I don't consume enough calories
alsouthernbelle38
Posts: 7
Hi so I am new here, I have actully been using Myfitnesspal since March of this year! I had some surgery in December and when I was cleared I spoke with my physician and he helped me to get on my way, so far I have lost 15 lbs.......Woo Hoo! My problem is that I don't eat enough, it is still a struggle to eat the calories the doc told me to eat daily! I have been going to the gym for several years, not as dedicated as I should have been, but now that I am trying to consume more calories I have actully lost some weight and by following doc's instructions. Anyone else here seem to have the same problem not eating enough calories?
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Replies
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... No.
I find it more impressive that you find it difficult to eat all the calories you need in a day. What on earth do you eat?!0 -
A lot of people find this because (and I was the same) naturally you're going for low fat options. Go for full fat versions of your low fat options (don't be afraid of fat) and eat proper butter, cheese, avocado, use oil when you cook, add nuts to salads and hot dishes etc. I went from falling short of 1000 to easily being able to pump up to 2000
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A lot of people find this because (and I was the same) naturally you're going for low fat options. Go for full fat versions of your low fat options (don't be afraid of fat) and eat proper butter, cheese, avocado, use oil when you cook, add nuts to salads and hot dishes etc. I went from falling short of 1000 to easily being able to pump up to 2000
^^ This. Don't buy into the fad that "YOU MUST EAT LOW CALORIE/LOW FAT/LOW CARB EVERYTHING TO BECOME SKINNY AND HEALTHY!!".
It doesn't work like that. Find out how many calories you need to take in every day to maintain your weight (http://www.caloriecontrol.org/healthy-weight-tool-kit/weight-maintenance-calculator-women) and then minus it by about 500 calories.
Remember, for weight loss it's just calories in, vs calories out. If you need to take in 2200 calories to maintain your weight, and you take in 1900, you will lose weight. Obviously, eating clean foods is the best and healthiest thing for you, but if you're below a caloric deficit, feel free to have that chocolate cupcake. I do.0 -
... Go for full fat versions of your low fat options (don't be afraid of fat) and eat proper butter, cheese, avocado, use oil when you cook, add nuts to salads and hot dishes etc....
This.0 -
It's not hard, honestly. Just add a tablespoon of olive oil when you are cooking dinner. That around 100 cals right there. Buy full fat greek yogurt. Have a protein shake. Have a larger chicken breast. There are a million and one ways you can add calories and still be eating well.0
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It's not hard, honestly. Just add a tablespoon of olive oil when you are cooking dinner. That around 100 cals right there. Buy full fat greek yogurt. Have a protein shake. Have a larger chicken breast. There are a million and one ways you can add calories and still be eating well.
this ^^
great tip btw.0 -
A handful of nuts gets me to goal when I find myself short of calories.0
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I also have the problem sometimes of underconsuming or overconsuming calories. I personally think it's my excercise that does it.0
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You'll find a balance soon enough, this is why it's so important to log your food and exercise, that way you can have a look at it and hopefully see a pattern that will help you reach your calorie goal. I never thought MFP would be such a source of education, but I have learned so much, and I'm still learning. Good luck!0
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Also, it's worth noting that a lot of people don't realize they're not eating enough. Lots of people stick with "1200 calories a day" generically and don't realize their needs are different--it wasn't 'til I started wearing a heart rate monitor regularly that I found I needed a MINIMUM of 1800 calories a day, BEFORE exercise, and that was to *lose* weight.0
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The bottom line caloric intake here is 1200 calories. Are you not even meeting that?My problem is that I don't eat enough, it is still a struggle to eat the calories the doc told me to eat daily!
If not, I implore you to seek help for an ED. (Eating disorder)
Peace and I hope you able to find the help you need...0 -
Also, it's worth noting that a lot of people don't realize they're not eating enough. Lots of people stick with "1200 calories a day" generically and don't realize their needs are different--it wasn't 'til I started wearing a heart rate monitor regularly that I found I needed a MINIMUM of 1800 calories a day, BEFORE exercise, and that was to *lose* weight.
