gaining on 2000 rather than 3500?

hi everyone

ive been recovering from anorexia and eating on ave btwn 1950-2250 for about the past 2 months.  at first i did gain but in the past 3 weeks ive gone from 93.5 to 95, to 96.5.  now dont get me wrong, im very happy to finally be recovering and gaining and getting back to life, i just dont understand why some ppl are told or need to consume much more in order to gain than what i seem to need?  i almost feel jipped in not being able to eat as much altho i dont even know that i necessaraly would(slight Ed thoughts).

also, id like to eventually be able to maintain on a nice amount of food, 2000ish id think, and since im eating that now and gaining, im a bit scared?  maybe once i weigh more ill need more to maintain my weight and then what i need now to gain, ~2000, will be my maintenenance?

any insight would really be appreciated!

thank you!

hi GILL-

what a bummer!  i also wanted to be told, by a professional, that yes, you need 3000 to restrore your metabolsim and become healthy now and in the future.  ugh, everyone is different?  lol, what a let down!  i only went to the nutritionist once and i actually canceled my appt for tomm.  i decided yesterday to eat more and am hoping i can keep it up for a week and then weigh then to see.  i am a bit higher in weight than you are for my height so MAYBE i can maintain on a bit more and then should be eating a bit more to gain, altho i was gaining on 2000 at only 1 or 2 pounds lower.  also, i wonder if what VENEXIANA wrote above is correct about not needing that amount of cals to gain when youre  slightly higher, altho my bmi is still not healthy.

id say that if youre hingry and if you have the courage, to go for it and eat more, just do it, and if you do, that is just freakin amazing so yes, eat more and go a bit crazy as you put it.

Original Post by agruskin:

VEN-hi.  i dont know much about you so ill ask, do you any experieme w EDs and recovery?  umm, i dont think ill be at a healthy weight in 10lbs, ~107.  i think i need to be ~120 in order to be in a healthy bmi and maybe even more.  my bmi rt now is ~16.6 give or take, i want to gain obviosuly and have always been at the higher range to maybe slightly overweight so while i deff w ant to be at a healthy weight and dont want to be overweight again, i think my body would be comfortable at a slightly higher weight.

if you do have experience or anything on this, how much would you say i should be eating now?  ive gained a bit at 2000ish and have increased yesterday by about 200.  i dont want to have to maintain in the future on 1500 and dont know how my metabolism is rt now.

thanks!

Hey - no, I've never had an ED, but I've dealt with being "chronically underweight"/borderline hypoglycemic my whole life, so I understand both the reality of being very thin and not knowing how to adjust your diet accordingly. The only times I tried to purposely gain weight were in my teens and it was an uphill struggle. Even with (maybe) 3,000+ calories per day, I only added a few pounds and they immediately came off if I didn't constantly stuff my face, so I stopped trying. When I was 5'4" (at 16), I was (maybe) 100-103 lbs, and my doctor never said I was underweight to a degree that mattered, so I guess by default I see that as a thin, but normal weight. I'm actually around that same weight now but I'm about 2-3 inches taller. The only change in my diet since my teens is that I've gone mainly vegan, and I eat more carefully than I used to. I'm sure my intake is less, but since I don't really count, I can't say for sure. I'm assuming my metabolism is still feverishly high.

To be honest, there's a part of me that's intrigued by this whole dramatic increase in caloric intake discussion, because it seems so crazy that it may work. I'd like to see how just how much I could eat without gaining (while still staying true to my vegan lifestyle, which is hard), but it wouldn't be for any reason other than to satisfy my own curiosity (and I know everyone else is dealing with much bigger issues, so I don't want to trivialize it).

Anyway, it's disheartening to read the stories of girls who are trying to set themselves straight but who can't find consistent advice on what will work for them. And in that "Upping Cals to Lose" thread, is there a SINGLE PERSON who has stopped gaining and gotten their metabolism sorted out? I feel like there's no one clear success story there, which is very discouraging for anyone reading that thread to reassure themselves that the weight gain is temporary etc. They might even think, "Why bother?".

