18:6 + caloric deficit helped me get down to my goal weight about a year ago, but i was also using IF as an ED without realizing it. so, by the time i got down to the weight i worked towards for two years, it became unsustainable. i was fainting a lot, and then once i started acknowledging that i had to be intuitive and to eat more for fuel, of course my weight climbed about 10 lbs and i stopped being able to control my food binges. i’ve also had a huge therapy journey that’s uprooted some of my self-hatred that really drove my compulsions to lose weight so…
i don’t know what to do anymore. i’ve had a bunch of chronic health issues this year that stopped me from exercising intensely, it’s so hot where i live that my brain completely shuts off and my body just CRAVES more calories in a day than are helpful for weight loss. i stick to the fasting, but it’s just maintenance at this point, about 10 lbs over that goal weight i met a year ago. i felt so, so good, but i wasn’t sleeping and i was eating about 1000 cal a day. there’s got to be a way to rejog my brain and body into being able to lose weight again.
eating intuitively and trying to mix in low-glycal, i’m eating 1500 on a *rare* good day, 1700-2000 on an average day, with most of that being these 5-800 cal snack binges at the end of the day, granola/hummus/ice cream/plantain chips/whatever. otherwise a pretty consistent diet in the day of egg dishes, oats or parfaits, maybe a rice dish sometimes, lots of fruit and avocado, seitan/tempeh/fish/yogurt for protein.
a lot of this is unhealthy, but direction would be great.
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Honestly, you sound like a terrible candidate for intuitive eating. On the other hand, you might really benefit from logging your food intake. Not necessarily to track calories, just to be accountable to yourself. I really like the app Lose It! because you can enter in your food and it will tell you how many calories to eat, snd how many you have left for the day depending on how active you’ve been. If you’re really just trying to maintain your weight, give or take a few pounds, this could still help you keep from gaining weight.
Also, you mentioned chronic health issues, and IF plus a low carb diet can do a lot of good for many things. The combo reduces inflammation (among other things) that is the root cause for so many health problems.
And if you do things right, you can eat food that you want, and actually eat enough calories to be satisfied, so it can be a sustainable lifestyle. But you’ve got to find your way there first, and tracking your food can help a lot.
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Hello, would you mind sharing your stats? I ask because you mention the possibility the IF was used as an ED for you, and that you had compulsions to lose weight.
Is it at all possible that you are at a good weight right now and your goal weight is unrealistic?
Hoping you find the answers you need!