RMR Testing/diet stuff

Laurelin

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#1
Anyone have an RMR test done on them? My dietician wanted me to do one and so I went in last week and had it done. It was... surprising to say the least. It said my body needs at LEAST 1700 calories a day or I will start to shut down my system. It seems like a LOT to me as they always told me to hit 1400 cals or so based on my body weight and age.

I'm getting really frustrated. Haven't lost but a few lbs since starting to eat better and working out. I am finding I really binge eat and then go long periods without food and am having trouble with that. I know the simple solution is to just STOP and spread out food more. I focus almost all day on what I eat and when and I know that can't be healthy either. I'm starting to wonder if I have an eating disorder on top of the PCOS. Apparently binge eating is common for pcos people to have together.

For example today up until 1ish I ate 210 calories all morning and worked out 45 minutes at 11:30. I ate a 550 cal lunch (at one) which is good. Then got home and wasn't hungry at all. Decided I couldn't skip dinner and just started eating. Then can hardly stop. I still feel famished now after stopping at my daily calorie intake. I always intake a huge portion of my calories at night, which can't be good. I really want to eat now but know I need to stop. I cooked more food and it's sitting there, I think I'm going to throw it away and take a bath then go to sleep just to try to avoid it.

Haven't talked to my dietician about the binge eating. I know I am smarter than to do this... I really am at a loss though. I asked on my PCOS board but got no answers to my thread. I feel like this may be overly personal but I am really hoping for some advice or something.

I am also having trouble feeling dizzy and FREEZING cold after working out. I think it must be not enough calories prior to working out.
 

Doberluv

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#2
Have you had your thyroid checked? Blood pressure? That dizziness and being cold like that should be checked out. What kind of calories are you eating? If you eat a ton of fiber...like veggies galore, that fills you up and gives you lots of vit/min etc which tends to make me feel better anyhow, plus plenty of protein which isn't too fattening. I try to limit things like bread and pasta, but I don't completely eliminate any food group. (including chocolate. lol) The binge eating is a decision. Just figure out how much to eat at each meal and snacks so it comes out at the calories you want and make it healthy. I also have a problem wanting to snack on things that are less than healthy and it hits me at night when I'm watching tv or something. It must be some kind of restless thing. But during the day I'm too busy to bother with snacking, but do grab some lunch.
 

~Jessie~

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#3
Have you tried eating a smaller meal every couple of hours? Maybe eat breakfast at normal time, then eat something small (like some fruit or yogurt) in between breakfast and lunch. Then eat lunch, and have some carrot sticks or something a little bit afterwards. I know that there are some days when I'll eat a big lunch and I really have to force myself to eat dinner... but if I eat a smaller lunch and a healthy snack in between dinner, it makes me feel better (and keeps me awake!).

If you are focusing on food all day, being able to eat little meals more often would help, I'd imagine. That way you wouldn't have to think about going longer periods with nothing in your stomach.

ETA: Do you have caffeine before working out? I know that will make me have cold sweats and dizziness when I exercise. I also have to make sure I have something like Gatorade so that my blood sugar stays up.
 

yoko

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#4
I have trouble binge eating when I am going through super stressful times.

What I found that helped is to plan out EVERYTHING you are going to eat the next day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. I'll make sure to find really low calorie stuff that I can have to munch on all day. For me as long as I was chewing I was fine. So gum and sun flower seeds kept me busy and eating between meals without being too horrible for me.

Don't ever get mad at yourself for it. This is a real issue for a lot of people. You can stay on top of it but it does take some extra planning.

I do also have splurge days. Sunday's are my splurge days. I don't go insane but I'll definitely buy a not super healthy meal and enjoy.

Also for working how have you tried toning your work out down a little bit? When I first started working out I could definitely push myself but I was miserable. But once a week sometimes twice I'd step it up if I felt like I could go longer. If I had been walking 10 minutes and felt good afterward I changed my routine so I was doing 15 minutes. When I first started working out I could walk at a pretty fast pace for 10 min before feeling like I wanted a break. After doing that for a week or so I noticed I wasn't winded any more so I stepped it up to 15. Did the same thing, walked until I could do that comfortably. I went from definitely being winded after 10 min of fast walking to now I can jog for 40 minutes no problem and can even throw in minute sprints.

If you slowly work up your stamina I think you might avoid some of the issues you are running into. I know when I first started I tried to do too much too soon and just didn't feel it. When I started in slowly and built my stamina I definitely started feeling the extra energy from exercising.
 

