Unrealistic Weight Gain

Fatty_Fatass · August 2011

Congratulations on the massive loss so far! Well done. 200 pounds. You've lost the amount I want to weigh. Just think about that for a minute. The amount of weight you have lost is the amount that I would like to be. That's totally awesome. Well done.

I am well past the point where I am seeing massive loss from week to week, and I have been dropping between 3 and 7 pounds per week very regularly for the last 4 months or so.

That's a pretty big loss per week, even if it is less than you're used to. If you're losing this much regularly, I wouldn't worry about one slip up. I'd be more worried about the behaviour that led to it. Is this the kind of thing you would have done regularly before you worked hard to lose the weight? If it is, then you can really use the experience as a reminder about why you started doing this in the first place.

I just really want to stress that you have come a very, very long way already and you should be proud. Use this experience as a positive. So you ate a bunch of food, you know what happens now. Also I think it's important to remember that you can treat yourself without going crazy and without completely disgregarding your calorie intake.

Anyway. Well done. You're doing brilliantly.

rosalindphyllis
Thanks for all the kind words

That is actually what I am worried about.
I am not stressing the gain, so much as questioning how it could happen to such an extreme.
I know I will lose it again. I have already dropped some of it.
I am sorta past the point of motivation, at this point its routine, I really do enjoy walking for 6 hours and I have really started to love the tastes and textures of healthy foods.
When I had literally hundreds of pounds to lose I didn't really need much science, I had enough body fat to pretty much lose weight no matter what.
Now that I am approaching my goal and my BMI is much lower, I guess I do need to start thinking about things like starvation mode.
I feel a weird little sense of guilt when I eat more than 1200 calories, regardless of how much cardio I do......

I think I need to get over that.

It seems like everyone is giving the same advice at this point, and even tho it really doesn't answer my initial question, I don't think I am stressing it anymore.......

This is good advice, I am gonna start stepping up my intake a little. I am gonna try adding 300 calories a day and see what it does for my energy levels and how it affects my weigh ins, I can always tweak and adjust the amount later.

Hey thanks again for all the nice things you said

QueenCat25 · August 2011

I'd bet you a million dollars, if I had it, that you've put yourself into starvation mode. Try eating more calories. It really works. The goal is to make your metabolism like a furnace and that is accomplished by regularly fueling the fire!

Mairgheal · August 2011

I'm dying to know if that lady ever called you back after that "friend-needs-her excuse"?

Fatty_Fatass · August 2011

I'm dying to know if that lady ever called you back after that "friend-needs-her excuse"?

Who knows if it was an excuse....

I haven't seen or heard from her since, I am sure I will tho, she works at a convenience store I stop at for water at least 3 times a week.

Its all good tho. I have no ill will.

I hope she won't be uncomfortable either.

Lozze · August 2011

Calling myself a Fatty Fatass is a badge of honor, nothing less.

That makes sense. (and OMG I LOVE the barcode! The only thing I haven't been able to find with it is the loaf of bread that is made and only sold in two shops in Perth, Western Australia)

I know you might not be at the point where you see that you need to love yourself, but for me personally (and I am probably projecting here a bit!) the more I hated myself, the more I ate. The main reason I brought it up was because what you did with the food, is almost a classic example of emotional eating. A date went bad, so you ate junk food to self medicate. It might not be a conscious thing,

Yes you (and all of us on here) made bad decisions to get where we are with out body, but we are all SO MUCH MORE than our weight. You can improve your health and weight without putting yourself down constantly. Because if you don't love yourself, why should you expect someone else to?

elliecolorado · August 2011

I would say that probably some of the weight could be water retention. I have gone up as much as 10lbs after a few days of eating out a lot and drinking.

But I will also say that while I don't believe that 'starvation mode' happens over a day, a week, or even a couple of months of eating at an extreme calorie deficit, I do know fro experience that after long periods of under eating you can do some serious damage to your metabolism (even if you feel fine).

I spent several years eating maybe 2,000 calories a week (on a good week) and when I did start eating 'normally' again, not over eating but eating maybe 1,000 - 1,500 calories a day and I gained 60-70lbs in about 2 years. When your metabolism has slowed down that much it doesn't take 3,500 calories to gain a pound because your body will start holding onto everything that you eat.

It sounds like you have been eating at a fairly extreme calorie deficit for a long time and I would guess that your body is at the point where your metabolism has decreased pretty substantially and that you could quite possibly have gained that amount of weight in that short of a time.

