Eating healthily yet struggling to eat 1200 cals a day

cbrrabbit25

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that.

NOT TRUE!

JesterMFP

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that.

This is incorrect. MFP gives you a calorie goal with a built in deficit. Why would a calorie counting website ask you if you want to lose weight, and then encourage you to eat back calories that would eliminate your deficit?

OP - perhaps rethink your definition of "healthy food" and aim to get more calorie-dense foods. Foods that are higher in fat will help you here - nuts, cheese, full fat milk, full fat yoghurt, peanut butter, olive oil, avocados etc etc. You can also drink your calories in smoothies, milk, nut milk, protein shakes etc.

Also consider how accurate your estimation of calorie burn is, and if it's accurate - do you need to be burning 700+ calories a day through exercise? Fitness is important, but if you are doing that much exercise purely for the calorie burn, it might be helpful to cut back on some of that. You're already well within the healthy weight range for your height, and having too large of a calorie deficit is not going to do you any favours at this point.

Dobbleton

With only 10-15 pounds to lose (just guessing...not sure what your goal is); your diet really needs to b spot on. Netting 600-700 calories a day is going to make it very difficult to be successful. Try eating foods that are healthy but have a higher calorie content: whole eggs, almonds, avocado, almond butter, etc...

I love eggs but I don't like nuts. I've never tried an avocado though... Maybe I should. What do you eat them with?

TheRealParisLove

You'll start feeling hungry soon. Give it a couple of weeks and your body will adjust to your new eating plan. Just don't go bonkers when you start waking up in the middle of the night just famished.

Just know when the hunger pains return it is your body making up for lost time and have some healthy snacks on hand to satisfy your hunger.

beachlover317

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that.

This is just NOT true. MPF already has your cals set at a deficit to accomodate the amount of weight you chose to lose each week. If you exercise, you push that deficit even lower. I know you CAN lose a lot of weight fast (at first) by having an outrageous deficit - but why in heaven's name would you put your body through that? You're going to lose lean body mass - not just fat. You're going to lose bone density. You're going to cause your body to choose fueling your body or the workout. The biggest negative in eating a VLCD is that you set yourself up to yo yo for the rest of your life. VLCDs are notorious for causing regain of weight and more.

Be smart. Do some research on how the body works. IF you want fast and unhealthy? Keep restricting your cals. to below what your 20 year old body needs.

JesterMFP

People seem to go to the extreme of "I can't eat anything bad for me", and so they cut so much out of their diet that they end up under eating. Try adding back in some healthier but high calorie items. Cook with olive oil, eat avocados, nuts, peanut butter, and make sure you eat plenty of lean meat. You should be eating back your exercise calories because your deficit is already calculated by MFP. Try getting more calorie dense items. (That also means if you want a pizza one night and it fits in your calories, go for it!)

I've actually started eating peanut butter recently. I HATE nuts but I find I can stomach peanut butter and I put it in my porridge this morning along with some jam which boosted my breakfast to 422 calories. Meat is a little bit harder for me to eat because I'm a student and meat tends to quite expensive but I have a some chicken breasts in at the moment at the gracious generosity of my parents . I was thinking of having one small unhealthy food item (chocolate bar for an example) and one bigger unhealthy food item a week (like pizza maybe), I just haven't got around to it yet, this week.

Try not to look at food as "good" or "bad", but try looking at the overall nutritional content of your whole diet. Why is pizza "unhealthy"? It's worth avoiding if you can't fit it into your calories, but you don't have that problem. Pizza can be very nutritious, depending on what's on it, and even the kinds with the least nutritional value can easily fit into a balanced diet.

myofibril

My meals are relatively low in calories and I'm not sure how to make them higher in calories without making them horrendously unhealthy.

You could just increase your portion sizes then?

Absonthebrain

With only 10-15 pounds to lose (just guessing...not sure what your goal is); your diet really needs to b spot on. Netting 600-700 calories a day is going to make it very difficult to be successful. Try eating foods that are healthy but have a higher calorie content: whole eggs, almonds, avocado, almond butter, etc...

I love eggs but I don't like nuts. I've never tried an avocado though... Maybe I should. What do you eat them with?

