Weekly goal panic

sophomorelove

Good morning,

I am in a panic mode, and I feel like I'm gonna lose it. I have been logging food and working out almost daily (at least 45 min, not logging, because I am not ready to commit to exercising and am just doing it at free will for now).

This morning I looked at the weekly calorie goal and saw that I only have 450 calories for today.
I grew up in a very frugal family with my grandparents' stories about war, so I still have this notion in my mind that if I don't eat now, the food'll be gone tomorrow.

Please don't judge me for the lack of willpower. I do have it, and I have lost weight before, but it's just unsustainable this way. I'm trying to fix it in my head this time.

Anyways, I see that I'll have to be hungry today, and all my cravings multiply. I just ate a bowl of dry cereal in panic.

Someone's earlier post about "just for today" was incredibly helpful to me in staying sane, but I don't know how to get through today without either feeling starved or binging.

Should I try to resist and remain within the goal for the week or just start today fresh?

Also, I have finals the next two weeks, and I just lost all my babysitters (they're sick with flu), so I am incredibly stressed and don't get enough sleep.

Sorry for rambling and whining. I just need to get through these two weeks and would appreciate some tips from people with a long-term perspective.
Thanks.

vismal

Stop trying to hit calories for the week and focus on daily calorie goals. Many people, especially those new to counting calories, have trouble budgeting an entire week's worth of calories. Many times by the Saturday they have virtually nothing left to eat. When you focus on daily goals, this is not a problem.

allyphoe

Raise your calorie goal to one you can sustain.

Also, logging the day's exercise doesn't erase the free will of having made the choice to exercise. If you're going to have a goal that low, you have to eat your exercise calories back.

Also also, with a goal that low, it's probably going to be helpful in the long term to give some thought to macronutrients and satiety. Candy and wine don't have much nutrition or ability to keep you feeling full.

In case it's not obvious, I do not think you should limit yourself to <1200 calories today in an attempt to "make up" for the rest of the week.

sheepotato

Okay first for some perspective, the worst thing that will happen if you eat more today is you will be slightly under your goal for one week. One week out of your whole life, and you will be motivated to do better next week after having missed the mark this time. If your goal was losing 1 pound a week you will still lose nearly a pound so by next week it could be two. An extra 500 calories today is only 1/7th of a pound. Or you could eat back your exercise calories for the day if you don't already do that.

Having a weekly goal instead of a daily goal worked out really well for me, because I don't eat as much during the week so I usually have a large bank for the weekends. If I didn't go under during the week as much then a daily goal may have worked better.

Since you've mentioned your upbringing it seems like you still have a few bad habits to break along the way, you'll get there. Just eat something today and learn from this and plan better for next week. Or find a way that works better for you.

sophomorelove

Thank you. I almost forgot that at this point I'm just trying to figure out how to eat to be most satisfied within a given calories range for the day.

MadamMina

vismal wrote: »

Stop trying to hit calories for the week and focus on daily calorie goals. Many people, especially those new to counting calories, have trouble budgeting an entire week's worth of calories. Many times by the Saturday they have virtually nothing left to eat. When you focus on daily goals, this is not a problem.

Totally this! You are only freaking yourself out and stress most def. will not lead to weight loss! Don't be your own worst enemy. When you log daily and do your exercise it all is going to be fine!

Kalikel

I'd eat at whatever your daily goal is and chalk this up as a learning experience. You don't do well if you don't stick to daily goals. Maybe you'll be able to manage weekly goals later, but not now.

Eat today and then stick to your daily goals until you have things under control better.

If you are healthy and want to stick with your 450, I doubt it will do much harm. It won't do a ton of good, though, either.

In the future, only go over your goal number if you already went under it. But try to stick to that number every day, at least for now.

CarrieCans

Focus on one day at a time. You seem like you are very stressed, it might be a good idea to focus on less until you get more comfortable with the process.

I totally agree with Kalikel.

Where are your veggies? I noticed one day that you had green beans and potato. You might want to try and switch out some of your calories for more filling ones. It worked for me with drinks and snacks that were wasting calories, now i have room to add in more filling vegetables and fruits. I didn't actually eliminate any food, just changed amounts.

kyta32

Hi...Looking at your food diary...Great job on the protein (I always have trouble with that). It would be great to see more home made foods, fresh vegetables and leafy greens (and a good example to your daughter). Keep in mind that just staying in your calorie range for a few days will help your appetite adjust to the right number of calories for your diet, and quell some of the hunger and cravings.

