I can't reach my calorie count of 1200

135

Replies

  • ejcurtis
    ejcurtis Posts: 9 Member
    edited November 2016
    Hey,
    I just had a quick look at your diary (only a handful of days) but it seems like on those days you are settling for a lot of prepackaged foods or shakes for some meals. I 90 cal shake isn't really going to cut it. Making your own meals will also help consolidate good habits. Try and make sure you have vegetables, protein and fibre/grains with each meal. Bulk up salads for lunch for quinoa, a can of tuna and some feta cheese (and avocado, just have that stuff with every meal, mmmm). Make sure when you are cooking meats that you are also logging any fats used to cook them (olive oil etc). Olive oil is a good fat, it can be drizzled on salad or used to pan fry a nice piece of salmon, it also ups those calories without being unhealthy. You also appear to be having almost no snacks, make sure you have small things throughout the day to maintain your energy - others above have given great lists (cheese on rice crackes, avocado on rice crackers, fruit, fruit salad, peanut butter in celery sticks, yoghurt and berries etc). Also, make sure you are including fibre rich carbs as well (carbs give us energy, they're not evil) - multigrain bread, brown rice, wholemeal pasta etc. A small serving of brown rice with your meat and vege for dinner will bulk it out a bit. Finish off your evening with squares of dark chocolate - much better than normal chocolate but still gives a caloric kick. Best of luck. But remember, whatever you do, it is your body. Don't let anyone, partners, media and MFP members included, tell you how you should look. Go on how you feel. If you feel healthy and energetic then you're doing it right.
  • cd311508
    cd311508 Posts: 1 Member
    Very important to eat enough if you want to lose fat. Your body will keep holding on to it if there's not enough nutrition coming in. I was consuming 1200 cal for a while and plateaued in my fat loss despite pretty intense training plan (weightlifting, high intensity resistance training, and light cardio on recovery days). A dietician/trainer suggested I increase to at least 2000 cal per day and my body composition started to change. I agree it can be a lot to eat if you're eating good foods so I supplement with whey protein shakes. I add flax seed (for fiber & healthy fat), peanut butter, cocoa nibs, and greek yogurt (whole milk - none of that low-fat junk) -- goes in nutribullet with some ice and water as needed and is delicious (at least to my sugar-deprived tastebuds). Comes in between 700-800 calories, 24g carbs, 50g fat, 10g sugar, 13g fiber.
    Good luck and be good to yourself!
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    There are great examples on the internet where people in normal range look skinnier after they put a little muscle on. I'm with other who think you might be better off with a lifting program.

    If you have calories left over at the end of the day, eat something calorie dense like a piece of cheese.
  • jagodfrey08
    jagodfrey08 Posts: 425 Member
    Hello, OP. I don't know anything about your personal situation. So, I will tell you what I do.

    My diary is open. My nutritionist put me on an 1100-1300 a day diet to lose weight. Eat more lean protein. Smaller meals, more often. Use healthy fats when cooking and log those. Add in fresh veggies and whole grains for your carbs. That will help round out your 1200 calories. Sometimes, you have to force it down, but if you get 1100-1200 in, you should be okay.

    I really hope it works out for you, OP, and that this weight loss makes you happy with your body. :)
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    Battir2006 wrote: »
    I am really really shocked at these rude and insensitive comments on this site. Someone asks for advice and people just make very negative and hurtful comments.Also don t tell people to eat unhealthy things like chocolate bars etc when they are trying to improve their eating ridiculous advice People need to eat clean cut down on sugar and exercise for health reasons. As for relationship advice, bullying a person and making abusive comments about their partner is not helpful. I am disgusted the moderators allow this to go on
    I see you haven't been reading around here much.
    There is NOTHING wrong with recommending a chocolate bar. NOTHING. And there is nothing wrong with sugar in moderation. I recommend you read up on some scientific sources instead of reading crappy blogs.
    Battir2006 wrote: »
    VintageFeline losing weight and maintaining that healthy weight involves a change in lifestyle Eating milk chocolate bars is unhealthy in all sorts of ways, eating 70% dark chocolate in moderation is ok and even have health benefits
    Don t encourage others in poor eating habits just because you are struggling

    Scientific source for this, please @Battir2006 You cannot keep posting this type of fearmongering information without backing it up with a scientific source....

    Speaking of chocolate... I eat it almost every day. I am at my healthiest that I have ever been, and my blood tests and physicals show that. Also, any good Dietitian would agree that any food is good in moderation and cutting out foods and food groups can lead to bigger problems down the road.
    Hello, OP. I don't know anything about your personal situation. So, I will tell you what I do.

    My diary is open. My nutritionist put me on an 1100-1300 a day diet to lose weight. Eat more lean protein. Smaller meals, more often. Use healthy fats when cooking and log those. Add in fresh veggies and whole grains for your carbs. That will help round out your 1200 calories. Sometimes, you have to force it down, but if you get 1100-1200 in, you should be okay.

