Calorie advice!!

arac62 · April 2013

I've been on a weight loss mission for about 6 weeks now and I've lost about 20 pounds, which is great!! I have been a chronic over-eater for my entire life and changing that was a big goal of mine. I started by following a strict diet plan for one week that was very low fat and low carb. I was eating under 1000 calories a day. It was hard at first, but after a few days I got used to it.

The problem is that now I am in the habit of eating less than 1000 calories a day. I feel satisfied and I don't have any cravings. I have a ton of energy and I have been sleeping better than ever. I know from reading posts on here that I am eating too few calories (a problem I never in a million years thought I would have) but I don't want to eat more.

I have also started exercising daily, which has been going great. If I am aiming to lose 2 pounds a week, MFP says I should be eating 2500 calories every day after exercise. I really don't want to. My body isn't giving me signs that I am missing anything and I am still losing weight (although this week was a little plateau-esque than usual).

What should I do?

Jamcnair · April 2013

you can find ways to add more calorie-dense foods (peanut butter, full fat foods, olive oil, avocado)

psych0kitty · April 2013

You definitely need to do whatever it takes to get more calories in. Eating so little can wreck your metabolism. Add in nuts, full-fat dairy, bacon, olive oil, etc. Grains have a lot of calories, too. Even though you don't want to, you NEED to eat more.

jourdanerin · April 2013

Add calories by using olive oil to cook your food in. ( 1 tbsp is 110 calories!) Or eat calorie dense foods (like Jamcnair suggested).

Peanut butter, avocado, nuts! almonds, peanuts, sunflower kernels (just watch the sodium), low-fat milk, etc etc.

misssiri · April 2013

you should eat more. Too large of a deficit will cause you to lose lean body mass. It is much easier to keep what lean body mass you have than to try to get it back after it is gone. Your under eating will catch up with you eventually and you will slow your metabolism. It may not happen next week, but you are overly restricting for no good reason and it will happen.

BeinAwesome247 · April 2013

Yea, it can have a negative effect on your metabolism eventually...slowly increasing your calories would be a good idea
Do some research, ok a lot of research on what your BMR should be and TDEE - don't just take advice from MFP

I wouldn't necessarily add full fat milk but things like raw, salt free mixed nuts, olive oil on salads, avocados, etc

da_bears10089 · April 2013

I personally would change my goals to losing 1lb per week. Then log all of your exercise and eat back those calories. You need to be more prepared for this to be a long haul sort of thing, it's not a sprint.

whierd · April 2013

Eat more. Whether or not you want to is irrelevant. Your choice is to eat more or harm your body. I hope you make the right choice.

danasings · April 2013

There is a lot of sound advice here. I hate to tell you this, but feeling satisfied on under 1000 cals/day most likely won't last much longer. You could be setting yourself up for either metabolic damage and/or some major binge eating. Try increasing your calories slowly, though. Good luck

twinketta · April 2013

I've been on a weight loss mission for about 6 weeks now and I've lost about 20 pounds, which is great!! I have been a chronic over-eater for my entire life and changing that was a big goal of mine. I started by following a strict diet plan for one week that was very low fat and low carb. I was eating under 1000 calories a day. It was hard at first, but after a few days I got used to it.

The problem is that now I am in the habit of eating less than 1000 calories a day. I feel satisfied and I don't have any cravings. I have a ton of energy and I have been sleeping better than ever. I know from reading posts on here that I am eating too few calories (a problem I never in a million years thought I would have) but I don't want to eat more.

I have also started exercising daily, which has been going great. If I am aiming to lose 2 pounds a week, MFP says I should be eating 2500 calories every day after exercise. I really don't want to. My body isn't giving me signs that I am missing anything and I am still losing weight (although this week was a little plateau-esque than usual).

What should I do?

First of all congratulations on your weight loss so far and for taking control of your weight xx

It would seem that you are eating too few calories at this moment, even though you don`t feel hungry.

