Always Significantly Under Calories

lalee93

According to MyFitnessPal, I am very often under 1200 calories per day. I am never hungry and it is because I have greatly cut carbs and fats, while adding lots of fruits and veggies. It says that I shouldn't eat so little or I could put my body in starvation mode, which is obviously the opposite of what I want to happen.

My question is, should I really increase my calories? I am never hungry, I have a splurge day here and there so do not have any cravings or anything. I am very satisfied and feel like it would be silly to add unnecessary calories to my diet since I am already sated. However, as said previously, I do not want my body to shut down which could hinder weight loss.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

HerpDerp745

http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html

Eat what you feel comfortable eating. If you can consistently eat at those calorie levels and stay sane, then all the power to you.

AmyRhubarb

According to MyFitnessPal, I am very often under 1200 calories per day. I am never hungry and it is because I have greatly cut carbs and fats, while adding lots of fruits and veggies. It says that I shouldn't eat so little or I could put my body in starvation mode, which is obviously the opposite of what I want to happen.

My question is, should I really increase my calories? I am never hungry, I have a splurge day here and there so do not have any cravings or anything. I am very satisfied and feel like it would be silly to add unnecessary calories to my diet since I am already sated. However, as said previously, I do not want my body to shut down which could hinder weight loss.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Adding more calories to be eating the right amount is necessary - you don't want to over eat, but you don't want to be under eating either, which can cause you problems in the long run. Reaching 1200 calories really isn't that hard - it's the bare minimum recommendation for women, and it's honestly too low for most of us. Your BMR is likely higher than 1200, so you should be aiming to reach your daily goal, because after all, goal means GOAL - something to achieve or strive for, not fall well short of.

Can't see your diary, so no idea what sorts of foods you're already eating (besides lots of fruits and veggies than you mentioned in your post), but add more calorie dense foods to you day - nuts and nut butters, seeds, avocados, use coconut and olive oils, full fat dairy (don't be afraid of fat - fat doesn't make us fat, too many calories do!), cheese, whole eggs, use a little butter here and there....these foods pack good cals into small portions, getting you closer to goal without adding huge servings of any of them.

Don't sell yourself short by not properly fueling your body.

lalee93

According to MyFitnessPal, I am very often under 1200 calories per day. I am never hungry and it is because I have greatly cut carbs and fats, while adding lots of fruits and veggies. It says that I shouldn't eat so little or I could put my body in starvation mode, which is obviously the opposite of what I want to happen.

My question is, should I really increase my calories? I am never hungry, I have a splurge day here and there so do not have any cravings or anything. I am very satisfied and feel like it would be silly to add unnecessary calories to my diet since I am already sated. However, as said previously, I do not want my body to shut down which could hinder weight loss.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Adding more calories to be eating the right amount is necessary - you don't want to over eat, but you don't want to be under eating either, which can cause you problems in the long run. Reaching 1200 calories really isn't that hard - it's the bare minimum recommendation for women, and it's honestly too low for most of us. Your BMR is likely higher than 1200, so you should be aiming to reach your daily goal, because after all, goal means GOAL - something to achieve or strive for, not fall well short of.

Can't see your diary, so no idea what sorts of foods you're already eating (besides lots of fruits and veggies than you mentioned in your post), but add more calorie dense foods to you day - nuts and nut butters, seeds, avocados, use coconut and olive oils, full fat dairy (don't be afraid of fat - fat doesn't make us fat, too many calories do!), cheese, whole eggs, use a little butter here and there....these foods pack good cals into small portions, getting you closer to goal without adding huge servings of any of them.

Don't sell yourself short by not properly fueling your body.

Yes, it says that I should be eating 1880 calories and an online calculator said my BMR is 1930. I am also eating chicken and lean pork chops. I do eat carbs occasionally. Maybe I should include more higher calorie items? I have been trying to avoid them.

WBB55

I have greatly cut carbs and fats, while adding lots of fruits and veggies

I'm having a fact-checking day today. Fun fact: Actually fruits and veggies have fats and carbs in them!

Broccoli - 71% carb. 9% fat. 20% protein
Avocado - 19% carb. 77% fat. 4% protein
Apple - 95% carb. 3% fat. 2% protein
Blueberries - 91% carb. 5% fat. 4% protein

writergeek313

I am very satisfied and feel like it would be silly to add unnecessary calories to my diet since I am already sated.

