Finding it HARD to eat ENOUGH calories ...

paxton37

Simply put, I am finding it difficult to eat enough calories on a daily basis. On most days, I am coming 500 - 1000 short!

Is that too much of a deficiency?

Long story, try to keep it short:

I am 28 yrs old male; 5'10", used to be pretty active and athletic but over the last few years have not been as active as usual ... and eat a lot of junk and fast food. My weight was between 210 - 215 lbs for a long time. I did not look extremely obese but i had some noticeable fat on my face, chest, and midsection.

Jan 1 2017, started to focus on a healthy lifestyle and getting back in shape. For the month of January, I was back in the gym 4-5 days a week, playing sports or activities another 1 day of the week, and staying active (walking on lunches and breaks, etc).

Food-wise, I have cut out ALL Fast food and restaurant eating. I have cut out all snacks and treats. Focusing on eating whole grains, healthy proteins and healthy fats. Diet mainly consists of whole grain breads, quinoa and rices, LOTS of vegetables and fruits, lean meats, eggs, peanut butter, and a protein bar on workout days. Drinking ONLY water, no sugary drinks or alcohol.

I did not keep track often, but before the "health-kick" (pre-2017) I was eating FAST FOOD and JUNK all day ... adding up to what i would guess is between 3000 and 4000 calories per day (in bad calories, i realize).

Now that i am eating healthier, i am struggling to get to break 1,500 calories!

I AM trying to lose weight (goal is currently 189 lbs, but i would be happy between 180 and 195), but i feel like a deficiency of 1000 - 1500 calories is far too extreme.

So ... again, simply put, Now that I am eating healthier options ALL of the time, how to i ensure that I get enough calories? Just eat more?

janejellyroll

If you have trouble reaching 1,500 calories (the minimum recommended for men) because you cut so much stuff out of your diet, why not consider being less restrictive? Add a mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack or some fats to your meals. Whatever your definition of "healthy" is, I'm sure there are calorie-dense options that fall into it.

This is assuming that your logging is accurate -- sometimes people think they're eating much less than they are due to logging issues.

Alyssa_Is_LosingIt

How are you tracking your intake? Do you weigh/measure or do you eyeball?

Also, are you planning to never eat out again? Never have snacks or treats again? Why cut everything out? Adding some of that stuff back into your diet in moderation is going to help you meet your calorie goals and will be much more sustainable long term.

You could also try incorporating some more calorie dense foods into your diet - full fat dairy, nuts and nut butters, oils, butter, avocado, etc.

mariluny

Are you sure you are counting everything when you track? The oil you used in the pan to cook meat and or vegetable for example?
1 average chicken breast is about 150g and that wpuld be near 250 calories + half a cup of cooked rice for another 100 to 150 calories, veggies for 50 calories. Another 100 calories for cooking oil, seasoning like garlic, sauces etc. That's above 400 calories and you couls easily up it, not even having to bulk up quantity. Put some butter on the vegetable, fat is good you you. It helps keeping you full longuer, help in digestion. Add some cheese on the chicken breast, great fat and protein.
Have yogurt for snacks, put 1.5 tbps of peanut butter on your bread in the morning instead of 1 tbsp. 2 slices of bread, 2 tbsp of peanut butter and a banana for breakfast will break 500 calories.

paxton37

Thank you both for the quick replies, i appreciate it.

In regards to the restrictions i've given myself, I only plan on being very restrictive for a short time. I am a very impulsive eater and if i begin to make exceptions, soon enough i will go overboard and binge eat on junk again. So i am really trying to focus on the healthy options to get into a routine and stay disciplined.

I definitely do plan on eating out, and having treats every now and then. For example i still have Pizza on Fridays as i normally do (less than normal, of course). I understand that i shouldn't corner myself and be so hard on myself.

I have been tracking foods using MFP; I weigh everything I eat using a food scale and I have been quite exact in measuring and tracking everything. I've read some posts on here about logging food accurately, including choosing the CORRECT foods in MFP when available. I've been very diligent in doing so, i think. I track everything by weight (grams) when possible.

The dense food suggestions are great, very helpful! That may be a big help for me in solving the issue of not eating enough calories. I will begin to do some research and try to incorporate those foods.

Again i appreciate your information and look forward to more discussion if anyone is interested.

quiksylver296

Unless you are using a food scale to weigh everything and logging everything in MFP, it's difficult to give correct advice. Do you have and religiously use a food scale, and religiously log everything into MFP?

For example, you show 56 grams of chicken last night. 56 grams of chicken is a ridiculously small amount. A small chicken breast is approximately 125 grams.

ETA: Disregard. You must have been typing the answer above as I was typing. Time for ice cream! Measured out, of course.

TavistockToad

Peanut butter

Cylphin60

Olive oil. Everything is better with olive oil and it will certainly bump your calories.

serindipte

This morning, you had two eggs -- Add some turkey or ham with cheese into the eggs, cook them in a bit of butter and you'll get more calories in without adding a lot of bulk.

