Can NOT stay within calories

dscampbell1979

My back story....for the last 8 years I have been pregnant or breastfeeding. I put on 40 pounds with each of my four babies and lost that weight and more with each baby within 6 months. I've never been overweight and I am not overweight now. 5'9" and 143 lbs last time I weighed myself. I've always been somewhat active...biking a couple days a week or walking but I recently took up running. I'm running about 3-5 miles every other day and mountain biking 5-6 the other days. I do some very basic body weight strength training 3-4 days a week, ie. squats, lunges, planks, wall-sits, etc. breastfeeding requires a 500 calorie increase on top of the 200 or so I think is required of being pregnant. Because of this I estimate my calorie intake the last few years has been around 2500 - 3000 a day. I've never tracked my food so this is a very rough guess.

Following all the advice I've read on here my calorie goal is set on mfp at 1760 to lose .5 pound a week. I can NOT stay within this. I know I am not getting enough protein. I'm not crazy about meat and need to look for alternatives. I don't eat out much and fix from scratch almost all my meals. I do like snacks like chips and pretzels so I know I waste at least a couple hundred calories on that. I drink plenty of water. In fact almost only water except for 2 cups of coffee in the morning. I've only been eating at 1760 for a week but literally all day I am thinking about food. I feel so hungry and miserable and I have been so cranky. Yesterday I decided I couldn't take it and ate what I wanted till I wasn't hungry. My mood was so much better! At this point, I could never make this calorie goal stick.

Am I trying for too much? I don't have much weight to lose...8 lbs. Stomach and thigh fat is what I'm most concerned about. I know you can't spot reduce. These are just the areas that bother me. I'm wondering if since I have spent the last few years eating so much and don't have much to lose then I increased my exercise by a lot if it is too much for my body at one time. Weight-loss right now is not a top priority. I am happy with my body and love setting new fitness goals every week. I just have those "problem spots" I would like to get rid of. Should I continue working on my fitness goals for now and eat at maintenance? I've gained 6 lbs since finishing breastfeeding (this is apparently a good thing because people have been telling me I look sick) but also gained another 8 since I started running. I am okay staying where I'm at but do not want to gain anymore. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

minizebu

Eating more protein will help with the hunger. Protein has a satiating effect on the appetite. Try aiming for around 25g-30g of protein with your first meal of the day and it should help you to get through to the next meal without wanting to snack.

Amberlynnek

Are you netting 1700? Open your diary?

3dogsrunning

You exercising too - Do you eat those calories or some of them?


Will you open your diary so we can help identify some things that you like that maybe we can suggest ways to up protein ?

How do you measure your food?

Also, I find including protein and some fat in every meal goes a long way in making me feel full and keeping me full.

lovekohl

Are you eating back your exercise calories? If you aren't I would suggest eating back at least some of them. There are days where I would not make it if not for the exercise calorie allowance.

AliceDark

MFP is designed so that you eat back all or a portion of your exercise calories. If you're doing that much exercise on a regular basis, no wonder you're starving! Yes, doing that much on that little food is too much for your body. Log your exercise, then eat back 50-75% of those calories.

augustaliam

It sounds like your metabolism is higher than you think, and especially with exercise it is probably quite high. If you are happy with your body, why do you want to lose weight? Are you at a healthy weight? In my experience, "problem spots" are fixed by eating maintenance and exercising, NOT creating a deficit. Try more strength training, it will tighten up "problem spots" (which really are not problems!). Body recomp is way less torturous than weight loss, and you can still eat to satisfy your hunger. More protein will help with the hunger, and with the recomp. You say you know you need to add more protein--so add more! I like protein powder because I'm not crazy about meat either. And you can make all kinds of stuff with it, so there's no lack of variety!

nicfitnesszone

Eat complex carbs to satiate hunger preferably raw. Drink green tea after each meal. Hydrate.

minizebu

At your current age, weight and height, I would estimate that your maintenance calorie needs without exercise would be close to 2000 kcal. So, if you are also running and doing strength training on top of daily living, then 1760 is likely way too low.

Try bumping up your calories for the next week. You could start with a baseline of 2000, but you may need more. Try running your numbers through an online calculator other than MFP to get another estimate of your BMR/TDEE.

dashaclaire

I'm guessing that weight gain is mostly muscle. I relate, low calorie diets make me feel very very hungry all day. If I wanted to lose faster I would stick to 1200 cals but it makes me an intolerable human.
For you though, protein might fix that though. Maybe just resolve to eat veggie egg cups or eggs any other way every morning? Surely there are types of meat you like better than others? For me it's chicken breasts. You'll feel fuller.
Other than that, I do think you could get the body you want eating maintenance calories if you mix in some toning workouts... try spark.com or Pinterest for videos.

