Trying to eat enough calories

HerbertNenenger

Not weighing/measuring causes you to UNDERerestimate your calories, and depending on what you're using to measure calories burned, it usually OVERestimates. Put those two together and you might have trouble. And, have you noticed that the majority of the nutritional information listed for the food here on MFP is incorrect. Just be more aware of those thigns.

likitisplit

You'd be a little closer with fresh fruits and vegetables but even then there's a lot of variation in a "medium apple" or a "stalk of celery".

This is why you want to weigh that "medium" apple, because then you're way the heck more accurate.

So I'm either supposed to cut the apple into slices, put something on the slices so they don't brown and weigh them. Or weigh the whole thing, eat it and then weigh the core to subtract it? Sounds like a complicated process so that I can eat an apple at work. That 5-10 calories or so really doesn't matter in the long run. Close enough is good enough to me.

If you ever feel the need to post a question about the calories you are consuming on the MFP boards, then it might be worth getting that extra information.

As I said, I don't currently weigh my food. However, if I got to a point where I wasn't able to line up my CI-CO with my net gain/loss, I'd start there.

likitisplit

I'm not upset, trogalicious, I'm just not willing to discuss it. I know that the food scale is a must to most people on this site, but I not going to do it. I know the arguments for it and all that. If I get to a point where it seems like I really need it to obtain my goals then I will get it. Right now I'm happy with being on the right track, but want to make sure I'm improving my eating habit and my metabolism.

The answer is that nobody knows how much you're eating so nobody has insight into whether you might be under eating.

deksgrl

I'm not upset, trogalicious, I'm just not willing to discuss it. I know that the food scale is a must to most people on this site, but I not going to do it. I know the arguments for it and all that. If I get to a point where it seems like I really need it to obtain my goals then I will get it. Right now I'm happy with being on the right track, but want to make sure I'm improving my eating habit and my metabolism.

This is a decision some people make, (I also do not weigh) but then you can't discuss the finer details without true and accurate data. So be aware of that any time you want to discuss it, this point will be made that you don't really know how much you are eating.

mereditheve

not really. You obviously are more than that while gaining, so I'm guessing you are physically able to eat that many calories?


Actually, I wasn't. I wasn't eating enough, as I stated in my post, which slowed my metabolism way down. When I did eat it usually wasn't very nutritious. Poor guess.

You do realize that not eating enough does not cause you to gain weight, right? The heavier you are, the higher your metabolism is. You had to be consuming more calories than you were burning in order to gain weight.

You do not need to weigh food, but understand that what you log will not be completely accurate, although it has always been close enough for me. Like many others have said, calorie burn varies from individual to individual and I would not use MFPs calorie burn estimates as they are almost always overstated.

Sherbear1109

Thanks for getting back to the topic sueinaz. Thank you also for the good suggestions of adding extra cals w/o junk or a ton of food. Might come in handy down the road. That's why I started adding protein powder once a day. I know it sounds stupid, but it's hard to get back to eating a good amount of food after not eating most of the day for almost two years. Good luck on you journey as well.

likitisplit

Thanks for getting back to the topic sueinaz. Thank you also for the good suggestions of adding extra cals w/o junk or a ton of food. Might come in handy down the road. That's why I started adding protein powder once a day. I know it sounds stupid, but it's hard to get back to eating a good amount of food after not eating most of the day for almost two years. Good luck on you journey as well.

Not eating most of the day =/= under eating

My problem before I came on MFP is that every time I tried to cut back on portions, I'd dramatically under eat because I didn't understand my calorie needs. That would work for a day or two and then I'd be forced by hunger to eat. And I'd eat whatever was at hand. So, I'd gain weight.

What you were doing sounds similar - you wouldn't eat and then you'd over eat snack food. It's a classic way of killing your metabolism while gaining weight. Your weekly net calorie consumption was over maintenance though. You weren't undereating all the time.

