Anyone find it hard to stick to 1400 calories

cat_monster
cat_monster Posts: 51 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I usually do a little bit of exercise too. I don't mind it if takes me longer to lose. Guess I'm just greedy!
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Replies

  • pangepange
    pangepange Posts: 49 Member
    I increased from a 1200 calorie net diet to a 1400 calorie net diet. I found the 1200 restrictive, but the 1400 is not so bad. I always use some of my delicious, delicious exercise calories. :)
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
    I did 1400ish for a long time and got bored. The past two weeks I've been alternating 500 calorie days with 2000+ (or whenever I decide I'm done) days. I like it. The semi-fast days don't bother me much and the 'free eating' days are nice after dieting most of the year. I read the book people refer to as JUDDD (Johnson's Up Day Down Day Diet), but there are others.
  • ajax041813
    ajax041813 Posts: 136 Member
    I was on 1400 at first and it was impossible for me to stay under. I am tracking macros more than calories though so I didn't let it get to me. I did use another site to calculate my calories since I'm following a ketogenic way of eating. Then I upped it to 1669 and I have been working out so I get those calories to sometimes eat back as well. This has been much more successful for me but I am more focused on hitting my macros of high fat, moderate protein and low carb.
  • aynecia
    aynecia Posts: 11 Member
    I have been limiting my calorie intake to what my BMR is (1,300) and the first two days I went over about 300 calories but afterwards it got easier, and today I even had 100 left over!! its easier with an app to count calories every time you are going to have a meal.
    and drinking lots of water to fill you up before hand, sometimes when you think your hungry you're actually thirsty :)
    theres also an app that reminds me to drink water every hour, that has helped a lot!
    good luck!
  • glasshalffull713
    glasshalffull713 Posts: 323 Member
    Yes I did find it very hard, but now I don't. I upped my protein intake significantly and am trying to keep my carbs to 25-30%. This has made me feel much fuller. Today I couldn't even finish my goal of 1350, which is completely unbelievable to me!

    What is the water reminder app called? That is a great idea.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Actually, I had no problem with it.
  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,731 Member
    It can be difficult at first, but several things can make it easier.

    First, try to choose lighter options...things with fewer calories and more bulk which will fill you up, like salad and low-cal veggies, seafood, and white chicken or turkey or pork. Think carefully about extras like oils and butter...they're delicious, but are they worth giving up something bulkier with equivalent calories, like half a cup of veggies (or a whole cup, depending on the veggie...) Try fresh berries with Cool Whip Free for dessert.

    Second, use it as a motivation to exercise...use a heart rate monitor or fitness tracker and see how many extra calories you can burn through exercise, and then use those calories for a snack.

    Third, is it really the worst thing in the world to be hungry? Especially when you know you've had a decent, adequate and healthy meal just hours before, so you know that you're not really hungry....is it really so terribly uncomfortable that you absolutely have to make that feeling go away this minute?
  • Maqneta
    Maqneta Posts: 388 Member
    I'm opposite actually!
    I find 1.2k calories a lot for me but I still force myself to get to it
  • aynecia
    aynecia Posts: 11 Member
    Yes I did find it very hard, but now I don't. I upped my protein intake significantly and am trying to keep my carbs to 25-30%. This has made me feel much fuller. Today I couldn't even finish my goal of 1350, which is completely unbelievable to me!

    What is the water reminder app called? That is a great idea.


    its called Water your body
    you can change the reminder times, but I like it every hour, and you just add the amount of water you have taken and that way you can keep track of it :)
  • IrisFlute
    IrisFlute Posts: 88 Member
    It was hard at first (I'm eating net 1200 calories) but then I changed my foods to include more fat and protein and fewer carbs. Now I don't feel too hungry anymore.
  • cat_monster
    cat_monster Posts: 51 Member
    To be honest I enjoy a glass of wine...if I'm honest with myself, that's what's making it harder.
  • glasshalffull713
    glasshalffull713 Posts: 323 Member
    To be honest I enjoy a glass of wine...if I'm honest with myself, that's what's making it harder.

    There's really nothing wrong with that. If you are ok with taking longer to lose, you can have the wine and just have a smaller deficit some days. You will still lose as long as there's a deficit. I just don't get enough of a deficit over 1400 so beer/wine is few and far between these days cause I like eating food more. :wink:
  • tigerblue
    tigerblue Posts: 1,526 Member
    1400 is do able, but not always easy. You have to make good choices most of the time.

    As long as I am exercising, then I lose if I stay 1300-1400. That's not too bad.

    But the tough part for me is that when I finish losing, my maintenance, on days I don't exercise, will not be a lot more than that (maybe 1450. And the reason that number is so low is that most charts say I need to weigh 104-114 for my height and frame. I'm shooting for around 118, to make maintenance a little easier. I got down to 112 before, but that is really hard to maintain. No room for treats. Ever. No wine, no dessert, no fun!) Yes, I do exercise most days, but sometimes there are days when it just won't happen because of schedule. Luckily those days are usually not more than once a week.