Yup agreed. I use a fitbit. I burn around 2500-2700 on an average day (obviously like anything this is an estimate made by a device but it's as good as it gets) So in theory I can lose eating around 2000 cals a day. If you are an active person you can probably eat far more than you think and still lose weight. Worth thinking about....0 -
Thank you eveyone for the advice. I naturally have just never been a big eater, I do not have any type of eating disorder. I've never been a junk food eater, I don't drink cokes. I am visiting the doc every month to monitor me while I am trying to loose the unwanted weight. He has given me a diet plan which I have no problem eating the foods suggested, however the caloric intake he has suggested is only 1000 calories a day which is below the suggested daily intake, he did state that if I eat below that I would be crashing in a week or so. I am however eating plenty of protein, eggs, chicken.....etc. And he suggested that I just do cardio right now, 4X a week, 40 minutes each, which I have been doing since March, so far I am down 15 lbs. I feel good, I am not crashing. Until I started using MFP, I just was not aware of how little calories I have been consuming all these years, so I think that is why I have been packing on the pounds, also I think hormones played a roll in it, whatever the case I am finally loosing the weight. At my highest weight I weighed 155 lbs, with my last child I did get up to 165, now that may not seem like alot to some but I am only 5'1, so for me 155 makes me plump. This is from someone who has always been healthy even at my lowest weight, at 19 and pregnant with my first child, no ED, I weighed 98 lbs., upon delivery of a healthy child that I carried for a month past term, I only weighed 110. I have always be a short, small framed person. I do know the ideal weight for my height is 120, with all this being said, if I can reach my goal, I will be more then happy, but I will continue to struggle to eat the necessary calories. For me that is a lot of food daily! Best wishes to everyone trying to reach your goals and for a continued healthy lifestyle!0
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1000 calories is about much a 3 yearold should be taking in.
do you log things like coffee or milk? (Before I started to log my intake of everything I may or may have not drank about 10 to 15 cups a day.)0 -
I am pretty new here and loggedvery few days, but still found I have the same problem - Not consuming enough calories. But I also don't feel hungry or tired, even after exercising. Does this mean I will actually lose weight faster? Or is there any other harmful effect of this?0
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I am pretty new here and loggedvery few days, but still found I have the same problem - Not consuming enough calories. But I also don't feel hungry or tired, even after exercising. Does this mean I will actually lose weight faster? Or is there any other harmful effect of this?
even though you might not feel tired when/after exercising if your body has adequate fuel then you will be able to go harder and faster. Y
If you dont feel tired after excercise then you are probbably not doing it right regardless of diet., push youself a bit harder or go for longer.
If you dont eat enough calories your body will hold onto each one since it wont know when/if it will get anymore, your metabolism will slow down to compensate. What you really want is your metabolism to be as fast as possible, (if possible eat 6 to 10 times a day for this since each time you eat your metabolism speeds up a bit. ) so you probbably wont loose any faster than if you ate more.
I lost a lot quite quickly by sitting on 1440 calories, then when I hit a plateau I bumped up to 1860, and continued to loose at the same speed as I was before, but at the same time I was able to go significantly longer and faster in the gym.
If you want to try this and see immediate results from this try this experiment.
Hit the gym how you normally would, do what you normally do with normal diet..
then the next day eat 100g of pasta of half a cup of rice exactly half a hour before hitting the gym, you will notice that you will have significantly more energy you'll be able to turn the treadmill up or the resistance on the bike up a few notches _AND_ go for longer.0 -
I had the exact same problem. Don't feel bad about it. Have you tried adding more frequent meals?0
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I completely understand. I am just starting out on here even though I've been at it for years and I don't eat that much. The calorie counter says like 2350 and I'm barely breaking 1500. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big girl but I've always been like this, Big sized-little intake. Lately it's been a little easier to eat a little more because since November when I was diagnosed with cancer, the hormone the doctor gave me has a side-effect of increased appetite. I hope that helps me out.0
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Yes I do lol coffee, everything, when I started I was even logging the Butter I was getting on my toast. Then I quit using butter because at first I was st times going over my calorie limit. But thanks.0
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I would be worried by a doctor recommending 1000 caories a day - that's what Weightwatchers used to recommend in the 1980s! Unless you have a speicific medical condition which really needs such a restricted intake don't be worried to lose weight a bit more slowly - 15lb since march is almost 2lb a week, which is right on the maximum side of safe.0
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Because I snack on fruit and raw veggies a lot, I sometimes find it tough to hit the minimum # of calories for MFP to not yell at me when I close out :-) I add things like all natural peanut butter to my bananas or apples, protein shakes and nuts to help my body get what it needs. I've started training for a race, and find that I definitely need more calories to not wear out during my runs.
I find it interesting that outside of the US, folks call calories "energy." We have such a distorted view of fat and calories. Our bodies need both to function well and be healthy. Too little of either can be just as damaging as too much.0 -
Because I snack on fruit and raw veggies a lot, I sometimes find it tough to hit the minimum # of calories for MFP to not yell at me when I close out :-) I add things like all natural peanut butter to my bananas or apples, protein shakes and nuts to help my body get what it needs. I've started training for a race, and find that I definitely need more calories to not wear out during my runs.
I find it interesting that outside of the US, folks call calories "energy." We have such a distorted view of fat and calories. Our bodies need both to function well and be healthy. Too little of either can be just as damaging as too much.
