EXTREMELY picky eater

u dont need to eat 1200 calories. use a TDEE calculator and find your TDEE-10-20% to lose weight. if you want to use the 1200 that MFP may allot you, eat back your exercise cals. 1200 is too low for most people to sustain.

i was picky (not as picky as what you mentioned) growing up- but over the years i opened up more and more- and now i eat and enjoy almost everything. i hope you are able to expand your options! tastebuds change as you get older, so give some things a try every now and then- you might end up liking foods that you once hated.

My ex-husband hated veggies until he was almost 40. Try new things and experiment with different cooking methods. Use spices that you enjoy the flavor and scent of. Cooking different ways can change the textures.

speak with a psychiatrist. I mean this respectfully as possible

You probably need to eat more....1200 is too low for most people. I hope you're taking a multivitamin.

I'm very similar ... and I'm 42. It can be discouraging seeing others actually ENJOYING salads and smoothies and other "healthy" options that I just can't even imagine eating. Of course being picky does keep me from wanting some un-healthy foods that others really struggle with giving up (pizza, hamburgers, hotdogs, alcohol)...

My MFP caloric goal comes in at 1350 ... and while my options are limited, I DO like to eat. I stay VERY active and that gives me quite a few extra calories to play with. I'm usually still averaging around 2000 a day, but still (hopefully) having enough of a deficit to still lose slowly but surely. I've been with MFP since Mid-May and am down 14 pounds. I can't see how people can actually stay at 1200 calories! You can still have some of those other options you enjoy (I eat noodles, white rice and beef quite often) ... just exercise to give you some wiggle room and add them in moderation. I still eat ice cream and cookies!

I really wonder if therapy could help ... I do realize with me, that it IS so many other things other than taste (because it doesn't even get to that, I haven't even tried most things, I just KNOW I don't like them by sight, smell, texture). I don't mind anyone else eating these foods around me, I make a great lasagna (so I'm told) and other dinners I don't eat. Ironically, I majored in psychology in college, yet I can't even imagine anyone being able to get me to eat some of these things, let alone "like" them ...

speak with a psychiatrist. I mean this respectfully as possible

I agree. Again, as respectfully as possibly, this can be a symptom of OCD and a decent behavioral therapist can get you past this issue.

I'm 26 and have been like this since I was 3, so I think I'm stuck for life! lol...I've added a few foods throughout the years, but most just don't work for me.

Keep trying and adding. The problem with having sensory issues is that you are missing out on so many essential nutrients. I hope you are taking a multivitamin at least. If you find you like something and it's a fruit or vegetable, healthy fat, or protein continue to add it in your diet. I dont care if all you'll eat is ceasar salad at least you are getting some greens. Look for different ways to prepare food some people can tolerate vegetables when they are fried or when they add dressing. Sometimes it helps to look at what's missing in your diet. For example calcium then look at a list of foods high in calcium and pick out the foods you tolerate and eat them. Continue to challenge yourself. The one joy about getting older is your tastes buds change so something that was gross to you may actually be OK.

Id rather you go over the 1200 and get the essential nutrients you are lacking to feed your brain and body. It would be better to lose a half a pound a week then starve your body with so few food choices because your calories are limited.

You didn't say how much you weigh or your heigth. Without any fruits or vegggies you should have a plumbim=ng problem, but if not then you must be getting enuf ruffage.


Basil

I have the EXACT same problem I am so jealous of my husband who can have this big ol gigantic plate of food and when I ask how many calories is that he is like oh 234 and then I look at my tiny plate of food and its 400 calories

Let me tell you a story once I was making hushpuppies from scratch with my uncle we were choppin onions to put in it I literally helped him make it by the time we were done cooking i forgot they were in there and chowed down on 6 of them and as i was biting into the 7th one i saw an onion and all of a sudden my gag reflex kicked in - Mine is all in my head if i dont know its in there i will eat it and love it for most things anyways there are something i truly dont like just because i dont like them like lamb but whats funny is i wont gag with lamb - but any sort of veggie and i will gag gag gag - its so bad i have gotten to the point i dont trust people to cook things for me because they always joke about they will hide something in my food and i will love it so now i try and discretely pick thru my foods other people cook for me