Also you said that a lot of your diet consists of fruits and veggies, I would recommend adding some protein to your diet.

JoelleMonique · August 2011

I have a little bit of info that may help you. Booze and fatty food together is a recipe for weight gain. Your body cannot store alcohol. It can use carbs, store fat and use protein, but alcohol is a poison in your system that the body has to deal with as soon as it's injested. So all the food you ate with your drink was stored while the liver processed the alcohol. Because the food was higher in fat than you are used to and your body could not digest it in it's usual manner because of the alcohol it went ino storage!! That is why you seldom get over weight alcoholics, they seldom eat eat while they're drinking. So it's not really the extra calories from the alcohol that makes you put on so much weight it's the way your body protects it's self from the alcohol that does it. Next time you have a drink eat a very lean meal and drink water inbetween drinks.

Don't stress too much, you've lost so much weight with the big picture in mind this is just a learning curve.

BerryH · August 2011

<snip>
My Fitness Pal recomends I eat 1580 calories each day. I have been eating 1200 calories daily. The majority of my diet is fruit and veggies, so , 1200 calories is really a lot of food. I am not usually hungry by the time I go thru my 1200 calories. (You can check my food log if you like, its very accurate)

I have also been doing a lot of excercise. I walk 20-22 miles 3 days a week and 10 miles two days a week. I usually walk or jog for 90 minutes or so on one of the off days. I measure my pace with an Android app called cardio-trainer and I am usually between 3.5 and 4 mph, however, I always log myself as walking at 2 miles per hour because I do not want to overestimate my caloric burn.

It is very often that I burn more than 1200 calories, however, I have yet to "crash"

Here's your problem. MFP recommends that calorie level for a reason, and you're supposed to eat back most, if not all, or your exercise calories. You have a fair amount to lose and will continue to do so eating much more than you currently are.

If you don't use the system as designed, your weight loss will not be sustained, you'll crash your metabolism and set yourself up for binge days like you experienced which will become increasingly difficult to recover from.

Healthy weigh loss and maintenance is a lifestyle change, not a diet. Please don't damage your health for the sake of a rapid loss.

Your walking is awesome, but I'd also worry you're doing too much. Take at least one full rest day, another easy day (under an hour!) and consider cardio that's easier on the joints for one of your sessions, like swimming. And as another poster said, start doing some weight training.

Good luck!

Fatty_Fatass · August 2011

Calling myself a Fatty Fatass is a badge of honor, nothing less.

That makes sense. (and OMG I LOVE the barcode! The only thing I haven't been able to find with it is the loaf of bread that is made and only sold in two shops in Perth, Western Australia)

I know you might not be at the point where you see that you need to love yourself, but for me personally (and I am probably projecting here a bit!) the more I hated myself, the more I ate. The main reason I brought it up was because what you did with the food, is almost a classic example of emotional eating. A date went bad, so you ate junk food to self medicate. It might not be a conscious thing,

Yes you (and all of us on here) made bad decisions to get where we are with out body, but we are all SO MUCH MORE than our weight. You can improve your health and weight without putting yourself down constantly. Because if you don't love yourself, why should you expect someone else to?

Lozze,
Thanks again for answering.
I love the barcode scanner too! I actually find that there are a lot of things it doesn't have, particularly gourmet seasonings and sauces. I am in love with Tandoori and Chili Garlic paste. I find that the hi-dollar gourmet versions are much much lower in salt than that which is carried in the standard grocery store. Its very easy to add this stuff into "My Foods" tho, so no stress.

I am sure it was "emotional eating" it was the first time I have ever been on a date and , I dunno, I guess I just hoped it would be nicer. I would really love to have someone to talk to once in awhile. In any event, whatever the reason the 10.2 pound gain just seemed vastly disproportionate..... I think maybe it is time to start eating a few more calories.

I don't agree with what you said about walking a lot not doing much. It does a lot for me both mentally and physically , and wether I do it a lot or not its still burning calories.

I don't expect anyone to love me.

Here's your problem. MFP recommends that calorie level for a reason, and you're supposed to eat back most, if not all, or your exercise calories. You have a fair amount to lose and will continue to do so eating much more than you currently are.

If you don't use the system as designed, your weight loss will not be sustained, you'll crash your metabolism and set yourself up for binge days like you experienced which will become increasingly difficult to recover from.

Healthy weigh loss and maintenance is a lifestyle change, not a diet. Please don't damage your health for the sake of a rapid loss.

