I keep running out of calories

xstephnz

-please don't check my food diary, there's nothing in there at the moment

When I use my food diary, I run out of calories really quickly.

I loved Weight Watchers when I was on it, because there were lots of ''0'' foods that I could stock up on when I had used all of my calorie allowance for the day.

I am trying to have protein with every meal. I often start out my day with whole grain toast (2 pieces) and 2 hard boiled eggs. Once I've had that about 400 calories is already gone.

I read in one place, you should have 2 eggs a day. In another, I read that you shouldn't exceed more than 7 eggs in a week.

I see that some people struggle to get to their daily calorie limit. I'm having the opposite problem. Seems like I enjoy the high calorie options a bit too much (although I have low fat butter, and low fat milk).

How can I stretch out my calories?

Thanks

RodaRose

Change your goals to one pound a week. MFP is going to lower your calories as you lose weight anyway.
I do not eat much bread/pasta/potatoes/cereal as I find that I do better eating protein (eggs, Greek yogurt, meat, beans, nuts) and vegetables.

KarenJanine

Reassess your goals - for most people 0.5 to 1 lb per week weight loss is a healthy, sustainable goal. This will give you a higher calorie goal that you should find it easier to stick to.

Also, are you exercising? If so, log your exercise and MFP will credit you with extra calories (exercise requires fuel).

Just be aware that many exercise burns are over-estimated, so only eating back 50-75% of exercise calories allows for this.

allierat84

Make sure that your goals are realistically attainable, don't try and loose too much at once. As well as protein, fill up on low calorie fruit and vegetables. Exercise in order to get more calorie allowance. Low fat does not equal low calorie and just because something like whole grain toast sounds healthy doesn't mean it's going to fit into your calorie goals. Eat as many or as few eggs as you like as long as it fits your calorie allowance.

tiptoethruthetulips

Where are you logging your calories? Your diary is empty?

But it does show that you intended only to eat about 1350 calories per day. This is not enough for someone with about 58 kilos to lose. I am not surprised you are always going over calorie allowance you are probably very hungry.

Re do your weight loss profile, set a reasonable weekly goal and you will be given a more sustainable daily calorie allowance.

daizyk70

I use 1 egg and then one or two servings of All Whites in an omelet. The taste is still good and you get more protein and fewer calories than 2 eggs.

milkywayward

You can change your goals and also look for less calorie-dense options (e.g. vegetables). You could also experiment with standard meals you have, like see if you're just as full having just the eggs, or a third egg instead of toast, or just one slice of toast or something like that. That's how I manage my calories.

hesn92

I like to eat a light breakfast that way I have more calories for dinner. My breakfast is like 173 calories, plus my coffee. I eat fiber one cereal with almond milk. And it actually keeps me full. All of the fiber I suppose.

Try making things that involve more meat and veggies and only a little rice/pasta. That will help keep the calories down. And then you can take that for lunch.

atypicalsmith

Start logging in your food. No one can help you if you don't help yourself.

Sugarbeat

Perhaps you could log for the sake of logging for a couple weeks? Ignore the suggested number of calories, ignore it if it goes into the red, and just see what you are eating. Maybe make a note or two about why you're eating, are you hungry, bored, tired, etc.? If you're running out of calories and are still hungry, you aren't eating enough of something that will satisfy you. It could be a fat and protein thing, or you may need to add some low calorie veggies to add volume.

elphie754

Perhaps cut out the trip to McDonald's that you posted about in another section?

ew_david

xstephnz wrote: »

-please don't check my food diary, there's nothing in there at the moment

When I use my food diary, I run out of calories really quickly.

I loved Weight Watchers when I was on it, because there were lots of ''0'' foods that I could stock up on when I had used all of my calorie allowance for the day.

I am trying to have protein with every meal. I often start out my day with whole grain toast (2 pieces) and 2 hard boiled eggs. Once I've had that about 400 calories is already gone.

I read in one place, you should have 2 eggs a day. In another, I read that you shouldn't exceed more than 7 eggs in a week.

I see that some people struggle to get to their daily calorie limit. I'm having the opposite problem. Seems like I enjoy the high calorie options a bit too much (although I have low fat butter, and low fat milk).

How can I stretch out my calories?

Thanks

That's what I didn't like about WW. Not to say that fruits and vegetables aren't good options, but they certainly have calories and are not "free."

But I guess it doesn't really matter if you're not even keeping track of your intake. You have to put the work in in order for things to change. It doesn't just happen.

