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

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/

tjthegreatone

To the OP: you were likely eating a heck of a lot more than 1800-2000 to have put on that much weight - the little (unremembered and unaccounted for) things really add up quickly. I piled on 20lb in a year thinking I wasn't eating 'that much' until one day after I started dieting, I totalled everything up from a previous 'normal day' and realised I was easily hitting 3500+ kcal a day.

Also if you are getting full and losing your appetite on just 1200kcal a day that is worrying - you should be starving/ravenous regardless of how many carrots you eat. If your appetite isn't there it suggests a number of possibilities
1. You've switched to 'healthy' food which just isn't appetising.
2. You're developing disordered eating
3. If you've been doing this long enough - your body is trying to compensate for being starved and the hunger signals do begin to fade, and your stomach shrinks.

I wouldn't force feed but try not to see food as the enemy. In my dieting phase I rigidly stuck to 1500kcal a day, was ravenous whilst claiming I wasn't hungry and developed all kinds of bizarre food phobias and fetishes.

With your current status you have the advantage and you will drop weight very quickly initially but it will begin to tail off. If you've started with a too low calorie count that's when you'll run into trouble as you'll find yourself feeling obliged to cut lower and lower.

leadiax3

in order to keep your metabolism fired up, you must fuel it with food. 1800 seems like a good number of calories. just make sure that when you are counting your calories you are accurate with measurements and portions. Sometimes food amounts and visual perception can be misleading. You should eat at LEAST 1200 calories though... More if u workout. Be patient with urbody, cuz ya cant rush perfection.

JuliRamone

If you struggle with eating too few calories, how about you plan some awesome meals?
Instead of an apple in the morning (I remember your post, where you wrote you didn't eat anything but an apple and it was 2pm)
try some yogurt with fresh fruits, oatmeal, raisins, nuts and even some chocolate sprinkles. It's a delicious start in the morning, it gives you power for the day (and you get protein, vitamins, good fat...).
If you're all in "healthy and clean" just spare the chocolate (although I think, a teespoon of sprinkles is fine).
Drink a glass of juice or milk.
Whatever calorie goal you set yourself ( I would also say TDEE - 20%, but it's your choice ) start enjoing food. Search for healthy recipes and food ideas
It's good for you
My best wishes for your weight loss journey You can do it!

chani8

My girls and I are shorties, too, and had to eat around 1100, so you're fine! Stay at that and you'll drop it fast. Just know that if you drop it too fast, you risk gallstones (which is what happened to me), so don't be in too big of a hurry.

If you were used to eating 2000 cals a day, now that you're cutting back, even at 1400 cals you'd likely lose a lot.

I'm so glad to hear that you're working out. That's going to make you feel so good!!

I hope you see some results soon, so that you stay motivated!

Mr_Knight

Delete - necro'ed.

cranberryveins

My calories have been around 500-800 lately, and I'm losing fast with little to no hunger. Eating more just for the sake of eating more is ridiculous and what sets you on the road to weight gain.

Phoenix_Warrior

My calories have been around 500-800 lately, and I'm losing fast with little to no hunger. Eating more just for the sake of eating more is ridiculous and what sets you on the road to weight gain.

strong first post. I hope you are a troll. Otherwise, you need some serious help if you think 500-800 calories is enough for anyone. That's my breakfast and I'm 5'5" and lose .5-1lb a week.

What I will say is the body is like a machine and needs a minimum amount of calories to function and maintain muscle. It upsets me when people come promoting this bull**** because it either leads to burn out and relapse to old habits or an eating disorder and I want neither to happen to anyone.