Already Discouraged

ashley085

Hello everyone! I just joined here after seeing one of my facebook friends post her weight-loss ticker on her page. I was excited to see that it was free and very easy to use. Im a very busy working mother of 2 and even though I only joined a few days ago, Im already discouraged. I never really thought about how many calories i was actually taking in on a daily basis. After logging what I consume during the day and exercise then saving my progress, I realize that somehow I manage to go OVER my allowed calories EVERY DAY! Is this a common thing for people who are just starting out? I dont think that I set goals that are unrealistic (exercise 30 min a day, 3 days a week, Loss of 1 lb a week, ect.) but somehow I manage to blow it every day. Any pointers from others who have experienced the same discouraging issues?

Carmendu

Welcome!! It might seem overwhelming at first but you might try meal planning and even planning what snacks you eat for the day. I am trying to do that and it seems to help. I haven't been on here but a couple of days but I am havng some decent results doing that. Good Luck. Feel free to add me as a friend.

marchegt

Hi there!

Personally, I find that I have to log my calories the day before and I am pretty sure a lot of other people using the site do the same thing! It makes it so much easier to keep track and you will be less likely to go over because you know your limit! Usually when I plan my calories for the next day I leave myself about 200 leftover *just in case*! That way if I eat something the next day that I hadn't planned to, I'm probably still within my calorie goal!

Hsanders3961

We are here to help. One thing that could 'help us help you' is if you make your food diary public. Maybe we could give you some pointers of where to cut some calories. This can be a long but rewarding journey and we are all here to motivate and help each other. Feel free to add me if you want.

cgeiser1

I think thats totally normal. I would start looking at the past few days and see where you can make some changes. Add more fruits and vegetables, and cut out anything that caused you to go way over in your calories.

alienblonde1

I think the more you log honestly you will learned what bad choices you make and will seek out better ones. Don't give up it's a learning experience.

jamielee37

Its hard when you first realize how much you are eating! It was quite the wake up call for me. The best way to combat this? Plan your food for the day in advance or add it before each meal, be aware of everything going in your mouth, and be wary of the calorie counts. Nutrition is knowledge! Don't get discouraged. Take it as a learning experience and a challenge!

SweetCharity

Don't get discouraged! You're learning something new. No one expects you to hit it perfectly right out of the gate. Try looking at what you're eating and figuring out exactly what's putting you over. What can you cut back on. Portion size? High calorie snacks? For a few days - input all of your meals BEFORE you eat them. So you have the whole day of food planned out as opposed to logging as you go. If it's pre-planned, then you just try to stick to what you planned for the day.

believe22

Don't let yourself get discouraged. A lifestyle change is a learning process and takes time to adjust and adapt. Try making healthy versions of favorite recepies and cut out liquid calories like soda and juices to keep calories lower.
Good luck!

LynMcD

You probably eat and run a lot. Try smaller portions and easing off on snacks. Also check calories on stuff before you eat them, instead of after, like I had been doing. Some fruits that are supposed to be good for you actually have a lot of calories, like raisins. Hope it helps. Good luck. (I'm not doing all that well either!)

rosarulez

I too made my goal to lose a pound a week. I've had to cut things down, like my mocha intake. It isn't easy, cause I'm used to having three a day and now I either have one or just black coffee. The people around me are probably noticing the lack of chocolately coffee that I'm consuming but it's worth it to see that first pound shed off in my first week. As well, I didn't eat out for the first week, made everything at home. Keep trying, it works if you can cut bad things out and meet your daily target.

trish2011

Everyone is different, I find that when I exercise for 60 minutes I can have more calories than I want. So, maybe instead of 30 minutes, you could see if 60 can fit into your schedule. (Even if it's 30 here and there or 15 here and there...)

rosieflo

I think you've receieved some very sound advice from the people who have told you to plan before hand. I know for me, that is the only way I can do it. I too, just had a wake up call about hte amount of caloires that I'm consuming. I'm so thankful for this site, and the tools I've acquired so I can get healthier!

pretentiouskate

For the first week that I tracked, I just ate as normal and put it in (I started out on Livestrong, which I didn't like nearly as much as I like MFP). That gave me an idea of where my pitfalls were, the sort of things I was eating a ton of, what to avoid, what I could sub, etc etc. This week I'm in what I consider to really be my first real week of "Ok, going to eat healthy!" and I'm totally stuffed, tons of energy, feeling great - partially because I know what holes to fill...

