Don't want to make myself poorly again. Advice needed please x

DellyLouLou

Member
Hi lovely people

I hope you don't mind, but Im after some advice.

I have been attempting Slimming World and Weight Watchers diets for about 18 months now and I have even tried meal replacement products such as Celebrity Slim and for the first few weeks, my losses are ok (3lbs here, 2lbs there) but seemingly after that, it stops completely. Once the losses stop, my motivation plummets and my diet goes down the toilet (I am trying to work very hard on eradicating this 'all or nothing' approach from my thought process)

Now, I must say that I suffer with Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (IIH - let's see how many of you google this ;-) lol) and as a result, I can't really do any exercise. Although I do have a fantabulous vibration power plate i use for 10 mins a day.

I have approximately 7 and a half stones to lose. I gained the weight as a result of depression and two pregnancies fairly close together, one of which was incredibly traumatic and caused me to massively comfort eat.

I haven't set myself a time limit as I don't want to put myself under too much pressure or lose weight too quickly (especially when I have this neurolgical condition goin on). I have bitter experience of losing too quickly. I lost 6 and a half stone by basically eating next to nothing and as a result, I have piled all of the weight I'd lost back on plus more. I have never told anyone this, but I think I need to say it out loud. I was bordeline eating disorder at my worst. I could go for 4 days at a time with literally nothing but Pepsi max and nicotine entering my system. I'm surprised I didn't kill myself. I know I've done serious damage to my insides. I have a suspected stomach ulcer, I got gall stones and had to have my gall bladder removed and on top of that, my hormones are totally out of control. Not good. Really, losing the weight so quickly wasn't worth the aggro it brought. People told me I looked fantastic but on the inside, I was very, very sick. I refuse to let myself go down that road again!

I want to do it healthily this time as I would like to keep it off for good. However, bare in mind I have quite alot to lose and I would still like significant weight loss, especially given the shear amount I have to lose and the major impact my weight is having on my mental health. Not to mention the fact that my neuro has told me that although weight doesn't CAUSE IIH, losing weight can help ease the awful symptoms.

So that was the long worded way of asking how many calories per day would you recommend for a 25 year old woman who literally does no exercise in order to produce decent results, without making myself ill in the process? I was thinking between 800-1000? Is this too much, or too little? Baring in mind I do no exercise at all, it hurts for me to stand for too long.

Thanks for taking the time to read this, I know you are all a supportive bunch from reading others posts

lotsa luv n huggles
 
Hi, I am a similar age (28 in 2 weeks-eeek!) and also don't excercise (purely out of laziness tho!) and I can lose 1-2lbs per week on 1200 cals, so I would say 800-1000 is too low. Also my metabolism is messed up due to years of yo yo dieting/starving-binging cycles, and believe me I've been there with the not eating -losing-regaining and then some fun so if you ever need to chat!!
good luck hun xx
 
Hi, I am a similar age (28 in 2 weeks-eeek!) and also don't excercise (purely out of laziness tho!) and I can lose 1-2lbs per week on 1200 cals, so I would say 800-1000 is too low. Also my metabolism is messed up due to years of yo yo dieting/starving-binging cycles, and believe me I've been there with the not eating -losing-regaining and then some fun so if you ever need to chat!!
good luck hun xx
Deffo hunni, thank you and ditto =) x
 
I think many people will tell you that 800-1000 is too little. Have a look at "the moogs" diary - she is on a very low calorie allowance - I think this is doctor controlled as she cannot exercise. Maybe a trip to your doctor would help?

Sarah, do you have a link to that thread please? I've had a look but can't find it.

Thank yooooou!

x x x x x
 
I'm a bit older (almost 40 - eek!) and, as Sarah said, I'm on a supervised low cal diet because of a whole variety of health issues. I can't really exercise although we're trying steadily to introduce some low-impact stuff like Tai Chi. That's for health reasons, not weight loss though!

