Not meeting my recommended calories, but....

kimberlythomeson

I feel stuffed. I'm trying to eat 6 small meals a day. Is this normal or am I doing something wrong?

DragonSpark

I think it's normal. I eat 6 meals a day as well (been doing it for about 6 months) and some days I feel stuffed and other days I can't seem to get full. I think if you're eating the right foods and the right amounts of protein and fiber you'll feel fuller, at least that's what I've read on various websites.

Vivian06703188

I think that is about what I do with snacks. I'm with you sometimes I'm stuff and sometimes I'm starving. I'm not sure how close you are suppose to get to your recommended but yesterday I had the little red warning that I was not eating enough calories. I think it takes some time to tweak both what you eat and the amounts you consume. I started using spritzer on my salads instead of salad dressing and it made a big drop in my calorie intake. I also dropped some of the butter I was using. So now I'm not meeting my calorie requirements. I guess if I stop losing I will worry about it then. I only weigh once a month. But was at my sisters a week ago and weighed there and had lost a total of 13 lbs. Most of which I think was water because that was a really fast loss.

kimberlythomeson

I'm trying to use my vegatables as my lunch/snack...tomatoes, cucumber, etc...i used to be an off the wall eater....skip breakfast/lunch and get a snack in mid afternoon, and then eat supper. I have also been walking some too...which other than the burning in my hips (rather believe it's my muscles saying hey this is making me work)....i'm going to try it for a litte bit and see if it helps... I am also starting to drink more water...went from 2 cups yesterday to 4 cups today...that may be why i feel full too...my body is not used to the changes yet.

snickerbuddy13

Newbie......just testing my reply

LexiAtel

I actually feel the same way... I am finding it rather difficult to meet my calorie goal... like... being under 200 cals...ALL THE TIME. I hear that's dangerous, but my body is not complaining... I feel completely fine, I eat 5-6 times a day. Lately, I have been trying to add more calories to my food. For example, if I made a smoothie or something, I would add some nuts to it. For lunch lately,, I have tuna on my yummy Oroweat whole wheat bread (it's 100cals). Add protein, calories, and fiber that I wasn't getting before.

So yeah... little additions to my meals. Maybe I will be able to eat Peanut Butter and Apples for a snack since I need extra calories... THAT would add some additional excitement to my day, w00t!

operation_cute

I have trouble eating enough cals on big workout days... like today I burnt way to many and theres no way I'm going to be able to eat 1300 calories

kimberlythomeson

My chart says i have over 1000 calories remaining...and i'm ready to go to bed....I will see what happens tomorrow...

csheltra26

How many calories are you eating if it says you have 1,000 left at the end of the day? You probably should look at eating more healthy fats or filling foods - 2% fat yogurt, peanut butter/almond butter, nuts, olive oil, full fat cheese and protein powders are good. If you eat too little it will slow down your metabolism and make it harder to lose weight.

LexiAtel

Golly.. the cheese... I didn't think much of that. I can add it to my salads at night

bajoyba

I recommend trying to eat as close to your calorie goal as possible, which means eating back at least some of your exercise calories. It does take some time to work out all the kinks of a new lifestyle and find a balance that works for you, but it's important not to create too large of a deficit on a regular basis. The point is really to provide your body with as much fuel as possible while losing weight at a healthy and sustainable rate. It's easy to lower your calories if you need to, but not so easy to add calories to a low calorie diet.
Clean eating is great - but not if it provides so much volume that it causes you to fall short of your nutritional requirements. Unless you're avoiding more calorie dense foods for a specific reason, there's no reason not to eat higher calorie, higher fat foods like olive oil, nuts, nut butters, seeds, cheese, and avocados. There's also no need to completely eliminate "bad" foods like pizza and ice cream, unless it's something you want to do for personal reasons.
I exercise about 5 times a week and net about 1500 calories, which means I usually eat around 1800 calories or more. I eat all the foods I ate before starting this new lifestyle. I just make sure I log everything and stay within my calories. It works.

kimberlythomeson

How many calories are you eating if it says you have 1,000 left at the end of the day? You probably should look at eating more healthy fats or filling foods - 2% fat yogurt, peanut butter/almond butter, nuts, olive oil, full fat cheese and protein powders are good. If you eat too little it will slow down your metabolism and make it harder to lose weight.

I took in 880 calories..i'm going to try a different approach today...maybe instead of eating mostly vegetable for lunch, i'll eat a sandwich and for supper eat more vegetables..

diannethegeek

Roast your veggies in olive oil or butter for a quick boost. Add a protein shake to your routine. Throw nuts and cheese and avocado and dressing on your salads. Eat your veggies with some hummus or dip.

This is a common theme on these boards and you'll find plenty of ideas to add calories. It's easy to add a few hundred calories to every meal with a little planning. At 880 calories you're asking your body to live off the amount a toddler eats. You need more food.

Zebukiel

Since I have started MFP (6/10/13) My biggest challenge has been reaching the calorie goals each day.

I personally have just given up on reaching it. As long as I am under, not hungry and loosing weight. I am not going to stress the number. To me it's all a matter of how I feel, and is it working.

I know there are several opinions one way or another on starvation mode, whats good and not good for you. You can spend months researching everyone's opinion as for every opinion there is "facts" that support it. When it comes down to it. Every person is different, Ever persons body will react different to different situations. If you feel good, If your loosing weight. Don't stress it. If at any time your not feeling good, or stop loosing weight.. Then you should worry about what you can do different. Till then keep on with whats working. That's my opinion, and according to MFP I regularly only get about 300-500 net cals.

I am sure many will disagree and even argue I am completely wrong, which is fine. I enjoy happiness and not stress. So, If things are working, I feel good. I wont stress.