We call it energy because that's exactly what it is, you don't actually need to consume any fat.
If you look at a breakdown (off the top of my head)
1g protein = 4 calories.
1g Carbohydrates = 4 calories.
1g fat = 9 calories,
1g alcohol = 9 calories.
If you study physics then you will know that energy is measured in joules and calories (note: calories on food are actually kilo-calories not calories that you commonly use in physics .)
but essentially 1 calorie is the unit of energy required to raise the temprature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree (Celsius) . ( so a food calorie is 1 kilo of water), 1 joule of energy is equal to 4.2 calories (hence why food energy also measured in kilojoules)
If you look at the numbers on food that you purchase they are essentially all calculated in a lab where they hold a portion of the food between a flame and beaker of water and compare the heat of the water to a identical beaker heated by a identical flame.
fat is essentially optional if you eat enough carbs and protein, carbs are essentially optional if you eat enough protein and fat. Some people have to stay off fat because they get ill if they consume too much (e.g. gallbladder problems), they can remain perfectly healthy while consuming almost no fat, on the flip side some people (e.g. keto/atkins diet people) consume almost no carbs but lots of protein and fat and can also remain healthy. ).
Low fat food is pretty much a myth since if you stay within your calorie goal you can loose weight consuming the vast majority of your calories through fat, and on the flip side of that you can completely cut fat out of your diet (by eating only carbs and protein) and put on a significant amount of weight simply by having a caloric excess.0 -
I feel better when Im around 1000 - 1200
Never been a big eater, just ate the wrong things, and at really odd times, which made my body think I was starving it.
Now, I eat for a diabetic, snack every few hours (love string cheese and babybell cheeses) - I cant do nuts because of all the things I could do, I can eat a whole container, seriously, cannot count out so many nuts and stop.
I know my weak points, I don't go there.
Huge salads, never hungry - Avocado's, tomatoes, peppers, spinach, lettuce (3 kinds) chicken or fish, ohh and bacon!
And my treat - strawberrys 0 -
A lot of people find this because (and I was the same) naturally you're going for low fat options. Go for full fat versions of your low fat options (don't be afraid of fat) and eat proper butter, cheese, avocado, use oil when you cook, add nuts to salads and hot dishes etc. I went from falling short of 1000 to easily being able to pump up to 2000
^^ This. Don't buy into the fad that "YOU MUST EAT LOW CALORIE/LOW FAT/LOW CARB EVERYTHING TO BECOME SKINNY AND HEALTHY!!".
It doesn't work like that. Find out how many calories you need to take in every day to maintain your weight (http://www.caloriecontrol.org/healthy-weight-tool-kit/weight-maintenance-calculator-women) and then minus it by about 500 calories.
Remember, for weight loss it's just calories in, vs calories out. If you need to take in 2200 calories to maintain your weight, and you take in 1900, you will lose weight. Obviously, eating clean foods is the best and healthiest thing for you, but if you're below a caloric deficit, feel free to have that chocolate cupcake. I do.0 -
A lot of people find this because (and I was the same) naturally you're going for low fat options. Go for full fat versions of your low fat options (don't be afraid of fat) and eat proper butter, cheese, avocado, use oil when you cook, add nuts to salads and hot dishes etc. I went from falling short of 1000 to easily being able to pump up to 2000
^^ This. Don't buy into the fad that "YOU MUST EAT LOW CALORIE/LOW FAT/LOW CARB EVERYTHING TO BECOME SKINNY AND HEALTHY!!".
It doesn't work like that. Find out how many calories you need to take in every day to maintain your weight (http://www.caloriecontrol.org/healthy-weight-tool-kit/weight-maintenance-calculator-women) and then minus it by about 500 calories.
Remember, for weight loss it's just calories in, vs calories out. If you need to take in 2200 calories to maintain your weight, and you take in 1900, you will lose weight. Obviously, eating clean foods is the best and healthiest thing for you, but if you're below a caloric deficit, feel free to have that chocolate cupcake. I do.0 -
word!!0
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You're not alone in this. I was having a hard time getting to 1200 even. The tip is to add healthy items that are higher in calories, like natural peanut butter, whole wheat bread, avocados, beans and nuts.
These are all healthy options and they drive up those calories :P
Be careful you're not eating to much of them, but a healthy dose is definitely recommended. (:
I got my calorie count up to about 1300 by doing that, still working on getting it higher :P0 -
I have just started on a training programme to lose some weight whilst keeping my 3 x gym per week going. I have only been tracking my diet properly for a few days (4 weeks into the program) and have now noticed that my calorie intake is very low although my target carbs and protein levels are almost where I want them to be. I feel fine and not at all lethargic.0
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