Eating enough?

vgomes1

Fitness Pal and T25 workouts helped me lose almost 20 lbs this time last year. I've kept most of it off, which is a goal in itself, but I workout very intensely, including boxing and heavy lifting. Started using Fitness Pal again this January and I am very honest about what I eat, which for the most part is healthy (there are bad days too), and haven't really lost any weight. I question if I am eating enough???!

malibu927

What are your stats? How much have you lost since you started back on MFP? Can you open your diary? Most likely you're eating more than you think, as if you weren't eating enough you would still lose.

vgomes1

I log everything and measure a lot of my food. I have read may post about not eating enough causing you to not lose weight, especially if you workout out very intensely. Not bragging at all, but my workouts are very intense and sometimes twice a day. Not a gym rat, but I just honestly enjoy it

TimothyFish

If you aren't losing weight, yes, you are eating enough.

atypicalsmith

My son gained 20 pounds in six weeks while in Basic Training in the Army. It was all muscle, but the workouts were a lot more intense than a couple of times in the gym - nearly all day as opposed to two or three hours (although you didn't say how much time you spend doing your intense exercising). Sounds like either your exercise reflects too many calories burned or your food calories are under their actual amount. Or both.

malibu927

Measuring or weighing? Because there can be a huge difference in using cups (which only give the volume of what you're eating) and a food scale (which gives an exact amount).

Liftng4Lis

Open your diary.

triciab79

Despite popular myth, if you eat too few calories it makes your weight go down not up. There are factors like salt intake and muscle development that can make you seem the same weight in spite of fewer calories but you cannot lose weight by eating more calories. You can lose weight by eating more food if you are trading heavier greasier food for lean meats and veggies but you cannot lose weight long term by increasing your calories while maintaining the same exercise routine. If calories in are less than calories out body fat goes down, if calories in are greater than calories out body fat goes up. Think of it like a glass of water. If you drink 1 ounce but add 2 ounces back the glass does not become less full. Your fat is just stored calories, when you eat you add to the storage and when you exercise you take out of storage. Everything else is just what people do to make dieting easier for them. Zone, Atkins, Weight watcher, jenny craig, Slimfast, are all just ways to train yourself to eat less. Some do it by carefully controlling your calories so that you adjust to a lower number. Others do it by giving you more filling food like protein and fat instead of carbs. In the end the result is the same, if you eat less you lose if you eat more you gain.

deemarie1

If you are not taking in enough calories your body will go into starvation mode. If you train heavy with weights you need to be sure you are eating enough to keep from losing your lean muscle. If I eat less than a certain amount each day, my weight loss stalls and I start storing fat and losing muscle. You have to figure out what your stall point is, which is the point that your body will slow down your metabolism and store rather than burn fat, then once you start eating normally again (not overeating) you will gain it back twice as fast because it takes a few weeks for your body to realize it does not need to store fat. Hence why most people gain back plus. They restrict their diet too much. Slow and steady is best.

malibu927

deemarie1 wrote: »

If you are not taking in enough calories your body will go into starvation mode. If you train heavy with weights you need to be sure you are eating enough to keep from losing your lean muscle. If I eat less than a certain amount each day, my weight loss stalls and I start storing fat and losing muscle. You have to figure out what your stall point is, which is the point that your body will slow down your metabolism and store rather than burn fat, then once you start eating normally again (not overeating) you will gain it back twice as fast because it takes a few weeks for your body to realize it does not need to store fat. Hence why most people gain back plus. They restrict their diet too much. Slow and steady is best.

Other than lifting to retain muscle mass, no

vgomes1

Open my diary? I do several times a day and check my macros. Deemarie1 hit t in the head, as far as I'm concerned. I eat lean meats, vegetables, fruits, oatmeal and eggs (and egg beaters) and sweet potatoes almost daily. My workouts are average an hour, sometimes a little longer, just depends what I am doing. I spend a lot of time lifting and cardio is usually Tabata or HIIT. I'm definitely not perfect with my eating, but I'd say on average, I am healthier than most around me. Try not to focus too much on the scale as I've gained a lot of muscle in the last year and dropped pant sizes, but surprised that the scale has Hardly budged. Thanks all for your comments.

JacqueLiveOTB

I agree that if you are not eating enough, your body will go into starvation mode. You can calculate you maintenance calories with an online calculator then subtract 500 calories. Make that your goal, log your activity, and eat the recommended calories suggested. Just make sure you are getting the right amount of protein, healthy fats and healthy carbs and drinking half your body weight in oz of water each day.

Liftng4Lis

deemarie1 wrote: »

If you are not taking in enough calories your body will go into starvation mode. If you train heavy with weights you need to be sure you are eating enough to keep from losing your lean muscle. If I eat less than a certain amount each day, my weight loss stalls and I start storing fat and losing muscle. You have to figure out what your stall point is, which is the point that your body will slow down your metabolism and store rather than burn fat, then once you start eating normally again (not overeating) you will gain it back twice as fast because it takes a few weeks for your body to realize it does not need to store fat. Hence why most people gain back plus. They restrict their diet too much. Slow and steady is best.

JacqueLiveOTB wrote: »

I agree that if you are not eating enough, your body will go into starvation mode. You can calculate you maintenance calories with an online calculator then subtract 500 calories. Make that your goal, log your activity, and eat the recommended calories suggested. Just make sure you are getting the right amount of protein, healthy fats and healthy carbs and drinking half your body weight in oz of water each day.

Starvation mode doesn't exist. Metabolic adaptation does, but that is usually going to happen to someone in competitive sports, or an extreme athlete.

angieleighbyrd

http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

I've been using that calculator for years. It's the most accurate I've found.

fevrale

"Open your diary" means make your diary public so that people can see it and help you figure out what you can improve upon.

vgomes1

Ahh,thanks fevrale! I input my workout calories burned and usually put in less calories than it says I've burned just to be safe and I'm still not eating all of my calories and I am a girl who eats!!!! And I've looked a calorie calculator before but wasn't sure how accurate they are, so thanks for those who suggested it.

TimothyFish

"starvation mode", the way you keep using that word, I don't think it means what you think it means.

Starvation can kill you, but it won't keep you from losing weight.