Not eating enough
michaelbaba
Posts: 3
Does anyone have a method to stop from reducing calories to much. I'm 221 pounds and I find myself not meeting my calorie goal. I dont want my metabolism to crash on me and I cant get myself to eat anymore than I am. Maybe if I eat more meals a day just smaller portions, I'll get closer to my daily goal.. Any suggestions would help
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Replies
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Just go for more calorie dense foods. Add things like olive oil, avocados and nuts. All high in calories. Also what did you eat to put on your weight? At some point you were eating more than you were burning so there must be some foods that you know you can eat to help keep your calories up.0
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eat food0
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What is your current calorie target and daily deficit?0
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1. skip breakfast
2. track your calories via myfitnesspal
3. workout
4. eat on a deficit.0 -
Perhaps if you post on a typical day and week looks like we can help you.
Eat more cal dense food, cheese, full fat stuff. Or take supplements to add in like a protein shake or 2?0 -
You have to try your best to eat as close to your goal for the day each day. As long as you eat more than 1200 cals it's okay but really try to eat as close to your goal as you can. You can do it.0
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i never understood this..to get to 221 pounds you must have over ate a lot ..yet, now you cannot hit your calorie goal at a reduced level? = *mind blown*0
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I am having the same problem of not eating enough calories. I tend to run out of sodium and sugar gms to eat anymore food. I am going out to the store to look for more food with no salt and sugar
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I am having the same problem of not eating enough calories. I tend to run out of sodium and sugar gms to eat anymore food. I am going out to the store to look for more food with no salt and sugar
why?
as longs you are in a calorie deficit you can eat stuff with some sugar in it and still lose...0 -
I am having the same problem of not eating enough calories. I tend to run out of sodium and sugar gms to eat anymore food. I am going out to the store to look for more food with no salt and sugar
Don't worry about going over on salt and sugar (particularly on sugar). MFPs sugar goals are based on the recommended daily intake for added sugar. There are no recommendations for natural sugar, but MFP does not distinguish between the two in the diary. You eat an apple, and you can bust your sugar limit. Stay under your calories and over your fat and protein goals. Don't worry overly much about the rest.0 -
If this program doesn't separate the natural sugars from the added then how do I keep track if I am eating the added sugar in food? Is there a way to ask the program maker to change their fitness pal program a bit?
About the salt I just watched Dr Oz and he recommended 2300 gms of salt instead of the 1500 that is recommended by the heart and stroke foundation .0 -
If this program doesn't separate the natural sugars from the added then how do I keep track if I am eating the added sugar in food? Is there a way to ask the program maker to change their fitness pal program a bit?
About the salt I just watched Dr Oz and he recommended 2300 gms of salt instead of the 1500 that is recommended by the heart and stroke foundation .
Well first advice here do the opposite of what Dr Oz says!
If you don't have a medical condition that you need to track sugar for, then don't worry about it.
OP it would help us to make suggestions if you had your diary open.0 -
i never understood this..to get to 221 pounds you must have over ate a lot ..yet, now you cannot hit your calorie goal at a reduced level? = *mind blown*
wishing there was a "like" button for this comment!!0 -
I have this problem as well, because I am on a medication with a side effect of appetite suppression. As you eat less and less, your stomach shrinks, and you feel full faster. Try eating six small meals a day, so you can still hit your goal calories while not feeling so full you have to stop eating. Do NOT skip meals, as this will make it more difficult to hit your goal calories when you aren't hungry enough later to eat the calories you missed. If that isn't working, try adding in some protein shakes, so you can get enough nutrition and calories. The liquid empties from your stomach faster so you can still be hungry enough to eat a small meal when it's time.
If you drop below 1200 calories per day, your body will go into starvation mode, and break down your muscle, even as your metabolism slows down. Then when you do eat, the calories that are stored will be stored as fat, and your muscle/fat ratio will be skewed, and it will be even more difficult to lose weight.0 -
i never understood this..to get to 221 pounds you must have over ate a lot ..yet, now you cannot hit your calorie goal at a reduced level? = *mind blown*
Because as a person eats less and less, the stomach shrinks and has less capacity to hold food. You feel full faster than you did when it was stretched out. Also, when a person is eating unhealthy foods containing a lot of sugar, the blood sugar levels rise and drop sharply, causing the brain to feel deprived and start craving more sugar. Once the blood sugar levels even out, this doesn't happen and food cravings go away.0 -
I'm sorry there is so much dodgy science in your post. I'll just pick up on the obvious one. Your stomach does not shrink the only way your stomach can physically shrink is via surgery. As for the dropping below 1200 calories and going into 'Starvation mode' I'll leave that to othersI have this problem as well, because I am on a medication with a side effect of appetite suppression. As you eat less and less, your stomach shrinks, and you feel full faster. Try eating six small meals a day, so you can still hit your goal calories while not feeling so full you have to stop eating. Do NOT skip meals, as this will make it more difficult to hit your goal calories when you aren't hungry enough later to eat the calories you missed. If that isn't working, try adding in some protein shakes, so you can get enough nutrition and calories. The liquid empties from your stomach faster so you can still be hungry enough to eat a small meal when it's time.
