How do I know if I'm eating enough calories?

256Sept12

Kinda new to this. I want to lose 120 lbs in about 2 years. I eat 1000-1200 calories a day and I feel fine with this. But usually 1000 is plenty and I am not hungry for more. Sometimes I'm satisfied with only 800 calories and I force myself to get another 200-300.

However, calorie calculators always tell me to eat 1800 or so to lose 2 lbs a week. I can't imagine eating that much. I think that's how much I was eating when I gained 100 pounds.

I hear if you don't eat enough, your body will hold on to the fat...not letting it go...and you'll have low matabolism...and a bunch of other things. How do I avoid this? Eating more than 1200 seems so hard..just too much food. But I don't want to lose muscle and hold onto fat either.

I weigh 256 now. and exercise hard 1 hr a day, 5 days a week..as of 2 weeks ago.

THANKS SO MUCH!

256Sept12

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Erykah3584

Have you always ate like this? Do you also exercise?

256Sept12

i eat like this (1000 calories) when i'm trying to lose weight. exercise 5 days a week, 1 hour

when i don't care, I eat 1800-2000 calories of junk, no exercise at all.

steadk

if you replace some snacks with high cal options like nuts or avocado, or pb, increasing calories is doable. you need to eat more IMO

bkwhit1964

Did you plug your numbers into this site, cause I weigh about the same as you right now and my calories are set at like 1380 to lose 2lbs a week. I do not excerise as much as you do though, however I do not eat back the extra calories from exercise either. I would say 1000 calories are low, I would try to stay with what MFP sets for you and just not eat any of the exercise burned calories, then see how you do on that.

Erykah3584

Yes, I agree with steadk. Especially if you are exercising 5 days a week for an hour.

jynxxxed

Just for fun, log a very realistic day of how you used to eat. It shocked me. You will be fine eating at your BMR.

ezra1964

The standard rule is to keep at 1200 calories at a minimum. Now, the reason you keep hearing the 1800 calories rule is that will keep you at two pounds a week, and many trained people get nervous when people start losing weight faster. Your body wont start to slow the metabolism until you get below the 1200 calories a day. If you are making strides in your workout, losing weight and feel good, then eat like you want. You will most likely loose more than the two pounds a week at that rate.

Your work out will tell you. If you start having trouble with the workout, or can not lift as much or run as far etc as you used to, this is a sign that things are going in the wrong direction. Everyone has an off day, but if it continues then re-examine your diet.

And BTW, I understand how you feel I am trying to loose weight and am starting to make just a little progress. Most days if I tried to eat 1800 calories I would feel bloated and wouldn't want to get off the couch. I am doing 1200 calories a day and feel good at that.

abnerner

In my personal experience, I have gone by MFP's numbers and it has worked. I'm set to loose a pound a week and it's been about 36 weeks and I've lost 35.6 pounds. I think you should be feeding your body more, but get calories from healthy foods, peanut butter, avacado, nuts, fruits and veggies.

honeysprinkles

are you really short? and are you accurately measuring portions? 1800-2000 calories is usually maintenance calories for most and not enough to gain weight! A lot of people won't gain on that amount of calories, but if you are shorter maybe your tdee is lower.

dianefisher47

Have you ever heard a big person say ''I hardly eat and I am gaining weight'' or ''I don't eat breakfast and sometimes lunch and yet I gain weight'' well there you go:blushing:

I know I use to say that..see I'm from the old school...they use to say eat less and loose...but no not a good idea I did that for my first 30lbs loss but now my body is holding and turning it to fat afraid it will starve cause I was not feeding it enough:sad: , so now I am upping my calories to find out how much I should eat in order to loose ...so good luck:drinker:

kingkoopaluv

I suggest actually tracking what you eat on a "bad day-unhealthy day", and my guess would be way more 1800cals. You shouldnt be gaining 100lbs on 1800cals. Most anyone who is a little active would lose.

mycrazy8splus1

I have the same problem. Eating more than 1200 calories is extremely difficult for me. I don't tend to eat junk. I'm not that crazy about sweets and processed foods. I workout 6 to 7 days a week for about the sameamount of time a you say you do . I don't tend to eat my exercise calories. I don't have an answer for you about if you are eating enough but I am here as a support to tell you that you are not alone!! I am 5'2" so maybe I just need less. Anyways, we are in this together!

