Struggling to eat my Caloric Goal .....

sherise1214

....without being too unhealthy.

I have been trying to meet the pyramid guidelines for fruits and vegetables, getting whole grains more, and keeping my sodium under. However I eat meals that i really enjoy, have made changes to them to make them healthier. However, eating two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables keep me pretty full. I am trying to only eat only two at the most of snacks that are not empty calories. Help, how do i increase food, but im not hungry, LOL.

neverstray

....without being too unhealthy.

I have been trying to meet the pyramid guidelines for fruits and vegetables, getting whole grains more, and keeping my sodium under. However I eat meals that i really enjoy, have made changes to them to make them healthier. However, eating two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables keep me pretty full. I am trying to only eat only two at the most of snacks that are not empty calories. Help, how do i increase food, but im not hungry, LOL.

Screw the pyramid. I don't think there's a single person with a brain that believes that BS. Just eat healthy and make sure all your food is natural. Stay away from packaged food and fast food and restaurants who puts god knows what in your food. Cook at home. Cook natural real food.

Pay more attention to your macro nutrients on this site and log everything. Drink water, but remember, you also get a lot of water from food, so contrary to popular belief, you only need 8 glasses a day INCLUDING the water you get from your fruits and veggies, so you maybe really only need 3 or 4 glasses if you eat properly.

Edited to explain my disdain for the food pyramid. Because the government issues it, and because the farmers and meat industry own the government, the food pyramid is geared to favor and help promote those industries, not necessarily what is best for you. Call me crazy, but I have yet to meet a nutritionist or PT or anyone in the industry that agrees with the food pyramid. It's just on sense.

lilpoindexter

If you aren't hungry, you are golden. Don't eat.

farway

Have to agree with all above, I stop eating when I am full, and keep getting told "you are under your calorie goal"

Like you I eat healthily, loads of fruit & veg, including raw foods like salads, so i just ignore the warning on here and carry on.

It is hard enough anyway without getting hung up on "correct calorie intake"

sherise1214

Thanks, but already doing those pointers but not reaching goal, dont want to go into starvation mode. I guess i just need to add another meal, hungry or not.

neverstray

I don't where where you are, and I don't know you at all, so my advice is assuming you don't know this.

Most people do not know how to "listen to their bodies". They don't really know when they are full or when they are hungry. They think they do, but they don't. Otherwise, they would not have a problem. And, they wouldn't be here.

Again, this is assuming that you don't know this.

The second point is to eat when you are not hungry. If you feel hungry, it's too late and you might over eat. This is what most people do...wait until they are hungry. Big mistake. Eat when you are not hungry, but just feel slightly peckish. You will eat less, and you will make better choices.

Once you do this for a while, you will start to tell when you are getting hungry. I normally eat a small something every couple of hours. It seems like I eat constantly. But, I still lose weight and I am learning better to not get to that stage where I'm actually hungry. When I get to that point, I tend to eat a lot in one sitting.

Erica27511

What about adding things like peanut butter, cheeses, whole milk and nuts into your regular meals to meet calorie goal?

psuLemon

Eat higher calorie foods; nuts, avocado, protein bars, whey protein drinks (2 scoops of muscle milk is 300 calories), cooking meat in EVOO (in fact, load up on lean meats such as sirloin, lean beef [less than 7% fat], chicken, fish) and if you have to, grab a spoon and dig into some peanut butter <--- personal fav.

I agree with the do NOT listen to your body and eat smart. Your body knows quantity not quality of calories. It doesn't know the difference between 6 oz of fish vs 6 oz of 80/20 beef or 6 oz of carrots. Most people hurt long term fat loss progress because they under eat which cause a body to conserve calories and catabolize lean body mass (aka muscle). The less muscle you have, the less calories you burn and the slower your metabolism is. Appetite is also a signal that can be suppressed, so again we can not listen to that.

126siany

It would be easier to make suggestions if we could see your diary.

nxd10

I just had to add calories for my dad who is losing a lot of weight.

Add some foods like cheese or brown rice or a slice of bread or whole what tortilla that are high calories per small serving. They have good nutrients as well.

Add a serving of meat that isn't lean - like a sausage.

Eat a handful of nuts.

Have a couple of scrambled eggs.

---

I can rarely eat my calorie goals, but all I have to do to go over is to have a grilled cheese sandwich, some buttered toast, or some home fried potatoes. I think that's why I'm on this site now :blushing:

MTBrob

It would be easier to make suggestions if we could see your diary.

Was just about to type the same... Lets see it

marieautumn

no offense but i dont understand how people just "can't possibly eat my calorie goal" ...how did you put on weight in the first place? ok that enough of my ranting.
if you really aren't hungry, dont eat. with that being said maybe you aren't burning enough calories. I know after i work out and i burn about 500 -600 cals per my HRM, i am usually starving. Try burning more fuel.

FlaxMilk

Prepare your veggies with a healthy fat source--it helps you take in the nutrition better anyway. Munch on a handful of nuts. You mentioned fruits, veggies, and grains, but healthy fat is important too. What are you doing for protein?

