Hello, new to the forums but not new to nutrition/macros/calories, and was hoping someone would be able to help me out with a somewhat complicated issue surrounding my caloric needs- I am a 20 year old female, and according to my fitbit (even though it seems like it overestimates calories burned during workouts, but whatever), my tdee usually ends up being around 1700 calories, and on a particularly active day it will be 2000 calories.
As a child and teen, I was not fed enough at home, and as a result I was seriously underweight- I'm talking like borderline undernourished. By the time I got to 18 years old, I was 5'8" and only weighed 98 lbs. I have worked hard to put some weight on in a healthy way by upping my calorie intake with lots of nutritious and healthy food, eating more protein, doing more intense workouts to build muscle mass, and generally being active where I can (i.e. walking to the grocery store if it is only 20 minutes away instead of driving). Now I am 110 lbs which is still underweight! But I feel a lot better physically than I used to as a teen.
The problem is, I am so insanely hungry all the time! My lunch on Sunday was 1800 calories and lasted 3 hours- it felt like a ten course meal, I just kept going back to the kitchen after finishing one thing because I was still hungry, even though my stomach was full. I couldn't stop, I just felt ravenous! Keep in mind I am not eating junk food- this is 1800 calories of rice, steamed potatoes, vegetables, whole grain sandwiches, chicken breast, pork roast, tinned sardines, avocado, chia seeds, nuts, etc.. And ever since my circumstances permitted me to eat more, I have been overeating ever since.
It's like my body has gone haywire after 10+ years of not getting enough nourishment, and is now eating everything in sight. I have tried EVERYTHING to relearn hunger/fullness cues but NONE of it has worked! I tried eating higher fat, eating higher protein, drinking more water, drinking more coffee, chewing slower, eating mindfully, but I still just keep eating uncontrollably EVEN WHEN I am already full.
This isn't a matter of being undisciplined and giving into my desires for extra helpings of mac and cheese or an extra candy bar- I literally cannot stop thinking about food 24/7 and if I don't eat to the point where I am stuffed, it's like my brain is in a feeding frenzy and I can't focus on anything else, work included. Keeping in mind that this "feeding frenzy" state persists even when I have already eaten past the point of fullness. When I am in this state, I am unable to think logically or rationally- I just eat everything in my kitchen and keep making more food and it has become so problematic. I have no idea how to stop because even if I tell myself "no", I am literally in this animal-like state of mind where I just automatically raid my kitchen and shove as much food as possible into my stomach. Even if I portion out a 600 calorie meal, I will still be starving after finishing it and need to get more food- otherwise I will be unable to focus on anything else for the day, like a deranged starved animal with like, rabies or something. My productivity has greatly suffered because of this.
Don't get me wrong- I want to continue bulking up- but I DON'T want to do it by eating 3000-4000 calories a day, I want to eat at either maintenance or a consistent 500 calorie surplus so that I don't feel like absolute crap every single day from overeating uncontrollably. I also am accumulating more abdominal fat than I would like and would like to cut a bit (500 calorie deficit) before continuing to bulk. There have been times where I have been able to stop eating at maintenance, but they are pretty infrequent. This overeating issue has been going on for almost 2 years now.
So herein I have the following questions/problems:
1. Is this physical hunger or mental hunger? Have my caloric needs or metabolism genuinely increased, or are my brain's hormones just going crazy because it wants me to stock up for the next "famine" (even though there will be no famine!)? As a disclaimer, I do not have an eating disorder, nor have I ever had an eating disorder. I was just underfed as a child due to circumstances out of my control and I was only able to start eating more again at the age of 18. Having said this, I have heard that "refeeding" is a huge phenomenon for recovering anorexics, wherein their metabolisms speed up a lot- if anyone is familiar with the subject. While I am not anorexic, I am wondering if this is the same physiological phenomenon that I am experiencing? In that after a prolonged period of undernourishment, my body is re-adapting to the availability of food? However my metabolism does not appear to have sped up to the point where I am losing weight- I have been up 10 lbs in 2 years. My main concern is that since my circumstance is so unique, I do not really trust any tdee calculator or fitbit to tell me what my maintenance calories actually are because I have no idea how my metabolism has been affected by all this mess, considering what I know about the issue of "refeeding" for patients recovering from eating disorders. I'm inclined to say that it's a possibility that my metabolism has sped up, but I do not want to overeat and gain fat because I want to achieve a more muscular, lower bf% look. I already have 1 inch more abdominal fat than I used to. So I am not sure if my hunger is actual physical hunger (caloric needs have genuinely increased) or mental hunger (brain wants me to gain fat to protect me for the next famine).
