Hard time eating my 1200 calories..

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chelseap891
chelseap891 Posts: 62
in Health and Weight Loss
I don't have much to lose...as some of you know. I'm starting out at about 130...trying to get down to 115. Then 110 if I think I should...I have a hard time eating ALL my 1200 calories a day. I don't eat a lot...I try, and I don't really snack during the day much, either.

For ex: I ate tuna with 10 saltines for lunch....It's almost 6, and I was going to start cooking dinner at 6..no snack in between. And I still have almost 400 calories left for the day AFTER dinner. That's not many a day, right?

So...I'm worried that because I'm not eating every one of my calories, I'm not going to lose...and that bothers me! But I also don't want to stuff my face, when I'm not hungry...Ugh! Annoying! Haha.

Replies

  • brandyirigoyen
    brandyirigoyen Posts: 34
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    Try adding protien bars or protien drinks to your day. Not only will it help you reach your calorie intake but also assist with the weight loss.
  • mostein
    mostein Posts: 200 Member
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    Well I can relate in 1 way but not in another. I don't have much to lose and am here more to become aware of what I am eating and exercising. But I have a hard time only eating the calories this site gives me. I find I am hungry by the end of the night and need to eat. So now I'm exercising more so I can eat more! Needless to say I haven't lost much weight! Maybe you should try eating a bigger breakfast. But in my opinion, if you aren't hungry then you probably don't need to eat.
  • amg5157
    amg5157 Posts: 52
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    I hardly ever even hit my 1000 and I just recently started getting close bc my friend, that is a personal trainer, put me on this diet. I do have to say that I am LOVING the diet plan tho...lost an inch around my waist in a week.

    I have to eat every 3hrs on the hour as long as I am awake. The "meals" cant be more than 200 calories each. BUT the good thing is...I get to eat whatever I want. :-) I have been more on the healthy side of things but its good to know that if I am having a bad day having something that isnt "healthy" wont throw me off my plan.
  • schnarfo
    schnarfo Posts: 764 Member
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    I am also like this some days. I found the best thing to do though was to try and get up to the 1200 some how so for me eg it was adding a yogurt as a snack or an alpen bar after a meal. I can generally get up to 1200 now but.... I struggle some days being able to eat my exercise calories. I know I should but if i am not hungry I dont eat!

    Just wondering, do you drink a lot of diet soda or coke? I find this really fills me up so if I drink less of it during the day I feel more hungry
  • chelseap891
    chelseap891 Posts: 62
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    I hardly ever even hit my 1000 and I just recently started getting close bc my friend, that is a personal trainer, put me on this diet. I do have to say that I am LOVING the diet plan tho...lost an inch around my waist in a week.

    I have to eat every 3hrs on the hour as long as I am awake. The "meals" cant be more than 200 calories each. BUT the good thing is...I get to eat whatever I want. :-) I have been more on the healthy side of things but its good to know that if I am having a bad day having something that isnt "healthy" wont throw me off my plan.

    Share this lovely eating plan you are speaking of! haha. Inch in a week..ballin.

    I'll try eating more..maybe throwing in big salads and stuff..
  • osupike35
    osupike35 Posts: 17 Member
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    Protein, protein, protein
  • sabrinafaith
    sabrinafaith Posts: 607 Member
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    Aim for three balanced meals a day and don't worry about the rest. Not everyone works the same way. If you aren't eating breakfast, then start having 200-300 calories every morning. That will help you a lot.
  • deeulisah
    deeulisah Posts: 2
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    You need to eat 1200 calories a day. Eating less than that is totally unhealthy. You will risk losing muscle rather than fat . Muscle weights more than fat but takes up less space and muscle metabolizes fat and fat doesn't. Try not to eat less than 1200 calories a day unless you are being medically supervised :wink:
  • schnarfo
    schnarfo Posts: 764 Member
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    I looked at your diary - You need something more than a special K bar in a morning to get up to 1200 so try eating a bowl of cereal and some fruit or add a yogurt? I also noticed you eat very few carbs! Perhaps you need some to be able to bulk up your meals cal wise to reach the calorie goal.
  • xarrium
    xarrium Posts: 432 Member
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    Big salads won't help you with reaching your calorie goal if you're already having a hard time--salads have lots of fiber for relatively few calories, so while they're awesome diet food (and awesome even for non-dieters), they fill you up so you don't want to eat any more. Protein is also a filler, so even if you up the protein you might not stay hungry enough to meet your daily goal. When I'm really short of calories, I go for fruit with some kind of healthy fat (an apple with some peanut butter is my go-to snack for days when I'm just not hungry). Of course, go with what works, some people can lose weight even without hitting 1200 calories a day, while others can't lose weight despite eating every last exercise calorie.

