Help! Still confused on calorie intake

dreyeeek
dreyeeek Posts: 2
in Food and Nutrition
To start off I am 5'1 weighing at 117lbs. I am currently on my last phase of P90x and was running 2 miles 3-4days/week. I recently started running for 45-60 mins and have been burning around 500-600 calories. I know I'm supposed to be taking in more calories but have really found it hard to get it above 1200 a day. I have been eating really clean and have tried to keep it 40/40/20 but lately ive been leaning more towards getting more protein in. I calculated my BMR through http://www.fat2fitradio.com/tools/bmr/ and for a "very active" lifestyle, which is where I think I am, it says I need to be eating 2225 calories. Isn't that a little too much? I already struggle taking in 1200 calories a day, now it seems I have to double it. Mind you it seems that I am also not losing any weight at all. I've lost some fat around my stomach and arms but it seems like being 7 weeks out, it's not much progress. Any tips or suggestions?

Replies

  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    If you're doing all that activity, P90X plus long runs, you are definitely not eating enough at 1200 calories or less! I'd starve! :tongue: LOL

    Looking at your diary, your net cals for yesterday were only 176!! :noway: Another day you had negative net cals (-357!!), which = OUT OF GAS! Eat this way and workout hard over a long period of time and you risk messing up your metabolism, not to mention losing lean body mass rather than fat, or weight loss stalling out altogether.

    Eating more calories and getting the right amount of fuel for your activity doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat mountains of food. Eat more calorie dense foods and you get more cals in small portions - nuts and nut butters, avocados, full fat dairy, use olive and coconut oils in cooking, things like that. Doesn't take much of any of these foods to get you up to goal cals.

    Eating too little gives your body a reason to store fat rather than burn it. You can't keep asking it to go go go and then not give it the fuel it needs to get there.

    Great article on the problems with over training and under eating here: http://www.shapefit.com/overtraining-exercising-too-much.html

    And great topic on figuring out your BMR and your TDEE, and how many calories you should be eating for fat loss: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    If you're doing all that activity, P90X plus long runs, you are definitely not eating enough at 1200 calories or less! I'd starve! :tongue: LOL

    Looking at your diary, your net cals for yesterday were only 176!! :noway: Another day you had negative net cals (-357!!), which = OUT OF GAS! Eat this way and workout hard over a long period of time and you risk messing up your metabolism, not to mention losing lean body mass rather than fat, or weight loss stalling out altogether.

    Eating more calories and getting the right amount of fuel for your activity doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat mountains of food. Eat more calorie dense foods and you get more cals in small portions - nuts and nut butters, avocados, full fat dairy, use olive and coconut oils in cooking, things like that. Doesn't take much of any of these foods to get you up to goal cals.

    Eating too little gives your body a reason to store fat rather than burn it. You can't keep asking it to go go go and then not give it the fuel it needs to get there.

    Great article on the problems with over training and under eating here: http://www.shapefit.com/overtraining-exercising-too-much.html

    And great topic on figuring out your BMR and your TDEE, and how many calories you should be eating for fat loss: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0

    ^ very good advice. Best you listen to it.
  • stephcampbell77
    stephcampbell77 Posts: 112
    If you're doing all that activity, P90X plus long runs, you are definitely not eating enough at 1200 calories or less! I'd starve! :tongue: LOL

    Looking at your diary, your net cals for yesterday were only 176!! :noway: Another day you had negative net cals (-357!!), which = OUT OF GAS! Eat this way and workout hard over a long period of time and you risk messing up your metabolism, not to mention losing lean body mass rather than fat, or weight loss stalling out altogether.

    Eating more calories and getting the right amount of fuel for your activity doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat mountains of food. Eat more calorie dense foods and you get more cals in small portions - nuts and nut butters, avocados, full fat dairy, use olive and coconut oils in cooking, things like that. Doesn't take much of any of these foods to get you up to goal cals.

    Eating too little gives your body a reason to store fat rather than burn it. You can't keep asking it to go go go and then not give it the fuel it needs to get there.