2. Should I ride this out and continue eating 3000-4000 calories every day until my body naturally tells me not to? I have tried the approach of bringing my intake down by 100 calories until I get to my desired intake amount, but I eat so uncontrollably that I am unable to stick to any plan at all. My daily intake fluctuates a lot as well. I don't want this to last 6+ months because I know if I keep eating like this I'm going to gain too much fat because I do not have the time to lift/work out as much as I would need to in order to burn off this huge surplus. I really don't want to ride this out and really would like to begin a cut but as stated I cannot stop eating :(
3. And finallyyyy, how can I eat less??? In addition to gaining more fat than is desirable, I also feel groggy and tired all the time from overeating, probably because my digestive system probably cannot handle all this food at once. This has really started to become an issue the last few months and I need to be a functional, productive human being again.
I have been sleeping 6-8 hours and would say my stress level is moderate? Nothing too out of the ordinary for a 20 year old working hard at work/school. I don't drink caffeine on the reg. I wouldn't say my cortisol levels are sky-high so I wouldn't say my overeating is stress related. Although stress probably does contribute a bit to my overeating, I can't say that the stress from my daily life is the sole reason I'm eating 3000-4000 calories a day. I am an underweight woman.. lol. I'm frankly surprised my stomach hasn't ripped open at this point.. oof.
If anyone can help in any way that would be greatly appreciated!! I don't know who to turn to, nobody is taking me seriously on this because I am technically still underweight and should be gaining weight, but I just want to bulk up in a more controlled way. This overeating is not healthy even though I eat very clean and enjoy sweets only in moderation and on special occasions. My non-stop eating is causing me a lot of discomfort in my everyday life- I don't know what to do anymore because I have tried everything I know and none of it has worked.
As a child and teen, I was not fed enough at home, and as a result I was seriously underweight- I'm talking like borderline undernourished. By the time I got to 18 years old, I was 5'8" and only weighed 98 lbs. I have worked hard to put some weight on in a healthy way by upping my calorie intake with lots of nutritious and healthy food, eating more protein, doing more intense workouts to build muscle mass, and generally being active where I can (i.e. walking to the grocery store if it is only 20 minutes away instead of driving). Now I am 110 lbs which is still underweight! But I feel a lot better physically than I used to as a teen.
The problem is, I am so insanely hungry all the time! My lunch on Sunday was 1800 calories and lasted 3 hours- it felt like a ten course meal, I just kept going back to the kitchen after finishing one thing because I was still hungry, even though my stomach was full. I couldn't stop, I just felt ravenous! Keep in mind I am not eating junk food- this is 1800 calories of rice, steamed potatoes, vegetables, whole grain sandwiches, chicken breast, pork roast, tinned sardines, avocado, chia seeds, nuts, etc.. And ever since my circumstances permitted me to eat more, I have been overeating ever since.
It's like my body has gone haywire after 10+ years of not getting enough nourishment, and is now eating everything in sight. I have tried EVERYTHING to relearn hunger/fullness cues but NONE of it has worked! I tried eating higher fat, eating higher protein, drinking more water, drinking more coffee, chewing slower, eating mindfully, but I still just keep eating uncontrollably EVEN WHEN I am already full.
