Lazy prep from Friday! A bit more ambitious than what I usually do!

No problem! It's great to feel in control of our body and I commend you on the weight loss.

My entire life I was always just a little chubby though I never minded too much and ate whatever I wanted and was moderately active.

In the summer of 2012, I decided to give running a try. I also started to watch what I ate and reduced my calorie intake significantly. At this point I didn't count calories. Running soon became a passion and within months I was running as many 5 k's as I could sign up for. With the new diet, weight was melting off of me! I had so many compliments and thought I really found the secret to a healthy lifestyle!

Over the next winter, I continued to run everyday. I was obsessed. My day centered around getting a run in on the treadmill. The compliments stopped so I reduced my calories intake even more. I was finishing up my Masters degree and working full time so I focused on those things and running. Come spring, I was eating less than 1000 calories a day and burning more than 350 in running alone. I went from 155 pounds to 95 pounds in a year. 40 of those pounds were lost in 6 months. The compliments stopped because I was and looked incredibly sick. I was in denial about it and continued my lifestyle because I was obsessed with running however my body was so malnourished that I could barely run a mile. I hated it and was a slave to the point where I ran with Strep throat and within hours of totaling my car. Because I couldn't run as far, I took that as I needed to reduce my calorie intake more to compensate. By now, I never went out to eat with friends or family, social functions or simply dinner at my parents was a dreaded anxiety ridden ordeal that I avoided at all costs.

By the end of summer I was in the hospital dangerously close to deaths door. I realized I didn't want to die, but at the same time how absolutely terrified of food I was. I gave up running but continued to struggle with eating. I ended up going to an inpatient hospital that specializes in eating disorders in winter of 2014. I had to take a leave of absence from work and face this demon head on. It was the hardest and most physically grueling thing I've ever done. I went into the treatment center at 87 lbs and had to be monitored very closely for signs of refeeding syndrome. My body hurt so much during those first few weeks of eating a "normal" amount of food, but even harder was the mental side of it. Physical recovery took almost 6 months and even longer for the symptoms of regaining weight to dissipate. The bloating, night sweats, hair loss.... There were days my skin hurt. Mentally, I still would not say I'm fully "recovered" but I a million times better than where I was. They say an eating disorder is like an addiction that never fully goes away. I count my calories but now it's mostly to make sure I'm hitting a minimum amount. I struggle mostly with rewarding myself and intuitive eating so for me, eatting is a thought out thing each day.

I'm sharing my story in hopes that you can stay on a healthy road. As someone who has worked with many professionals in this field, 1100 is not enough calories. For a male exercising 3x a week, 1900 is not enough. Restrictive eating cam easily spiral into orthoxia and other disordered eating habits.

I wish you so much luck in this joinery of finding a happy balance!

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