 

AGRUSKIN...you are underweight, but again, if you gained 10 lbs, you'd be within a safe range (maybe not according to Calorie Count, but according to most nutritionists and doctors, 107lbs at 5'4" is FINE). If you want to gain higher than that range, then of course, plan for that. My point was that your current weight is low but not CRITICALLY LOW - not the level at which the 3,000-4,000 mechanical eating measures are usually instated. I think that your system is just compromised enough to want to hang onto every extra calorie but NOT compromised enough to be a candidate for TRUE refeeding measures. I guess it's more akin to the crash diet effect - you gain back what you lose and quickly. Although, you've only gained a few lbs. which isn't TOO bad at all. Maybe if you keep pushing your intake upwards, it will continue to burn more. Aim for 2,000 to 2,500 as you said. Try to exercise a bit, too (the morning is best). Light cardio really works up your appetite, which is a sign your metabolism is revving up, too.

Ven - hi!  It's so great that people who don't have ED's feel they can post on this forum - helps us get an outside perspective which is so so important!  I think some of your comments are so well-thought out and helpful, I found the information on metabolism in your original post partiularly helpful.  And thank you for sharing your own experience with us, I think that only through real experiences can we learn - it is after all a trial and error process.

However, without wanting to be presumptuous, because I know you didn't mean it this way, I found your comments to agru about only being borderline underweight rather unhelpful.  People with EDs are often perfectionists, and to be told they're not the best in the thing that they think they are good at - losing weight - is often a real trigger.  I know that when my parents accused me of 'toying' with the idea of being anorexic, that's what pushed me into the really critical range.

 To be frank, agru, you are critical, anything under 18.5 is not healthy.  I'm not saying this to be mean, because, hell, I'm right there being unhealthy with you.  Gain anything you can.  As your body gets used to having more calories, you will need more to gain, as you become closer to a healthy weight this is true also.  You are being absolutely right and responsible in choosing to aim for the higher end of the weight range, only you know your body.  Please please please keep on slogging away at it, I know its hard and confusing, but we're all here for you, promise!  We gotta be here for each other, 'cause sometimes it can feel like we're all we've got.

x

Original Post by theofournay:

anything under 18.5 is not healthy.

 I haven't responded yet because there's so much to say I haven't had time to figure out how to explain it, but I wanted to highlight this.

 

That is the BOTTOM # for SURVIVAL.  Not the "ideal level."  Many medical experts say 20-25 is true health.

 

Think of it like getting a grade--18.5 you pass, but your still in sucky territory for anything academic related.

 

Only in this case, you're talking about your LIFE.  Get to a passing grade, or get to your A+?  [more likely in the 20's]

TUFFSTUFF-

ha, you win!  as an educational school psychologist, i now get it.  simply put, i dont want to just pass, that is not quite good enough.  i cant believe that 107lbs at ~5'4 will be ok for me, especially since ive always been bigger pre-ed.

now im just confused bc of what VENEXIANA said that i should not eat 3000, i dont think i ever had an especially fast or slow or anything metabolism pre-ed, i didnt think about food so i have no clue altho i was big.  ehh, i hate this crap, i just need to gain, i want a healthy metabolism in the future, i hate yhis wavering, i guess im still lost.  im doing 2200ish, TUFFSTUFF, you still think i should be eating more? what was it, 3000 in order to recover one's metabolism?  this is such crap!  i want to be over this...

VENEXIANA-thank you.  it is very confusing the amount of cals etc.  but overweight ppl increase thier intake and their still overweight, nothing has caught up and readjusted? hmm

THEO-hi hun, be frank, be rough, be mean, thats what we need i think and when i act that way to others its only bc i want to be pf some help and hopefully get thru to them bc i know thats what gets thru to me at least.  i asked about the status of my bmi bc i am clueless.  maybe its denail or just lack of knowledge on my part but thank you. 

how do you get your cals up there?  the only thing i pay attention to is the amount of cals and sometimes how many carbs i have bc i feel like i sometiems overload on those.  do you eat full fat dairy or reduced?