    Good luck!
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
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    concentrate on eating more calorie dense foods likes nuts, kashi cereal, and/or larabars (all natural protein bars made from nuts and fruit)
    kashi golean cereal takes some getting used to, but it's very high in protein for a cereal, and a good source of fiber. The honey almond crunch is pretty good, and the plain ol' kashi golean is great mixed up with some white chocolate peanut butter.
  • chelseap891
    chelseap891 Posts: 62
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    I looked at your diary - You need something more than a special K bar in a morning to get up to 1200 so try eating a bowl of cereal and some fruit or add a yogurt? I also noticed you eat very few carbs! Perhaps you need some to be able to bulk up your meals cal wise to reach the calorie goal.

    Yeah, I usually eat more for breakfast...I didn't have time today! I usually eat greek yogurt and a granola bar...or cereal.
  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
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    Healthy fats are your best friend. They're typically high calorie, the right amount of filling and delicious!! You want to eat things like almonds, avocado, olive oil. These types of fats will aid your weight loss as well as eat up some of your calories when you're having a hard time eating them all up.
  • amysj303
    amysj303 Posts: 5,086 Member
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    I am of the opinion that if you aren't hungry, don't eat. But I am curious about your challenge to eat 1200 calories. I try to restrict myslef to 1200 calories/day because I don't have a lot to lose, either, and most of the time it is no problem for me to eat that much, I would usually like more than that. Still if you weigh 130, you need about 1500+cals/day to lie in bed (and maintain your weight). So is dieting new to you or have you been able to maintain your current weight on relatively few calories? If that is the case, then maybe you do need to look at the overall combination of carbs/protein/fat consumed. Read this article:
    http://healthnews.ediets.com/diet-fitness/2009/12/ask-raphael-flatten-your-stomach.html

    Also, like another post, you could try exercising more-that tends to make me hungrier!
  • mullensamy
    mullensamy Posts: 11
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    Coming from a person who has a loooong way to go in terms of weight loss... I was only hitting about 600/700 cals a day for a week straight because I wasn't hungry and I ended up gaining a pound by the end of the week. I never really bought into this "starvation mode" thing (How could my body starve if I'm 100 pounds overweight? lol) but I am a believer now. I am having a rough time balancing things out now cuz I feel like if I hit my 1200 I will gain weight, but on the other hand.... if I don't hit the 1200 I might never get out of starvation mode. It's a delicate balance but don't cheat your body, it gets really frustrating!!!!
  • pixiestick
    pixiestick Posts: 839 Member
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    Exercise more. You will find that if you start out your day with a good 30min of mod-intense cardio, your body will be more prone to telling you what you need.

    Less than 1200 once in a while is no big deal. We all have those odd days. But less than 1200 on a consistent basis will have long lasting, negative effects on your body... not to mention you will probably not see the results you are looking for.
  • dzdame
    dzdame Posts: 89
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    I weigh 130 and want to get down to 115, too. I am limited to 1200 cals on the day each week that I don't workout..I have to say that I am always hungry on that day!! I always think 1200 cals is not a lot of food..I love to workout for many reasons, but most of all because I usually get to have extra calories on those days. I think that everyone has given you some good ideas about what to add to your diet..I am kind of jealous that you have a hard time eating that many calories..Just sayin...
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    I agree with arielle0489 re the healthy fats. Will definitely use up some excess cals.

    Obviously, my BMR is different being heavier and a guy but I will usually have 1200 cals by lunch time so no direct experience with this issue :P

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