Am I eating too much?

kaiiirogers94

I am trying to lose weight. I need to. I'm a female, 20, 5'1 and I weigh 270 pounds. I am so unhealthy I can't get a job. So it's time. My whole life I ate once a day (lunch) and that would be it. That's how I was raised. Now I have a warped sense of eating. I'm trying to eat 1000 calories a day I have been doing this for almost 2 weeks. I feel like I'm always eating and I'm not going to make progress. Making myself eat 3 small meals a day is so hard. I don't know if I'm eating enough, or too much. I'll give you an idea of what I'm eating on a regular day.

Breakfast
1 scrambled egg, cooked in olive oil

Lunch
Grilled chicken salad with no dressing

Snack
Apple

Dinner
Grilled chicken breast broccoli, and carrots.

I only drink water.
I log everything into my app and it usually falls about 980-1000 calories. But I still feel like I'm not making any progress because I eat all the time now. Can someone tell me if I am eating too or not enough, or a good amount?
Thanks in advance.

arditarose

How long have you been logging and have you lost weight? 1000 calories is too little. You can eat much more than that to lose. On the other hand, if you're not weighing your food on a food scale, you don't really know for sure how much you are eating.

kaiiirogers94

It gave me 1400, but I edited it to 1000.

jenncornelsen

1000 calories will not be what mfp allotted u. eat what it gives u. eating so little will do u no favors when u give up from feeling like your starving all the time. remember this is about health not just weight loss

kaiiirogers94

I've been going it for about 10 days. I do not weigh my food. I don't know if I have lost weight or not, I don't like to step on the scale lol. I don't really feel hungry through out the day, though. I make myself eat.

Mr_Knight

You have to step on the scale. And if you're not weighing your food or getting it out of a package, you have no idea if you're eating 1000 calories or 2000 calories.

With the amount you have to lose, 1000 cals is fine as long as you're getting a reasonable mix of macros. But it will be hard to stick to it for an extended period of time, so be prepared for setbacks and/or adjustments.

blossomingbutterfly

I've successfully lost 46 lbs eating between 1800-2000 cal a day within the past 6 months. You can totally lose weight eating much more than you are. As others have said, you need to eat more than that, and more protein as well. You did not gain it all in one day, you cannot expect to be able to lose it all like that either. Give it time, you will see progress.

kaiiirogers94

Okay, so add a small amount of fat, and protein. Got it.
What's Marcos?
Also-how does weighing your food help?
I'm new too the world of health, obviously. Thank everyone for your answers.

lisabinco

Why do you need to eat 3 times a day? If you want to only eat once a day, then do that. Whatever works for you. At only 1000 cals/day (maybe you could bump it up to 1250 at least?), your meal should be as nutritious as possible. Pretty much everything you eat should give you a lot of nutrition bang for the buck at that low calorie range. What you want is a lifestyle change that is sustainable in the long term. The real goal isn't losing weight. The real goal is to be healthy, which includes a healthy weight.

kaiiirogers94

I've been eating lots of veggies, and chicken. I tried a bunless turkey burger the other day. I'm trying to eat more nutritious food.

Mr_Knight

OP doesn't know how much she's eating, and doesn't know if she's losing or gaining weight.

Wouldn't it make sense to figure those basic things out first, before offering "eat more" advice?

kaiiirogers94

I'll weigh tonight and see what the scale says. If I haven't lost anything, I guess I will try to bump my calorie intake up, as much as it bothers me. Y'all are right, the goal is to be healthy. I don't want to get smaller the healthy way.

Mr_Knight

kaiiirogers94 wrote: »

I'll weigh tonight and see what the scale says. If I haven't lost anything, I guess I will try to bump my calorie intake up, as much as it bothers me. Y'all are right, the goal is to be healthy. I don't want to get smaller the healthy way.

If you haven't lost anything, you're eating too much!

jenncornelsen

Mr_Knight wrote: »

OP doesn't know how much she's eating, and doesn't know if she's losing or gaining weight.

Wouldn't it make sense to figure those basic things out first, before offering "eat more" advice?

even aiming for 1000 calories a day without weighing seems detrimental. this will be a huge drop from what she is used to and will not leave her feeling very well. if she lost nothing on this restrictive eating it wouldnt be just the weighing it would be not logging certain meals or foods at all.

SLLRunner

Welcome.

Your ticker says you've lost 20 pounds. You can continue to lose weight eating many more calories. Figure out what MFP would give you to lose 2 pounds a week and eat that, plus if you exercise eat your exercise calories back.

Mr_Knight

jenncornelsen wrote: »

Mr_Knight wrote: »

OP doesn't know how much she's eating, and doesn't know if she's losing or gaining weight.

Wouldn't it make sense to figure those basic things out first, before offering "eat more" advice?

even aiming for 1000 calories a day without weighing seems detrimental. this will be a huge drop from what she is used to and will not leave her feeling very well. if she lost nothing on this restrictive eating it wouldnt be just the weighing it would be not logging certain meals or foods at all.

If she's not weighing, there is no way to know if "restrictive eating" is happening.