Saeleofu

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#5
I am also having trouble feeling dizzy and FREEZING cold after working out. I think it must be not enough calories prior to working out.
You're on metformin, right? Those some signs of lactic acidosis. You might want to at least talk to a doctor about it, because it's VERY dangerous and taking metformin is a MAJOR risk factor. That fact that it's after exercise would have me very worried.
 

Laurelin

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#6
Have you had your thyroid checked? Blood pressure? That dizziness and being cold like that should be checked out. What kind of calories are you eating? If you eat a ton of fiber...like veggies galore, that fills you up and gives you lots of vit/min etc which tends to make me feel better anyhow, plus plenty of protein which isn't too fattening. I try to limit things like bread and pasta, but I don't completely eliminate any food group. (including chocolate. lol) The binge eating is a decision. Just figure out how much to eat at each meal and snacks so it comes out at the calories you want and make it healthy. I also have a problem wanting to snack on things that are less than healthy and it hits me at night when I'm watching tv or something. It must be some kind of restless thing. But during the day I'm too busy to bother with snacking, but do grab some lunch.
Yep all been checked out. I have PCOS and everything else checks out fine. I'm on metformin for the PCOS though.

If I eat a lot of vegetables, I feel very nauseous. No idea why, this is also a recent thing. I love vegetables. I am really having trouble keeping calorie intake up and keeping vegetable intake up. If I eat a lot of veggies, my cal count seems to go really low. I'm eating some whole grains but no white. Lots of protein and fruit. Struggling on the veggies though lately.

I feel GREAT while working out and immediately after. It's about an hour afterwards that I get shaky and dizzy and start getting very cold. I was cold for a full hour after working out (like needing to be wrapped in a blanket and still getting goosebumps today). No caffeine except very early in the day, which is a glass of tea most days. I also have found downing a powerade zero (they are free at my gym) after working out DOES help the feeling of dizziness pass pretty quick.

I always hear people talk about emotional binge eating and that's really not the case with me. It's a very physical kind of hunger/cravings. If that makes any sense.
 

yoko

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#7
I always hear people talk about emotional binge eating and that's really not the case with me. It's a very physical kind of hunger/cravings. If that makes any sense.
Do you have to actually swallow food? Or does stuff like gum help?

Maybe try smoothies. Do you think that would that give you a full feeling and help any?
 

Laurelin

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#8
You're on metformin, right? Those some signs of lactic acidosis. You might want to at least talk to a doctor about it, because it's VERY dangerous and taking metformin is a MAJOR risk factor. That fact that it's after exercise would have me very worried.
Yeah I'm on met and had thought it might be causing some of the issues. I have a Dr appointment next month to talk about how the met is doing. Maybe I'll call sooner than that. I really can't remember feeling that badly after working out before being put on the met. I used to work out all the time and not have these problems at all.
 

Saeleofu

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#9
Yeah I'm on met and had thought it might be causing some of the issues. I have a Dr appointment next month to talk about how the met is doing. Maybe I'll call sooner than that. I really can't remember feeling that badly after working out before being put on the met. I used to work out all the time and not have these problems at all.
I'd probably call sooner rather than later. It can be life-threatening.
 

Laurelin

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#10
Do you have to actually swallow food? Or does stuff like gum help?

Maybe try smoothies. Do you think that would that give you a full feeling and help any?
Sometimes mint gum will help but it's about the only thing. I usually get such strong pains in my stomach when I feel hungry that I'm very nauseous. I've had off and on nausea since I was in junior high and mint always seemed to help.

Even right now I know I ate enough calories today (right at 1800) and yet I still have a dull ache in my stomach that is trying to convince me I'm hungry and am feeling slightly nauseous. It's almost constant that I feel this way.
 

Laurelin

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#11
Btw, I have talked to the dietician about the constant feeling of nausea and dizziness I have most the time but she didn't really have an answer for me.
 

Beanie

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#12
A doctor's visit definitely sounds good.

Cold and dizzy after a workout COULD be as simple as being dehydrated. Do you sweat a lot while working out? I sweat a LOT during my intense cardio workouts and sometimes water doesn't seem like enough. I really hate all the sugar and crap in Gatorade but I usually take some with me to the gym when I'm doing serious cardio. I buy the powder and mix mine at home so it's not quite as sugary as the stuff in a bottle but still. My problems seem to be more related to my sodium levels rather than sugar and I read somewhere recently a suggestion of mixing up some salt with your water during a workout and that would do the trick. Weight sessions don't tend to have the same affect on me but intense cardio drains me in a different way. It could be something more serious but you might try upping how much water you drink immediately after your workouts and see if that helps. Coconut water is also supposed to be a good, more healthy replacement for Gatorade.

