800 calories left, not hungry

jeremy_c

Hello,

I am wondering if at the end of the day you have 800 calories left to eat (100 to reach my BMR) and you are not hungry, what should you do? Eat your BMR anyway or no?

Thanks!

Jeremy

beckybernardo

This is just my opinion and most will disagree but I don't eat if I am not hungry. If I do, it will lead me to overeat and that is one problem that I am trying to cure. I guess I also try to do what my body says. If it is hungry I eat and if not I don't. May not have been much help, but that is just my thought

ejohndrow

don't eat if you aren't hungry

C00lCountry

Some will say yes others will say no.
If you are not hungry I wouldn't worry about it.
I am 990 short today and not hungry either.
I did eat my BMR but did some calorie burning today.

Wildheart_Baby

I'm not sure, since that happens to me sometimes, though I wouldn't eat if you aren't actually hungry.

ckneasel

if you're not hungry, you don't need to eat...

if your main goal is fat loss, there's NOTHING wrong with not eating...

jamiefay1222

I am a personal training so I get these questions everyday. If it's one day here and there then you are probably ok. It's when I see client's short day after day that I begin to worry about their metabolism slowing down. If that happens I would recommend adding an extra ounce of protein to the meals and snack to bring your overall calories up. One problem is that when you are short everyday you actually slow your metabolism down. If you are not hungry it's ok to not eat. I hope this helps:)

mrsagraham

I generally agree with not eating if you aren't hungry, because I tend to be a bored/emotional eater. However, I find that if I eat way under like that for more than a day, I end up stuffing my face a couple days later with anything and everything I can get my hands on. This may be due to the fact that I am training for a marathon and work out A LOT in general, but it's something to consider.

ckneasel

the myth that low cal diets will slow your metabolism are unfounded...

In one study, researchers found that the when they made people fast for 3 days, their metabolic rate did not change
-Webber J, Macdonald IA, The cardiovascular, metabolic and hormonal changes accompanying acute starvation in men and women. British journal of nutrition 1994; 71:437-447.

In another study by a different group of researchers, people who fasted every other day for a period of 22 days also had no decrease in their resting metabolic rate
-Heilbronn LK, et al. Alternate-day fasting in nonobese subjects: effects on body weight, body composition, and energy metabolism. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2005; 81:69-73

In addition, people who were on very low calorie diets and on a resistance exercise program (i.e. lifting weights) did not see a decrease in resting metabolic rate, and these people were only eating 800 Calories a day for 12 weeks

In another interesting study, women who ate half the amount of food that they normally eat for 3 days saw no change in their metabolism either
-Keim NL, Horn WF. Restrained eating behavior and the metabolic response to dietary energy restriction in women. Obesity research 2004; 12:141-149.

The bottom line is food has virtually nothing to do with your metabolism. In fact, your metabolism is much more closely tied to your bodyweight. If your weight goes up or down, so does your metabolism. The only other thing that can affect your metabolism (in both the short term and longer term) is exercise and weight loss. Even in the complete absence of food for three days, your metabolism remains unchanged.

Enough with the not eating enough will slow your metabolism people...

greyrealm

I try to eat a minimum of 1200 calories a day (so my body doesn't go into starvation mode) and to stay as close to that number as possible even if I have earned more calories by exercising. Last night I was only at 1100 but it was late and I wasn't hungry so I went to bed. My weight loss plan actually entails eating every hour (or 2) so I often eat when I am not hungry but as a result I am losing weight fast and have tons of energy. Hope this helps....

dstanley753

This is the same strategy I'm using...so far so good!

kbmnurse

Don't eat if your not hungry.

jaymek92

i generally try to eat most/all of my calories back. if i'm not feeling too hungry, i'll have some peanut butter or a handful of nuts 15 minutes before bed so if i can't sleep or i wake up in the middle of the night, i won't be starving.

ShellyShuey

If it were me and I had that many left, I'd just have a little protein - maybe a greek yogurt or some almonds. I try to eat them back.

transfixedtoast

Do whatever you want. this could be the perfect time to indulge on whatever you wanted or you could just bank the defecit and leave it as more weight to lose.
It's yor decision, wait, let me rephrase that. It's your bodies decision. While counting calories it's best to continue to eat intuitively rather than by numbers.

catlady76

right, it dont take much to eat those calories but your body needs it. weight watchers is one of the most successful weight loss programs and they always encourage you to eat the amount allowed. there must be some reason. if you dont know whether to or not, just eat half at 400. can't hurt. still under your goal and good for you! wish i had that problem! ha

happythermia

If you find that happening a lot, you should eat more fats & calorie dense foods. But if you aren't hungry now, NBD

HauteP1nk

Maybe try snacking on something small just to see? Sometimes I find I am not hungry until I nibble on something and then my body realizes that hey, maybe it does want some food after all...lol

However, if you really are not hungry and can't even imagine eating any more food then don't. I am sure there will be days where you are ravenous and will want to keep eating that will make up for extremely low calorie days.

allycat54

I would at least have some peanut butter.

shellsrenee01

I'm feeling the same way. I only have a net of 1043 calories for the day. I went for a jog this morning and so my deficit is around 400. I don't think I'll be hungry again later but do I try to eat something again in order to 1) get closer to 1200 and 2) even better, get closer to my net goal of 1440?

Decisions, decisions...

Oh how I wish every day were like today and I got to grapple with eating again or not with my instinct saying "not" Big difference from the "pre-MFP" days where I would not only continue snacking, but it would be unhealthy snacks at that :grumble: