Trouble staying to 1200 net calories

ahrearick

Hello! I am just starting (again) to try to lose weight and hoping I stick with it for once. I'm near the obesity line and want to lose atleast 20-30 lbs, so I put it in my settings to lose 1 lb/week. It has me at 1250 calories and it is difficult not to feel constantly hungry eating this little. I'm trying to exercise. But 200-300 calories more of expenditure doesn't seem to give me enough more to eat. Anyone have any tips?

kimondo666

aye, try lowering the amount to lose to 0.5lbs/week. Dont eat highly processed foods.

ahrearick

Thanks kimondo666! I have cut all processed foods out. But nuts are insanely high calorie (though I need the protein) and I feel like I have no options but salad. May be me complaining more than anything

kimondo666

you can try more protein dense food. Are you vegan or vegetarian? If vegetarian try more cottage cheese, plenty of protein.

ahrearick

Not vegan or anything- I'm not usually a giant meat eater though. Thank you for the tips!

kimondo666

1 Egg daily is also good idea if you are adding protein. They are 101 kcal per egg. At more calories than 1250(1500) kcal, you can get 3x500 kcal meals which would give you plenty of options to get by in the day. And use a food scale to get accurate logging.

Danp

Without your stats it's difficult to say why you'd be getting such a low calorie target at 1lbs per week loss but I'd double check to make sure that you've entered all the details correctly first.

If everything checks out in your settings then you can drop your target loss rate to 0.5lb per week which should give you approx 250 extra calories per day. Also keep in mind that if you've selected sedentary as an activity level there's a chance that you're moving more throughout the day than an actual sedentary person would so you can try moving your activity level to gain more calories. Finally, if you're not already you can eat more of your exercise calories when you do a workout and earn them.

The best gauge of how many calories you should be eating is your progress. The numbers MFP gives you are usually a pretty good starting point but everyone's different so it's possible you'll need to make adjustments as you go along. So pick a calorie target that you feel is achievable (meaning you're not struggling and constantly miserable) and stick to it for 3 or 4 weeks then check your progress. Depending on the rate you're losing you can adjust that target up or down accordingly. Keep doing this until you hit that sweet spot where you're eating in a deficit but not so severe that it's negatively impacting your daily life.

If you find that you're in the situation where your calorie deficit isn't large enough to lose weight but reducing it leaves you feeling deprived and hungry then you might need to consider a different approach to make the calories you're eating more satisfying.

Satiation can be addressed in a few ways.

Firstly by looking at your macros. Some people find fats filling, others are satisfied by protein, for others it's fibre/carbs. It might be worth paying attention to which foods leave you feeling fuller longer and trying to increase the focus on those type foods.

Others find that they're satisfied by volume rather than a particular macro so will load up their meals with low calorie density foods. For example, adding some spinach, tomato, mushrooms and capsicum to an omelette will triple the size of the meal while adding only a fraction more calories. This allows for huge, filling and satisfying meals while staying within your calorie target.

Another approach is meal timing. I personally can go all day without eating and feel perfectly fine but as soon as the sun goes down I'm hungry. So I've shifted 80%-90% of my calories to nighttime so I can have a big meal at the times when I'm naturally hungriest.

The key is to find what works for you. Experiment with calorie targets, macros and eating time/volume and go with the one that makes your life easiest.

corinasue1143

Check out the volume eaters thread. Experiment with macros. Many people are less hungry if they eat more protein. Others say more fiber helps. For protein, try egg whites, low or no fat yogurt, cottage cheese, and cheese, as well as lean meats.
Eat more vegetables. Maybe drink more water, tea or coffee.

MikePTY

kimondo666 wrote: »

1 Egg daily is also good idea if you are adding protein. They are 101 kcal per egg. At more calories than 1250(1500) kcal, you can get 3x500 kcal meals which would give you plenty of options to get by in the day. And use a food scale to get accurate logging.

1 large egg is only 70 calories. A jumbo egg is 90 calories. A large egg has 6 grams of protein and a jumbo egg has 8. While they are certainly a source of protein, just one egg along won't make a significant dent in meeting daily protein targets.

whmscll

Nuts are not that great for protein either, especially for the amount of fat and calories. Meat, chicken, tuna, shrimp, tilapia, other fish, Greek yogurt, tofu, milk, powdered protein are all good sources.

PiscesIntuition

I second volume eating!

pinuplove

While protein, fiber, and large volume of non-calorie-dense foods like many vegetables are helpful for a lot of people, don't ignore fat. Fat is my satiating macro, and I eat toward the high end of the daily recommendation or over. Volume foods don't satisfy me. Just food (heh) for thought.

That said, 1250 is pretty low, and adding more fat would reduce the volume of food you can eat even more. That's why I slowed my weight loss to .5 pounds per week when I hit that stage.

CassLaBaraque

Try some protein-dense foods that are low in calories. Think tofu (if you're not used to it I suggest looking into the vegan community - these guys know what they're doing with their tofu!), eggs, plain 0% greek yogurt with berries, fish, etc. Pack your plate with veggies (again look out for recipes if you don't wanna be eating salad all the time). Don't forget to have a bit of carbs if you don't wanna go crazy and end up binging after a few days. Nuts aren't even that great for proteins, I suggest other sources.
Good luck!

