metabolism slowed?

Question
Okay, so I'm a 16 year old teen girl and five feet and four inches tall. I weigh 108-110. I used to weigh around 130 and lost it the weight eating about 1000 calories a day. i have had it off for about half a year but havent started eating normal again. I'm wondering if I have slowed down my metabolism and if I will gain weight if I increase my calories. Also, about how many should I be eating? I'm pretty active and a varsity cheerleader. Thank you!

Answer
Dear Lindsey, When you were eating only 1000 calories a day, you also burned some of your muscle, so yes, your metabolism slowed down a little. If eating normal is eating the amount of food you ate when you were 134 pounds, then yes, eventually you will get back up to 134 pounds. Figure out the amount of calories you are eating now and if you are maintaining your weight, then that is the amount of calories you need. Caloric needs are different for everyone, it depends of the body type, and activity level. For weight maintenance 2000 calories or more is the norm or even more than that if you are really active. The trick is to eat 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day. This allows the body to burn the calories for energy instead of storing the excess food as fat. Food choice is also important. Highly carbed food like pasta, rice, mac and cheese, etc., is easily stored as fat, whereas meat, fish, chicken combined with vegetables is not.  Hope that helps, Laura Kraemer,Slimkids.com

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