As far as the eating goes, I agree with yoko that planning out everything might help. I do a LOT of once-a-month-cooking stuff. I know some people might hate this sort of eating but I eat pretty much the same thing every day. My breakfast is a breakfast burrito, I make up huge batches and then freeze them individually, grab one each morning and pop it in the microwave once I get to work. I also froze up individual sausage patties so I grab ONE sausage patty and scramble some eggs. I just spent a few hours making batches of turkey meatballs, not because that's what I ate for dinner, but so I could freeze them. Everything I make is divided up into single servings and frozen that way. I even bought some pre-made chicken sausage this weekend, opened the package, and divided THOSE out into single serving packages. Everything is already stuck into some Tupperware or wrapped in plastic wrap or it's all packed together in a baggie, ready for me to drop into a crockpot, throw on the stove, put on the grill, whatever. It makes it really easy to portion control, even if I'm STARVING that day, because I'm still just grabbing one container. And usually that container is enough.

OTOH I do hear you about the not eating enough food thing. I consistently eat about 1400-1500 calories even when I find myself eating a lot. I did a BMR thing last week that wanted me to eat over 2000 calories a day. I think it was WAY off, but I honestly can't figure out how I would ever eat that much without resorting to bad foods. I am seriously considering adding a protein shake to my day because I know I don't get enough protein. You might be able to mix up fruit and veggie protein shakes and get more veggies that way if you're having problems just eating them straight these days.
 

Laurelin

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#13
Well I decided to eat a 200 more calories after I took a bath. I was just too hungry/nauseous and was remaining that way for over an hour. At the least I thought this through and didn't pile it on immediately after eating dinner. I calculated it out and it still puts me below the amount to maintain according to my RMR test. 15 mins later and I'm already feeling less sick so hopefully it was a good choice. I just can't take feeling like I need to huddle in a fetal ball and cry all day (I seriously was in tears this evening because of not feeling well). Maybe tomorrow will go better.

I think that must be some sort of sign that I'm not eating enough of something or not the right combination or something. I hope when I figure out the right combination everything else will fall into place. But it's really draining that I seem to not be getting it just right.

Yeah I don't like the artificial sugars in the gatorade but it seems to help a lot afterwards. I almost wish they had real gatorade at the gym but the complimentary stuff is powerade zero and I'm cheap. (the regular powerade at my office is $1 a bottle! Ridiculous!) I do sweat quite a bit but not soak my shirt sweat. But definitely sweat on my face and forehead and under my arms, on my back, etc. And this is probably TMI but I really have a hard time peeing after working out sometimes, which makes me think it could be dehydration. I drink a lot of fluid though so I'm not sure why I'd be dehydrated. I had 6 cups of water today (and am drinking another cup now), one glass of tea, one powerade, and a coffee in the afternoon (try to warm up). But a lot of that was during or after my workout so maybe move some before? Move a significant amount of calories before lunch and a few glasses of water before lunch and see if that helps?

The good news is my Dr's appt is in the first week of August so really not that far away. For some reason it didn't feel like July was that far through yet.

I just wonder how accurate those RMR tests are? 2200 to maintain seems like a lot for me.
 

Laurelin

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#14
OTOH I do hear you about the not eating enough food thing. I consistently eat about 1400-1500 calories even when I find myself eating a lot. I did a BMR thing last week that wanted me to eat over 2000 calories a day. I think it was WAY off, but I honestly can't figure out how I would ever eat that much without resorting to bad foods. I am seriously considering adding a protein shake to my day because I know I don't get enough protein. You might be able to mix up fruit and veggie protein shakes and get more veggies that way if you're having problems just eating them straight these days.
Was your BMR test the breathing machine? I'm guessing BMR is the same as RMR (basal metabolic rate v resting metabolic rate?)
 

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#15
Definitely drink a lot BEFORE working out. That will prevent you from getting dehydrated. When you drink after, you're already dehydrated and just replenishing what your body lost.
 

Beanie

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#16
BMR and RMR are pretty much the same thing except they are measured at different times. BMR has to be done under pretty strictly controlled situations, like you have to fast for twelve hours and get eight hours of sleep and usually people stay in a sleep center or something before it's done. The RMR is done any time and doesn't require any controlled situations except "stay still while testing."
Supposedly RMR is "this is the minimum number of calories you need to stay alive if you were to wake up and lay in bed all day," while BMR is "this is the minimum number of calories you need to stay alive in your normal daily activities" which includes your workouts. That's why there's a multiplier on your BMR depending on how much/what kind of activity you do, because it factors in the extra calories your body consumes during a workout. Going under the RMR is REALLY bad for your body. Going under the BMR isn't much fun either, and don't expect a lot of success in the gym because your body won't be able to rebuild the muscle tissues you break down during a workout, but from what I understand it's not going to be as completely terrible as if you were under the RMR. It won't be sustainable, that's for sure.

