Skip to main content

There's no such thing as overeating in recovery


Hi,

A few times when I was in the process of gaining weight, I exceeded the amount on my meal plan. I felt awful. I felt like I was gaining too much too quickly, and sometimes I thought that I'd swapped anorexia for binge-eating disorder.

Sometimes I ate because I was hungry, sometimes it was just because I didn't want to resist the food. Both of these reasons are okay.

You have to bear in mind that, in recovery from a restrictive eating disorder, the calories that you consume aren't going to fat immediately. Every calorie you consume is restoring you; it's making your hair thicker, it's making you warmer, it's repairing your heart, it's restoring your brain cells, it's aiding your hormones to help you sleep; it's undoing damage to your muscles and so much more.

The damage from an eating disorder takes a huge toll on your body, whether you are aware of it or not, and I can assure you that not all of that extra weight is fat, nor are any of the calories you are consuming 'extra'. Every one that gets you closer to a healthy weight is essential.

Basically... please don't restrict in recovery. The best way forward is to neglect any thoughts of calories whatsoever, as difficult as it is. If you feel satisfied and are steadily gaining weight on 2,500 calories, great! But if you're eating 5,000+ to get the same results, or even if you're gaining very quickly, know that you're not overeating; you simply can't in recovery.

I hope that this is helpful to my readers - after such a long time of restricting, and thinking that anything over my limit was 'overeating', I know that this has definitely been something I have struggled a lot with.

Good luck, team!

- A


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

15 Best Things About Weight Restoration

Hi guys, Before I started weight restoration, all I could think of were negatives. I thought I would look ugly in my clothes, that I would be fat, and that I would hate myself. But truly, this has not been the case. Many of the things that I thought would be awful were actually quite nice. That's not to say, of course, that there haven't been bad days. There are days when I miss being underweight, and they're quite frequent, but I don't feel the need to act on these thoughts: it is necessary for me to be the weight I am, and this body enables me to live the active and long life I wish to. I still think I look good, even if I look different. But I'm getting off topic. Here are some of the best things about weight restoration, from my personal experience: Buying new clothes and investing in my appearance - I used to have cheap clothes because my weight changed so much, but now I'm really getting quality things that I like Reinventing myself as a perso...
Post a Comment
Read more

Tips to Feel More Body-Positive (Quickly)

Hi team, I'm actually coping okay with the weight gain at the moment. I can actually feel some clarity coming back into my mind, which is wonderful; I'm sleeping most nights, and the bodies I once aspired to now seem too thin, as does my own body whilst I'm still weight restoring. I never thought I'd say any of that. But here we are. Anywho, I still get not-so positive days. It's to be expected. And it's okay. The main thing is to have a healthy outlet, one that doesn't involve losing weight or punishing myself. These tips may not work for everyone, but they've been handy for me on what I refer to as "the black days". When you look in the mirror and don't like what you see... Do a silly dance, or pull a funny face Say something silly (you might feel like an idiot, but I find it pretty difficult to be sad if I'm repeatedly saying "Boopity boop", or "Fluffy kittens") Make a list of the top 10 things yo...
Post a Comment
Read more

I reached a healthy BMI today

Hi, So today I did it; I reached the healthy BMI range. I have mixed feelings really, and none of them were what I was expecting. When I was at my lowest weight, I really believed that by the time that I got here I would hate myself, and immediately want to relapse. I thought I would feel like a failure, and regret my decision. But I don't. Not at all. Really, I feel quite surprised - but I still like my body, and I didn't think I could if I was a healthy weight! And even more surprisingly, but I still look too thin, actually - maybe I should gain some more? Yep, that was the shocker. And there was also a little bit of but I'm gonna miss eating this much peanut butter . Definitely not the feelings I was expecting. Truly, I'm so happy. I'm healthy now (or at least very close to being), at last. My BPM has gone from the 40s to 80. My BP has improved. I have so much more energy. My hair has stopped falling out so much. I can get to sleep at night. It feels as...
Post a Comment
Read more