If you're consistently eating fewer than 1200 calories, those calories you aren't eating *are* necessary. Your BMR is the minimum number of calories your body needs just to function normally. It's the number of calories you'd need even if you were asleep for a whole day or in a coma. It's not a big deal if you go under your BMR once in awhile, but you have to give your body the fuel it needs to do all the things it does to keep you healthy (even lose weight). Make sure you know what your BMR is and that you're eating above it. This site is a good calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

I agree with the poster above me who suggested some higher calorie additions to your diet. I eat a lot of yogurt, but instead of it all being fat free, I've switched to 2% or even full fat yogurt sometimes, especially on days when I've planned out my meals and see that I'm not getting close to hitting my fat goal for the day.

FIT_Goat

Yes, it says that I should be eating 1880 calories and an online calculator said my BMR is 1930. I am also eating chicken and lean pork chops. I do eat carbs occasionally. Maybe I should include more higher calorie items? I have been trying to avoid them.

If you are eating under 1,200 calories a day, when your goal is almost 1,900 calories a day, you're going to have a bad time. Everyone wants to lose the weight as quickly as possible, but it's just not smart. Smaller, sustainable, deficits are healthier and more maintainable for long-term success.

Make it a goal to eat between 1,700 and 2,000 calories each day. Treat those are upper and lower limits (as much as reasonable... being over or under by a tiny amount once in a while is fine). Fuel your body with the best food you can in the right amounts. There really is no need to suffer when losing weight. If you're suffering or find it greatly challenging, you're probably not doing it right.

FIT_Goat

Your BMR is the minimum number of calories your body needs just to function normally. It's the number of calories you'd need even if you were asleep for a whole day or in a coma.

This is true.

Make sure you know what your BMR is and that you're eating above it.

This is not strictly true. If you happen to be eating below your BMR, the deficit can be covered by the stored calories in fat or glycogen. BMR is just the amount your body is going to burn each day, no matter what. It doesn't have to come from food you eat. It can come from any source of calories the body has access to. There is no "direct" harm from eating below your BMR alone.

That said, deficits larger than 20% tend go be difficult to sustain and miserable. Since most people burn at least 20% more than their BMR (the sedentary multiplier is 1.2 and the rest are higher) , those who are eating below their BMR are almost certainly trying to sustain a very large deficit. This is unwise in and of itself. The BMR isn't a magic number that dictates the minimum amount of calories you must eat each day.

diannethegeek

Is there a medical reason that you're cutting fats from your diet? I ask because a lot of dieters mistakenly think that low-fat is the best way to go. Fat is actually an important part of your diet and you need some to help with vitamin absorption, cell growth, healthy skin and nails, etc. Adding some of those fats back into your diet would certainly help boost your calories.

Look at adding things like cheese, avocado, nuts and nut butter, olive oil, ice cream, coconut oil, etc. It should be relatively easy to boost each snack or meal by a few hundred calories with a little pre-planning.

AliceDark

Lack of appetite can be a side effect of drastically reducing your caloric intake. It's okay if you occasionally go under, just like it's okay if you occasionally go over your goal. However, if you're consistently eating under 1200 calories, which is ridiculously low anyway, you're probably not getting the nutrition you need to keep your body functioning at its best.

If MFP tells you that you can eat 1800 calories, you should do that! Slowly walk up to there if it freaks you out to do it in one big jump -- add 100 calories/day the first week, then another 100 the second week, etc. As you increase your calories, your appetite will come back. Your goal should be to eat as many calories as you can while still losing weight, not to eat as few calories as possible.

djshari

Can you give us an example of what you are eating daily? I already see some great suggestions of healthy options to meet your daily goal (avocado being one of my favorite foods so I second this) but you may be entering the wrong portions in the first place. I've seen a lot of people who say that their calories changed a lot when they started weighing their food as opposed to estimating (like one chicken breast vs 4 oz chicken breast) and their totals were off by hundreds of calories. Since you aren't hungry I'm wondering if your calories are just coming out lower than they actually are.

JesterMFP

You're never hungry because you're undereating, and sometimes that's what happens. Hunger is a complicated thing and it's controlled by hormones - hormones that get all messed up when you under-eat for significant amounts of time. Hunger is not actually a very good indication of how much food or nutrients your body needs.

