Should I eat when I'm not hungry but under my calories?

Sailorwind

This is my second attempt at watching calories and I am having a very different experience than the first time. The first go-round, I was grumpy and starving ALL the time and had massive difficulties staying under 1400 calories a day until I finally gave up because I felt like I was making it impossible to enjoy anything about my life as all I could think about was how hungry I was.

A little over a week ago, I got talked into trying this again and was NOT happy about being hungry all the time agin. Only this time, I seem to be having the opposite problem. I am not getting anywhere near 1200 calories on most days. The weekends I still fight to stay under, but during the week I find I'm frequently ending up with 300-500 calories left at the end of the day and the knowledge that I shouldn't consistently be eating less than 1200, but I'm just not at all hungry and don't want to eat anything. Even though there's enough calories left over for me to have something with chocolate in it.

So what do I do? I know under 1200/day isn't healthy but I also don't think it's a good idea to force myself to eat when I'm not hungry as it took me a year to break my stress eating habit. Which one is the more important rule?

angelicasmommy

I wouldn't eat if you are not hungry. Maybe try to plan out your day in advance, adding a few more calories to each meal/snack to reach 1200. Or add high calorie foods like nuts/avocado etc.

AlabasterVerve

Don't eat if you're not hungry. You might do better to track your calories for the week instead of daily as well so you can "go over" on the days you're hungrier but still maintain your deficit overall.

HorseWithNoName27

I would look at adding calories to the meals you already have, rather than increasing the volume of the food you are eating, if that makes sense. A serving of nuts (almonds, walnuts, etc.) has 200+ calories, but is highly nutritious and filling for its size. I'm not sure if 1200 calories is such a clear dividing line either. Some weight-loss programs have their participants eat 1000 calories and it works as long as they stick to the program.

I guess it depends more on how you are feeling, and if you are getting sufficient nutrients. That should be an important factor.

Sailorwind

AlabasterVerv- can you do that? I didn't think you could count a week at a time, I didn't think they "rolled over", so to speak.

I will look into adding calories to what I'm already eating, I'm just trying not to make them sugars or fried as that's a slippery slope for me. I seem to be doing better avoiding it altogether than trying to do moderation.