 

i mean, if overweight ppl eat a lot then why does their metabolism not catch up and speed up and process it, why are there over weight ppl?  why would eating more cause yoou to lose?  unless you were starving yourself? i mean, i was i guess but ive been eating ~2000 a while now so maybe i missed my chance at eating more and recovering my metabolism?

Agru,

I've seen it in nonED clients all the time working as a personal trainer.  Eating too little and exercising every day, if we can get them to eat more and work out less their metabolism kicks back in and they lose weight where they were stuck before.

 

In ED patients it's even more extreme--while you have been starved and are still underweight, ANY exercise just sends your body the signals to save calories and store fat.

 

So while you're sitting here worrying about eating too much or exercising too little, that's completely an ED illogical fear. 

 

If you want to end up not only healthier, but leaner and with a faster metabolism, you're better off the more you can eat and less you can move.

 

It's that simple--above sentance--leave it at that and refuse to let the ED confuse your starved brain! ;)

TUFFSTUFF-one more confused starved ED question please, have i been starving myself if ive been eating at least 2000 for a few weeks now?

"the more i can eat the better", im doing about 2200 the past 2 days, the more i can eat so taht would be? im about 97lbs at 5'4 now.  since im not srue if im starved still eating this much and what that other poster said  about not eating 4000, im not sure.  2500?

ahh-thank you! 

Not in the sense that food could send you into overfeeding syndrome.

Starving in the sense that are malnourished and can't think logically.

That's why it's so hard to overcome eating disorders--not only are they addictive, but you can't "think straight" until you're actually eating well AND at a healthier weight.

 

First you just have to get there--you determine how.

 

Whether you eat 3000 or 4000, the bottom line is it WON'T make sense or feel right until you make it happen.

 

Until then, it's just all about how tough you can be against what ED wants to make you do.  That's the only thing that can hold you back by making you think you'll end up better eating less, doing more.

hmm, i know that im able to think more clearly now on Non-ED related matter, can carry on a convo etc.  regarding how much to eat, its all ED, to me, 2200 is a lot, i HONESLTY DO NOT KNOW bc i cant think straight as you said regarding this matter.  i cant tell if im meant to recover and gain on this, 2500, 3000.  to me, im not eating less, im eating lots, so maybe thats why im also confused, bc i have been eating at lest 2000 and am not coming out of eating 800 in the recent past wahtsoever.  i wish i could just eat mindlessly.  is it that eating 4000 will just make the rate of gain faster so that one gets to a healthy weight faster and once at that healthy weight it is easier to think clearly?

thanks

Agru-

you're thinking too hard.

 

here's your equation:

 

More food + more weight =

happier, more energy, faster metabolism, more personality, more zest for life, discovering more passions, more potential in those
LESS worry, confusion, having eating be the center of your life, risk of permanent physical damage, ED forever antagonizing you, and more

 

Those two things.  Both of them.  Simple as that.

Decide what you want, then turn off the brain until ED can stop confuddling it all and keeping you here--or I promise you, 2,3, more years down the road you'll be in the same place.  New worries to fixate on, but overall the same life and worse results.

TUFFSTUFF-thank you.  youre right, its been too long already.

right now i THINK i still need to eat mechanically so ED still somewhat controlsmy eating behavior.  i hope that perhaps once i gain some more i can start to listen to my body and turn off those ED voices.  for now i think i still need a calorie target and minimum that i mudt meet daily in order to recover?

today i will eat ~2250, im scared and feel like its a ton, i admit, thats why i keep asking bc i have no clue what is a good amount or what is just piggish, if that should exist w a goal of gaining.

i need to learn how to somehow connect my goal of gaining w/ my body's signs and somehow learn how to give into them as well.

i want you to know youve helped me so much, just reading your last post got me to got have ice cream. 

i still wish someone wrote out what i should eat though, it is sometimes too much for me bc as i said, i get confused btwn what is too much and what isnt.

i hope once i gain i can stop having these thoughts, i suppose it doesnt matter how much i eat as long as i gain to a healthy weight?  perhaps the sooner the better?