If you drop below 1200 calories per day, your body will go into starvation mode, and break down your muscle, even as your metabolism slows down. Then when you do eat, the calories that are stored will be stored as fat, and your muscle/fat ratio will be skewed, and it will be even more difficult to lose weight.0 -
you are assuming someone that has been dieting for a long time, OP does not appear to fit into this category. Also, I disagree with your sugar comments but do not feel like arguing...i never understood this..to get to 221 pounds you must have over ate a lot ..yet, now you cannot hit your calorie goal at a reduced level? = *mind blown*
Because as a person eats less and less, the stomach shrinks and has less capacity to hold food. You feel full faster than you did when it was stretched out. Also, when a person is eating unhealthy foods containing a lot of sugar, the blood sugar levels rise and drop sharply, causing the brain to feel deprived and start craving more sugar. Once the blood sugar levels even out, this doesn't happen and food cravings go away.
someone who is new to dieting should not have an issue eating say 2500 calories a day, if they were previously eating 3000 and that got them to being obese...0 -
You can disagree with the sugar comment all day long, but that does not negate the scientific fact of it. As someone who works in the medical field, I assure both you and "fatdoob" that sugar does cause blood sugar to spike and then crash, causing cravings, and that the stomach is elastic, and can stretch with overeating and shrink when not enough is eaten. Since neither of you lives in the original poster's house and don't know how long she's been eating less or how much she eats, it's a bit presumtuous for you to judge.0
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http://www.livestrong.com/article/264810-weight-loss-starvation-mode/
The relationship between how quickly your body reduces its metabolism with lower caloric intake is still not clear. For some individuals, there is a clear linear reduction in metabolism with lower caloric intake. Others have a more hyperbolic relationship--their metabolism does not decrease as dramatically early in caloric restriction, but they a have significant decrease in metabolism when they severely reduce their food intake. When your body is starving for nourishment, it will begin to break down muscle tissue to provide it. Too much of a caloric restriction, and you will begin to lose muscle mass, not fat, which will in turn reduce your metabolism even further.0 -
i never understood this..to get to 221 pounds you must have over ate a lot ..yet, now you cannot hit your calorie goal at a reduced level? = *mind blown*
wishing there was a "like" button for this comment!!
Amen!0 -
Natural Sugars are good for your body if your eating processed refined sugar all day every day yes then you should be worried about sugars unless you are insulin resistant or diabetic.... as for sodium as well, your body needs sodium but again unless your eating highly processed foods that contain alot of salt I wouldnt worry about it either....We all need sodium0
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Does anyone have a method to stop from reducing calories to much. I'm 221 pounds and I find myself not meeting my calorie goal. I dont want my metabolism to crash on me and I cant get myself to eat anymore than I am. Maybe if I eat more meals a day just smaller portions, I'll get closer to my daily goal.. Any suggestions would help
What is your calorie goal? How are you not meeting it? If you eat foods high in protein good fats and calorie enriched foods that are healthy then you should have no problem in reaching your goal0 -
The 1500 recommended by AHA is for those with heart disease and blood pressure issues. I think most people that end up Googling their way to the AHA website have those issues. If you have those, then the lower sodium amount may be helpful in addressing it without so much medications.
Here is info on some of the worst offenders on salt, if that is a concern:
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HealthyDietGoals/Salty-Six_UCM_446090_Article.jsp
Here is a list of foods and their sodium content, from the Cleveland Clinic.
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/healthy_living/nutrition/hic_low-sodium_diet_guidelines.aspx
Some other things you can do to avoid salt include rinsing your beans in a colander if you are eating canned beans and avoiding cheese. One oz. of cheese has almost 400 mg of salt. Cheese is one of my many weaknesses, so this one is especially hard for me personally. I haven't eliminated cheese, but I have limited as a go-to snack.
Nuts are a good source of healthy fats and carry a hundred calories in a small amount. You can find unsalted nuts usually next to the salty ones that I/we have a tendency to gobble up.
Sugar and salt are ways that food manufacturers compensate for fat in prepared foods and sauces. Low-fat typically means more sugar and more salt. If you are choosing Low Fat on the front label of your foods, you might want to turn it around to see if you are gaining a lot of salt and sugar in return for the lower fat. Compare it to the regular variety of the same food and you might... might... be able to choose the regular variety and have a smaller portion of it.
I struggle with salt every day. My favorite noshes are pickles... Pickled anything -- Cucumbers, peppers, okra, veggies, etc. But the process of pickling/canning is a way that old farm families were able to keep foods that would normally rot around many months past harvest. Salt is a natural preservative and is used heavily in pickling, usually.0 -
Maybe the OP doesn't want to eat the same foods they ate before for fear of going off track again? I'm the same - I struggle to eat anywhere near what people say I should eat without going back to burgers, pizza, crisps etc. I don't want to eat those foods regularly (except as a cheat) because 1. I would feel guilty and 2. its a slippery slope IMO.0
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Maybe the OP doesn't want to eat the same foods they ate before for fear of going off track again? I'm the same - I struggle to eat anywhere near what people say I should eat without going back to burgers, pizza, crisps etc. I don't want to eat those foods regularly (except as a cheat) because 1. I would feel guilty and 2. its a slippery slope IMO.
Maybe this will help you and the OP http://impruvism.com/flexible-dieting-basics/0 -
Thanks, I'll have a read. Problem is I'm an all or nothing sort of person, I'm either dieting strictly, or I'm not spectacularly!0
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Thanks, I'll have a read. Problem is I'm an all or nothing sort of person, I'm either dieting strictly, or I'm not spectacularly!
Welcome. I understand that....Its all about trial error when I first joined I was like well Ill only eat this way or eat that way and well instead Im like well I still want to eat what I want to eat so I am. Just eating alot less of it and filling up on more healthier foods and listening to my body on when I am full0 -
Interesting article, thanks again. I'll try and incorporate some of the advice.0
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