mamahannick

Definitely eat back your exercise calories. 1700 sounds too low for you. I am 5'9" as well, run 4 days a week, and do workout DVD's 2 days a week. My calorie goal is 1900 and I don't eat back exercise calories (that works out to be a slight deficit with the TDEE method). And that's for someone not breastfeeding and less active than it sounds like you are. I would choose to tone my body and lose inches over lose a few more pounds if my body refuses to lose anymore rather than force it to a lower weight, so we are on the same page with that too

I eat eggs a lot for breakfast, or oatmeal with peanut butter and raisins usually on days I run, I enjoy tuna salad a couple of times a week for lunch otherwise a turkey & cheese sandwich. Snacks are Greek yogurt, fruit, veggies & hummus, Clif bars (the "Builder" bars are my favorite and have 20g protein). Dinner I always aim for a good protein source (chicken is my favorite, versatile and packed with protein!), carb source (I adore sweet potatoes for a complex carb) and veggie source.

Feel free to add me!

mamahannick

Double post, oops...

taramaclaren

Perhaps look into calorie cycling. You can then incorporate high, medium, and low days that will still keep you in your goal calorie deficit over the week, but allow several days of more indulgent eating.

Ex: (I am rounding up to 1800 cals based on how hungry you are. You can tweak back if you like)
Daily Goal: 1800
Weekly Allowance: 1800 x 7 = 12,600 weekly calories

Medium Days: 1800
Low Days: 1300
High Days: 2300

3 Medium days a week
2 Low days a week (these are your rest days - do not work out on a low day)
2 High days a week

Other notes:
- Try not to put two low or two high days back to back
- Don't work out on your low days

I incorporate some level of calorie cycling into my days - it is so much easier to be on a "diet" and eat less on one day if I know the following day I can have something I've been craving.

Good luck!

kill3rtofu

You're far too active for 1760. Try using a different calculator to find a more suitable caloric goal

rbiss

MFP is designed so that you eat back all or a portion of your exercise calories. If you're doing that much exercise on a regular basis, no wonder you're starving! Yes, doing that much on that little food is too much for your body. Log your exercise, then eat back 50-75% of those calories.

Second this

Maybe try the TDEE method?

3dogsrunning

You're far too active for 1760. Try using a different calculator to find a more suitable caloric goal

She is following MFP which expects you to log exercise calories and then wants you to eat them back in addition to this calorie goal. 1760 would be her calories before exercise. So it would likely not be too low if she was logging the exercise and eating at least a portin of them back, which is why many of us have asked.

electricmeow

Sounds like metabolic damage. It takes a long time to heal, but luckily you don't have to get fat from the "healing" like people claim. Just up your calories eating mostly fruits and veggies, 3000 Calories a day, 80% carbs, 10% fats, 10% protein. Don't forget carbs, did I say 80%?? yes! And don't mix sugar with your fats, because thats how you store them. If you keep your fats and protein low your body will energize itself off of your own tissue, but all your cells (including your brain!) will be fueled by glucose! Your hormones causing possible metabolic damage will be regulated. But this isn't to lose weight in a couple months, I'm talking how you overcome the root issue. Read 80/10/10 by Dr. Doug Graham.

dscampbell1979

Wow! I am overwhelmed by the response! Thank you all so much. I am going to come back and open my diary and respond to everyone as soon as I get my little guy down for his nap. Just didn't want y'all to think I wasn't listening. Real quick though...my diary is not super accurate. I literally only started logging last week...so anything beyond the 1st is inaccurate and even the stuff after is guesses. I have a kitchen scale coming in the mail to log more accurately.

EvanKeel

-Log accurately--seriously cannot stress this enough. People think all kinds of things because they don't weigh and measure their food.

-Hunger sucks. I struggle with it a lot myself. It kind of just takes some experimentation. Adjusting meal timing and frequency can help with feelings of satiety on days when I'm active. Increased protein helps a little, but I find that increased fiber and increased fats help more. Nuts avocados, etc.

-Eat back some, if not all, your exercise calories. Try that for a month while logging as accurately as you can and adjust from there.

madhatter2013

I have a kitchen scale coming in the mail to log more accurately.

This ^^^ I'm so proud. You dont know how many people on here claim to know exactly what their food weights or how much a cup is without measuring and have no previous basis for comparison. This is the first step in my book. Good on you!

minizebu

Sounds like metabolic damage. It takes a long time to heal, but luckily you don't have to get fat from the "healing" like people claim. Just up your calories eating mostly fruits and veggies, 3000 Calories a day, 80% carbs, 10% fats, 10% protein. Don't forget carbs, did I say 80%?? yes! And don't mix sugar with your fats, because thats how you store them. If you keep your fats and protein low your body will energize itself off of your own tissue, but all your cells (including your brain!) will be fueled by glucose! Your hormones causing possible metabolic damage will be regulated. But this isn't to lose weight in a couple months, I'm talking how you overcome the root issue. Read 80/10/10 by Dr. Doug Graham.

Um, no. Just no.