I have yet to actually have a test done in person. They sometimes do them at my gym but I haven't been there when they've done them yet, and I don't have the cash to go visit a dietician (and since there's nothing "wrong" with me I can't get a referral from a doc so insurance will cover it.) Supposedly even the calculators and stuff you use online can under estimate because they aren't taking into consideration body fat and all that fun stuff, so at some point I want to have one done, I'm just waiting for the opportunity. I also really want to have someone who knows what they're doing do a body fat analysis... stuff to do one day...


I can't drink a lot before working out or I'll end up throwing up. Can't drink a whole lot during cardio either; weight training is fine to grab more than a quick sip, but drinking too much during cardio is going to end poorly for my stomach contents (and a good way to end up even more dehydrated!) Everybody is different so be careful and do what works best for your body and the exercise you're doing.
 

Miakoda

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#17
Laur, are you describing me? :p

I feel like we walk hand-in-hand with these issues. Even though I suffered with anorexia in my late teens/early twenties, it didn't stop me from going down the road of binge eating. While I will admit much of it is probably psychological, my body also feels like a bottomless pit at times. Even though I will feel sick from eating so much, 10 minutes later my stomach tells me I'm "hungry" again.

Living day to day feeling nauseous and dizzy was/is also normal. And then I try to eat something to see if that helps, and it will got about an hour or so. Then I'm right back to feeling sick again.

While I have PCOS, and am insulin resistant, I'm being checked for other metabolic issues. My endocrinologist feels I might have a secondary disorder. I go back July 30th for more extensive testing.

With that said, I am doing my best to stay in shape and finish losing the extra weight. I have found that I have to go one step beyond paying attention up the foods I eat; I must be a literal food Nazi. My background in nutrition helps me, but I still have to put a lot of time and thought into what I can possibly eat. I have to make changes depending on his I'm feeling andhow much exercising I will be doing.

I did a recent good experiment for the month of June. While using both WW and MFP, I made sure to eat my points/calories and stay within my nutrition guidelines. However, I started eating more carbs, such as a single portion of noodles or a sandwich. I gained 5 lbs in June. I never ate more than 1,200 calories a day. I burned, on average, an extra 400 calories per day thru exercise and household chores. My carb intake was still low in comparison. And yet I gained weight. Even being IR, my doc said that body is being extreme in its reaction to the foods.

Right now, if I'm to lose weight, I need to stay around 1,000 cals/day with burning around 300+ additional cals. Why? We don't know yet.

I find myself fighting the urge to just not eat anything at all since planning a dingle meal is aggravating, exhausting, and time consuming. I don't have a problem eating small portions, but I also don't have a problem just not eating. And that will always be an internal battle of mine.

Laur, I wish I had some words of wisdom, but I'm just as confused as you. All I can do is offer hugs, and lend an ear if you'd ever like to talk (or rant...lol).
 

Laurelin

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#19
Thanks for that Beanie, that makes sense. I had to fast before my test for 6 hours and no caffeine for 24. My calorie range was 1750-2000 (ish) and definitely do not go under 1750. I just wonder if the test wasn't accurate or something.

* a food experiment

Also, are you seeing an endocrinologist?
I have before but everything came back completely normal. It's been a few years though so maybe I should go again?

Thanks for sharing your story, it's really nice to hear from someone else that has been through some of the same things. I get really frustrated when people tell me just to eat better.

When I lost weight before I was eating a sandwich and a diet frozen dinner a day and some fruit and maybe milk. That was about it. And working out all the time. I really don't want to do that again. I really would like to be able to be healthy and yet still get to eat food. I know they've done studies of women with pcos and comparing their caloric intake to women of the same size that don't have pcos and the pcos women eat significantly fewer calories. Discouraging. I'm trying to focus less on weight and more on health but it's hard.

Anyways, today I ate a bigger breakfast (310) cals. Then couldn't get hungry for a pre-workout snack so I skipped that. I ran 2.5 miles and then made sure to spend more time cooling down afterwards (walked 5 mins). I drank a full gatorade pretty fast and then had soup (520 cals) for lunch. I also didn't take my metformin until after lunch instead of after breakfast. I did feel much better and never got the chills although I do feel a little 'weird' after exercise still. But much better. Not sure what part of that caused the improvement in the way I felt after working out.
 

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