3:00 hunger pains

mapenguinkeeper

i also eat very early b/c of commute and meds, so I always bring a mid-morning snack. fruit, veg, greek yogurt is VERY filling with all the protein in it, mini cup of cottage cheese (plain not the sugared fruit kind)or even the smaller bottles of Naked smoothies.

Francl27

Oh yeah, Michael Pollan (food god in my eyes) says "if you are not hungry enough to eat an apple, you are NOT hungry."

LOVE IT

Yeah I totally agree lol. Personally I typically try not to get to that point though (not too fond of apples for some reason).

Julzanne72

I feel like eating back my exercise calories defeats the purpose of the exercise

It doesn't though, you need to feed your body, if you don't eat enough that will hurt your progress.

cursiny

Ended up having an apple and a tablespoon of PB.

Workout at 630

Dinner at 830

Lets see how I feel then

cursiny

I feel like eating back my exercise calories defeats the purpose of the exercise

It doesn't though, you need to feed your body, if you don't eat enough that will hurt your progress.

Do you think MFP over inflates exercise calories.
Even when I tell the elliptical what I weigh it never is close to what MFP says I burn.......

mapenguinkeeper

me neither on the apples and peanut butter. Have asian pear today and try to eat in season. Love almond butter on thin slice of whole wheat toast, sugar snap peas and hummus, carrot sticks & lemon hummus, lettuce cups w/baba ganoush. I have endless options in my arsenal so I don't get bored.

JoRocka

Ended up having an apple and a tablespoon of PB.

Workout at 630

Dinner at 830

Lets see how I feel then

good snack.


in regards to eating back calories.

that entirely depends on how you have your calories set up. My TDEE is set up as completely sedentary. how much do I need to eat to survive a sedentary life.

for me at my height and weight- it's 1833 calories. Because I there are things I KNOW I am not 100% accurate with- I shoot for 1700 and then do not berate myself if I am over a little bit- or nail it just on- I KNOW I have some wiggle room to work with- and that mentally- works for me.

now. I do not work out EVERY day. and when I work out and HOW i work out varies tremendously- so I ADD my workouts in- and essentially buy myself more food... BECAUSE my calorie goal is set on sedentary.

IF.... IF I set it my TDEE at moderately active (2-3 workouts a week)... it would probably be 2500 a day. this accounts for the workouts. in which case- it does the math- and then I don't get to eat back.

THAT"S the difference.

So if it's set up so it's adding your workouts in as an after thought- then you need to eat back. if you are set as mildly/lightly active or whatever and that's ALREADY added in- then no- you don't eat back.

does that make sense?

so yes- if you have it set for sedentary and you are adding workouts in- you essentially bought yourself more food.

gringuitica

I feel like eating back my exercise calories defeats the purpose of the exercise

It doesn't. Exercise has many health benefits beyond burning calories. If you're hungry, you should eat. You said you went to the gym this morning and will go again in the evening? Eat! You really do need to fuel your body.

When you set up MFP, you calorie allotment was designed to build-in weight loss. I'm sure you've heard this before, but a pound is about equivalent to 3,500 calories. So if you set you account for 1 lb/week loss, MFP set you to a weekly deficit of 3,500 calories – a 500 calorie deficit already, everyday, without accounting for exercise. Think of those exercise calories as wiggle room; your weekly weight loss goal does not depend on them.

If you're in a deficit, you will lose weight. I know you said eating got you to where you are, but you didn't gain weight by working out and eating at a deficit. If you're counting accurately (food scale), trust in this lifestyle and don't go hungry. That doesn't mean you have to eat back every last one of your exercise calories, but you should not feel like you're starving at 3:00.

cursiny

I have it sedentary. I work at an office and sit at a computer all day. Walk a little bit but mostly sit for 8 hours a day!

JoRocka

oh- totally forgot to add. for some reason- I do really well- I feel a LOT better with a little sugar toward the end of my day- not sure if it's the high fat- or the sugar spike- but either way- having a mini snickers- or whatever treat I packed myself at the end of the day really helps me and makes me feel full.

Danielle_Style

According to your food diary, your daily goal is 2200 for today. That leaves you with over 1200 for the REST of the day. I realize you may not want to eat back all your exercise calories. But surely you can afford to feed yourself a snack so you don't binge later.

3:00 is my absolute most important "mealtime". If I don't eat at this time, all bets are off at dinner as I am usually ravenous.

That being said, since I cut out refined carbs (except last night's chicken nugget slip-up), I've found I'm much more satisfied all day.

I'm roughly following the zone diet, which allows for 40% carbs / 30% protein/ 30% fat. Upping my protein and lowering my carbs has really helped!

