Expert: Susan - 6/18/2006

Question
hi i tend to eat nothing apart from carrot and cabbage and celery and chew and spit bread with butter and honey and eat a lot of chewie! i also exercise 4-5 hours a day and don't seem to lose any weight why is this so? would i be better to not eat anything? and starve? how much weight can you lose in a week of starving? my mum has an underactive thyroid could this be any reason for me to gain weight? i have an eating disorder though ( early stages anorexia) so could it be the butter please help me?

Answer
Dear Jen,
You are exercising so much that you are probably gaining a lot of muscle. Since muscle weighs more than fat, that's probably one of the reasons you haven't lost any weight. Another reason is that maybe your body is so used to your daily routine that you won't lose any more weight. If you starve yourself for a week, after that week you'll want to eat a lot. Since you'll be so hungry and eat a lot, you'll just gain back the weight that you had lost that week. If you starve yourself, you won't be able to exercise because you'll have no energy. The underactive thyroid problem could possibly be hereditary. If you have symptoms suchs as fatigue, dry skin, muscle/joint pains, neck discomfort, Bowel Problems and Menstrual Irregularities  then you should visit your doctor and tell him about your concerns.

You are obsessing over food! Could it be the butter? Do you see yourself, desperate to lose weight. Do you really need to lose weight or do you have a flat stomach? Do you think by losing more weight that you'll feel better about yourself? You'll never be happy with the amount of weight you lose no matter what. You'll always want to lose more and more. You are putting yourself at risk by continuing this negative behaviour. Your health is at risk because you are probably lacking essential vitamins and proteins, etc. You need to seriously take a look at your life and make decisions abou what's important to you. Superfical looks or your health? Please talk to someone about why you  want to strave yourself and must exercise so much.

Susan