Too much, too little, or just enough?

I have spent the past couple of months recovering from anorexia. A few weeks ago, I cut back on my calories and tried to start maintaining. I was gaining 2-3 pounds, sometimes more, on 2,500-2,700 calories a day for 5 or so weeks, and I put on almost 20 pounds. I am now about 98-100, and I am 5'4". I know that is still considered underweight, but it is a lot from where I was, and I am uncomfortable with gaining more, as I have never weighed much over 100, if even that much. Anyway, to start maintaining, I went down to 1,800 a week. I was running for 20-25 minutes 6 days a week while doing Pilates and ab exercises daily. I injured my ankle a couple of weeks ago, so I have had to give up running until it heals.=( It really stinks, and I just hope that my ankle heals soon. Since I had to stop running, I have been going to the gym 5-6 days a week instead to use the elliptical since it doesn't bother my ankle much. I do it for 20-30 minutes at a very low resistance, but at a fast pace. When I calculate how many calories I have burned on that, it comes up as 250 or sometimes a little more. It doesn't seem like that can be accurate because it would say that I burned less when I ran, and running seems so much more strenuous. Since I don't feel like I am burning as much, I have dropped my calories to 1,600 a day. Is this okay, or should I be eating even less since I'm probably not burning as much? I just don't want to gain any more weight right now, especially on this amount. I feel confused about weight and calories, as always.  I haven't weighed myself in over a week because I am too scared to, so I don't know how I am doing on this amount.  I just hope I am not still gaining. Thank you so much for listening and hopefully for the advice.

Well done on gaining, 2-3lbs per week is brilliant.

Do you maintain on 1800? If you do, you will lose by cutting down on this and you will be back to square one, so that would be too little.

Im guessing you'll get quite a number of replies to this telling you that you need to gain as your still underweight....

Check with your recovery team.  98-100 at 5'4" is underweight.  If you're a teen then you are still undereating at 1600 calories with exercise, about 1800 is maintenance for an adult of that height.

Agreed with the under-weight part. When I reached my goal weight -set by my doctor and nutritionist- (few years ago), my BMI was a 17.4, but that was where I was pre-ED. I maintained -absolutely 0 exercise- on 1800 calories a day, and I was much shorter and lighter than you are.

Eating 1600 calories will do you no good, you should bump it up to at least 2000 if your DOCTOR says you're at maintainence. 

Original Post by kb77ec47:

I have spent the past couple of months recovering from anorexia. A few weeks ago, I cut back on my calories and tried to start maintaining. I was gaining 2-3 pounds, sometimes more, on 2,500-2,700 calories a day for 5 or so weeks, and I put on almost 20 pounds. I am now about 98-100, and I am 5'4". I know that is still considered underweight, but it is a lot from where I was, and I am uncomfortable with gaining more, as I have never weighed much over 100, if even that much. Anyway, to start maintaining, I went down to 1,800 a week. I was running for 20-25 minutes 6 days a week while doing Pilates and ab exercises daily. I injured my ankle a couple of weeks ago, so I have had to give up running until it heals.=( It really stinks, and I just hope that my ankle heals soon. Since I had to stop running, I have been going to the gym 5-6 days a week instead to use the elliptical since it doesn't bother my ankle much. I do it for 20-30 minutes at a very low resistance, but at a fast pace. When I calculate how many calories I have burned on that, it comes up as 250 or sometimes a little more. It doesn't seem like that can be accurate because it would say that I burned less when I ran, and running seems so much more strenuous. Since I don't feel like I am burning as much, I have dropped my calories to 1,600 a day. Is this okay, or should I be eating even less since I'm probably not burning as much? I just don't want to gain any more weight right now, especially on this amount. I feel confused about weight and calories, as always.  I haven't weighed myself in over a week because I am too scared to, so I don't know how I am doing on this amount.  I just hope I am not still gaining. Thank you so much for listening and hopefully for the advice.

If you are eating 1600 a day and considering eating less, you are not recovering - you are relapsing. 1600 is NOT a maintenance amount, it is a weight loss amount. As you are still underweight, you should NOT be exercising.

It's not surprising you injured yourself, as while you remain underweight your muscles (and bones) will always be weakened. You are also at risk of damaging your heart or having heart problems when you exercise. If you want to move; go for gentle walks, take a yoga class or do some stretching. It just doesn't do your body or your mind a favour to do anything more. It's a disordered way of thinking to believe that you have to exercise to justify eating. You really don't.

If you don't want to gain weight, you've stopped recovery before you were better. It doesn't really matter what you weighed before anorexia - becoming a healthy weight now is necessary for your body to be able to recover. Being 'uncomfortable with gaining more' is the voice of your eating disorder speaking. Gaining weight is uncomfortable, I know, but it is an unavoidable part of recovery and you need to start fighting your eating disorder rather than giving into it.

My advice: get back on that weight gain diet, get your weight up to a BMI of 20 and then begin maintaining - but on no less than 1900-2000 calories per day.