My calories are generally in the 600-800 range. I never go below that and occasionally I'll go over it. Despite it sounding like very little, I have an incredibly healthy diet on that - 5 a day for fruit & veg plus lots of fish/chicken and some occasional red meat like venison or duck.

Would really recommend seeing the GP if you're thinking of dipping below the 1000.
 
Thanks for posting Moog! Managed to find your thread and what an inspiration you are! I have been to the GP but to be honest, they have been useless.

They will give me a weight loss referal to a slimming club like SW or WW and basically won't listen when I say those diets aren't working for me. I think they think I'm taking the mick and not trying but I can honestly say I stuck to both diets religiously and my weight loss was small, got smaller, then stopped. Think my metabolism may be completely destroyed thanks to my obsessive diet 18 months ago =(

So I'm at a bit of a loss to be honest. I have an appointment with my GP next week so I may ask what she would think if I had a similar calorific intake to you, so long as Im getting my 5-a-day. It's imperative I lose the weight you see, as it is widely believed by specialists that excess weight can worsen what are already terrible symptoms of IIH...
 
I'd tracked my weight for a couple of months on 1800 cals per day, then 1500 cals per day - neither of those showed any weightloss at all. Thankfully my doc is a very nice woman and did believe the printouts - and they had everything on them, even down to things I was drinking!

I didn't feel I could cope with Lighter Life or Exante, so I posed the question to her about how 'do-able' a similar sort of diet would be on real food. She referred me to a dietician - and I'm currently 3 stones lighter! Occasionally my iron dips a bit low, but everything else seems to be holding up fine.

My weightloss has slowed down a little now - it's 2lbs a week on average, which is brill. I'm still not convinced I'm going to get there, but every lb is a step in the right direction!

Hopefully they'll listen to you this time. It really is much easier doing this with the support.
 
Just wanted to say well done for taking the steps in the right directions and for being so honest in your thread. It takes some guts to admit everything and I think thats one of the first big steps anyone can take.

I have yo yo dieted for a while but never really had any great losses as it never stays off for long. My mum has huge metabolic problems and I really dont want to be the same.

Hope the drs go well and keep at them if you dont get the answers you want. He is you need a chat.
 
I'm glad you're seeing a doctor - being on a low amount of calories can be very dangerous unless very specifically guided (like Moog is) - not simply for your 5 a day, but because of all the other wonderful nutrients and vitamins your body needs that can come from more calorific sources!

I won't advise you at all, because I don't know the depths of your medical situation, but I'll just say good luck with your appointment and let us know how you get on :)
 
Thank you sooo much girls =) x
 
Hey, through the summer i was eating 500-600 a day (i know its really low) and i lost just under 2 stone and that was with no excersise at all!

Im now doin 850 a day, only until the summer, and then ill be upping them to 1000 - 1100 a day, as i want it to be a diet ill maintain. i eat about 3 fruis a day, always have meat for my dinner with alot of veg, so im getting everything i need, just a little bit lower than what most people eat.

Hope it goes well for you, and i personally think low calorie is the best diet out there, its simple and
You will loose weight.

Good luck x
 
I have to agree. I've tried all sorts of diets but think that calorie counting is the only one out there which will give you that quick boost which is a great motivation to keep up with the diet etc.

I don't exercise and going by the tools on my fitness pal it says I should be eating 1200-1300 cals a day to maintain my weight so I am trying to stick to as near as 800-1000 as possible.

If anyone wants to add me on my fitness pal please do as it's good to chat to other low calorie dieters to share tips on things to eat etc. My user name is riascott

I find that quick weight loss works best for me and then I up the calories slowly to maintain it. I've been a bit naughty lately though so need to get back into being strong to get back to my "happy" weight.

Good luck with everyone on a low calorie diet. It's difficult but lots of fruit and vegetables and White meat and fish and the occasional treat is all good. Theres lots of filling healthy foods out there which are low calorie and im happy to share my diet with anyone on the same thing.

X
 
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