    So 1400 as a weight loss diet is ok, but thinking that 1400 is all I will get to maintain, unless I work out. Now that is depressing.
  • SnuggleSmacks
    SnuggleSmacks Posts: 3,731 Member
    1400 is do able, but not always easy. You have to make good choices most of the time.

    As long as I am exercising, then I lose if I stay 1300-1400. That's not too bad.

    But the tough part for me is that when I finish losing, my maintenance, on days I don't exercise, will not be a lot more than that (maybe 1450. And the reason that number is so low is that most charts say I need to weigh 104-114 for my height and frame. I'm shooting for around 118, to make maintenance a little easier. I got down to 112 before, but that is really hard to maintain. No room for treats. Ever. No wine, no dessert, no fun!) Yes, I do exercise most days, but sometimes there are days when it just won't happen because of schedule. Luckily those days are usually not more than once a week.

    So 1400 as a weight loss diet is ok, but thinking that 1400 is all I will get to maintain, unless I work out. Now that is depressing.

    It's quite possible that your calculations might be off. I'm only 5'3 1/2" and I currently burn around 1950 per day with very moderate activity (around 5000 steps). On really lazy days when I do nothing but Netflix/computer and work, I still burn at least 1750, and on more active days when I actually do stuff and go to the gym, I get up around 2250. This is calculated by my Bodymedia, which I've found to be pretty accurate. I can predict small gains and losses using the Bodymedia's numbers compared to my MFP diary.
  • countscalories
    countscalories Posts: 418 Member

    So 1400 as a weight loss diet is ok, but thinking that 1400 is all I will get to maintain, unless I work out. Now that is depressing.

    I also have a very small frame, and I'm a shorty, too, at only 5' tall. I've given much thought to the fact that I will never, ever be able to eat as much as a larger person. The maintenance calories I'll get for a whole day are not far from what a bigger person might consume in one meal. But I don't let it get me down-- all I have to do is look in my closet at my new (much smaller) clothes!
  • tigerblue
    tigerblue Posts: 1,526 Member
    1400 is do able, but not always easy. You have to make good choices most of the time.

    As long as I am exercising, then I lose if I stay 1300-1400. That's not too bad.

    But the tough part for me is that when I finish losing, my maintenance, on days I don't exercise, will not be a lot more than that (maybe 1450. And the reason that number is so low is that most charts say I need to weigh 104-114 for my height and frame. I'm shooting for around 118, to make maintenance a little easier. I got down to 112 before, but that is really hard to maintain. No room for treats. Ever. No wine, no dessert, no fun!) Yes, I do exercise most days, but sometimes there are days when it just won't happen because of schedule. Luckily those days are usually not more than once a week.

    So 1400 as a weight loss diet is ok, but thinking that 1400 is all I will get to maintain, unless I work out. Now that is depressing.

    It's quite possible that your calculations might be off. I'm only 5'3 1/2" and I currently burn around 1950 per day with very moderate activity (around 5000 steps). On really lazy days when I do nothing but Netflix/computer and work, I still burn at least 1750, and on more active days when I actually do stuff and go to the gym, I get up around 2250. This is calculated by my Bodymedia, which I've found to be pretty accurate. I can predict small gains and losses using the Bodymedia's numbers compared to my MFP diary.

    Unfortunately for me the low numbers are verified by results. I've been tracking for almost five years now. If I stick to my regular exercise schedule, it goes like this: eat under 1400--lose slowly. Eat 1400-1650--maintain. Eat over 1650-- gain. I put on 20 lbs trying to "reset" to eat more. Didn't work. Three years of eating about 1700 cals and I am up 20 lbs :(

    Basically, although this sounds low, it is not far off from the mifflin st jouer formulas. I'm just a bit below normal.
  • DanielleRa96
    DanielleRa96 Posts: 15
    ITTS TOO MUCH FOR ME FIND HERE : http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1445679-i-eat-apron-1200-calories-without-trying-advice-please PLUS You can learn how to eat 1200 calories haha :)
  • TestingFun01
    TestingFun01 Posts: 89 Member
    Not difficult for me. My maintenance is only 1500. :) But that's just me.
  • joshpass
    joshpass Posts: 82 Member
    you people are nuts (not really, just different then me haha). If I didn't count calories, I'd easily eat 5000 calories or more without even feeling full. It's a struggle for me to *only* eat like 2500.
  • TestingFun01
    TestingFun01 Posts: 89 Member
    you people are nuts (not really, just different then me haha). If I didn't count calories, I'd easily eat 5000 calories or more without even feeling full. It's a struggle for me to *only* eat like 2500.

    I'm such a puny girl and then I can sometimes pack away 3000-4000 in a sitting. Then people look at me wild-eyed and I'm like...Yeeeaaahh, it's the doughnuts...

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