Spartan_Maker

Kinda new to this. I want to lose 120 lbs in about 2 years. I eat 1000-1200 calories a day and I feel fine with this. But usually 1000 is plenty and I am not hungry for more. Sometimes I'm satisfied with only 800 calories and I force myself to get another 200-300.

However, calorie calculators always tell me to eat 1800 or so to lose 2 lbs a week. I can't imagine eating that much. I think that's how much I was eating when I gained 100 pounds.

I hear if you don't eat enough, your body will hold on to the fat...not letting it go...and you'll have low matabolism...and a bunch of other things. How do I avoid this? Eating more than 1200 seems so hard..just too much food. But I don't want to lose muscle and hold onto fat either.

I weigh 256 now. and exercise hard 1 hr a day, 5 days a week..as of 2 weeks ago.

THANKS SO MUCH!

Hi. You say that you'd like to be about 140 in two years. It's very doable.

A woman who is already 140 would likely eat between 1,200 - 1,400 calories a day if she was trying to lose weight.

At 256 lbs. and working out 5 days a week, 1,200 calories a day might be a bit aggressive which, in turn, could cause some wonky things to happen. I can't fault you, however, because I did essentially what you are contemplating. I'm 6'0" and was 308 lbs. in December of 2011. I ate about 2,000 calories a day, which is what a 200 lb. man would eat if he was trying to lose weight, exercised 5 days a week, and I lost 100 lbs. in six months.

If I've learned anything, food and exercise are like medicine -- they are dose dependent. If you get too little of either, it doesn't work. If you get too much of either, you get bad side effects.

There are no rules against self-experimentation. In my view, obese people can afford to play with the numbers a bit more than most people. Find the right dose.

PammyGift

I can't see your food that you log. I am going through a class right now that teaches me to read labels. Are you eating the serving sizes? Just b/c the box says 210 cals check that it's not 210 cals PER serving and then your eating the whole thing? Yea if you don't eat your alotted amount of calories your body does go into a state of starvation and then begins to store up. You probably don't feel hungry but snack on something light. Fruit,popcorn,etc. Being fit and healthy is about changing habits that you may have gotten into good or bad. If your like me then probably bad.Weight loss sadly is a slow process. It may take what seem like days to put on a pound will sadly take a week to come off. If your eating and exercising right. you'll see the changes you desire and hopefully by sticking to the good choices it will stay off. I know I havent lost much just starting this site but we're all in this together. I used to yo-yo diet and now I'm educating myself on the good habits and dietary needs (not b/c I had to heart,blood pressure etc..) but because I'm tired of looking at the fat girl in the mirror. Motivation is key to all of this. The first few days weeks you got to force yourself to not eat that candy bar,or drink that extra soda. Breaking the habits is the hardest part creating the new ones just seems overwhelming.Once oyu do you'll never regret it! Good Luck and here's to a lighter healthier you!

256Sept12

thanks everyone so far.

yes i'm short. 5 ft 1 in.

to the ones that question if i really ate 2000 a day and gained 100 pounds....i'm sure i did.
I ate 3 mcdonalds meals a day...the same ones every day...at around 600 calories each
that was my day of food.
plus i would eat mcdonalds cookies or icecream too.

jynxxxed

thanks everyone so far.

yes i'm short. 5 ft 1 in.

to the ones that question if i really ate 2000 a day and gained 100 pounds....i'm sure i did.
I ate 3 mcdonalds meals a day...the same ones every day...at around 600 calories each
that was my day of food.
plus i would eat mcdonalds cookies or icecream too.

No soda, ketchup, snacks, large fries, etc? The little things really count here. I'm really not trying to be mean but it is highly unlikely that you were eating 2,000 calories per day and gained that much weight. I thought I was eating so much less than I was until I actually logged it and remember getting a second soda, eating some of my boyfriend's food, etc..

