Diet Woes

snow4dayz

Ok so I made a commitment to myself to eat healthy, I went from drive-thru to whole foods, you dig? I went from eating whenever I felt hungry to 5 scheduled meals a day.

Here is the issues my peoples: I feel like I am eating ALL day long, honestly I eat 10x more than I used to, yet I am only netting about 1000 calories a day.

My question is should I throw in a hot pocket or something to get up to the recommended 1600 calories or is 900-1000 calories fine? I feel great more energy than I can shake a stick at.

Anyhow thanks for the heads up.

-Snow

Uptopargolf

Ok so I made a commitment to myself to eat healthy, I went from drive-thru to whole foods, you dig? I went from eating whenever I felt hungry to 5 scheduled meals a day.

Here is the issues my peoples: I feel like I am eating ALL day long, honestly I eat 10x more than I used to, yet I am only netting about 1000 calories a day.

My question is should I throw in a hot pocket or something to get up to the recommended 1600 calories or is 900-1000 calories fine? I feel great more energy than I can shake a stick at.

Anyhow thanks for the heads up.

-Snow

NO! Don't just 'throw' something into you're diet. However you do need to eat more! only a 1,000 calories a day?! ouchhh. I would go nuts. You need to eat some higher calorie foods.. maybe some peanuts? Or a protein bar? Or even just add more to you're meals.

You can eat 8oz of chicken for 280 calories where the hot pocket is probably 300 or 400 and will not keep you full for very long.

But whatever you do, please eat more than a 1,000 calories a day! OR say bye-bye to all you're muscle.

hpsnickers1

I would like to see some advice on this. I have the same issues. I'm having a hard time just hitting 1200. today I have made a point to up my daytime calories and it seemed I have spent my entire work day eating.

HealthyChanges2010

It's likely you're wanting to eat all day long because you're hungry! 900-1000 cals daily (*especially* if you're working out) is on the low end and would make me pretty hungry as well. I don't know about a hot pocket, doesn't sound especially healthy or even filling but how about some nuts, Ground Nut Butters, some higher cal food that would fill you up more and be far healthier? A hot pocket I imagine is pretty high in sodium and carbs as well, don't know what else is in one I've only seen them on TV but they didn't look like something that would do you for a number of hours.:frown:

Our bodies DO know what we need and give us signals, we just have to listen:flowerforyou:

SparkleShine

I think you should add in some healthy foods that will bump up your calories. Some ideas are~ avacado, handful of nuts, cheese.

Uptopargolf

I would like to see some advice on this. I have the same issues. I'm having a hard time just hitting 1200. today I have made a point to up my daytime calories and it seemed I have spent my entire work day eating.

It is very common to feel like you are eating all day, that is the point! When you eat healthy you can eat so much more.

I eat a pound of baked chicken nearly every day. And it is only 560 calories, with 0 carbs!

If you are having trouble eating enough, throw in a protein shake, with milk. That would be (about) 400 calories, if you use two scoops, and a cup of milk!

snow4dayz

Well looking at the log I am averaging about 65 grams of protein which is half of what I need. Maybe will sub in a protein shake that should put the calories somewhere around 1,100 to 1,200.

Uptopargolf

Well looking at the log I am averaging about 65 grams of protein which is half of what I need. Maybe will sub in a protein shake that should put the calories somewhere around 1,100 to 1,200.

I can't see you're log. But I don't even need to see it, to tell you that is still not enough.

I assume you don't want to lose muscle right? Only body fat? You will need to up you're protein, and cut out some carbs. And EAT MORE. even 1,200 is not enough for a guy. I eat 1900 a day. AND i should probably be eating more.

If you continue to eat like that you will go into starvation mode and kill off you're muscle.

How much did you tell MFP you want to lose a week?

snow4dayz

Thanks for all the comments I will try to up the intake. I am a poor college kid so spending a ton of cheddar on nuts won't work. I can get some cliff bars or something.

As for a pound of baked chicken do you think Costco rotisserie chicken is good?

-Snow

Edit

Shooting for 2lbs per week.

c7eat2live

I would avoid rotisserie just cause the sodium is usually through the roof. the best thing you can do is buy chicken breasts and back them or gently pan broil them yourself. and I am also a poor college student, and have found that buying bunches of Cliff or protein bars is way way way more expensive than buying nuts (almonds, walnuts, peanuts, cashews) in bulk from somewhere that sells bulk items (doesnt necess have to be Whole Foods ya know?) good luck! getting those cals up WILL help.

xarrium

In my experience, nuts are cheaper than pre-fab energy bars. I'm not sure what kinds of grocery stores you have around you, but within walking distance of my place there's a store that sells bulk nuts--pick up some of those and mix in some dried fruit if you can find it for an easy and relatively cheap snack.

JMun

I think you should add in some healthy foods that will bump up your calories. Some ideas are~ avacado, handful of nuts, cheese.

What she said.

