Balancing Calories

I am struggling to find the right foods. I know I am not eating enough calories, but I am trying to look at the big picture keeping my Poly/Mono Fat, cholesterol, sodium and sugar down as well. When I see myself bombing those, I panic and stop eating.
I feel like I am making correct food choices, but I am going way over on daily goals on everything EXCEPT my calories and I'm afraid it's going to hinder my weightloss.
Any suggestions for meals/snacks?

Replies

  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    Your diary isn't public so I will just speculate...

    You are sweating the small stuff. You can't obsessively worry about all of those macronutrients. Get a handle on eating at a calorie deficit, then try to tweak the rest if you choose. My advice would be to try and hit your calorie target on the nose, stay under the allotted carbs, try to go over on protein and fiber (MFP sets them low) then don't sweat the rest. Once you have a handle on that, tweaking your numbers won't be hard.
  • now_or_never13
    now_or_never13 Posts: 1,575 Member
    Do you have a medical need to keep under so many fats, sugars or sodium?

    Eat what you want as long as you are under cals. Fill your day with fresh fruits and veggies, lean meats, healthy fats (oils, nuts, nut butters, avocado, etc)
  • khristi_irwin
    khristi_irwin Posts: 2 Member
    I didn't know you could even make your diary public. Cool! I changed the settings. Input welcome.

    Thank you!
  • My suggestion is do not sweat it. You will be become insanely obsessed like I am. I had my hair fall out, hospital trips because of dehydration, and caused a hernia in my stomach from not eating solids then eating them because mentally I know it is wrong. I have caused my body to reject a lot of foods, digestion problems and now have to see a therapist because on top of it all I have poor body image after losing 230lbs in a couple years. I still see myself at 400lbs rather then 170. Eat what you want just in moderation. Eat and be happy is my suggestion. Do not count or like you said you will come up short then shorter until you will be eating hardly anything out of fear.
  • LassoOfTruth
    LassoOfTruth Posts: 735 Member
    Maybe add a bit more fruits/veggies?
  • It looks to me like you're not eating nearly enough calories.
  • skydiveD30571
    skydiveD30571 Posts: 281 Member
    I know I am not eating enough calories, but I am trying to look at the big picture keeping my Poly/Mono Fat, cholesterol, sodium and sugar down as well.

    Why are you trying to keep poly/mono fat down? Those are good fats and your body needs them. The majority of your fat intake should be mono and poly unsaturated fats.

    Also, it's been shown that dietary cholesterol plays an extremely small role in your overall cholesterol level and blood lipid levels. Don't worry about that number, it's all about trying to stay with whole clean foods and exercise. And genetics.

    Sugar is a good one to watch, especially processed sugars (candy, etc). Simple sugars like those in fruits are good for you so don't sweat it if most of your sugar levels are coming from them.

    Sodium levels will affect water retention and bloating, and can affect people with blood pressure problems. Some don't watch it too closely, but I do since I had high blood pressure last year. Watching my sodium has helped lower it but I still keep an eye.

    So basically, watch your calories and macros (protein carb fat) and sodium if necessary. That's all you need!