Your walking is awesome, but I'd also worry you're doing too much. Take at least one full rest day, another easy day (under an hour!) and consider cardio that's easier on the joints for one of your sessions, like swimming. And as another poster said, start doing some weight training.

Good luck!

Berry,
Thanks for the reply,
These numbers worked for me for a long time. My BMI was so high that I really don't think I could do much damage thru deprivation, because there were extreme amounts of fat stores waiting to be converted to energy.

Now that I am much leaner and closer to my goal I think it is probably time to up my calorie intake a little and see how that works for me and continue to adjust it from week to week until I find "The Zone".

I wear the best that Nike and Brooks have to offer and I really don't feel much pain in my joints anymore. I did for a long while when I was much heavier. As I lose weight my body gets lighter and my musculature is used to bearing a greater load. I also take fish oil supplements and chondrotin to protect my joints. I know this is not Ideal but I really want to start doing more running than walking and the way to prepare for that is to do what I am doing.

I am definetly gonna up my intake by 300 calories this week and see what effect it has.

Thank you again.

I have a little bit of info that may help you. Booze and fatty food together is a recipe for weight gain. Your body cannot store alcohol. It can use carbs, store fat and use protein, but alcohol is a poison in your system that the body has to deal with as soon as it's injested. So all the food you ate with your drink was stored while the liver processed the alcohol. Because the food was higher in fat than you are used to and your body could not digest it in it's usual manner because of the alcohol it went ino storage!! That is why you seldom get over weight alcoholics, they seldom eat eat while they're drinking. So it's not really the extra calories from the alcohol that makes you put on so much weight it's the way your body protects it's self from the alcohol that does it. Next time you have a drink eat a very lean meal and drink water inbetween drinks.

Don't stress too much, you've lost so much weight with the big picture in mind this is just a learning curve.

JoelleMonique,
Thanks for that info,
I didn't know any of this................
I guess there is more than one reason to think before you drink lol

Thank You!

I would say that probably some of the weight could be water retention. I have gone up as much as 10lbs after a few days of eating out a lot and drinking.

But I will also say that while I don't believe that 'starvation mode' happens over a day, a week, or even a couple of months of eating at an extreme calorie deficit, I do know fro experience that after long periods of under eating you can do some serious damage to your metabolism (even if you feel fine).

I spent several years eating maybe 2,000 calories a week (on a good week) and when I did start eating 'normally' again, not over eating but eating maybe 1,000 - 1,500 calories a day and I gained 60-70lbs in about 2 years. When your metabolism has slowed down that much it doesn't take 3,500 calories to gain a pound because your body will start holding onto everything that you eat.

It sounds like you have been eating at a fairly extreme calorie deficit for a long time and I would guess that your body is at the point where your metabolism has decreased pretty substantially and that you could quite possibly have gained that amount of weight in that short of a time.

Also you said that a lot of your diet consists of fruits and veggies, I would recommend adding some protein to your diet.

Ellie,
Thanks for taking the time to respond,

This is very interesting info,

I have done a lot of long distance hiking in the last couple years,( I love the portion of the CDT that runs thru your neck of the woods) and due to the nature of backpacking, I too have had long periods of extrememly low calorie intake. Not as low as 2,000 per week but probably pretty close. They were very salty calories also. Add in my calories spent thru the act of hiking and I was certainly under 2k per week.

I am very surprised to hear that the backlash lasted as long as 2 years!
Thats kind of scary...........

This more than anything convinces me that its time to start eating a little more.

I always get the recomended amount of protien, altho I am usually under on carbs and always under on fats.

Its funny because I never really feel that hungry once I have eaten........

Maybe it is some type of metabolic conditioning......

Thanks again for the insight!

helenium · August 2011

It's the pure weight of the food you ingested. When you egest (poo) out all the undigested material it is likely your weight will return to almost normal. People forget about the weight of undigested material in food.

Lozze · August 2011

I don't agree with what you said about walking a lot not doing much. It does a lot for me both mentally and physically , and wether I do it a lot or not its still burning calories.

I don't expect anyone to love me.

Excluding the mental aspect (because my head clears SO MUCH just from the 15 min walk to and from work) but in regards to losing weight. The walk has worked because you'd gone from no exercise to exercising every day. So it will work. But after a while, once you've lost weight (which you've done AMAZING on) your body gets used to it and it doesn't work as well as it used to. So they recommend you change it so you're not doing the same thing. Even something as simple as sprinting for 15m will change it up enough so that your body starts working with the exercise more efficiently.

In regards to the love, you might not expect it, but do you want it?

I'm also in awe that you have hiked the Appalachian Trail. That's amazing.

