Under Calorie Goal....is this a good thing?

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ChoklitCherry
ChoklitCherry Posts: 44 Member
in Introduce Yourself
So when I read that ABC has completed their diary and is under their calorie goal...is this a good thing...shouldn't we be trying to meet the goal....,may be a silly question...I am learning.

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  • schondell
    schondell Posts: 556 Member
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    It's hard to get EXACTLY "x" amount of calories so being a little bit under or over is not a bad thing!
  • sullykat
    sullykat Posts: 461 Member
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    even if you are 1 calorie under your goal, it will say that.

    It says nothing if you are one calorie over.

    Personally, I'd be happy if it said "So-and-so was within 50 calories of goal for the day"
  • TinaLRoman
    TinaLRoman Posts: 41 Member
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    Depends on what the person's goals are. As an example, I usually don't eat back exercise calories. So if I burn 200 calories on exercise, I'm going to get the message that I'm under calories for that day.
  • djames92
    djames92 Posts: 990 Member
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    It's hard to get EXACTLY "x" amount of calories so being a little bit under or over is not a bad thing!
    ^this
  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
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    5-10 calories, meh, no problem. 329 calories under, might need to reconsider what they are eating! I don't normally look at diaries, so I don't normally comment on this.
  • silla1111
    silla1111 Posts: 4
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    I am always under goal and sometimes have trouble with reaching 12000. This is like week 3 for me. I work from home and because of that I am sitting behind a desk all the time. I do get to the gym a couple times a week. I think because I am somewhat sedentary not reaching goal is ok.
  • sglover14
    sglover14 Posts: 9 Member
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    eh - it depends on what that individual is trying to accomplish and if they're anything like me, I go by my macros and not try to focus on the calories alone.
  • jessipatra
    jessipatra Posts: 14
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    I think it depends on how much under. We should all be aiming to hit our calorie goal. A few cals under is fine, particularly when you gained some from exercising (but these should, at least mostly, be eaten back). If you go too far under your goal, then chances are you won't be feeding your body enough, meaning you will lose muscle as well as fat and your metabolism is likely to slow down. I know I aim to come out just under, so that it says "under goal" and not just "completed food diary", so that people know I haven't gone off the rails or binged...!
  • ChoklitCherry
    ChoklitCherry Posts: 44 Member
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    Thanks everyone...that helped :)
  • LoraleiDean
    LoraleiDean Posts: 100
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    I have always taken this statement with a grain of salt. I even view it as silly.
    Outsiders don't have all of anyone else's personal information (ie: current weight, medical requirements etc.) due to closed diaries. We have no idea if they are on a minimum caloric intake of 1200 kcalories for weight loss, or if they are currently on a maintenance diet which can give them leeway. Or even if they are trying to gain weight via muscles or otherwise.
    No one should purposely try to consume less than 1200 kcalories as this is the bare minimum to sustain life - ask a nurse in an extended care home!
    I always try to eat as least processed (or "raw") as possible for the nutritional benefits, and be in the ballpark of my calories; I even excercise to earn more.
    You know your body best. Feed it the best you can aquire, regularly, and study up a bit on health and nutrition.
    You'll do fine!

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