This isn't a matter of being undisciplined and giving into my desires for extra helpings of mac and cheese or an extra candy bar- I literally cannot stop thinking about food 24/7 and if I don't eat to the point where I am stuffed, it's like my brain is in a feeding frenzy and I can't focus on anything else, work included. Keeping in mind that this "feeding frenzy" state persists even when I have already eaten past the point of fullness. When I am in this state, I am unable to think logically or rationally- I just eat everything in my kitchen and keep making more food and it has become so problematic. I have no idea how to stop because even if I tell myself "no", I am literally in this animal-like state of mind where I just automatically raid my kitchen and shove as much food as possible into my stomach. Even if I portion out a 600 calorie meal, I will still be starving after finishing it and need to get more food- otherwise I will be unable to focus on anything else for the day, like a deranged starved animal with like, rabies or something. My productivity has greatly suffered because of this.
Don't get me wrong- I want to continue bulking up- but I DON'T want to do it by eating 3000-4000 calories a day, I want to eat at either maintenance or a consistent 500 calorie surplus so that I don't feel like absolute crap every single day from overeating uncontrollably. I also am accumulating more abdominal fat than I would like and would like to cut a bit (500 calorie deficit) before continuing to bulk. There have been times where I have been able to stop eating at maintenance, but they are pretty infrequent. This overeating issue has been going on for almost 2 years now.
So herein I have the following questions/problems:
1. Is this physical hunger or mental hunger? Have my caloric needs or metabolism genuinely increased, or are my brain's hormones just going crazy because it wants me to stock up for the next "famine" (even though there will be no famine!)? As a disclaimer, I do not have an eating disorder, nor have I ever had an eating disorder. I was just underfed as a child due to circumstances out of my control and I was only able to start eating more again at the age of 18. Having said this, I have heard that "refeeding" is a huge phenomenon for recovering anorexics, wherein their metabolisms speed up a lot- if anyone is familiar with the subject. While I am not anorexic, I am wondering if this is the same physiological phenomenon that I am experiencing? In that after a prolonged period of undernourishment, my body is re-adapting to the availability of food? However my metabolism does not appear to have sped up to the point where I am losing weight- I have been up 10 lbs in 2 years. My main concern is that since my circumstance is so unique, I do not really trust any tdee calculator or fitbit to tell me what my maintenance calories actually are because I have no idea how my metabolism has been affected by all this mess, considering what I know about the issue of "refeeding" for patients recovering from eating disorders. I'm inclined to say that it's a possibility that my metabolism has sped up, but I do not want to overeat and gain fat because I want to achieve a more muscular, lower bf% look. I already have 1 inch more abdominal fat than I used to. So I am not sure if my hunger is actual physical hunger (caloric needs have genuinely increased) or mental hunger (brain wants me to gain fat to protect me for the next famine).
2. Should I ride this out and continue eating 3000-4000 calories every day until my body naturally tells me not to? I have tried the approach of bringing my intake down by 100 calories until I get to my desired intake amount, but I eat so uncontrollably that I am unable to stick to any plan at all. My daily intake fluctuates a lot as well. I don't want this to last 6+ months because I know if I keep eating like this I'm going to gain too much fat because I do not have the time to lift/work out as much as I would need to in order to burn off this huge surplus. I really don't want to ride this out and really would like to begin a cut but as stated I cannot stop eating :(
3. And finallyyyy, how can I eat less??? In addition to gaining more fat than is desirable, I also feel groggy and tired all the time from overeating, probably because my digestive system probably cannot handle all this food at once. This has really started to become an issue the last few months and I need to be a functional, productive human being again.
I have been sleeping 6-8 hours and would say my stress level is moderate? Nothing too out of the ordinary for a 20 year old working hard at work/school. I don't drink caffeine on the reg. I wouldn't say my cortisol levels are sky-high so I wouldn't say my overeating is stress related. Although stress probably does contribute a bit to my overeating, I can't say that the stress from my daily life is the sole reason I'm eating 3000-4000 calories a day. I am an underweight woman.. lol. I'm frankly surprised my stomach hasn't ripped open at this point.. oof.
If anyone can help in any way that would be greatly appreciated!! I don't know who to turn to, nobody is taking me seriously on this because I am technically still underweight and should be gaining weight, but I just want to bulk up in a more controlled way. This overeating is not healthy even though I eat very clean and enjoy sweets only in moderation and on special occasions. My non-stop eating is causing me a lot of discomfort in my everyday life- I don't know what to do anymore because I have tried everything I know and none of it has worked.
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