Need support from people with lower maintenance calories.

Its_Tina_Betch

Hello!
I've been struggling with maintaining lately, one of the reasons is because I've become selfish with food.
When I first began to lose weight I got used to eating little, and now that I'm maintaining I've gotten used to eating a lot more. I slowly started upping my calories but now I've hit my max and I want to go higher, even though I know I can't.

So anyway I need help accepting that this is what I can eat when I don't exercise.
I also would like support from others maintaining with a generally low number of calories(My maintenance is 1520)

RachyLovesRattys

Hello there!! I'm not intentionally maintaining right now- but I just went back to University so that's the track i'm on at the moment.

I'm 4 foot 11 and set my calories generally at 1200--however I exercise a lot and eat those calories back, leaving me at about 1,600 or so. And let's be real--sometimes I eat those without exercising too :P

I can't say i'm currently eating the BEST that I have (I'm working on changing that back- it's def the start of school), and I'm also a vague Intermittent Faster but if you ever need someone feel free to add

kdiamond

You're 18, and at 5'2" I'm pretty certain unless you never move at all your maintenance calories are not 1500. I'm a lot older than you, and the same size, and mine are 1900+.

Don't overthink it. Just eat as healthy as possible, stay around 1600-1800 and exercise when you can. The weight will stay the same, you might get minor fluctuations but that's normal, you can drive yourself batty thinking you have to eat less.

twixlepennie

Your calories seem low-enter your info here and see what it says for maintenance calories
http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

TavistockToad

You're 18, and at 5'2" I'm pretty certain unless you never move at all your maintenance calories are not 1500. I'm a lot older than you, and the same size, and mine are 1900+.

Don't overthink it. Just eat as healthy as possible, stay around 1600-1800 and exercise when you can. The weight will stay the same, you might get minor fluctuations but that's normal, you can drive yourself batty thinking you have to eat less.

This is great advice

laineybz

I'm maintaining on the same calories as you; 1520. Sometimes I go over, but the weight doesn't seem to fluctuate more than 1 or 2lbs but that's dependent on alot of things. I have a desk job, work 10 - 12 hours a day basically sitting on my *kitten*. When i exercise i eat those calories back too. Feel free to add me

DemoraFairy

You're 18, and at 5'2" I'm pretty certain unless you never move at all your maintenance calories are not 1500. I'm a lot older than you, and the same size, and mine are 1900+.

Don't overthink it. Just eat as healthy as possible, stay around 1600-1800 and exercise when you can. The weight will stay the same, you might get minor fluctuations but that's normal, you can drive yourself batty thinking you have to eat less.

Maybe OP doesn't do any exercise. When I start maintenance I'll be at about 1500 a day. In fact my maintenance calories using the calculator linked earlier is just 1470.

Feel free to add me if you want, OP

Stubbornfighter

I'm 18, 5' 7" and they put me on 1,400 to lose from where I am at, which is 120. For me I eat little things throughout the day when hunger strikes. I eat filling things, organic peanut butter with organic bread, lentils, nuts, cheese. Find things that satisfy you that are also good for you. Always adhere to true hunger , not boredom hunger, your body needs food when it's telling you it's hungry. Hope that helps.

lauren3101

So your profile says your highest weight was 163lb, and you've lost 60lb according to your ticker, so I take it you are now 103lb?

If that is the case, then your TDEE is indeed around 1574 according to the calculator I just used, however, that is based on being sedentary, which to be honest, unless you literally sit on the sofa all day, I'd be surprised if you are. Even if you were just lightly active, that instantly ups your maintenance to 1800.

Simple fact is, if you want to eat more, move more!

fairygirlpie9

I'm 18, 5' 7" and they put me on 1,400 to lose from where I am at, which is 120. For me I eat little things throughout the day when hunger strikes. I eat filling things, organic peanut butter with organic bread, lentils, nuts, cheese. Find things that satisfy you that are also good for you. Always adhere to true hunger , not boredom hunger, your body needs food when it's telling you it's hungry. Hope that helps.

Errrrr Isn't 120 underweight for someone of your height?

To the OP that amount doesn't sound like maintenance unless your completely sedentary. If your struggling then it simply means your not eating enough. Eat more.

Jovette42

:flowerforyou: Life is meant to be lived. I use MFP and calorie counting as a guideline for me to see "a-round-about" idea of where I should be. It is not the bible and these rules are not written in stones. I got from 180lbs to 145 because I listened to my body. And sweetie it took A DECADE just bc I had no idea what I was doing at first. :laugh: After 2 years on MFP I can say having "guidelines" has been so helpful. The lowest I've gotten was 133lbs but my goal is somewhere around 122-126. I've paid attention to what my body is doing when I'm doing different programs. And I gained "weight" right after I did T25 Gamma stage (I lost in Alpha and Beta) so then I learned that weights will cause me to gain muscles :happy: I like muscles they help me burn more fat :bigsmile:

So the moral of this long story is listen to what your body is doing and what it wants and when it wants to eat. If you have a schedule to eat every 2-3 hours then eat. However if you get hungry before your eating time then pay attention to what exercise you did that day and see if there's a pattern of being hungry (lifting will make you hungry ) Don't stress out, enjoy the journey!

kluvit

My maintenance calories are only 1540, but I prefer to eat around 1800, so I make sure I burn an extra 200-500 per day to maintain. I also set an acceptable range, and if I hit the high end, I go right back into weight loss mode and reduce calories by eliminating afternoon coffee, skipping breakfast, eating a smaller lunch, and increasing up the workouts.

