Please help meeeee

So im 18, 5"3 and 120lbs,
i have a completley sedentary lifestyle and i try to compensate, by running 60minutes daily at 4.0/4.5mph (Treadmill says i burn just a little over 500calories but i dont think thats accurate so im guessing i burn about 250 calories whilst running) The problem i have is not knowing how much to eat!

Just last xmas i would be eating more than 5000+ calories daily (alot of sweets) and not gain a pound whilst still being completley sedentary! I slowly cut back on the sweets & cookies and started eating less managing to lose 15lbs.

A couple of months back i decided to start calorie counting and take up running..and the weight has slowly been creeping up ever since and im now back to 120lbs this has got me really down and i know if i dont do something now im going to continue to gain weight..yes its all fat.
Im really lost about why i could be gaining weight? if anything ive become more active, i should be losing right?
I also think there maybe a slight chance i screwed my metabolism, ive had a few days where ive ate only 900 calories but nothing major (no exercise) but who knows maybe i may of screwed it by eating too less with exercise?

Also i *think* i can lose at 1400 w/o exercise (maybe water weight) but i always end up binging at the end of the week anyways and i never get away with it lol..and i hate not running...when i tried to run with an intake of 1400 i liturelly felt starved...even after eating something. Im just afraid of going above 1600..

sorry for the life story lol i just cant seem to get it right, im sick of trying out different intakes and still gaining..
How much should i eat to lose? how much to maintain? did i screw my metabolism up? why am i gaininnng?!
(the way i do it is sedentary=1600 + workout=200 = 1800 - 400 = 1400 yet still gain..)
thanks for taking the time to read, hope someone can help i would really appreciate it thanks!!

Couple of things.

1. 120 pounds at 5'3 is not overweight unless your just twig build. As far as I can tell.

2. The leg muscles are the stongest muscles in your body and running burns a really decent amount of calories espcially when you pass the 25 min mark. So 500 is probly right for that workout.

3. You said it was fat. However if your running daily your gaining leg muscle, for sure and that's gonna have weight to it.

4. I'd probly see a doctor about unexpected weight gain. Odds are you are medically sound but they can always refer you to a neutritionist and get you help to get on the right plan for you if you actually need to loose weight.

IMO

joe

Yeah i know its not alot of weight, just for my height i look a little chubby. Also its definitley fat ive gained in my stomach and hip area, im really not sure what else to do but thanks for the reply.

Any body else have any ideas??

Running for an hour, even if you are only running 4-5 miles, will still result in about 400-500 calories burned. 

If you're bingeing whilst eating 1400 calories a day, maybe you should eat a bit more on average, to prevent the need for mass amounts of food at the end of the week.  

If you do take into account the fact that you're burning 200-300 calories more than you thought you were, then i think that you could eat 1500-1600 and lose weight.  Also, is there any way you can become more active? Silly little things like getting off the bus one stop early to walk the final 10 minutes, or using stairs instead of a lift, could add up to 200 calories extra daily.

I can understand why you would not want to eat more than 1600 a day, I'm like that too. But if you're bingeing (and you haven't said how much you're bingeing by - there's a massive difference between a 500 calorie binge and a 3000 calorie binge), it can mess up your average - 6 days at 1400 and then one day at 4000 gives an average of 1770 per day, 170 more than if you'd eaten the 1600 daily in the first place!

As for the weight gain, you can't mess up your metabolism that badly if you've only eaten 900 calories for a few days.  However, the more it has occurred, the higher the chances are that this is the cause.  Did you gain the full 15lbs back? Some of that may be muscle gain from the exercise, and maybe a bit of water weight? Some of it will most likely be fat, but I think that with a bit of consistency and perseverance you can lose it =]

I run about 3miles / 3.5miles a day, i really love running though but ive been putting it off cos im worried im going to continue to gain, but if ive been underestimating my calories burned i can see where i might of been going wrong.

Im not binging to any entreme extent, ill just go for something like a whole pack of sweets that tend to be high in calories and end up ruining my week. I liturelly felt starved though whilst sticking to 1400 like i hadnt ate all day

I try to do little things to become more active, whether its little things around the house or going to the shops i try to be on my feet throughout the day, ive been wearing a pedometer and including running i do about 10,000-14000 steps a day and around 5000-6000 sedentary...I mean i have 2 5lbs weights but i read theres not much you can do with them when it comes to ST

Well, like i said i used to eat alot of junk not even realising...then when i moved, that decreased 'alot' and i started eating alot better and ending up dropping 15lbs quite fast without even realising and i still wasnt really watching my weight at that time. And when i think back ive decreased my calories alot..compared to what i would be eating so i can see why i would of lost that 15lb..

I gained it all back yes, i cant see what else differently i could of done to gain expect running...and i can definitley notice it around my stomach area. Also i tend not to go for clean foods ill go for the processed things so i can be sure how many calories it contains and i stick to the same stuff because i know how much is in there could this also be a problem?

Well, i appreciate your help you definitley gave me hope still

im going to try some calorie cycling so if i have done any damage i can try repair it

S: 1300
M: 1500 BURN 150
T: 1700 BURN 150
W: 1900 BURN 150
T: 1300
F: 1500
S: 1700 BURN 150
(intake around 10300 for the week averaging 1471) too low still??

Ive decreased my exercise also so its not too extreme, as the weeks go by ill add 100 to my weekly average so next week ill have 1571 then the next 1671 and up the running ect, feel free to say if anyone sees anything wrong here 

Thanks again alicandra youve made things alot clearer for me

 

 

Original Post by chelsea776:

"Im not binging to any entreme extent, ill just go for something like a whole pack of sweets that tend to be high in calories and end up ruining my week. I liturelly felt starved though whilst sticking to 1400 like i hadnt ate all day"

" Also i tend not to go for clean foods ill go for the processed things so i can be sure how many calories it contains and i stick to the same stuff because i know how much is in there could this also be a problem?"

Ive decreased my exercise also so its not too extreme, as the weeks go by ill add 100 to my weekly average so next week ill have 1571 then the next 1671 and up the running ect, feel free to say if anyone sees anything wrong here 

Chelsea,

It seems to me that you are actually eating to little with all the running that you are doing. Your body can be in what is called starvation mode. Your body will actually hold onto evey little fat cell that it can and try and store it away in a way to try and save itself. If you are eating very little and working out / running a lot then this is what is happening. 

You stated above that you sitck to processed food and that you do not change things up. Well start eating good clean food NOT processed you can find the information online about the foods that do not have a nutrition list. You should look into the site called " the daily plate" it will allow you to look up foods and it will give you all the nutrition information that you need about the food.

Also if you eat more clean foods this will kill the cravings for you to binge and eat an entire pack of sweets like you poseted above. The more clean you eat the more you get to eat and reach the same caloric level. This is what keeps me on track and this is what helps me.

You have anserwed some of your own questions and I think that you know what you need to do! It's time now to just do it and the results will follow.

 

Chris  

Also worth noting is that you're 18.  The calculators on this site and many others are intended for people over 21.  As a teenager, you should not be planning to eat less than 1500 calories on any day.  Having your average intake be less than 1500 calories is even worse.  Please bump each of those daily goals up by 200 calories to keep every day at or above 1500 calories.

I agree with the above replies, indicating that you need more food, maybe he in starvation mode etc. I wanted to stress to you that you must see a doctor about your weight and eating habits ASAP. This is not a "diagnose me!" clinic.

 

best of luck.

e