having a hardtime eating 1200 cals

AliceDark

If you have a GP whose office is convenient for you, try calling them and asking if you can come in and weigh on their scale once a month or every two weeks. You can probably talk them into letting you weigh in without paying for an office visit.

You can also monitor your measurements once a month, because who really cares about the number on the scale if you're getting smaller? You'll need to measure under the same conditions (flexed/unflexed, wearing the same bra, etc.) and make sure you're measuring at the same spot every time (for example, if you're measuring your biceps, you always need to measure at a spot 6" down from your shoulder, or 4" up from your elbow or whatever).

ashleyb34

I'm glad to see there is some genuinely nice people here to offer support, advice and encouragement. I was in the same boat as the original poster and reached out for some help and ended up feeling like a complete idiot because of how I was treated. I was used to eating not much food but the food I was eating was high calorie foods with little to no nutrition value. When I joined MFP I decided I was going to do this right ( well what I thought was right) and make a change. I cut out all junk food, soda, juice, high fat foods and changed my diet drastically. Because I was eating so much fruit and vegetables and protein I always felt full and was always under my 1200 calorie goal for the day. Fruit and vegetables do fill you up but they aren't calorie dense. This is what someone new to diet and exercise may not understand. I sure didn't. I just new I consumed a large amount of food for the day and felt satisfied. I hope the OP gets the answers they are looking. People don't reach out for help to be a troll, usually when someone asks for help it is because they need it. I don't know how some people think at night. I'm glad I am not part of the high and mighty club

missemmibelle

I can relate, I have a hard time eating 1200 calories on some days, and I'm close to 200lbs (5'6"). People always seem to assume that if you're overweight, it's because you're an over-EATER. I've eaten once a day most of my life and it made me literally sick the first couple of weeks I forced myself to eat actual food for breakfast :P

There are other things that make you gain weight besides food. Liquid calories can be a huge part of someone's diet and once you cut that out - it can be really hard to get that 1200! Seriously.

I do it by not worrying about fat free, or sugar-free or whatever - but portion control. Breakfast and Lunch are usually around 300 calories, then I have a 500 cal dinner and a 100-cal dessert.

Pre-log your meals, so you don't get caught at the end of the day with 700 calories to go at 10pm (happens to me quite often). Setting meal-time calorie goals might help, as would eating most of your calories for breakfast (500 instead of 300). No matter your reason for not getting the 1200/cal minimum a day - it's not difficult, but it is a lifestyle change that has a learning curve. Ignore the dorks and don't be afraid to post your questions.

I always laugh at the posts from folks who spend their entire lives, it seems, on MFP - and who complain there's never anything new to read but the same old questions. I am not sure that knowing how often a topic is repeated is a good thing. Time to get off the computer and get a life perhaps?

geneva042

I'm glad to see there is some genuinely nice people here to offer support, advice and encouragement. I was in the same boat as the original poster and reached out for some help and ended up feeling like a complete idiot because of how I was treated. I was used to eating not much food but the food I was eating was high calorie foods with little to no nutrition value. When I joined MFP I decided I was going to do this right ( well what I thought was right) and make a change. I cut out all junk food, soda, juice, high fat foods and changed my diet drastically. Because I was eating so much fruit and vegetables and protein I always felt full and was always under my 1200 calorie goal for the day. Fruit and vegetables do fill you up but they aren't calorie dense. This is what someone new to diet and exercise may not understand. I sure didn't. I just new I consumed a large amount of food for the day and felt satisfied. I hope the OP gets the answers they are looking. People don't reach out for help to be a troll, usually when someone asks for help it is because they need it. I don't know how some people think at night. I'm glad I am not part of the high and mighty club

thanks

lately most of what I eat is lots of veggies/fruit so it did fill me up a lot I guess that's why.

I'm actually happy to see I'm not the only one who had that problem (that and see that there's some good people on here! )

knitknitknit

People reaching out for genuine help aren't trolls, but when they frame their topic as if they are purposely under eating and upon further reading you find out that the OP is freaking out over ONE day of tracking, it comes off as trolling. People respond appropriately because as far as they are concerned, they're being trolled. Now when an op accuses those who respond as such of being "a. Holes, d. Bags, and f...... A. Holes" the OP is behaving as a troll. Why would anyone want to help someone who calls people "d. bags " because they aren't getting the answers they like?

geneva042

People reaching out for genuine help aren't trolls, but when they frame their topic as if they are purposely under eating and upon further reading you find out that the OP is freaking out over ONE day of tracking, it comes off as trolling. People respond appropriately because as far as they are concerned, they're being trolled. Now when an op accuses those who respond as such of being "a. Holes, d. Bags, and f...... A. Holes" the OP is behaving as a troll. Why would anyone want to help someone who calls people "d. bags " because they aren't getting the answers they like?

