I think I need to eat more, and need help

kristofferbas

I have been counting calories since march this year and really think it's a great way to keep track of what I eat and also to lear what food is good for me to eat. I'm eating three meals a day - breakfast (around nine in the morning), lunch (around 2-4 in the afternoon) and then something maybe 1-2 hours before I go to bed. In between I might eat a fruit or two and sometimes I have a coffee with something sweet. My calorie goal right now is 1600 calories a day. The thing is most days I have a problem with actually eating 1600 calories without the coffee and sweet or without having a beer in the evening (that happens about once a week on the friday or saturday). I'm also doing quite a lot of exercising with running as the main thing, and according to my HRM I can burn about 1400 calories when going for a run. I haven't been eating back my exercise calories, and that has been working good for my weight loss anyway, but I feel that my body might need some more energy and at least get the 1600 calories.

So what I need is help with how and what to eat in between my bigger meals. Is there something small that's full of energy I can eat that isn't just sugary? I'm having a really hard time getting full quite fast (haha, didn't think I'd say that a year ago).

Any ideas?

moushtie

Nuts are really good for boosting calories, plus they're full of good oils and protein and fibre and other nutrients.

Also, if you're using low fat versions of things like milk, you could switch up to the fuller fat versions. Full fat milk has more absorbable calcium than the fat free milk, for example.

sandislim

Are you able to eat nuts? They are packed with energy - be careful though you can easily go over you calorie amount with only a few handfuls!

Elleinnz

nuts, cheese, dairy (full fat rather than low fat), avocado, banana, olives are my go-to foods if I need to eat higher number of calories on my high training days

mentalbeat

As long as you finish the day with a minimum of 1200 Net calories you will be alright. It is very important to eat back exercise calories, at least to the point of getting your cals back up to 1200 min for the day
eg: you eat 1600 then burn 1400 running yournet calories are 200, you are in deficit by 1000 cals for the day , your body will go into starvation mode which will not be good for you at all. Eat back exercise cals and drink plenty water.

helloburger

PEANUT BUTTER! literally put it on everyday, toast, apples, whatever, its full of protein so it will help your muscles from all that working about your doing and help you get full too!

tekiegirl

Berries are full of good things, so they would be a great thing to snack on.
I particularly like blueberries, strawberries and blackberries.

They aren't particularly high in calories (strawberries are about 32 cals per 100g), but very good for you and it's easy to eat lots )

kristofferbas

As long as you finish the day with a minimum of 1200 Net calories you will be alright. It is very important to eat back exercise calories, at least to the point of getting your cals back up to 1200 min for the day
eg: you eat 1600 then burn 1400 running yournet calories are 200, you are in deficit by 1000 cals for the day , your body will go into starvation mode which will not be good for you at all. Eat back exercise cals and drink plenty water.

I don't really want to get into any discussion about eating back all my exercis calories and starvation mode (there are far to many of those already), but this is the problem I have, I can't eat that much. On a normal day I eat about 1400 worth of calories, and then I go for a run and burn 1400 calories that there's no way I'm able to eat that much one more time that day.

I've been thinking about peanuts, and it looks like many of you agree there. What about cashews, I really like those

Thanks
/k

bstamps12

Cashews would be great. They're my favorite!

What about an extra piece of fruit with breakfast? Or a slice of toast? Even a recovery drink or protein shake made with milk instead of your coffee in the afternoon would boost your caloric intake without making you feel like you are eating too much. I know sometimes when I go on a bike ride and burn 1000 cals+, its just impossible to eat that much back, so I understand your problem! Do you ever use Gu or Hammer Gel or anything during your runs? That's an easy way to add 100 calories, as is mixing some powders into your water bottle that you would drink anyways on your run.

Without going into the starvation mode and eating back exercise calories debates, I will say that over time, you will notice more energy and you will be a stronger runner if you can add more fuel to your tank. I always feel stronger in my workouts when I have eaten more or had a protein shake. It's paid off in my times at races for sure!

tameko2

cashews are really good, they are the bane of my existence right now because a handful of them is about 150 calories and it doesn't last long. Peanut butter is too. Peanut butter on toast... mm. Avocado! I could eat enough of those 4 things to get to 1500 calories easily every day....and I'd be so hungry!

I dunno how you're NOT hungry, when I workout I am starving for about a day and a half afterwards (that is strength training though, not running, runners seem to not be as hungry from what I read here).

I wouldn't worry about eating the whole 1400 or whatever back though, that is just too much food.

cmonskinnylovee

The trick is to eat more throughout the day, not just after your run.

Eat an extra piece of toast with breakfast, and put some peanut-butter or almond butter on it. Have an apple in between meal or drink a protein shake before your run. Have a glass of milk before you go to sleep (it really helps me relax haha) or just have an extra serving of all the healthy stuff you're already eating

Trust me, it's very easy to eat more when you're not thinking about it... I know from experience haha

kristofferbas

Thanks for all the replies! I bought a bag of cashews yesterday and enjoyed eating about 50 grams of them (which gave me about 300 calories. Today is running day and in addition to just the oatmeal I eat for breakfast every day I'm also having swedish hard bread (crisp bread, knäckebröd) with a slice of turkey. Feels strange to eat more for breakfast, but hopefully I'll have even more energy for my run tonight. I'll also try to eat an additional fruit today and then some cashews

Thanks!
/k

kristofferbas

I dunno how you're NOT hungry, when I workout I am starving for about a day and a half afterwards (that is strength training though, not running, runners seem to not be as hungry from what I read here).