    I really hope it works out for you, OP, and that this weight loss makes you happy with your body. :)

    You need to see a DIETITIAN and not a nutritionist. Your nutritionist put you on calories way below the recommended minimum for MEN. No man, not even a teenage boy, should be eating as little as 1100-1300. Bump that up to 1500 or you'll risk losing a lot of lean muscle.

    @cerise_noir I thought @jagodfrey08 was a guy as well, but she's female.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    Battir2006 wrote: »
    I am really really shocked at these rude and insensitive comments on this site. Someone asks for advice and people just make very negative and hurtful comments.Also don t tell people to eat unhealthy things like chocolate bars etc when they are trying to improve their eating ridiculous advice People need to eat clean cut down on sugar and exercise for health reasons. As for relationship advice, bullying a person and making abusive comments about their partner is not helpful. I am disgusted the moderators allow this to go on
    I see you haven't been reading around here much.
    There is NOTHING wrong with recommending a chocolate bar. NOTHING. And there is nothing wrong with sugar in moderation. I recommend you read up on some scientific sources instead of reading crappy blogs.
    Battir2006 wrote: »
    VintageFeline losing weight and maintaining that healthy weight involves a change in lifestyle Eating milk chocolate bars is unhealthy in all sorts of ways, eating 70% dark chocolate in moderation is ok and even have health benefits
    Don t encourage others in poor eating habits just because you are struggling

    Scientific source for this, please @Battir2006 You cannot keep posting this type of fearmongering information without backing it up with a scientific source....

    Speaking of chocolate... I eat it almost every day. I am at my healthiest that I have ever been, and my blood tests and physicals show that. Also, any good Dietitian would agree that any food is good in moderation and cutting out foods and food groups can lead to bigger problems down the road.
    Hello, OP. I don't know anything about your personal situation. So, I will tell you what I do.

    My diary is open. My nutritionist put me on an 1100-1300 a day diet to lose weight. Eat more lean protein. Smaller meals, more often. Use healthy fats when cooking and log those. Add in fresh veggies and whole grains for your carbs. That will help round out your 1200 calories. Sometimes, you have to force it down, but if you get 1100-1200 in, you should be okay.

    I really hope it works out for you, OP, and that this weight loss makes you happy with your body. :)

    You need to see a DIETITIAN and not a nutritionist. Your nutritionist put you on calories way below the recommended minimum for MEN. No man, not even a teenage boy, should be eating as little as 1100-1300. Bump that up to 1500 or you'll risk losing a lot of lean muscle.

    @cerise_noir I thought @jagodfrey08 was a guy as well, but she's female.

    *kitten*! Sorry! However, my advice to see a Dietitian still stands, as they have the years of nutrition schooling as opposed to a semester or weekend course.
  • CaraRahl
    CaraRahl Posts: 72 Member
    OP: healthy fats are going to fill up your calorie allowance beautifully. I can't see your diary, but something that was suggested to me by a dietitian when I needed to gain weight (and therefore had a calorie allowance to fill, even if it was higher than what yours is now) was to sub in full-fat yogurt for the low-fat stuff I was eating, go for the full-fat cheese, add avocado to everything I could, eat plenty of nuts, that sort of stuff. I was also told to make sure I was eating enough protein as well, and to go for whole-grain options over refined grains (whole wheat bread vs white bread, brown rice vs white rice, etc).

    When you log food into your diary there are numbers beside the calorie count that I want you to keep an eye on. One of them is protein; make sure you're hitting that target, or at least getting very close. Adequate protein intake, from what I've been told, will help you build and repair muscle tissue, which will help you with your aesthetic goals. Another one (that you'll probably have to switch one out for like I did) is fiber. I swapped out my sugar tracker for that one, and I make sure that I hit that number every day. Without making this too gross I'll just tell you your digestive system will thank you for getting enough fiber (although you might want to work your way up to hitting that number gradually).

    As far as being "chubby", your weight is perfectly healthy for your height. Going lower can put you into the underweight category, which I can tell you from experience is not a fun place to have to work your way out of. If you want to improve the look of your body I would suggest strength training. There's a website called fitnessblender.com that has a ton of FREE workout videos that target all sorts of different muscle groups, covers different sorts of training, and yes there are completely bodyweight strength training videos there. They also have a blog on the same website with awesome recipes and really inspirational stories. I do all of my workouts at home, and this website has about 90% of the workouts that I use.

    *disclaimer* this is not medical advice, I am not a doctor or a dietitian or any type of health professional. what worked for me may not work for someone else, and no, fitnessblender does not pay me for my constant endorsing of their workouts, although if they did I'd probably be a millionaire by now.
  • msalicia116
    msalicia116 Posts: 233 Member
    You're 5'8" and 140. Your goal
    Is 125. Your calorie goal is 1200. All looks fine to me. Just make sure you're getting enough nutrition, and you should be there before you know it. Once you reach goal, be sure to increase those cals to your maintenance calories. Often people get hooked to their dieting calorie # and have a hard time allowing more. It's the most important step in the process imo, so you can maintain your goal for life.

