Need Help...View My Food Diary

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shellshalla
shellshalla Posts: 263 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am now a month into my new way of life. I now have a HRM which I love. It pushes me to go longer and harder then before. As a result I've been burning 400-600 calories per day during my work out (and sometimes more). It's usually alot of cardio, but some strength training/toning too. I know...YIPPEE!

But, now I need to definitely be eating back my exercise calories, which I wasn't doing before. My goal is to eat back half of them every day. But honestly I feel like it's alot of food. I don't want to go over in carbs or fat just to get to my calorie goal. I honestly like to be a little under in carbs and fat. But those dang calories just don't get up there.

My food diary is public and I'm asking for some help. Feel free to look at any days. But I started working out more just this Sunday and I have my meals planned through tomorrow (I'm busy tonight and I pack a lunch for work, so I did it ahead of time). They show negative right now for today and tomorrow but figure in exercise calories into my day. I do it after work so I add it when I'm done with it.

Any help would be greatly appreciated to raise those calories. I don't have too big of a problem getting in carbs or fat. Also, keep in mind I watch my sodium intake quite a bit, because I'm definitely someone that feels bloated if I have too much.

Sorry for the long post, but I just wanted to make everyone understands. And I'm sorry if this sounds silly to some that I'm having problems eating my calories, but with eating healthy I guess I do find it difficult. Thanks.

Replies

  • mvl1014
    mvl1014 Posts: 531
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    I think you may be confused. As you exercise and get additional calories to consume, you get the same percentage of carbs:protein:fat. So you won't go over, because you get more. Or maybe I'm confused by what you meant.

    I think you may just need an extra snack in there. Additionally, you could double that peanut butter. You said you like being under on carbs and fat. Maybe add whey protein to your day.
  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
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    First of all, unless you've been doing this a couple weeks and not losing weight, I don't think you should be concerned. Today you're close to 70g of protein and that's great! I honestly don't think you need over 100... though of course it doesn't hurt. You're over on fiber and that's fine. That's an important one to get to your goal on. You're not too badly over your carbs or fat to be real concerned.

    I looked bak through the week and it looks like you're eating very healthy...getting your veggies, eating protein... I think you're doing great! What are you most concerned about? Getting to your calories or getting enough protein and not going over on carbs & fat? Because honestly... if you're not hungry, don't eat! I try to eat all my exercise calories but on days where I burn closer to 600 calories, I don't and I usually end up losing 1 lb the next day! I'm not saying to expect this...but sometimes it's okay not to eat all your exercise calories. As long as you are not hungry, you should be fine. I say give it a couple weeks for your body to get used to and if you're not losing, then try to adjust something so you're eating more calories or burning less but staying within your calories.

    Hope that helps some...
  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
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    It looks pretty good overall. I would make a few substitutions though - the bread you eat for breakfast is so calorie dense. You could replace it with a flax wrap (100 calories) or two slices of Nature's Own Double fiber wheat bread (50 cals per slice) and cut that in half. Then I would add in an egg white omelette or some oatmeal.

    Also the applesauce, I would substitute a real apple, way more satisfying! The Fiber One bars are basically filler, I would switch to a Kashi bar or a Luna bar if you must have a bar in there.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    First of all great job. I noticed your diet seems to have quite a bit of protein in your goal, but you don't seem to reach it. Is there a reason your protein % is so high? Many nutritionist suggest that a prolonged diet where protein makes up more than 30% of your daily caloric intake can have adverse health effects, you are set at 35%, which is okay over the short term (weeks) but not ongoing. Maybe lower your protein to 30% and either increase fat or carbs.
  • jmb1510
    jmb1510 Posts: 45 Member
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    You want to add more calories with out a lot of fat or carbs try adding some lowfat cottage cheese or low fat plain yogurt. Almonds or some sort of nut, while higher in fat, are very healthy and an easy way to add more calories. If you just want protein, protein powder is the easiest way. I add it to my soups and drinks to get more protein.
  • mvl1014
    mvl1014 Posts: 531
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    ...Is there a reason your protein % is so high?...

