To maintain an unhealthy BMI?

[AliceScarlett]

Anything between 16.5 and 18.5 is OK with me, for me. I won't let it get above 18.5.
I have not noticed any physical health problems (apart from being bloody freezing all the time). I don't look emaciated and I eat healthy food, but about 1300 cals a day.

DH disagrees, he worries and thinks I'm "being anorexic" and is concerned about how it might effect my fertility (we are going to start ttc in 6 months).

I think I'm fine and BMI isn't the be all and end all of healthy weights anyway.

So you lost a load of weight and you're worrying about putting it back on?

What's your weight/height?

Can I ask what would be so bad about being in the healthy range for BMI?

Do you have regular periods OP? Having a period doesn't mean you ovulate for certain but regular periods are important.

I have a farmer friend. He once talked to me about the fertility levels of his cows. The skinny ones were less fertile and I suppose that's true if humans too

I feel like I'd pile that 4 stone on again if I go above 18.5.

But your right with pregnancy I would have to eat more and I'd obvs put on weight. Bit scary.

And yes, being underweight (or actually more accurately not having adequate nutritional intake) can increase the risk of miscarriage, low birth weight and other such complications.

Anorexia veteran here.

You sound to me like you have an eating disorder.

If you're planning to TTC you might need to address your anxieties about weight gain as the inevitable pregnancy gain will make you very stressed indeed if you are this controlling about your weight.

You don't have to eat more if you're pregnant, just eat normally. I'd be more concerned if you had bad morning sickness. I lost a stone from morning sickness with my last baby.

Yup regular periods. 179cm, 57.2kgs.

I guess I feel in control underweight, once I'm "normal" it feels like a slippery slope back to being overweight again.

There are a few things you've said about your weight and your need to control it that are a bit worrying to be honest, and if you were totally happy with it yourself would you have started this thread? I think it would be worth having a chat with your GP about your relationship with food.

Personally I think it's unhealthy to worry about your weight to this extent. I would judge it by your clothes and how they fit and step away from the scales and bmi calculators / calorie counters. It really isn't any way to live and it can become obsessional. I went through a stage of eating very little and obsessing over things like this and my weight was about 8 stone and I was 5ft 7. If someone is naturally slim that is different but I am not and it made me quite ill. I am now slightly overweight (12 stone) and I am happy with the way I look, and most importantly to me I eat what I want when I like and I seem to stay the same weight so it seems like this is the weight I'm supposed to be.

If you're having to calorie count so carefully etc that suggests an eating disorder to me, sorry.

I agree with your DH. You sound anorexic. You are thinking like an anorexic person thinks. You are 'scared' of being fat, when you are actually thin and underweight. It is a topic which probably takes up a lot of your thoughts. An unhealthy amount of your thoughts.

You didn't tell us what you eat in a typical day to keep yourself underweight

You have an eating disorder

In that your eating is disordered

Maintaining an underweight BMI is disordered

You are damaging your fertility

But maybe I'd just assume weight gain was the baby/fluid, etc and not fat cells. So you don't need to eat a specific amount of cals, just not really restrict food and eat healthily? I can do that.

Most anorexics know they're not fat.

But they think any fat on their body is also bad.
Some anorexics think they're superior human beings because they're not fat. This is part of the fragile self-esteem game they're caught up in.

It's a total mindfuck disease btw, in case you couldn't tell.

You have an eating disorder and should go to your GP to see what NHS help you can get.

But can you? Your BMI would certainly get above 18.5. Why not try eating more this week (maybe up your calorie intake to 1800) and see how you get on?

You're obsessing about your food, too keep your weight in a certain range.
Are you happy in that range or are you wanting to be thinner?

I think that 1300 is a fairly normal calorie intake on a daily basis isn't it?

You are chronically underweight. You have insufficient body fat, hence the feeling cold all the time.

I'm with your DH on this. He is right to be concerned.

You should speak with your GP.

Sorry, my post sound sarcastic when I read it back and I don't mean it to be. I mean a good way to see how you could cope with eating more is to eat a bit more and see how you feel. It won't make you fat. Actually my GP says the best BMI for conceiving is at the upper end of the healthy range.

AF, telling it as it is

Generally I eat this:

one slice of toast, no butter and marmite

Lunch is either soup and an apple or ham salad and an apple

Dinner is small portion of something homemade risotto/chicken stirfry/quinoa

Then I wait til 10pm, eat yogurt, raisins and choc chips (200cals worth) then bed because I can't sleep hungry.

3 cups of black coffee

But I will go out for the occasional curry/chinese.

That is no way 1300 cals worth.

That really doesn't sound much at all. How would you feel about trying to eat a bit more?

I really don't know if I'm in denial or not.

I ate 1800 for a month or so over the summer, quite enjoyed not being hungry, but I must admit gaining weight scared me.

Not sure about going to my gp, what are they going to do? Tell me my bmi isn't healthy and suggest eating more.