Metabolism crashed?

[Chali12]

Sorry I work like 40+ hrs a week didn't see this sooner I barely get online at all anymore, no need to be a jerk.
No, I'm not 140, I'm 130.
I *used* to be 115lbs a year ago ("I used to be leaner") and maintained for a while (working out only 1ce/day and eating 1,800-2,000 calories/day), had a nasty hip injury and couldn't walk for almost a year (dropped calories to 1500-1600 and kept lifting weights). Weight went to 130lbs. I dropped to 125lbs, but it was almost impossible to maintain without eating only 800kcal/day PLUS training 2-3hrs/day AND having a physically active job (which I have now).
I hired a guy to do my diet for me, a "professional". I believe I explained this above already. He had me on 1,300kcal, while I was still working out 2ce/day. My weight went up from 125 to 140 in 1.5weeks. 5lbs of water dropped off, I worked my ass off to lose the next 5lbs to be at 130. I've been stuck there ever since, despite having dropped calories to 800/day (this time my weight did not go down to 125 again, it's stuck at 130), and tried training only 1ce per day (for 1 week, no weight change) and tried again 2ce/day and again no weight change.

Also, my intent is *NOT* to increase calories for an extended period. I'm really wondering if I should just get over my issue with cheating and have a cheat meal/day, not the "healthy carb-ups" I normally do (which never exceeds 130g of carbs...and that's rare beyond rare. Really almost never goes over 100g carbs). And, if I do have a cheat meal, how long until my metabolism revs back up? Will it take one cheat, or two? Spaced about a week apart, of course.

[FrosteaTT]

This is gonna sound weird ... but i had a similar issue.

Now, i cant tell from your avatar wat ethnic race you are, but i'm asian, and apparently the story goes like this:

I was walking around for 8 months eating 2 meals a day, averaging 1000 - 1200 calories a day. I was working out just normal, and feeling fine, maybe a lil tired from waking up early and not getting enough sleep. I know i was calculating my cal intake accurately becuz i was eating only 2 meals, thats it, no coffee, no juice no watever in between. Well, some ppl told me i should go to the doctor and check to see if im okie, so i did. The doc said im perfectly fine, maybe a lil high on blood pressure due to some sodium intake from the viet food.

Long story short, i went to a physical trainer and asked his advice, and showed him my meals intake. He was not surprised and said he had a few "asian clients" that came in with rite around the same cal intake 1000 - 1400. Him and other trainers there hypothesized that asian bodies have the capability to function "efficiently" at much much lower maintenance level. I dont know any truths behind this claim, but im sure my grandparents from china or vietnam or wherever else they fu@king worked on the paddy field, didnt have much food to eat, yet worked their a$$es off, that im sure.

So ... i dont know if this is applicable to you, but maybe in ur case, if ur not losing weight, ur eating too much!!! After all, the suggested maintenance level is just that, "suggested" ... maybe ur body is more efficient at daily function and only requires ... say 600-800 cals??? haha

[Chali12]

This is gonna sound weird ... but i had a similar issue.

Now, i cant tell from your avatar wat ethnic race you are, but i'm asian, and apparently the story goes like this:

I was walking around for 8 months eating 2 meals a day, averaging 1000 - 1200 calories a day. I was working out just normal, and feeling fine, maybe a lil tired from waking up early and not getting enough sleep. I know i was calculating my cal intake accurately becuz i was eating only 2 meals, thats it, no coffee, no juice no watever in between. Well, some ppl told me i should go to the doctor and check to see if im okie, so i did. The doc said im perfectly fine, maybe a lil high on blood pressure due to some sodium intake from the viet food.

Long story short, i went to a physical trainer and asked his advice, and showed him my meals intake. He was not surprised and said he had a few "asian clients" that came in with rite around the same cal intake 1000 - 1400. Him and other trainers there hypothesized that asian bodies have the capability to function "efficiently" at much much lower maintenance level. I dont know any truths behind this claim, but im sure my grandparents from china or vietnam or wherever else they fu@king worked on the paddy field, didnt have much food to eat, yet worked their a$$es off, that im sure.