If she's not losing, then the target is irrelevant because "restrictive eating" is not happening and she is in fact eating more than she thinks anyway. In this case, it would be a lot more.

kaiiirogers94

But what does weighing them do? I don't understand. And it says I've lost 20 pounds because I thought I was 290, but I weighed Sunday and I was actually 270

LavenderLeaves

If you're 270 and only eat one meal a day...I'm guessing you're either a compulsive overeater or a binge eater. Either one of them can sabotage someone's food intake, because usually one of the other means we're eating some really calorie-dense foods either out of comfort or simply because we just mindlessly eat whatever might easiest.

You may find that you only need to eat twice, or once a day, but IMO, I would suggest you find what you're most comfortable with. As someone who used to binge multiple times a week, I would get to the point of being ravenous and eat up to 5k within a few hours because at that point, I'm not looking for a balanced meal. I just want FOOD.

Weighing your food is the only effective way to properly count your calories. Period. You might eat chicken, but unless you weigh it, you have no idea if you're eating 75 calories of it, or 300 calories of it. Guestimate calories when absolutely necessary, but if you're cooking at home, it's the only way to know. ESPECIALLY when you're eating calorie dense foods like cheese, oils/butter, or red meat.

Honestly, a lot of what you said raised a few warning flags of some disordered thoughts. Perpetually under eating will likely end up sabotaging you, as a warning. You will eventually get hungry eating 1k calories and that will lead to overeating or binging at some point. This is why you should really stick to what MFP advises you to eat, calorie wise. Do not let yourself fall into the trap of feeling guilty over food. This isn't going to help you at all. Don't be afraid to eat. Don't beat yourself up because you eat things you don't deem "healthy." You're trying to lose weight to better your health and this requires an entire lifestyle change, and dieting mentality will really only end up hurting you in the long-term.

I remember when I really made the effort to start eating 3 times a day, I felt like I was eating a ton. It was weird. I was also used to mostly eating one huge meal a day. Consistently eating multiple times a day was hard for me, but I gained the ability to 1) tell when I was actually hungry, not just being not-hungry/stuffed/ravenous. 2) I learned to be able to tell when I was approaching fullness, NOT just being uncomfortably stuffed. 3) Binges or serious bouts of overeating no longer are a point of anxiety for me, and happen less than 3 times a month during a "bad" month. 4) I'm still consistently losing.

Almost 5 months in, and I can actually eat according to my body's hunger cues about 85% of the time. Some days I eat 2 meals, other days I eat 3. I can now save up calories without feeling like I'm necessarily starving myself for days I know I'm going to be eating out rather decadent meals and have them without guilt.

And on the scale with your weight...then just weigh yourself once a month. If it makes you nervous to weigh yourself every week, don't do it. Simple as that. Everyone is different. Some people can weigh daily, or multiple times a week, and not be bother by it, some can't. Do what works for you.

jenncornelsen

weighing foods in grams or oz on a food scale will we way more accurate than say cups and tablespoons

Mr_Knight

Weighing the food tells you how much you're eating.

Weighing yourself tells you if you're gaining or losing weight, which is important to know so the appropriate adjustments can be made.

MKEgal

kaiiirogers wrote:

I am trying to lose weight. I'm female, 20, 5'1 and I weigh 270 pounds...
I log everything into my app and it usually falls about 980-1000 calories.
Can someone tell me if I am eating too or not enough, or a good amount?

Here's a newbie help post I did, which compiles links to useful info.
Start with sexypants.

Then the second link, about accurate measuring & logging.

Then the post about setting reasonable goals, including weight, calories, and macros.
In that is a link to a BMI chart, which shows that a healthy weight range for your height is
100 - 125 pounds.

Also a link to this calculator from the Baylor College of Medicine, which takes into account your
age, height, and activity level, PLUS it shows you how many servings of the various food groups
you should be eating.
That says that if you were _inactive_, in order to maintain a healthy weight of 125 lb you should
be eating 1559 cal/day. So eat that much and you'll eventually get there.
Looking at it the other way around, to maintain your current weight of 275, you'd need to eat
2526 cal/day. If you subtract 1000, to lose 2 lb/week, you're at about the same calorie goal as above.
As you hit plateaus, cut 50-100 cal at a time until you start losing again. Check with your doctor
if it looks like you'll be going under 1000 (normally I'd say 1200, but you're short enough that
100 lb is a healthy weight, so 1000 cal should be OK).
You're enough above a healthy weight that it's reasonable and quite possible for you to lose at
least 2 lb/week, probably a bit more at first. But remember that you didn't get fat overnight, and
you're not going to get fit quickly either.

.

I don't know if I have lost weight or not, I don't like to step on the scale

Then you should at least be taking measurements, though those results will be slower to see.
You need to weigh yourself, at least once a week, to see if your current calorie intake is causing you
to lose weight, maintain, or gain.
Information is power. Control your body, don't let it control you because you're afraid of some numbers.

Speaking of which, start at least measuring your foods, if not actually get a food scale & weigh them.
You should only have to do it for a little while before you learn what a portion looks like.