Moral of the babble? Don't sweat it - do what you usually do, maybe try to make some healthier choices, and then in a few days to a week, you'll have a better idea of calorie counts and what you want to eat during the day.

EJWoolcock

I often go over my calorie count, but the benefit of this site is it gives you knowledge, and knowledge is power! If you see a trend, it gives you the ability to change even the smallest thing that can have a positive impact, like choosing better snacks or cooking with better low calorie ingredients. I still eat chocolate every day! But I no longer eat anywhere near as much bread as I used to. A simple change, but an effective one! Don't get discouraged, use the site a tool to learn.

Good luck and keep it up!

acknan

I don't meal plan the day ahead, but have spent some time looking a what foods will work for me and I also have a few staple meals that I know are filling, yummy and low cal that I have if my earlier meals were a bit high. (Like tuna mixed with some mustard and lettuce in a whole grain wrap) Additionally, if I know I am going to want to indulge at night or have a few drinks on the weekend, I make the time for a big calorie burn. An hour or so walking at a fast pace can burn tons of calories and make room for the little indulgences in life. It takes some getting used to and you have to cut yourself some slack when you have difficulty. You will get the hang of it and see results! I couldn't be happier with how much MFP and its users have helped me!

Best of luck!

M1ssBehave

It's amazing how many calories some foods have. You can cut down it just takes making different choices. Stay away from fast food. (one of my big problems) I have not tried near as hard as I should and have lost some. I do find if I log it first it makes a big differnce. I have often changed my choices when I see what they add up to. You can do it. You've already taken the 1st step.

mowrynation

Welcome!

Sorry to hear that you are discouraged. if you open up your diary for others to see, we might be able to make some suggestions. I am not always under my calorie goal either, but am pretty close most days. It really is a wakeup call of how many calories there are or can be in some foods. You are not alone.

You can't compare yourself to others either. We are here to encourage each other not judge!

All the Best
Gail in NY

shayshay01

Cutting out breads, pastas, and sugars will immediatly amp up your losing. If you want a sweet drink- try splenda or some other sugar substitute or drink a diet soda... If you MUST have chocolate- get the 90 calorie granola bars as a treat. The 90 cal greek yogurt has also proved very rewarding for me. I miss chips and pasta the very most, but every once in a while I will save up as many calories as possible so that I can have some pasta or bread for dinner. It's like everyone else said... it's all about learning. I have only been doing it for about 3 weeks and somehow my body is already getting used to the smaller portions and lack of sugars and carbs... and I seem to crave them much less. Good luck!!!! You CAN do it! :-)

blythelogan

Hey there, I actually just started a few days ago myself. I too am very busy with a full time job and 3 kids under 5. It's difficult to make healthy choices when you're always on the go and then finding some spare time to go to the gym. I've been going over about 100-200 calories a day but still consuming less than I used to, so that's progress to me. I am starting with also cutting the fast food and switching to water off of diet coke. It's one day at a time, though! Keep it up!

wongsuzy

Hi Ashley, don't be discouraged so early. Your first few food entries are so that you can see what foods you accumulate every day and then you can adjust your intake to still cover your planned calories but staying low on your saturated fat and sugars. I keep track of my calories,carbs, protein, saturated fat and sugar. The last two I make sure I don't go over the reccommended allowance. I don't worry if I'm a little over with protein at the end of the day and I make sure I drink all my water and more. I haven't been doing it very long but it is easy. Make sure you eat your rec. calories and at least some of your exercise calories back. Make up your calories with nuts, avocado,plain rice crackers, plain corn chips or a small banana. Even a hard boiled egg or some chicken breast to snack on. Read lots of the forum entries and you will get plenty of ideas. Stick with it and good luck

katdanash

I personally think it is normal. Take these days as learning experience. We are all creatures of habit. Changing those habits ,and reprogramming our minds and taste is hard. But like most things in life working hard at things brings us rewards . Those rewards can come in different shapes and sizes ln the case of weight loss \ you dont want to do it too quickly. You want to be able to keep it off when your goals are met. look over your food journal and change one thing daily. or one thing at each meal'. Baby steps.
YOU CAN DO THIS> good luck to you in your journey

audjrey

Let this be the START of your journey and not the DESTINATION. You now have very valuable information that can help you make tiny corrections to your health & fitness plan. That's what it's all about. It's not about starting out perfect, but learning what mistakes you are making and then using the available tools to correct them.