So ... i dont know if this is applicable to you, but maybe in ur case, if ur not losing weight, ur eating too much!!! After all, the suggested maintenance level is just that, "suggested" ... maybe ur body is more efficient at daily function and only requires ... say 600-800 cals??? haha

Lol I'm white, but I'm glad I look tan in the pic LOL I'm like casper's twin (tanning lately tho)
Anyway yeah, I was thinking my metab. crashed bc I used to be able to maintain 115lbs at 2,000kcal/day, and now can't drop below 130 on 800/day. My body is defidently good at running on very, very low calories. It sucks. :/

[dirtbikegal]

Hi there. Before you try to live on 800 calories a day please listen to these few things. I have had 3 completely different endocrine issues which makes it impossible to lose weight and infact will make you gain weight no matter what you do. There were several things you have mentioned that clearly stand out to me since Ive experienced this and trying to lose weight is a nightmare! #1 you have low body temp *not normal. #2 you are tired all the time....could be hormonal or due to the fact you are barely eating anything. #3 you are not losing weight with diet and exercise.

I had cushings disease and had brain surgery to remove tumor see this:
.mayoclinic.com/health/cushings-syndrome/DS00470/DSECTION=symptoms

PCOS, now that Ive lost all of the weight cushings caused me to gain(80lbs), I am left with higher than normal levels of testosterone which creates sensetivity to insulin hence insulin resistance.

And I still have thyroid disease. I do not make enough thyroid hormone due to my brain surgery and my thyroid tissue attacking itself thus causing hashimotos. This is VERY common in woman. It will cause you body temp to be low, you will feel sluggish, you may lose more than normal hair, you may retain water, ect. You should have a Free T3, Free T4 and TSH blood test done to determine if you are hypothyroid.
mayoclinic.com/health/hashimotos-disease/DS00567/DSECTION=symptoms

*The good part are these can be corrected with medication. Now with diet and exercise I can see the rewards to my hard work. Wishing you the best!

[th3pwn3r]

Hi there. Before you try to live on 800 calories a day please listen to these few things. I have had 3 completely different endocrine issues which makes it impossible to lose weight and infact will make you gain weight no matter what you do. There were several things you have mentioned that clearly stand out to me since Ive experienced this and trying to lose weight is a nightmare! #1 you have low body temp *not normal. #2 you are tired all the time....could be hormonal or due to the fact you are barely eating anything. #3 you are not losing weight with diet and exercise.

I had cushings disease and had brain surgery to remove tumor see this:
.mayoclinic.com/health/cushings-syndrome/DS00470/DSECTION=symptoms

PCOS, now that Ive lost all of the weight cushings caused me to gain(80lbs), I am left with higher than normal levels of testosterone which creates sensetivity to insulin hence insulin resistance.

And I still have thyroid disease. I do not make enough thyroid hormone due to my brain surgery and my thyroid tissue attacking itself thus causing hashimotos. This is VERY common in woman. It will cause you body temp to be low, you will feel sluggish, you may lose more than normal hair, you may retain water, ect. You should have a Free T3, Free T4 and TSH blood test done to determine if you are hypothyroid.
mayoclinic.com/health/hashimotos-disease/DS00567/DSECTION=symptoms

*The good part are these can be corrected with medication. Now with diet and exercise I can see the rewards to my hard work. Wishing you the best!

So it was virtually impossible for you to create a caloric deficit no matter what? This is something I find very interesting and it's something I've never once heard about. Now if this is the case you could theoretically survive without caloric intake forever. Seems cool.

[dirtbikegal]

So it was virtually impossible for you to create a caloric deficit no matter what? This is something I find very interesting and it's something I've never once heard about. Now if this is the case you could theoretically survive without caloric intake forever. Seems cool.

I was always a athletic 155 at 5'10. I worked out at the gym with a personal trainer 4-5 days a week and followed a strict 1400-1500 low carb diet. One day I started gaining weight. I didnt think anything of it until it wouldnt go away. Then another 10lbs and another....adding up over a period of months. I actually had one night that I gained 10lbs...overnight. Now granted alot of that was water weight, but still. Anyway I kept dieting and working out. In about a year I gained 80lbs. I never tried not eating as that didnt see at all logical, I did follow the low calorie for months while this was happening with no help. Finally I gave up. 8yrs later, the docs finally figure it out. Alot of weight trainers understand how bad high cortisol can be for cutting. Well, try living with 2-4x the normal levels for 8yrs.....it was ugly. Interesting for some but not so cool for me....lol. Cushings is also known as the ugly disease due to what it does to your body.

