Thanks so much for this comment. It's really resonated with me. I have been back and forth to A&E and the GP for years with nobody really helping me. Some Drs thought I was pre-diabetic which really freaked me out - and now they've found inflammation in my blood having arthritis symtoms, my health is quite worrying to me.
I really appreciate you taking the time to write this comment. Can I ask how long you would recommend not exercising for? I have really severe body dysmorphia, so the 10lbs that I have gained already is really causing me a lot of upset. I'm scared that my body won't stop gaining weight if I eat lots of calories & sugar while not exercising. 4 years ago, I weighed 165lbs, so will I just get back up to that weight? I wasn't exercising, but I was eating loads of gluten & junk food. I was absolutely miserable with my body back then (felt pretty terribly too) and I only start feeling mentally happier when I am at a body size I feel comfortable in. If I were to go back to eating more but with whole foods like fruit, gelatin, meat, etc, do you think I would gain the same amount of fat like I had?
When I exercise, I do feel better immediately and for the rest of the day I have raised energy levels. It's when I don't exercise that I absolutely tank. Is this because of raised adrenaline and cortisol from the exercise or is it something else, do you think? I would say your body needs a "reset" of sorts before you begin exercise, maybe just light walking until then, however long this takes is anyone guess. I don't think anyone can tell you dont exercise for X weeks then start slamming the exercise again. This is probably your anxieties around gaining weight wanting permission to exercise heavily again.
I would love to sort out my digestion and health (mental and physical) problems, I'm just terrified I'm going to gain loads of weight and swap one problem for another. I also do modelling so have to be very careful with how much weight I actually gain if I'm repairing my metabolism. I've watched Stephanie Buttermore's video on her weight gain going "all-in" for a year, she gained 40+lbs before her body started to let go of the fat. Do you think my body needs to hold onto fat like she did even though I have a very healthy body fat percentage? Why are you suggesting to not exercise and eat more - I'm still a bit confused as to why it needs to stop completely?
Thanks so much.
Sorry to hear about your body issues. So many women and men face these pressures to look a certain way and it effects their mental health and physical health, it is awful.
Feeling bad when not exercising isn't a good sign, I would agree with you it is probably a stress hormone thing making you feel energised.
I think your beliefs around weight should probably be addressed as you continue, I simply don't see how you can improve your health without having to gain a bit of weight, unless you upped calories very slowly. Even then, it will probably take some weight gain for your health to normalise. The sooner you accept this the better.
I think you will need to go on a similar path as Stephanie Buttermore did, maybe not quite eating "all in" but after years of restriction (completely unscientific explanation) your body will hold onto some weight as protection for if you may drop your calories again, your body knows it will have a reserve of energy. This is incredibly common these days.