Natp274 · August 2011

Hi ya, don't have any advice to give, but just wanted to say thanks for this thread. I've learnt alot from your questions, and the responses. I had a similar experience a couple of weeks ago, not such a high gain, but a gain is a gain be it 3 or 10 pounds. I will be more mindful, and take aboard all the good advice.

So yeah, thanks again. :glasses:

Take care

N :flowerforyou:

littlemili · August 2011

That's not clever to eat only 1200, and if you really do get most of those calories from fruit and veg you probably are nutrient and mineral deficient in other areas and not providing your body with the appropriate kind of fuel to make exercise easy and weight-loss efficient. I weigh 118 and eat 1200 a day (on normal days) and I'm female. How much do you weigh? Because if I can lose weight at those levels you really don't need to starve yourself so much to lose a healthy amount consistently. You could also then cut down on your exercise time and do something more time efficient that also will build muscle. After a while doing the same exercise over and over, your body adapts itself to that exercise and it has limited value in terms of calorie expenditure and muscle growth.

I don't know exactly why you have such a high gain. Personally I have been through EDs and never experienced starvation mode so I personally would pin it on sodium (esp. because you have probably a low intake on a normal day so 1 very high day is even more of a big deal for you). In the end it doesn't matter why it happened - you know it came about after a bad eating/drinking day, which hopefully will be enough next time that option arises for you not to do it again. Obviously one night of that isn't worth 2-3 weeks of dieting. Maybe you should loosen up on your diet because you'll be a lot less likely to have binges if you allow yourself a reasonable calorie intake which would allow you to have the odd drink, meal out, and it not affect your general weight loss.

stevenleagle · August 2011

Hmmm interesting thread fatty! I too changed my pic to a "pig" (a cute guinea one) after I pigged out one day. I recently indulged in almost 2000 calories in one meal (pizza and wine) and put on 1kg overnight. Maybe not as big a gain as you but I am still at an early stage in my weight loss journey and it's taken me almost 6 weeks to lose 4 kg so that was really disappointing to me. Anyway I have no answers though I wonder whether you have ever seen a nutritionist? Maybe they know? Either way, dont be too discouraged, you are inspirational in what you have achieved! As for "love" I notice you seem to have no Mfp friends. Why not? I suspect that despite your adventurous outlook you probably spend too little time socializing in real life. Be brave, make friends, go out. Your're still in your 30s, still young!

Angellore · August 2011

Funniest. Post. Ever!

Fatty_Fatass · August 2011

I don't agree with what you said about walking a lot not doing much. It does a lot for me both mentally and physically , and wether I do it a lot or not its still burning calories.

I don't expect anyone to love me.

Excluding the mental aspect (because my head clears SO MUCH just from the 15 min walk to and from work) but in regards to losing weight. The walk has worked because you'd gone from no exercise to exercising every day. So it will work. But after a while, once you've lost weight (which you've done AMAZING on) your body gets used to it and it doesn't work as well as it used to. So they recommend you change it so you're not doing the same thing. Even something as simple as sprinting for 15m will change it up enough so that your body starts working with the exercise more efficiently.

In regards to the love, you might not expect it, but do you want it?

I'm also in awe that you have hiked the Appalachian Trail. That's amazing.

Lozze,
Thanks yet again for the answer,

I don't walk the same route everyday which creates a difference in grade and such which certainly adds variety. If my body is adapting to do the excercise more efficiently it woud seem to stand to reason thats it's first imperative would be to lighten its load. Don't forget I still have a pretty high BMI. I am losing a fair amount of weight with the walking, and I do enjoy it. If it ceases to have effect ten maybe I will consider some greater variation.

I try not to think about love anymore. It only depresses me.

I had a great time on the Appalachian Trail. I can post some pics of the experience in my profile if you would like, it really is a beautiful hike. Just lemme know.

LauraMarie37 · August 2011

My first step in this weight loss endeavor was to hike the Appalachain Trail. When I started that trail I couldn't walk 3 miles with my backpack on. It would take me 3 days to go from checkpoint to checkpoint. It took me 64 days to get out of Georgia.

By the last 2 months (of the 8 I spent out there) I was doing 20+ miles (often 30+) daily over tougher hills and feeling good. I was still a huge fatass, people still looked at me like I was a huge Fatass, everytime I ran into new people I would have to explain why/how a person weighing over 400 pounds was out hiking a 2800 mile cross country trail. That really motivated me to keep up with the other hikers from day to day. I got really sick of talking about it, and no one ever asked more than once.