    Great article on the problems with over training and under eating here: http://www.shapefit.com/overtraining-exercising-too-much.html

    And great topic on figuring out your BMR and your TDEE, and how many calories you should be eating for fat loss: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0


    ^^ THIS!!!
  • Staysee7
    Staysee7 Posts: 15 Member
    ^ THIS..she's giving you the best info!
  • victoriahunt93
    victoriahunt93 Posts: 18 Member
    If you're doing all that activity, P90X plus long runs, you are definitely not eating enough at 1200 calories or less! I'd starve! :tongue: LOL

    Looking at your diary, your net cals for yesterday were only 176!! :noway: Another day you had negative net cals (-357!!), which = OUT OF GAS! Eat this way and workout hard over a long period of time and you risk messing up your metabolism, not to mention losing lean body mass rather than fat, or weight loss stalling out altogether.

    Eating more calories and getting the right amount of fuel for your activity doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat mountains of food. Eat more calorie dense foods and you get more cals in small portions - nuts and nut butters, avocados, full fat dairy, use olive and coconut oils in cooking, things like that. Doesn't take much of any of these foods to get you up to goal cals.

    Eating too little gives your body a reason to store fat rather than burn it. You can't keep asking it to go go go and then not give it the fuel it needs to get there.

    Great article on the problems with over training and under eating here: http://www.shapefit.com/overtraining-exercising-too-much.html

    And great topic on figuring out your BMR and your TDEE, and how many calories you should be eating for fat loss: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0

    ^ Fantastic advice and very accurate information. Thank you for being someone who actually knows what they're talking about! Hard to come by lately. And congrats on your fitness success!!
  • pspetralia
    pspetralia Posts: 963 Member
    If you're doing all that activity, P90X plus long runs, you are definitely not eating enough at 1200 calories or less! I'd starve! :tongue: LOL

    Looking at your diary, your net cals for yesterday were only 176!! :noway: Another day you had negative net cals (-357!!), which = OUT OF GAS! Eat this way and workout hard over a long period of time and you risk messing up your metabolism, not to mention losing lean body mass rather than fat, or weight loss stalling out altogether.

    Eating more calories and getting the right amount of fuel for your activity doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat mountains of food. Eat more calorie dense foods and you get more cals in small portions - nuts and nut butters, avocados, full fat dairy, use olive and coconut oils in cooking, things like that. Doesn't take much of any of these foods to get you up to goal cals.

    Eating too little gives your body a reason to store fat rather than burn it. You can't keep asking it to go go go and then not give it the fuel it needs to get there.

    Great article on the problems with over training and under eating here: http://www.shapefit.com/overtraining-exercising-too-much.html

    And great topic on figuring out your BMR and your TDEE, and how many calories you should be eating for fat loss: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0

    In case it isn't clear yet... LISTEN TO HER!!! :happy:
  • dreyeeek
    dreyeeek Posts: 2
    If you're doing all that activity, P90X plus long runs, you are definitely not eating enough at 1200 calories or less! I'd starve! :tongue: LOL

    Looking at your diary, your net cals for yesterday were only 176!! :noway: Another day you had negative net cals (-357!!), which = OUT OF GAS! Eat this way and workout hard over a long period of time and you risk messing up your metabolism, not to mention losing lean body mass rather than fat, or weight loss stalling out altogether.

    Eating more calories and getting the right amount of fuel for your activity doesn't necessarily mean you have to eat mountains of food. Eat more calorie dense foods and you get more cals in small portions - nuts and nut butters, avocados, full fat dairy, use olive and coconut oils in cooking, things like that. Doesn't take much of any of these foods to get you up to goal cals.

    Eating too little gives your body a reason to store fat rather than burn it. You can't keep asking it to go go go and then not give it the fuel it needs to get there.

    Great article on the problems with over training and under eating here: http://www.shapefit.com/overtraining-exercising-too-much.html

    And great topic on figuring out your BMR and your TDEE, and how many calories you should be eating for fat loss: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/937712-in-place-of-a-road-map-ver-3-0

    Thanks for the input! Believe me, I'm trying to eat more, but the thing is I don't really get hungry after all of these workouts. I try to eat 3-5 small portions a day that consists of protein (chicken, flank steak or fish) and some type of veggies and rice or sweet potatoes but even then I still barely make it to 1200 calories. I mostly just use PAM spray for cooking but if I do have to use oil its coconut or olive oil. Thanks for the article too. Will read it after this message haha

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