Not meeting calorie goals...Help?

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kessladawn
kessladawn Posts: 1
in Food and Nutrition
I am often left with anywhere between 200-over 500 cals left to meet, but i feel INSANELY full. I run almost daily, 2.5 miles minimum and I do like 40mins of pilates and yoga stretching, and sometimes HIIT workouts for about 20mins. I dont want to backpedal- I want to gain muscle and lose fat. I am worried that if I dont meet my calorie goals (which I get from the myfitnesspal app) that I will lose muscle and become far too fatigued... Advice?

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  • Mr_Excitement
    Mr_Excitement Posts: 833 Member
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    I think the My Fitness Pal calorie burn numbers are way inflated, personally. If your body and your records disagree on how much you should eat, I'd go with your body. If you're full, don't eat anymore.

    MFP has regularly told me I was 200-300 calories below the number of calories I should eat, but I've gained about 5 lbs. of muscle over the last year (if my numbers are correct).
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
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    No one can give you a proper answer without seeing your food and exercise diary. My guess is you are on fairly low calories and probably should be eating them back back that's just a guess. Eat full fat real foods not diet, eat more nuts, avocado, nut butter, add healthy oils to salads or veggies, eat the yolk of eggs, oily fish like salmon etc all will help you up your calories without actually eating more.
  • shanp88
    shanp88 Posts: 2
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    I agree! I have found the same problem and I too think that the amounts they put up are too high. I KNOW that I lose weight on 1200 calories but MFP tries to tell me that I haven't had enough calories. Also, to add more calories because I exercised is crazy and will not allow me to lose weight. I think just listen to your body. If you're full then you are eating enough. How many are you eating?
  • susheetush
    susheetush Posts: 621 Member
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    I've been trying to up my calories too and I go to bed feeling bloated and uncomfy. So I've decided I'm just going to eat when I'm hungry and hang the calories. If I come in low, I come in low. I'll still track but I don't want to force myself to eat just to get calories in.
  • Markguns
    Markguns Posts: 554 Member
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    I am often left with anywhere between 200-over 500 cals left to meet, but i feel INSANELY full. I run almost daily, 2.5 miles minimum and I do like 40mins of pilates and yoga stretching, and sometimes HIIT workouts for about 20mins. I dont want to backpedal- I want to gain muscle and lose fat. I am worried that if I dont meet my calorie goals (which I get from the myfitnesspal app) that I will lose muscle and become far too fatigued... Advice?

    You may be over reporting your exercise calories so as long as you are not hungry I wouldn't worry about it too much. If you want more calories eat calorie dense foods. One Link with related links (see right margin on the page): http://www.livestrong.com/article/336793-high-calorie-nutrient-dense-foods/
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    - HIIT can take away your appetite so if you do it regularly you might want to set alarm reminders to eat. hunger and appetite arent reliable sources to determine if you should or shouldnt be eating since those things are controlled by hormones and there are things besides food that can effect those hormones
    - eat more calorie dense food that's not a low cal or low fat version, so eat the entire egg, real butter, avocadoes, nuts, chicken thighs,
    - it's possible that you arent putting in correct calories burned. as others have noted MFP can inflate exercise calories. if possible try to wear a heart rate monitor
    - ice cream

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