Questions about calories...

I am 19, 112lbs and 5ft 4 and althought I am not underweight, i haven't had a period since October and have been eating around 1200 calories a day. I have realised this is totally unhealthy and not sufficient for me. I am also getting very obssessed with calorie counting but I am very keen to stop myself from getting into any form of eating disorder.

I received some advice (which I am very grateful for!) in a previous post saying I need to consume around 1700-1900 calories a day to be healthy and to provide my body with what it needs. I am fairly sedentary as I occassionally swim and walk to and from lectures everyday. However, this amount of calories seems like so much to me at the moment and don't reallt know where to start. Part of me knows I have to start eating more but another part of me doesn't want to put weight on so I keep telling myself 'oh I'll start eating more tomorrow'.

I'd be really grateful on any advice on how to start upping my intake without freaking myself out. Should i immediately start eating 1700 calories or should it be more gradual like having 100 everyday for a couple of weeks and then adding another 100 etc. Also, as I don't believe I need to gain than much, since not really even underweight, so how can I limit the amount of weight I put on, whilst increasing my intake? Is it even possible? Or should I just not think about it and accept that I need to eat more and just see how my weight goes? I understand that I will have wrecked my metabolism to some degree and so it is inevitable that I put weight on but what is the deal with this water retention thing and I am a veggie so was wondering what sort of foods I should be eating to increase my calories and make sure I get nutrients? Again, all the help I have recieved so far is really appreciated and if anyone could help me with any of these questions I would be really grateful! Thankyou!!!

You need 2000 a day solid, first of all! Not 1700-1900.

I suggest you do not drag out your increases. Do them in short bursts - I believe you're only at 1200 at the moment, so go in jumps of 300 to 500. Up to 1500 then to 2000 might be best, over about two to four days. A week, tops.

Furthermore do not weigh yourself for the next two weeks as your body will naturally fluctuate in weight not actually true to any gain. No measuring tapes either!

Lots of gainers here are vegetarian. Do you eat dairy and eggs? If so, a good starter is whole fat dairy, and egg dishes. Then, there's nuts, seeds, nut butters and seed pastes, dried fruit, dense fruit like banana and avocado, pasta, and healthy oils like olive oil. 100% juice is also good and we cannot forget chocolate :] Ultimately remember it's fine to have a good balance of treats and sweets too. Moderation is key, and there are no "good" or "bad" foods here.

As your period is gone, you want about 30% fats to help them come back. The nuts/seeds/pastes/butters, olive oil, whole fat dairy, eggs and avocado will all particularly help there.

There's a sticky at the top of the forum - The Aim is to Gain: Advice on Weight Gain, Whatever Your Reason - which, although I know you're not out to gain weight, still has a food section and a fears section that might help you!

And one more thing: that's 2000 if you are sedentary. If you're working out you need to eat more than 2000 to give your metabolism the boot in the bahookie it needs. So if you burn 200 walking around or 300 in the gym, you eat that extra back. That's pretty easy - 200 calories is about 30g of nuts.

Thankyou! So you reckon 2000 calories...okay! So, would you say it is best for me to eat more at my main meals or snack in between, cos last night I made a little more food and was really, really full. I don't actually have any scales here at uni, which has probably saved me from getting a lot worse with my habits but I'm really trying hard to just not think about calories and the amount in food and just eat it but finding it quite difficult! i instinctively pick my phone up and approximate the calories in a meal! Any tips on quitting this habit??? Thankyou!

For now it is better you count because you need to make sure you're getting enough.

A good rule of thumb for a general portion at a meal is to have a quarter of your plate in proteins, a quarter in carbs and half in vegetables. You also want a serving of fats in there somewhere, or a dairy/dairy alternative that is calcium-fortified. So, for example, a balanced meal could be a tofu and broccoli stir-fry with brown rice - fry it with sesame oil and perhaps add in sesame seeds, too, and have it with a glass of milk. Or have a yoghurt as a pudding.

Visual portion guide helpers:
http://www.mypyramid.gov has visual examples of portions, and
Nestle: Keeping an Eye on Portion Sizes

You're going to feel quite full as you increase at first, because you've been undereating a while. Give your body time to adjust. If you need stuff to help with discomfort, take short, slow walks, or drink warm liquids. Peppermint, ginger, fennel, nettle and liquorice root teas all help with digestion and a hot water bottle on your tum can help too. I have also found a light and steady massage along my gut has helped me, recently - but be gentle with yourself.

I would say you need to aim for more food/calories at your main meals.

Breakdowns of 2000:

B: 500
S: 250
L: 500
S: 250
D: 500

or

B: 500
S: 200
L: 450
S: 200
D: 450
S: 200

If you aim to stick roughly to that you can be flexible with calories - it doesn't matter if you happen to have 600 at breakfast one day because you could probably then have a snack of 100, and so on. Similarly if you fall under at a meal or snack you can always add that little on later.

Still, tweak it a bit to suit you and your schedules, but the best targets are around 400-600 in a meal and 100-300 in a snack.

I'm going to ask the other obvious question here.....are you sexually active?

If you are: you may want to take a pregnancy test to be safe (whether you were careful or not).

If you are not: then go with the nutritional advice above for now.

No I'm not so I'd be mega suprised if i was pregnant!!! I'm seeing the doctor tomorrow about that cos my I feel i should get at least that looked at! Going by what everyone has said here, she will probably just tell me to eat more and/or seek or refer me to someone to talk to if i want to.

Thanks for the help with the calorie spread though!!! It's really helpful!

i'm 5'4 110...so the exact same as you....I eat 2500 calories a day but i also am a runner.  I would suggest shocking your metabolism.  eat 1200 one day a week.....eat 2000 one day a week....1800 another day etc.  when you eat the same low amount everyday your metabolism slows down.  If you are scared of weight gain eat the largest carbohydrate intake in the morning...and fattiest foods before dinner.....your metabolism is fastest in the morning...your body will still be able to get all the nutrients it needs. 

eat lentils....soy....you can eat PB (try real peanut butter that only contains pb and oil....have this in the mornings at breakfast).  If you are worried about water retention make bananas your friend....the high amounts of potassium help clear your body of sodium.  I always have egg whites in the morning...hopefully you are a veggie that eats eggs? omega 3 eggs are great! also yogurrrrttt!!!!  eat more complex carbs.....eat lots of fruits...do you eat fish????