How to "diet" without feeling so tired all the time?

happydaze71

Hi there,
First of all I fail to see where you're getting your iron from!!! If that's what you eat every day, then no wonder you feel like crap. Get some protein into you, and some red meat! Chicken nuggets are not going to give you anything you need to live, and a cheese sandwich for breakfast, same... Get some oats or eggs into you!

jhloves2knit

If you are tired all the time, it may be that you are sick. You should check with your doctor. You may be eating too few calories for your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) and activity level but it could also mean you are not getting enough nutrients from WHAT you eat. Since your diary isn't open I couldn't take a peek at your diet. If you want me to look and lead you to some information, give me a holler. I'm a retired librarian. Getting folks to the information they need is the sunshine of my life.

Thank you! But actually my diary consist of "quick added calories" so what I eat isn't written there.

But here's what I usually eat.

Breakfast: cereals with skimmed milk or cheese sandwich

Lunch: Chicken breast + 1 or 2 cups of rice + Veggies or salad + juice

Snack: fruit + cake or candy

Dinner: chicken nuggets and bread

Later: maybe yogurt.

If you logged each item rather than entering them as quick added calories, you would see the nutrients. Quick added calories provides no information except the calories you entered.

You can learn a lot about what you're eating by detailed logging. I resisted logging for quite a while since it seemed difficult and tedious, but before long it was informative, easy and an interesting challenge.

Francl27

I'm at 1400, I eat what I call super foods. Ex. Oatmeal, eggs, whole grain bakery, yogurt, fruits, veggies, grilled chicken, rice, pasta. I find 1400 such a low number that I have to eat these filling foods to feel energy. There is some more room with the extra exercise calories..

This. Those chicken nuggets and cake/candy are pretty much killing it for you. Also try brown rice instead of white, it's more nutritious. And 1400 might be too low too, do you work out at all?

Also make sure to actually log everything (and weigh everything), you might not be eating what you think if you just eyeball it.

shutupandlift13

Log accurately
Eat fat... there are essential vitamins that are provide energy, prevent osteoporosis, etc. which are only fat soluble meaning you NEED dietary fat
And try eating more, you could probably benefit more from focusing on composition vs what the scale says which can be done eating pretty close to maintenance as opposed to TDEE-(20, 15, or 10%) and doing resistance training.

Seriously, cut out the quick cal crap. And the chicken nuggets aren't "killing it for you" as some other ignorant user suggested. I eat 1700-1800 calories a day and still have room for things like ice cream alllll while still meeting my macronutrient goals. It can be done. Restrictive dieting aside from food allergies is a waste of time and stressful.

hookilau

Definitely see a doctor. Also low vitamin d can make you tired and thyroid problems.
Are you getting enough sleep? Do you get good sleep - do you snore and maybe have sleep apnea?
Lots of things to consider.
As far as diet is concerned try to eat slow release carbs rather than sugary foods. And lots of lean protein.

I doubt it's low vit D. I eat a lot of milk & dairy. Actually, I sleep too much. Close to 10 hours!

gotta get blood work checked and see doc....I was tired all the time, slept 10+ hours per day and it turned out I was full on T2D as well as deficient in Vit D....it's about how your body metabolizes what you eat, not so much what you consume as far as figuring out whether you are deficient in one thing or another.

Good luck & I hope it all turns out well :drinker:

Mokey41

Seriously, cut out the quick cal crap. And the chicken nuggets aren't "killing it for you" as some other ignorant user suggested. I eat 1700-1800 calories a day and still have room for things like ice cream alllll while still meeting my macronutrient goals. It can be done. Restrictive dieting aside from food allergies is a waste of time and stressful.

What nutrient value would a chicken nugget have? It's not the calorie issue, it's the fact that pink processed goo dipped in batter and deep fried comes about as close to a nutritional desert as you can get. She'd be healthier eating the box they came in.

llw1013

I would suggest more protein (deli turkey rolled around a piece of brie, hard-boiled egg) and healthy fats ( avocado, scramble an egg in coconut oil, etc.)
I will also suggest some bloodwork from a doctor who is willing to talk about/ has knowlege of how nutrition affects the body (seems a lot don't!!). I see a doc who practices integrative medicine for my chronic Lyme and I've learned that I have really low vitamin D and have gluten and dairy sensitivities.

shutupandlift13

Seriously, cut out the quick cal crap. And the chicken nuggets aren't "killing it for you" as some other ignorant user suggested. I eat 1700-1800 calories a day and still have room for things like ice cream alllll while still meeting my macronutrient goals. It can be done. Restrictive dieting aside from food allergies is a waste of time and stressful.

What nutrient value would a chicken nugget have? It's not the calorie issue, it's the fact that pink processed goo dipped in batter and deep fried comes about as close to a nutritional desert as you can get. She'd be healthier eating the box they came in.

Well, it has calories so it at the very least has macronutrients in it. I get your point but saying that the chicken nuggets are the biggest problem is a far cry from the truth. If she understood TDEE and a more goal oriented macronutrient break down, or at the very least actually tracked her calories instead of guesstimating with quick cals and no nutritional data she'd be lightyears ahead of where she is now and also ahead of where she would be if she just started thinking that things like chicken nuggets are "killing" her diet/progress.

"Once our nutrient needs are met, we don’t get extra credit for eating more nutritious food!" - Eric Helms

*Edited for typos and formatting of picture.

igotabulletproofheart

You either need to increase your calories, change the foods you eat (refined carbs = horrible for energy!), get more sleep, rest your body, exercise less or change your exercise. I highly recommend yoga to help you learn to breathe. Or Google 'diaphragmatic breathing' and get into the habit of doing that 24/7.

Oh! And most importantly, DRINK WATER! Water is more important than food, I once read this thing that said our bodies react to thirst faster than hunger. Consciously we might not recognise the symptoms, but physiologically our bodies do. Your fatigue could simply be a sign of dehydration.