Side note, probably not at all what you have. I personally think low thyroid is causing your issues with not losing. Especially the low body temp.

[Chali12]

So it was virtually impossible for you to create a caloric deficit no matter what? This is something I find very interesting and it's something I've never once heard about. Now if this is the case you could theoretically survive without caloric intake forever. Seems cool.

Lol...wow. Even I've heard of these kinds of issues.
It's not that you *can't* create the defiect, it's that your body hoards it's weight so no matter what, you won't lose.

[justanothagirl]

i was at a plateau as well at 2 cardio workouts a day (twice 60-90 mins or so)and 1200 calories. so i added a third 30minute cardio workout before bed. fat is melting off now.

also how do u eat 800 calories a day? when i try that... i cant fall asleep at night my stomach feels like it's eating itself up when im trying to fall asleep at lower than 900 calories. then when i drink water, it feels like im swallowing a rock into my stomach, cos it's too empty (pain).

[Chali12]

i was at a plateau as well at 2 cardio workouts a day (twice 60-90 mins or so)and 1200 calories. so i added a third 30minute cardio workout before bed. fat is melting off now.

also how do u eat 800 calories a day? when i try that... i cant fall asleep at night my stomach feels like it's eating itself up when im trying to fall asleep at lower than 900 calories. then when i drink water, it feels like im swallowing a rock into my stomach, cos it's too empty (pain).

It's extremely difficult, believe me I am *starving* too. It is extremely painful.
The 2nd cardio session was "new" a while ago and never did anything. Weight stayed the exact same, and with work I don't have time for a *third* workout in my day. 2 is killing me and I'm constantly exhausted at this point. I feel like ****.
Even now, I'm too exhausted to chill with my bf...I've lost all interest in everything.

[MCrow]

I read an article a while back about females and losing weight and the article made it pretty clear that having enough good dietary fat is very important. More so for women than men because it affects their hormones more than it does male hormone levels. Not sure what is considered normal or good amounts but it may be something to keep an eye on.

Also, Mr. Bateman knows his stuff pretty well so at least trying out his suggestions are not a bad idea.

[justanothagirl]

yeah definitely try including fish in your diet. the fat always comes off easier when i eat a lot of fish

i recommend having your calories come mainly from fruits, salads and fish/lean meats. its broscience but try it. that always works for me. starches are fattening, fruit sugars arent. i know by experience. and all cooked veggies do is make you bloated and stretch out your stomach. you get no energy from it.

[th3pwn3r]

Lol...wow. Even I've heard of these kinds of issues.
It's not that you *can't* create the defiect, it's that your body hoards it's weight so no matter what, you won't lose.

Sigh...if you believe it's impossible for you to lose mass you're mistaken. I don't care if my body "hoards" weight, I'll still lose mass if I never consume another calorie. Again, you're missing the points I have made throughout this thread. Even if you do have HYPO you can still lose mass.

[justanothagirl]

Sigh...if you believe it's impossible for you to lose mass you're mistaken. I don't care if my body "hoards" weight, I'll still lose mass if I never consume another calorie. Again, you're missing the points I have made throughout this thread. Even if you do have HYPO you can still lose mass.

true but i dont think you should ever go lower than 800 calories with that much activity. im all about upping the cardio tho. but if her metabolism really is crashed, then prob changing her diet food choices will help.

[Chali12]

true but i dont think you should ever go lower than 800 calories with that much activity. im all about upping the cardio tho. but if her metabolism really is crashed, then prob changing her diet food choices will help.

By losing mass you'd be losing water and muscle. Believe me I've tried fasting so I KNOW, you DON'T lose fat. And the weight comes right back after you drink some water. So that post was not helpful.
Justanothagirl, thank you I was at 2hrs of cardio a day plus weight lifting and still could *not* drop a pound. It's weird, my caloric intake went like this:
Eat 1,500 and work out 1-2hrs/day mixture of weights and cardio. Later added an extra cardio session, should have dropped a pound a week at least...but alas, nothing.
Eat 1,300 and workout the same. Nothing.
1,200 same workout
1,100 same workout
800 same workout for as long as I could maintain it. 4 weeks later and look the exact same, weight the same, clothes fit the same.
Nothing.

Something's up.