You may also need to take a look at what your calories are made of. A 350 calorie sugary doughnut is not going to satisfy the same way as 350 calories of eggs and bacon. Eating foods you enjoy and that stick with you longer will help you "need" fewer calories. And, plan for the things you really want. I know I have my favorite after-dinner chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream cone waiting for me at home, so it's easier to pass up the random snacks available at work to ensure there's room in my calorie budget for my regular treat. But, of course, if something really delicious comes my way, I can choose to indulge and skip after-dinner dessert or get in an extra workout.

Once you establish the habit of adjusting your intake based on your activity level, you'll truly be in "maintenance" mode.

mccindy72

Hello!
I've been struggling with maintaining lately, one of the reasons is because I've become selfish with food.
When I first began to lose weight I got used to eating little, and now that I'm maintaining I've gotten used to eating a lot more. I slowly started upping my calories but now I've hit my max and I want to go higher, even though I know I can't.

So anyway I need help accepting that this is what I can eat when I don't exercise.
I also would like support from others maintaining with a generally low number of calories(My maintenance is 1520)

If you want to eat more, you have two alternatives: find foods that don't have a lot of calories and eat a lot of them (vegetables, for instance), or exercise to burn calories so you can eat those back.
I'm 5'8" and my maintenance calories are 1,660. I burn about 300 a day exercising, so I eat those back and end up around 2,000.

GretaGirl8

I maintain on about 1500. i suspect i could eat more, but haven't tried that theory out for longer than a couple of weeks at a time. But when I did eat more during those couple of weeks, I didn't gain. Point being, you may be able to eat more AND maintain.

Stubbornfighter

I'm 18, 5' 7" and they put me on 1,400 to lose from where I am at, which is 120. For me I eat little things throughout the day when hunger strikes. I eat filling things, organic peanut butter with organic bread, lentils, nuts, cheese. Find things that satisfy you that are also good for you. Always adhere to true hunger , not boredom hunger, your body needs food when it's telling you it's hungry. Hope that helps.

Errrrr Isn't 120 underweight for someone of your height?

To the OP that amount doesn't sound like maintenance unless your completely sedentary. If your struggling then it simply means your not eating enough. Eat more.

Not as far as I can tell, I'm curvy in the hip area XD My doctors all say I'm fine, I'm more looking to gain muscle tone and you need to lose fat to be able to see it.

nxd10

My maintenance calories are lower than that, but I am also older.

What saves me is exercise. Not EXERCISE, but just walking. I bought a fitbit zip ($39 on ebay) and I get hundreds of extra calories a day by walking. It makes the lower calories completely livable.

I would also look carefully at your diary and see if there are things that take a lot of calories that you don't care about that you could substitute in things you do care about for. In the cold winter, I want fat. Hot chocolate, butter, and cheese. I can fit that into my day if I am careful with bread and leave the sugar and cream out of my coffee. Easy.

ejtj1234

I know it is soooooooo hard! I am at 1320 and go over almost everyday:( Keep trying! I tell myself everyday it is a new day and I try all over again:)

stealthq

OP, have you verified your maintenance calories for yourself? Have you eaten your maintenance calories for a month or so and actually maintained? The calculations are an estimate. Make sure it's right for you before you start figuring out ways to be able to eat more.

BTW - building muscle mass is a good way to increase your baseline maintenance cals. Plus, you get to bulk for a while, and bulking means eating above maintenance (and then there's a cut, but we'll ignore that for now). I'm just saying :flowerforyou:

nxd10

So your profile says your highest weight was 163lb, and you've lost 60lb according to your ticker, so I take it you are now 103lb?

If that is the case, then your TDEE is indeed around 1574 according to the calculator I just used, however, that is based on being sedentary, which to be honest, unless you literally sit on the sofa all day, I'd be surprised if you are. Even if you were just lightly active, that instantly ups your maintenance to 1800.

Simple fact is, if you want to eat more, move more!

True what you say about moving, but . . .

As someone who wears a pedometer (and now a fitbit zip) I am surprised at how often people on these forums say 'you're not sedentary'.

A LOT of people are sedentary. In the context of MPF, it does not mean 'lying in bed with a coma' like I've heard here. It means that you're walking around 5000 steps a day . That is higher than the average number of steps for an office worker and high for a lot of senior citizens (see here for a discussion of 'average' Americans: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/19/the-pedometer-test-americans-take-fewer-steps/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0). I was SHOCKED at how few steps I walked - even running around, cleaning, taking care of my yard - on weekends or when I drive to work.

I am listed as sedentary and unless I get over 5000 or so steps, I earn nothing extra from walking with a zip. That's what the MFP model is. To get my 10,000 steps, I need to walk to work, run around like usual, and walk another 45 minutes. Your mileage may differ, but I think many people overestimate their movement. That's why so many people are overweight. Because you're right - we all need to move more.

heybales

Have you thought about Intermittent Fasting type eating schedule, which could be something as simple as skipping breakfast?

If truly sedentary, like desk job, and you basically wake and rush off to it - the energy stores you got from the meal the night before are adequate enough to keep you until lunch.

Then normal lunch, or bigger now, and bigger dinner, snack between those two, snack before bed.

Do the meals look bigger and better if breakfast doesn't have to be in there?

And no - breakfast doesn't kick off your metabolism. You burn the same amount of calories to process the food whether in 3 meals or 1 meal, if the calories and macros are the same.
That's not metabolism, that's merely increased energy use to process the food.
You waking up increased your metabolism.

fangmouse

Bump