256Sept12

Kinda new to this. I want to lose 120 lbs in about 2 years. I eat 1000-1200 calories a day and I feel fine with this. But usually 1000 is plenty and I am not hungry for more. Sometimes I'm satisfied with only 800 calories and I force myself to get another 200-300.

However, calorie calculators always tell me to eat 1800 or so to lose 2 lbs a week. I can't imagine eating that much. I think that's how much I was eating when I gained 100 pounds.

I hear if you don't eat enough, your body will hold on to the fat...not letting it go...and you'll have low matabolism...and a bunch of other things. How do I avoid this? Eating more than 1200 seems so hard..just too much food. But I don't want to lose muscle and hold onto fat either.

I weigh 256 now. and exercise hard 1 hr a day, 5 days a week..as of 2 weeks ago.

THANKS SO MUCH!

Hi. You say that you'd like to be about 140 in two years. It's very doable.

A woman who is already 140 would likely eat between 1,200 - 1,400 calories a day if she was trying to lose weight.

At 256 lbs. and working out 5 days a week, 1,200 calories a day might be a bit aggressive which, in turn, could cause some wonky things to happen. I can't fault you, however, because I did essentially what you are contemplating. I'm 6'0" and was 308 lbs. in December of 2011. I ate about 2,000 calories a day, which is what a 200 lb. man would eat if he was trying to lose weight, exercised 5 days a week, and I lost 100 lbs. in six months.

If I've learned anything, food and exercise are like medicine -- they are dose dependent. If you get too little of either, it doesn't work. If you get too much of either, you get bad side effects.

There are no rules against self-experimentation. In my view, obese people can afford to play with the numbers a bit more than most people. Find the right dose.

thanks so much. So in your opinion, if I have no appetite to eat (but know i should) do I force myself? Today for example, it's almost 2pm and all I have eaten is 1 apple and drank a bunch of water. I just have no desire for anything else.

deb3129

I weigh 243 pounds, and my calories are set to 1500. It actually recommended a little less, but this works better for me. I have been consistenly losing at least 2 pounds a week eating at this level. I don't do any hard workouts, but I do a LOT of walking. Up to 5 miles on a lot of days. I think you are eating too few calories

Kbjust4me

I found this link helpful

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing

I also used this link to find out my BMR/TDEE/ and amount of calories needed to lose ( ) lbs per week.

http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

Choose the Mifflin St- Jeor research model as it's the one considered most acurate, and the one used by this site to calculate your BMR.

I personally think that although consuming more calories to lose weight goes against everything we are taught, it makes sense to eat a caloric intake that you can maintain through life. The weight loss will be slower (maybe 1.2 pounds per week) but it will be easier to maintain for life. I'm actually still trying to wrap my head around this at the moment since consuming 1200 calories per day has allowed me to lose 10 lbs in 10 days. However, I know that the weight loss will probably plateau soon. I also know that my metabolism will eventually get used to this intake and I cannot eat just 1200 calories per day for the rest of my life.

I hope this helps and I havent confused you more.

Spartan_Maker

Kinda new to this. I want to lose 120 lbs in about 2 years. I eat 1000-1200 calories a day and I feel fine with this. But usually 1000 is plenty and I am not hungry for more. Sometimes I'm satisfied with only 800 calories and I force myself to get another 200-300.

However, calorie calculators always tell me to eat 1800 or so to lose 2 lbs a week. I can't imagine eating that much. I think that's how much I was eating when I gained 100 pounds.

I hear if you don't eat enough, your body will hold on to the fat...not letting it go...and you'll have low matabolism...and a bunch of other things. How do I avoid this? Eating more than 1200 seems so hard..just too much food. But I don't want to lose muscle and hold onto fat either.

I weigh 256 now. and exercise hard 1 hr a day, 5 days a week..as of 2 weeks ago.

THANKS SO MUCH!

Hi. You say that you'd like to be about 140 in two years. It's very doable.

A woman who is already 140 would likely eat between 1,200 - 1,400 calories a day if she was trying to lose weight.

At 256 lbs. and working out 5 days a week, 1,200 calories a day might be a bit aggressive which, in turn, could cause some wonky things to happen. I can't fault you, however, because I did essentially what you are contemplating. I'm 6'0" and was 308 lbs. in December of 2011. I ate about 2,000 calories a day, which is what a 200 lb. man would eat if he was trying to lose weight, exercised 5 days a week, and I lost 100 lbs. in six months.

