The “Moving Goalposts” of red-s & Eating disorder Recovery
What Are “Moving Goalposts”?
When you’re in recovery from an undernutrition, it can feel like you’re always chasing a finish line that keeps shifting. You might think:
“I’m eating way more than I used to… so why am I still not restoring?”
“I finally challenged myself with that fear food… so why do I still feel stuck?”
“I’m doing everything right, but I’m still exhausted and frustrated.”
This experience feels like moving goalposts, and it’s a very real, very common part of recovery - especially when your body has been in an energy-depleted state for a long time.
Why This Happens
According to Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani in her book Sick Enough (2025), she explains that malnutrition doesn’t just affect weight but rather it impacts your hormones, metabolism, digestion, mental health, and organ systems. When your body has been under-fueled for a long time, it goes into survival mode. Even once you start eating more, your body doesn’t immediately flip a switch and go back to “normal.” Instead:
Your metabolism speeds up (hypermetabolism)
Your body prioritizes repairing damage before storing energy
It holds onto protective mechanisms longer than you think
You may feel full faster even when your body needs more
Weight gain or health markers may lag behind the effort
This is why recovery can feel like you’re doing everything “right” and still not seeing immediate results. It’s not failure- it’s biology.
What This Means For You
You’re not doing anything wrong.
If you’re eating more, resting more, and still not seeing the progress you hoped for, it doesn’t mean your effort is wasted. It means your body is working really hard behind the scenes to repair and rebuild.Your body has a backlog.
Think of recovery like repaying a long-standing debt. Even when you’re depositing more energy now, your body has to first cover what it lost (bone density, hormonal balance, muscle repair, organ function, mental resilience) before it can store or reflect those changes outwardly.You may need more than you think.
Sometimes, what feels like “too much” is actually just the right amount- or not quite enough. The bar is higher than it feels, especially when your internal cues are still recalibrating.
This phase is temporary but necessary.
The moving goalposts don’t last forever. But getting past this phase often requires leaning in, not backing off. Otherwise, recovery stalls right when your body is on the verge of healing.
Key Reminder
I know it can be discouraging to feel like your hard work isn’t showing up the way you hoped. But the truth is: it is working. The fact that you’re eating more, facing challenges, resting, and being honest about how you feel is the work.
And this phase- this frustrating, exhausting, confusing phase is often the exact point where true healing starts to take root.
If you feel like the goalposts are moving, let’s talk about it. It means your body is still trying to trust that it’s safe again and every step you take helps build that trust.
Source: Gaudiani JL. Sick Enough: A Guide to the Medical Complications of Eating Disorders and Undernutrition. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Routledge; 2025.