I'm in starvation mode and my fat gain is only getting worse

I am not a nutritionist or anything, but I did work at a fitness/weight loss center for a little while. If you feel like your metabolism is worn out, you MUST let it rest and recover. Your body is like a car, and your food is like gas. If you don't give your body what it needs, when it needs it, you are running on fumes and that is terrible for your metabolism. Let it rest!

Up your caloric intake (about 1,600 a day) for 4-8 weeks. Increase your lean protein - you have to have this to rebuild your muscles. Beans, nuts, quinoa, cottage cheese, chicken breast, pork loin, etc. Fill 1/2 of your plate with veggies - you can eat as many veggies as you like, whenever you are hungry. Eat some fruits. Shop the perimeter of the grocery store (avoiding the processed foods full of hidden sugar, fat, salt, and chemicals) - fresh produce, lean meats, low fat dairy, whole grains. Drink lots (at least 8 glasses) of water a day - this will help with your digestion. Also, low-fat yogurt (without all the fruit syrup) with probiotics, produce and whole grains full of fiber, help digestion. Cook with cooking sprays or a little olive oil - avoid extra fats. Avoid sugary drinks.

After a month or so, then you can cut back again to about 1,200, maintain that for about a week. You should see a few pounds your fat start to melt off - fat, not muscle. Eating lots of protein helps to protect your muscle. This week just a jumpstart.

After a week, up your calories again to around 1,400. This should give you a slower fat loss (meaning it will stay off easier) and is still protecting your muscles. This period should last you about 2-3 months.

After that you should be where you want to, so you would just increase your calories to around 1,500-1,600 to maintain. Remember, if you aren't giving your body the fuel (healthy calories) that it needs, it will rebel again. If you find that you fall off and are gaining, then just start the process over again.

And you must exercise!!!! You have to build that muscle, and that takes a little time. Find out WHY you are really doing this. Focus on your HEALTH and make it a priority. Walk/Aerobics/Zumba for about 30 minutes, 4-6 times a week. Do muscle building exercises about 3 days a week. Your muscles need time to recover, so always give each group of muscles a day to rest in between workouts. You can use free weights, Curves for Women (only 30 minutes a day), or find exercises on the internet. I like Shape.com, Prevention.com, Bodyrock.tv, Livestrong.com, and there are many more.

The main thing is to make sure that you are healthy, and that your weight is good for YOU. If you are too thin, then your body rebels! This will only make maintaining a healthy weight harder for your body in the future and you only get one body, so take care of it! Its going to need to be around for a while, and working properly! You want to maintain a healthy weight. If you are 5'5", then your ideal weight should be closer to 115-130lbs. If you are outside of that, you should go see your physician for a check up, and see what he/she recommends would be best for you, and how to achieve it.

Good luck!