[th3pwn3r]

By losing mass you'd be losing water and muscle. Believe me I've tried fasting so I KNOW, you DON'T lose fat. And the weight comes right back after you drink some water. So that post was not helpful.
Justanothagirl, thank you I was at 2hrs of cardio a day plus weight lifting and still could *not* drop a pound. It's weird, my caloric intake went like this:
Eat 1,500 and work out 1-2hrs/day mixture of weights and cardio. Later added an extra cardio session, should have dropped a pound a week at least...but alas, nothing.
Eat 1,300 and workout the same. Nothing.
1,200 same workout
1,100 same workout
800 same workout for as long as I could maintain it. 4 weeks later and look the exact same, weight the same, clothes fit the same.
Nothing.

Something's up.

I think you're a gifted individual. You can survive without intake. If I were you I'd never eat again Saves money and I'm cheap in ways.

[PBateman2]

I think you're a gifted individual. You can survive without intake. If I were you I'd never eat again Saves money and I'm cheap in ways.

^^LOL.

Seriously though, OP, what happened here? Just reading through the thread now.

We went from possibly adjusting cals/adjusting diet/adjusting macros..giving it a shot...to something like a thyroid problem?

All up to you. In any event, good luck.

[th3pwn3r]

^^LOL.

Seriously though, OP, what happened here? Just reading through the thread now.

We went from possibly adjusting cals/adjusting diet/adjusting macros..giving it a shot...to something like a thyroid problem?

All up to you. In any event, good luck.

I think it was a clever ruse, I've been had/duped/trolled! It's all I can come up with after carefully reading over everything. Even people with thyroid issues can cut successfully.

[critterbug]

Even people with thyroid issues can cut successfully.

You keep saying this, but one of the symptoms of hypo is inability to lose. It is possible if you get treatment for it. Anyway, I agree with the OP that something's up. Her body just isn't acting 'right.'

[th3pwn3r]

You keep saying this, but one of the symptoms of hypo is inability to lose. It is possible if you get treatment for it. Anyway, I agree with the OP that something's up. Her body just isn't acting 'right.'

People with hypo require far less energy(calories) than those without, people with hyper require more energy(calories) than those without. People with hyper would consume more to combat catabolism and those with hypo would consume less to combat fat gain. I'm sure you can clearly assess and realize what would need to be done no matter what the issue is.

[JUSA]

You keep saying this, but one of the symptoms of hypo is inability to lose. It is possible if you get treatment for it. Anyway, I agree with the OP that something's up. Her body just isn't acting 'right.'

The only thing that makes me think there isn't anything wrong with her is this:
1) It seems like everyone "thinks something is wrong with them" and it's almost never the case.
2) She looks normal, very fit even. Not someone who has a severe medical problem.

I dunno. I just can't wrap my head around her eating like she claims. It's basically "2/5oz meat, 1c vegetable" over and over and over every single day which sounds fairly boring and unsustainable in the long run and the kind of thing which is just begging for someone to stray/binge/cheat. I'm not saying anything one way or the other, just I think that maybe the OP might want to really nail down her diet.

Take things to that "obsessive" level outsiders look in and judge those of us dieting with. Count every calorie, track every meal, plan a day in advance, keep a log of one's weight and FB%, etc... then maybe do that and come back to us with a little more hard information. A journal, perhaps. I mean, it's one thing to say, "I eat 2/5oz meat, 1c vegetable five times a day" and it's entirely another to list specifically what was eaten for a day.

Also, as PBateman said, healthy fats are pretty necessary. I'd say maybe re-org a bit, keep the cals low but track them perfectly and kind of reboot the whole process and see if doing that doesn't give the OP the push she needs. I get the impression she's like 9/10th of the way there but is just missing a little something which has been holding her back.

[sureshk]

The only thing that makes me think there isn't anything wrong with her is this:
1) It seems like everyone "thinks something is wrong with them" and it's almost never the case.
2) She looks normal, very fit even. Not someone who has a severe medical problem.

I dunno. I just can't wrap my head around her eating like she claims. It's basically "2/5oz meat, 1c vegetable" over and over and over every single day which sounds fairly boring and unsustainable in the long run and the kind of thing which is just begging for someone to stray/binge/cheat. I'm not saying anything one way or the other, just I think that maybe the OP might want to really nail down her diet.

