How to Fix a DAMAGED METABOLISM (Reverse Dieting vs All In) 

yeah! the science of nutrition should definitely be taught in schools! Would debunk a lot of false ideas leading to any sort of ED before they even cross the kids' minds

Same; wish I had her 15 years ago

Right?! My food and fitness education came from teen magazines that just showed you ab exercises you can do at home. I genuinely didn’t learn about protein / carbs / fats until I was 18 and thought starvation was the only way to lose weight. Wish she had been there to stop the ed before it ever started 😔

Same i just feel i can never have a normal metabolism ed here for 16 years trying my best to get through it

She is not addressing the audience, this information is for those with science and nutrition background.Too obsessive in her approach.

I used to do the exact same thing but I brought my calories to maintenance with a few "surplus" days and have gained weight since then so I'm in a weird place rn :/ Good to know reverse dieting worked for you though!!

One questionnn, does it actually matter where they come from? I'm doing the same thing and I think is going well but I'm still afraid of increasing more

@@madzbray8444 i gained weight but stayed the mostly the same size through mine. In some areas I am bigger (glutes and thighs) and some areas are smaller (waist etc). Gaining weight isn't such a bad thing when it's paired with lifting weights and a slight surplus on some days.

I'm eating about 1000-1200 calories or less right now. I want to start reverse dieting and eat anywhere from 1500-1800, but I'm not sure how I can add more calories into my diet when I dont really feel much of an apetite..

@@EuphoriaInBloom Your appetite is suppressed because you're eating so little, and likely have been for so long, that you body has reached the point where it's decided to halt the physical signals of hunger in a desperate attempt to save energy. Mental signals of hunger though may be on overdrive though. You can literally jump up to 1500 calories off the bat and go from there. I got to add about 100 calories each week until I reached 1900, and the rate went down to about 50 until I reached my current intake level, 2150. I remember when I thought that it'd be amazing if I got to eat as much as 1800kc and look at me now, eating a lot more and maintaining and, most importantly, FEELING so good! I feel so energetic, my mind is so clear, I'm reconnecting with my hobbies and gosh. Seriously, don't be afraid of eating more. Your body needs the energy. You deserve freedom from restriction. You can do this.

Oh my god same. I just hated to be pointed out that my ways are wrong and stupid. Used to hurt me so much but now i watch her daily lol

Weight gain can be scary and I know but it's just a temporary stage to get thru to be happier, healthier and regain your power with food & your body. You've got this

I really don't like how hypocritical she is. She always says don't shame but then reacts to all those what I eat in a day videos, and she gets really nasty and rude.

@@bossyspaghetti To me it doesn't seem like she's shaming them, she's just pointing out what's wrong with what they're doing and providing them with ways to become healthier and better.

@@xraye_ theres a difference between reacting to what someone does and reacting to them as a person, she’s reacting to what they do, she’s not shaming them as a person

hello, I was wondering if I had metabolic damage, I was eating less and loosing weight SUPER SLOWLY (5kg in 7 months since starting) but I wanted to ask if you could give me an idea on how little you had to eat to get metabolic damage?

@@zureraova Ik this is like a super late response, but normally to get metabolic damage you have to send you body into starvation mode, or just eat in a severe calorie deficit compared to what you were previously eating. If you are eating under 1200 calories there is a high chance you went into starvation mode. I think the best way to stay out of it is by eating 1400 a day at least.

Thank you for sharing your experience!

Reverse diet sounds far better than all in, honestly.

How did you change your diet? Like what did you eat? Did you start eating everything you wanted like EVERYTHING or did you eat healthy and cut out too much sugar?

@@meyra4305 When I started to reverse diet I made sure I was still eating well balanced meals so my body was being fed well as it had been starved for so long, but I mainly started to add more calorie dense foods mainly carbs as during my eating disorder I really struggled with eating these, gradually I increase my carb intake but still kept my protein intake high and I had so much more energy ! Then I started to add in more “unhealthy foods “ but I’ve now come to realise from this journey that everything can be in moderation and food isn’t always just good or bad so I try not to cut any foods out, but still working on it in the recovery process ! Xx

@@megtracey9791 Did you have bulimia?