Hyacinth_Hippo

depending on your size, 1250 might be too low. Aside from that, are you drinking enough water? I second what others have said about protein - I find a hard boiled egg, a piece of cheese, or a turkey pepperoni stick usually help me not feel so snacky. I also like chia seeds in yogurt with berries.

apullum

How tall are you, and what are your current and goal weights? 1 pound per week may or may not be a reasonable pace of weight loss depending on your stats.

ahrearick

apullum wrote: »

How tall are you, and what are your current and goal weights? 1 pound per week may or may not be a reasonable pace of weight loss depending on your stats.

I am 5'1 at 155 lbs (160 is obese at my height for a female). I am aiming for 1200 and missing by 100-200 calories a day (so I can expect closer to 0.5 lbs lost). I know it's better slow and steady but I can't imagine staying motivated and committed if I only lose 2 lbs a month.

Thank you everyone else for the tips as well! I'll definitely look at other protein sources. I'm hoping once I'm used to lower volumes I'll feel less hungry too.

cmriverside

It usually takes me 2-4 weeks to adjust when I lower calories by even a couple hundred.

I agree with everyone who says Volume Eating. Lots of vegetables, and make sure to hit those Goals for protein and fat. Carbs make me hungrier, so that's where I cut back when in weight-loss mode. Less bread, less pasta and rice, no cold cereals or crackers, very few sugary things.

Panini911

Make sure to eat back any exercise calories earned. I'm 5'1 and started at 167, i lost at 1300-1400 calories a day moving a lot (step wise not exercise wise). Your calorie goal makes me thing you selected sedentary, which is VERY very sedentary as per MFP.

Agree with volume eating, that's what i do. I add tons of vegetables to all meals (carrots, celeri, cuccumber). raw and with nothing on them as they are strictly for bulk but I also ENJOY and like these vegetables. I do weigh and log them.

I eat a ton of broccoli slaw. Buy a bag, throw in some low cal dressing you like and let it mix a bit. Currently using newman's own sesame dressing.

Kelly_T_1977

I'm on a 1200 calorie diet too, and I'm losing on average 1.5 to 2lb a week.

I have given myself a strict exercise regime which comprises of a hour of strength training 3 days a week and cardio (walking/jogging) for 60 mins 5 days a week.

My diet consists of high protein food, fibre and healthy fats.

Protein and fibre keep you full for longer and try to cut down on the sugar -I haven't eliminated it altogether as I have a bit of a sweet tooth, but I have cut down a lot.
Most people cut carbs, but this is just silly. Your body needs carbs for fuel, especially after a good workout, so don't think you have to start looking at speciality diets.

Focus on seafood, chicken, turkey, beef, lean pork, jacket potatoes, vegetables, eggs, soy milk...etc...

Cook your food in extra virgin olive oil for healthy fat, and cut off any fat from the meat before cooking.
Meal preparation is also something you might want to think about - making your meals in advance so you know exactly what your having each day and how many calories you are consuming.

For example, my evening meal is already prepared...

2 white fish fillets (steamed) - 94 Kcal
Small new potatoes (with skin boiled) 180g - 95Kcal
Brown Rice 50g - 177 Kcal
Parsley Sauce 100ml - 73Kcal
3 teaspoons of mint sauce - 20Kcal

Total: - 459Kcal

This is just an example of one of my meals.

For breakfast I have 2 weetabix, with best of both milk and a banana. (Everyday)

For lunch I have a snack of 100g of raw carrots and Alpro milk. (Varies, maybe apple slices or a fruit mix)

My evening meal is always less than 500Kcal, which gives me a little left for an evening snack which is usually nuts for the healthy fat, and I treat myself to a low calorie hot chocolate drink - this settles my craving for chocolate, lol and also satisfies my sweet tooth!.

Total Kcal per day varies but a day like this one would be around 1120 Kcal - obviously this leaves a little room so I would add a little extra to my helping in the evening. I never go over 1200Kcal but I never drop to much under this goal either.

Yes I do get hungry, because of the exercise - which on a strength training and cardio day I can burn over a 1000 calories - so drink more fluids if you feel like you want food. If you can't stomach water on it's own try adding a little flavouring, such as a little low sugar squash just to give it a little taste.

I'm not saying this regime is for everyone, I'm just giving an example of how I manage my 1200Kcal deficit and hope it gives you motivation to continue to do the same.


Good luck!

kimondo666

MikePTY wrote: »

kimondo666 wrote: »

1 Egg daily is also good idea if you are adding protein. They are 101 kcal per egg. At more calories than 1250(1500) kcal, you can get 3x500 kcal meals which would give you plenty of options to get by in the day. And use a food scale to get accurate logging.

1 large egg is only 70 calories. A jumbo egg is 90 calories. A large egg has 6 grams of protein and a jumbo egg has 8. While they are certainly a source of protein, just one egg along won't make a significant dent in meeting daily protein targets.

Hmm egg is 155 kcal per 100g, which has 13g protein, i weighted egg myself(after breaking it to the container) with food scale and it was 65gram. So 101 kcal. Maybe in usa eggs are less large. Fair enough.

annliz23

I eat crackers instead of bread and even munch on them if hungry less calories.