No it really isn't easy eating daily calories

My brother is very fit & healthy and does the Strongman competitions (yes, where they pull cars and junk!) Because he is so muscular, he has to eat 6 good meals a day of non-junk food and has the issue of calories vs. junk food. He told me one of his biggest ways to combat this is nuts- walnuts, almonds, etc. Even a small handful of nuts is high in calories, has fat (but good fat), keeps you full and satisfies this calorie deficit. Have you tried this? I usually eat about 10 almonds as my mid-morning snack (only about 150 cals) but they keep me satisfied and I'd rather eat that as a "good fat" than chips, etc.

Totally with you Simon. It takes a lot of creativity to eat back a big deficit. Maintenance cals + 1000 (or more) exercise calories and clean eating makes it hard. You are doing really well, have the right attitude to food and exercise so there is 100% no problem.

I admit i find the 1800 odd maintenance calories really hard now as things like steak and salmon omelettes are on the table on exercise days, the body wants fuelled up more and more i guess.... There have been a few days recently where i had over 4000 to eat and couldnt do it.. probably due to a lack of planning and a ridiculous amount of end-loading to the day..

It might be a tactic to up your breakfast calories to 600-700 on exercise days rather than try and shove in huge amounts later? Add a sushi to your lunch or sardines / peppered mackerel to dinner and there's another idea..

Simon, it's a matter of organizing your eating habits.

my maintenance calories is about 2700 right now, and I work out every single day for between 400 and 1000 calories a day (depending on the exercise type), and I religiously eat my calories every day.

Is it always easy to get the right foods in? Nope. Are they always perfect "good for you" foods, naw, come on, I'm not fanatic about this stuff. But I always reach my goal (well, once every couple of weeks I'll come in under, but usually, I'm right there or even slightly over).

and for those who don't think eating exercise calories works. I'm gonna break my own rule on anecdotal evidence (ugh, why WHYYYY!) and say, I've been at maintenance for well over a year, eating ALL my exercise calories for well over a year, and have been within 5 lbs (with daily fluctuation) of my goal weight since February 2009 (before Feb. I was actually trying to gain weight, which I did, from 172 to 184).

All I'm saying is, I agree that it's not necessarily easy to eat your daily calories, but it is possible to do it, and maintain that lifestyle.

Good post. I have days where I occasionally go over a little.. but there are a lot of days, and it seems like it's the days when I pre-plan my meals, that I'm consistently under.

I've ever planned a day before that was right on the money calorie wise.. and when I was eating that last meal, I got so full before I could finish that I felt sick. I could NOT eat the rest of what was on my plate.. Eating until I felt like a slug is what got me here to begin with.

So very glad I found this thread!!!! I've been working at this for a solid two weeks (just joined the site though). I'm a short, fairly well muscled 5'2 and at 219lbs..I've got a long way to go before I hit my goal weight. My BF/personal trainer has set a goal of 2000cals for me to get my metabolism back up and running because I rarely eat regularly. I have been eating extremely low calorie for a very long time, but gaining weight until last year. I have only come close to my calorie goal twice and that was with the help of Burgerville. I eat every 2-3hrs during the day and still am right around the 1000cal mark. I am struggling to fill in the extra calories. I am eating a fairly low-carb diet, but that is mostly because I really don't LOVE pastas, breads and starchy stuff. To boost up calories if I'm way under, I am trying to add in some brown rice or something. Eating on a fairly consistent schedule has helped me drop 3lbs in the last 2 weeks, however, trying to eat those extra calories the last few days has left me feeling extremely full, and bloated, and today...very fat. I'm not hungry 90% of the time and am forcing myself to eat on a fairly regular schedule between 2 and 4hrs. I honestly struggle to eat enough, I just don't have an appetite. I worry that I'm going to be stuck at this weight forever because I've managed to shut down my metabolism. I know that a lot of people struggle to stay under their calorie goals, but we are all each so different and only WE can know our bodies

**I also walk/jog with my dogs most days of the week, unless its raining, and will start a weight training program in the next few weeks. Hoping the weight training will help build up more lean muscle...and boost my weight loss.

yeah, i can see the problem of trying to make it to 2500 or so....

Simon, thank you so much for posting this!

You have taken the words right out of my mouth. I am nowhere near your calorie deficit but still most days I am finding myself with anywhere from 300 to 500 calories extra at the end of a day and I am not hungry in the least bit. I too have completely changed my lifestyle of eating and love, love, love my early morning run. I simply refuse to eat 300 - 500 more calories at the end of the day or eat unhealthy, fat & calorie laden foods just to make the numbers work.
I tend to retire early in the evening to get some reading time in and the last thing I want is to have a full stomach when I hit the haystack...(causes me unrestful sleep)

I like the idea of upping my intake of calories at breakfast. It is my favorite meal anyway and I can always use the extra energy/protein after my morning jog. I think I will try that strategy starting tomorrow.

Again, thank you for posting this and many thanks to all who have given their thougths and ideas. :glasses:

Yeah I hear ya, they put me at 1200 n after exersize it goes to 2500 and I typically don't eat anywhere close to the 1200 let alone the 2500. It blows my mind when people r like " I ate under my goal so I had some cheeseand chocolate to reach the goal" and to me that's just nuts

Simon, Thank you!! I've been wanting to put up a post about this but I had your same reservations of attack! I too have seen the hundreds of posts from people "full" after 700 calories. I just kept wondering how this could be a problem for people who haven't majorly slowed their metabolism! But, summer has finally arrived and after I hit up some miles in the hot sun--I am quite a bit over what I could eat. Last night I had put in 6 miles and by the time I had my salad and tuna helper, I had to force the watermelon in me just to get a little closer to goal. A healthy day just won't hit 2200 calories for me!! But as the other posters said, there are ways to add extra calories without really adding extra food, but if it's currently working for you--keep it up! Awesome job at hit goal and best of luck on continuing to maintain!