Caloric intake - too little?

KateLoughnane

So...MFP friends...I am not sure what to do about this calorie thing. I was an avid WW user. I successfully lost 40 lbs and then become lazy and gained 60 plus pounds. My questions is...should I be hitting my calorie goal every day, or is it okay to be under? I remember in WW they always said to eat all your "points" or your body would go into starvation. Any thoughts

gnrshelton

Same thing here. You need to eat them. I have been having trouble coming close to my calories a few times. You feel full and just can't eat anymore what do you do. But you should eat them.

KateLoughnane

I was going in that direction. There are some days (like today) where I have a ton of calories left...but I do not want to shove a bunch of food down my throat at 9:30 pm.

Soooze

I have the same question! Apparently we (woman) need to eat around 1200 calories per day. Let's say I do eat my 1200 calories but I burned 500 calories, does that mean I HAVE to eat an extra 500 calories? Geez! A few times I've gotten a website message that said I should eat my calories or my body will go in starvation mode. I'm not hungry and don't want to eat just because I'm under calories.

KateLoughnane

Here is my dillemma...because I am on my feet around 12 hours a day....my calories are 1780, and then if i add exercise...ugh! I find myself eating junk just to get the calories in.

Van3ssa_2468

your should eat all your calories.
You may eat your fitness calories too. Some people do, some don't, I eat about half of mine.
Space out your meals and snacks so that you are eating about every three hours so you won't have to make up for it at the end of the day.

megsta21

I would suggest you read these posts, they are very informative and break down why you need to eat how much you do....

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/23912-links-in-mfp-you-want-to-read-again-and-again

These links opened my eyes and now im eating more and im loving life...=)

Toricakins1234

here's what i heard from my fitness trainer she told me to lose weight and keep it off id to eat between 1200-1400 calories a day with working out. Also she said your body will not go into starvation mode because its not under a 1000 calories. Also by doing this and not eating over 1600 calories you'll tend to not gain much if ur bad on ur diet for a few weeks unlike if u stayed under a thousand calories because its so easy to loose weight in starvation mode fast but even faster to gain it all back without diet and excerize unlike eating between 1200-1400. i hope that made sense guys sorry if it didnt.

junebug523

I strongly suggest planning your meals and snacks ahead of time. It can be difficult and time-consuming, especially at first, but once you get into the habit of it, you will have a much easier time meeting your calorie goal. If you plan ahead and pack good snacks (for me, these are mainly fruit, dried fruit, veggies, cheese, peanuts, walnuts, etc.) with you when you go to work (or whatever keeps you on your feet for 12 hours a day), you won't need to stuff yourself at night in order to catch up.

Just my two cents.

laura11248

FYI...I began working with a weight and wellness clinic and met with an fitness specialist who said...unless I am working out 6 days a week... for an hour each time...I do not need to eat my fitness calories! I was totally frustrated that my weight was not dropping.

Soooze

Thanks, it makes sense... I'm eating around 1300-1400 calories so it's all good! The thing is, I only know how many calories I have leftover at the end of the day because I log in my food after each meal (but I eat snack, basically eating every 3 hrs)... so after dinner I notice I have calories remaining and it's really not a good time to overeat.... so I'll stick with my 1300 calories and hope for the best!

johnthefatman

If your target is < 1800 definitely eat them all - if your target is big because you have a lot to loose a little under run is OK. My daily target is 2300 - so I don't worry if I only consume 1900. Once the weight comes down and I reset my goals my target will be lower so I will need to change.
j