I know you are pressed for time, but eating home-made can help cut down on the sodium, and things like MSG that can be added to store bought. Make large batches on the weekend to eat over the week. I freeze 3/4 cup servings of chili, curry, pasta sauce, and chicken stir fry (I've bought a few containers, but mostly keep them in snack-size ziplock bags), then heat in the microwave and serve with rice (large batch made once a week and kept in fridge) or microwaved pasta. The pasta takes 8 minutes on 7th power in my microwave, but the rest of the meal is done in 2. Vegetables can be filling with fewer calories. Soups can also be more filling with fewer calories. My 2nd daughter likes my version of the Weight Watchers zero points soup (no cabbage, lentils, 1 parsnip, new potatoes and a bit of soy sauce and lemon juice added). Kids also like helping with adding ingredients to the pot (with spices, measure out the correct amount and put it in a small cup or bowl, instead of letting the kid add straight from the spice container.

Are you using your own homemade recipes? If you are using the ones from the MFP database, the nutritional information may not be accurate. Look for entries that don't have an asterisk (sorry about spelling).

You may want to limit sweets to a couple of times a week. They are very hard to fit into a 1200 calorie diet, and still get all the nutrition your body needs in. Fresh fruit can be portable, more filling, and less calorie-dense than dried fruit. Also, find a way to avoid recipes that have 33 grams of sugar in one serving. Getting your sugar from fruits and vegetables is much easier on the system.

1200 calories is low, and a lot of people have had success losing on a few more calories than that. If your 45 minutes of exercise is intense, you may find that you can add 100-200 more calories a day and still lose weight. Give yourself a few weeks, and look at what the scale (and your inches) are doing. A few more (healthy) calories may lead to a better quality of life while you are eating. I find a few 1400 calorie days a week has not hurt my weight loss.

Keep in mind that even if you go above your calories for the day, if you are still in a deficit (MFP will tell you your deficit in the goals tab) your body will still be burning fat for energy. The weight loss may just take a little more time. Your diet isn't "broken". As you get closer to your goal weight the pounds do come off slower in a healthy diet. This helps ensure it is fat you are losing, and not your lean mass.

Pay attention to your body. You will get better at figuring out what works for you as time goes on. Try to change things slowly, one at a time, giving yourself a few weeks to see if it works, then another week to lock in the new habit, before adding something else. Great work so far! Good luck.

sophomorelove

Thanks everybody, I feel much better now.
Yes, I do need to eat more vegetables. I used to eat vegetable broth every day for lunch growing up, and I am not so fond of it
Veggies always go bad in our fridge, and it's a shame.

Kalikel

sophomorelove wrote: »

Thanks everybody, I feel much better now.
Yes, I do need to eat more vegetables.

Join the club! Fruit, I'm covered. Fruit and I have a love affair that stands the test of time, lol. If Fruitarianism was healthy, I'd convert today.

Veggies...I need more of them. They're not as easy to love, for sure! Must try more recipes!

MscGray

Try freezer veggies...or make your own freezer veggies (cut em up, lay em out on a baking sheet and set in freezer until they are somewhat frozen, and then bag em and return to freezer)

999tigger

Hey hope you have calmed down and feel less worried now. I see people have already advised doing a daily traget if you find you cant make weekly ones work for you.

After your exams then you might need to make some changes so you get more value for your calories, which should include vegetables on the basis they fill you up and are nutritious.

At the moment your priorities are your exams and keeping yourself in the best mental and physical state to do them. Worrying about the diet isnt worth it at the moment.

In terms of running out of calories and feeling bad, you say in your post, then you have exercise you arent logging. You say nearly every day so conservativelt lets say thats 4 sessions at 45 mins and a conservative 300cal burn for each one, that would give you 1000 calories you could eat.

In any event your exams have priority, you cna diet any other day but you onlt get this chance for your exams. Good luck, eat well and sensibly. Pick up the diet after or eat at maintenance if its a distraction.