Annie_01

kaiiirogers94 wrote: »

But what does weighing them do? I don't understand. And it says I've lost 20 pounds because I thought I was 290, but I weighed Sunday and I was actually 270

How are you adding up your calories? Are you buying prepackaged food?

An egg is simple to know the calories...a serving of chicken salad...not so much.

MKEgal

kaiiirogers wrote:

I'll weigh tonight and see what the scale says.
If I haven't lost anything, I guess I will try to bump my calorie intake up

WHY would you eat _more_ if you're trying to lose weight and you haven't yet by eating however much you're
currently eating??? That makes no sense at all. Eating more calories means you'll have more weight, not less.

First, you need to measure what you're currently eating so you know where you're starting.
Then, you need to eat less than that. Give it a couple weeks. If you're still not losing, eat less than that. Repeat.

Nyappykim

kaiiirogers94 wrote: »

But what does weighing them do? I don't understand. And it says I've lost 20 pounds because I thought I was 290, but I weighed Sunday and I was actually 270

Weighing your food with a scale will be more precise. For example, let's say a serving size of something is 1tbsp (14g) = 80 calories. That means 14 grams of whatever that food is is 80 calories. If you just take a tablespoon and scoop up what you believe is a full tablespoon, and you actually weigh it and it turns out it's actually 16 grams, that's going to be about 91 calories. 11 extra calories may not seem like much, but it definitely adds up, especially if you have 2 or 3 servings of it. And if you continue to eyeball everything you eat in a day, you could unknowingly be consuming at least a couple hundred calories more than you think you are.

kaiiirogers94

Okay to clarify I said I would bump up the calorie intake because some people said I wasn't eating enough calories. I am eating some prepackaged meals. I get the weighing the food now, thank you for clarifying that for me. I just weighed, and I think my scale is wrong. It's saying I'm 263 now. I guess it's time for a new one. Thank you everyone for your advice, I will definitely be making some changes to my diet.

arditarose

kaiiirogers94 wrote: »

Okay to clarify I said I would bump up the calorie intake because some people said I wasn't eating enough calories. I am eating some prepackaged meals. I get the weighing the food now, thank you for clarifying that for me. I just weighed, and I think my scale is wrong. It's saying I'm 263 now. I guess it's time for a new one. Thank you everyone for your advice, I will definitely be making some changes to my diet.

Good luck. Get a good weigh in, take your measurements, and log really accurately using the food scale for a week or two. Eat the calories MFP gives you and see how you feel. If you have any other questions, ask! This should at least getting you headed toward success though.

JTGJTG

That's not enough food. Your weight will go UP if you don't eat enough because your body goes into starvation-mode. If you need more calories, try a T of coconut oil before bedtime, and add some healthy fats during the day. Try *some* resistance exercise every day - legs one day, arms the next. Start with as simple as "wall pushups" (stand back from the wall and do a pushup as if you were prone instead of horizontal), or lifting a can of something over and over whenever a commercial comes on (for the duration of the commercials). Lose slowly so that your skin and body have a chance to adjust. None of us got overweight in three weeks; same for shedding it.

Good luck!

Christine_72

@JTGJTG check out this link

http://www.aworkoutroutine.com/starvation-mode/

Abby2205

JTGJTG wrote: »

That's not enough food. Your weight will go UP if you don't eat enough because your body goes into starvation-mode.

Oh for goodness' sake. Eating too little does not make a person gain weight. They would be creating mass out of thin air. And starving to death wouldn't exist.

There are many good reasons not to excessively restrict calories, but "your weight will go up" is not one of them.

swimminginseattle

Listen to the advise being given. You are young and resetting your routines will be much easier now than in 30 years...which is about where I am. A couple of points:

1. In this weight loss process you don't want to jump to the bare minimum of what you can eat, in fact eating as much as you can and still dropping weight is the best route to go. Long term thinking. I do not have to deprive myself, just need to eat well.
2. Use counting calories constructively...no need for the boneless, skinless, dry-ish chicken for every meal the rest of your life. Enjoy your food...this is something that needs to be done for the rest of your life to maintain a healthy weight so start eating the way you could eat for the rest of your life.
3. Some rules REALLY help. Weigh yourself often enough to gauge what is happening and WEIGH YOUR FOOD. Portion control, it's all about portion control.
4. Find some sort of movement that you like. Anything, no rules here...just something you like enough to do.
5. Love your self. You are capable of doing any sort of job you want, anything. Dream big and trust yourself to get there!!!

hollyrayburn

Generally a minimum of 1200 calories for women, and that's usually if they're small, short, and have a minimum Amount to lose. And are sedentary Use what MFP gave you.

Buy a food scale. 20 bucks at Walmart. Weigh your food. When you log, look for entries in grams or ounces. It's amazing how inaccurate cups and spoons are. Give it a week or two, weigh yourself. Adjust as needed.

Make sure you eat close to your goal. I mean no judgement here, but you(nor I!) became overweight by having to "make" ourselves eat 1000 calories.

Good luck!