I should've seen this comment 11 minutes ago😞

Thank you luv 💛🦁

Thank you

Thank you

The first 12 minutes are still worthwhile for educating yourselves. No one has patience anymore. Now Now Now.

Make gradual changes that you can see yourself sustaining for the rest of your life. Don't go on any particular diet. Instead, incorporate healthier food, cut out soda and make sure you're getting enough protein. Check in with your mental health and make sure you're not eating out of boredom or as a coping mechanism. Work out, but increase intensity gradually. I recommend cardio AND weight training, not just one or the other. You can lose weight healthily and sustainably. I lost 40 lbs 4 years ago and I've kept it off with no yoyoing, starvation or any sense of deprivation.

There’s a video on RU-vid by MissfitandNerdy it’s called “fat loss secret” it where you do mini cut cycles to loose weight. For example 3 weeks in a deficit and a week at maintenance. This allows for your metabolism to stay high and not drop when you get to your goal weight.

@@nc7332 I do something similar to that. Every month for a few days I will eat at my energy expenditure. I enjoy those days cause I can eat until I do feel more full and eat a lot more of the food I enjoy (NGL I do fit a hot choco into my daily calorie allowance)

I might be a bit late, but I will share what helped me lose 20 kilos and keep it off. Reducing to the absolute minimum anything that contains refined flour or sugar, and on days when you crave them a lot, just have them till noon. This way you still have like 10 active hours ahead to burn it off and you won't store it as fat. It also has a good psychological effect on you, because you know that it is perfectly okay to have a slice of cake in the morning every now and then, and it will calm you down. Then as for the rest, try to aim for lots of veggies and lean protein, and always make sure you consume twice as much of them as from healthy starchy carbs. For example: a nice plate of scrambled eggs with a bowl of salad is super for dinner, but if you are craving some healthy crabs, have some wholemeal (and really wholemeal) bread, half of the amount (or less) of the eggs and the salad. Or if you have a big steak, make sure that there is half the amount of potato next to it (or even less). There are no amount restrictions, clearly people have different needs and the person who weighs 90 kilos will need to eat less, than the one who weighs 150 kg, even if both of them are trying to lose weight. So make sure that 70% of your diet is based on low GI food (like most of the veggies, some fruits, most of the dairy products, meat, fish, tofu, eggs etc), and the rest is healthy carbs (whole meal bread, grains, potato, corn, banana, figs etc) and try to have them until 3 pm. Try to avoid anything with refined sugar and refined flour, but if you must, allow yourself some treats every now and then, and then move on without feeling guilty (during pms some chocolate is almost compulsory :). Be aware, that when you go cold turkey on sugar, you will have bad withdrawal symptoms, as it is as addictive as any other heavy drug. Or you can gradually reduce it by substituting it with sweeteners, until your taste buds go back to a normal state and you wont need sweeteners anymore (or not that much). I went cold turkey, and the first 3 weeks were challenging, i prepared puddings with sweeteners almost all the time to trick myself, but even tho they were sweet, they did not contain sugar, so I was still cranky. Then it was over, and I stopped having cravings at all. :) Even had periods without eating some sugary stuff before or during. Anyhow, I hope I managed to explain it well, I hope it shows that you can follow this for the rest of your life because it does not restrict any healthy foods, its just the ratio and the timing. Good luck!

@V King This is exactly what I did, and I think it’s the best way for many people. Faster isn’t better! I never feel deprived because I still eat chocolate every day, and all that good stuff. But I’ve lost more than 30 lbs and kept it off.

do you exercise?

Yep i used to have anorexia in high school and i was skinny/eating under 900cals. 10 years later(now) i eat around 1200 and stay at 160lbs, ive definitely messed something up lol 😂

@@vqxm7 Not a lot.. I do weights 2 times a week but generally speaking I am a tad lazy. I do not restrict so I tend to not binge like some maybe. I think that could be why. Maybe my metabolism is healthy.. I do not over eat but when I am not hungry I stop eating. Those are the only things I can think of. I can say though that if put on a 1400 calorie diet I would be hangry as all hell. My daughter eats about that.

