Struggling to hit my calories

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  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    So what is your actual goal, and what's the actual issue?
  • abs1970
    abs1970 Posts: 235 Member
    @cityruss I want to gain a more muscle definition & worried that my diet is preventing it.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    abs1970 wrote: »
    @cityruss I want to gain a more muscle definition & worried that my diet is preventing it.

    Is your goal to be in a deficit and lose weight? Is your goal to maintain weight? If you are regularly 400 calories under either your deficit goal or your goal to maintain, you would be losing weight. If you aren't losing weight, then there is an issue with your goal (it doesn't accurately peg your deficit/maintain numbers) or with your logging (that is, you are eating more than you think you are).
  • abs1970
    abs1970 Posts: 235 Member
    @annacole94 I log everything I eat religiously! I'm 5ft2. Not looking to lose weight as such, just a little extra body fat that I'm carrying - 20.58% last measurement.
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    More muscle definition will come from either eating a deficit to lose fat and maintain muscle, OR alternatively you can recomp (eat at maintenance) and build some muscle and lose some fat .. the latter can take some time though so patience and consistency is key. Also not sure what your training is like, but make sure you are following a progressive lifting routine for optimal results.
  • mom23mangos
    mom23mangos Posts: 3,069 Member
    edited April 2017
    abs1970 wrote: »
    @annacole94 I log everything I eat religiously! I'm 5ft2. Not looking to lose weight as such, just a little extra body fat that I'm carrying - 20.58% last measurement.

    Looking at your profile pic, you do not look like you are 20% BF. How are you measuring that? Are you wanting to lower BF% because you think the number is too high or going off of your looks? If you are going off of your looks, you will need to actually eat a little less than you are eating now to continue to lose weight since you are maintaining. Or as @sardelsa said, keep doing what you are doing and slowly change your body composition over months/years. That may be the best choice if you don't have an immediate goal like a bodybuilding competition.

    Without seeing the rest of you, I would guess you are around 17-18% BF.
  • abs1970
    abs1970 Posts: 235 Member
    @sardelsa that's what's confusing me - I'm eating a deficit and not losing. Not gaining either though which is the main thing I guess. I am impatient too.... don't want to wait six months to see results!
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    abs1970 wrote: »
    @sardelsa that's what's confusing me - I'm eating a deficit and not losing. Not gaining either though which is the main thing I guess. I am impatient too.... don't want to wait six months to see results!

    If you aren't losing, it could be a number of things. Usually inaccurate logging is the main culprit or overestimating exercise/activity calories (so in the end you can be eating more than you think), but depending on your training it could be some water weight masking your losses, this happens to me all the time when I change my programming and up my volume. Do you take measurements, progress photos and all that?
  • abs1970
    abs1970 Posts: 235 Member
    @mom23mangos My body fat was done with calipers at the gym last week. I'm just going by what I see in the mirror and how I feel. I wish i was 17-18% :D
  • abs1970
    abs1970 Posts: 235 Member
    @sardelsa I've only just started taking measurements but do progress pics often
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