Can't understand not being able to get all your calories...

I am exactly this way too. And, no, I also don't understand the whole "I can't eat up to 1200 calories day" either. I LOVE food!!! Nom nom nom ...

I actually managed to eat below 1200 calories a couple of days without feeling hungry several months ago, so I see how it's possible. Now, I wasn't actually trying for such a low goal, but too many veggies combined with low calorie/no-fat versions of foods got me there. That being said, covering the difference is easy in most cases, so most of the people claiming that they "can't eat their calories" are either ignorant of how to do it properly (like I was, so no judgment from my end) or being dishonest in an attempt to justify eating so little (note that I said "most" since some people would legitimately need fewer calories than that).

Some days I go over (more often than not) but sometimes I am a couple hundred less than my limit and not hungry enough to eat whats left. (Happens on days I work out usually! More to burn?)

I looked at your diary. You eat fries and cake and your cals are set way low. That's how it is never an issue for you

Everyone has different reasons why they gained weight and they also have different reasons why it's not always easy to meet their calorie goals. I gained from a combination of an injured hip, which kept me from moving as much as I had, and drinking wayyyy to many coffee drinks.

Once I was diagnosed with high blood pressure I immediately changed my coffee habit. This has probably cut back my calories 1000+ a day. I also began going to PT for my hip. I'm now moving more.

As far as eating, some days I'm just to tired to eat. I'm working 48 hours over the next 3 days and by Sunday will probably not be in the mood to eat hardly anything. Other days are so hot that it makes me lose my appetite.

There are many reasons people have. They've begun eating healthier foods for medical reasons etc.

yea its funny to me how people say how easy it is to hit say 2k calories and then open the diary and see what that 2k is made up of.

eating processed high dense calorie foods vs high nutrient LOW calorie foods is a HUGE difference..

also dont forget alot are not taking in enough water as well.

Everyone makes that choice on what types of calories they choose to eat. Some feel its simple cal in cal out to lose a weight number but then some prefer to have quality calories for other purposes of building muscle, bones all around good health for the rest of their lives.

My daily goal is 1500, but I only hit that goal about 1-2 times a week. The rest of the week I hover right around 1200. I am small (5'0) and don't always have a big appetite. For me I'm not focused so much on that number, but paying attention to my body for cues that I'm hungry. Not saying that I don't ever have a day where I hit 1700 or 1800 calories, but those are really rare - maybe once a month. I'm not having any problems losing weight. I think every body is different and has different nutritional needs. I eat a lot of lean protein, veggies and fruit, but I try not to eat too many (if any) grains due to tummy problems and maybe if I did I would be able to meet those calorie goals.

Usually, those people are miscalculating and/or lying to themselves and/or depriving themselves to be dramatic.

It's just so "amazing" how a 350 pound 5'3" female that's 35 and has been overweight her whole life eating tons of god knows what can download MFP and magically 6 days later "can't bear" to eat 1400 calories in a day.

Because ya know, people can't change their eating habits can they? /sarcasm

Argue all you want that you can eat things like ice cream, bread, cake, pop tarts, twinkies, etc... in moderation and still lose weight....Good for you guys,but it's not the same for everyone. I used to be one of those people who could eat 2-3k + calories easily in one day eating that kind of food because that kind of food never filled me up, and no - I was not good with moderation or making better choices at the time.


I switched to a keto lifestyle and it satiates my appetite, took away my intense cravings for sweets, and as an added bonus I never feel ravenous like I used to. I started at 218, and am now around 169 (I say around because of TOM.)

I am one of those over weight chicks (5'6 @ 169 lbs - however, have not always been overweight my entire life) that can't bear to get anywhere near 1400 calories a day because I changed my eating habits.

It's not too hard to understand.


Edit: Just so you know I'm not lying to myself or miscalculating - I am meticulous about my intake. I weigh out everything on a digital kitchen scale, and never take the weight on the box at face value. I make sure that the info entered (nutrition facts) are also correct before finalizing my logging.

Don't always make such assumptions just because you fail to understand things.

Oh, and I almost forgot...I was just hired on at a company who during the new hire meeting put a large tub in the conference room filled to the brim with candy bars, ice, chips and soda....

You know who didn't have any? This lady right here! Saying "no" to junk has never been easier in my entire life - even when it's right under my nose!

I also had to turn down our comp lunch too (they served stuffed shells with a huge piece of garlic toast, ice cream, and apple juice!)

I was hungry, but wasn't going to stray from my keto lifestyle, and just waited until after the meeting to get lunch.

Usually, those people are miscalculating and/or lying to themselves and/or depriving themselves to be dramatic.

It's just so "amazing" how a 350 pound 5'3" female that's 35 and has been overweight her whole life eating tons of god knows what can download MFP and magically 6 days later "can't bear" to eat 1400 calories in a day.

Habits are not made or broken that quickly.

Speak for yourself. I've been great for 506 days in a row, no cheat days, no days of rest..... you know whay? Because if I take tomorrow off for whatever reason.... then I'll make an excuse the following day. I WILL break the habit I've had for the past 506 days ....in ONE day. The ADHD in me will let me do that in an instant.

DOn't assume habits can't be made or broken that fast. It took me less than 1 day to start this habit, Feb 7th was 'the day I saw how fat I was" Feb 8th was the day I started changing that.....a habit made.

