How do you go about upping your calories but making sure you don't gain much weight?

So here's the deal.. I'm not in my ideal shape at the moment. I probably weigh about 110 (i haven't weighed myself in 2 weeks). But it's less about the # right now than it is the way my body actually looks. I can tell my middle is bigger and not so sexy anymore. :P

But my daily goal is usually 1200 calories. I probably hit 1200 about 5 days a week, and 13-1400 2 days. Lately I've been having mini-binges, where I sit down to eat, and end up needing more and more till im at 500-600 calories for that one "meal". (which was originally supposed to be healthy.)

So I'm guessing this is my body's way of telling me it's not getting enough nutrients? Its feels compulsory. It feels like I desperately need to shove my mouth full of whatever it is im eating and more. Is it my body telling me it needs more food? Or am I just losing my self control?

And if I do need to eat more, how do I get into the shape I want to, or not gain much weight, while doing it? I typically gain weight when I eat 1600.

Anyone have experience with this? Should I just try and eat 1600 and workout for the extra calories I want to consume? Like, eat 1600, burn off 300.

I'm just not sure how to go about making my body feel satisfied and get in better shape too. Darn.

There are a few things going on.  First... 110lbs (7st 12lbs) means you have a BMI of 20 which is about as light as you want to go.  You may have been lighter in the past but then you were a child and now you are a woman.   Between 20 and 25 is a normal healthy weight for an adult woman and yet you're trying to lose weight....  A sedentary 18 year-old of a healthy weight needs 1800 cals minimum.  So your body is starving & craving energy  and making you eat more normally... what you call a 'binge' is what most people would call a normal-sized meal.  

Second... persistent undereating will affect your shape & health negatively because once your fat stores are gone, your body will derive energy from your muscles and organs.  This results in quite a flabby effect.  Plus, if your food choices are poor nutritionally, you may find that is exaggerated by fluid retention.  Persistent undereating will also result in occasional overeating.   Finally, if you gain weight on 1600 what that means is that your metabolism is running extremely slowly.  That happens due to being too inactive and/or not eating enough.

So to break out of this vicious circle you ned to reset the bar.

• Eat more food.... 1900 cals a day every day for the next two or three weeks.  This is to get your metabolism running at full speed, give your body more energy to work with, reduce the chance of unplanned overeating & increase the chance of you getting good nutrition.  You will gain some weight  - that's just the downside of perpetual dieting.
• Eat better food..... focus on getting a good selection of wholefoods e.g. vegetables, wholegrains, lean meat/fish, beans, fats... and 20% of your diet from 'fun foods' like chocolate and french fries.  Wholefoods are more satisfying, more nutritious and more sustaining.
• Eat regularly.... plan your day out and make time for regular meals and snacks.  Skipping meals doesn't make weight-control any easier.
• Take regular exercise..... Strength/resistance exercises will help you increase your muscle tone but only if you get sufficient calories

Hope that helps.

There is no way of upping your calories withing seeing a fluctuation on the scales. I'd also say you should be aiming more for 2000, personally, but 1900-2000 would work. And that's NET. If you eat 1900 but burn off 300 your body will still respond as if starved; you need to be eating 1900 minimum and if you work out and burn off 300 to eat that 300 back.

The minimum intake for a sedentary female under 21 is 1500 per day. As you are under 21, CC's tools are inaccurate and you should use this calculator instead: http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html as you are still growing. Yes, even in the later years - there's more going on inside of you that you simply can't see.

Your persistent undereating will have resulted in something called "survival" or "starvation mode", where your body holds every last thing it can get in expectance of a famine. Water, food, calories. Explained:

• Dieting & Metabolism - This article explains starvation mode and why undereating is counter productive.
• The Body Neglected - This is what happens when you undereat for an extended period of time. 
• "Obesity on 700 Calories" - A tale of starvation mode's devistating effects, and proof you don't have to be underweight to be starving.
• From Ask Mary, the segment provided by our CC nutritionist Mary Hartley: On the dangers of undereating and what it does to your body.

The physical dangers that come with undereating are numerous. You put yourself at risk of osteoporosis, of loss of fertility if you lose your period, hair loss, electrolyte problems, a weakening of the immune system, low blood pressure, blood disorders such as anemia, heart problems, and even death. The mental woes that come alongside can be just as devestating. Depression is common in undereaters, as well as distorted perceptions and problems like Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

You are describing a disordered eating pattern even if you claim otherwise and this is something you need to talk to your doctor about even if just to hear a professional opinion on top of CC. You are at a healthy weight so you do not need to lose anything, and if you gained a little it would not hurt either. If you want to be in better shape, that means eating right, working on muscle building and not weight loss, and loving you for what you've got. "Shape" doesn't always have to mean the shape of your body but the shape of your mind as well. Think about it - your health or your vanity?

Listen to the advice Jane has given you, that is above, and go and talk to your doctor.

If you want some online support try http://www.something-fishy.org, and take a look through CC's Eating Disorders Health, Resources and Info Thread. But your most immediate concern is your health - and that means to listen to the advice Jane has given you, to the advice that is above, and go and talk to your doctor as your mentality should be your priority.

But know this: Calorie Count's mission is to promote healthy and sustainable weight management and if you are not seeking to manage your weight healthily we cannot and will not help you.

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It looks like you're covered, but I'd just like to add that your overall result will be much much nicer if you eat more calories and burn off a certain amount than if you just eat a certain (lower) amount.  Muscle tone, body hardness etc.