confused

im confused, im noticing people asking about which workout to do when gaining weight, i thought it was advised not to exercise when weight is low . wil the weight go on differently if you work out than if you dont ?. im sure this has been discussed before so sorry to bring it up again but im unsure or perhaps im just stupid.

Severely underweight people are are told not to workout because it strains the bones and muscles causing them to deteriorate. This causes osteoporosis or lost in muscle mass which means loss in weight and that's why they are told not to.workout until at a healthy bmi.

TESSA-

some of the ppl asking these qs r just being plain old stupid+stuck in ED land!

some r NOT underweight and r at a healthy weight+looking to to gain muscle+be the bodybuilder type so even if NOT underweight, u need extra calroies tog et the muscles.

others are just being dumb

SEVERELY underweight? 

NO, NO ONE UNDERWEIGHT should excercsie

what is excercise?? burning calories, WHY would someone do that if they need EXTRA calories??? THINK ABOUT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

agruskin I don't think everyone means cardio, some people mean the weight building muscle stuff! When I think "Exercise" I think cardio but that's just me. I THINK that's it, anyway.... building lean muscle mass. Definitely not through cardio!

dekko didnt you just write on your meal plan that when you can build up you are going to eat 3000 ? but you will be underweight still ? but im going with aguruskin

yes but the dietitian that is helping me know says its ok for me to do it. She says I need to have the muscle because I have hardly any now.

DEKKO- as in weight lifting, moderate intensity weight lifting NOT running or cardio, correct?

to build muscle u want extra calories, waht is ur rate of gain?  y not eat more-the 3000, gain weight, muscles, and health?!

my rate of gain is about 1 lb a week . but when i go to 3000 is should go up to 2 lbs a week + the muscle i gain.

As merylwhite has already pointed out, somebody in recovery from an ED will build muscle simply by EATING MORE SEDENTARY. Please be reminded that those in recovery have DIFFERENT needs to the average joe looking to bulk up a tad.

You do gain mostly lean muscle mass naturally during the first 6 weeks of recovery, after which time, depending on age (worse in older individuals), you will gain fat. At this point it is assumed that you've reached at least 80% of IBW and so you can try to build muscle via light lifting to help with weight redistribution. I just read the most interesting science journal on this! So anyway, if you just started, don't do it yet - you're a man, too, so the muscle will build more easily later.

Ahh... this explains why I went up 8 lbs after the first week or two of increasing my calories...

Original Post by bsh0611:

You do gain mostly lean muscle mass naturally during the first 6 weeks of recovery, after which time, depending on age (worse in older individuals), you will gain fat. At this point it is assumed that you've reached at least 80% of IBW and so you can try to build muscle via light lifting to help with weight redistribution. I just read the most interesting science journal on this! So anyway, if you just started, don't do it yet - you're a man, too, so the muscle will build more easily later.

Do you have the source?

Does IBW stand for ideal body weight? For one, it took me a lot longer than 6 weeks in recovery to get to that point. And being 20% underweight is still dangerously underweight - I can't see benefits to exercising when your health is still so compromised.

Everyone underweight will put on some fat - because fat is healthy and necessary! But people who become underweight because of eating disorders continue to gain muscle throughout recovery as muscles that have wasted are repaired (resulting in muscle gains); as well as muscle gains which happen to anyone who gains weight, because more muscle is required to carry your body around at a higher weight.

You don't need to lift weights to help with weight redistribution. Most people with EDs are initially annoyed at their weight distribution, but all you have to do is hang on and keep maintaining after you reach your goal weight and your weight will naturally redistribute. If you are interested in building extra muscle, there's no reason why you couldn't start lifting once you're a healthy weight. But lifting (and lifting heavy weights is also cardio, I might add) won't improve your health while you're underweight - so why would you do it? To me it's so contradictory to be 'in recovery' and yet insisting on doing something which is so risky to your health at the same time.

