Has anyone been able to stick to their daily calories?

Aimeesdiet

I have been using my fitness pal off and on for years and I gave never been able to stick to my daily calories. Is anyone else experiencing that problem? Does anyone have any tips? How did you make the app work for you?

Go_Deskercise

How many calories did MFP give you? Are you being too aggressive?

NovusDies

Aimeesdiet wrote: »

I have been using my fitness pal off and on for years and I gave never been able to stick to my daily calories. Is anyone else experiencing that problem? Does anyone have any tips? How did you make the app work for you?

1) Know how to effectively manage your hunger first. For me, and for many, that is a decent amount of protein and fiber. I also eat a high volume of low calorie food. If that does not work for you then come back and ask for help. There are other things to try.

2) Do not to have an all or nothing mindset. Stay in your calories most days. Do not worry about going over a little or that some days don't go well.

3) pick a calorie deficit that is appropriate for you. Many people go straight for 2 pounds a week because they think faster is better. Sustainability is more important than speed. See the infograph below.

4) Eat back at least a portion of your exercise calories. Failing to do so may make it harder to control your hunger.

5) Do not deprive yourself of the food you enjoy eating. Calories matter so anything you can make fit is fair game. The only reason to stay away from specific foods is that you have a hard time moderating them, health issues, or they make things harder.

springlering62

Yes, but I had to train myself to re-think food, and to develope new tastes and basically appreciate stuff beyond junk food.

There’s a thread here about “volume eating” that was helpful in the beginning. When I realized I could eat large plates of filling, tasty food instead of small batches of calorie dense foods, that was a revelation.

My husband still gawks in wonder at the massive salads I eat out of mixing bowls. I seldom go over 450 calories, and that’s even including a meat and feta.

I use delicious flavored balsamic (about 10-15 calories a tbsp) for salad dressing instead of a regular salad dressing. I also dress fruits & cottage cheese with balsamic, and often use it as a marinade for meats. Chocolate balsamic and some salsa makes a fab carnitas.

I learned that certain cuts of meat are lower calorie than other cuts, so go for those. Pork tenderloin especially can be really low, and is tasty, fast and easy in an air crisper.

French fries? Air crisper are as good as any fast food place, fresher, crisper, and can be made with zero or a spritz of olive oil.

I gave up sodas, but later developed a way to make 17 calorie lattes which I luxuriate with several times a day.

I experiment constantly. Right now I’m sitting here eating a bowl of silken tofu with chocolate, as recommended on another thread. And thinking to myself,”This is disappointing. I’d rather continue investing a few more calories in Greek yogurt with pudding mix. Better nutrition and tastes 1,000% better.” It’s always a tweaking process.

Don’t eat it just because it’s low cal. Eat it because you desire it.

Last night was a half bag of Trader Joe’s chicken fried rice. I thought beforehand, “how can I hack this and make it more filling and enjoyable?” So I added a quarter pound of dry-stir fried chopped chicken and some Egg Beaters and had a heaping plate. The additional food added only about 100 calories. Oh and I added a couple tbsp Karate teriyaki sauce. Dang that was good.

Lunch today is two chicken sausages, two slices white bread (do you really need a higher calorie hot dog bun to “experience” a sausage?) and a tsp of Dijon. 235 calories for a very nice lunch with lotsa protein.

You’ve got to think about this stuff constantly, be willing to experiment, and have a steady supply of certain ingredients on hand. I always have a rotating supply of strawberries- nutriticious, delicious and low-cal. I never used to eat berries.

And I make room in my diary several days a week for luxuries (I won’t say “treat”. I’m not a dog) such Sunday morning doughnuts, bakery cookies, gourmet peanut butter cup, or tonight, a gyro and probably a baklava.

You’ll get out of this whole process what you’re willing to put in it.

moonangel12

It took a couple/few weeks to retrain my brain to be able to think of foods in calorie form to best plan my day. It was up and down a lot in the early days! But once I found a rhythm it was much easier. Breakfast was hard - I have to eat in the morning (blood sugar regulation) and starting out I was in the 4-500+ calorie range for that one meal, now I have variations of the same thing and keep it under 300 (cutting bagel in quarters instead of just halves saves a BUNCH of calories, and I eat egg and cheese on it open face rather than a sandwich). I use a different mayo - my old one was 100 calories per serving, this one is 45 and the taste difference isn’t noticeable enough for how I use it. Being mindful ingredients and serving size is the key for me.

nanastaci2020

Yes and no. When I make the effort and plan, it is NO problem at all. On the other hand, if I skip those steps: yikes!

Where do you have trouble? What small things can you do to tweak your intake? Perhaps do not try to drop to a super low calorie goal, but first try something moderate. Its all about building habits.