I get it. I remember back when I used to 'diet', so many things were off limits and I felt guilt for eating any high calorie foods. It was difficult to hit my calorie goals for the day because I didn't know what I could eat.

That's not the case for me anymore.

It is all about choices of the foods they eat.

I have issues most days depending on m activity level and I refuse to eat crap.

I use olive oil when I cook and if i have toast it's butter...but still if I garden for 4 hours wham I have so much to eat to make up for that activity I just can't do it...and I am not going to eat just to reach a number. The only day since joining here that I have even come close was yesterdy...I ate A&W, then had a store bought muffin...on normal days my diet is fruits/veggies/lean protiens and the occasional carb like bread/potatoes etc.

Check my diary and I log everything....even the real sugar in my coffee and cream (as i wont give that up).

I don't log most of my Veggies or Fruits because I don't feel they should take up my daily food requirements/calories. Fruits and veggies are a necessity to me so I just eat them whenever I want and not log it, unless its with a meal (sometimes) like today I had a banana with lunch and I was at my desk so I just added it all together. But if I want a snack and make a salad with 10 different veggies I just eat it, guilt free anyways so I don't count it.

I couldn't possibly be the only one who does this? My calorie goal according to MFP is 1,650/day (without cardio) and I'm always within 200 calories, give or take, from that without fruits and veggies being logged anyways. I also do measure out with measuring cups and spoons how much I am eating so when when I put 2 tsp of mustard on a sandwich, I actually am. If I say I ate 15 potato chips because that's a serving on the bag I will actually count 15 chips so I can log it correctly. I find it fun and entertaining.

Maybe you would be better off on a weight watchers system rather than counting calories. The weight watchers point system don't count most fruit and veg. But realistically a banana is over a 100 calories - fruit and veg scattered throughout the day could easily rack up 4-500 calories - I think you're almost cheating yourself by not counting them.

Before I started changing my eating habits I only drank soda.. can you imagine how many calories I was consuming a day just by liquid?! Now that I've switched to water (min 8 glasses a day) I'm cutting out all of those calories - plus I'm feeling fuller.

Sure, I ate more than 1200 calories a day before, but it was all in processed foods in large amounts. Not eating any breakfast (sometimes no lunch) & then eating a bunch at evening/night. Now that I eat starting in the morning, I feel full & satisfied and it only takes a small amount of food to get me back there when I'm hungry. & then add exercise calories to a person that barely moved before..

I can't speak for everyone but I used to eat out of pure boredom, not because I needed it to function.
I'm learning to tell when I'm actually hungry. I don't eat when I'm not hungry, that's what got me here in the first place.
I'm also learning to eat at specific times so I don't feel too hungry & go overboard while eating.

1. Not everyone is over weight for the same reason. Me, I got over weight after having 4 children while being under the assumption It was my responsiblity to "eat for two" when in reality I only needed to eat about 400 cals above maintenance.
2. healthy food goes further than junk food. If I eat nothing but ravioli, treats, and pretty much non satisfying food (that is ussually triple the cal intake per serving) I could eat 3000 calories easy without even trying, but when I eat lean chicken breast, and vegies, and things with sufficient protien ect, it not only has a lot less cals per serving (leaving more food to eat through the day) but keeps me full longer.
3. With the dieting myth that you pretty much have to starve yourself to lose weight, so many people's metabolism has been out of wack for years, I see that in my friends here, and my friends in the real world.
4. drinking your calories. I used to drink so many calories, sweet tea alone... I don't even want to think about it lol, but does sweet tea fill you up? no, it just replaced the water that I now drink that has 0 calories. And then theres those that had a soda habit... do you know how much room for food calories that leaves if they gave it up (mostly)?

Point being, not everyone is the same. We came here to learn better eating habits and as you can see from above, can result to a larger food intake than what we were actually eating before.

This is exactly right, I was never overweight to begin with but stopped myself before I got out of control because it runs in my family. I used to drink 2 energy drinks a day, that's about 460 calories, tie that in with 2 McDonald's double cheeseburgers and there's another 880 calories (without the fries) , and neither keep you full a long time. Lets compare that to a decent balanced meal of chicken, cottage cheese broccoli and water 24oz of baked chicken breast and one full cup of non reduced fat cottage cheese is still less than the 2 energy drinks and 2 double cheeseburgers. I don't see how it's so hard for some people to understand how its hard to reach your calorie goal, especially when we're talking about eating back exercise calories. I had to quit insanity because with how many calories my HRM said I burned even with my increase appetite I would be eating ALL DAY LONG and still not get my calories in unless I ate a huge piece of cake, and then I'm over one of my macros.. Not everyone can manage eating that much. Not to mention how much money the added food costs.

It just blows my mind!! I feel so jealous every time I read this! I literally can't imagine what that is like, or how it leads to weight gain....

Anyone able to enlighten me in my ignorance?

In my old way of eating, I didn't eat a LOT, but what I ate was nutritionally horrid.

500 calories of Chicken Breast fills you up a LOT faster than 500 calories of a burger would
2 cups of broccoli fill you faster than fries ever would. But with a lot less calories.
It's definitely an adjustment, so cut them some slack :-)