Best to you. :-D

soehlerking

OMG you're workout out like a beast--feed yourself! you've already got a deficit worked in, so you need to be eating most of those calories back to keep your metabolism up!

cwolfman13

Do you think MFP over inflates exercise calories.

any database, including MFP is just about the worst place you could go for calorie burn...there are way too many variables. Machines are better and HRM's are even better...but even then it's an estimate. You have to account for estimation error...most people do this by eating back at least 50% of their exercise calories. I always ate back about 80% of what my HRM told me for an aerobic event. I also liked to compare what I was getting with my HRM to at least one or two other sources.

Basically, if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is...a good way to look at it also is that on a scale of 5-10...10 being a pretty intense session of cardio and let's say 6 being a moderately paced walk...multiply by number of minutes worked and that's a reasonable estimate to compare to other databases, HRM's, or whatever machine you're using.

You do have to take into account estimation error, but with MFP you are supposed to eat back your exercise calories as your goal includes a deficit from maintenance and exercise is unaccounted for in your activity level.

Julzanne72

I feel like eating back my exercise calories defeats the purpose of the exercise

It doesn't though, you need to feed your body, if you don't eat enough that will hurt your progress.

Do you think MFP over inflates exercise calories.
Even when I tell the elliptical what I weigh it never is close to what MFP says I burn.......

I do, that is why I use a Heart rate monitor whenever I work out.

cursiny

So I made it!! All the way to drinks last night at 9. Actually never had dinner.....

JoRocka

lol good job!!!

cursiny

lol good job!!!

Thanks.

Brought an apple, pb, and protein bar for snacks. NO VENDING MACHINE TODAY EITHER

rduhlir

Do you plan snacks through out your day? I do, and curbs the hunger pains. Plan 2 small 100 or so calorie snacks, one in between breakfast and lunch, the other lunch and dinner. Some hummus and carrot sticks, or salsa with almond crackers, etc... Something small and simple but will curb your hunger.

cursiny

I did today, and will continue too.

Fullsterkur_woman

I did today, and will continue too.

My diary is public... feel free to have a look. (Not at today though; it's my birthday and I have planned to be a remorseless eating machine!) I eat 1800 calories a day, I get about 180 grams of protein, 60 grams of fat, and the rest as carbs every day. I eat 5 servings of plants, and two desserts every day. It enables me to stick to the plan, not feel hungry, not feel deprived, and fuels my workouts while giving me the protein I need to prevent muscle loss when combined with heavy lifting.

I also have a very sedentary desk job. Sometimes I go six hours without moving from my seat. I work out about 5 hours a week, maybe a bit more, but since I'm lifting heavy there are lots of rests, so for the sake of argument, I exercise 3-5 hours a week. My BodyMedia Fit armband puts my calorie burn at about 2300 calories a day on average, which agrees with the Katch-McArdle TDEE result on Scooby's advanced calorie calculator (http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/) for a body fat of 36%. So that's a deficit of 500 calories, or 1 pound a week.

Now some days, I eat a little more than 1800, and very occasionally, I eat a lot more. This puts my actual average intake over the last 100-odd days at 1935. That's a daily deficit of about 365 calories, or about 3/4 of a pound a week. That progress is perfectly fine with me, *and* I don't have to be hungry.

My point is, if 1400 is hard for you to stick to (and it certainly was impossible for me!), don't! Raise your limit until it IS something that you can stick with. This isn't a race!

EllieKish

One thing that I had done in the past (and going to start again) that worked for me is this:

6:30am - Breakfast
10:30 am - Half my lunch (half sandwich, yogurt, etc.)
2:30pm - The other half of my lunch (half sandwich, trail mix, etc.)
6:30pm - Dinner

I know it doesn't work for everyone, but it worked for me because I work at a desk all day. It really helped keep my cravings at bay...actually made me feel like I was eating all the time. This also gave me time to walk on my lunch hour.

Good luck!!!

cursiny

I think boredom plays a big role also. at my desk job....

mapenguinkeeper

I TOTALLY agree that boredom plays a role. One of my teammates and I call each other out when we see we are boredom eating. We try to get up and take a walk around the block or run down to Starbucks for some green tea to break the monotony of the desk job. Also, we are moving offices in a few weeks and I'm getting a treadmill desk hoping it will alleviate some of the Winter blues boredom of living on the East Coast and NOT being able to take a walk for months at a time.

cursiny

Treadmill desk....nice

FrauHaas2013

I eat every 2-3 hours and don't stop until an hour before bedtime!

9:30 AM Breakfast
11:30 AM morning snack
1:30 PM Lunch
4:00 PM afternoon snack
7:00 PM Dinner
9:00 PM dessert or nighttime snack