Girl...I'm 340lbs and a 1400 calorie diet is A LOT for me. I tend to eat around 500-700 calories a day. I tried forcing myself to eat more for my health but its hard.

@@VHale-yz7hc 😭then how to reduce weight without damaging metabolism, what did you do?

This is my problem always

@@kaleyfederico lolll

I couldn’t focus because she kept saying “aka” 😥

Agree. As a formerly female anorexic who starved my way to a BMI of 10.2, I hear you. I honestly believed there was something else causing it. I knew I was obsessed, but I'd been obsessed years prior. I was well aware that I ate xxx amount of calories - but so, apparently, did a whole lot of other celebrities and dieters. I refused to believe that I had to eat more than them, not understanding that they were likely lying, oblivious, or only doing it very short term. If I'm understanding you, you're saying that you felt the same way, except you were comparing your calories to women overall?

@@Mikathedog100there is no reason to share your bmi. This is so triggering to people who have anorexia. And if they haven’t gotten to this weight, they might think that they are not sick enough.

Same boat man 17 years old and i’ve been struggling with it since i was 13, I did get help and was in the hospital for quite some time however it was not the right kind of treatment for me, a man with an ED seems to be quite the epiphany for the medical world

Thank you for sharing your experience! So glad it is helpful

I’m working on this currently! A weird example that really helped me start trusting my body more: my boyfriend as a child was allowed any and all snacks. He was known for being the house that had gushers, cheezits, fruit rolls ups, candy, etc. and he said he used to notice when his friends came over they’d binge eat it all (because their parents didn’t allow it) whereas he who was allowed it anytime usually would eat a bag of chips and then like broccoli and hummus. He loves veggies because he had no “good and bad” foods, he always ate what he enjoyed. I’ve been working on intuitive eating the last year and I’m finally noticing a difference in my view of food and my body’s signals. The other day I ate a baked sweet potato as a snack and loved it which I would normally never ever do, I’d think “ugh a veggie as a snack.” I also passed on dessert which is uncommon, but I just felt okay without it. Next day I had like 4 cookies and felt no guilt or anything about it because my body wanted them and I no longer see them as “bad.” Thank you for sharing your journey too! I’m glad we have accounts like Abbey to educate us and help us see food as fuel.

Goals! I’m only 3 months into intuitive eating after dieting for a while . I had already slipped out of dieting a few month before starting this and gained some weight. I have since gained even more . I’m trying really hard not to be bothered by the weight gain, but I’m just so uncomfortable . I’m really hoping my hunger goes down soon and I can cut some of this weight naturally. 🥲

@@Dazzlemebeautifully Hi Tiffanie, I can really relate. The first few months I did gain weight and it was uncomfortable that none of my clothes fit! Knowing that this was normal & temporary kept me from going crazy. I ended up seeing a dietitian who encouraged me to eat an even wider variety of foods. I know it is hard now but it gets better! I also focus a lot on just moving my body (walking) or signing up for a low impact class (pilates) which is working out a lot better than intense workouts.

@@Boujeebello Thank you for the reply . That’s encouraging . I’ve still been doing weight training because I enjoy it, but I’ve been paying attention to how I’m feeling and sometimes take extra rest days . I also stopped adding in cardio for the time being because I hate it 😂

Hi , how long did you go all in

Amazing 🤩

hello, I was wondering if I had metabolic damage, I was eating less and loosing weight SUPER SLOWLY (5kg in 7 months since starting) but I wanted to ask if you could give me an idea on how little you had to eat to get metabolic damage?

Thanks for the suggestion!

Yes please!

Yes please! I’d love to see a video on these topics as well!

Yessss

I’d love to see this!

I am in recovery too and the one thing I have learned is that the sooner you let go, the easier it gets. Just try your best to listen to your body and your mind will catch up. Work with a therapist too. My intuitive eating focused therapist has helped so much. Best of luck to you on your recovery journey. ❤️

It will get better I promise, I never would’ve thought but it does!