I have no clue I used to be hungry all the time, and I ate whenever I got bored too. It's the complete opposite now, and I have to tell my body that I have to eat. The human body is strange

/k

MyNewLeaf

Cashews are great. If you ever made cashew hummus, you'd be in love with it.
Try pumpkin seeds which are packed with nutrition, moreso than other seeds.
Almonds too.

Maybe you should make a trail mix that includes seeds, nuts, dried fruit. And if you like, a small amount of chocolate as part of the mix. It's calorie and fat dense, good for endurance exercisers as the sugars give you quick energy and the seeds / nuts give you longer lasting energy because of their high fat / protein.

Good luck.

fiash

:drinker: @mynewleaf:

what's your recipe for cashew nut hummus? that sounds amazing!!!

xfi

MiladyMetal

:drinker: @mynewleaf:

what's your recipe for cashew nut hummus? that sounds amazing!!!

xfi

Yeah inquiring minds want to kow, I want to know?! ;p

kristofferbas

Thanks! I'm not that familiar with hummus, so please feel free to tell us how to do it if you want to.

I've been trying to eat more today and it's going quite good. Had some extra knäckebröd (crisp bread) for breakfast, and have also been eating a couple of more fruits. I'm nowhere near eating back my exercise calories today (burned almost 2000 exercising) but those cashews help me get some energy back

/k

MyNewLeaf

Hummus is savory, typically made with garbanzo beans (aka chickpeas). You know, unless you can't digest beans, like me. Hummus is a smooth dip you can use for veggies, or as a spread on a sandwich instead of PB&J. Hummus is high in protein and good for you. It's a common vegetarian food.

I found raw cashew hummus at my local farmer's market and fell in love. I searched around the raw food sites, and there are recipes for it here and there.

Generally, you're going to soak your cashews for a couple hours in water if you have time for that. It makes them softer and easier to digest. If you don't have time for that, it's okay. You might add a little water to the recipe if it's too thick for you. I don't have a recipe, but here are the ingredients from when I used to buy it: cashews, tahini (which is sesame seed butter - buy sesame seeds if you can't find tahini), water, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, cumin, coriander, salt. You put this all in your food processor until it's soft, smooth and wonderful. Then you eat it as fast as you can because it's so delicious.

Pebble321

I eat about 1600 net calories a day and my diary is open - you are welcome to have a look.
You will see that I usually have a snack in the morning and afternoon - sometimes it is something a bit substantial like a piece of toast with cheese, or yoghurt and fruit, other times it is a muesli bar or almonds or something I can snack on while I'm on the move, sometimes it is both.
If you aren't really a snacker then adding higher cal foods like olive oil, avocado, nuts, cheese to your meals will help you get enough healthy calories to keep you going.
I find that now I'm running more I really have to eat more or I just run out of energy, and my weight loss stalls.

MyNewLeaf

Hei Kristoffer,

I was reading some of your stuff. You've lost 41kg in 6 months? That's 3.46 pounds a week, when 1 pound a week is safest. I know how exciting it is to get smaller quickly and we all want results right now, but here's something to consider (aside from the health problems you could cause by losing too quickly) - if you lose at too quickly a rate, you will end up with lots of leftover skin hanging all over your body that lost its elasticity and won't go away. It is the curse of people who used to be very large and lose too quickly. But.... if you choose to slow down your weight loss, your skin has a chance to catch up and shrink along with the rest of you. Just something to think about. I felt really worried about you with all i read here.

Your food diary isn't open, but I noticed you eat oatmeal for breakfast from your blog. For adding calories (which will actually help your weight loss as eventually, the too-low calorie thing will put your body into starvation mode, where it holds onto every fat cell available and eats up your muscle tissue, making you prone to regain weight later), why not try something substantial for breakfast that includes protein and fat? If you eat meat, that is an easy way to start your day, along with your oatmeal if you prefer, to pump up your calories. This would be the time to eat that high fat item that normal dieters avoid (like bacon or sausage sometimes), because you can eat a little and get a lot of calories quickly. If you are vegetarian? Eggs, or coconut and seeds in your morning oatmeal will give you some protein, and you could even use coconut milk inside your oatmeal to beef up calories/protein/fat.

Good health to you.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/777-why-is-starvation-mode-so-bad

kristofferbas

Hey MyNewLeaf, and thank you. I do take me eating to little serious, and I've really tried (and done it quite good) to eat more these last couple of days. Those cashew really helps but I've also added some bread for breakfast, some more fruit throughout the day and maybe one or two eggs in the evening. This is a little scary since I'm afraid to fall back into old patterns and eat white bread whenever I'm hungry, but I'm much more educated now, so I don't think it'll be a problem.

Yes I lost about 40 kilos these last 6 months, but the majority of the weight loss was the first three months, when I guess my body was in a big shock about what was happening. I now lose between 0.5 and 1 kilo per week, and I'm also trying more to do exercise to tone my body and not only lose weight.

I really how me eating more will give my body more energy to perform better overall

Thanks.
/k