My name is Shawn,
I have been wrecking my brain trying to find an answer to my situation.
I have been heavy since 7, I am now 38, 275lbs, 5'10.
Two months ago I was sick for a week (flu like) and couldn't eat for days. I trained myself to eat healthy. Low fat, high protein, low calorie meals, staying under 1,500 calories a day. I use to go to buffets at least twice a month. I ate twice the recommend calories, which kept we at a weight of 280. I stayed on my diet like clock work for a month and weighted myself then. I had only lost 2 pounds. I was disappointed and depressed. Which caused me to go back to bad eating habits. My clothes have started to fit looser, and I have lost 3 pounds. I can tell I have lost body inches too, because my pants are sagging. How can I be losing weight from eating more? The only thing I can think of is my metabolism must have sped up.I have always had a slow one. Is it possible for a person's metabolism to change like this. I asked my doctor and he didn't say. He just told me to be glad I am losing weight. Has this ever happened to any of you, or has anyone ever heard of this before?
Yes, eating too little can slow down your metabolism, but it's also about what you eat, not just how many calories you eat. A "low fat, high protein, low calorie" is not necessarily a healthy diet, and a diet which is too low fat could be bad for you. Maybe your current diet is actually healthier. What types of foods did you eat on your diet, and what types of foods do you eat now? There are probably things you can change about your diet to make faster progress.
Another thing you can do to speed up your metabolism is weightlifting.
While on my diet I ate two scrambled eggs(no butter, oil, or fat),16ozs of water and 8ozs of 1% milk, every morning. Lunch, 2 190 calorie bottles of Wal-Mart version of Slim fast shake and 16ozs water. Dinner a Healthy Choice meal less than 400 calories, and 16ozs water. I did this faithfully for 1 month. Now I am back to eatting at buffets, eatting fried foods, snacks and other junk, in bigger portions. That's why it's so confusing, how I am losing weight by eating "more" and not even healthy!!!
Your new diet isn't good, but your old diet may have been worse.
The 2 eggs are healthy. The water and milk are healthy.
Slim Fast is junk food (18g sugar and other bad ingredients).
Healthy Choice is not very healthy (added sugar, not 100% whole grain, and various bad ingredients).
You weren't eating any vegetables or fruits.
If I added correctly, it adds up to about 1000 calories per day, which is not enough (and will slow down your metabolism).
My recommendations:
Eat more vegetables (try to aim for at least 2.5 cups per day)
Stop eating fried food.
Try to eat mostly whole unprocessed foods, and avoid foods with added sugar or refined carbs.
If you're looking for a healthy snack idea, you can try nuts, beans, fruit, or greek yogurt, or you can start having eggs again.
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I think most people gain weight after coming off a diet. This is why it is more important to develop a healthy eating plan that you can continue for life, and not call it a diet. Diet seems to signify something you do for a period of time until you reach your desired weight. If you go back to the way you were eating before, you are going to weigh what you did before.