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13 yrs old!!! I need help with my caloric intake.Noone can seem to answer my quetion right.

Ok just so you know i have an eating disorder.I am 13.5ft 3in. 82lbs my activity is very sedentary.

The lest recomended amount of calories for a women is 1200 but wouldn't that be kind of different for me because i am very inactive,my metabolism is very slow and i don't have very much muscule.I just wanted to know???

What would my BMR be? How many calories i should have to maintain my current weight??? Aaaaand....

If i go from eating 200calories one day the the next day be 300 the next be 400 till i get to 1100 would my messed up metabolism normalize because it will get used to that caloric intake till my metabolism gets faster.

Oh an one more quetion....if your body is in (slow metabolism) storage mode and you start going from 100-200calories to say like 500 calories and your bmr is around maby 700 will you burn those calories instead of putting on more weight or will you simply gain all the calories you eat??????/

If you're 13, now is the perfect time to learn how to do a bit of research for yourself.  Check out the stickied forum posts in the Young Calorie Counter's forum for information pertinent to your age range.  Check out the stickied post at the top of the Health & Support Forum for information about Eating Disorders.  Check out the stickied posts at the top of the Weight Gainer's forum for information on how to gain weight and ramp up your calories.

1200 calories is a minimal target for an adult woman, not a 13 year old.  Under 21, you add 300 calories for internal development which the body will do given adequate resources.  Also any exercise you get has a higher calorie burn.  1500 would be the recommendation to lose weight.  You're not trying to lose weight are you?

You say that you've got an eating disorder.  Do you have a recovery team?  Have you seen a doctor or a nutritionist regarding your disordered eating?  Are you actively working on recovering?

Use the tools from the YCC stickied post to find out your BMR.

As far as eating enough goes, you may need to get yourself checked into a clinic.  There's something called refeeding syndrome which can be a bit of a problem, but at the same time continuing to undereat will continue to do damage.  Have you asked your parents?  Do you have any support in the form of counselors, friends, clergy members that you can work through your questions with?

Your BMR is not 700, trust me on this one.  Once you start eating enough calories you may find that you inadvertently lose weight as your body starts functioning properly.  Typically those trying to recover from eating disorders will eat 2500-3000 calories and still have a hard time keeping their weight on.  As you continue to eat enough your body will put on some weight and then work on redistributing it over time.

You are trying to apply adult rules to a young, growing body - you are not a full grown woman that only needs 1200 calories. Most adult women need more than that to exist anyway. It doesn't matter how sedentary you are right now, your metabolism is still at a high rate. You need calories for your body to grow, at your current weight, you should not be restricting yourself to so few calories per day. If your body does not get enough calories you are not going to have a fully developed brain, bones and other body tissues. You risk having many diseases at a young age, not to mention infertility issues. If at all possible, you need to talk to a doctor, your school nurse or a dietician that can help you work through the issues that you are having. You can have a normal relationship with food and not worry about becoming overweight.

I am very inactive due to the disorder and have a EXTREAMLY SLOW metabolism how do i make it fater so i don't gain like 6lbs in a week.

You NEED to gain weight.

You are obviously not under the care of a doctor.  You need to be.  You will not find the answer you want here, as the answer you want would be unhealthy and unsafe.

Well, what kind of answer are you looking for that you will consider right?  Seems like everyone is trying to help you.  We don't always get the answers we want to hear, but maybe you should take a second or third look at what is being posted for you, since you asked for help. 

Original Post by shiorey:

Oh an one more quetion....if your body is in (slow metabolism) storage mode and you start going from 100-200calories to say like 500 calories and your bmr is around maby 700 will you burn those calories instead of putting on more weight or will you simply gain all the calories you eat??????/

What will happen is you will burn muscle to provide glycogen to burn.  The fat can't turn into glycogen, so it will stay.  Not that you could possibly have an ounce of fat on your too thin body.  Remember, your heart is a muscle and you can damage it by undereating.  Here's how Ask Mary explains it. 

Answer The body burns muscle to meet the needs of the central nervous system.  That system, which accounts for at least 20% of calories burned, can only burn glucose, a carbohydrate  The body doesn't really store glucose, but protein, from the muscles, organs tissues, and cells, can turn into glucose, while fat cannot.  Protein breakdown continues until the metabolic rate shifts to burn fewer calories from all sources.  That shift is familiarly called "starvation mode" and it is a life-sustaining adaptation. To forestall starvation mode, lose weight slowly, do muscle building exercise to offset muscle loss, and eat about 20% of your calories from protein.

You are not in "starvation mode."  You are literally starving.  Please let us know how you're doing. 

Have you seen a doctor a nutritionist a counselor?

You need help.  Eating disorders are extremely tricky and can frequently have additional medical complications.  This site cannot support your habits of undereating.

Read about eating disorders and you'll find that much of the initial weight gain which you must go through is water.  You cannot eat enough to actually gain 6 lbs in one week.  The weight that will show on the scale is not fat on your body.  It is water and unprocessed food.  The quickest way to speed up your metabolism is to eat enough, but given your low weight I think you need to seek medical assistance to help you with this as soon as possible.

There is no way that on so few calories you are fuelling your body with what it needs. The minimum intake for a sedentary female under 21 is 1500 per day. And believe it or not, that’s only the sedentary minimum. Unless you are very, very short and small, and/or if you are working out it is very likely you will need even more calories than those minimum guidelines.

But as you are underweight, you need to gain weight. To do so you need to be eating at least 2500 calories sedentary to gain steadily and keep the weight on. If you begin to work out you will need to eat more. For more info on this read here: The Aim is to Gain: Advice on Weight Gain, Whatever Your Reason

Eating too low a calorie intake, or having a deficit from your BMR greater than 1000 results in something called "survival 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.

Your BMI makes you underweight. The physical dangers that come with undereating and being underweight 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 as you are aware of, and you need to talk to your doctor about even if just to hear a professional opinion on top of CC. Calorie Count is not a substitute for a medical professional. Furthermore, undereating at your age will stunt your growth in later life. It can make you infertile, damage you organs, cause osteoporosis in youth and prevent full growth.

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 for that that means you need to talk to your doctor. 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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