4"11 I feel like I should be eating like a mouse...

jfritschie87

So this has been my first week back into the regimen of clean eating. It wasn't until I joined MFP that I realized how much extra I was eating that my body did not need.I eat healthier than most people I know and about the same amount as people who are not considered overweight. That's why I couldn't understand how I was gaining weight. I'm a short girl, so it was time to realize that my body needs way smaller portions than people who are taller than me. It's crazy how much even the smallest meal and snack additions to day can really add up to tip your daily caloric, sugar, fat, etc. needs. My MFP says I need to eat 1,200 calories to get to my goal weight. To me, this is like eating like a mouse! Fortunately, coffee in the mornings and green tea after meals gives me the extra boost of energy that I need for my workouts at the gym.

PrizePopple

With MFP you should also eat back exercise calories, usually people recommend eating back about half to give wiggle room for errors (MFP likes to overestimate caloric burn on activities). You could also look into TDEE ...

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/818082

PikaKnight

jfritschie87 wrote: »

So this has been my first week back into the regimen of clean eating. It wasn't until I joined MFP that I realized how much extra I was eating that my body did not need.I eat healthier than most people I know and about the same amount as people who are not considered overweight. That's why I couldn't understand how I was gaining weight. I'm a short girl, so it was time to realize that my body needs way smaller portions than people who are taller than me. It's crazy how much even the smallest meal and snack additions to day can really add up to tip your daily caloric, sugar, fat, etc. needs. My MFP says I need to eat 1,200 calories to get to my goal weight. To me, this is like eating like a mouse! Fortunately, coffee in the mornings and green tea after meals gives me the extra boost of energy that I need for my workouts at the gym.

How much are you trying to lose and what did you pick to lose per week?

ETA: Also be aware this is your base calorie number and doesn't include exercise calories as MFP follows the NEAT Method and expects users to eat back those.

MarissaPalm

It's hard for us shorties having to eat such a low amount of calories every day JUST to lose weight, but that is why there is this beautiful thing called working out! lol if it was not for my workouts I'd be miserable eating *only* 1200 calories a day. MFP definitely taught me portion control and making smarter choices in what I choose to eat, calorie and nutrient wise. However I still always get to enjoy pizza, ice cream, and cookies while continuously losing weight (35 lbs gone so far!)

margannmks

While most people on theses forums think its not any harder for short people to lose weight, i have to agree it is more difficult to lose because we not only require less calories we also burn less when we do exercise, so you cant eat portions meant for the average size person. It can be done it just takes a more accurate degree of counting both intake and burn because 100-200 calories off can halt your efforts.

MyChocolateDiet

jfritschie87 wrote: »

So this has been my first week back into the regimen of clean eating. It wasn't until I joined MFP that I realized how much extra I was eating that my body did not need.I eat healthier than most people I know and about the same amount as people who are not considered overweight. That's why I couldn't understand how I was gaining weight. I'm a short girl, so it was time to realize that my body needs way smaller portions than people who are taller than me. It's crazy how much even the smallest meal and snack additions to day can really add up to tip your daily caloric, sugar, fat, etc. needs. My MFP says I need to eat 1,200 calories to get to my goal weight. To me, this is like eating like a mouse! Fortunately, coffee in the mornings and green tea after meals gives me the extra boost of energy that I need for my workouts at the gym.

Good luck, You got this~! JUMPSCLAMATION!

jfritschie87

Thanks everyone for your responses. I have always felt like I have had to work twice as hard as "normal" sized people to lose weight and keep it off. Thank goodness I love working out though. It's my "me" time and I cherish it dearly. MarrisaPalm, I also eat things like cookies sparingly and I totally agree with you that an extra 100-200 calories can make a big difference in weight loss efforts. Thanks PickaNight for the insight on that. Sometimes I forget about those exercise calories!

DawnEmbers

Ah yes. I'm 4'11.5" and it's a challenge at times though my job helps since I'm on my feet all shift moving around often. My fitbit range tends to be 8,000 up to 16,000 steps per shift, depending on what I'm doing that day. Though it does also say that 10,000 steps is just over 4 miles for me instead of the average 5 miles most get at that step range. Getting more active has helped though. I only eat just over 1200 when I'm on a day off and doing nothing. Rest of the time I get to eat more. Except my bad food days when I don't quite eat enough, but I'm working on having less of those.

That and I have a slow cooker. Chicken, veggies and some season options = mmmm. Easy meals and can be made to have servings that are 250 calories or even less.

steff274

I was eating way less than I am now to lose weight am 5ft 2 btw.. But because of my active lifestyle and my love of the gym actually having to pack in a fair bit to prevent me from dropping further!!

segacs

5'1" here and also bird-like in my calorie intake needs. Join the shortie threads and groups -- there are lots of them around here.

But yeah, the problem isn't that we're short; the problem is that we're living in a world designed for tall people. So those restaurant portions? Not designed for us. Those exercise bikes? Too big for us. Those serving sizes on packaging? Designed for a 2000- or 2500-calorie diet.

You'll often get people on here -- usually men -- saying disparaging things about 1200-calorie diets (or even below, which could be appropriate if you're 4'11" and fairly small). They don't seem to understand that our bodies require far less fuel to run.

Exercise is good. Exercise gives you calories back that you can eat. Just don't overestimate those burns!

The good news? I feel fuller on 1200 calories than a larger person feels on 2000. And I spend less money to eat, too.