If I've learned anything, food and exercise are like medicine -- they are dose dependent. If you get too little of either, it doesn't work. If you get too much of either, you get bad side effects.

There are no rules against self-experimentation. In my view, obese people can afford to play with the numbers a bit more than most people. Find the right dose.

thanks so much. So in your opinion, if I have no appetite to eat (but know i should) do I force myself? Today for example, it's almost 2pm and all I have eaten is 1 apple and drank a bunch of water. I just have no desire for anything else.

The point that people are making is that at 5'1", 256 lbs., and 29-years-old, it takes approximately 1,824 calories a day to keep you alive, even if you were in a coma. However, you said that you exercise 5 days a week. Therefore, you're likely burning closer to 2,500 calories a day. Even if you were sedentary, sitting at your computer all day, the number of calories that you'd likely burn is closer to 2,189.

Of course, it's very possible that eating 1,800 calories a day and being sedentary could have been responsible for a good portion of your early weight gain, but certainly not the last 30 or so lbs.

Are you insulin resistant? Thyroid issues?

jynxxxed

Kinda new to this. I want to lose 120 lbs in about 2 years. I eat 1000-1200 calories a day and I feel fine with this. But usually 1000 is plenty and I am not hungry for more. Sometimes I'm satisfied with only 800 calories and I force myself to get another 200-300.

However, calorie calculators always tell me to eat 1800 or so to lose 2 lbs a week. I can't imagine eating that much. I think that's how much I was eating when I gained 100 pounds.

I hear if you don't eat enough, your body will hold on to the fat...not letting it go...and you'll have low matabolism...and a bunch of other things. How do I avoid this? Eating more than 1200 seems so hard..just too much food. But I don't want to lose muscle and hold onto fat either.

I weigh 256 now. and exercise hard 1 hr a day, 5 days a week..as of 2 weeks ago.

THANKS SO MUCH!

Hi. You say that you'd like to be about 140 in two years. It's very doable.

A woman who is already 140 would likely eat between 1,200 - 1,400 calories a day if she was trying to lose weight.

At 256 lbs. and working out 5 days a week, 1,200 calories a day might be a bit aggressive which, in turn, could cause some wonky things to happen. I can't fault you, however, because I did essentially what you are contemplating. I'm 6'0" and was 308 lbs. in December of 2011. I ate about 2,000 calories a day, which is what a 200 lb. man would eat if he was trying to lose weight, exercised 5 days a week, and I lost 100 lbs. in six months.

If I've learned anything, food and exercise are like medicine -- they are dose dependent. If you get too little of either, it doesn't work. If you get too much of either, you get bad side effects.

There are no rules against self-experimentation. In my view, obese people can afford to play with the numbers a bit more than most people. Find the right dose.

thanks so much. So in your opinion, if I have no appetite to eat (but know i should) do I force myself? Today for example, it's almost 2pm and all I have eaten is 1 apple and drank a bunch of water. I just have no desire for anything else.

Just view it as fuel. If you're not fueling your body, it won't run properly. Over a very long period of time you could start to lose hair, your skin will look horrible, your organs will not be functioning properly, etc. Of course that's not all going to happen tomorrow, but that IS ultimately what you're doing to your body. If you're not really sure where to start, maybe see a dietician to help set up a meal plan that will be easy for you to follow? Eat some peanut butter with your apple, some carrots and hummus, etc. Light things that will give you the calories that your body requires.

kareinlib

You should at least be eating 1200 a day for a healthy amount, otherwise you may have to reset your metabolism later on (which is NOT fun). Try eating more calorie-dense (but still healthy) foods like peanut butter and nuts throughout the day.

FredDoyle

Don't forget to track your sodium.
Not only is it healthy to stay under 2500 mg./day, it helps you to choose fresh food instead of prepackaged stuff.
(You'll see, try it)
You also hang on to less water weight.