It can be a little scary to try to add more calories when you are losing so fast, as you will be scared of putting weight back on?

The plateau -esque thing will happen if you carry on with such a low calorie diet....Food is not your enemy, you just have to learn how to control it and find what works for you.

My advice is to add a couple more 100 calories each day, build yourself up slowly from what you have been doing.

Keep on with the exercise, just slowly work up those calories until you get to the amount you should be eating for you to lose weight healthily.

What you have to keep in the back of your mind is that this is going to be a very long term thing...most likely the rest of your life...so now is a good time to make sure you get it right so you can keep it up.

I am sure you can do it x

sarahg148 · April 2013

You don't have to eat 2500 cal/day. I'd say try eating 1600 cal/day. That way you are still in a deficit and not doing harm to your body or metabolism. I agree with others that 1000 cal/day will be difficult to maintain over the long haul, and you can afford to eat a bit more. Good luck!

Bekahmardis · April 2013

First of all congratulations on your weight loss so far and for taking control of your weight xx

It would seem that you are eating too few calories at this moment, even though you don`t feel hungry.

It can be a little scary to try to add more calories when you are losing so fast, as you will be scared of putting weight back on?

The plateau -esque thing will happen if you carry on with such a low calorie diet....Food is not your enemy, you just have to learn how to control it and find what works for you.

My advice is to add a couple more 100 calories each day, build yourself up slowly from what you have been doing.

Keep on with the exercise, just slowly work up those calories until you get to the amount you should be eating for you to lose weight healthily.

What you have to keep in the back of your mind is that this is going to be a very long term thing...most likely the rest of your life...so now is a good time to make sure you get it right so you can keep it up.

I am sure you can do it x

^^^ THIS ^^^

Yes, congrats on the weight loss. Sometimes this kind of metabolism shock is necessary, but now it's time to pull yourself back up to a good TDEE - 20% or so. Higher density foods like nuts would be an excellent start. Have a handful here and there during snack time, even if you don't think you need it. Your body will thank you in the long run.

Good luck!

scarrletti_girl · April 2013

even though u dont wanna eat more your body needs more calories in order for you to be healthy. i would suggest upping ur calorie intake to say 1800-2000 then that way you wont be at a platue and eventually you can slowly lower it again to help u lose more weight. and working out really helps. but i suggest that you dont go below 1200-1500cals a day. because 1000 cals or under is not healthy.

hope you get the answer ur looking for on here and good luck on ur journey. good job on the weight loss so far!

allshebe · April 2013

If you've been eating a "low fat" version of something (yogurt, salad dressing, eggs, etc) switch over to the full fat version.

BobsLittleBird · April 2013

Remember food is your fuel (along with the fat your burning now) It's very difficult to get all the nutrients you need on such a low number of calories. Personal example: I was on a 1200 calorie diet and ate my work our calories and was loosing 2 lbs per week, doing great I thought untill after about 3 months my nails started breaking off, flaking off like paper. I figured out it was impossible for me to get enough calcium and other vitamin and minerals in that few of calories even though I was eating all real food, nothing processed. Everyones body is different, so take all advice with a grain of salt and don't be afraid to talk to an MD.

For me personally now I only look at my calories, not the carbs and fats, and then I always try to eat according to what vitamins and minerals I still need. By doing that I don't have to worry about the carbs and fats section because they always end up low when I eat for vitamins and minerals to fuel my body along with a few vitamin supplements tailored to what I need. Hope this helps.

arac62 · April 2013

Thanks for all the great advice!! I am going to add some fat that I had cut out of my diet back in - cooking with oil, etc. I know that this will be a long journey and I am totally willing to change my habits as needed in order to stay successful. I haven't had a problem with bingeing so far. When I do eat things that are unhealthy it is always a conscious decisions - I love food and I know I will not be able to stick with being healthy if I tell myself I can never eat cake again. Thanks so much for the help!

Calorie advice!!

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