Take things to that "obsessive" level outsiders look in and judge those of us dieting with. Count every calorie, track every meal, plan a day in advance, keep a log of one's weight and FB%, etc... then maybe do that and come back to us with a little more hard information. A journal, perhaps. I mean, it's one thing to say, "I eat 2/5oz meat, 1c vegetable five times a day" and it's entirely another to list specifically what was eaten for a day.

Also, as PBateman said, healthy fats are pretty necessary. I'd say maybe re-org a bit, keep the cals low but track them perfectly and kind of reboot the whole process and see if doing that doesn't give the OP the push she needs. I get the impression she's like 9/10th of the way there but is just missing a little something which has been holding her back.

Entirely correct. OP, are you logging every single thing that you eat? Every single drop of cream in your coffee? Every gram of vegetables? Even saying 1cup of veggies isn't entirely accurate, you could be off by quite a few calories and not know it. Depending on what veggies you eat, some can be pretty substantial in calories.

IMO you need to get a very detailed log of every single thing you put in your mouth, down to the tiniest gram and ACCURATELY count up your calories, not just 2/5 oz, 1c veggies 5x a day. Only then will you know exactly what your intake is.

[kaosstar]

You do not have hypothyroidism. Just get that out of your head now.
It's rare, but often used as an excuse.

[critterbug]

You do not have hypothyroidism. Just get that out of your head now.
It's rare, but often used as an excuse.

It's actually about 1 in 10 people in the population. I wouldn't call that rare.

[sureshk]

1 in 10? funny, my medical textbooks say 1/100 for women, and 1/1000 for men.

[kaosstar]

1 in 10? funny, my medical textbooks say 1/100 for women, and 1/1000 for men.

Also, malnutrition can cause it, so I bet the rates are even lower than that in the first world.

[critterbug]

I'm not surprised. The incidence is controversial. A lot of doctors now say that it is highly under-diagnosed.

Here's one study: http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/con...ract/160/4/526

Even if you go with the more conservative end of some other pubs at 5%, that's still more common than you stated.

As they say, lies, dam lies, and statistics. All of the above (including yours) are among them. lol

What makes me lean toward the higher end is the frequency with which people who have been tested at one time, told they were 'normal,' and later are diagnosed with hypo based on TSH, rather than T3, T4 etc etc etc

[Chali12]

I'm not surprised. The incidence is controversial. A lot of doctors now say that it is highly under-diagnosed.

Here's one study: http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/con...ract/160/4/526

Even if you go with the more conservative end of some other pubs at 5%, that's still more common than you stated.

As they say, lies, dam lies, and statistics. All of the above (including yours) are among them. lol

What makes me lean toward the higher end is the frequency with which people who have been tested at one time, told they were 'normal,' and later are diagnosed with hypo based on TSH, rather than T3, T4 etc etc etc

Yup, I've read a lot about this and this is entirely correct.

And omg people, I NEVER SAID I AM HYPO. I am planning to do what PBateman suggested.
The diet I was on was given to me by my "trainer" who I'm no longer with.
And yes, I stuck to it exactly. You DON'T know me and you DON'T know how obsessive I am about this. You have NO IDEA. I've tracked every little thing I've eaten for the past 2 YEARS. I do *NOT* use creamer in coffee, are you f***ing kidding me?! WTF! You think I am an f***ing novice at this s***? Give me a break. Seriously, wtf. This is dissapointing.
I do *NOT* cheat on my diet. I HATE JUNK FOODS. They are disgusting to me. I don't touch that s***.

[PBateman2]

Hey!

Its all good Think everyone is just trying to help. You know what to do and have the knowledge.

You'll get it done.

Good luck.

[redgirl]

Chali, i think you should post in female bb section...there are lots of girls who had same experience, and lots of women that probably could explain what happens to you body...

I really don't understand how people can say "eat less" to a person who works out like OP and eat 800 kcals/day, logging everything that fall in her mouth....that's crazy...! 800kcals is pretty INSANE!

my personal experience...i begun losing weight when i increased calories...when i go lower on somedays, i stall...

good luck girl!

[fitpro1]

I agree with regirl and think that's basically what PBateman2 and JayAllen were getting at earlier.

Increase cals and healthy fats. Calorie intake is not jiving with your intense training.

You'll be fine, Chali!