NO ENERGY - PLEASE HELP

karenowen60

What was the TDEE you were given?

After looking at your diary I would suggest you aren't eating enough.

There again I am not entirely sure what to put into the answers on Scoobydoo e.g. calorie reduction, but on a 20% calorie reduction my figures are as follows

BMR 1187
TDEE 1840
Calories daily 1472

Athena98501

You dont need as much as your partners bodybuilding friends suggested (although, i still think your DR has some explaining to do as to why he is so adverse to high protein) but i think more protein & good fats will be fantastic for you.

Mega-high protein puts a strain on the kidneys, for one. OP, please trust your doctor rather than well-meaning strangers on the internet.

115 grams/day is only a little high, not "mega-high." Not remotely a problem unless she actually has kidney issues. I'm thinking she'd have mentioned that, though.

No, I don't have kidney problems, the only health problem I have is mild depression, which has to be diet controlled as I can't take meds.
I didn't seem to have the fatigue/energy problem before I started Lite n easy, so maybe that is the problem.
Not sure where the 115gms a day figure is coming from, because it was suggested to me by a bodybuilder male friend to have 320gms a day of protein, which my doctor has said no to, because I am not a bodybuilder

I arrived at 115 grams by the total amount of chicken your friend recommended, and looking up the protein content of the leanest chicken cut.

karenowen60

You dont need as much as your partners bodybuilding friends suggested (although, i still think your DR has some explaining to do as to why he is so adverse to high protein) but i think more protein & good fats will be fantastic for you.

Mega-high protein puts a strain on the kidneys, for one. OP, please trust your doctor rather than well-meaning strangers on the internet.

115 grams/day is only a little high, not "mega-high." Not remotely a problem unless she actually has kidney issues. I'm thinking she'd have mentioned that, though.

No, I don't have kidney problems, the only health problem I have is mild depression, which has to be diet controlled as I can't take meds.
I didn't seem to have the fatigue/energy problem before I started Lite n easy, so maybe that is the problem.
Not sure where the 115gms a day figure is coming from, because it was suggested to me by a bodybuilder male friend to have 320gms a day of protein, which my doctor has said no to, because I am not a bodybuilder

I arrived at 115 grams by the total amount of chicken your friend recommended, and looking up the protein content of the leanest chicken cut.

Ok thanks for that.

mungowungo

Hi - I used lite and easy years ago (maybe 20 years) - From memory the breakfasts and lunches weren't very filling and I was always hungry - the dinners on the other hand were really good. I ended up just ordering the dinners and making my own breakfast and lunch and this worked really well - it might be an option for you.

I'd agree you probably aren't taking in enough calories. Lite and easy also used to be low fat everything which might be part of the problem. The fat and protein macros on MFP are minimums - you're supposed to meet them not be under.

As for the diary resetting I had the same problem - I discovered it was the settings in the phone app that it kept changing to - so you need to adjust the settings in the app and then all will be good.

acogg

115 grams is a good number. I am sorry to disagree with your doctor, but that is not too high. Sometimes even doctors don't know everything. He could be making the assumption that women don't need much protein because we don't have much muscle, which would be very wrong. I am optimistic that more protein will also help your depression. Protein is so very important in so many ways.

HappyStack

What was the TDEE you were given?

After looking at your diary I would suggest you aren't eating enough.

There again I am not entirely sure what to put into the answers on Scoobydoo e.g. calorie reduction, but on a 20% calorie reduction my figures are as follows

BMR 1187
TDEE 1840
Calories daily 1472

I would suggest a 10% reduction of your TDEE, not 20%. The higher percentage is acceptable if you're very overweight, and you don't appear to want to lose very much weight.

So your daily goal would be more like 1600-1700 calories. You don't have to be exact, but getting as close as possible to that is ideal.

Also, protein requirements between 100-120g would be sufficient. Not only is protein more important at a calorie deficit, but it's also more important as you age. Some bodyweight exercises to preserve lean mass would be good for you, too.
Feel free to eat fattier cuts of meat, because the body needs fat to be healthy (about 60g is a mid-range limit) and make up the rest of your calorie intake with carbs.

AnnaMarieDinVa

I read today on a health blog that the two main culprits of no energy during a weight loss program are lack of sleep and dehydration. Are you getting in 8 hours of sleep and drinking at least 8 C water daily?

karenowen60

8 cups of water yes and more, 8hrs sleep....NO

cafeaulait7

Are you in the UK? Make sure he/she checks your B12, folate and ferritin levels along with everything else. A deficiency in any of those areas can contribute to loss of energy.

Good luck

No, I am in Australia

Totally agree about having your iron levels checked. Unless you're vegan, B12 should technically be fine, but worth a check anyway.

I tried liteneasy for a brief time when I was very busy and I found that there just wasn't enough food at breakfast and lunch for the calorie allowance. I was usually ravenous in between meals because the portion sizes were so tiny and the protein content was so low (probably follows Australian guidelines of 10-15% of intake). I like the dinners though, but only buy them now to keep in the freezer for nights when I can't be bothered cooking.

Liteneasy is certainly convenient but I think that you can do a much better job yourself. It may be worthwhile giving it a break to see if your energy levels improve (if your blood tests are all good).

Nah, there's an autoimmune form of B12 deficiency, where your body attacks stomach cells needed to absorb it through the gut. I have it. It gets less rare the older folks get. It's deadly (eventually) without treatment. I have to get my B12 through shots each month or no B12 for me, lol.

OP, I got anemic (this time iron anemia, lol) enough to get too low on hemoglobin and felt very tired when exercising. Definitely check your test results (and I'd even look at them myself, since I'd been low on iron for years before it got so bad and no doc bothered to tell me to take a multivitamin).