    True, I didn't look at your % since you indicated you were worried about carbs and fats. You don't need the whey protein, you're already at the top of the healthy range for protein.
  • themethod
    themethod Posts: 257
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    Do you still have your settings at 1200 calories a day? I noticed a few days ago in the "notes" section you mentioned up-ing them to 1400. To me that sounds like a great idea! Seems like most people hit a plateau when they stay really low for a long time. Then they eat more and... more weight comes off! Also, I second the low fat cottage cheese, or other low fat dairy. Anyway you can get a bit more variance in your diet? Looks like you eat the same thing a lot. And with that amount of chicken I'd think you'd want to set your fiber minimum to at least 25g.
  • shellshalla
    shellshalla Posts: 263 Member
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    First of all, unless you've been doing this a couple weeks and not losing weight, I don't think you should be concerned. Today you're close to 70g of protein and that's great! I honestly don't think you need over 100... though of course it doesn't hurt. You're over on fiber and that's fine. That's an important one to get to your goal on. You're not too badly over your carbs or fat to be real concerned.

    I looked bak through the week and it looks like you're eating very healthy...getting your veggies, eating protein... I think you're doing great! What are you most concerned about? Getting to your calories or getting enough protein and not going over on carbs & fat? Because honestly... if you're not hungry, don't eat! I try to eat all my exercise calories but on days where I burn closer to 600 calories, I don't and I usually end up losing 1 lb the next day! I'm not saying to expect this...but sometimes it's okay not to eat all your exercise calories. As long as you are not hungry, you should be fine. I say give it a couple weeks for your body to get used to and if you're not losing, then try to adjust something so you're eating more calories or burning less but staying within your calories.

    Hope that helps some...

    I guess I've just read basically from everyone on here that eating half your exercise calories helps people lose weight tremendously, so I guess I thought I should. Maybe you're right, just keep doing what I'm doing around 1200-1300 no matter what and see what my body does. I just don't want to "waste time"..ya know? Also It says I'm over on carbs and fat today, because I haven't added my exercise calories into the mix yet today. I do it after work. That will add about 600 or so to my calories and quite a bit to my carbs too so I won't be over.

    Thanks for the input.
  • shellshalla
    shellshalla Posts: 263 Member
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    ...Is there a reason your protein % is so high?...

    True, I didn't look at your % since you indicated you were worried about carbs and fats. You don't need the whey protein, you're already at the top of the healthy range for protein.

    There isn't a reason my protein was set so high. I just lowered that down to 30%. Thanks for noticing that guys!! Also I hadn't even bought those protein bars or shakes yet, just kind of messing around with them in my diary to see how it would affect my numbers. I probably won't be buying them now...just saving money :)
  • rocktinkerbell
    rocktinkerbell Posts: 12
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    You might want to add some almonds or other nuts into your diet. They're higher in calories and in fat, but they have the "good fats" that your body needs. So that's a good way to put some calories on. Its always good to eat something with protien right after a work out, so that's a good way to keep yourself on track.

    Way to go! You should be proud of all you've already done!
  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
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    I guess I've just read basically from everyone on here that eating half your exercise calories helps people lose weight tremendously, so I guess I thought I should. Maybe you're right, just keep doing what I'm doing around 1200-1300 no matter what and see what my body does. I just don't want to "waste time"..ya know? Also It says I'm over on carbs and fat today, because I haven't added my exercise calories into the mix yet today. I do it after work. That will add about 600 or so to my calories and quite a bit to my carbs too so I won't be over.

    Thanks for the input.

    Makes sense! That's how I felt when I first got on here... I had been counting calories but never heard to eat back what you burned off and then I got confused 'cause so many people disagree about it but I had started off once I HEARD about it by eating them and the only time I didn't lose was when I slacked on cardio so I've just never stopped. It's really all about what works for you.

    You could also try juices...you might go over on carbs but as long as you're drinking 100% juice, it's not a big deal. This won't necessarily fill you up but it'll eat up some of your calories!

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