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Underweight but I eat like a horse!!

So my names Tessa, I'm 14 yrs old, 89lbs, 5 foot 4. I do proffesional figure skating, I'm part of a street dance team and I do ballet. So I realise I'm active but I eat well over 3000 calories every day and I can't gain weight no matter what, infact I've lost gradually for around 6 months now!! .. has anyone experienced this before?

I don't think my weight is affecting my figure skating because my trainer has entered me into the joiner figure skating championships but she always tells me that I need to gain weight and that I'm her best skater but the weakest skater she trains, which annoys the heck out of me!!. 

Recently I feel exhausted with everything! .. yesterday when I was coming out of school I fainted, my friend managed to bring me around but I begged her not to say anything to anyone. She wanted me to go to a teacher but they all think I've got an eating disorder so I refused to go to any of them.

I just don't know what to do anymore I'm going to loose everything if I don't gain weight. The thing is I'm not extremely well off, my figure skating + ballet classes cost a fortune!! so haven't got lots of money to spend on food, arghhhh can anyone help me?!??!?   

How carefully are you paying attention to the amount of calories you consume? Unless you are being very meticulous with your counting chances are you may be overestimating (or underestimating).

Either way - just eat more. If it's difficult to eat much more then look into protein shakes that are calorie-laden. Or chug a liter of milk a day.

If you are actually eating 3000 calories and losing (you were having this problem in February, as well), then you really need to increase your intake.  It doesn't have to be junk food -- but junk food generally packs a lot of calories into small, easily digestible packages.  Protein shakes, full-fat dairy, avocados, nuts (and nuts are easily transportable, so you can can carry them with you between practices.

Personally, I think you need to cut the activity until you have gained to a healthy weight and beyond, but I realize the likelihood of that happening is pretty small.  So -- you are going to have to eat much more -- like 5000 calories, or more.

Remember Michael Phelps (Olympic swimmer)? They weren't joking when they talked about him eating 12,000 calories per day during the training season (yes, that is twelve THOUSAND), and he was still skinny as a rail.  Your body needs fuel to perform -- food is your fuel.  You simply cannot perform at your highest unless your body is properly fueled.

I can think of two possible reasons why you're losing weight.

1) You are not counting calories correctly.

2) You are flat out lying about eating that much, or you are in denial that you are starving yourself. I looked through your old posts... and one time you posted the question "Do I look chubby in my photos?"  I am doubtful that you actually realize the fact that you are underweight.

I am leaning more toward reason number 2. If you really do not have disordered eating, then why the heck do you count calories in the first place? Counting calories is not normal. The only reason you could justify counting calories is that your doctor told you to because you are so underweight... But then if that's the case, it means you are under a doctor's supervision... so why the heck would you post questions like this on this site?

 

I'm not trying to accuse you of anything... I've experienced disordered eating in my past, so I can understand how you feel. I suggest you see a doctor about this. Try writing down everything you eat in a day, and get someone else's opinion about how many calories it really is.

 

You may want to get your thyroid checker out but thats just part of a normal blood test- go see a dr and nutritionalist :)

ive read one of your other threads so i understand your situation. im going to give you some meal ideas that are high calorie, mostly healthy and not very costly. for someone like you whos pretty underweight a teenager and very active you need to eat at least 3500 calories a day just to gain maybe a pound a week. try to go for 4000. you may not want to count your calories but its a good idea to go through one day and count them all, or better yet plan out your meals for a day so you know for sure how much your eating. do this for a couple of days until you get the feel of how much you should eat so it will come much easier for you.

breakfast: a good breakfast would probably be oatmeal, it may sound boring but its very cheap and can be spiced up many ways. try adding fruit, chocolate, peanut butter nuts, etc. heres a recipe: 1/3 cup dry instant oats or 1 pack instant oatmeal, 3/4 milk, 1 banana, 2 tbsp peanut butter and 1/2 tbsp sugar. add cinnamon if u want. this one bowl= about 550 calories. add a glass of juice and you have a good high calorie breakfast and already have almost 700 calories out of the way. other good ideas are whole eggs with cheese and pancakes (can be made whole wheat and with fruit to be better for you).

