First Day: Anxiety over calorie counter

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  • JenRunTriHappyGirl
    JenRunTriHappyGirl Posts: 521 Member
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    Its ok! First, doing some exercise will add calories back, so tonight go on a walk or something. Also, in the next couple of days, you will see where you get most of your calories and then you can adjust those snacks or meals. Take it day by day. It will get easier and you will learn where and what you need to adjust! Good luck!
  • Its_Nat
    Its_Nat Posts: 184 Member
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    Plan ahead what you want to eat, so you can see where your calories are going, and adjust as you need to. Obviously you won't always stick to it, but constantly thinking and planning will help you to stick to your resolve. It also gets you motivated on how to get that yummy meal in that you really really want to cook for dinner, but not sure how. You plan for it.

    My downfall is wanting a nice glass of red, so I allow myself to have that at the weekends, and I know I have to leave allowance in my calories for it.. or go for an extra long walk!! lol
  • rmn1972
    rmn1972 Posts: 20
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    I have only been on MFP about two months and I can tell you that it DOES take some time to adjust your eating habits. The first thing I found to help myself was to start taking my meals and snacks from home instead of eating out. I can pack what I want and I already know what the calorie count is before I have the first meal.
    Now that I have been doing this for a few weeks, I find that I end up bringing home some of what I took for snacks and saving them for the next day.
    In addition, the better shape I get into, the easier it is to find time for exercise, thus the more I can raise my calorie allotment.
    As someone else replied, it takes time for changes to become habits. Push yourself now and you will find that it really does become easier.
    Some of the greatest motivation comes when you find your clothes getting loose and someone you have not seen in a while says,"You look great! WHat are you doing?"
  • shakeitoffbxch
    shakeitoffbxch Posts: 25 Member
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    i had a lot of anxiety about running out when i first started logging, too. it seemed like i reached the end of my days supply and i was still starving. it was like seeing that i had none left made me want to eat more. it took me about a week to full adjust, but it was worth it. it will get better in time!

    the last few days i found what worksfor me. I used to eat 3 meals then eat another meals worth of snacks in one sitting, so i just made my meals into 4 smaller meals and it seems to work now, much more than it had been.if i have 2-3 small snacks a day, i dont feel like i am jippng myself on thing i enjoy, either.. if each meal is around 300 calories or so, i still feel full, especially if i eat many fresh veggies and balance things out. it seems like very few calories, but the fewer processed foods i eat, the longer my count lasts. try eating each mini meal off of small plates- i use like 7in diameter plates and i cut my food into kid-sized bites. if i eat one bite at a time and actually chew, and focus on being mindful about eating, and enjoying it, i dont crave tons of food later on. hope my suggestions help.

    feel free to check out my food diary for the last couple of days. Last week was a very strange week because of some emotional anniversaries and such, but these might give you an idea of what i was talking about,.
  • tiffstonebraker
    tiffstonebraker Posts: 3 Member
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    I TOTALLY felt this way!! BOMBED out on calories first day NO PROBLEM lol!!! I was amazingly shocked at the calories I was eating without realizing it. The second day I tried to make better choices in my foods and I even got my exercise in (which adds calories back to the counter FYI) and it felt GREAT. Don't let it scare you, let it motivate you. Find foods that are better for you because they'll make you feel better anyway!! It's not just weight-loss it's a life change and it's so worth it so don't get overwhelmed get PUMPED!!!
  • tiffstonebraker
    tiffstonebraker Posts: 3 Member
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    If you have a big appetite you soon learn the value of exercise calories and how to get more food on your plate for fewer calories.


    so very very true!!
  • eabaker
    eabaker Posts: 18 Member
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    Hi Sass! I have been using MFP sporadically for the last 5 months but I have not really used the community support. My daughter has been using it and has gotten a lot out of it so I thought I would too. I know what you mean about calorie anxiety. I encourage you to try to keep your goal, especially while you are new and attempting to figure out how to meet the goals and eat enough to keep your energy levels up. That said, I just increased my calorie goal as I bust it almost every day since I try to eat 5 small meals daily to keep my metabolism going. I have a health provider I trust who helped me determine my 'ratio' of carbs, proteins, & fats from my new goals. I have lost over 20 pounds so far and feel that this is what will work best for me. Good luck!
    PS - I totally agree with rmn1972, packing your meals from home makes it much easier to stay within your goals.
  • moseler
    moseler Posts: 224 Member
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    When I first started, I just logged what I normally ate everyday without trying to change anything for about 2 weeks. This gave me a good idea about where I was going wrong to begin with. I was eating too few calories a day, but the calories I was eating was high in fat and carbs. I started trying to meet the macronutrients slowly...

    Try just changing one thing at a time for now. You will get to know your eating habits and how to best change them to fit your goals. Gaining weight didn't happen over night, so losing it won't either... take it slow, be open to new ideas and challenge yourself every week to change one thing. Eventually, you will get where you are comfortable and where you want to be.
  • Owlie45
    Owlie45 Posts: 806 Member
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    The first couple weeks I was, so I ended up being pretty low for awhile. Soon though I was able to eat with out much worry.
  • mbvaldivia30
    mbvaldivia30 Posts: 25
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    . I got a little nervous too halfway through my day my calories for almost used. Instead of using two hot dogs in two g buns I use 1 hot dog in two buns it saved calories and I got full. I think we just need to become creative
  • WifeNMama
    WifeNMama Posts: 2,876 Member
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    The first few weeks take a bit of planning, as people have said. Read your food labels and go by their portion sizes, get a kitchen scale to weigh food, and use measuring cups for accurate counts. Cut small stuff:
    I omitted sugar from my coffee with milk.
    If I get a Tim Hortons French vanilla latte, I ask for half French vanilla, half black coffee.
    Instead of a balsamic/oil vinaigrette, I just pour a little balsamic on my salad.
    Fruit and a little honey on waffles instead of bathing it in syrup.
  • cocita1
    cocita1 Posts: 2 Member
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    i started new today too.... but i ate today as i normally would. then i decided to join this and as i started to track everything i ate todayi realized i consumed soo much. I definitely need to be more aware of what i eat.

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