so,so confused...

Ok...so I havent posted in awhile, but I have been trying to recover from anorexia for around 3 years.  Last time I checked I was about 75-77 lbs and 5'4.  I know technically a calorie is a calorie and excess calories=weight gain.  But I can't help but worry that Im eating the wrong type of food. I have been to nutritionists in the past who put me on 1300 calorie diets, which I dont think is exactly right...but right now Im managing to get 1400-1500 calories.  Its just very hard to up calories without eating junk or excess sugar, fat, carbs....etc.

I guess Im basically worried about getting too much of 1 type of food.  For example, I find an easy way to get calories is with nuts,peanut butter,etc. I am a vegetarian so I use these foods for meat replacements.  I eat about 1/4 nuts a day and sometimes I also have peanut butter or an egg or something...but is this too much? Because the book I got from my dietitian says 1 tbls of nuts is 1 serving, so I feel like I eat a lot more than that...but how much am I supposed to get from the protein/meal replacement group?

I also eat quite a bit of fruit...dried fruit about 1/3 cup a day plus 1-2 more servings of fruit a day...is this ok?  I only get about 2 servings of veggies a day...so should I increase servings?

I also love dairy/milk/yogurt and eat quite a bit, at least 3x a day.  I just feel so paranoid and feel like I know nothing about nutrtion and what to eat, what to not eat, etc.  I am sooo scared of any type of junk food but will eat ice cream and dark chocolate once in awhile.

If your still with me...thanks!  I know this is long and I am soooo paronoid.  Am I going about this all wrong?  Should I be mostly concerned about calories and not where the calories come from?  Any help would be greatly, greatly appreciated!  Thanks,

~*~Cassie~*~

I think being concerned with where the calories come from is warranted. It sounds like you're doing a good job though. Get most of your calories from veggies and fruits and dairy, and don't eat as much protein as other stuff.  I don't honestly think eating a quarter cup of nuts and an egg is overdoing it, especially where you're not going to have a big hunk of beef for dinner along with it.  Just watch the sodium intake if the nuts are salted. Eating a few more veggies than you are eating would probably be a good idea.

Good luck, keep up your healthy way of eating. :)

Please don't fret about where your calories are coming from.  There are no 'bad foods' only 'bad diets'.   You should enjoy all the foods available that you can.  Get a good mix of vegetables, biscuits, nuts, ice-cream, fruit, cakes, beans, lentils, dairy products, chocolate, eggs, olive oil, pasta, french fries,  .... fats, carbohydrates, proteins, sugars...  it's all good when you need to recover.   Food's more than just fuel to keep you on the road... it's a pleasure as well.  So enjoy everything.

BTW... don't increase the vegetables too much if you're trying to get more calories.  Vegetables are healthy, yes, but they're also low-cal and high-bulk.  So they'll fill you up too much.  Keep eating lots of those nuts, seeds, dried fruit and other low-bulk, high-cal foods.  And if you feel like eating more, go for it.  Best of luck

bump

Its been awhile since I posted, but am still interested if anyone has an more advice...thanks!

hi-im slightly under 5'4, about to be 25, i think around 91-92lbs.  you need to eat more, much more.  this week im aiming for 2000ish.  use the toolsa bouve to help w/ a calorie target.  you can eat fruit and veggies, but you need like 8 carbs, 6 proteins, fats-maybe 4, veggies can be starchy, like potatos and beans, cereal.  ok, 1tbs may be 1 serving, but you need at least 4.  look up the us gov food pyramid or search for a 2000 calorie meal plan and try that.

good luck.  you wont gain overnight, if the scale does go up its water weight, and anyways, we need to gain.