Hi, I'm new to this board and would really appreciate some advice. Although I'm finding it hard to admit, I think I might be slipping into the clutches of anorexia. I've been cutting down on my food intake over the past year in an attempt to lose weight to the point where now I try to eat only salad and fruit. Although I hardly eat anything, I'm now not losing any weight, if anything I'm gaining, I think my body might have gone into starvation mode so anything I eat gets turned straight to fat. Is there anything I can do about this or do I just have to stop eating completely? I dont want to put any more weight on, it would make me feel so horrible. Please help

By not eating, you do exactly the opposite to your metobolic rate. It will slow down so everything you do consume will be stored because your body thinks you are living in Somalia. (J/K).

In order to get your metobolic rate up, you'll need to adopt a healthy eating regime and exercise. Don't exercise excessively though or you'll end up burnt out and will be back to the start point again. (that is ALWAYS my downfall!) I know that everyone says now that carbs are the *****, but you should probably try eating some (a little at first) to get up some energy to exercise.

Weight comes off in time. You just have to be patient w/ yourself (this is also one of my downfalls). Believe in yourself! You CAN do it! (((hugs)))

Please start eating http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/bang.gif

I am a "recovering" anorexic. Not eating will completely screw your system up. Once you slack on or stop eating your body goes into "storing" mode. Meaning everything you eat takes longer to digest because the body is rationing since it doesn't know when it's going to get it's next meal.
Once the body uses it's excess "stored" fat it starts feeding off of other things. Muscle. Your heart is a muscle. Calcium from bones, etc....
Not a good thing to go w/out food. It does a LOT more damage than good.
Eat a healthy breakfast. Breakfast is the kick starter for metabolism. It gives it a boost. Eat a decent sized lunch then go lighter on supper if you wish BUT don't skip meals. It will lower metabolism. If you exercise do it before you eat a meal.
Good luck and please don't mess your body up like I have mine. It's not fun.

Thanks for your replies and I do understand that not eating probably isnt right but every time I do eat, I just think about much weight I'm going to put on and how miserable I'll be afterwards. I know I should introduce exercise into my routine but right now I just dont seem to have the motivation. Its so boring and tiring, not eating is so much easier.

I have the same problem. I constantly feel guitly after I eat. I'm constantly battling with myself, trying to convince that I'm not gaining weight, this is good for me. Try to eat heathly little at a time. This way your body wouldnt be starving and you'll still be burning the fat throughout the day. Also, if you dont like exercise, try taking dance classes, like street funk, or modern jazz, or something as dynamic. Its fun and you dont feel the time fly by. You tone your body and keep the fat off.

Good luck!!

The worst thing you can do is stop eating completely..if anything, thats whats making your metabolism slow! Actually the more you eat, the better your metabolism gets..and eating meaning not JUST friuts and salads..but also a variety of food. jus eating salad isnt going to make you lose weight, you have to have a balanced diet. Dont make the mistake of not eating anything ever, its really bad for you! This happened to my friend...it makes your friends and family really hurt, and yourself...dont make that mistake!!!

ps...ever heard of Karen Carpenter?? http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif

Hey, I put on some weight when I stopped b/p. That was 7 months ago. I was 97 lbs when I stopped and I put on 13 lbs because I was depressed even though I was in recovery and I wasn't healthy enough to exercise too much.
I'm back to 97 again and kept it off through exercising, just 30 mins 3-4 times a week. Also, I eat small meals throughout the day. A little advice a dietician gave me was this:

Eat only one type of food at once. It's easier for your stomach to digest it and increase your metabolic rate, instead of eating many different carbs or proteins all at once.

Eg: For breakfast, just eat cereal and milk. Don't mix it with an egg or a fruit. One type of carb at once.
Or if you eat eggs, just eat eggs, not with toast. If you eat fruit, eat one type of fruit - if you eat an apple for breakfast and one is not enough, eat half of another apple, not a banana or orange etc.
If you have a slice bread, have only bread, not bread and oats or bread and a banana.
DO not mix fruits and veggies. They don't digest well together.

You can eat proteins with veggies, but not proteins and carbs. It's harder to digest that way and metabolism slows down. If you eat carbs, eat carbs alone. *of course do not binge on carbs. Try to eat one type of carb and not mix different carbs together.