    Don't let the other posters discourage you because THEY think you don't need to lose at 140. Their goals and idea of the perfect body type and size isn't a one size fits all. In their opinion, if you were a bikini model, you're wayyyyy too skinny, which is ridiculous. There is nothing wrong whatsoever with being lean and healthy. And it doesn't mean you need therapy. If your boyfriend wants to be insulting about your weight, that's a separate issue. If you want to reach a standard for you, then follow the steps mfp gives you and it's just a matter of time.
  • msalicia116
    msalicia116 Posts: 233 Member
    You're 5'8" and 140. Your goal
    Is 125. Your calorie goal is 1200. All looks fine to me. Just make sure you're getting enough nutrition, and you should be there before you know it. Once you reach goal, be sure to increase those cals to your maintenance calories. Often people get hooked to their dieting calorie # and have a hard time allowing more. It's the most important step in the process imo, so you can maintain your goal for life.

    Don't let the other posters discourage you because THEY think you don't need to lose at 140. Their goals and idea of the perfect body type and size isn't a one size fits all. In their opinion, if you were a bikini model, you're wayyyyy too skinny, which is ridiculous. There is nothing wrong whatsoever with being lean and healthy. And it doesn't mean you need therapy. If your boyfriend wants to be insulting about your weight, that's a separate issue. If you want to reach a standard for you, then follow the steps mfp gives you and it's just a matter of time.

    she can be lean without losing weight,its called eating at maintenance and lifting heavy weights.lifting weights is good to do as well it helps you retain any lean muscle you already have.it prevents bone loss as well. Theres one thing to be a healthy weight and lean and another being underweight.

    "It's called".... don't. She can be lean and lose weight (which is what HER goals are, not yours) and still be healthy and not under weight.

    Quit making it about you.
  • msalicia116
    msalicia116 Posts: 233 Member
    edited November 2016
    You're 5'8" and 140. Your goal
    Is 125. Your calorie goal is 1200. All looks fine to me. Just make sure you're getting enough nutrition, and you should be there before you know it. Once you reach goal, be sure to increase those cals to your maintenance calories. Often people get hooked to their dieting calorie # and have a hard time allowing more. It's the most important step in the process imo, so you can maintain your goal for life.

    Don't let the other posters discourage you because THEY think you don't need to lose at 140. Their goals and idea of the perfect body type and size isn't a one size fits all. In their opinion, if you were a bikini model, you're wayyyyy too skinny, which is ridiculous. There is nothing wrong whatsoever with being lean and healthy. And it doesn't mean you need therapy. If your boyfriend wants to be insulting about your weight, that's a separate issue. If you want to reach a standard for you, then follow the steps mfp gives you and it's just a matter of time.

    With all due respect, you didn't read her other thread.

    There are other issues at play here.

    Most of us commenting about her feelings about herself did read that thread. Her boyfriend and how he spoke to her isn't as separate an issue as you think it is.

    I am not as opposed to people wanting to be super lean as some other posters are. I'm shooting for such a goal myself.

    In this case, though? I don't think the OP is in the right headspace to be doing this.

    My response was regarding the topic. I did gather there were other factors at play, which I acknowledged by saying if she wanted to do it for her, then xyz, but if her bf was being insulting, then that's a whole other ballgame so to speak.

    But you can simultaneously want to lose weight while dating a pos, it doesn't have to be one or the other, which is why I chose to express an unbiased opinion.
  • msalicia116
    msalicia116 Posts: 233 Member
    You're 5'8" and 140. Your goal
    Is 125. Your calorie goal is 1200. All looks fine to me. Just make sure you're getting enough nutrition, and you should be there before you know it. Once you reach goal, be sure to increase those cals to your maintenance calories. Often people get hooked to their dieting calorie # and have a hard time allowing more. It's the most important step in the process imo, so you can maintain your goal for life.

    Don't let the other posters discourage you because THEY think you don't need to lose at 140. Their goals and idea of the perfect body type and size isn't a one size fits all. In their opinion, if you were a bikini model, you're wayyyyy too skinny, which is ridiculous. There is nothing wrong whatsoever with being lean and healthy. And it doesn't mean you need therapy. If your boyfriend wants to be insulting about your weight, that's a separate issue. If you want to reach a standard for you, then follow the steps mfp gives you and it's just a matter of time.

    she can be lean without losing weight,its called eating at maintenance and lifting heavy weights.lifting weights is good to do as well it helps you retain any lean muscle you already have.it prevents bone loss as well. Theres one thing to be a healthy weight and lean and another being underweight.

    "It's called".... don't. She can be lean and lose weight (which is what HER goals are, not yours) and still be healthy and not under weight.

    Quit making it about you.

    You don't think a BMI of 19 might be a stretch?

    Nope! Not at all. Not even a little bit.

This discussion has been closed.