If you have only been eating 500 calories a day or less and have lost weight how do you start eating again normally without gaining weight?

Answer 1

CMartin Thanks so much for that added info you added onto the post. Great read! Marcy A human being shouldn't go lower than 1200 calories a day! You are basically starving your body, and actually your body will begin to feed off itself. Ping pong dieting is linked to cancer and other diseases, so be warned! First off, you have to be happy inside yourself before going on any diet. If you are unhappy then you are extremely critical of your looks and sometimes we can blame our weaker points on what we look like ... pretty, nice figure or a guy that feels he isn't good looking and isn't muscular or tall enough. If you have everything right in spirit and mind, then the rest becomes easier. Since you have been literally starving yourself, it's best to start out introducing your foods very carefully. Steamed chicken and rice for dinner and carrots (no gassy vegetables such a broccoli, beans, etc. stay away from acidic things that pasta sauces, Orange Juice, citrus juices, alcohol, chocolate or any unnecessary sweets, etc.) Eat more often during the day (but, smaller meals.) No lettuce! Replace it with baby spinach leaves (tastes great and is better for you!) Don't introduce red meats into your digestive tract until you are eating better. Red meats are hard to digest. Chicken, turkey, a LITTLE ham and fish. Pita pockets are excellent and you could put sliced steamed chicken in it, mixed with celery, a tiny bit of chives, thinly sliced spinach leaves, celery, mayo and a little salt and pepper if you like (or even a little garlic salt or some Ranch dressing.) Have Sandwiches with soup. Eat 1/2 banana at breakfast (good potassium) and the other half at lunch. Stay away from apples for now (hard to digest) and try grapes, papaya (good for the stomach)and any sweet fruits such as cherries and watermelon or any of the melon family. Strawberries are acidic! Slowly introduce some grains into your diet (good for the digestive tract and bowel) as is at least 8 glasses of water a day. Use virgin olive oil and just a bit of butter now and then. Keep your salt intake low, but do use some salt (also good for your body to a degree.) Fruits, vegetables and poultry. Stay away from eggs right now as they can be gassy and give you cramps (these other foods I told you not to use can be introduced at a later date.) Your family doctor doesn't have the time to study nutrition so it's up to you to find a source. Go online and find a good balanced diet. Again I repeat: WHEATS, LEGUMES (BEANS), VEGGIES, FRUITS, FISH, POULTRY, RICE (ONLY HAVE POTATOES EVERY OTHER NIGHT ... IT'S WHAT YOU PUT ON THEM THAT PUTS THE WEIGHT ON) WATER. Get rid of any junk food you may have around the house and substitute these for fresh, sliced veggies with a nice low fat Ranch dressing dip. LAYS puts out a no-fat chip now and it's all natural. Drink water!!!!! Keep your dairy intake down because many people have Allergies to dairy products these days. Less is best, but you should have skim to 2% milk on cereal, etc. Vitamin supplements are a good thing, but get on a steady diet and become stronger first. Some vitamins can cause stomach cramps and make a person not feel all that well if they haven't been eating properly. You can also go to a Homeopathic doctor that will help you with your diet, or ask your doctor to send you to a good nutritionist. Stop the yo-yo dieting! If you pace your eating, eat all the right things in moderation and drink plenty of water and exercise (even brisk walks or jogging or biking) you will keep your weight down. When you go below 1200 calories you are starving yourself and you will only end up gaining more weight back (more than you weighed before.) If you listen to the nutritionist you won't gain the weight back, but be a good body weight. Good luck Marcy Additional information. Read the above answer as it is so informative. Exactly how much you will need to neither gain nor lose more is not known exactly at this time because you have put your body in starvation mode, where your metabolism has greatly decreased to assure your survival. As you begin to eat and exercise normally your metabolism will increase and you will burn more calories. The rate at which you burn calories at rest or your resting metabolic rate (RMR) can be determined scientifically using an MedGem device by a dietician or otherwise estimated and then given your activity leval a calorie number calculated to stay basically the same (for example +/- 5 pounds). You weigh the most at the end of the day and the least in the morning. Don't get hung up on small fluctuations (+/- 5 lbs.) as this is normal and can depend on things like salt and fluid intake, menstrual cycle, etc. By increasing your activity leval while starting a health promoting diet, you can kind of trick your body back up sooner to a normal metabolic rate, from its greatly lowered starvation mode and thereby burn more calories.