is it the execise making me feel ill?

Hi guys, as u may have seen from my other posts i am recovering from anorexia and supposed to be gaining weight as i am about a stone lighter than i should be for my height.

I was worried that the xmas festivites would be a problem for me but guess what...2 weeks of eating huge amounts of food and i felt better than ever! On the food front i feel like im nearly there (i probably dont eat enough to gain enough weight but im happy that i will eat when everyone else does/what everyone else does and will not let myself be hungry).

The problem left now is to do with exercise...for the past 6months (at least) i have been doing 1hours run on the treadmill, 600 sit ups and a few leg weights 4-5 times a week.  I felt ill alot but put it down to not eating enough food.

Over xmas i only went 3times a week (fri, sat and sun) and iv now realised that i felt 100% better both physically and mentally on Mon, Tues, Wed and Thurs but come Sat afternoon i felt ill again.

Iv decided only to go 3times a week but it seems that everytime i get back from the gym i feel ill....(unbearable cold feeling, unable to concentrate or socialise, irritable mood and just "shrivelled up" kind of feelings).

My question is...does anyone else feel like this after exercising and is it the exercise making me feel like this??

Thankyou!xx

I used to feel sick after working out as well but that was because I was not eating enough. Your problem sounds serious. Your body may be not used to the sudden huge amount of food intake and working out at the same time.

If you are recovering you should get your weight up and cut out the exercise until you are at a healthy weight. Then add it slowly. You don't need 60 minutes of running in your condition. You are feeling sick because you are overdoing it and are underweight and probably not feeding your body properly. What is your food intake like in a day? Do you eat before and after working out?

How much fat, protein, carbs, fruits and veggies, dairy and whole grains do you get a day?

600 sit ups? What the heck. Stop that. Work on getting to a healthy weight.

thankyou for the reply..

As far as im concerned now, i eat the same amount as everyone else:

Breakfast: 1tbsp raisins, 1 of seeds, 1 of oats, 1 of sultanas and 2 of yogurt

Lunch: 1 tortilla wrap or pitta bread with tuna salad

Snack: Apple

Tea: Whatever my family is having (ranges from fish, veg and rice - cottage pie - lasagne - chicken stir fry)

Snack: 2 ricecakes or go ahead bar

My boyfriend doesnt eat as much as that, nor do my friends so i dont get why im so ill...is it possible that me as an individual needs a high amount of food? I get hungry all the time even when everyone else is too full to move!

Im starting to think that maybe i need to accept that i might require alot of food because it was only a couple of years ago that i ate the following everyday:

Breakfast: big bowl cornflakes

Morning snack: Slice of cheese on toast and hot choc

Lunch: Sandwhich, crisps, goahead bar, banana

Afternoon Snack: Flapjack bar (a jolly big one too!)

Tea: Family tea, kitkat, sometimes ice cream

Supper: 2 digestive biscuits and hot choc!

I cant beleive i used to eat that much and i wasnt half as active as i am now!

I went out for lunch today after the gym and tucked into soup, half a small roll, jacket tatty with prawns and coleslaw....that was only a few hours ago and im hungry again already!

xx

You're welcome. Breakfast is very little food. 1 Tbs? of each. That is not enough. Not enough fruit and veggies. Not enough fat and protein. Eat more and better. Dinner looks ok but how much are you eating. Rice cakes for a snack are not enough. Add some peanut butter or cheese.

You are still underweight. You don't have ANY energy reserves for exercising right now, so I'm not surprised that it's making you feel ill! You don't need to eat 'the same as everyone else' - they are already at a healthy weight so they just need to maintain it. You are still getting there, so you need to eat MORE! What you're having now is pretty much what I'm eating to try and LOSE weight. You felt better after your holiday feasting because you gave your body the calories that it needs to help rebuild your reserves.

Echoing what has been said - you're still recovering, still underweight. You should still be eating at least 3500 calories - if you continue with your exercise. But given you have been feeling so ill, I would advise you stop the exercise and eat at least the 2500 that is recommended for a girl gaining weight.

Don't compare your intake to your boyfriend or friends. You are not there with them 24-7, you don't see what or how they eat all of the time.