I became OK with it. I lost 107 pounds hiking that trail and the day I got home I RAN up the stairs in my house.....

Calling myself a Fatty Fatass is a badge of honor, nothing less.

Thank you for your opinion but , I like my username just fine

I am SO jealous/impressed thaf you hiked the AT!!! That is definitely one of my life goals; I'm afraid I won't have the time/money to do it until close to retirement, though. How did you manage to do it in eight months? Did you start really early or was it just really cold/snowy by the time you finished? (Or both - like March 1 - October 31?) Either way, that is so cool.

I'll add in also to the other poster who said starvation mode messed with her metabolism for 2 years - I had a pretty serious ED, and my metabolism was extremely messed up for about two years afterwards, and I still think a little more "clunky" than average today (7 years later). So I'm really glad to hear you are considering upping your calories. May I suggest as you keep losing, slowly work up to eating back at least 50-75% of your exercise calories (I know that would be like 3500-4000 calories/day). I really think this will be best for your long-term health. I think if you take 1.5-2 years to work up to that, your weight loss will continue at the same (amazing!) rate, at least until you get into "normal" BMI. Then you'll have to be content with the measly .5-1 pounds per week the rest of us deal with.

ninerbuff · August 2011

NinerBuff,
Thanks for answering,

I actually have been doing some strength training. I know that larger anaerobic muscles require more calories to perform aerobically , so I have been doing some Ashtanga Yoga as well as some basic weight training. I hadn't mentioned it because the caloric burn from these activities is nominal despite thier very great benefits to weight loss. I just didn't want to confuse the issue and hear "muscle weighs more than fat" a hundred times. I know there is NO WAY I put on 10.2 pounds of anaerobic muscle in any week. If I could do that I would write a book on how and make a bajillion dollars. I do eat some denser food, I always eat enough protein to hit the mark My Fitness Pal sets. Shrimp, Salmon, chicken, pork and once in a while beef in small quantities are always mixed in with the veggies. I am still heavy and I want to lose abother 40 (possibly 50) pounds and strength training definetly plays a large role in this. But, despite all of this, wether strength training and / or cardio is involved in my calorie deficit, could eating some denser food, with higher salt/fat/carb content really pile up like this, to 3 times thier actual caloric weight? Is "starvation mode" responsible for this? As long as I am not experiencing catabolism, even if I am in starvation mode, shouldn't 3500 calories = 1 pound? Somehow it equalled 10 times that.......... I notice you are a certified personal trainer......... can water retention from a situation like this really last 5 days?

Thanks again for the reply.

The values for MFP for protein is low. I would say 1 gram per pound of body weight. I am betting you've lost quite a bit of lean muscle tissue since you're calories are set low based on your body weight. I tell people to eat 400 calories over their BMR if they are consistent exercisers and they lose weight.
And yes, it's not uncommon for people who diet too hard to eat some denser foods and retain the weight for 5 or more days. Especially if it's a "shock" to your body, meaning it's been awhile since your body has had that influx of salt/fat/carbs.

Fatty_Fatass · August 2011

My first step in this weight loss endeavor was to hike the Appalachain Trail. When I started that trail I couldn't walk 3 miles with my backpack on. It would take me 3 days to go from checkpoint to checkpoint. It took me 64 days to get out of Georgia.

By the last 2 months (of the 8 I spent out there) I was doing 20+ miles (often 30+) daily over tougher hills and feeling good. I was still a huge fatass, people still looked at me like I was a huge Fatass, everytime I ran into new people I would have to explain why/how a person weighing over 400 pounds was out hiking a 2800 mile cross country trail. That really motivated me to keep up with the other hikers from day to day. I got really sick of talking about it, and no one ever asked more than once.

I became OK with it. I lost 107 pounds hiking that trail and the day I got home I RAN up the stairs in my house.....

Calling myself a Fatty Fatass is a badge of honor, nothing less.

Thank you for your opinion but , I like my username just fine

I am SO jealous/impressed thaf you hiked the AT!!! That is definitely one of my life goals; I'm afraid I won't have the time/money to do it until close to retirement, though. How did you manage to do it in eight months? Did you start really early or was it just really cold/snowy by the time you finished? (Or both - like March 1 - October 31?) Either way, that is so cool.