Woodspoon

Just eat less calorie dense food - it really is that simple
Yes, you will get hungry at times, but that's what happens when you're trying to cut down

MiltonAFC

There's nothing wrong with eggs. I usually eat 4(whole) a day.

999tigger

Start logging your food to get an idea of what you are eating. Not logging is a major flaw.
Use some common sense and distribute your calories wisely during the day. Pick calories that will help you feel full as well as providing nutrition. That way you will feel less hungry.

It really starts with logging though and getting an understanding of what you currently consume and then you can make a gradual transition over weeks.

xstephnz

Alright, I've changed my food tracker so I only lose 0.5 kilogram a week. I'm a bit funny about it. I guess I'll eat what it says, and just eat half of my exercise calories back. I have so much weight to lose that hopefully I'll start losing weight a bit faster anyway. Once I know how to eat more food for less calories, I'll put it back on lose 1 kilogram a week.



Can anyone tell me what the best low dense foods are?

kristinegift

2 pieces of toast and 2 eggs is a lot for breakfast when you've only got 1350 calories. You could up your calories by lowering your pounds per week goal, or you could change up your breakfast/other meals to make them count for less. I eat about 1430 (on days I don't exercise), and my breakfast is usually granola and yogurt with coffee, or granola and peanut butter with coffee. The protein in the peanut butter or yogurt (as well as the granola which is about 4g) keeps me fuller until I eat lunch 4-5 hours later. It's not a huge breakfast coming in at less than 300 cals, but it keeps me satisfied.

Also you can stretch out the calories by adding those 0 point foods, they'll just be 30 calories here (carrots) or 90 calories there (an apple). But those are excellent snack choices, and if you fill half your plate with veggies at lunch or dinner, you're filling yourself up but with less calories.

But definitely log everything! Seeing it all laid out every day helps a lot. And if you go over a little, that's ok!

_lyndseybrooke_

Pre-log your day ahead of time. That way, you have a general idea of what you can eat so you don't end up with no calories to spare come dinner time.

Your calorie goal is probably too low anyway.

xcalygrl

xstephnz wrote: »

Alright, I've changed my food tracker so I only lose 0.5 kilogram a week. I'm a bit funny about it. I guess I'll eat what it says, and just eat half of my exercise calories back. I have so much weight to lose that hopefully I'll start losing weight a bit faster anyway. Once I know how to eat more food for less calories, I'll put it back on lose 1 kilogram a week.



Can anyone tell me what the best low dense foods are?

Chicken breasts
Broccoli
Cabbage
Eggs (egg substitutes are also a good option)
Turkey breast
Spaghetti squash
Old-fashioned oats

Pretty much pick lean proteins and veggies as the primary "parts" of your meal, then fit in grains as a side dish as they fit in your calorie goal. I aim for half of my meal (most of the time) to be veggies, a third to be protein, and fill in the rest with carbs/grains.

LetterboxingMoose

As a general rule, I find it easier to meet my goal when I eat fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meat that has not been processed and whole grains. Exercising is also a key player. The more you exercise, the more you will be able to eat more. I also find it helpful to plan my meals on here for the entire day and then stick with the plan.

MKEgal

Here's a newbie help post which has links to helpful info such as sexypants, realistic goal setting, accurately measuring & logging food ... Read all 3 of those, then browse the rest.

A few observations:
- At only 25 years old, you should have a higher starting calorie allotment even if you're very short. So even if you're aiming to lose 1 lb per week, you should have more than 1300 cal. I'm 46 and 5'10" and I'm aiming for 1400. (That's absolute. Ignore net/exercise calories.)

- Your photo doesn't look like losing 128 lb will be healthy for you. Play around with the last calculator in the goal setting post - it works in English & metric and will show you your BMI at whatever weight you put in, as well as how many servings of the various food groups you should be eating. Aim to get the BMI somewhere around 22, which is the middle of the healthy range.

- As for WW and their "free" foods... see example #4 here. (Read the rest of it too, because eventually you'll run into someone talking about starvation mode & you'll need to know what it is & is not.) The woman he's talking about took WW literally, believing that it's OK to eat unlimited amounts of their "free" foods... and was not losing weight.
Yes, vegetables especially are low in calories, high in nutrition & fiber. But they still count. Everything counts. If you want more bulk, have more veggies. Have more fruit too, but be careful of the sugar.