_jayciemarie_

This question/concern pops up on this site daily. When I first started I didn't have a food scale. My proportions (I was convinced) were accurate. Yeah....I was way wrong! When I thought I was eating 1200 calories or less a day, I probably was really consuming about 1500. As soon as I got a food scale and started weighing EVERYTHING I quickly found out that 1200 calories just sucks! My body can not function day in and day out on 1200 calories. So, I would say make sure you are weighing and accurately accounting for everything.

Another thought when people say "I'm eating less than 1200 calories a day and I'm not starving at all"...is then how did you gain the weight? If you are never hungry, then why are you dieting? If I could--I would eat an entire house made of donuts. Just sayin'!

PRMinx

http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html

Eat what you feel comfortable eating. If you can consistently eat at those calorie levels and stay sane, then all the power to you.

Please stop giving advice to people.

ksellen1

http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html

Eat what you feel comfortable eating. If you can consistently eat at those calorie levels and stay sane, then all the power to you.

Please stop giving advice to people.

Agreed

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

If you are truly eating under 1200 (logging accurately, weighing portions, etc), yes you need more. Not for weight loss but for health. Add back some of the foods you cut.

peleroja

This question/concern pops up on this site daily. When I first started I didn't have a food scale. My proportions (I was convinced) were accurate. Yeah....I was way wrong! When I thought I was eating 1200 calories or less a day, I probably was really consuming about 1500. As soon as I got a food scale and started weighing EVERYTHING I quickly found out that 1200 calories just sucks! My body can not function day in and day out on 1200 calories. So, I would say make sure you are weighing and accurately accounting for everything.

Another thought when people say "I'm eating less than 1200 calories a day and I'm not starving at all"...is then how did you gain the weight? If you are never hungry, then why are you dieting? If I could--I would eat an entire house made of donuts. Just sayin'!

This is really good advice and she's entirely right. You are probably significantly underestimating your intake.

Serah87

This question/concern pops up on this site daily. When I first started I didn't have a food scale. My proportions (I was convinced) were accurate. Yeah....I was way wrong! When I thought I was eating 1200 calories or less a day, I probably was really consuming about 1500. As soon as I got a food scale and started weighing EVERYTHING I quickly found out that 1200 calories just sucks! My body can not function day in and day out on 1200 calories. So, I would say make sure you are weighing and accurately accounting for everything.

Another thought when people say "I'm eating less than 1200 calories a day and I'm not starving at all"...is then how did you gain the weight? If you are never hungry, then why are you dieting? If I could--I would eat an entire house made of donuts. Just sayin'!

+1

Well said!!!! :flowerforyou:

1princesswarrior

This question/concern pops up on this site daily. When I first started I didn't have a food scale. My proportions (I was convinced) were accurate. Yeah....I was way wrong! When I thought I was eating 1200 calories or less a day, I probably was really consuming about 1500. As soon as I got a food scale and started weighing EVERYTHING I quickly found out that 1200 calories just sucks! My body can not function day in and day out on 1200 calories. So, I would say make sure you are weighing and accurately accounting for everything.

Another thought when people say "I'm eating less than 1200 calories a day and I'm not starving at all"...is then how did you gain the weight? If you are never hungry, then why are you dieting? If I could--I would eat an entire house made of donuts. Just sayin'!

This is really good advice and she's entirely right. You are probably significantly underestimating your intake.

+1

And measuring cups/spoons are not accurate for solids you need a food scale. Also, be as accurate as possible when selecting foods from the database, there are a lot of wrong entries.

P.S. I started where you are and lost a lot of hair, my nails got very brittle, I had no energy, I was not the most pleasant person to be around, and I had no appetite, I had to force myself to eat for about a month.

jofjltncb6

The good news is that this site's interpretation of "starvation mode" is bogus.

The bad news is that eating less than 1200 calories daily is likely a bad idea because of likely nutritional deficiencies and poor adherence long-term.

Ortax

Seriously, eating less than 1200 calories, if you have a lot of body fat (30%+), really isn't going to harm you. Starvation mode doesn't exist because your body cannot outrun a calorie deficit. Also, no you're not going to screw up your metabolism like most people on here believe, unless you do it for a LONG period of time. If you're satisfied with less than 1200 calories, then that's fine. Do what feels right.