lunch: salads probably arent a good idea, theyre nutritious but normally dont have many calories. if you do eat salads be sure to have some protein (chicken, hardboiled eggs), full fat dressing (use extra!), and extras like bacon and cheese and croutons. try having peanut butter sandwiches or tuna salad. have chips on the side or a high calorie soup like broccoli and cheese. fruits also good.

dinner: if you eat dinner with your family like whatever they're having, take extra portions and have dessert. heres some ideas if you cook or help cook/plan dinner; whole wheat pasta w/alfredo sauce bread and salad, steak w/baked potato (add butter/cheese/etc to potato) and veggies or mac&cheese, tacos w/lean beef and cheese, these are just ideas. you can look up alot of ideas for dinner or anything online.

try having ice cream for dessert! eat snacks throughout the day like an apple w/lots of peanut butter, raisins, carrots w/lots of ranch (a 1/4 cup of ranch is about 300 calories!) and even things like cookies, cakes and treats! drink lots of juice and milk for extra calories calcuim and vitamin C! add olive oil to everything, well not everything lol but you know, its very good for you and 120 per tablespoon.

Thanks for the comments ..

I am sooooooo upset right now, I went to practice at 5 this morning for 3.5 hours and the other girls were laughing at me saying my dress was baggy and I look like a rake, arghhhhhhh I hate them SO much. I wasn't getting my jumps spot on because they were putting me off and my trainer was shouting at me for it but I suppose she didn't know what they were doing ... arghhh anyway rant over! 

As for the counting calories I've known what a calorie is since I was about 3 years old my mum is obsessed with them!!. I don't exactly weigh my food, like my mum, I just guess to be honest!

Couch_k, you are right there is no way I'm going to stop any of the activities I am doing because, this will sound really bad!, but they mean more to me than being healthy right now. I need to do figure skating it is my life, without it I'm nothing! and I seriously mean that. I have to do ballet because it helps my figure skating, don't particularly love it but I've gotta do it and all of my friends go to street dance so I can't loose them by quitting; I'd have no friends because everyone at figure skating and ballet are stuck up and just vile!. All the foods you mentioned I hardly eat so it may be useful to put them in my diet, what nuts are the most calorie dense to snack on?

nutmegqueen, I don't have an eating disorder I went through a point of hardly eating just because I was really busy with everything, and a big reason was because all the girls at figure skating just eat salad and a bit of chicken so I felt stupid eating loads so I had the same as them ... fat mistake that was because now I can't put the weight back on. I dunno when I'm down I just don't want to eat for some reason.

recoshel- Wow thanks for the suggestions that's really helped me :). A lot of those things I don't eat, like we only have low fat versions of stuff in the house but I'm going see if my mum will get the full fat versions instead. She is a super health freak though! .. but thanks again for that will deffo be trying some of your ideas out for sure!  

Do you guys think my weight is low because my mum says its because I'm only 14 and she dosen't seem to be worried?!. I know she is really busy at work and everything so has hardly no time for me but I take it she knows best?

For what it's worth, isn't BMI an unreliable measure of health and wellness for people who are under 18? Correct me if I'm wrong. I'm just curious how accurate a measure it is for people under 18 who are still growing. I knew plenty of girls who were reed thin in 7th and 8th grade and ate like horses (my niece is a perfect example, she never stops eating- I think she must have hollow legs!). They seem to naturally fill out as they get older. Teenagers develop at different rates and do not settle at their adult weights until whenever their bodies want to settle, it varies from person to person. 

In fact, in this website's T&C they state they do not allow people under 18 to use their calculators. 

http://www.nutrimirror.com/children-bmi-under -18.php

Original Post by vamoose:

For what it's worth, isn't BMI an unreliable measure of health and wellness for people who are under 18? Correct me if I'm wrong. I'm just curious how accurate a measure it is for people under 18 who are still growing. I knew plenty of girls who were reed thin in 7th and 8th grade and ate like horses (my niece is a perfect example, she never stops eating- I think she must have hollow legs!). They seem to naturally fill out as they get older. Teenagers develop at different rates and do not settle at their adult weights until whenever their bodies want to settle, it varies from person to person. 

