this will minimize that initial weight gain some see when they bump their calories up quickly. Doing it this way (slowly) will also allow your body to acclimate to the new, increased amount of food and keep that bloated/overfull feeling to a minimum.

When you ask "is it worth it?" Yes it is - unless you want to be stuck eating on a low calorie diet for the rest of your life. Yes, it is worth it, but you have to be willing to give it the time required. Look at ^^ gemheath2010 ^^. She is having amazing success, losing pounds and inches while eating more, but she has also given it 4 - 5 months. It is not a fast journey, but it will work if you take your time and "trust the process". We are here to help you along the way - just ask :-)

It is worth it. I just finished a 7/8 week reset. I didnt' slowly increase my calories I just went to my "Scooby" estimated TDEE of 2100. During the course of my reset I learned that I was able to eat 2300+ calories. At first I was overly full and bloated also soon that will change once your body trust you again, lol. The weight gain the first 3/4 weeks was 5lbs tops. Then I decided to quit smoking and it jumped another 10 lbs. It was not the EM2WL that caused my gain. I began eating like a sumo wrestler to fight the cigarette cravings. I just started my 10% reduction and i'm down 7 lbs already. I'm sure I was holding on to tons of water. I want to say one more thing. My current weight is 152 but my PAST measurement at this current weight where alot higher. My measurement from when I was 145 are almost identical to now!

reset starting weight: 145
wk 1: 149
wk 3: 147.5
wk 4: 144.5 ( At this weight I decided to quit smoking and need to increase my TDEE)
wk 5: 152
wk 6 : 159
wk 7: 159.
wk 8: 158

Calorie reduction
wk 1: 152

I was just about to make a post asking the same question. I've been eating at TDEE for the past week after spending YEARS eating under 1300 calories. I'm 5'9", so that was definitely not okay. However, now I just feel bloated and gross, and I feel like I am just going to continue gaining weight if I eat this way. I guess the only way to find out if it really works for us is to give it a shot! It's definitely scary, but I know I don't want to have to starve myself just to maintain my weight any longer.

Did you happen to read any of the posts or advice in stickies to increase calories slowly?

Because if you were eating about 1300 with no weight loss - that was literally your TDEE at that time, as suppressed as it was.

You jump to eating 1800 say because that may be your estimated potential TDEE, you are eating 500 calories in surplus until your body decides to speed up, so 1 lb weekly fat gain.
Unless doing a great lifting program, then some can be muscle.

Because eventually you can make your TDEE 1800 merely because you gained enough weight - that's not the good way of doing it though. Then your potential TDEE may still be higher at that point with more weight.

Thanks for the feedback! I did up slowly to get where I am now. I should have made that more clear in my comment; sorry!