- To feel unhungry longer, include protein with every meal & snack. Lowfat meat, cheese, hard boiled eggs, even some nuts (but don't go overboard).
.

Sugarbeat

xstephnz wrote: »

Alright, I've changed my food tracker so I only lose 0.5 kilogram a week. I'm a bit funny about it. I guess I'll eat what it says, and just eat half of my exercise calories back. I have so much weight to lose that hopefully I'll start losing weight a bit faster anyway. Once I know how to eat more food for less calories, I'll put it back on lose 1 kilogram a week.



Can anyone tell me what the best low dense foods are?

Veggies are good for high volume/low calorie. I'm not recommending you go low carb, but the lower carb veggies tend to also have lower calories. If you like eggs for breakfast, add some veggies to the side, bring a salad for lunch to go along with whatever else you have, and so on.

lcooper327

daizyk70 wrote: »

I use 1 egg and then one or two servings of All Whites in an omelet. The taste is still good and you get more protein and fewer calories than 2 eggs.

I would say keep the whole egg and get rid of a piece of toast. Fat and protein keep you full

Lezavargas

Use that food diary and review it the next day. Youll be surprised how many things youll look back on and think "hmmm...i probably could have done without that". Also find high volume low cal snacks like air popped popcorn! Planning out your day ahead of times helps alot too. When an item pops out on your diary as excessive then cut down your portion or find an alternative. Youll be surprised once you really dig in that youll have days that your scrambling to find enough calories! Feel free to friend me for some good low cal filling recipes and some diary feedback!

beemerphile1

xstephnz wrote: »

-please don't check my food diary, there's nothing in there at the moment...How can I stretch out my calories?

Thanks

Maybe you should start logging and counting calories. Also stop eating the caramel sundae that you started another thread about. There is virtually zero nutrition but tons of calories in that sundae.

This is harsh but I don't believe the problem is not enough calories. The problem is making excuses and your poor choices.

daisyverma

I also have the same issue and lowered my weight loss goal a bit, however my calorie goal is still under 1300 calories.

My biggest issue is my sweet tooth, and I end up wasting 100-200 calories on satisfying that.

Anyone got advice for battling a sweet tooth?

Sometimes I get a small pack of those Sacha Inchi Seeds in chocolate, but they are expensive!

kimw91

I'm not gonna comment on the egg/no eggs thing, apart from: don't believe everything you hear.

That said, judging by the other threats you've started, I think your main problem is that you're just not willing to make the lifestyle change. You could very simply start at breakfast, by ditching one piece of toast and replacing it by a good amount of veggies. You could also opt for 1 whole egg and 2 egg whites, maybe even make an omelette.

xstephnz

kimw91 wrote: »

That said, judging by the other threats you've started, I think your main problem is that you're just not willing to make the lifestyle change.

I wasn't ready before, but I am starting to feel better about things now

RainyDaysAgain

xstephnz wrote: »

I wasn't ready before, but I am starting to feel better about things now

That's great I started with MFP less than 2 months ago, so I remember the beginning well. It was hard to get things right, and I was a bit hungry, and I was used to lots of snacking in the afternoon. After a few days I found popcorn, cucumbers, and black coffee were good for satisfying the need to snack. They aren't super tasty though, so I fell out of the habit of snacking other than when I am truly hungry. LOL.

My suggestion would be to spend a few days tracking what you eat, to get in the habit and also to increase your awareness of where your calories are coming from. I would also start with a smaller calorie deficit until you are more comfortable with restricting what you eat. Eating for a small loss is better than aiming for a big loss but getting hungry and then binging.

To avoid running out of calories, plan your meals the night before. I find it *much* easier to eat the right foods when I already have them planned out, especially first thing in the morning!

Good luck! You can do this, it is just hard getting started.

Francl27

xstephnz wrote: »

kimw91 wrote: »

That said, judging by the other threats you've started, I think your main problem is that you're just not willing to make the lifestyle change.

I wasn't ready before, but I am starting to feel better about things now

It took me months to get ready! Just make small changes at first.

HotPotato22

I would try new foods and just playing with calories. You could do a vegetable egg scramble with one egg and two egg whites (only 100 calories) with a side of fruit. I also do one piece of toast or sauteed spinach with my eggs. I use almond milk and coconut milk instead of cows milk because it has less calories and tastes better to me. These specific changes may not appeal to you, especially if you don't like the food I'm suggesting (which is fine). My point just be a little creative to reduce calories and make small changes so you aren't overwhelmed.