@@lauren6860 thank you ❤️

@@katharinaprinz8283 thank u

I'm recovered and all I have to say is, after a while you just have to give in. Enjoy the process, and take this time to eat all the foods you've been scared of. The more you gain weight and realise that 'hey! this isn't that bad!' and begin to appreciate the extra energy, the easier it gets. But you will have to push yourself all the way :) good luck, and I hope you have a therapist or some support. I didn't, but watching videos by people such as Alice Olivia really helped me relax. I eat healthier now and I exercise, but I'm really chill about it and I'm so glad I recovered. Focus on getting your body and mind back to healthy first, and you can focus on health and maybe losing a little of the excess weight later (which will come naturally, I promise. Just DON'T RELAPSE!!!)

I get what you meant, but I think the word "vulgarize" has a negative connotation. Simplify, break down, unravel, explain - might be better words.

@@dim9753 very possible... i'm french canadian and tend to invent my own english words based off french lol. thanks for letting me know.

❤️❤️❤️

🧡🧡☺️ You too Anna

This makes me hopeful! I eat around 900 but want to eat more because eating less has not made me lose weight anymore. But I’m very scared of gaining weight. How long before the weight starts to go down again??

@@Itscalistarodriguez I will talk for myself here since It’s different for everyone but it took me about a month or so for my weight to start going down again. It’s been consistent since then but it’s at a much slower pace than I’m used to, so I would really suggest trusting the process and being patient. You can do it! I believe in you :)

@@Itscalistarodriguez It’s not letting me edit but I just wanted to add that at first I gained weight which is understandable because I upped about 400 calories at once and I think that’s the scariest part. At some point I stalled and after that is when it slowly started going down again. I combine weight training and a balanced diet and although I just now went back to the weight I was before I started this. I look and feel so much better! And also eat so much more which is the best part in my opinion hahahaha

This made me so sad.. food is yummy fuel 😟

@@janehoe. aw sorry about that, it really sucks... I wish I could see it like that

I’m sorry you feel that way. Please seek help, like a therapist or dietitian. Food is delicious and meant to be enjoyed, not to cause stress .

You deserve to eat, friend. I hope you're able to get to a good place with food. ❤️

@acidtea00 I completely understand:( i’m suffering from an eating disorder and for a while now i’ve wanted to recover. but the idea of eating “so much” food and gaining back all the weight i’ve lost is keeping me trapped. it’s overwhelming, and terrifying to think about. i understand how you feel .

A lot of the intuitive eating viewpoint is that fixing your relationship with food is more important than the number on the scale. Abby in a lot of videos has mentioned that you can't really be aiming to lose weight while you eat intuitively. If you feel as though you need to lose weight for medical reasons, a different approach is probably needed. That being said, it doesn't have to be a crash diet approach.

I've written very similar comments before so I know how you feel. That said, her most oft repeated advice is to work with a registered dietician, preferably one that specializes in Intuitive Eating. If you haven't watched her videos on that, I recommend looking them up. I resisted the idea for quite some time, but I finally bought the book on it. I'm still working on my relationship with food, but I know I'm happier in that regard than I've ever been before. I understand having health concerns, I have them too. Intuitive Eating is not a weight loss program; it's about changing your relationship with food and your body. That ultimately results in being healthier even if not as thin as we're told we should be.

Megan Beaule agreed it doesn’t need to be a crash dieting approach, which is why it would be helpful to hear her suggestions on it! Sure I can learn to eat intuitively at this weight, but my weight now qualifies me as borderline obese, and eating intuitively to maintain this weight is just as unhealthy in my view

Natacha oceane has REALLY good info about losing weight without doing metabolic damage. I suggest checking out her videos- she’s amazing.

This topic is on the list to talk about! Thank you for the suggestion

Thank you for sharing your experience!

Thanks for sharing! Glad it was helpful

Thank you for the suggestion!