In fact, in this website's T&C they state they do not allow people under 18 to use their calculators. 

http://www.nutrimirror.com/children-bmi-under -18.php

You're right, which is why you will see some of us tell a member under 18 that their BMI is within norms for their age and height.  That's why we (moderators and members) usually send members, and refer, to a Children's BMI-percentile-for-age Calculator  site -- you will also often see us recommend a calorie calculating tool -- also set up by the Baylor College of Medicine.  The BMI site will also let you use the blue and pink graphs which pediatricians use.  The fact that tessa has been losing weight for about 6 months is addressed

In this case, tessa is already feeling the effects of not having enough calories due to her training -- a "healthy" weight for a person her age/height is between 98 and 130 -- you'll see she is well under this.  Furthermore, as she is exercising intensely -- much of that body weight is muscle, not fat.  This means that with a deficit of calories, her body is not burning fat but is burning the muscle -- which she so desperately needs, and unfortunately, the body is not always particularly as to where the muscle is burned, and the heart is a muscle.

At your age, I was your exact height and weight, but I had an ED - I am NOT saying you do, but just to explain why I needed to gain. I was put on the equivalent of Ensures as well as all my meals and snacks, and gained until I weighed around 105 lbs in 6 months. Your coach says you are weak, - does she have any tips for you?

Can you give us an idea of what a day of food looks like for you? That way, people might be able to give specific advice. there is no doubt about it, you NEED to gain, otherwise all the exercise you do is going to end up hurting you, as your body devours it's own muscles just to keep you alive. Like Coach K said, the heart is a muscle - you need it strong and healthy!!

As someone who figure skated, I can understand the rink politics and catty girls. However, you aren't eating enough/could have a medical problem. Get to the doc and start eating more. 

You can't be the best of the best and be a weak skater. Your jumps are probably not being landed. Your spins can't go into a sit or a camel and I can guarantee if you are doing any moves patterns you aren't getting across that ice fast enough. 

And just on dealing with the girls watching and taunting, you are there to work on yourself. Get going on it. 

Okkkk I feel slightly scared now!!! :[

teatoddy, I might be weak but I am a good skater, yeah my landings aren't always perfect but the majority of the time they are .. hence the reason I've been chosen by my trainer to compete in the joiner figure skating championships. Your right about the other girls, I couldn't give a damn to be honest, yeah they get on my nerves and try to sike me out but I'm there to be the best that I can be! 

Ok so an example of today would be;

huge bowl of porridge with honey, 2 sliced bananas, blueberries, chopped strawberries and skimmed milk

2 slices of wholemeal bread spread with loads of jam (light version)

2 apples, 3 plums

2 low fat muller yoghurts

a salad with loads of chicken breast

nature valley granola bar, glass of skimmed milk

2 glasses of mixed fruit smoothie

protein bar

5 crackers spread with low fat cheese spread

packet of snack a jacks, glass of pure orange juice

carrot sticks with hummus

3 slices of malt loaf

boiled potatoes with salmon and rocket

muller rice

massive bowl of Caribbean gronola (lots of fruit in it) and a sliced banana with skimmed milk

2 slices of wholemeal toast spread with light butter spread

SEE I EAT LOADS!!, my activity today was 3.5 hours of ice skating, walking from the rink to school and then from school to ballet where I did 2 hours of dance.

I'm being weighed by my trainer on Monday is there anyway I can make the scales higher than what they are???, I was think of putting weights in my pocket??? 

coach_k, thanks for the clarification. 

The excessive hyperbole makes me think you're not being truthful.

Original Post by tessa01:

I'm being weighed by my trainer on Monday is there anyway I can make the scales higher than what they are???, I was think of putting weights in my pocket??? 

I'm not necessarily saying you have an eating disorder, but this sounds incredible disordered. I've heard that faking weigh-ins is something eating disorder sufferers do, to make others think they're fine and weigh enough. I don't mean to be accusing, but come on- you know you're underweight and claim you want to gain weight and get stronger, so why lie to your trainer? She will be able to see you are still incredibly thin and weak, and if you want her help why would you try to trick her into believing you're fine?

