How to Fix a DAMAGED METABOLISM (Reverse Dieting vs All In)

Hi everyone, welcome to Abbey's Kitchen! In today’s video, we are going to be discussing a question that I get asked about A LOT - how can you fix metabolic damage or a slow metabolism from extreme dieting? I’ll be talking all metabolic adaptation or damage, how the body responds to weight loss, and what you can do to restore metabolism.

A few disclaimers:

1) The information in this video is for education and entertainment purposes only, so you should always speak to a health care provider about your unique health needs.

2) TRIGGER WARNING: some graphics and discussions may be disturbing to some viewers so feel free to skip this video.

3) Don’t forget to subscribe to this channel and ring the little bell so you never miss out!

Chelsea Cross, RD

Ben Sit, RD

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If you liked this video, please leave me a comment below with your thoughts!

Xoxo Abbey

[mafaldagrey]

I am genuinely impressed by her nutrition education... if she had taught me about nutrition as a kid, I don't think I would have developed an ED

[sydney]

i used to eat anywhere from 1000-1400 calories a day (sometimes way more, wouldn't binge, i'd just allow myself at parties and stuff) and ive been increasing my calories by 25-50 a week for a while now. Ive gotten to 1, 950 a day and I haven't gained a pound. It taught me how much food i really needed to eat in a day and helped to heal my relationship with food. Reverse dieting worked for me :) Update - got my period back and its been regular for the past 3 months!

[natubb]

I remember like a year ago i found you and i didnt like you. Why? Bc i had an eating disorder and didnt want to admit it to myself so instead I just said to myself that you were wrong. Today, after a year and a half of therapy, I love your content and even if im terrified to gain weight i know that i have to get through this. Thank you Abby for sharing all your knowledge ❤️

[linlee]

To everyone who is trying to recover from metabolic damage it is scary because you're eating normally which means you will gain some weight but trust me the feeling of not being so tired all the time or being dizzy or getting cold easily is so so so good. Just make sure to exercise regularly and incorporate weight/resistance training to build up those muscles and reset that metabolism!! No one can live eating like a bird their whole life, no one deserves to either.

[megtracey]

I took part in a reverse diet to help me recover physically from my eating disorder and after 6 months have increased my calories by around 800 so far ! Craziest part is I actually lost around 8 pounds from eating more ! My body reacted so well to finally being nourished and I am feeling amazing now, if anyone is looking to do it I would highly recommend but make sure you do your research first xxx

[RaceySpacey]

I eat around 2200 a day and i'm petite. I used to think people lied when they said they only eat 1400 if they were alot bigger than me. This explains alot.

[Ml]

I would love to hear more info on how to lose weight without damaging your metabolism! I love my body, but I am overweight and would like to lose some weight safely because it might help with some of the chronic pain I am feeling. However I am already fatigued, so I can’t sacrifice more energy on a starvation diet that won’t even work.

[stylustechnology]

The all in diet was really amazing for me, I was 15 pounds higher than I normally am and I wanted to change and fix my metabolism because weight loss wouldn’t work, I tried all in I ended up gaining weight of course but after around roughly 6 months I started to lose the weight again and I actually dipped below my goal without restriction without diets by simply just eating again and doing intuitive eating. Amazing!

[kaleido]

Abbey, I am a man who has struggled with anorexia over the past 20 years, and well as you might know one of the symptoms is that you never feel like you are "anorexic enough." But when you mentioned RMR, I looked up what mine would have been at my restricting weight, and it turns out I was restricting to around or below that amount the entire time. My caloric intake was high for a female anorexic... but not a male anorexic. This feels significant to me, because maybe I would have gotten help sooner if eating disorders in men were more talked about, and not just the ones related to sports.

[MyVersionOfHealthy]

Reverse dieting explanation starts at 12:35

[mathilde]

She's so good at breaking down complex biological processes for us all to understand clearly! thank you for making real objective science accessible!

[ireneyeon]

I couldn’t focus Bc I kept on reading the comments and had to watch the video twice lol

[anniemcmahon]

I’m recovering from an ED and rly struggling with weight gain :( it feels like my options are either killing my body, or just being uncomfortable with my body for the rest of my life

[ariesleocap]

Absolutely wonderful content! I thought "reverse dieting" was the golden key, until I tried it. Despite my coaches wishes I quit her $900 program, quit myfitnesspal, and quit calorie counting. I ended up finding Intuitive Eating. I don't have to count calories all day and worry that I'm spiraling back into disordered eating. My weight is more stable and I actually think I eat healthier because there's no restriction, so I just naturally eat more veggies some days and have dessert on others. I'm 10x happier and finally have healthy relationships and a job I love, because I have more mental energy (not doing calorie math). I am obsessed with this channel. Thank you!!

[kailynbeare]

Can u do a video on kombucha, probiotics and if “fixing ur digestion” is actually something you can do with these and if so how much this works?

[djett]

I didn't know it at the time, but I had anorexia and hypothalamic amenorrhea when I was 16, and my parents got me "No Period, Now What?" It changed my life. I was overwhelmed and scared by the thoughts of never having a period again, and that book taught me that other women struggled with the same thing I did, and they recovered! I got my period back when I was 18, and I'm the strongest physically and mentally that I've ever been. I'm 22 now and a studying dietitian! As I'm looking for resources to help future clients this video came up and it just reminded me of how far I've come, and how far I hope to bring others! I thank God, my parents, Dr. Nicola Rinaldi and Abbey! ❤

[Wendhy.inkorea]

I was eating as little as 400-600 calories a day in order to lose weight until I couldn’t anymore. I wasn’t losing anything and was basically starving myself for nothing. I finally decided that this is not the way to go so I joined a gym and increased my calorie intake after learning about reverse dieting and damaged metabolism . I am currently eating about 1, 000 calories and while I gained some weight in the beginning, the scale has finally started to move down as I slowly increase my intake. I’m slowly becoming less scared of food

[ursulabach]

I ate 1000 calories a day for like a year but I couldn’t lose any weight, and that lead to binges and then I gained about 8kg. Then I learnt about reverse dieting and slowly added calories up to 2100 a day, and in total I gained like half a kilogram lol (it was as Abby said, I gained a bit more and then it normalized). Now I’m eating 1600 a day as a deficit and so far it’s working fine!

[Katfe]

I love this so much! I had an eating disorder on and off for over6 years, no need to say that my metabolism was destroyed because my body was so used to absorb everything to survive. Now, I’m in my anniversary without a relapse and I no longer fear food, hence I’m winning weight because my body was so used to storing, it can sometimes be hard because my mind is not at its 100, but I also know that my body is so smart that it will relearn and my health comes first (:

[ejezful]

I've been doing reverse dieting for a while with the difference that I did not gradually increase my calories. To me the positive effects started pretty quickly. Although my problems were weight gain, slow metabolism and general discomfort and I do find that it is still getting better. Thank you for the video, it was very informative!:)