Am I eating below my goal?

I have a goal of 1200....I burned 438 calories.... I ate 1405...leaving me a net of 967.. My question is am I suppose to eat more to bring my net up to 1200 or is the net my defecit to lose weight.?

Replies

  • That's what I asked earlier. If I understood correctly then yes you should bring the net to 1200.
  • nanainkent
    nanainkent Posts: 350 Member
    I should add that I am ok with eating the way I have been. I am not too hungry with only 1200 calories. That is 1200 goal not net. I took off the sandwich I was going to save incase I was hungry because I was not hungry and my net went down to 770. That made me worried so I grabbed a bowl of ceral and some PB cups to up the amount. I was not hungry and didn't want to really eat but grabbed what I thought would be the easiest to add up to. I am feeling ok with the amount I eat but I am not losing much at all. In fact I gained 3 pds in a week and then lost 1 pound the next day. I want to lose 2 pds a week from now until Jan then I will taper back to pound a week.
  • Skinny_Beans
    Skinny_Beans Posts: 405 Member
    My advice is since some people lose well eating back calories and some don't, don't force yourself to eat if you are not hungry. See how it goes for a week or two not eating back all your exercise calories, that's how many people do it.
  • motherpenguin
    motherpenguin Posts: 17 Member
    I never force myself to eat.

    If I am hungry I eat if not hungry I do not eat.

    I aim for 1000-1200 calories from healthy food options consumed a day and aim to exercise once a day. Do my best to get all vitamins & minerals (especially iron).

    I always have water by my side.

    So that is what I my GP told me to lower my cals to 1000 and exercise what I can, not to force myself to eat. Just eat when I need to food is fuel and you know when your tanks empty.. on the same token don't let yourself become ravenous.
  • Technically, you could eat up to 1,200. If you aren't hungry maybe you don't need to.

    If you don't eat up to the 1,200 today, see how you feel tomorrow. If you are starving for breakfast and having a hard time keeping under tomorrow then you'll probably be wanting to eat most of your calories.

    On the other hand, if tomorrow isn't difficult, then you are probably okay!
  • If you're not hungry at all, then it's not really a big deal if you're eating low net calories. On days that I go for long bike rides, I can sometimes end up with 800 net calories. 2200 calories burnt can be hard to compensate for in a single day.

    That said, it might be a problem if you make it a continuous habit. Going under your BMR, even w/ net calories, could lead your body to going catabolic, where it starts breaking down the protein in your muscles to burn for fuel. Not a good thing.

    Anyway, for the most part, trust your body!

    There's also always the off chance you've miscalculated either the calories you've consumed, or calories you've burnt, so erring on the side of caution is sometimes the best bet anyway.