I honestly don't think anyones set point is very overweight, obese or morbidly obese, I don't mean to say that in judgment as someone who has struggled with their weight, most of it goes back to habits, culture and lack of knowledge. Intuitive eating is amazing for people who struggle with ED that restric food but for ED where people overeat IE could literally kill someone who knows no limits and their body is addicated to food. Sometimes seeking medical professionals is necessary and also therapy.

Agreed. Most of the people taking about reverse dieting are maybe 10-20 lbs overweight. I need advice for mistakenly thinking if I consume 1000-1300 cal/day and exercise for 7 years I’d lose weight. I’m looking to gradually increase calories to not gain even more than my 55 extra lbs of gravity but to also actually feed my body and get rid of some chronic fatigue, digestive and other issues.

It doesn't matter where you start!

@@SolidSiren I wish that were true. I'm at the highest weight I've ever been after my last pregnancy and never struggled with my weight as much as I do now. I was always able to lose weight but now being 70 lbs overweight losing anything has been the hardest it's ever been in my life.

she's basically copying from the book "Why we eat (too much)" :)

She talks too much and doesn’t get to the point.

@@MacTheRipper13 I'm gonna read that book immediately, thank you!

I'm so glad!!

@@tamaramarie1071 For me, it took about 5 months to get my period back. But I know a lot of people take more or less time for their cycles to start again. It depends on a lot of factors! Also, important, once my cycle started again, I *stayed* all in and worked on my relationship with food, so I could become an intuitive eater/exerciser, rather than immediately falling back into restrictive habits. I read the Intuitive Eating book, listened to a lot of intuitive eating podcasts, and had a session with a non diet dietician. After that, I never consciously stopped being all in either--my eating and exercise just naturally fell into a comfortable, intuitive level after being unrestricted for so long. Good luck!!

​@@ForthcommaAbby Did you gain a lot of fat since starting your journey, and I have you lose fat (I'm purposefully not talking about weight here as it really doesn't matter that much :))? I need to "go all in" to get my period back and heal my relationship with food but i'm scared I won't be able to get to a body I'm comfortable in (no matter the weight), I just want to feel comfortable an quite lean without being ripped and under my set point weight. I've seen people who kept muscle and lost fat during their all in journey and some didn't and I'm scared...I should see a dietician or/and naturopath maybe?

@@-ihhssan-9062 A really important part of my journey with this was doing the work on body image and becoming body positive. I highly recommend starting there, because it makes recovery SO much easier. (A free resource I found super helpful with that is the Food Psych Podcast with Christy Harrison!) A non diet dietician could be totally helpful. I have no experience with naturopaths, so I couldn't speak to that. But if you're going to go all in I think what's most important is to not work with someone who will put you on a diet. My dietician helped me most with adding food and variety into my daily eating. I don't weigh myself, so it's hard to say how my body has changed exactly. I definitely gained necessary fat (I was too lean for my frame before), but I feel completely comfortable in my body. Actually, I feel MORE comfortable now that I've done the body image work and am at a bigger size than I did before when I was smaller and in a tough mindset about it. Good luck! You got this!

hello, I was wondering if I had metabolic damage, I was eating less and loosing weight SUPER SLOWLY (5kg in 7 months since starting) but I wanted to ask if you could give me an idea on how little you had to eat to get metabolic damage?

Thank you for sharing your experience!! I'm glad that's working for you!

I'm so glad!!

Nice to think that, but you will be stuck in this "reverse dieting" forever, and will not be weight restored, so its kind of like just doing the same thing with a bit more calories. Just not worth it.

@@JolieUTU you don't know that plus the all in approach can be very triggered. I know for me reserve dieting would be sm more beneficial to me, yeah it would take longer but I would be able to handle it unlike the all in approach. The initial weight gain can be triggering and turn a person away from recovery complete at least for me.

@@JolieUTU the way I understand it is that gradually increasing calories keeps you from getting an initial massive weight gain and eases your metabolism into regular function.

@@JolieUTU not everyone with an eating disorder needs to be weight restored though. i struggle with disorder eating but was 200 pounds when it started and now i’m 140- a healthy weight

Yeah i love Stephanie she definitely helped me to

It is worth it! I went through this last summer and all I can say is keep going! My weight went up and down and finally is stable. Eating intuitively is the BEST decision I ever made. I'm rooting for you!!