Iron_Feline

Sounds like metabolic damage. It takes a long time to heal, but luckily you don't have to get fat from the "healing" like people claim. Just up your calories eating mostly fruits and veggies, 3000 Calories a day, 80% carbs, 10% fats, 10% protein. Don't forget carbs, did I say 80%?? yes! And don't mix sugar with your fats, because thats how you store them. If you keep your fats and protein low your body will energize itself off of your own tissue, but all your cells (including your brain!) will be fueled by glucose! Your hormones causing possible metabolic damage will be regulated. But this isn't to lose weight in a couple months, I'm talking how you overcome the root issue. Read 80/10/10 by Dr. Doug Graham.

Please ignore this nonsense.

All the other posts have had great advice.

Iron_Feline

Wow! I am overwhelmed by the response! Thank you all so much. I am going to come back and open my diary and respond to everyone as soon as I get my little guy down for his nap. Just didn't want y'all to think I wasn't listening. Real quick though...my diary is not super accurate. I literally only started logging last week...so anything beyond the 1st is inaccurate and even the stuff after is guesses. I have a kitchen scale coming in the mail to log more accurately.

Kitchen scales will make a huge difference. Once you know exactly how much you are eating you'll be able to see where to adjust. I second or third the eat more protein, it really does help you feel fuller esp combined with fats.

dscampbell1979

I am eating back most of my exercise calories. In fact those calories are my motivation to run just a little farther

I think upping my calories to 2000 would make me so much more satisfied. And I love the idea of calorie cycling. I think I could get on board with that.

Eggs for breakfast sounds like a great idea also. I've always felt more satisfied after a breakfast with eggs. I gave up breakfast this week to save my calories for lunch and dinner. Maybe that is backfiring.

Is there an app I can use for the TDEE method or a way to input in mfp?

3dogsrunning

Wow! I am overwhelmed by the response! Thank you all so much. I am going to come back and open my diary and respond to everyone as soon as I get my little guy down for his nap. Just didn't want y'all to think I wasn't listening. Real quick though...my diary is not super accurate. I literally only started logging last week...so anything beyond the 1st is inaccurate and even the stuff after is guesses. I have a kitchen scale coming in the mail to log more accurately.

Kitchen scales will make a huge difference. Once you know exactly how much you are eating you'll be able to see where to adjust. I second or third the eat more protein, it really does help you feel fuller esp combined with fats.

This.
That is why I asked how you were measuring - while I believe a lot of people overestimate, it is possible you are underestimating.
My other concern is not accounting for your activity level.

3dogsrunning

I am eating back most of my exercise calories. In fact those calories are my motivation to run just a little farther

I think upping my calories to 2000 would make me so much more satisfied. And I love the idea of calorie cycling. I think I could get on board with that.

Eggs for breakfast sounds like a great idea also. I've always felt more satisfied after a breakfast with eggs. I gave up breakfast this week to save my calories for lunch and dinner. Maybe that is backfiring.

Is there an app I can use for the TDEE method or a way to input in mfp?

You can check out his link, it walks you through all of that.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

At the bottom of this link (included in the one above) there is instructions on where to change
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

I am glad to see you are accounting for your exercise as well.
Also keep in mind that these numbers are all estimates. It doesn't hurt to bump up your numbers a bit and see where that takes you, especially if you are struggling to hit the numbers given.

dscampbell1979

Also where can I find non meat sources of protein. I'm not anti meat. I do eat plenty just obviously not enough to meet my goals.

EvanKeel

I am eating back most of my exercise calories. In fact those calories are my motivation to run just a little farther

I think upping my calories to 2000 would make me so much more satisfied. And I love the idea of calorie cycling. I think I could get on board with that.

Eggs for breakfast sounds like a great idea also. I've always felt more satisfied after a breakfast with eggs. I gave up breakfast this week to save my calories for lunch and dinner. Maybe that is backfiring.

Is there an app I can use for the TDEE method or a way to input in mfp?

There are several formulas and websites that you could use to calculate an estimate for your TDEE. For example: http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

You would then edit your goals in the MFP settings for and just not log your exercise. If you have so few pounds to lose, I'd guess you'd want to set MFP to TDEE -10%

3dogsrunning

Also where can I find non meat sources of protein. I'm not anti meat. I do eat plenty just obviously not enough to meet my goals.

Greek yogurt.
Eggs.
Protein powder if you want.
Beans.

swaggityswagbag

Your diary says you ate 1000 calories at dinner and near 1000 calories in snacks a day ago. You could knock off about 400 of those calories by dropping the coke (switch to diet if you like).

EvanKeel

Also where can I find non meat sources of protein. I'm not anti meat. I do eat plenty just obviously not enough to meet my goals.

If you're looking for sources that are strictly protein (and don't include significant amounts of fat and/or carbs), whey protein powder is probably a good choice.

Technically I think milk is cheaper per g of protein, but it also contains carbs...and fats depending on the milk you get. Which is all fine, but I sometimes find that the whey powder is easier to fit into my daily macros.