loss of appetite

[fallonmarie]

i don't know what to do... i've lost my appetite. i'm afraid by not eating my metabolism is going to slow down a lot and i won't reach my goal anytime soon, but i don't know what to do. do you think if i take something, make it into portions and eat it throughout the day i will be able to keep my metabolism steady? i'm not getting that many calories a day, though.. so i really don't know how that works.

for example today i made myself progresso soup (in a can) an ate half then and then maybe a few hours later i ate the other half. the soup was about 200 calories total so i'm running on 200 cals and i'm not hungry one bit. i'm scared of this ruining my chance of losing more weight. do any of you know if this is really bad for me? i'm so full, i can't force myself to stuff my face which is what i would be doing if i ate anymore now.

[ravevampyre]

Well, there are a couple of reasons in my head that would cause this to happen.

Have you been under a lot of stress lately? Whenever I get really busy or am under a lot of stress my appetite goes way down.

Have you gradually been losing your appetite? If so, you might want to try eating just a little bit more each day to try to help your stomach get used to expanding more again? Im pretty sure thats what happens.

When I was an anorexic I used to be able to live off a can of progresso soup a day. Beef barley. Yum. But those days were horrible, slowed down my metabolism, made me tired and slow, I didnt lose much weight and I just felt gross.

Are you feeling sick lately? You never know, if you're sick and it might not even be too noticeable, it could change your appetite.

[abrannan]

How's your energy level been? If you're not hungry, but your energy level is high, then I wouldn't worry too much. Your body is telling you that it has plenty of available energy and doesn't need food at the moment. It takes a while before starvation mode kicks in, and you'll definitely notice the difference in your energy levels (your body will essentially "shut down" and you'll find yourself with no energy. Your body is actually quite effective at telling you what it needs, as long as you listen to it. Just make sure that you are eating healthy foods, and that you're keeping your calorie intake fairly steady throughout the day.

You definitely don't want to force yourself to eat. That just creates a bad pattern where you adjust to stuffing yourself.