Go to a bulk food store where they sell nuts in bins! You'll save yourself a few bucks. I use almonds to get my calories up when I need to.
Or a good protein powder (which can be costly) to make protein shakes when I know I'm gonna do a heavy workout.
Healthy fats like flax seed oil added into a smoothie or into your salad dressing is another option. (get it at a health food store)

Avocado is probably the cheapest option.

Uptopargolf

Thanks for all the comments I will try to up the intake. I am a poor college kid so spending a ton of cheddar on nuts won't work. I can get some cliff bars or something.

As for a pound of baked chicken do you think Costco rotisserie chicken is good?

-Snow

Edit

Shooting for 2lbs per week.

Cliff bars are pricey, go to walmart and get pure protein bars. They are cheaper and awesome.

Stay away from the costco chicken, just buy you're own and bake it, or grill it. It is cheaper and healthier. Also maybe adjust you're weight loss for 1 lb per week.

snow4dayz

Cliff bars are pricey, go to walmart and get pure protein bars. They are cheaper and awesome.

Stay away from the costco chicken, just buy you're own and bake it, or grill it. It is cheaper and healthier. Also maybe adjust you're weight loss for 1 lb per week.

Do you have a crockpot way of cooking chicken? I am incompetent in the kitchen.

Uptopargolf

Cliff bars are pricey, go to walmart and get pure protein bars. They are cheaper and awesome.

Stay away from the costco chicken, just buy you're own and bake it, or grill it. It is cheaper and healthier. Also maybe adjust you're weight loss for 1 lb per week.

Do you have a crockpot way of cooking chicken? I am incompetent in the kitchen.

Do you have an oven? If so, cut the chicken breast in half.. preheat the oven to 350, you can add some seasoning to the chicken if you'd like. Bake it in the oven for about 30 minutes, just make sure it is cooked all the way. (no pink on the inside) and enjoy.

snow4dayz

Hey thanks buddy.

Uptopargolf

No prob man. Good luck, and no matter what just stick with it!

MzBug

I bake 6-8 chicken breasts off at a time (350 degrees for 30-35 min). If you cover a cookie sheet (with sides) or a baking dish with foil, if you are carefull you can just take the foil out of the pan when it is cool and throw it away, no need to wash the pan! You can also cook the breasts in the crock pot on high, depending on how many you stuff in there, check them in 4-6 hours. Make sure they are not pink in the middle. If you like you can try cooking them in the crock pot with a jar of salsa poured over them (if you like salsa). No matter how you cook them, you can put them in a large zip lock bag in the fridge and they are ok for 4-5 days.

Mindful_Trent

Ok so I made a commitment to myself to eat healthy, I went from drive-thru to whole foods, you dig? I went from eating whenever I felt hungry to 5 scheduled meals a day.

Here is the issues my peoples: I feel like I am eating ALL day long, honestly I eat 10x more than I used to, yet I am only netting about 1000 calories a day.

My question is should I throw in a hot pocket or something to get up to the recommended 1600 calories or is 900-1000 calories fine? I feel great more energy than I can shake a stick at.

Anyhow thanks for the heads up.

-Snow

There are lots of healthy, calorie-dense foods you can eat that aren't processed like hot pockets. Here's my top foods for this purpose:

nuts (almonds/walnuts/hazelnuts/peanuts) and the associated butters (PB, almond butter, etc.) - try to buy unsalted kinds where the only ingredient is the nuts.

beans! (high in fiber and protein - good carbs!) - I add these to salads, or mix with salsa as a side-dish. Hummus (made from garbanzo beans) is great to spread on crackers, bread, add to wraps, etc. (Edited to add - you can buy the canned beans with no salt added - MUCH better than the traditional canned beans with salt added, and less hassle than cooking your own)

olive oil - use this in your cooking

Fish - some fish (like salmon) is fattier, but it has good stuff for you. More calorie dense than lean chicken and turkey

Eggs - 2 hardboiled (or cooked however you want) eggs is about 150 calories - good protein and fats

Avacados

Potatoes (Regular and Sweet Potatoes/Yams) (I like baked potato without all the extra "stuff" added on - just a little pepper, maybe a small bit of butter or greek yogurt) - they're high in potassium and actually really healthy for you when not fried in oil! Edited to add: potatoes are super cheap if you buy a bag of them at the grocery store, and really easy to cook.

Quinoa (higher in protein than rice/pasta)

Oatmeal (not instant!)

millerll

Do you have a crockpot way of cooking chicken? I am incompetent in the kitchen.

Go to the recipes section here on the forum and search for Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken. This recipe rocks and is so easy to make! All you need are chicken breasts, cream of mushroom or chicken soup, salsa, and sour cream and cheddar cheese for on top if you wish. I like to add black and white beans to mine - they add protein and good fats and cals, which is what you need. I put it in the crockpot in the morning, and by the time I get home from work, it's ready to eat.

There are tons of other crockpot recipes there as well. Enough to feed you all week! Good luck!