A really low B12 level that doesn't flag as out of range is still time to take sublingual tablets or nasal spray B12, imho. There are a lot of studies suggesting the lowest 'normal' range on b12 can be too low for folks (large individual variation). So again, look at the number itself if you can. Really

But I just think you probably need to eat a bit more I thought that for me, too, though and was wrong, lol!

stringbeann

this happens to me because I am really anemic! Get your iron levels tested and your bp!

karenowen60

115 grams is a good number. I am sorry to disagree with your doctor, but that is not too high. Sometimes even doctors don't know everything. He could be making the assumption that women don't need much protein because we don't have much muscle, which would be very wrong. I am optimistic that more protein will also help your depression. Protein is so very important in so many ways.

The protein the bodybuilder wants me to eat totals 390gms a day, which is far too high according to the doctor. The doctor has given me a list of foods to eat to help with the depression, along with supplements

Charlottesometimes23

Are you in the UK? Make sure he/she checks your B12, folate and ferritin levels along with everything else. A deficiency in any of those areas can contribute to loss of energy.

Good luck

No, I am in Australia

Totally agree about having your iron levels checked. Unless you're vegan, B12 should technically be fine, but worth a check anyway.

I tried liteneasy for a brief time when I was very busy and I found that there just wasn't enough food at breakfast and lunch for the calorie allowance. I was usually ravenous in between meals because the portion sizes were so tiny and the protein content was so low (probably follows Australian guidelines of 10-15% of intake). I like the dinners though, but only buy them now to keep in the freezer for nights when I can't be bothered cooking.

Liteneasy is certainly convenient but I think that you can do a much better job yourself. It may be worthwhile giving it a break to see if your energy levels improve (if your blood tests are all good).

Nah, there's an autoimmune form of B12 deficiency, where your body attacks stomach cells needed to absorb it through the gut. I have it. It gets less rare the older folks get. It's deadly (eventually) without treatment. I have to get my B12 through shots each month or no B12 for me, lol.

Does this usually come with other symptoms though? Gastric cells that produce intrinsic factor are affected so other symptoms would be evident? I'm not arguing, just interested from my own perspective.

cafeaulait7

Are you in the UK? Make sure he/she checks your B12, folate and ferritin levels along with everything else. A deficiency in any of those areas can contribute to loss of energy.

Good luck

No, I am in Australia

Totally agree about having your iron levels checked. Unless you're vegan, B12 should technically be fine, but worth a check anyway.

I tried liteneasy for a brief time when I was very busy and I found that there just wasn't enough food at breakfast and lunch for the calorie allowance. I was usually ravenous in between meals because the portion sizes were so tiny and the protein content was so low (probably follows Australian guidelines of 10-15% of intake). I like the dinners though, but only buy them now to keep in the freezer for nights when I can't be bothered cooking.

Liteneasy is certainly convenient but I think that you can do a much better job yourself. It may be worthwhile giving it a break to see if your energy levels improve (if your blood tests are all good).

Nah, there's an autoimmune form of B12 deficiency, where your body attacks stomach cells needed to absorb it through the gut. I have it. It gets less rare the older folks get. It's deadly (eventually) without treatment. I have to get my B12 through shots each month or no B12 for me, lol.

Does this usually come with other symptoms though? Gastric cells that produce intrinsic factor are affected so other symptoms would be evident? I'm not arguing, just interested from my own perspective.

Oh, definitely, eventually (or soon, depending on the level and the person)! Really hideously awful ones after a while. Mine wasn't diagnosed until it was incredibly obvious and awful, and I have permanent nerve damage from it. I was in my 20's, though, and it's quite rare in that age group.

As long as a doctor is checking for one kind of anemia, he should check for that too, though, imho. The test is simple and cheap, and then everything is caught early. But yeah, if that's what it is, a person knows it eventually

Charlottesometimes23

Are you in the UK? Make sure he/she checks your B12, folate and ferritin levels along with everything else. A deficiency in any of those areas can contribute to loss of energy.

Good luck

No, I am in Australia

Totally agree about having your iron levels checked. Unless you're vegan, B12 should technically be fine, but worth a check anyway.

I tried liteneasy for a brief time when I was very busy and I found that there just wasn't enough food at breakfast and lunch for the calorie allowance. I was usually ravenous in between meals because the portion sizes were so tiny and the protein content was so low (probably follows Australian guidelines of 10-15% of intake). I like the dinners though, but only buy them now to keep in the freezer for nights when I can't be bothered cooking.

Liteneasy is certainly convenient but I think that you can do a much better job yourself. It may be worthwhile giving it a break to see if your energy levels improve (if your blood tests are all good).

Nah, there's an autoimmune form of B12 deficiency, where your body attacks stomach cells needed to absorb it through the gut. I have it. It gets less rare the older folks get. It's deadly (eventually) without treatment. I have to get my B12 through shots each month or no B12 for me, lol.

Does this usually come with other symptoms though? Gastric cells that produce intrinsic factor are affected so other symptoms would be evident? I'm not arguing, just interested from my own perspective.

Oh, definitely, eventually (or soon, depending on the level and the person)! Really hideously awful ones after a while. Mine wasn't diagnosed until it was incredibly obvious and awful, and I have permanent nerve damage from it. I was in my 20's, though, and it's quite rare in that age group.

As long as a doctor is checking for one kind of anemia, he should check for that too, though, imho. The test is simple and cheap, and then everything is caught early. But yeah, if that's what it is, a person knows it eventually

Thanks for replying and clarifying it for me. I'm sorry to hear that it has affected your nerves and I totally understand why it's good to have these things checked out before damage can occur. I had to get some bloods done for work recently and asked for a couple of extras while I was getting it done. It turns out I'm severely vit D deficient. I had no clue!

Anyway, sorry for the hijack OP.