I apologize for this post, it isn't pleasant to talk about, but I just need to know if this has happened to anyone else....

I've been excited because I'm finally off another long plateau. The reason, I believe, is that the last 3 days I have cut waay back on calories. I know this is not a good idea, and will not continue for long, but the first two days were just a fluke, I didn't have the chance to eat much, and the last day was me just keeping the pace to get another pound off. Today I upped them a bit more, and tomorrow I will go back to my traditional calorie intake.

Now the problem: I haven't "gone" yesterday or today. Which isn't that long so I am not concerned with that.....Then tonight, I thought I had to, and when I tried, I passed just a few bits of mucus. What concerns me, is when I was young, before my wedding I went foolishly on a crash diet and took in very little calories. The result was me getting very weak, and not being able to go to the bathroom. When I finally did, it was mucus. So tonight alarmed me. I will definately go back to a healthy way of eating, although I am shocked that this happened in such a short period of time. When I was young it was over a month before this happened. I was just wondering if anyone else has experienced this? I know that mucus can be a warning of other things, I did research, but I am sure it's just my eating habits the last few days.

How each person's body reacts is so different it's hard to say. I know that I could go a few days w/out eating and I woudln't have that kind of bathroom reaction.

I will say that dropping into very low calories to "bump" your weight loss will ultimately be counter productive. I believe that what you'll wind up doing is creating a situation where your body won't lose because you'll have freaked it out and put it into panic mode. And each time you engage in this behavior it will take less and less time for your body to jump into panic mode and stop losing.

Eventually you won't be able to break a plateau that way, and in fact you could wind up reversing things.

Just my thoughs on the matter.

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I'd say there's no reason to worry about it. You didn't eat much, so there isn't much to come out.

Increase what you're eating, as you know you should. Be sure you eat fruits and vegetables, and some measured amounts of whole grains like brown rice. You should have no problem.

If you have any pain, that's another matter--but it's not abnormal to miss a day or two.

Jay

What Photo and JayEll said.

I never had a problem with mucus, but I am totally anal (pun intended ) about having BM every single day and I get very frustrated when it, once a while, does not happen.
You should go back to normal eating asap and eat lots of fruit and veggies, and possibly some legumes. Also, you can drink Metamucil to boost the fibre temporarily.

I wouldn't worry too much either unless it continues for more than a couple days.

Next time you want to try to break a plateau you could also try upping your calories. Your body may be needing more energy.

I'm going to suggest that anyone, who worries over this kind of thing, try to find a good article on bowel function. I'll see if I can find a good link or make something up.

Disclaimer! this is very very simple ....

The interior lining of your bowel is mucus membrane much like the inside of your nose (kinda). If your nose is irritated, it'll run. Under certain circumstances, it'll clog up. So goes the bowel. Healthy mucus membrane is moist. Moist nose, moist bowel ...
If you've ever done a bowel prep, you'll have noticed that once you think you're empty, you'll pass mucous shreds in yellow clear liquid. This is the natural moisture of your bowel. If you then have to wait too long for your colonoscope ... it'll be back. Your bowel makes it all the time.
Another difference between how your nose works and how your bowel works is called peristalsis. Your bowel is a muscular organ that waves along to move 'stuff'. Seriously, it never stops. With a stethoscope you can hear bowel sounds in even sleeping bodies.
The wikipedia article on peristalsis is good.
From my simplified physiology lesson, you can probably think of a few occasions when your abdomen just didn't feel right and will be able to conjecture why. A TV celebrity that I love to dislike talks about fiber as the broom of the bowel, sweeping it's contents along and out. It's a good visual.

I repeat ... this is a simple explanation. A dramatic change in bowel habit (without a simple cause like too many peaches or like the OP's situation) should be discussed with your health care provider. And even if you think it was the peaches but it's gone on for over a week now ... it's worth mentioning.

Thank you so much everyone! I did return to my normal eating habits today, and hope that all will be well soon

Kat, it seems like you already know that severely limiting your calories is a bad idea, but I want to reinforce that by sharing something with you. A friend of mine has a terrible habit of yo-yo dieting. She eats whatever she wants for a while and then, when her pants are fitting too snug, she doesn't eat until they are loose again. She's been doing this for years. Over time, the amount of time it took to get her pants loose was longer and longer. Eventually it no longer worked.

She went to our local nutrition clinic and had some tests run. It turned out she'd messed up her metabolism so much that she was burning around 350 calories a day (resting), total. It took so much time and hard work for her to even get it up to 1,000 calories.

Her experience has taught me that yo-yo dieting has HUGE long-term effects on your body, health, and weight.

Please don't try it again in the future. It's just not a good idea--anything you might lose in the moment isn't worth being unable to lose in the future.

Thanks Laurie, I need to hear everyone's advice on this. It's tough to remember at times, I got so excited that the scale was actually moving again, that I foolish slipped back into old habits. I am back on track again, and I keep telling myself slow and steady is the best route possible. At 41 it's about being healthy, afterall.

Kat,
It's happened to me too. Not related to how much I eat since depriving myself has never been an issue with me (ha!), and it actually happened after having a proper BM. I didn't make much of it for the same reasons that SusanB wrote above.