Not eating enough?

Do any of you get the red letters saying you didn't eat enough when you finish your food diary for the day? I have hypothyroidism so I can't eat as much as a "normal" person without gaining and I can't eat another bite for the day. But I hate those red lettered words screaming at me that I am not eating enough. Not everyone is the same. I like this site and am glad I can keep track of what I am eating, but I don't like that.

Replies

  • LioTrn
    LioTrn Posts: 16 Member
    If you get this message, you are not eating the minimum healthy requirement. You can eat less than normal without going below the minimum requirement. The only time I got the message is when I register the diary at the middle of the day (<1000 calories).
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    amiewilder wrote: »
    Do any of you get the red letters saying you didn't eat enough when you finish your food diary for the day? I have hypothyroidism so I can't eat as much as a "normal" person without gaining and I can't eat another bite for the day. But I hate those red lettered words screaming at me that I am not eating enough. Not everyone is the same. I like this site and am glad I can keep track of what I am eating, but I don't like that.

    What are your stats and how much are you eating?
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    amiewilder wrote: »
    Do any of you get the red letters saying you didn't eat enough when you finish your food diary for the day? I have hypothyroidism so I can't eat as much as a "normal" person without gaining and I can't eat another bite for the day. But I hate those red lettered words screaming at me that I am not eating enough. Not everyone is the same. I like this site and am glad I can keep track of what I am eating, but I don't like that.

    What are your stats and how much are you eating?

    This^^
  • amiewilder
    amiewilder Posts: 9 Member
    I've been hypothyroid for decades. Controlled with meds. I don't find I have to under-eat. I would suggest talking to a good endocrinologist. It should only make a difference of less than 100 calories EVEN IF you weren't taking meds. 1200 is even too low for most people to be able to get sufficient nutrition. Under that and you really risk health problems.

    How tall are you?

    How much weight do you need to lose to get into a healthy BMI range?

    How long have you been logging food, and are you using a food scale? If not, it's likely you're eating more than you think anyway.

    I took Synthroid for a couple years and it did nothing. My Dr kept upping the dosage and it still didn't help. So I stopped taking it and actually started to feel better.

    I am 4'11" and need to lose 80lbs. I eat low carb/low calorie because it is the only thing that works with the weight loss. Now I do not get the message everyday, just a couple times. Most days I eat around 1200 calories and 20 grams of carbs.
  • Lolalikeslolagets
    Lolalikeslolagets Posts: 142 Member
    Why can’t you eat that much with hypothyroidism? My doctor has never told me that?
  • FarmerCarla
    FarmerCarla Posts: 470 Member
    edited January 2019
    amiewilder wrote: »

    I am 4'11" and need to lose 80lbs. I eat low carb/low calorie because it is the only thing that works with the weight loss. Now I do not get the message everyday, just a couple times. Most days I eat around 1200 calories and 20 grams of carbs.

    I get that message occasionally, when I know I've eaten enough and I don't have extra carbs to consume. I call it intermittent fasting (IF), since that's popular now, and I don't worry about it. If I ate less than 1000 calories every day, I would be concerned, but a couple of times a week isn't enough to stress over. The pounds are coming off, and I feel good.
  • KetoZandra
    KetoZandra Posts: 132 Member
    I think the attorneys for the site require that a warning is posted so that don't get in trouble.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    edited January 2019
    amiewilder wrote: »

    I am 4'11" and need to lose 80lbs. I eat low carb/low calorie because it is the only thing that works with the weight loss. Now I do not get the message everyday, just a couple times. Most days I eat around 1200 calories and 20 grams of carbs.

    I get that message occasionally, when I know I've eaten enough and I don't have extra carbs to consume. I call it intermittent fasting (IF), since that's popular now, and I don't worry about it. If I ate less than 1000 calories every day, I would be concerned, but a couple of times a week isn't enough to stress over. The pounds are coming off, and I feel good.

    IF involves either eating all of your assigned calories for the day during a small window of the day, or eating all of your assigned calories for the week, with some days having very few (often as little as 600) and some days eating maintenance level or above. Are you eating enough calories on the other days so that your weekly deficit stays the same? If not, you are just under-eating. Hunger signals are not a reliable sign that you are fueling your body properly. If "the pounds are coming off" at a greater rate than your current body mass can support, you will eventually feel the negative effects and by then, it will take a long time to reverse.

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10569458/why-eating-too-little-calories-is-a-bad-idea/p1

  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    Why can’t you eat that much with hypothyroidism? My doctor has never told me that?

    Untreated hypothyroidism can make it difficult to lose weight. For those whose hypothyroidism is properly treated, it shouldn't make a difference.
  • adriennedreid
    adriennedreid Posts: 2 Member
    I’ve gotten that message before and I scan everything. I ended up supplementing my foods with a super greens powder that I can add to water (I’m drinking water anyways but this powder adds lots of great nutrients and about 30 calories per serving) and often add an extra protein shake to my day (I usually have 1-2 shakes without the additional shake).

    I’m eating 6 meals throughout the day. I usually go over my allotted vitamin/iron/protein recommendations. I never met even half of my cholesterol and sugar allotments. And I come about 5g to hitting my carbohydrate allotment and am close to hitting my fats everyday. I kept the recommended macro amounts offered by MyFitness Pal.

    If you need more calories you can also use more condiments in your food. Great way to slide the calories in throughout the day.