Health risks from exercising while underweight:

• Stress fractures are micro-fractures of the bone, typically in weight-bearing areas such as feet and lower legs.
• Bradycardia, or low heart rate. A patient may incorrectly perceive their lowered heart rate as positive heart health due to exercise, but the heart has slowed in an effort to expend as few calories as possible. The long-term implications of reduced heart rate are the potential for arrhythmias and the prolonging of the heart’s electrical conduction with possible sudden death.
• Amenorrhea and hormonal changes
• Kidney failure
• Anxiety, depression, disturbed sleep, mood disorders
• Chronic fatigue
• Electrolyte imbalances and heart attack
• Osteoporosis and joint problems - exercise while underweight weakens both bones and cartilage

I agree with meryl, 100%, again. This girl knows what she's talking about, people. Read her bio. Recovery is a time where you shouldn't be worrying about exercise. I think starting to mess around with muscle gain too early is asking for a relapse... When you have not yet even reached a minimally healthy BMI, why would you do that to yourself?

Lol thanks nina. I'm not a doctor or an expert, but I have done my time in recovery and picked up a lot of solid tips I truly believe in on the way.

thanks nina and meryll that really helped me . yeah im prove of the damage that can be done , it my mri scan today im so worried xxx

I'll definitely find the source and I'm so sorry if I came across like I was being a proponent of people exercising in recovery - absolutely not! I had read a few posts about people and weight redistribution and the article (I am searching now, our cookies are gone because our computer crashed last night when my husband was looking for information on the movie "White Boys"... don't ask me why!!) had some good information that seemed to hit the nail right on the head. It is certainly best to wait until you're weight recovered to worry about that stuff, especially if the reason behind being underweight is related to overexercise and other ED issues.

http://www.sterlingnutrition.com/images/pdf/N utritionRehabilitation.pdf

something really important.... a lot of girls are worried about exercise, fat redistribution and also getting their periods. No one is going to get their period back without the proper amount of body fat and for every body that's different. And the other girls are 100% right, exercise can throw off the body's willingness to trust.

Tessa sending thoughts for your mri today.

On a side note I think in your heart you know exercise is not ok at an underweight state. Many people and I am proof of this in my past will settle for being "better" and still engage in some kind of behavior. They will say I am eating a high calorie diet so it makes it ok to work out. It does not change that the body is still at a malnurished state. I am not taking away progress and feel things like yoga or light walking to be one thing but running and extreme activity is counter productive to the goal. This wanting to gain muscle that I keep hearing. I remember an old nutritionist saying you can't take bones and make it into muscle. Dekkos does your nutiritonist work with ed? Possibly this statement could even be from someone who does because in my past with professionals I have heard everything that was not always healthy for me at the time. It can make it confusing. I think a reminder is that we all have to gain fat and will also gain muscle. It is a combo.

It all depends on the personal situation of the person as to whether they should be exercising or not.

Those who are recovering from an eating disorder or exercise addiction and who are underweight should probably not be exercising - certainly not aerobic exercise. Exercising is another way to burn calories and get into a deficit. Some posts above are right, it is another way the disordered mind can trick the body into keeping a deficit, so it can be dangerous not only physically but also mentally - and the weight loss will continue. When gaining during recovery from ED, you want to make sure you do not have a calorie deficit, and in fact have a significant calorie SURPLUS. This is difficult to do while exercising and may lead into a slippery slope into a relapse.

If you are gaining weight for other reasons, unrelated to any sort of disordered eating, exercise addition or health condition, the right type of exercise can help you gain muscle, which will give you more body mass. Weight-lifting exercises that are designed to build muscle should be included with your weight-gaining diet however perhaps aerobic exercise should be cut back a bit. A calorie SURPLUS will still be necessary though!

So although exercise can be part of a healthy approach to weight gain, for those NOT IN RECOVERY, it by not recommended and can be downright dangerous.

And every weight-gainer must remember, if you do exercise however, make sure to compensate by EATING MORE CALORIES to make sure there is no calorie deficit and instead is a calorie surplus.

For more on exercise to gain muscle, read THE AIM IS TO GAIN: A Guide to Weight Gain, Whatever Your Reason - UPDATED & also Gain Weight and Be Healthy at About.com

Original Post by dekkos:

yes but the dietitian that is helping me know says its ok for me to do it. She says I need to have the muscle because I have hardly any now.

Dekkos, I mentioned this on to you on 2 other threads but you didn't respond so I will ask/say it again, LOL ... I need the clarification I guess.

It is generally thought that one needs to be at 3000 calories before one can even think about exercise. Make sure that if you are starting an exercise regime with the guidance of your healthcare team you should be adding back exercise calories above and beyond 3000 ... Have you talked about all of this in detail with your nutritionist???