I call people as they are
if the hat fits, have fun wearing it

Did you even read the original post?

I asked for help because I didn't understand why I wasn't hungry. I planned a 1600 cals menu like MFP said, and I couldn't even finish it that day!
And I asked if it was a big deal for the numbers. I asked because I'm seriously tired of being out of shape, and the only way I was taught how to be in shape when overweight, was cutting calories like crazy, and lots of people seem to think that's not healthy (and I agree)

What I got instead of answers? People bashing me for asking a question and saying that because I was fat, it would be easy for me to eat more and passive aggressive remarks. that, in my books aren't people worth being called ''helpful'' Its bullies who have nothing better to do than try to make someone else feel like crap. in other words : A. Hold, D-Bags. I have absolutely no respect for bullies, online or in real life.

I AM NOT Purposely under eating, where does that come from? For me, I always was told that I should eat 1200 (or even less!) cals to lose weight, I knew the minimum was 1200 so I was wondering, that's all.

fatmaneats

Maybe don't eat so much fiber, this will allow you to eat a little more each day. Fiber fills me up so much it makes it hard to get my calorie count sometimes.

paperpudding

Oh, it's this thread again

Samesies :yawn:

Open your diary. Sexy pants. Avocados. You're probably eating more than you think. Etc.

Well, as someone already said - if you dont want to read these threads, dont click into them.

and welcome to MFP - yes the same questions do get asked over and over - because new people are joining all the time and there question is not new for them.

and yes I know OP over reactedto some of the comments - but neverthelsess it is a genuine question.

lemurcat12

What was hard for me yesterday, was
- I didn't understand WHY I wasn't hungry if I barely ate 1200 cals, but I learned that there's some days that you're not just that hungry. Never happen to me before. It might be the whole brain being a ''cheerleader'' or whatever the other poster said, it might be that it was fricking warm and humid yesterday. But since I -never- really checked what I ate before, I had no way of knowing. All I know is that I ate way less than before, and didn't feel hungry.

This happened to me at first. I started on my weight loss plan before actively using MFP and was eating based on my idea (not that different than my current idea) of a healthy plan and being careful about serving size and so on and was shocked when I started to see that I was eating 900-1000, since I hadn't felt hungry. It's very hard to convince yourself you should eat more when you feel like you are eating lots of food and are not hungry, although I did end up doing that. One issue for me is that I think I'm very much a volume eater, so the fact that I was eating plates full of vegetables and a reasonable seeming portion of meat or omelet or the like made me feel quite satisfied. I also agree with the person who mentioned the brain as a cheerleader. I can still feel comfortable on 1200 (I did 1250 for a while), but it tends to irritate me if I end up at that level because of a really inactive day or some such, and I'd never do it as my main goal now--it wouldn't be sustainable. I'd be bored and feel deprived. At first, though, I was really enthusiastic about all the great food I was eating and how not hungry I felt and how much better I felt than when I was eating too many carb-heavy snacks and feeling like I was going up and down all day, so I didn't have that problem at all. So in my experience (and this is not a slam at all), it's a problem that does cure itself.

it's super easy for me to reach 1600 cals, hell, super easy for me to eat 2500 cals if I want to, bring me to any fastfood or steakhouse and believe me I'll eat everything on the damn plate. (was raised with the ''there's little kid in Africa dying of hunger, you finish your plate'!)

What's NOT EASY for me, is eat 1600 HEALTHY Cals. It's hard for a *kitten* tone of reason, bad eating habit being one of them, having a super fricking picky boyfriend is another part (though that was sorted by a ''my food, you can have some, if you don't want some, here's some toasts or whatever you wanna cook)

How I did it was pre-logging my food for a while and seeing where I could add more calories. For example, I was cutting carbs pretty heavily (I would have a small serving of starch maybe one meal and for the others just add in extra vegetables, which have far fewer calories, and I wasn't snacking at all). I realized when I looked at the day as a whole and saw I needed more calories that I could add back in some of those starches (maybe have a sandwich for lunch after all or a full serving of potatoes with dinner or even some pasta on occasion) and that if I wasn't eating them I needed to replace the calories somehow. Typically this meant that I had to get over my idea that it was wrong to eat more than 3-4 oz of meat and eat a bit more or add a fruit or dairy side. I also saw that I was cutting fat a bit much--using nothing but olive oil spray, vinegar/mustard-based salad dressing only, no cheese, no fat dairy, etc. I eased up on this too--I still mostly use spray, but spray more heavily and log it, add in some olives and cheese to my salad, feta to my omelet, include chicken with skin and some wider variety of meats, etc.