Having a reasonable calorie goal is the first step as others have suggested. Why do something extreme if you know you won't stick to it? The least aggressive strategy would be to set MFP to maintain, and then work in a 15-30 minute walk per day for exercise. Track for 4-6 weeks. How do you do eating at this level? Goal for the scale: not to gain. If you lose a little bit from the exercise, great, but the main priority would be to lay some foundation habits and form a solid starting point. THEN reduce that calorie goal by 250-500 daily

Do you use condiments/dips/dressings? If so, what changes can you make to use fewer calories on these things?
Do you drink regular soda, juices, etc.? If so, what changes can you make to use fewer calories on these things?

Use that sort of logic and see what you can come up with.

WitePhantom

Meal planning. I have two or three things with about the same number of calories to choose from all week. I plan dinners ahead of time and pre-log them. I plan whatever snacks will fit my leftover calories in a way that I know will keep me satisfied between meals. And honestly I find it way easier to stick to my calories if I work out first thing in the morning. I have no idea why. Maybe it’s mental, maybe it’s knowing how many calories I have for the day. It’s just easier for me. And I absolutely make sure I’m eating things I enjoy as well as are reasonably good for me. When you look forward to your meals, you’re less likely to want to snack.

Shortgirlrunning

I have a lot more success when I do a few things:

1. Skip breakfast (I don’t have my first meal until 11 at the earliest, usually closer to noon or 1)
2. Log dinner first. Knowing what number of calories I need to save for dinner helps me manage my calories for earlier meals better
3. Meal Plan - it’s easier for me to log dinner first when I’ve planned out all my dinners for the week. I don’t meal prep though.
4. Log everything before I eat it.

RelCanonical

Shortgirlrunning wrote: »

I have a lot more success when I do a few things:

1. Skip breakfast (I don’t have my first meal until 11 at the earliest, usually closer to noon or 1)
2. Log dinner first. Knowing what number of calories I need to save for dinner helps me manage my calories for earlier meals better
3. Meal Plan - it’s easier for me to log dinner first when I’ve planned out all my dinners for the week. I don’t meal prep though.
4. Log everything before I eat it.

This is really similar to how I do it as well, like weirdly so, lol.

SERmom3

springlering62 wrote: »

Yes, but I had to train myself to re-think food, and to develope new tastes and basically appreciate stuff beyond junk food.

There’s a thread here about “volume eating” that was helpful in the beginning. When I realized I could eat large plates of filling, tasty food instead of small batches of calorie dense foods, that was a revelation.

My husband still gawks in wonder at the massive salads I eat out of mixing bowls. I seldom go over 450 calories, and that’s even including a meat and feta.

I use delicious flavored balsamic (about 10-15 calories a tbsp) for salad dressing instead of a regular salad dressing. I also dress fruits & cottage cheese with balsamic, and often use it as a marinade for meats. Chocolate balsamic and some salsa makes a fab carnitas.
...

I agree with so much of the above. I had to learn what I could eat so I could feel full without going over calories. Over time I have naturally reduced bread and other high cal/low nutrition items because it wasn’t worth it to me. I love chips, but 1 ounce is around 150 calories. That’s more than 10% of my daily calories! It’s not always worth it for me.

I also eat huge salads out of mixing bowls! My husband jokes that it’s my food trough! I don’t eat much during the day so at dinner I love to eat a lot, but it’s generally pretty healthy with lots of veggies. I love a grilled chicken salad.

One tip for those that might use too much dressing with a big salad... I’ve found that it is helpful to mix the salad dressing with all the salad veggies before I add my chicken or cheese. The chicken and cheese already have enough flavor, so mixing the dressing with just the veggies helps get the flavor where I want it. I use a fat free Catalina dressing that is 50 calories for 2 Tbs (35ml).

Geneveremfp

Easily but I had to change a couple of things. The first time I did this I used maximum weight loss per week and tried to eat under it every day. It was too much and I couldn't fit stuff in. I really felt like I was dieting not being healthier. I've upped my calories. I could happily eat on this number if calories forever if needed.

The other thing I changed was my food. Gradually my food has become better healthier and more nutrient dense. I prefer it. I used to have meals that would look like - meat, potatoes, one or two veg. Now my meals look like - whole grains, veg based protein, loads of veg, fresh herbs, garlic, ginger. Snacks would be chocolate bars etc. Now snacks are peanut butter, fruit, maybe some crisps, a couple of squares of dark chocolate.
I prefer the way I eat now and get really disappointed when I'm at someone's house and they cook bland beige food like I used to eat a lot. It took time though replacing one meal at a time. Trying a couple of new recipes a week etc