That said, do you still feel discouraged?

ladyduval

My thought is planning also. I have some of the similiar issues myself. I have found that planning your meal/snacks and taking them with you versus just grabbing something and going will work out better for you in the end. I just purchased a food scale also, so that I can try and weigh my food. Good luck with everything though! Be encouraged

Tisha247

Hey already discouraged, I've only just started here but have discovered my normal eating plan was actually really healthy. The foods that were adding up to weight gain and calories were the foods I knew were unhealthy. I was eating those between my main healthy meals.

Don't give up, you can do this! It takes loads of self control and yup I plan my meals the day before.

CoreenF

If I'm having a binge day or two I find it helps a lot if I pack a lunch box for the day and eat only whats inside it. I can do this because I cook on weekends for the next week and make frozen dinners portioned out. get yourself a large lunch box and put 3 meals and two snacks in it for the day and when its gone your done.

klawson76

Absolutely was in the same boat. 1450 calories is very easy to go over. It really isn't a lot of food. I got on the Nutrisystem food plan, you may want to look into it. You don't have to go full boar like I am, but they have AWESOME chocolate bars and snack foods that help you throughout the day with not going over. I'm trying to use those tricks too with drinking water before a meal and also taking those chewable fiber pills, because it acts like a sponge and fills you up, or using a smaller plate when eating dinner... portion control.

EricInArlington

I just adjusted my exercise from 1 to 3 days a week and it gave me less calories a day. I workout every other day and just wanted to change it. maybe you should put down no exercise then latter add 1 day.

I lost 18Lbs the first month with no exercise at all,So I know it can be done. keep it up, you can do it!!! everyone on here will help you, all you have to do is ask

melodyg

Welcome to MFP! I agree with the others... the first step is just being aware of what you are eating (even if you set your calories to maintenance at first if going over is too discouraging). Then you can start to make small changes and figure out where to change your diet or bump up the exercise.

Some of the keys for me (I've been on here about 10 months... trying to lose a pound a week here too):

1) Plan ahead! At this point I don't always log my food in the day before, but I do usually try to have a good idea of what the calories for dinner are. I am at home so I have the luxury of tweaking things during the day as well... if I was away from home working all day I think it would be even more necessary for me to plan out lunch and snacks.

2) Part of what helps me to plan ahead is to do menu planning for the week. I've been doing it for a year and have built up a list of quick and easy recipes that I know are healthy... though I love to explore and cook so I often do new recipes too. It is great for me to have some standbys that I know are healthy and I can throw together quickly when needed.

3) Load up on vegetables -- easier said than done somedays but they really are an easy way to get nutritious food without a lot of calories.

4) Look at other peoples food diaries. No one eats the same but I love looking at other's food diaries for inspiration. Mine is public if you want to take a peek.

5) Oh and eat breakfast! I don't always eat a lot... but I have learned that getting too hungry is a sure way for me to overload on calories and make bad decisions.

6) Get support! Make some MFP friends and encourage each other along. I never would have made it this far without MFP buddies.

You can definitely do this, just take baby steps! Good luck!

slapshotgolf

Just had a look at your diary - a couple of pointers:

1. Don't skip meals - not sure if its just how you are tracking, but it looks like you aren't consistently eating thorughout the day. Always make time for breakfast, it's the most important meal of the day. It kicks your metabolism into gear for the day.

2. Invert your calorie intake - I used to have a small breakfast, followed by an average lunch, and then a big dinner when I got home. In addition to the problem I noted in #1, these large meals at the end of the day don't get a chance to get burned, and lead to a "stuffed" feeling which makes it hard to exercise off the calories.

3. Food choices - Mom was right - eat your vegetables. In addition to giving you essential nutrients on a restricted diet, they help you feel full. You don't have to avoid Pizza forever, but make it a treat, only once every couple of weeks - and even then, in moderation.

4. Exercise - Diet alone will not help you achieve the results you are looking for. Even going for 30 minute walks every night will help you bank some extra calories for those days you may go over. When you are ready, add in some cardio into your routine, as an elevated heart rate helps burn fat.

Good luck, and lean on the MFP community for help - there are alot of great people here!

SSG

Butterflygalmel

Good Idea, I didn't think of doing that. I find it's kinda fun to tick off my calories and see how creative I can make my dinner with the left over calories. I guess I have to play the game with myself to have fun at this