Add some honey and/or fruit to your oatmeal.

Dip your apple in some peanut butter (Or, better yet, the honey roasted peanut butter.. MMMMM)

Avoid "lite", "fat free" and "diet foods".

You mention that you're using a food scale for everything, but you have a lot of volume measurements in your diary. When you look for the food, add "grams" to your search so you can find the appropriate entry by weight.

When weighing your peanut butter, it's easier to set the jar on the scale, zero it, then scoop out what you want. The negative number on the scale is the weight of peanut butter used.. and lets you lick the spoon.

paxton37

@quiksylver296 , @serindipte

Thank you for taking the time to look at my diary. That is really helpful.

I really appreciate the suggestions for adding some extra things to the meals to increase the calories.

I realize i'm all over the place in my diary and explanations ... I feel like i'm starting to get the hang of it and i really enjoy doing it the proper way.

Again, thank you for your help

quiksylver296

Maybe @diannethegeek can bring the link to the "bulking foods" thread. Dang it, I can't even remember the name of the thread.

Cylphin60

quiksylver296 wrote: »

Maybe @diannethegeek can bring the link to the "bulking foods" thread. Dang it, I can't even remember the name of the thread.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1

paxton37

thank you all!

quiksylver296

Cylphin60 wrote: »

quiksylver296 wrote: »

Maybe @diannethegeek can bring the link to the "bulking foods" thread. Dang it, I can't even remember the name of the thread.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1

Or @Cylphin60 works, too.

Use some of the foods from this list, @paxton37, to raise your calories without raising your food volume.

Cylphin60

quiksylver296 wrote: »

Cylphin60 wrote: »

quiksylver296 wrote: »

Maybe @diannethegeek can bring the link to the "bulking foods" thread. Dang it, I can't even remember the name of the thread.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10142490/a-list-of-calorie-dense-foods/p1

Or @Cylphin60 works, too.

Use some of the foods from this list, @paxton37, to raise your calories without raising your food volume.

I have that baby bookmarked! @diannethegeek made that list awesome. Very helpful OP

MichelleBVera2015

Hi Everyone,

For the past few weeks, I have been practicing intermittent fasting. I don't mind not eating anything past 5 or 6 p.m., I'm just finding it really difficult to consume all the calories I need each day. It's usually 400 or 500 calories that I fall short.

These are my nutritional goals:
Calories - 1300
Carbs - 163 g
Fat - 43 g
Protein - 65 g
Sodium - 2300 g
Sugar - 51g

A typical day for me is: breakfast - a green smoothie with protein powder or a Premier Protein shake / lunch - lean protein, raw vegetables, a Babybel, a piece of fruit / snack - a Kind bar and/or nuts

Then, when I add exercise, that puts my intake back even further. The two aspects that I end up falling short on are calories and carbs. It is so hard trying to find foods that meet these requirements. I can eat a tub full of popcorn, it seems, and still won't fulfill my total nutritional requirements. If anyone has any suggestions, I would really appreciate some advice. Thanks in advance!

serindipte

Throw a banana in your smoothie (If you haven't already) - Put the lean protein on two slices of bread with some mayo. - Dip the veggies in some ranch. - You aren't eating dinner... you .. well, ok, that's up to you, but certainly doesn't seem like much food in a day to me.

brighteststitcher

If you're not hungry, don't eat. If you are, add some fat.

omakase619

Nuts are a great filler and are good for u. High in Calories so make sure u eat them after your last meal.

salemnye

Nuts, avocados, peanut butter, carbs (you mentioned Rice) and more are great if you find yourself low on calories. It's fine if you're 1000 calories. Somedays I find myself around there and I'm perfectly fine with it but I know I could easily get 2000 calories with little effort.

bbell1985

That's crazy. I want to gnaw on my own arm when I eat less than 1800 calories. You're doing something wrong? Or, where did your appetite go? I caught it.

subcounter

Here's a sample of my dinner. I found it extremely easy to eat Potato mash, topped with ground chicken thigh & breast combo & eggs. There are lots of healthy meals you can make with high calories. Good luck!

try2again

paxton37 wrote: »

In regards to the restrictions i've given myself, I only plan on being very restrictive for a short time. I am a very impulsive eater and if i begin to make exceptions, soon enough i will go overboard and binge eat on junk again. So i am really trying to focus on the healthy options to get into a routine and stay disciplined.

I'm not trying to be difficult, but you plan on being very restrictive for a short time, then what? Do you go back to being an impulsive eater & start binge eating again? If you don't plan on avoiding certain foods for the rest of your life, it would seem the most practical thing to do, especially if you find yourself short on calories, is to start learning now how to include those foods in a balanced way. Often what trips people up is reaching their goal and wanting to include some of those "banned" foods in their diet again, but with no practice incorporating them on a day-to-day basis, things quickly get out of hand. Just a thought.