Thank you for sharing your experience!

@@Boujeebello yes! the food freedom is absolutely life-changing. I'm focusing more on looking into myself and asking why I feel so uncomfortable with viewing myself at a higher weight

Absolutely agree!

If you were overweight they were trying their best to help you the only ways they knew how. Is it better for a parent to allow an overweight child to keep gaining? 1200 is low for anyone let alone a growing teenager and I disagree with calorie counting in general but rather feeding healthier foods but the intention sounds like it was good...I hope you forgive them and find balance within your body.

@@starriw8050 the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

@@jaqenhghar6244 True...people are just doing the best they can though and most of us are deeply flawed so its best to try to see through the eyes of everyone even people that hurt you so you understand they were either confused and suffering or meant no harm and you dont have to carry around any anger resentment or hate because thats alot of negativity to carry for a lifetime in addition to the traumatic memories themselves..

Nothing like a mother to f’ck your mind up as a kid. Mine used “diet” as a weapon to have power over a child. Pretty typical of narcissists. So, tell me again how you think they were trying their best.😞

SAME! I remember my nanny taking me to Jenny Craig and putting me on all sorts of supplements and I was taking truckers love it at like 13 and back then it had ingredient thats are now outlawed and were used to make meth! And they wonder why I had a drug addiction for years and a body complex.

how many calories did it take for your period to come back?

Thank you for sharing your experience!

Thank you for sharing. I'm glad it could be helpful

Thank you for sharing! So glad it was helpful

For sure

I'm so glad! I hope it is helpful

Me too! Omg

Me too! Damages after years of restriction and loss of fertility....

Thank you ❤️

Thank you for sharing! I'm so glad it's helpful

Thank you! I'm so glad

Thank you!

I would sue them. What idiots. These people call themselves experts and swear to help people!

These were not people that had their best interest in mind and probably not that knowledgeable about what they were doing, she should sue any doctor involved for malpractice because that’s pretty unacceptable

Could you summarize the pros and cons of both variations?

they're probably going to say a meal plan

Be careful with professionals such as dieticians and therapists. I have bad experiences with them. I also saw a dietician who was supposed to specialise in ED. I was going through extreme hunger in ED recovery. She had no concept of this. Made me feel bad about how much I was eating saying “do you even know how many calories you’re eating”. She queried how much mayonnaise I was putting into my coleslaw. Her only advice was to fill my plate 1/4 protein, 1/4 carbs and the rest salad. If I want a sweet treat she told me how to make banana ice cream. I actually followed her advice for 1 meal and was left more hungry than before . Very disappointing and potentially dangerous.

@@sarahbartlett9870 I’m sorry you had a bad experience. Sometimes it takes a while to find a health professional best suited to you but I promise there are healthcare professionals out there who will listen to your concerns and help with strategies suited to you. Not all healthcare professionals are bad and they definitely still should be your first point of action if you’re struggle 💕👍🏼

@@sarahbartlett9870 I already have a therapist with whom I am happy with but I don't think she can help me with the "practical" side of recovery as much as I sometimes need. I feel like a professional could give me some security on how to navigate.

i think you should maybe also look into getting help from a therapist, make the right decisions for you, you are the most important person. good luck xx

Thank you for sharing

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm glad that's working for you!

Kris, I am also bipolar. I understand that most drugs used to treat our condition leach out in the milk and should be removed if you want to get pregnant and nurse. Bipolar in itself is very hard when the meds don't work or I am off them. I applaud your strength to face all of this while generating a baby and nursing it. I am happy to hear that you were able go get it under control. All the best to your family.

Perhaps!

I totally agree! I usually listen to these videos while out on a walk, and I'm too cheap to pay for RU-vid premium so it keeps pausing accidentally when my phone is in my pocket. 😂 Or maybe turn the audio from the videos into a podcast? 🙂

Agree!

I agree !

agreed!!!

Thank you! ❤️

yea! we are doing good thanx:)

Thank you!

So glad!