Ortax

Your BMR is the minimum number of calories your body needs just to function normally. It's the number of calories you'd need even if you were asleep for a whole day or in a coma.

This is true.

Make sure you know what your BMR is and that you're eating above it.

This is not strictly true. If you happen to be eating below your BMR, the deficit can be covered by the stored calories in fat or glycogen. BMR is just the amount your body is going to burn each day, no matter what. It doesn't have to come from food you eat. It can come from any source of calories the body has access to. There is no "direct" harm from eating below your BMR alone.

That said, deficits larger than 20% tend go be difficult to sustain and miserable. Since most people burn at least 20% more than their BMR (the sedentary multiplier is 1.2 and the rest are higher) , those who are eating below their BMR are almost certainly trying to sustain a very large deficit. This is unwise in and of itself. The BMR isn't a magic number that dictates the minimum amount of calories you must eat each day.

This guy knows what he's talking about.

AlysonG2

Are you weighing your food? I only ask this because I was having the same problem, so I got curious and bought a food scale. Turns out I WAS actually eating enough calories. I eat an apple with peanut butter almost every day at work, and I was logging it as about 250 calories...turns out I should have been logging it as more like 500 calories! Not to mention the cream cheese I eat on my bagel every morning. You'd be surprised at how little a tablespoon of something actually is.

If you're not hungry, you may be eating more than you think

_jayciemarie_

I was eating salads with every meal. Which consisted of a serving of cheese and croutons. Yeah...once I got a scale I realized I was using about 4x the amount of cheese and one serving of Croutons was 2 freaking croutons. TWO! The scale made me open my eyes and I had to come to the realization that I was very, very off base. One good thing I learned from a scale is I can eat more cottage cheese and more frozen yogurt when I weigh them compared to measuring cups.

HerpDerp745

http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html

Eat what you feel comfortable eating. If you can consistently eat at those calorie levels and stay sane, then all the power to you.

Please stop giving advice to people.

Giving the right advice? Did you even read the conclusion of the link?

Dewymorning

Is there a medical reason that you're cutting fats from your diet? I ask because a lot of dieters mistakenly think that low-fat is the best way to go. Fat is actually an important part of your diet and you need some to help with vitamin absorption, cell growth, healthy skin and nails, etc. Adding some of those fats back into your diet would certainly help boost your calories.

Look at adding things like cheese, avocado, nuts and nut butter, olive oil, ice cream, coconut oil, etc. It should be relatively easy to boost each snack or meal by a few hundred calories with a little pre-planning.

MMMMMMmmmm

This post is tasty.

SezxyStef

http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html

Eat what you feel comfortable eating. If you can consistently eat at those calorie levels and stay sane, then all the power to you.

Please stop giving advice to people.

Giving the right advice? Did you even read the conclusion of the link?

any link that ends with "how do I stay out of starvation mode" isn't worth the time to copy the link let alone read it...

HerpDerp745

any link that ends with "how do I stay out of starvation mode" isn't worth the time to copy the link let alone read it...

The irony is hurting. How do I make it stop?

PRMinx

http://examine.com/faq/how-do-i-stay-out-of-starvation-mode.html

Eat what you feel comfortable eating. If you can consistently eat at those calorie levels and stay sane, then all the power to you.

Please stop giving advice to people.

Giving the right advice? Did you even read the conclusion of the link?

Telling someone that they should eat as little calories as they want as long as they "feel full" without knowing their medical history, food diet, exercise regime or anything else is bad advice.

You can send me all the links and rude PMs you want but, for the majority of people in the world, eating less than 1200 calories a day over a long period of time will not provide adequate, sustainable nutrition.

HerpDerp745

So that's a no to science?

EDIT: Oh I see, this is damage control for just reading the title and making an assumption. Thanks for the laughs.

sassyjae21

OP you're probably not hungry because you have jacked your hormones up. I also did this, starting out. I didn't know any better because that's what MFP told me to do. Sure, you'll lose weight eating less than 1200 calories a day but it's not sustainable, you'll really start feeling like crap, and once you up your calories that weight is likely going to pile on you.

Please (slowly, if you want?) up your calories...you'll probably feel a lot better. And trust me...it can easily be done