hungrygirl
Member
I am 20 years old, almost 21. I just finished my second year of college. I am extremely athletic - training for the modern pentathlon. I have always had a fast metabolism and that, combined with rigorous training, means that I need to eat a very large amount of food. Now I've talk to doctors and worked it out with nutritionists. I eat 6000-7000 calories a day. Typically, on a training day, I eat 1500-2000 calories for breakfast, 1000-1500 at noon and 4:00PM, and 1500-2000 for dinner. This means I eat at least twice what other girls eat and more than most of the men.
I find this very awkward sometimes. When I'm on my own or with good friends everything is fine. When I do things with other friends or with a group it can be awkward and even embarrassing.
I posted about this here last year and I can report a partial success. Last week my friend convinced me to go to a 3 day retreat with her church. This is the sort of place where I can feel awkward sometimes. This time I followed the advice of TSOW, who replied to my post last year. At the first meeting when we all introduced ourselves I told everyone about my athletics, metabolism, appetite etc. I told them I was sometimes embarrassed when people made a big deal about it and said, "don't be surprised if I eat two dinners or get hungry at funny times - it's just how I am". There were about 50 people there and it was very difficult for me to do. I was surprised that no one said much about it. After that no one seemed to think I was a freak or something. There were still some questions and comments but it didn't seem awkward and most people told me not to worry and eat what I want.
Less structured situations are sometimes still a problem for me. I don't want to make it sound like this is a huge weight on my mind or something because it isn't. But it's a constant bother. When I hang around with people I sometimes get in awkward situations where I'm stuck at someone's house or in some situation where I feel awkward eating what I want.
Well, thanks for listening and thanks for your advice.
I find this very awkward sometimes. When I'm on my own or with good friends everything is fine. When I do things with other friends or with a group it can be awkward and even embarrassing.
I posted about this here last year and I can report a partial success. Last week my friend convinced me to go to a 3 day retreat with her church. This is the sort of place where I can feel awkward sometimes. This time I followed the advice of TSOW, who replied to my post last year. At the first meeting when we all introduced ourselves I told everyone about my athletics, metabolism, appetite etc. I told them I was sometimes embarrassed when people made a big deal about it and said, "don't be surprised if I eat two dinners or get hungry at funny times - it's just how I am". There were about 50 people there and it was very difficult for me to do. I was surprised that no one said much about it. After that no one seemed to think I was a freak or something. There were still some questions and comments but it didn't seem awkward and most people told me not to worry and eat what I want.
Less structured situations are sometimes still a problem for me. I don't want to make it sound like this is a huge weight on my mind or something because it isn't. But it's a constant bother. When I hang around with people I sometimes get in awkward situations where I'm stuck at someone's house or in some situation where I feel awkward eating what I want.
Well, thanks for listening and thanks for your advice.