Sherbear1109

The virgogoddess I wish I had been able to find your post because I agree that it is rough posting in here. Lol

Mereditheve when yo do not eat enough calories for a long period of time your body goes into starvation mode and your metabolism slows down. Add this to severe sleep deprivation, for over a year I was lucky to get more than 20 hours of sleep a week, and you now have very low energy. I was not excersising and was honestly, barely functioning. So I seriously doubt I was burning many calories to start with. All in all my lifestyle over the last couple of years was an unhealthy mess, but I wasn't just sitting there cramming my face. That would have taken energy I just didn't have. ;-)

MFP definitely seems off on most things. I use the calorie count Zumba gives me for my workout, which is usually 100 or so calories less than MFP's suggestion and I drop 100 calories off of what they say you burn walking and carrying 15lbs. ( my son actually weighs 27 lbs.) With food, I adjust the nutrition info. To the correct amount if it's packaged. That's the best I could come up with on the calorie burn corrections.

Sherbear1109

Pretty much vardaemi. I also wasn't excersising or anything. Just not a healthy living at all. Before that, I had a lot of muscle, too. I went from very active and cut to inactive and totally unhealthy lifestyle. It made for some rather rapid changes and not good ones. Haha. I don't think I convey what I'm trying to say very well, sometimes.

wilsoje74

not really. You obviously are more than that while gaining, so I'm guessing you are physically able to eat that many calories?
[/quote]

Actually, I wasn't. I wasn't eating enough, as I stated in my post, which slowed my metabolism way down. When I did eat it usually wasn't very nutritious. Poor guess.
[/quote]sorry don't believe this. Why aren't malnourished children in Africa overweight then?

TheVirgoddess

The virgogoddess I wish I had been able to find your post because I agree that it is rough posting in here. Lol

Mereditheve when yo do not eat enough calories for a long period of time your body goes into starvation mode and your metabolism slows down. Add this to severe sleep deprivation, for over a year I was lucky to get more than 20 hours of sleep a week, and you now have very low energy. I was not excersising and was honestly, barely functioning. So I seriously doubt I was burning many calories to start with. All in all my lifestyle over the last couple of years was an unhealthy mess, but I wasn't just sitting there cramming my face. That would have taken energy I just didn't have. ;-)

MFP definitely seems off on most things. I use the calorie count Zumba gives me for my workout, which is usually 100 or so calories less than MFP's suggestion and I drop 100 calories off of what they say you burn walking and carrying 15lbs. ( my son actually weighs 27 lbs.) With food, I adjust the nutrition info. To the correct amount if it's packaged. That's the best I could come up with on the calorie burn corrections.

Starvation mode isn't really a thing IMO. If you don't give your body enough nutrients, your weight loss will stall for a bit, and then you'll continue to lose - it's just not a healthy way to lose.

Were you formally diagnosed with sleep deprivation? Because lack of sleep causes decreases in leptin and elevations in ghrelin - these are two hormones that regulate hunger and fullness (satiation). So usually sleep deprived people eat *more* not less. I'm currently being treated for severe sleep deprivation.

Also, on your exercises. are you using a HRM? And why are you logging carrying your child around? I'm not being critical, just curious.

I have a really hard time meeting my calorie goals - it's partly mental though. I decreased my workouts some so I could get a handle on eating properly - and making sure I was taking care of my body. It doesn't make sense (again IMO) to burn 500-700 calories a day like you are and then say you can't meet your calorie goals.

Again, all of this is my opinion based on my personal experiences.

Sherbear1109

No sleep deprivation. Just a baby who never slept. Which meant I never slept. Since he was my 2 nd child, I couldn't nap during the day when he did, like I could with my first. I was completely exhausted all the time. I log carrying a child just for a low guesstimate of what I burn doing things with my kids. He walks, but I spend a lot of time carrying him around daily. I also give a lot of piggy back and horsey rides around the house, swim with them, and a number of other play activities that do get to be a workout by the end of the day. I didn't really gain much weight, but I lost my muscles and didn't lose my pregnancy weight, either.

Sherbear1109

Thanks to everyone for your opinions and input on this. Except the snarky woman, who had nothing to add other than she apparently knows what I eat. The rest of you were helpful and insightful, though and I appreciate it. Even those of you who are all about the food weighing. While I'm not going to start weighing my food, you did make me feel better about the stupid message I get everyday from MFP about going into starvation mode. If I'm off by a bit, then I'm probably closer to my calorie goal than I'm registering. :-)