First of all, let me start off by saying that I'm a 13 year old male, currently, and approaching the end of middle school, going to high school next year.
Here's the thing- I have SHRUNK! That's right, I've actually lost height. I was 5'6" and went down to less than 5'2". Let me explain. (This might be long, so please bear with me).
When I was 11 years old, towards the end of 6th grade, I stood at an average height, 5'0". At that time, I used to eat like a normal kid- fast foods, burgers, hot dogs, the occassional vegetable and fruit... mostly meat and chicken, but a little serving of vegetables once in a while. And milk and cereal, too (not too often, but a pretty good amount every week). I grew at a normal rate, not too fast, not too slow, about an inch or two every couple of months.
Then 6th grade ended. And summer came. At that time, my brother who was older than me started weightlifting and stuff with a bar he borrowed from his friend. It was a bar, with two 15-pound weights on each side, which would have a total of 60 pounds. I got curious and thought that if I weightlifted, I'll get bigger and taller, and have muscle to show off. So, occasionally, when no one would be home, I started working out with the bar. First, it was kinda hard, so I lowered it to 15 pounds, then 30, and eventually 60. The only exercises I did with them were the snatch (where you bend your knees, pick up the weight from the floor and up to your chest, then over your head) and bicep curls. SO BASICALLY, I WAS 11 YEARS OLD, EATING A REGULAR DIET, AND WORKING OUT WITH 60-POUND WEIGHTS.
Then came the big surprise. After only about a month of working out, I suddenly realized that I had grown a massive amount of inches. I grew from 5'0" to 5'5"! I grew out of my clothes and became taller. I grew taller, so I thought that if I kept working out, I'd grow taller. And I did! Also, as a side note, let me add that I started eating less, and started eating healthier foods, because I thought that that would be better for gaining muscle. (Boy was I wrong!)
I kept it up until about 2 weeks before 7th grade started. By then, I was 5'6" and living! Another thing would be that I lost weight (from 130 lbs. to 115 lbs.) But then, my brother got kinda tired of weightlifting, so he returned the bar to his friend. So, after it was returned, I still had an urge to grow even taller, so I just did push-ups and found stuff around the house that I lifted with. These would be things like my bookbag (which I would load up with books) or just things around the house. Either way, whatever I lifted, it didn't weigh any more that 10 pounds.
Then school started. AND I HAD GROWN FROM 5'0" TO 5'6" IN LESS THAN 3 MONTHS, BY WEIGHTLIFTING AND EATING LESS, BUT EATING HEALTHIER FOODS. People in my classes would walk up to me and be like "Hey, do you work out," or say, "Wow, you're a beast!" And I was, standing 5'6" and with a little bit of muscle packed on, but just enough to impress others!
After that, I just continued doing what I did. I lifted things not weighing more than 10 pounds, but not too often (once a week or so) and gradually, I started eating less and less. I kept on losing fat, and weight, but I didn't shrink.
By the end of 7th grade, I still stood somewhere around 5'6", but I had lost more than 15 pounds, and even if I did have a little bit of muscle, I was very skinny. Not too skinny, but skinny for a male.
Then 7th grade ended, and summer came along. Somewhere around the middle of 7th grade, I think I reached puberty. I know I did because of all the signs and stuff (like acne, voice changes, etc.). Then, when summmer came, I became lazier and lazier, and started working out less. I did it maybe once every 2 weeks, and it wasn't even intense, and I ate less and less. I had become kind of "like a skeleton," and I barely ate more than 2 meals a day. And I didn't get enough rest, too. I slept at like 1 AM every night. SO BASICALLY, I STARTED WORKING OUT LESS, EATING A WHOLE LOT LESS, NOT EATING MUCH HEALTHY FOODS, AND NOT GETTING A LOT OF SLEEP.
I continued that until I got to 8th grade, and then everything changed. I noticed a change in my growth. From being 5'6", I had shrunk! I was somewhere around 5'4"! One of my friends at school even said that I had shrunk, and everyone else did too, and I saw it myself! It was horrible! I couldn't imagine why that happened! So, in an attempt to become taller, I started working out more, but eating less, and still not getting enough sleep. After about a month, I still didn't get bigger, so I just quit. I rarely ate 2 meals a day, and they weren't healthy, and I didn't get much sleep, and I didn't exercise or do nothing.
Puberty was still going on with me, because I got more facial hair, my voice changed more, and I got more acne. Still, I basically just didn't take care of my body. Then, after Winter had wrapped up and Spring came along, my parents (well, my dad) said that I could weightlift if I wanted to, and so I got my own weightlifting set. (This happened about 2 months ago). Then, I started lifting again, with more weight and more resistance. Gradually, I got more hungrier, so I started eating more, about 5 meals a day, and started working out more. I got more sleep, and ate very healthy foods, too (milk, fruits, vegetables, etc.).
IT'S BEEN 2 MONTHS SINCE I STARTED WORKING OUT MORE, EATING MORE AND HEALTHIER FOODS, AND GETTING MORE SLEEP. But still, I haven't seen a change in height. If anything, I seem to be shrinking even more! Right now, I'm 13, and keeping up that routine, and puberty is still going on with me. BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN A CHANGE IN GROWTH! I heard puberty is supposed to give you growth spurts. When I went from 5'0" to 5'6", I was barely 12, and puberty was just beginning! Now, it's continuing more and more, but my height is seeming to decrease more and more. I have no idea why!
If you guys have read this thing the whole way through, then you should know what my dilemma is. I need to grow back to the height I was before, or at least just grow! So this is my question- how can I grow taller? And, how can I grow taller and keep on growing, and keep it permanent?
Please- I need to know what to do to ensure that I'm growing properly. Any advice given would be very much appreciated. Just gaining inches in height is my main concern, but if anything else is wrong, I'd appreciate it if you'd help me out.
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