alikatt
BOMBSHELL
I ALSO POSTED THIS IN THE WOMEN'S FORUM W/ NO RESPONSE.
I competed five times in 2012, back to back. So I know, now, that this is a no-no. I was on high protein and extremely low carb diet totaling a whopping 1000 calories/day. YIKES. I did well in my shows and was on top of the world...so I kept going without taking my body into consideration.
My last show was November 9th (Nationals in ATL) and since then...I tried continuing a super low calorie diet(which i was totally used to) and didn't take a break from the hour+ cardio a day. A few weeks after the show I realized i was GAINING weight...pretty quickly. So all I could do was freak out...because I was still cardio-ing and dieting! It was then I started to discuss with my bodybuilder friends what I was going through. I also went to the doctor and had my thyroid and hormone levels checked. First labs came back all screwed up. I literally was producing less estrogen and testosterone than a 46 yr old female who is pre-menapausal (per my doctor). Thyroid was in range. Three weeks later (last week) i went and repeated the labs and they came back completely normal. I've been told by almost everyone that hears my story, I've damaged my metabolism and my body is in starvation mode. I AM STILL GAINING WEIGHT!!!!
Not only am i depressed about the weight gain...I'm terrified that there is possible permanent damage. I've been advised to stop ALL cardio and take 2 weeks to eat WHATEVER I want to shock my system. I was told to also take those two weeks and lift HEAVY to engage the metabolism. I am completely confused...devastated...and at at loss. Can anyone give me their advise? Has anyone ever experienced this?
I competed five times in 2012, back to back. So I know, now, that this is a no-no. I was on high protein and extremely low carb diet totaling a whopping 1000 calories/day. YIKES. I did well in my shows and was on top of the world...so I kept going without taking my body into consideration.
My last show was November 9th (Nationals in ATL) and since then...I tried continuing a super low calorie diet(which i was totally used to) and didn't take a break from the hour+ cardio a day. A few weeks after the show I realized i was GAINING weight...pretty quickly. So all I could do was freak out...because I was still cardio-ing and dieting! It was then I started to discuss with my bodybuilder friends what I was going through. I also went to the doctor and had my thyroid and hormone levels checked. First labs came back all screwed up. I literally was producing less estrogen and testosterone than a 46 yr old female who is pre-menapausal (per my doctor). Thyroid was in range. Three weeks later (last week) i went and repeated the labs and they came back completely normal. I've been told by almost everyone that hears my story, I've damaged my metabolism and my body is in starvation mode. I AM STILL GAINING WEIGHT!!!!
Not only am i depressed about the weight gain...I'm terrified that there is possible permanent damage. I've been advised to stop ALL cardio and take 2 weeks to eat WHATEVER I want to shock my system. I was told to also take those two weeks and lift HEAVY to engage the metabolism. I am completely confused...devastated...and at at loss. Can anyone give me their advise? Has anyone ever experienced this?
