obsessed about weight

[Amitheproblem1]

This is all going to sound a bit jumbled up and confusing so I’ll try my best to explain it succinctly

im a healthy weight but was always at the low end of healthy. I gained some weight and went up to the higher end of healthy. I felt bigger and was visibly flabby. I train for a competitive sport which has a lot of pressure re weight unfortunately especially for young women, so i noticed the difference there too.

I decided to lose the weight and tone up. I reduced my calories a lot and it worked and most of the weight came off. I did intermittent fasting for some meals too. But I feel like I’m sort of addicted to it now. I don’t have a problem with eating or any sort of eating disorder, and I don’t want to be super super super skinny, but at first I wanted to lose some weight, then I lost it and i felt so proud of myself because I worked hard and succeeded, then I wanted to lose more and more and the target kept changing.

When I was losing weight I reduced my calories and skipped meals and fasted and took proplus if I needed calorie free energy, eg before training. I do eat enough calories though and I’m not unwell or underweight.

I guess what I’m asking is, when does it become a problem? My BMI is around 20 now and I feel like I still could do with toning up a bit more, but I feel so accomplished and proud of myself when I resist temptation and skip a meal and my weight is literally all I think about now. I felt so much more confident training aswell which sort of fuelled it too. I don’t have an eating disorder but how do I stop my weight being such a big thing in my life? It’s literally all I think about now (do I look fat in this, how much do I weigh today, how much do I need to lose this week, was I better at training, did I feel better because I’m skinnier, should I eat that or should I skip it, I feel so much better because I didn’t cave in and eat it,,, those sort of thoughts)

it’s consuming my life now! How do you stop it being so obsessive and make it be part of your life rather than your whole life? cheers x

Sounds like you do have an eating disorder. The fact you're said twice in your post that you don't highlights denial to me. Seek help from your GP. Stop taking proplus too .

You sound like you have tipped over into eating disorder territory or are well on your way. The good thing is your recognising that it’s becoming a problem and your wanting to break the cycle. I don’t have any good advice but I believe BEAT have a helpline. Please do reach out to them, even if you don’t class yourself as having an eating disorder, they would be more than happy to help you now rather than in a years time when your complete lost in an ED. The earlier you try and break this cycle and have some help then the easier it will be. EDs come in all different forms, not just anorexia and bulimia like people think of.

Gently, I think you do have an eating disorder. It isn't normal to feel really proud of yourself for skipping a meal, or for weight tracking to be all you think about. As PPs have said please reach out to Beat or your GP and get some support.

I'd say you already have a problem. Skipping meals and feeling proud of it is disordered eating. Taking pro-plus for energy instead of fuelling your body properly is never a good idea.

You can tone up more without skipping meals and drastically cutting calories. I reduced fat and toned up while still eating around 2000 calories a day.

I've never been overweight but always wanted to be skinnier. I've cut calories and skipped meals and yes, the weight falls off but I didn't feel great. I'm now in the best shape I've ever been, I lift weights 5 times a week, I still eat at least 2000 a day, still go out for sinner and enjoy treat. I'm not super strict with myself and I feel healthy and happy. It did take me a lot of re-training to change my mindset and stop my previous bad eating habits.

It's more concerning that you participate in sports when you're not fuelling your body properly of giving it what it needs to repair.