Spartan_Maker

Kinda new to this. I want to lose 120 lbs in about 2 years. I eat 1000-1200 calories a day and I feel fine with this. But usually 1000 is plenty and I am not hungry for more. Sometimes I'm satisfied with only 800 calories and I force myself to get another 200-300.

However, calorie calculators always tell me to eat 1800 or so to lose 2 lbs a week. I can't imagine eating that much. I think that's how much I was eating when I gained 100 pounds.

I hear if you don't eat enough, your body will hold on to the fat...not letting it go...and you'll have low matabolism...and a bunch of other things. How do I avoid this? Eating more than 1200 seems so hard..just too much food. But I don't want to lose muscle and hold onto fat either.

I weigh 256 now. and exercise hard 1 hr a day, 5 days a week..as of 2 weeks ago.

THANKS SO MUCH!

Hi. You say that you'd like to be about 140 in two years. It's very doable.

A woman who is already 140 would likely eat between 1,200 - 1,400 calories a day if she was trying to lose weight.

At 256 lbs. and working out 5 days a week, 1,200 calories a day might be a bit aggressive which, in turn, could cause some wonky things to happen. I can't fault you, however, because I did essentially what you are contemplating. I'm 6'0" and was 308 lbs. in December of 2011. I ate about 2,000 calories a day, which is what a 200 lb. man would eat if he was trying to lose weight, exercised 5 days a week, and I lost 100 lbs. in six months.

If I've learned anything, food and exercise are like medicine -- they are dose dependent. If you get too little of either, it doesn't work. If you get too much of either, you get bad side effects.

There are no rules against self-experimentation. In my view, obese people can afford to play with the numbers a bit more than most people. Find the right dose.

thanks so much. So in your opinion, if I have no appetite to eat (but know i should) do I force myself? Today for example, it's almost 2pm and all I have eaten is 1 apple and drank a bunch of water. I just have no desire for anything else.

If I were you, and wanted to be very aggressive, I'd eat about 1,500 calories a day, and walk for 1 hour each day (around 3 miles or so). I'd also measure my food with precision so that I knew I was eating right around 1,500 every day.

Assuming that you're not insulin resistant or have thyroid issues, two things will happen: (1) you'll lose a whole bunch of water weight; and (2) you'll lose close to 10 lbs. of fat. You'd likely be 236 in a month.

foleyshirley

thanks everyone so far.

yes i'm short. 5 ft 1 in.

to the ones that question if i really ate 2000 a day and gained 100 pounds....i'm sure i did.
I ate 3 mcdonalds meals a day...the same ones every day...at around 600 calories each
that was my day of food.
plus i would eat mcdonalds cookies or icecream too.

What she was saying is that it is very likely you were well over 2000 calories to have gained that much weight.

BelMckenzie

Log your food daily, everything you put in your mouth from dipping sauces to creamer in your coffee to give you an idea of calories you are consuming. Also eat breakfast, if you can't stomach something big that early grab something healthy like an apple to get your metabolism going for the day. Make sure you eat throughout the day to fuel your body especially with your workouts.

I used to think that the less I ate the faster I would lose weight while I did it the right way this time eating the recommended calories for my goal weight and I feel amazing not sluggy or out of it from not properly fueling my body the wrong way.

lgbuxton

Bump

hihihi

"thanks so much. So in your opinion, if I have no appetite to eat (but know i should) do I force myself? Today for example, it's almost 2pm and all I have eaten is 1 apple and drank a bunch of water. I just have no desire for anything else. "

Actually this is pretty bad:( a loss in desire to eat and eating so little shows that your metabolism is falling. This may also lead to eating disorders:/ by forcing yourself proper meals at specific timing everyday will help you rev up your metabolism and have a healthy appetite(: eating this way is causing great suffer for your body and when your body is adapting to it, it may have entered starvation and storage mode:/ so eat more and eat consistently(: lose weight healthy! All the best! You can do it!:D

DR2501

I know what you mean, some of the calorie intake amounts suggested online for a man are ridiculously high and I can't imagine eating that much unless I'm going back to burgers and pizzas everyday.

Best way is to workout your BMR (i.e. how much your body needs just to survive) and then your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) and eat somewhere in between for a decent deficit that won't cause you any problems.

Here's a link to a calculator
http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/