I eat avocados with wheat bread or with pita crackers. I can also eat it with salad or even plain with pepper, you can also mash it up and make it as a dip. So tasty!

Dobbleton

Also, planning in advance helps ya. Do you have a meal planning day?

Ah, unfortunately no. I was thinking of eating some fish cakes, spinach and egg for my lunch, but I don't really think further than that!

amy1612

Use whole milk in your porridge, add some sliced avocado to your sandwich.

FitbeTMF

Sticking to your meal plan is easier, when you have a plan...

Btw. Don't beat yourself up. For what it's worth. I think I should have enjoyed my early 20's more, rather than worry about others think. There's always someone thinner, bigger breasts, cuter etc. Just be happy to be you. Having goals is great, but try to live in the moment because YOLO (I can't believe i just said yolo)

Dobbleton

Are you sure the amount of calories burned through exercise is correct? What are you using to get this? Since your weight is not high, you would have to exercise crazy and for long periods of time to burn that many calories.

Well there is that possibility! Yesterday I was walking quite a lot yesterday, 100 minutes in total with 70 minutes of that being brisk and the rest leisurely. I also did 75 minutes of salsa dancing which I put under "dancing, general" on the myfitnesspal app, however I am not entirely sure that's true.

SkyFerret

Just looking at your listed meals I could suggest that you drop the margarine from your sandwich and use some avocado or hummus instead.

Stirring peanut butter into your porridge is a great idea, as well!

ApexLeader

eat nuts for your snacks. nuts have high caloric density and you don't have to eat a ton, plus they have good fats and protein.

that isn't all you can do either. a lot of foods are dense in nutrients. you can look them up on google.

shawnlindo

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that . You are doing fine .

Dobbleton

Same thing here. I can munch all day and rarely hit 1200 calories. I munch on fresh fruit, veggies, nuts, peanut butter, and I love my Morningstar Farms veggie products. I 'do' cook with olive oil and I certainly don't pass on a slice of pizza and a baby Coke. String cheese is a good friend.

I eat very little meat. (I have a phobia about eating anything that ever had a mother or a face!) So, although I don't often hit that 1200 calorie count, I am still 'full' and I'm absolutely not starving.

Well, I'm glad someone feels similarly :'). I don't feel like I'm crying over missing big fatty meals and I'll most probably have one if I'm craving it as long as I exercise. I don't feel like I'm eating a great deal of meat but maybe if I was then it would be easier to get to 1200.

ladyraven68

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that.

Wrong. MFP already has set a deficit based on BMR and general daily activity level, not including exercise, so you can lose weigt using MFP without exercise.

You could have the same BMR as a marathon runner, but your calorie needs are very different as they run 100s of miles a week, but MFP would give similar calorie goals as it does not include exercise calories.

Dobbleton

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that.

This is very bad advice for a 20 year old who is only 128 pounds. 1200 is too low as it is. Telling her to not eat her exercise calories is even worse.

A lot of people are commenting on this post, so don't worry, I am not taking it to heart. I did eat after my exercise, it's just that I was full after eating 341 calories worth of it...

auddii

I've actually started eating peanut butter recently. I HATE nuts but I find I can stomach peanut butter and I put it in my porridge this morning along with some jam which boosted my breakfast to 422 calories. Meat is a little bit harder for me to eat because I'm a student and meat tends to quite expensive but I have a some chicken breasts in at the moment at the gracious generosity of my parents . I was thinking of having one small unhealthy food item (chocolate bar for an example) and one bigger unhealthy food item a week (like pizza maybe), I just haven't got around to it yet, this week.

Dried lentils and beans are also pretty good sources of protein and are usually dirt cheap. I can get a pound of dried black beans for a dollar, and that makes about 6 cups (I think, don't usually make the whole package) when cooked. Lentils especially can be found cheap and in bulk at a lot of Asian stores (we have a grocery store with an Asian section, and the lentils there are cheaper than a few aisles over in the "normal" section - I have no idea...).

Smuterella

You should NOT be eating back the exercise calories, they are what make you lose weight. Eating 1200 cal a day with exercise shouldn't be too hard when you think like that . You are doing fine .

WRONG

and

BACON