Why have I lost lost my appetite?
Asked by bsh0611 on Oct 21, 2009
in Health Conditions
I am a 26 year old woman with two small children and a busy life. I run 30-35 miles per week for exercise and I take four classes at university. In the past few months, I have been experiencing a loss of appetite. I was eating more before my half marathon on October 3 to keep up with a 50 mile per week training schedule, but it was difficult as I wasn't hungry. Lately, I'm really just not hungry at all and after I eat I feel something acidy in my stomach. I eat, but its hard and my meals are very small. I do have dessert every night but that has become more about adding calories than pure enjoyment - though of course I enjoy it! I used to experience bulimic episodes between ages 11 and 23, but do not make myself vomit nor do I binge. If I have a day where I can get up to a 2,500 calorie level, I feel so full that it seems as if I have binged. I'm just... not hungry. It worries me. I'm so active that I should be hungry. Is there anything I can do? The doctor has said I am in good heath but that I may have a slight case of subclinical hyperthyroidism. I do not menstruate and stopped taking birth control on September 19th of this year as I did not like the side effects.
Answer
I think you've lost your appetite, and your period too, because you are overtraining. Overtraining produces sleep disturbances, anxiety and depression, as well as injuries and infections. On the back end, I can see that you are 5 to 10 pounds underweight with a BMI of 17.6. To restart your appetite, quit running for one whole month (you can walk for 30-minutes a day) and eat three meals a day of food you prepare in some way, while seated at table, preferably with your family. Add snacks when you are hungry and practice mindfulness as you eat. Count calories only in retrospect at the end of the day; 2250 - 2500 calories are about right . Tweak your diet over time to be more nutritious and to your liking. Don't spread yourself so thin and see that your thyroid is optimally treated. Consider mental heal and nutrition counseling.
So you can log your weight -- which allows you to do the following:
- Plot your weight curve
- Analyze the trend of your weight (see under Recent in the figure above)
- Determine the projected target date (see under Overall in the figure above)