thank you

agru- getting calories up mentally is hard but just drink a bolthouse vanilla chai, or chocolate mocha. thier really good. pretty healthy in my opinion and packed with good protein. i started drinking them to get back on track because my stomach hurt after eating "crap" while my dad was sick

ahh, frick, dont know what bolthouse is?

whats similar?  yea, i eat crap, lol, but whaatever.  today 2250, hmm, why cant i just input all this into a calc and have it say, ok, eat this amount?

i hope you and your father feel better!!

maybe i can give you a dinner idea for once-

baked potato, topped w/ tuna salad, then topped w cheddar cheese and broiled.  then a veggie salad w/ clumps of almond butter and avocado added to it, its so good.

Hi everybody...can I join in on the thread?

I had anorexia 2-3 years ago, and have pretty much recovered mentally, but have been trying to gain a little weight to get my period. I am currently 5'5.5" and about 107 pounds...I have gained about 6 pounds in the past month and a half...eating between 1700-2000 calories a day, plus exercise. I'm comfortable with what I'm eating now, but I'd like to maintain on it, not gain, because I don't feel as good when I eat less. I used to have a pretty fast metabolism, and according to teen calculators, I should maintain on about 2000 calories a day.

Basically I'm just trying to decide if I should kick up my calorie intake and really commit to it and see what happens, or just be content to gain a few more pounds and then reduce my calorie intake to maintain.

I want to try increasing, but I'm scared! How long would I need to do it for, and how much would I need to increase? 2300? 2500? more? If I tried this for a week and then stepped on the scale, what do you think would happen?

Thanks!!!

Original Post by agruskin:

ahh, frick, dont know what bolthouse is?

whats similar?  yea, i eat crap, lol, but whaatever.  today 2250, hmm, why cant i just input all this into a calc and have it say, ok, eat this amount?

i hope you and your father feel better!!

maybe i can give you a dinner idea for once-

baked potato, topped w/ tuna salad, then topped w cheddar cheese and broiled.  then a veggie salad w/ clumps of almond butter and avocado added to it, its so good.

 thinking to hard

 

getting side tracked with details so you lose touch with the big picture [think about that equation!] and you never do it [the equation!] is ED's main tactic for keeping you sucked in, agru.

another simple way to think of it

 

every bite

every calorie

every step you don't take

=signals and resources that build your best body, life, metabolism, and future

 

Your minimum can be what it takes for you to gain.

3000 is about average for starting up a real metabolic rebound in a sedentary individual. [STARTING]

Every bite more sets you up for better:

better you, better life, better future

but every bite above also smashes ED, who is also entangled in you right now so you feel him screaming. 

but the more you do it, the less he will be a part of you and you won't feel the pain of his being smashed to smitherines.

TUFFSTUFF-youre so right, stupid recipes and food and such..

basically, gain fast, gain hard, get it done the sooner the better, be it 2200, 2500, or 3000, doesnt matter as long as i gain to a healthy weight.  then, life can start again. 

bottom line, eat, more, more and more untill im at a bmi of at least 20.  no set # of cals, if im too scared to eat 3000 a day and i gain on less, so be it, as long as i each a healthy bmi.  correct?

ok, ok, i will do it, im going to eat tomm, and then more the next day, and hopefully meet 3000 fri.

hmm, now to figure out how to do it, i guess full fat foods to start with.

Thank you so much to all who have contributed tot his thread. Tuffstuff you have convinced me to bite the bullet and slash my exercise. I feel freer just knowing I am choosing to no longer be a slave to the exercise. Thank you! One more question: I know you said not to think about it too hard but that is, of course, easier said than done. I typically eat pretty balanced meals and snacks that contain carbs, protein, and fat. But I do tend to get bogged down in the details, fretting about sodium, sugar (from fruit), fat, etc. If my meals contain all three of the macro-nutrients need I worry about the details or is that just stringing the ED along? I think I know the answer but I guess I want soem sort of number as to fat grams, etc.