Why are you using skimmed milk and light jam if your trying to gain? And faking the number on the scale is VERY VERY eating disorder like. THis is coming from personal experience. And do you add dressing to your salads? Maybe you should start consuming more fats.

Use honey instead of light jam and full fat milk instead of skim.

Original Post by armandounc:

The excessive hyperbole makes me think you're not being truthful.

Yeah, I agree. I do feel for you, Tessa. But I have a hunch you are not being truthful. If you are being truthful that you don't have an "eating disorder," then you would not even consider lying about your weight. You would tell your coach how much you're eating and work together to get your weight up.

Why use light jam? or low fat yogurt? or skim milk? or light butter? Why count the number of crackers you are eating? Why specify 'wholemeal' bread? All of these point towards preoccupation with food or an eating disorder. By disordered eating, I mean anything other than an approach to food that is not at all affected by knowledge of calories.

Try replacing the low calorie stuff with full fat foods. Eat a bunch of nuts and calorie dense foods. There's a nutrition drink called Ensure Plus that packs 350 calories into a small bottle (maybe 6 ounces? idk). Ensure Plus tastes good, too. Try adding in as many of those a day as possible?

best of luck!

armandounc I see your point. But I wonder how much of it might be an age thing? I was prone to histrionics at 14, even when the circumstances didn't call for it. Hormones being all over the place etc.

Original Post by tessa01:
Ok so an example of today would be;

huge bowl of porridge with honey, 2 sliced bananas, blueberries, chopped strawberries and skimmed milk    FULL FAT MILK

2 slices of wholemeal bread spread with loads of jam (light version) WITH BUTTER AND REGULAR JAM

2 apples, 3 plums THIS IS ABOUT 200 CALORIES, AND REALLY FILLING - HOW ABOUT AN ENERGY BAR INSTEAD OF HALF THE FRUIT?

2 low fat  FULL FAT muller yoghurts

a salad with loads of chicken breast AND OLIVE OIL BASED DRESSING AND A SWEET POTATO

nature valley granola bar, glass of skimmed milk full fat milk

2 glasses of mixed fruit smoothie

protein bar

5 crackers spread with low fat FULL FAT cheese spread

packet of snack a jacks, glass of pure orange juice

carrot sticks with hummus

3 slices of malt loaf BUTTERED

boiled potatoes with salmon and rocket

muller rice

massive bowl of Caribbean gronola (lots of fruit in it) and a sliced banana with skimmed milk   ditch the skimmed milk!! 

2 slices of wholemeal toast spread with light REGULAR BUTTER butter spread

SEE I EAT LOADS!!, my activity today was 3.5 hours of ice skating, walking from the rink to school and then from school to ballet where I did 2 hours of dance.

 

Yes, I can see that in terms of volume, you eat plenty - but far too much of it is low fat/ fat free - why would an athlete do this? Truly, you NEED that fat. No-one can do the exercise you do without bucket loads of protein and fat. I've altered your post a bit to include some more badly needed energy.

You might want to look at your 3 forms of exercise too. You can't be a top player in all 3 - you physically haven't got the time. If skating is your thing, then you need to let up on the dance/ballet.

Look, you fainted the other day - your body is telling you it can't go on like this. Either you get the calories in, or you ease up on the training. Ideally, both...

Good luck!

[Edited to add:

I've just noticed this bit of your post -

'I'm being weighed by my trainer on Monday is there anyway I can make the scales higher than what they are???, I was think of putting weights in my pocket???'

You ARE kidding, right? That would be dangerous and deceitful. If your trainer thinks you are heavier than you really are, she might get you doing stuff your body isn't up to, or worse, not STOP you doing something that could be dangerous because you are so thin.]

Original Post by tessa01:

I'm being weighed by my trainer on Monday is there anyway I can make the scales higher than what they are???, I was think of putting weights in my pocket??? 

This is not normal. And it does sound like an eating disorder talking to me.. I would advice you get help and soon before the problem get's any worse.