FlaxMilk

no offense but i dont understand how people just "can't possibly eat my calorie goal" ...how did you put on weight in the first place? ok that enough of my ranting.
if you really aren't hungry, dont eat. with that being said maybe you aren't burning enough calories. I know after i work out and i burn about 500 -600 cals per my HRM, i am usually starving. Try burning more fuel.

The O2 diet has a four day cleanse. The calories are pretty low but involve a lot of vegetables and some fruit. I find it really hard to eat all of it. I'm not actually sure I ever managed to make it through the cleanse exactly as you are supposed to. I have no problem eating the same amount of calories normally. If OP is eating in any way like this, I can see it.

elyelyse

no offense but i dont understand how people just "can't possibly eat my calorie goal" ...how did you put on weight in the first place? ok that enough of my ranting.
if you really aren't hungry, dont eat. with that being said maybe you aren't burning enough calories. I know after i work out and i burn about 500 -600 cals per my HRM, i am usually starving. Try burning more fuel.

i also don't usually meet my calorie goal now, though yes i spent years and years over eating and am quite overweight... there actually Is a reason! Lots of people who overeat fill up on carbs and lots of empty calories and sugar, so we keep getting cravings for more sugar, we don't get proper nutrition so our body is hungry for good food and we keep eating crap.

Once we change to a cleaner diet, without all the processed crap, the sugars and breads, and we start to eat good foods, lean proteins, good fats in the right amounts... all of a sudden... omg! I'M NOT HUNGRY ALL THE TIME! We learn to feed our bodies what it needs, and in return our body says "thanks, that's awesome. I'm done for now"

SocWkrBee

no offense but i dont understand how people just "can't possibly eat my calorie goal" ...how did you put on weight in the first place? ok that enough of my ranting.

Because she is now paying attention to what she eats. For her this means consuming lower calorie, yet high volume foods, such as fruit and vegetables. It is really easy to eat thousands of calories, when you could care less where they came from.

For example my favorite cheesacake from the Cheesecake Factory is about 1000 calories at least.

marieautumn

no offense but i dont understand how people just "can't possibly eat my calorie goal" ...how did you put on weight in the first place? ok that enough of my ranting.

Because she is now paying attention to what she eats. For her this means consuming lower calorie, yet high volume foods, such as fruit and vegetables. It is really easy to eat thousands of calories, when you could care less where they came from.

For example my favorite cheesacake from the Cheesecake Factory is about 1000 calories at least.

yes but i doubt you were ever eating that every day, right?

Koldnomore

For example my favorite cheesacake from the Cheesecake Factory is about 1000 calories at least.

yes but i doubt you were ever eating that every day, right?

1 XL coffee = 4 creamers + 4 sugars EVERY DAY x2 and depending on my shift at work often 3 or 4 = 540 calories EACH. That was before eating anything. So yeah, it is possible to eat/drink 1000 calories every day.

When you change from eating junk to trying to eat the same number of calories of 'healthy' food its really hard. I was easily packing back about 2700 calories a day in crap but had trouble when I first started with not being able to eat even 1200 calories. I added peanut butter to my toast, dressing to my salad and stopped worrying so much about having some butter on my corn or steamed veggies.

elyelyse

For example my favorite cheesacake from the Cheesecake Factory is about 1000 calories at least.

yes but i doubt you were ever eating that every day, right?

1 XL coffee = 4 creamers + 4 sugars EVERY DAY x2 and depending on my shift at work often 3 or 4 = 540 calories EACH. That was before eating anything. So yeah, it is possible to eat/drink 1000 calories every day.

When you change from eating junk to trying to eat the same number of calories of 'healthy' food its really hard. I was easily packing back about 2700 calories a day in crap but had trouble when I first started with not being able to eat even 1200 calories. I added peanut butter to my toast, dressing to my salad and stopped worrying so much about having some butter on my corn or steamed veggies.

and this is why it is SO IMPORTANT for people to learn how to eat. not just cut down, not just try to eat less, but really LEARN how to eat. Sure, sometimes I still get the munchies, but I almost never get *hungry* anymore. I can usually ignore the munchies because I know I am not truly hungry, and when I DO give in to the munchies, I know how to select a snack that will actually satisfy me for a while. In the past, I also, was EASILY eating 3000+ calories in a day (and probably still thinking about more things i wanted to eat). These days, I often get to late night and realize i haven't even come close to my goal yet, and I delight in being able to have that late night (usually healthy) snack!

sherise1214

my food diary is now open, thought it was sorry, Also, I eat at my calories when i eat junk, and on the weekends when im weak and eat what i like, On Sunday was a horrible day went to b'day party all day out of town and no healthy food options at all, never went someplace for a cookout and no grilled chicken, LOL, or salad. I did my best- i stayed within my calories but not my fat goals. I make my meals two weeks in advance usually veggies mixed with pasta or whole rice- i only use smart pasta and bread- I was never a breakfast eater so thats been a struggle i had to overcome, and still dont want much for breakfast- the advice will all be considered

sherise1214

Yes, I was eating much fat and caloric dense food daily, probably- I loved loved cheese! pasta, and breads. I also had a serious sweet tooth, i ate chocolate candy every day! Chocolate at my school costs 10 cents, I always had 10 cents, if you get my drift.