What to do if i'm not meeting my calorie intake?

loveya770

So... i'm supposed to eat 1880 calories a day, but honestly i'm barely eating 1200 and that is before the calories I get back after working out.

So, my question is.... am I supposed to pig out at night to reach my calorie intake or just let it be?

LittleSpy

Plan your day when you exercise and add the extra calories throughout. There are plenty of calorie dense foods that are also healthy. Milk, nuts, nut butters, avocados, bananas, etc.

Kimd1972

Hey!

I've noticed in other programs that you have to eat your minimum caloric goal. Otherwise, you will throw your body into starvation mode. I even try to eat some of my exercise calories earned but not all - that would lead to maintenance, not weight loss. Pigging out at night is not smart either though. Maybe try eating higher caloric foods in the morning and afternoon may help you get those calories in.

dawnna76

eat a bigger breakfast. Drink whole milk instead of nonfat. 3 meals and at least 2 snacks a day. protien shakes. there are lots of ways to get your calories up with out pigging out at the end of the day. use real butter instead of marg, add healthy oils )evoo) when cooking.

farr2fun

MFP feedback each day is that I'm not getting enough calories. I do not want to start losing muscle. I'm finding it hard to get my calorie count up to 1230 and still keep my nutrition breakdowns at the recommended levels. My fiber count is always too high, is that because I choose whole grain foods? I need to increase carbs without increasing fiber (which I thought was a good thing!) The more veggies I eat, the more fiber I get. When I eat fruit, my sugar count is too high. My protein is often too high also. Need to learn how to balance it all out. I will definitly eat more, just more of what and still lose fat and not muscle.

LittleSpy

Hey!

I've noticed in other programs that you have to eat your minimum caloric goal. Otherwise, you will throw your body into starvation mode. I even try to eat some of my exercise calories earned but not all - that would lead to maintenance, not weight loss.

Wrongy wrong wrong.

MFP already has your calorie deficit built in so you can eat 100% of your exercise calories and then some and still lose weight (unless you have selected to "maintain current weight" in your settings).

LittleSpy

MFP feedback each day is that I'm not getting enough calories. I do not want to start losing muscle. I'm finding it hard to get my calorie count up to 1230 and still keep my nutrition breakdowns at the recommended levels. My fiber count is always too high, is that because I choose whole grain foods? I need to increase carbs without increasing fiber (which I thought was a good thing!) The more veggies I eat, the more fiber I get. When I eat fruit, my sugar count is too high. My protein is often too high also. Need to learn how to balance it all out. I will definitly eat more, just more of what and still lose fat and not muscle.

MFP fiber levels are low. 25g-30g each day is recommended for healthy adults.

MFP protein levels are low for most. They're set at 15% of your total calories. You can change this. I personally eat 30% protein.

For me, MFP carb recommendations are high set at 60%, I think. Most people keep it somewhere between 40% and 60%, it seems.

Moral of the story is tinker around with your settings to find out what makes you feel the best.

Rhaeven

I very rarely ever meet my calorie goals. I'm still trying every day to make up the calories somewhere. I bought avocados to toss on my salad..yum!!! I eat every 2-3hrs and am still way under my calorie goals (unless I have a splurge type day like yesterday). I am now eating when I'm hungry if it happens to pop up before my next "scheduled" meal time. The other posters have great ideas about trying to eat a bit more during your meals and NOT pig out at the end of the day. If I don't eat enough I may try to add a glass of milk and some almonds before bed.

Each of us has different bodies, and if I feel ok and am still losing weight, (watching my muscle mass) and I'm not starving myself, I'm not too worried about it. If it becomes a problem down the road, I will alter my eating once again. This seems to be a journey of constantly changing/altering and reassessing what I'm eating and my goals.

Good luck!!

chickky311

I just started too, and am also finding that I generally don't meet my calorie goal each day. I think it is a little exaggerated to tell everyone if you miss your goal, even by just a little bit, that you are putting your body in starvation mode though, like the MFP site does. My calorie goal per day is 1200, plus I do some walking every day on the week days, so my calories get bumped up to around 1300/day. I'm not too worried if say for example, I only eat 1150 calories in a day....thats only 150 short of my goal, so I'm not going to freak out about it. I think the trick here is to find an even balance for your calories and exercise combined, to reach your goal at the end of the day. I personally find that when I'm purposelyy trying to eat healthier than normal, I don't meet my caloric requirement. Add a little exercise on to that and I'm even farther from my calories for the day. I find myself eating a little extra here and there. Especially if you exercise, I think thats the best way to add calories. Just as long as you are eating some of the more healthy calories.

april522

I myself need to start eating more calories - and not those 4 oreos I had last night! In the past 2 days, I've realized I should eat a bigger breakfast and lunch to make up for my lack of calories. I also notice I snack a lot more in the afternoon because I get so hungry - due to not eating enough at lunch. So I'm trying to plan accordingly so I eat enough. I have to sit down 1-2 times a week and sort of write out what I'm going to eat each day (rough draft, not exact); that helps with eating enough (but not too much) and with grocery shopping!