# Eating right to gain weight and fully recover libido after undereating/overtraining



## cm00 (Feb 13, 2013)

i've gone through a long period of under eating and over training where i severely messed up my hormonal levels including crashing my own testosterone production which resulted in a very low libido and a very low weight, at one point i was around just ten stone. I've a natural lifter so i've never done steroids, and i've since fixed my total testosterone levels, bringing them right back up to the high end of the range, my free testosterone on the other hand is still on the low side and my libido could be better so my primary goal is to get my libido back to a good level.

I'm eating 3200 calories a day now and my weight still won't go up. I log how i feel each day and wherever or not i have morning wood and how strong/long it lasts is part of what i use to figure out how what i did the day before has impacted my hormonal status, as blood tests only come every 6 weeks

My weight is 75.3kg before bed and 73.9kg in the morning. In lbs that is 165 and 163. I am 5"11. I've been stuck at this weight for weeks, it seems like i am not eating enough food if i want to gain weight. My body fat is around 12%. For a normal man this is apparently a good weight? But for someone who lifts, i'm probably underweight?

A few days ago I consumed 3700 calories a day for two days. Both mornings afterward I had strong morning wood which lasted for some time, and I felt good on those days. At the end of the second day I weighed myself, i was 76.3kg, that's a whole kilo above my usual weight. Clearly not actual tissue gain but some other kind of weight, glycogen stores perhaps or something else? Is my body fighting to get back to its natural weight after my long period of under-eating and over exercising?

I went back to my usual food intake of 3200 calories a day, and within a day that kilo was gone, and now i'm constantly getting the same weight as I have done for weeks again, 75.3kg. i also noticed a decrease in morning wood quality.

Could it be that i need to up my cals some more? I felt better and saw weight increase on 3700 calories after previously failing to gain on 3200.


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## Handsofstone (Apr 7, 2013)

Hi mate

I went through the same thing over training and under eating to make my boxing weight an had no sex drive whats so ever!

I read up a lot on here and other sites and found out i was not getting in enough fats and i was not eating enough calories a normal person would eat never mind a guy who trained twice a day boxing cardio and weights.

So first off i would check that your getting in enough fats and take a diet break if you have to i did and felt loads better.

Im no nutritionist this is just what worked for me! I gained weight fast from under eating and reintroducing carb's but im still very lean an even though im not at my boxing weight any more i no my health is more important than over training an under eating to make a weight class.

Now im like a dog on heat and the missus hates it 

You will get it back just give it time and eat more if you have to.


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## cm00 (Feb 13, 2013)

Handsofstone said:


> Hi mate
> 
> I went through the same thing over training and under eating to make my boxing weight an had no sex drive whats so ever!
> 
> ...


Ah good job, you were able to get your libido back and all too well it sounds like, that's what i want! Yeah i did make the mistake of low fat intake that's something i already fixed. I just increased my intake today from 3200 to 3500 calories, my diet is 400g carbs, 185g protein, 135g fats. I try to get a good mix of everything really so nothing is left out. Fats coming from avocado, eggs, pumpkin seeds, full fat yogurt, whole milk, oats, beef, lamb, salmon and olive oil.

I also try to get a good mix of simple and complex carbs, mostly from potato, wholewheat pasta, fruits, and other vegetable sources.

i don't think i've missed out any important foods, this is probably way better than what most people eat. i'm hoping the libido issue is from not getting enough calories in yet to recover from my under eating and over training, if it is then the solution is simple, eat more.

What kind of calorie intake did you have to crash your libido and how many calories per day did it take to get a strong libido back? How long did it take to come back once you were eating enough?


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## cm00 (Feb 13, 2013)

I've been reading up about leptin, this master hormone regulates hunger and libido, and dieting will cause lower levels of it, causing low libido.

Apparently you need to overeat for some time to bring leptin back to normal. A leptin reset or something? There's a study on it here http://www.eatingdisordersreview.com/nl/nl_edr_12_6_7.html


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## Handsofstone (Apr 7, 2013)

1200 mate! I was boxing and doing intense cardio sessions with light weight training on top of that, I was easy burning what i was eating,No wounder i crashed my libido, I did this for a long time it messed my metabolism up, I got in to the cycle

where if i did eat more i would gain weight on the scales so i wouldn't eat more because i was competing a lot back then an had to make my weight class, I never had a day off training which is also a massive mistake your body needs rest.

