Low-Cal Intake More Good?

kits3n
kits3n Posts: 10 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So once in awhile I'll have a day where I eat way under my calorie goal, and I've made it a personal goal to stay under 1000 a day. I don't feel like it's doing any harm, or putting me into starvation mode. I'm just not always hungry- and want to indulge that rare and beautiful feeling of being otherwise engaged enough to forgo shoveling food in my mouth. Now I'm reading this is bad for me and if it wasn't bad enough worrying about eating too much, now I have to worry about eating to little? Too much anxiety. Anyone else feel this way?

Replies

  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
    If you just try to eat your goal, you'll probably succeed at your objectives. Not sure why people go off on their own dietary tangents.
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    When you eat below your BMR you increase the amount of lean muscle mass lost while you're losing weight. This will eventually lead to a damaged metabolism and is it causing you harm, even if you can't "tell" right now.

    When we under feed ourselves over time our body stops producing the hunger inducing hormones, this is not a good sign that you are "okay" to not eat more because you're not hungry. It's a mechanism designed to keep us from being in pain and so hungry that we can't even gather or hunt food.

    Hopefully you haven't done too much damage yet but I strongly recommend calculating your BMR and eating that + exercise calories. Will you gain weight? Probably a little water and waste weight yes. Will you gain fat? Hard to say, probably not, depends on how much damage you've already done.
  • scamp0000
    scamp0000 Posts: 1
    Having a calorie goal and staying near it is important for consistent weight loss or maintenance of weight. Of equal importance is managing what time of day you take in those calories (80% of daily calories by 2 PM).
  • ngyoung
    ngyoung Posts: 311 Member
    Eating at a significant deficit will cause long term health consequences. It can effect brain function as well as muscle and organs. Hair can get more brittle and thin out. Skin problems can develop.

    I would just focus on eating real whole food and treat any indulgences as what they are, once in a while treats. You don't have to make it as hard as you are. If you have that much self control over how much you're eating you should shift that control towards the type of food you're eating.
  • thisismeraw
    thisismeraw Posts: 1,264 Member
    Having a calorie goal and staying near it is important for consistent weight loss or maintenance of weight. Of equal importance is managing what time of day you take in those calories (80% of daily calories by 2 PM).

    First part is correct. Second is completely false. You do not need to consume most of your calories by 2pm. Meal timing doesn't matter when it comes to weight loss.

    OP, eat your calorie goal. Eating too little will mean more muscle loss along the way (losing muscle means a higher body fat % along with a lower metabolism), it will lead to not getting properly nutrients, you will not be fueling your body and you will eventually end up tired, pale and experiencing hair loss. Not eating enough will also increase your chances of putting all the weight back on.

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