Also, I decided after a break that it was okay to add back in dessert, although I at first kept it to when I had exercise calories and was careful to give it a regular place so I wouldn't start with my bad habit of using food for comfort. This allowed me to eat it in moderation and not trigger anything, and is something that people will have to do based on their own issues and personalities, etc.

Anyway, all this helped me understand how I could build a satisfying diet within my calories without overdoing it on restriction. Logging is great because it's so easy to plan or go back and see what did and didn't work.

Oh, and IMO ignore all the special diets and just eat generally healthy--mostly nutrient-dense foods (which include protein rich foods like meat and dairy and eggs, as well as fruits and veggies), with some treats too, unless there's a reason to avoid them. It's funny that eating a healthy diet for me seems to be basically just like eating how I kind of grew up thinking of healthy. Sure, not everyone did--I was lucky--but these days there's such an effort to make eating into some kind of special magic formula that you have to get exactly right or fail. It's much easier than that, IMO.

Welcome!

dunnodunno

when all else fails add peanut butter and/or ice cream

Or candy bars and chips. Also, how is the OP 70lbs over her goal weight but yet is baffled on how to get more calories??

ever wondered that -maybe- ye know, just maybe, I was trying to eat healthy for a change?

That's your problem. Instead of completely trying to eat healthy which is most dieters biggest mistake why don't you still try to incorporate your favorite foods in moderation? Most people who restrict their favorite 'bad foods' will either completely give up trying to lose weight/get healthier in the wrong run or have a massive binge.

cwoyto123

I had a 4200 calorie meal today and usually do every single day.

I don't get it.

Good for you! Some of us however...are not male...not 18...not YOU.

One day you won't be 18 either...then you might have to rethink that 4200k meal.

Your response shows a HUGE misunderstanding of of how all of this works.

I think that 4200k for one meal is excessive...but I am not male...not 18...not YOU.

I think his point is that eating 1200 cals shouldn't be hard for anyone to reach as a minimum. He was not saying the OP should eat as much as him, just that is he can squeeze 4200 cals in one meal, surely the OP and others can get 1200 in a day with no problem.

Thank you for clearing that up haha

Good for you! Some of us however...are not male...not 18...not YOU.

One day you won't be 18 either...then you might have to rethink that 4200k meal.

Your response shows a HUGE misunderstanding of of how all of this works.

I think that 4200k for one meal is excessive...but I am not male...not 18...not YOU.

I don't enjoy it lol, I wish I didn't have to eat but then I'd look like I used to at 130lbs at 6'4" =/

Also at age 30+ I could still exercise and burn 4000+ calories a day so I'm not sure what you mean by that.

jenilla1

A serving of nuts always gets me to goal when I'm a little short...

SomeNights246

when all else fails add peanut butter and/or ice cream

This!

The problem often is that when people start their weight loss journey, they add healthier foods to their diet. These foods can be more filling than say... potato chips.

Also, as a 5'5" female, I ate about 1,600 today. And I didn't eat much at all. Today was a low day for me.

It isn't hard to hit 1,200. Foods high in calories and fat are not bad. Don't be afraid of them.

Peanuts, almonds, peanut butter, avocado, ice cream, cookie butter.

Do not fear them.

geneva042

What was hard for me yesterday, was
- I didn't understand WHY I wasn't hungry if I barely ate 1200 cals, but I learned that there's some days that you're not just that hungry. Never happen to me before. It might be the whole brain being a ''cheerleader'' or whatever the other poster said, it might be that it was fricking warm and humid yesterday. But since I -never- really checked what I ate before, I had no way of knowing. All I know is that I ate way less than before, and didn't feel hungry.

This happened to me at first. I started on my weight loss plan before actively using MFP and was eating based on my idea (not that different than my current idea) of a healthy plan and being careful about serving size and so on and was shocked when I started to see that I was eating 900-1000, since I hadn't felt hungry. It's very hard to convince yourself you should eat more when you feel like you are eating lots of food and are not hungry, although I did end up doing that. One issue for me is that I think I'm very much a volume eater, so the fact that I was eating plates full of vegetables and a reasonable seeming portion of meat or omelet or the like made me feel quite satisfied. I also agree with the person who mentioned the brain as a cheerleader. I can still feel comfortable on 1200 (I did 1250 for a while), but it tends to irritate me if I end up at that level because of a really inactive day or some such, and I'd never do it as my main goal now--it wouldn't be sustainable. I'd be bored and feel deprived. At first, though, I was really enthusiastic about all the great food I was eating and how not hungry I felt and how much better I felt than when I was eating too many carb-heavy snacks and feeling like I was going up and down all day, so I didn't have that problem at all. So in my experience (and this is not a slam at all), it's a problem that does cure itself.

it's super easy for me to reach 1600 cals, hell, super easy for me to eat 2500 cals if I want to, bring me to any fastfood or steakhouse and believe me I'll eat everything on the damn plate. (was raised with the ''there's little kid in Africa dying of hunger, you finish your plate'!)