Going back a few months ago i decided to take a break from boxing and lowered my cardio to three times a week and get back in to weight lifting, I slowly had to up my calories a little each week, In the first 2 weeks i gained 5 kilo but i new this would happen, Now im on 1850 its still not enough i eat more if i do a intense cardio session but my weight now is stable at 65 kilo so im going to keep upping the cals 100 each week making sure im hitting my protein and fat needs but whats more important is i feel a lot better in my self, Im still lean with the extra 5 kilo i have put on and my libido is back, It did take a couple months to come back but it has come back, Yours will to mate just give it time up the cals and get your rest in.

Take a week off training and your diet if you have to mate, This is when i found my Libido was at its strongest, I was on holiday

with the missis so there was no gym and every morning i must have been packing away 1000 cals eating pancakes with nutella and then going back up for bacon and eggs! then on a night loads of meat and ice cream and i was drinking most nights as well, I looked bloated as hell but it only took a week to get back where i was and look in good shape again, An ever since that break my Libido has been at its best like im 16 again lol. Hope this helps you a little mate.


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## cm00 (Feb 13, 2013)

Handsofstone said:


> 1200 mate! I was boxing and doing intense cardio sessions with light weight training on top of that, I was easy burning what i was eating,No wounder i crashed my libido, I did this for a long time it messed my metabolism up, I got in to the cycle
> 
> where if i did eat more i would gain weight on the scales so i wouldn't eat more because i was competing a lot back then an had to make my weight class, I never had a day off training which is also a massive mistake your body needs rest.
> 
> ...


wow you're on 1800 cals now? that's roughly the intake i was on that made me crash, coupled with working out every day of the week and using excessive caffeine excessively to fuel me.

I still haven't got my libido back properly even on 3000+ calories a day although i will say i feel miles better and i look better and i'm not getting any fatter. I've read up a lot on leptin and how it regulates hunger, libido etc and you get low leptin from undereating or being underweight. Been reading up on the best way to bring leptin levels back up, and it seems you just need to eat a ton of carbs, but not to overload on fruits, fructose in moderation, apparently it doesn't have a good effect on leptin.


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## Handsofstone (Apr 7, 2013)

Yeah i no its low for me mate my metabolism was shot and its only now getting back right if i went and upped it to say 3000 a day every day with out doing it little by little i would gain to quick, People gain pounds i gain kilos lol not a problem if i was bulking but at the moment im wanting to stay between 65 and 68 as i plan on boxing again and feel great at this weight, If i drop any weight at the end of the week i up my cals more and if its to much weight loss or i feel low on energy i will up my carbs the next day and get a takeaway with the missus and the day after that my gym sessions if that's lifting or running are my best sessions.

Yeah when you low cal your leptin levels drop which is prob the reason when i end up having more carbs and a takeaway i end up having my best gym sessions. I prob eat on these days around 3000 cals and the cals are not clean i can pack away a good few chocolate flapjacks from the bakers or them 4 packs of big cookies from tesco 2 packs and then a chinese on the night, Energy the next day is fantastic and libido the next morning is always up.


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## Nabby (Apr 20, 2017)

cm00 said:


> i've gone through a long period of under eating and over training where i severely messed up my hormonal levels including crashing my own testosterone production which resulted in a very low libido and a very low weight, at one point i was around just ten stone. I've a natural lifter so i've never done steroids, and i've since fixed my total testosterone levels, bringing them right back up to the high end of the range, my free testosterone on the other hand is still on the low side and my libido could be better so my primary goal is to get my libido back to a good level.
> 
> I'm eating 3200 calories a day now and my weight still won't go up. I log how i feel each day and wherever or not i have morning wood and how strong/long it lasts is part of what i use to figure out how what i did the day before has impacted my hormonal status, as blood tests only come every 6 weeks
> 
> ...


 Hey is your libido back if yes please reply to me


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