Also, in the morning, maybe one or twice a week, for breakfast, eat only fruit. The body cleases itself in the morning and that's when all the bad stuff is trying to get out. You can have something normal for lunch.

In general, less bad carbs(white flour pdts, bleached flour pdts etc), more good carbs like brown rice, wholewheat breat/cereal, more veggies fruits and some lean protein shld do the trick.

Exercise is very impt. If you REST, you RUST.
Seriously. I don't wanna go all legally blonde on you girls but exercise really makes you feel better! lol
http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

What you don't realize is that you are screwing your metabolism up possibly for good by not eating. You brain thinks you are starving yourself as you probably are. The ONLY way to keep your metabolism up is to exercise and eat healthy and not as the previous person said because it is too ritualistic which is still part of this monster.

You say you have no motivation and it's easier to not eat but if that were true you would not have posted this. I have a feeling that one of the hardest things in your life is dealing with not eating and it's going to kill you if not make you very sick with little chance of full long term recovery.

I had anorexia then bulimia for over 20 years now and it has been a living --ll. I am much better now due to not letting it dictate my life. All this energy you are using to be thin won't matter because you want to be thin to be happy, well are you? I suspect you are very depressed and that is what the eating disorder is giving you, confusion, depression and isolation. Is that why you want to be thin?

The one and only thing that will help is to get a handle on the obsessive thinking about weight. Go get some therapy and live your life rather than DYING TO BE THIN. Trust me, 22 years with this has been anything but a picinic and I have wasted my entire life trying to be thin and it doesn't even matter anyway. I am not going to be thin but I sure am unhealthy and missed a lot of lifes real pleasures such as children and self confidence and peace to name a few. You may not realize but you could be ruining you chances at someday having children if you don't already have them. Even if you can have them do you want to pass this behaviour on to them?

Please, Please quit making this about food and realize you need some help for you. The food is only a symptom of the real problem. Care about yourself because others treat you the way you treat them and the only one who you really can rely on in life is you but if you do this you won't be a very good person to rely on.

Talk to someone other than on this site and get some counseling because you will never get over this as long as you focus is on food. This site is a good place to vent and get it out but not a substitute for professional help.

[This message has been edited by navy (edited 10-10-2003).]

i hope this doesnt come off as indulging your possible eating disorder but heres a suggestion. ONLY eat good foods. it is a proven fact that if you eat frequent small meals throughout the day your metabolism will be much higher than a person who eats one big meal a day or even a couple big meals a day. i would become much more nutrition concious and less weight obsessed. you can eat a huge fruit salad (no dressing of any kind).....some fat free/sugar free yogurt.......very lean meat.......grilled veggies, theres tons of stuff like this that will do your body good and keep you at a reasonable weight. if you look at a diet like this and STILL worry about gaining weight, you definatley need to get some help coping with eating disorders, because theres a line between being very health/weight concious and being so obsessed you actually think that eating a couple apples and some yogurt will make you fat.

Hi,
Thanks everyone for your advice. I thought I was doing pretty well, eating healthily for a couple of days and feeling better. Then I went home from uni for the weekend and have literally spent the last 3 days solidly stuffing my face with as much cereal and prridge as I could lay my hands on. I just kept eating more and more even though I wasnt hungry and really dont want it. It just felt that, because it was there for the taking I should have as much as I possibly could. Anyway I kept saying, I wont have any today but it just didnt happen and now I must have put on soooo much weight and feel really really fat and horrible. All I can think to do is not eat for the next few days to try and get rid of this fat, it just feels so horrible to have so much flab on my stomach, wht did I do it?

The suggestion about not eating more less often it true. You need to give your body something to burn off regularly or it will slow down no matter how well you feed it once or twice a day. The thing is it seems as if you still want to make this a weight issue. The problem is NOT weight, weight is a symptom and the sooner you understand that the sooner you will be on your way. It is critical you get some counseling because you are not capable of seeing this disease for what it is because IT is clouding your perception of life, food and whatever else you think about. I know it feels like you are out of control and you are. Right now the food is controling you not the other way around and I know that is not what you set out to do. You need to get help and take the focus off food and on to your feelings. Figure them out and learn to express them and the need for the food will slowly deminish.