What's NOT EASY for me, is eat 1600 HEALTHY Cals. It's hard for a *kitten* tone of reason, bad eating habit being one of them, having a super fricking picky boyfriend is another part (though that was sorted by a ''my food, you can have some, if you don't want some, here's some toasts or whatever you wanna cook)

How I did it was pre-logging my food for a while and seeing where I could add more calories. For example, I was cutting carbs pretty heavily (I would have a small serving of starch maybe one meal and for the others just add in extra vegetables, which have far fewer calories, and I wasn't snacking at all). I realized when I looked at the day as a whole and saw I needed more calories that I could add back in some of those starches (maybe have a sandwich for lunch after all or a full serving of potatoes with dinner or even some pasta on occasion) and that if I wasn't eating them I needed to replace the calories somehow. Typically this meant that I had to get over my idea that it was wrong to eat more than 3-4 oz of meat and eat a bit more or add a fruit or dairy side. I also saw that I was cutting fat a bit much--using nothing but olive oil spray, vinegar/mustard-based salad dressing only, no cheese, no fat dairy, etc. I eased up on this too--I still mostly use spray, but spray more heavily and log it, add in some olives and cheese to my salad, feta to my omelet, include chicken with skin and some wider variety of meats, etc.

Also, I decided after a break that it was okay to add back in dessert, although I at first kept it to when I had exercise calories and was careful to give it a regular place so I wouldn't start with my bad habit of using food for comfort. This allowed me to eat it in moderation and not trigger anything, and is something that people will have to do based on their own issues and personalities, etc.

Anyway, all this helped me understand how I could build a satisfying diet within my calories without overdoing it on restriction. Logging is great because it's so easy to plan or go back and see what did and didn't work.

Oh, and IMO ignore all the special diets and just eat generally healthy--mostly nutrient-dense foods (which include protein rich foods like meat and dairy and eggs, as well as fruits and veggies), with some treats too, unless there's a reason to avoid them. It's funny that eating a healthy diet for me seems to be basically just like eating how I kind of grew up thinking of healthy. Sure, not everyone did--I was lucky--but these days there's such an effort to make eating into some kind of special magic formula that you have to get exactly right or fail. It's much easier than that, IMO.

Welcome!

Thanks for the answer

I actually prelog all my food the day before now, gives me time to work during the day and not worry about it (since I do my recipes as well it takes me a bit of time since I'm not really used to it yet (way faster than when I started though!)
Right now i'm aiming to stay on a lower end of calories since I can't really exercise anymore (called my doc yesterday asking if I could go swimming even since my ankle was still swollen from monday's swim, he said no, wait that it go down) so maybe tonight I'll be able to go.

My food journal is open to friends so if you want, add me you'll be able to see and maybe give some imput

geneva042

when all else fails add peanut butter and/or ice cream

This!

The problem often is that when people start their weight loss journey, they add healthier foods to their diet. These foods can be more filling than say... potato chips.

Also, as a 5'5" female, I ate about 1,600 today. And I didn't eat much at all. Today was a low day for me.

It isn't hard to hit 1,200. Foods high in calories and fat are not bad. Don't be afraid of them.

Peanuts, almonds, peanut butter, avocado, ice cream, cookie butter.

Do not fear them.

I don't fear them I love them, only reason why it's not on my meals this week is simply because I'm out of peanut butter and I find speculoos too sweet now (though I adored that stuff when I was younger)
I went to see a movie, and even though at first I didn't want popcorn, I took a small one (instead of the large with butter) and I didn't feel bad about it, because even with this I was still under the cals I usually ate (so I assume anyway) even though I was a bit higher than what MFP recommended that day.

Seriously I don't even see -where- I wrote I wouldn't eat those things o.0

Yes i'm counting calories now, because if I don't, I have no idea and this is a ok guideline. By eating healthier I mean adding more fresh veggies and fruits in my diet, I cut beef a lot too (not really for health, but for other reasons I wont go into here) so for now it's more pork, chicken, fish, eggs.