I'll add in also to the other poster who said starvation mode messed with her metabolism for 2 years - I had a pretty serious ED, and my metabolism was extremely messed up for about two years afterwards, and I still think a little more "clunky" than average today (7 years later). So I'm really glad to hear you are considering upping your calories. May I suggest as you keep losing, slowly work up to eating back at least 50-75% of your exercise calories (I know that would be like 3500-4000 calories/day). I really think this will be best for your long-term health. I think if you take 1.5-2 years to work up to that, your weight loss will continue at the same (amazing!) rate, at least until you get into "normal" BMI. Then you'll have to be content with the measly .5-1 pounds per week the rest of us deal with.

I actually started in early March. I didn't make it to Katahdin by the cutoff in October. ( I got there on October 21st and Baxter State Park closes on the 15th) It was incredibly cold when I started in Georgia, but, by the time I got to Maine I had no issues with the cold, I was covering a lot more miles then, and my internal temperature probably had a lot to do with that. The gear I had in GA was also VERY different than the gear I was carrying by ME. I learned alot about what types of things to carry and what types of things not to carry!

I had run into some very cool hikers in Vermont who were hiking a different trail that shared part of the AT which was called the Long Trail. I went up with them to Canada and then Yo-Yo'd back to route 4 which is where the trails branch away from one another. This added pretty close to 600 miles to the nearly 2200 that is encompassed by the AT. So I actually covered closer to 2800 than 2200 miles.

At the route 4 junction is an awesome place called The Long Trail in, which serves some pretty hearty food and is set up to accomodate hikers. Its a must stop place when you are hiking the trail. Make sure you try a bowl of thier Guiness Stew. I spent almost a week there. It was the longest rest I took over the hikes duration.

I did "cheat" a little in some areas by following the White Blazed trails ( White blazed are spurs and they are sometimes longer and sometimes shorter , but generally easier, Blue Blazed trails signify the actual AT) but thats a pretty common practice , especially if you want to avoid or catch up to someone, or if you just want explore a little. The portion in Connecticut has some pretty cool Indian Caves out on the White Blazed Spurs.

I went back the following April to cover the last few miles thru Baxter and over Katahdin. So, even tho I know I failed to one-shot it, I am 100% certain that I covered 100% of it. It was heartbreaking to not finish it in a season, but, as far as I am concerned I could have done it if I hadn't took the extra 600 mile Yo Yo up and down the Long Trail (which was definetly a very enjoyable portion of the hike and well worth it).

Would you like some pictures?

As far as eating back my spent calories.........

I decreased my calorie deficit by 330 calories today. This brings me into line with MFP's reccomendation (which is now 1530 due to the change in my weight).

To be very honest I had a hard time trying to figure out what to do with the extra 330 calories. I ended up adding 6 oz Lowfat Yoplait Yogurt to my breakfast cereal instead of the 1/4 cup of Lactaid I usually eat, increasing the amount of protien I ate at dinner, having a 100 calorie pack of Raisel's (gosh I LOVE those things) at lunch and then an extra orange at snacktime. I do not feel any more sated than usual and I didn't experience any kind of energy boost thruout the day, but, I am sure that will come in time.

I checked out the website you have linked to in your signature (http://shouldieatmyexercisecalories.com/ ) and I found the information excellent and compelling. I know from the size of the font on the direct link that you feel strongly about eating back excercise calories.

We all know that the initial design of fat storage was to help primitive humans thru the cold seasons when hunting was poor and food was scarce. This logic leads me to believe that high BMI's actually counteract high deficits. When fat is burned it is converted to energy, albeit more slowly than food is, making it a poorer (but viable) source of energy. I know it goes against the grain to not eat back my spent calories, and, I certainly do want to eventually develop a furnace and as I become leaner I will increase my intake slowly and see what effect it has on my wieght, BMI and energy level until I find the "magic numbers" for me.

I really appreciate you taking the time to share your wisdom with me, and I hope that my last statement didn't come off as argumentative or rude or haughty or esoteric.

It definetly was not meant to.......... I am sure you are far more knowledgeable and healthier than I.... and I do not question that you are right .....and .......your way is the right way......

Its just that what I have been doing so far has been working, and I am feeling great........

If I had tried to do everything the right way, I am not sure what may have resulted......

For me it was more important to just start DOING something and stop looking for the best way to go about it.

I know thats foolish. I don't claim to be wise and I know I have a lot to learn..... but the learning is part of the journey too......

I hope I am not sounding arrogant.......... its just that sometimes I am able to cope better when I take things in stages.

Thank you so much for all the great advice, I really do appreciate it !

chinababe60 · August 2011

wow that is a fantatic achievement to walk the trail!

Unrealistic Weight Gain

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