Spreading meals out.

Okay, so I'm 16, 5ft 7/8ish and about 114lb. I'm fairly active.

I have a general intake of about 900ish, its notmally lower on a monday then sky-high on the weekend. I'm REALLY inconsistent. I'm trying to eat healthily but i always binge! I can go ages without eating, but once i do i just cant stop. I have this 'thing' about clearing the plate EVERY time, then having a desert.

So i have a small beakfast, and normally a little snack at lunch, and then when I come home I have a massive dinner with my family. They always load my plate, and even when i know I'm full i just cant stop eating.

How can I try and spead my meals out throughout the day? I always tell myself i will have a bigger breakfast and lunch then i won't be as hungry at dinner.. but then i just clear the plate anyway!

you're probably hungry because you're eating way, way too little, especially if you are active. you're still growing and you're at a very low weight already... why are you only eating 900, if i may ask?

900 is just what seems right. This might sound crazy, but until today (we broke up earlier) I had was in a relationship that had gone on way too long, and he was really controling, always wanting to know where i was and what i was doing, so by counting calories i found a balance of keeping control.. if that makes sense :S

900 fills me, but still feels like a challenge. I used to just eat what i wanted when i wanted, but now (since i got into the calorie-counting habit) i don't even know what im hungry or when to stop eating.

the control thing absolutley makes sense. you wanted to control something in your life and you chose food.

don't worry. you just need to develop new habits. try and be more consistent and make a plan. plan snacks that wont be too damaging when you feel you need to eat more. eat "mindfully", enjoy the food, turn off the t.v....really listen to your body. you will learn to know what it feels like to be hungry and full. give it time, it takes time to develop new habits. good luck. congrats on getting out of what sounds like a negative relationship.

That doesn't sound crazy... and it makes sense. I think you know it is not healthy though.

It might be a challenge mentally, but it is also a challenge for your body. 900 is not enough to sustain you (or anyone), let alone someone who is still growing. Your brain is a pretty calorie-hungry organ! :)
I can't compel you to eat, but I know there are plenty of other girls (and guys) around here going through the same thing who might be able to shed some more light on this than I can.

I don't know how to put this without it coming out 'wrong', but if you are scared of upping your cals or, like you said, finding it hard to tell hunger and satiation... maybe it's time to talk to someone.

Thanks for the advice, its really helpful.

Yeah, i feel like now we have sorted things out i wil be able to get back into old routines, its like i have got a massive weight off my shoulder. Now i can do what i like without worrying about what he will say i will be able to concerntrate on more satisfying things like going out with friends.

I think I'm going to aim for 1200 for the next week and try and keep consistent (keep control- even at weekends) and worry less about it all. I mean, i love food, i hate restricting myself. The thing on this site tells me i should eat 1900cals a day but that sounds crazily excessive and i think if i put weight on it would just make me feel terrible. I feel like my weight is healthy.

Well, aiming low and going slowly is the best thing you can do for your body in beginning. :)

You might need to increase it after that to a healthy level... Maybe try starting at 1200 and then increasing it 100 a week? There's no guarantees you won't gain a little weight in the beginning but once your metabolism adjusts you should be fine and you will be able to enjoy your food more without worrying.

I'm not used to writing those kind of posts, so I'm happy they didn't come off too negatively... I'm a little afraid of giving poor advice.

Good luck. :)

YO. 900 calories is NOT ENOUGH FOOD. sure its fine for a couple of weeks, but don't stay on this diet for too long or you're starving your body of nutrients. A normal woman needs 1200 calories to simply *function*.

You shouldn't be afraid, you have been REALLY helpful, thank you.

Yeah i'l give that a shot. I can always experiment and stuff. I had a bigger breakfast this morning and im going to have a proper dinner so that should get me to at least 1100. Only problem is filling the gap.. If i have one snack, i'l just get carried away. Mabye i'l have an extra jacket potato with my dinner or something.

I never thought there was anything wrong with 900 really, 900 calories is a lot considering I live on fruit. I'l be glad to eat more cals anyway, i love food.

Again, thank you.

That didn't work at all. When i don't restrict myself and try to fill the gap between 900 and 1200 i just got carried away and ended up having about 2000cals a day. I put on nearly 5 pounds in the space of a week. I'm back to 900 again.

I am not going to let my weight get too low though. I want to maintain at around 112lb, but if i cant maintain i figure i will do a week at 900 then a week with no limits beucase i just fail to get a balance.

Don't let yourself get down in the dumps because you failed once! You can't let yourself be deterred by failure...

900 calories seriously isn't enough... You've got to realize that you're STARVING yourself! I know if you can stop yourself at 900 calories, then surely you can stop at 1200!

If you ever need anyone to talk to about the problems you're going through, there are several people on CC that would love to listen and help you through a rough time (including myself)...

Here's a couple tips you can use to help yourself stop at 1200.. Whenever you get the urge to eat:

- Ask yourself if you're really hungry or if you're just craving food because of your emotions (Sad, Angry, Bored, etc)... Food isn't going to make you feel much better (You'll probably feel worse if you eat too many calories)

- Drink 2 glasses of water whenever you get hungry and it should help with your cravings...

There's several other things you can do... I've gotta run to class right now though... Please try again... You shouldn't ever have to feel like you can't do it... Impossible is nothing!

Jess, it may not have 'not worked'... You should look at it from another way.

You're pretty tall. I require 1600 to maintain WITHOUT exercise and 1800 with light exercise and I'm only 5'3"..

You say you are fairly active, perhaps 2000 is a good number for you! What do the tools say you need to maintain?

I know it sucks gaining in a short space, but trust me, your metabolism will get back to normal, then you will be able to eat 2000 on a regular basis without gaining. You will feel a lot better and stronger than only eating 900 and your metabolism will be fast so you can lose weight the healthy way. It's not likely those 5 pounds were pure fat either!

It will probably stop or help you to binge less as well, which is a results of you eating too little on a regular basis. Like hybrids said, if you can only eat 900, then you DO have control to eat 1200, then 1300, 1400... It's just a roadblock.

Also, like he said, I'm always free to listen. :)