Struggling to eat enough calories after cutting out rubbish

hannahsharratt27

Hi! To lose a little weight and tone up my calorie goal is 1310 a day. Even after all three meals and some snacks (usually cheese and crackers or some fruit) I struggle to get above 1100. I cut out crisps and chocolate (and now don't crave them as I am very motivated to get into shape). My meals are filling and I don't feel hungry, and I also drink 2 litres of water a day, but as I am also lightly working out along with this, my calorie intake is usually between 900-1000 calories. I want to start more high intensity working out but I don't know if its a good idea with my calorie intake being so low. I'm concerned that if my intake is too low, that my body will go into starvation mode that I've heard from a lot of people will cause my body to cling to the fat of cheat foods which I will enviably have every so often.

I know that I could probably still have a packet of crisps a couple times a week and the same with some chocolate, but I seem to have stopped craving them, and as snacking was definitely what caused me to put weight on I don't want to fall back into it. I also tend to be near my daily carbohydrates limit in MFP, and don't want to be eating more carbs that I should incase all this is for nothing!

My questions are basically if 1000 calories are too little daily/will cause me to put the weight I lose on when I have non healthy foods, and what can I snack on/add to meals that will keep my calories at a "healthy" level

Sunnybrooke99

It won’t cause you to gain to eat lower calories, but it does mean that you can loosen up a little. You can have some chips and guacamole, nuts, a full fat yogurt, beans, pesto, or enjoy a weekly meal out. Also, theres no problem with cutting empty calories, but you don’t want to cut out the healthy fats. Work on adjusting to a lifestyle that will work for you in the long run.

MichelleSilverleaf

At 900-1000 you're under eating. Try to focus on foods that are more calorie heavy but still allow you to stay at your goal. MFP is designed that the number they give you is the one you should hit a day, it already factors in a weight loss. If you're exercising, you should eat some of those back. Starvation mode in the context you described is a myth and won't happen, but it's generally not good long term to be under eating. 1200 for women is the minimum needed to hit your nutritional requirements for the day. Not feeling hungry is not necessarily a clue that you're eating enough.

Non-healthy foods as you call them will only put on weight if you eat a lot of it often. Things like take out and ice cream are very calorie dense and not often filling, so it's easy to intake a lot of calories without realizing. Hence why it can be so easy to put on weight. Realizing that though doesn't mean you MUST cut them out, having a meal out or a treat once in awhile is not going to screw up your entire effort. For me, if I know we're having a meal out I'll eat lighter throughout the day so I have more calories for later. Cutting out crisps and chocolate is fine if you can do it, and if you don't plan to have those in your life long-term then you're good to go. What leads to long-term success is learning NOW how to eat the rest of your life in a way that suits you. Fruits and veggies are a common snack since they're often low in calories, the Recipes section of the forum may also have some good ideas for you.

Tried30UserNames

Cook your food in some butter or coconut oil...1T has about 100 calories. Put a larger amount of dressing on a salad...1T olive oil has about 100-120 calories. Put some unsweetened nut butter on an apple or banana (or your crackers)...1T has about 95 calories.

I'm not sure what you're already eating, but probably you're making some food items that can easily be higher calorie. If you eat non-fat dairy, use lowfat or full fat. If you eat egg whites, use whole eggs. If you eat tilapia, try salmon instead. If you eat 90% lean beef, try 80% instead. If you have dry toast, add some butter to it. If you use non-stick cooking spray, use some oil or butter or lard instead.

Meelisv

Providing that you're logging accurately, I find it hard to wrap my brain around how small your meals must be to only hit 900 -1100 kcal.
but in any case, get a decent sized banana or apple, plus couple teaspoonfuls of peanut butter and it's 300 extra kcal right there. Cheese is a good option too in such cases.
But first, make sure that you're weighing everything and logging accurately.

pmm3437

Net 1200 cals a day, unless under medical supervision, is what the vast majority here will tell you.

The Institute of Medicine has established a minimum carbohydrate requirement of 130 grams & protein requirement of 46 grams. You also need a minimum of 30 grams of fats, for proper hormone production/balance. Reference : ( http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/~/media/Files/Activity Files/Nutrition/DRI-Tables/8_Macronutrient Summary.pdf?la=en )

Thats 520 cals, 164 cals, and 270 cals, for a total of ~ 950 cals just to hit absolute minimum baselines.

Cheese, nut butters ( peanut, cashew, etc ) and fruits are all good low volume sources of calories, to boost your intake. Switch back to regular fat items that your currently buying in reduced fat, like milk, yogurt, etc.

If your exercising, and not getting a net 1200 cals a day ( unless you're extremely short ), your not fueling your body sufficiently to maintain long term health.

lilac_bunny

If you have switched to fat free, go back to full fat for milk, cheese etc.
Avocado's, nuts and seeds are great 'healthy' calorie dense foods.
I keep both full fat and fat free versions of things in the fridge so I can match to my calorie needs each day. I have the exact same problem in that when I cut out junk I don't get enough calories.


Also search "a list of calorie dense food" there is a really good thread I have bookmarked but I can't work out how to post the link on the app.

hannahsharratt27

Hi thank you all so much for your replies, they have been very helpful. My portions have been enough to stop me feeling hungry but I do see how I can easily bring more into my diet. I usually have homemade soup for lunch which from the recipes section on this I worked out a serving is usually around 150 calories. I also have store bought smoothies for breakfast so I can have it on the move, which about 100 calories each. Dinners are usually fish or chicken with plenty of veg and either rice/noodles/potatoes as a way to make more filling. Since cutting out crisps and chocolate I no longer feel hungry in the evenings after my dinner so don't really have a lot, I only tend to have a banana as a snack at work and then a little bit of cheese on a cracker when I get home to tide me over.

I do see how this doesn't look like a lot, so maybe adding a bread roll with butter to my lunch would be a good way to bump up my intake, along with a few other little tweaks. Also swapping to fuller fat is something I will also be doing.


Thank you all again!