I want to get past this I hate this my husband cooks stuff and i smell it and its like mmm that smells so good until i look at it then i cant even think about it

i got myself all prepped up and motivated i was like im gonna eat some veggies and was pumped about it and then i looked at them and could not do it



I wont even eat yogurt


anyways i do eat cereal with almond milk
i eat alot of wraps usually with cheese, protein (sandwich meat, eggs, chicken)
I also use them flatouts to make my own 322 calorie pizza little sauce and cheese with toppings of your choice

i eat tons and i mean tons of chicken chopped up and i sprinkle cheese on it and let it melt down then i put taco mild sauce on it (the restraunt style one you can get from walmart ) <- I think this is my fave meal

My husband has texture issues, and it looks like our son has inherited them. I am hoping the boy will eventually outgrow it, because it's not a lifestyle that's chosen; it's incredibly difficult from the inside. How many times has my husband gotten a restaurant dish that looked and smelled great, but after a couple bites realized he couldn't eat it because of the gag reflex due to texture? Quite a few times! He generally sticks with meat and potato dishes, which really we could do at home for less money, plus he'll be more likely to eat the veggies at home when we cook them right.

My son refused homemade babyfood when he was only 6 months old. It wasn't sweetness or anything, he refused many types. Eventually I realized that my blender didn't get the food as smooth as the bottled stuff. My son is two now and he'll suck on a piece of corn/a grape/a pea, suck out and eat the gooey inside and spit out the "shell". It's frustrating to me because I know he's missing out on nutrients, but also I'm ecstatic because he's eating part of it, and it's something healthy. The couple times I've noticed him try to eat whole corn, or beans still slightly firm, he gags. Poor kid puked up yogurt once when he got to the fruit in the bottom.

Definitely try the smoothies. We have a local fresh juice bar that juices out fruits and veg and makes great tasting combos. It may look green and disgusting, but it tastes great.

Has your son ever been evaluated by a speech therapist for swallowing disorders?

Change... sounds harsh, but it's true nonetheless.

I'm good with people eating most foods around me unless they have really strong smells (like fish or asian food that smells like peanuts). MFP gave me 1220 for my daily calories and I've been staying under it all week, it's just really hard! I exercise everyday so I can earn some calories back in case I screw up. I want to lose 40lbs and I'm down 2 since last Wednesday which is encouraging. I don't drink any alcohol since I can't with my dysautonomia...it just makes it way worse. But, I do plan on having rice today because I am REALLY craving it. I agree with you on knowing I won't taste something based on how it smells or how it feels...as soon as something has a strong smell or a weird texture I'm just done. If I can get it into my mouth I usually end up gagging. I can also make dinners I don't eat, lol.

Then you aren't sedentary and don't have 2lbs per week to lose. The folks telling you to abandon the 1200 calorie limits are trying to do you a favor...especially if you haven't even been eating that much.

Anyone have any suggestions for a very picky eater? I've had issues with textures, tastes and smells of food since I was a kid so I have a very small list of things I will eat. I won't eat any veggies, most fruits, nuts, peanut butter, red sauce, seafood, fish, dark meat chicken or turkey, sweet potatoes, anything spicy, most candy, brown rice and probably a ton more stuff I can't think of.

I've pretty much been living on cereal, ultra skim milk, yogurt and eggs since I started doing this because 1200 calories a day doesn't leave me much room for the foods I will eat. (Noodles, white rice, beef, gyro meat, pita). I'm just not sure what to eat otherwise because everything I like to eat is definitely off limits with 1200 calories!

Any suggestions?

As others have said, you don't HAVE to do a 1200 calorie diet. You can still lose weight on more calories. That being said, noodles, rice, beef, gyro, and pita can all fit into a 1200 cal diet pretty well. Also, you really should at least try different food instead of dismissing it all out of hand. Try foods you think you don't like prepared in different ways.