Your menu is paltry. A teaspoon of oats? Two ricecakes? Are you kidding me? This is not a recovery meal plan. This is closer to what you need:

A SAMPLE MEAL PLAN OF 3000 CALORIES:

BREAKFAST - 750
Two slices of wholemeal toast, thick slice [200] with a tbsp of butter (unsalted, ideally) or margarine between both [100 - no light stuff!] and a tbsp of jam on each slice [90 on average]. Two rashers streaky bacon [80] and two large fried eggs [160] using a tbsp of olive oil [120]. Sauce of your choice to accompany.

SNACK AM - 250
An ounce of almonds [160 or so] and an ounce of raisins. [90]

LUNCH - 800
A large wholegrain pitabread [170] stuffed with 40g whole fat feta cheese [110], 60g sundried tomatoes packed in oil (but drained off) [120], and salad leaves [negligable]. Greek yoghurt parfait - 150g whole fat FAGE total (no 2% or 0%!) or other whole fat greek yoghurt [250], topped with 35g of granola [150].

SNACK PM - 200
80g hummus [180] and 60g baby carrots [20]

DINNER - 620
Tuna Pasta Bake at 492 calories a serving, having a slightly larger serving to take it up to [500]. Make sure you use whole fat cheese in the recipe. A side of mixed vegetables - broccoli, cauliflower, courgettes, carrots... pick your favourites [negligable], and dress them with a tbsp of olive oil [120].

As you eat a family tea, have a large serving of whatever you have. Or seconds. Just eat a lot of it.

SNACK EVENING - DESSERT - 380
60g rolled oats [230] made with a mix of 100ml whole milk and 200ml water [60], topped with a small sliced banana [90].

TOTAL: 3000

To take that to 3500, you could:

Have 50g each of almonds and raisins, not an ounce, at the morning snack. [+185]
Make the evening porridge with entirely 300ml whole milk, and not with any water. [+120]
Have a 500ml glass of 100% juice with your pm snack. [+220]

Those ideas add an extra 525 calories alone. It's easy to come up with more ideas to add calories fast, though.

Even if you're vegetarian, lactose intolerant, coeliac... etc, this is still proof you CAN make totals like 3000 without having to cram food, with balance of nutrition and still enjoying what you're eating.

Start eating more like how you did a few years ago. Eat the whole roll. If you're having ricecakes, top them with honey or nut butter. If you're having oats have more like 50g plus, not a teaspoon. Trust me, you'll feel a lot less ill - and you'll be on track to gaining the weight you still need to put on.

Thankyou for all your comments, i think its time to accept that im one of those people who needs a higher amount of food!

Another question...Iv never been a great sleeper and struggled extremely when i was in the depths of my anorexia.  Lately iv improved alot on my sleeping and feel better but iv noticed that the nights i dont sleep are the days when i have exercised.  I know that if you exercise too close to going to bed you may not sleep but this happens even when i exercise at 10;00 in the morning!!

Does anyone have any thoughts?

xx

Over-stimulated bodies don't sleep well... i.e. exercising too close to bed-time.  But hungry bodies don't sleep well either (as you found in the past).  When you exercise you burn a lot of energy at the time BUT because it boosts your metabolism you also burn a lot of energy the rest of the day as well.  If you're just having the same food as normal you've basically run out of energy... so your body can't relax.

Whichever way you look at it, you need to reflect your exercise level with your food intake.  You're only 'one of those people who needs a higher amount of food' because you're very active.  If you were less active, you wouldn't need so much... QED

On the days when you exercise make sure you have plenty to eat all day and finish the day with a late high-cal snack.... hot chocolate with thick toast and lashings of peanut butter, for example.... to help your body rest.

I'm going to echo what gi-jane said, and add a little to it.

Under-eating can cause sleeping problems.  Ask most anorexics and they will tell you the same thing.  Over-exercising without being at a healthy weight can cause the same thing.  I'd say this is what you are experiencing.  I'd also wager that once you get to a healthy weight, the sleeping issues will disappear as well.....even if they are exercise related.